Moonshine

[Hafifu]

.|IC|.
She sighed contentedly. Maybe her life was finally turning around again. Her mother would've liked it here. But it wasn't her mother that had been chased away. Hafifu's face looked content, reflecting how she felt inside. Her mind was racing and wandering through her past like a freight train. Did she miss it? Yes, she did. Her old pride, her old friends.

That was why she'd been so afraid to come to new pride. She had been afraid that she would lose all that she loved and held dear once again. But no matter. Not any more, at least.

Today, only her fourth within Maji, Hafifu was doing a little more exploring. She'd looked around a little before, but she'd never come to this place. A lot of her time had been spent around the Sana 'til now. Trotting steadily towards the fallen tree, Hafifu's pale yellow eyes looked it up and down. It reminded her of an old tree she'd once played on in her youth!

The memory brought a smile to her maw as she approached the tree. She couldn't resist. Looking up and down the ancient thing, she leapt onto it, her claws scraping against the rough bark as she tried to keep her balance on top of it. Her tail whipped about to help her find her balance... and when at last she did, she stood up straight, her ears perked as she looked over the lands, imagining she was at home once more and was a cub.

She even walked across the log, a grin beginning to form on her face. She hoped no one would come see her now! The last thing she wanted anyone to see was her acting... well, immature. She stopped padding along the log, and lifted her head to look out again. This was home now, and she hoped she could start forming her own fond memories of it.

Finally leaping from the log, Hafifu started to pad away. This place was nice. Not just this place, but the entirety of the Maji lands! And the Maliki, Takasa, wasn't so bad either. She even wanted to think she might be able to become good friends with him, if she really tried...

[Kinha]

OOC: Hehe... me gets to use my new table! IC: It was still cool. The sun had not yet rising all the way, and the day had not reached its peak temperature yet. Enjoying the coolness of the air, Kinha had decided to explore the new lands... her new lands. She had seen Hafifu walk off earlier, and decided to go too. She hadn't expected to actually meet up with her. Kinha had seen this tree from a distance, as there was really nothing in the distance. Kinha decided that this would be a good place to start exploring. As Kinha neared the tree, she saw a lion playfully climbing on top of it. Fearing a loner, Kinha was nervous to go closer, but her curiosity got the best of her. As she cautiously padded closed, Kinha realized that it was Hafifu! Kinha smiled. Hafifu was doing the exact thing Kinha had wanted to do for a long time... have fun. Kinha had been concentrating on keeping herself alive for the past few months. It really wasn't that long ago. My exile from my former pride is still clawing away at me. I want to see my brother again. Kinha and her brother had been unusually close, even for a brother and sister. She desperatly wanted to see again, especially now that he was full grown. Kinha frowned. She knew she probably would never see him again. Turning her attention back to Hafifu, Kinha smirked. This will be fun... Kinha crouched into the grass and began slowly making her way towards Hafifu. Hafifu, concentrating on the tree and her own thoughts, hopefully would not notice her.

[Hafifu]

.|OOC|. I'm still deciding whether or not I wanna use mine! XD I like your's, though.

.|IC|.
No sooner had her paws met the ground, Hafifu stopped again. Something was... off. Blinking her pale yellow eyes uncertainly, the lioness glanced around. Then she sniffed the air...

...lioness?

Yes, she knew she could smell someone, a female. The scent was still somewhat strange, but familiar, too. ...maybe it was Kinha, the new female. Not that Hafifu herself was any old-time member. She had been the first, but she was still new herself! Her black-rimmed ears shivered nervous as she tried to pinpoint any sound at all, any that could belong to a roaming lioness or lion.

But she could find none. Taking a small step forward, her keen orbs scanned the area. ...nothing. Or was there something? Looking again, she was almost certain she'd seen something, but just as soon dismissed it as being nothing.

[Kinha]

OOC: Thanks! Sorry for the shortness... IC: Kinha continued making her way towards Hafifu... I can't believe I am doing this... Kinha was just becoming aware of how childish she was acting right now... Oh well... I haven't done this since well... with my brother... Just thinking of him brought tears to her eyes. Not that she hadn't stopped thinking about him. Watching Hafifu, Kinha noticed that she suddenly perked up... Did she smell me? Kinha realized that she was downwind of Hafifu... Oops... Kinha continued on until she was close enough... slowly moving through the long grass until she was right behind Hafifu. Then she struck. She jumped out of the grass right next to Hafifu and tackled her, laughing. "Gotcha!"

[Hafifu]

Hafifu shook her head. You're seeing things! It was nothing... she told herself as she began to turn again, her expression slightly befuddled.

It was not until she was suddenly being tackled from the side and a playful voice cut through the air that she realized something had been there after all!

"Gotchya!"

It was the other lioness, Kinha! At least I'm not going crazy, Hafifu thought even as she let out a startled mrowl, her eyes twinkling. The young lioness had realized right from the start that it was all play, and had no problem throwing herself head-on into a cubbish mode. "You got me!" she exclaimed with a grin, "But now you must feel my wrath!" she roared in play, then swatted a forepaw at Kinha's face. Of course, her claws were sheathed, and the blow was rather gentle, as it was not aimed to hurt.

Hafifu even started giggling despite herself, her black-tufted tail twitching as she got up off of her side. It was good to be around her own kind again, and to have them be as friendly as Kinha.

