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 Posted: Wed May 25, 2016 2:28 pm
 Hayato had been sulking for a long time. But falling in love with his half-sister certainly warranted that, he felt. He had traveled far, far, far away from his home pride since then. Hopefully farther than his loose slut of a father had ever gotten. How embarrassing. How shameful. The black and blue lion resented that absentee father of his. So instead he was near the Iknimaya. He had found a pretty lioness who he liked and he was happy spending time with her. And she knew who her father was and it was not the same one as him. That basically made her perfect in his eyes. But he was not a part of that pride so he just lingered and loitered on the edge. It suited him, he felt. No way he could interbreed with relatives if he was not stuck in one pride, right? He laid on a rock under the shade of a willowy tree. It was one of his favorite spots. He would watch the herds of prey animals come and go, maybe sometimes he would catch one, or sometimes strange travelers would cross the lands and he would have the chance to talk to them, hear about the broader outside world. It was interesting but he did not feel that pull to travel any longer. No, he was happy here, with his lady friend nearby. He was a lucky guy.
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Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2016 2:11 pm
 Paropakari was so tired. So, so tired. He and his mate, Gopala, were trying to reach the Ela’wadiyi. They had heard that several pride members from the fallen Jini-msemi were headed there. After the landslide, they were displaced and disbanded. Permanently. Not like the fire in the swamp that drove them to the mountains that Gopala had told him about. They rebanded when they got to the mountains, and that was where he found them, and where he found Gopala. She was all he really ever needed. Not the mountains. Not the pride. Just her. And then their offspring. All fourteen of them. But they had lost every single one of them. And had no way of ever knowing if they would see them again. They felt very defeated, but they kept going on. They trudged along the savannah. Their heads hanging low. Asking any lion or leopard or cheetah or anything that would stop and talk to them if they knew the way to the Ela'wadiyi pride. How had they gotten lost? So many others from the Jini-msemi were headed there too. All they had had to do was follow.
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2016 8:15 pm
 Gopala's feet dragged along. She was dirty and muddy and matted and unkempt. She was skin and bones, ribs and hips sharp and protruding, fur falling out where it wasn't a tangled mess. Her eyes and nose and ears were crusty and flies buzzed around them and the still unhealed unhealthy wounds she suffered during the landslide, ones she'd sustained from walking carelessly and tripping over things or bumping into them, and even a couple of spots where she had hurt herself out of her own neuroses. They needed a healer, Paropakari said. No, they needed their children. He had been injured too, but was doing a much better job of hiding it. She suspected he was doing it for her benefit, not that she felt she needed it. Or deserved it. She knew that none of it was her fault. There was nothing the lioness could have done to prevent or stop the landslide. But as a mother, she still felt insurmountable guilt. Fifteen cubs... Fifteen beautiful beaming faces that she had carried and birthed and nursed and raised - and lost. She was deep in her depression. Her deep, bright and shiny pink eyes were now dull and glossed over. Oh, there, she stumbled and fell, having stepped in a hole hidden by grass and brush and almost twisting her ankle. She did not cry out, she righted herself with her feet under her body, and she lay there, head hung low and silent. If she did not have Paro, she would have willed herself dead long ago. But she hung on, not for hope, but for him. She looked up at him, and began to struggle back onto her feet.
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2016 8:27 pm
Hayato heard a "thump" and flinched in his surprise. He leapt off of his rock and spun around, looking for the source. Not far off, he saw them. An orange lion and a very wobbly and splotchy lioness. He was on edge, nervous and suspicious. The large black lion approached with caution. "Do you need... help?" His ears were laid back against his head and he tried to make himself look smaller and less intimidating. He tried to use a voice one might use when talking to a frightened cub. Clearly these two had seen better days. "I made a kill this morning, there are some leftovers if you'd like..." As he got closer, he noticed just how bad the pair truly looked. Sores and wounds and gashes on the female, swollen joints and hair loss. The male looked incredibly stiff in his movements, like he was suffering immensely but trying not to show it. In his shock, he let out a breath that was between a gasp and a hiss. The lioness smelled of infection and death. Hopefully it would not be too late for her. Her companion looked at her with such love and compassion. "And please, I know some healers in the pride nearby. I am not a member of it but I have some friends within and they are not an unkind people."
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2016 8:35 pm
 The large, orange lion hovered nervously over his feeble mate. He was beginning to become worried every time she fell that it might be her last. He was so weak, too. He would try to carry her, but he knew he would not be able to do it forever. But at least they would pass on together. They would be with their cubs again. It was tempting, so tempting to let go. But unlike Gopala, he still held onto a shred- a glimmer of hope that some of their children survived. That they would be together again in this life. Because if he did not have hope, then he had nothing. At the sound of an approach, he had a new purpose- to protect Gopala from something besides her depression. He puffed himself as much as he could- not that impressive in his present state- and snarled. The other lion jumped in surprise again but offered respite. Kind words, kind actions. The food they needed as they were on the cusp of starvation. The healing that Gopala needed before her infections took her. She was standing now, but barely. He looked at her, and back to the black male. They had no other option. He nodded, slowly, and working his dry mouth to make it form words, he weakly said, "Thank you."
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2016 8:44 pm
 Gopala was aware of this new, black, lion, and that he was speaking, but she did not turn to face him or pay any attention to the sounds he was making. She shifted her weight from one paw to another, but they were all so sore and tired. Her head was hanging down and swaying. Paropakari said something to the male and then gave her a gentle nudge. It was almost enough to knock her over entirely. She directed her gaze to his face and he said something at her before the black lion walked off and Paropakri began to follow. She struggled to gain momentum as he looked back over his shoulder at her and ran back to her. He spoke to her more and she nodded, finally able to make herself plod along. Wherever Paropakari went, she would go, too.
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2016 8:59 pm
He nodded sympathetically and began to walk off, leading the pair towards the Iknimaya. He would find Sylwanin once they got there, and see if she could find some kind of poultice for their wounds. But first- they would stop by the gazelle he had hunted earlier that day. It was not an especially large specimen, and he had definitely eaten his fill, but hopefully it would be enough to keep them alive till they could find Sylwanin. the end
Hayto word count: 541
Gopala word count: 424 + 133 = 557
Paropakari word count: 413 + 153 = 566
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