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 Posted: Sat Dec 02, 2006 5:21 pm
Tufani was patrolling the Pridelands again, quietly wandering through the night in search of...something. She wasn't hunting for food; her siblings had grown older, and her mom was teaching them to hunt. Finally, she was free of the burden. And yet, part of her still desired to take care of the little ones. How silly.
Tonight, she was searching for...him. That was a silly idea too, as Tufani knew that rogues came and went as they pleased. Toshiro couldn't be any different, and yet...Tufani shook her head in an attempt to drive strange thoughts from her head. Was this what her mother had seen in Auri before they had pups together? If so, she was in a lot of trouble. She didn't know what happened to those whose feelings weren't returned.
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Posted: Sat Dec 02, 2006 5:37 pm
Dirt and dust from the far deserts still clung to the white parts of his body nad his silver mane. The cuts on his side were by now healed over, a perfect line of scars on his shoulder. He'd been to and from the oasis a few times, and now... He pondered why he was in these parts. Perhaps it was subconcious, his desire to see familiar places feuling his travels to turn in such directions. Or perhaps...
A scent filled his nose, and a green-eyed lioness seemed to appear out of the darkness. Perhaps this was why. Silver-ended tail flicking, the piebald regaurded her a bit before approaching. "Well, look what we have here... A familiar face..." And a familiar coat pattern. The stripes were distinctive against her black body, like his own coat was a distinctive pattern. No other lions he knew of had the piebald markings he had, after all.
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Posted: Sat Dec 02, 2006 11:02 pm
((Tufani has red eyes. rofl ))
Tufani blinked in surprise as she nearly stumbled at the sight of the piebald lion. Could it be that her unspoken wish had been fulfilled? Of all the scenarios that she had played out in her head, this was the most unexpected. Yet it had to be him; she recognized that coat pattern, the very same black hue as her own fur, only with different markings. Then, when he spoke, she knew...
"Back from your travelling?" she asked, trying to sound calm and collected. It didn't bode well to let random rogue lions that she met only once know that she was out hoping to find them, even if he had been so helpful in trapping food for her family.
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Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2006 12:59 pm
((Sorry, been a bit since I last took a look at her xd ;; ))
Tail flicking a bit, the male couldn't help but smile. "Not entirely, but I couldn't resist visiting." Going over, he let a rumbling purr escape. "My mind was filled with thoughts of a ruby-eyed lioness in the area. Perhaps you've seen her?" He meant her, of course, but it was still fun to play.
White paw stepping carefully so as not to get much dirtier, Toshiro admired the lioness. She'd changed somehow... He couldn't put his paw on it, but something had changed. Perhaps it was the subtle scent brushing past his nose, perhaps it wasn't. Maybe it was something in her demeaner, not something physical... But he still couldn't place a paw on it.
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Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2006 1:45 pm
((No worries. We'll just say she has magical color-changing eyes of doom. rofl ))
Tufani couldn't help but grin at the strange turn of her luck. There was something strangely different about Toshiro now; he was acting more than friendly. Mom had said something about this, but Tufani couldn't remember the words of the old jackal. Not while she was looking at the male and listening to him purring at her.
"I think I did see this lioness of whom you speak, staring at me from the water," she said, winking playfully at him. "I am glad you have come for a visit. It's good to see you again."
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Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2006 2:28 pm
((Or it's a trick of the light 83 ))
Toshiro chuckled, standing next to Tufani. "I see..." He nuzzled her, the purr still rumbling in his throat. Perhaps it was desire that welled up in him, desire for the company of this lioness he barely knew. Mental or physical, though? He didn't particularly care at the moment. "And how have you been while I was gone, little darling one?"
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Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2006 2:48 pm
The black lioness smirked before she nuzzled him back, burying her head in his mane. It was such a nice scent; she didn't want to leave it. "I have been well. My siblings are now adults, and my mom is upset she doesn't have the babies to take care of anymore." Granted, she missed having little ones depend on her as well, but she couldn't admit this to Toshiro; he had his travelling to worry about. She was being selfish. And yet...he had called her "little darling one". Did that mean something, or was she just reading too much into things?
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Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2006 3:55 pm
A far-off look came to the male's eyes. One ear ficking, he glanced towards a distant horizon. "I haven't seen my own mother in so long... Probably dead if she lived after a hyena got her." Ears flattening a moment, Toshiro looked back at Tufani, smile returning to his maw. "But that's in the past. Shall we focus on the present?" Or perhaps the future... He refrained from voicing that part of the question.