[Kinha]

OOC: Hehe IC: "You got me! But now you must feel my wrath!" Kinha barely heard the words escape Hafifu's mouth before was swatted playfully in the head. I feel like such a cub again! Kinha playfully swatted Hafifu back, then laided down in the grass... tired from stalking Hafifu. It felt so nice to have a pride again. Kinha looked at Hafifu. She had been here only a few days, but for some reason, it felt like a lifetime. Hafifu had been but a stranger a few days ago, and now felt like... well... a friend in the making she decided. Not quite a friend, but not a stranger either. Kinha had not had a friend for a long time. She felt a special connection to Hafifu, both loners, for who knows how long, then accepted into the same pride but a day apart. Kinha only hoped that she would continue and become friends with not only Hafifu, but also Takasa, and the other pride members... if they ever got anymore. Kinha now felt as if a missing piece had been filled, the part of her that desired a pride, friends, family, that part of her had all but been satisfied. Kinha looked a Hafifu again. She felt a need to know more about her, but being a loner herself for a while, she knew that she would have to be careful. Someone's past can be a touchy subject. Kinha decided to approach it as kindly as possible. "Hafifu, where did you come from?"Kinha blurted out.So much for gently...Kinha had a nasty habit of not thinking about what she said before she said it. Maybe she won't take it too hard..."Well what I mean is... why did you decide to join this pride?"There, thats a little better.

[Hafifu]

No sooner had she risen, did the play stop once more. She felt like a cub, at least for that moment... and, suprising even herself, she'd enjoyed it! Just because she was an adult didn't mean she always had to act like one. Sometimes play was a good thing. It could relieve the stress of life's hardships, even if for the shortest time. Hafifu stretched, her rump in the air.

At that moment, Kinha plopped down nearby.

Hafifu neared her new pride sister and followed suit. Sinking to the ground beside the other, she smiled faintly. Though she did not know Kinha's feelings, she recognized her own; that empty feeling of loss was being filled again, and she hoped that she could look upon Kinha as a friend. She hoped, even, that they could grow even closer as time passed.

"Hafifu, where did you come from?"

Hafifu, whose thoughts had started to wander again, started slightly at the abruptness of the question, but smiled nonetheless, her pale yellow eyes turning to Kinha. Somehow, she felt that she had known this lioness all her life, and she felt at ease. But then, it was once in Hafifu's nature to be so trusting... perhaps that was returning to her?

"Well, what I mean is... why did you decide to join this pride?" Kinha reiterated and rephrased.

Hafifu didn't mind. It hurt, true, to think of what she had lost, but she felt it best to be open with her new pride. She always had been before...

In a soft, kind voice the lioness answered, "I came from a pride called Rivier. The Maliki there never liked me when we were young. I suppose he carried that into his reign," said Hafifu as she shifted her weight a little, "so he cast me out of the pride..." she shrugged softly as though it were nothing, but was aware her face likely gave away the thoughts, the sadness, of leaving her old friends.

"So a wandered a little. Went here and there. I suppose I was secretly wanting a pride again, and so when I scented a lion here, I... wandered in! I met Takasa..." she paused a moment, a grin forming, "I believe you do know the rest, as you arrived not even a day after myself."

[Kinha]

OOC: IC: Kinha listened intently as Hafifu explained why she had been brought here. The way she put it, it sounded a lot like what had happened to her. Kinha could see the pain in her eyes as she told how she had been cast out of the pride. How horrible it had felt to know you will probably never see anyone again. "Sounds a lot like what happened to me... I was also cast out of my pride, but the Maliki was my father, so it was not because of him. A loner who had entered my pride commited a crime and blamed it on me. No one believed me." Even though Hafifu didn't ask, once she had told her story, Kinha felt compelled to share hers too. Kinha couldn't hide her pain as well as Hafifu though. She trusted Hafifu, something that had never come easily to her. It was very suprising to Kinha to be able to trust one so quickly. Kinha focused her eyes on the horison, after everything that had happened to her, she had felt for the past few months that she would end up dying in the vast savannah. It hadn't happened. Kinha snapped out of her daydream and began once more to look around her. She felt better than she had in her whole life. Strange, but she couldn't explain it.

[Hafifu]

Hafifu felt as though she had found a long-lost sister... it was like she had known Kinha from her youth, and yet, they'd never truly met before now!

With her ears perked to catch each word, Hafifu listened to Kinha's own story, and her face creased with sorrow and knowing. "To lose everything you ever held dear at once it a dreadful thing," she paused, "And to be wrongfully cast away..." she sighed, "Like losing everything, for no reason at all." and slowly, she shook her head, her eyes closed as she reminisced.

It didn't last long, however, as her eyes opened again and she spoke once more, her voice soft and filled with a light that it hadn't had in a while, "But you know, I think things will be better from now on... I truly think they will be."

Her eyes wandered to the horizon. She felt so happy and relieved, like she hadn't in such a long time...

[aslan]

A male lion named Aslan followed the scent of a lioness.
after a few minutes he saw her, he smiled, his eyes gleamed for a fight for some fun!
he saw a another lioness near her he sighed, he wanted a fight but females can be rough at times.
he ran to them ignoreing his mothers words when he did this before " one day you will be killed, because of your playfull curiosity!"
he came to a halt and roared loudly he wanted a fight and food...