There was nothing quite like the ebb and flow of the ocean. Even as it pulled away from the shore, there was this constant, magnetic rush of the water back to the sand. It was as if they simply couldn't exist without each other. A faint smile played on Faatina's face as her eyes slowly opened. Until then she was focused on the feel of the ocean, drawing away from her paws, sinking slowly into the wet sand. Now, her olive eyes were adjusting to the light, settling on the sun sinking low on the horizon, sitting daintily upon the ocean's end. A beautiful end to a beautiful day.
The past year had been stormy for the pride. Faatina could be accredited with nothing more than hiding until it was over. For some reason, she found herself unable to ride out the massive waves that overtook the Bahari'mtoto, shaking it to its core. Faatina let out a long sigh. She knew she had been cowardly, fleeing from her home to a solitary safe haven to avoid the mess that was erupting. Now, she knew she had to return. She missed her family, her friends, the ocean. Taking a step forward as the ocean rolled back over her paws, she heaved another sigh. She missed this. All of this.
Bahari'mtoto was her home. The salt of the ocean coursed through her veins. This was where she was meant to be, all this time. Paw after paw she strode into the water, stopping before it reached her stomach. Faatina glanced down, peering at her paws through the swiftly crashing water. It was a silly thought, but right now the sole thing crossing her mind was how long her legs had gotten in the past year. She was finally fully grown, back to mixing up medicines and caring for cubs - some even cubs of her siblings and her siblings' grandcubs. Strange how times changed things.
Thinking of changing times, Faatina flashed back to her Ba'ushufo - her Rites of Passage with her siblings. The process had changed her entirely, just as these moments here were changing her now. Realizing the power the ocean truly had, and understanding how incredible it was that the water chose to treat the pride so gently (well, most of the time) - it was life-altering. The gods truly smiled on the Bahari'mtoto, and it took Faatina, as a young girl, a while to realize this. And now, after the events of the tsunami and the washed up whale, she was realizing this once again. Although everyone always has occurrences in their life that are unfortunate and terrifying, that does not mean that the gods did not view them favorably. Perhaps they merely realized that those in their favor could handle the most bad in their lives.
Faatina strode forward once more, pushing against the currents attempting to drag her back to shore. The waves began to crash through her chest, and she closed her eyes once more, heart absolutely racing. 'Here we go,' she thought as her paws began swaying, gently lifting off the ground. Most would feel panicked in this situation. But the Bahari'mtoto were not most. The typical lion would feel out of control and helpful, but Faatina felt none of that. Here, floating in the ocean, she finally felt free.