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Posted: Sun Dec 03, 2006 7:17 pm
"I am sorry to hear about your mother," Tufani said quietly, feeling genuine sorrow for him. She couldn't remember her birth mother anymore, but the thought of losing Jani was too terrible to bear. Her momentary sadness passed, however, when he smiled at her again. "Of course," she said. "It's best to focus on the present before it becomes the past." Then, after a moment's thought, she asked, "Did you really return just to see me again?"
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Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 1:43 pm
"Of course I did." He rubbed his head against hers, a rumbling purr escaping. "How could I resist someone so lovely?" It seemed true, he was unable to resist her. Thus, he came back. "But I'm not sure I may ever come back again, after tonight..." He looked away, ears moving back. "You see... The king I serve, he may die soon, and it would be in his wishes to have me die as well, as the witness to his last moments of weakness to keep such a thing secret." Oops, did he let that slip...? Indeed he had. But it was a lie, and only he knew this. He acted every bit as if it were the truth, though, careful not to reveal that it was a lie. If it later proved he was alive as he passed by again... He'd just weave another fanciful tale about why.
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Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 2:04 pm
Tufani blinked in surprise. Toshiro, dead? But she had been hoping he would come back for so long. She closed her eyes for a moment in an effort to control the tears that she felt were welling up. "That doesn't seem like a fair thing for your king to do. Even if you did see him die, you wouldn't have to tell anyone." She thought for a moment, wondering what she could do to help him. She so desperately wanted to help him, as having him dead would be so terrible. "If you need a place to hide, you can stay here, in the Pridelands. My den has plenty of room for you. If nothing else, I insist that you stay tonight. You'll need your strength if you decide to go wandering again."
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Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 2:24 pm
The male gave her a bitter smile, chuckling a bit. "I would have to go back to the pride and tell them. That is, if I live. Or.. He may wait until we get back to the pride to kill me. There's no telling... I may be able to elude him for a while. It'll just be a shame..." He looked up at the sky. "As far as I know, none of my sisters has bore a single cub, nor has my brother sired any cubs... Our family line ends at us... To have it be whiped out so easily... It would be like a crime to the lands."
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Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2006 2:47 pm
Tufani frowned. This was a dilemma indeed; she could possibly help him with one thing, but to help him would be to accept that he had to die, and she didn't like that choice at all. Still, there didn't seem to be any other way; he didn't even know when or how he was going to die, or even if he was going to die. He might still live.
He might still live!
But if he did not, she didn't want the memory of him to be gone forever. "I...I could continue your line. Jani'll help me raise cubs, I know it. They'll grow up to be strong and healthy in the Pridelands." she frowned and shook her head for a moment. "Jani will probably be upset with me, but I would not mind. I've wanted cubs ever since my siblings were born."
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Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 4:16 pm
Score... "You would do that? For me? I feel so... So honored.. And cubs, little darling one, you shall get." He nuzzled her, ears perked towards her. The male looked around after a moment, concious of the fact others might be present. "Do you perhaps know of a private place we might go? I'm afraid the large white spots on me and my silver mane make me feel... Exposed." That part was no lie, he did feel rather exposed. In sunlight or daylight. Would his children be the same? Perhaps he'd find out, or... He could never return... But he would have to. What if he sired males? He would take them back with him, raise them to be warriors... Even if they got his small stature. Or it. One couldn't forget that there was chance for only one. Fate would decide, though, if it was one or even like his parents, five. Or if it was some number between. Indeed, only fate knew.
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Posted: Tue Dec 05, 2006 4:40 pm
Tufani glanced around, pondering the answer to this same question. She would have to explain this to her mother eventually, but she didn't want to explain it as it was happening. That wouldn't do at all. And, with Mufasa's death so fresh on everyone's mind, they might harm Toshiro, a rogue, even though he wasn't as they described Mufasa's killer.
"There is a watering hole, slightly south of here, that is surrounded by trees," Tufani said, putting on a brave smile. Now that it was decided, she was a bit scared of what would happen next. But she had to help Toshiro; he had helped her family, after all. Besides, she felt so good when he nuzzled her. "No one ever goes there; it is a good place for what we are planning. We'll have alone time for hours if it is what you desire."
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