[PRP] Of Flowers and Flirting

[LadyPipen]

There was a great deal to like about having a home- Aladra loved the jungle she and her mother had found, even if the pride it housed was... Odd. But perhaps the oddness of its inhabitants, of which she was now one, was part of its great charm. She stayed and mingled- and even danced, what a fine thing!- with her mother until the sun hung low on the horizon and the night birds began their chorus.

Yes, she enjoyed quite a bit of this new home, but old habits died hard. The company was pleasant... To a point. The pride seemed a never quite ending party- they only really paused, and by the time Aladra was able to slip away from the welcomers and the revelers as the sun set, she was outright exhausted.

In the distance, she heard the pride continue their merriment- that would continue into the night, she had little doubt... And perhaps she may rejoin them, once she could hear her own thoughts again. For now, though, the soft hissing of the waves and the whisper of the wind through the trees that grew along the beach dunes almost drowned them out, though she hadn't gotten terribly far.

It was a pretty place, where the Kizingo'zaa lived, it reminded her so much of her long lost home, and yet was entirely different. There was much to be enjoyed in that- like the wet sand under her paws, the breeze that ruffled her fur- even with the colder weather, the salty water that licked her paws wasn't entirely unwelcome. It was a beautiful sunset, it was, and even her sudden overstimulation couldn't really ruin her mood.

When she spotted another lion- a bit away, almost hidden among the hibiscus flowers that grew near the treeline- she almost fled. It would have been easy- he might not have ever seen her, even, bouncing through the waves as she was, there was a whole beach between them. But oh, was he pretty- the sort of male her mother would tsk at, no doubt, all pale, even if his mane was dark- he had pretty purple markings, though, and stripes that tickled the back of her mind in familiarity.

This place was to be her new home- so she might as well start making herself at home, she figured, twirling to bound quietly up the dunes, friendly smile on her face, "You know," She said cheerfully, soon as she was close enough to speak comfortably, padding to a halt to look over the lovely flowers, "I've travelled for a lifetime, and I don't think I've ever found a lovelier flower."  

[Daffupanda]

Nili did not like big, exaggerated events and feasts. He did not relish in the dances, and as counterproductive as it sounded, really, really did not like the public singing he'd had to put up with while he was Song Keeper. He'd always thought of the art as something private, to be shared only with those he trusted or those that actually understood him. Aedeze came to mind, as did his mother, whom had sung him lovely lullabies when he was but a cub.

He'd put up with it all while he'd held the Keeper, but seeing as it was no longer required for him to be at the heart of it all, when the celebrating had begun... he'd slunk away. His family had spotted him doing it, no doubt, but had done nothing to stop him, given they knew him well enough to know it would be an exercise in futility.

He'd chosen a small grove of flowers, away from the main scenery of the beach, and he'd hunkered down there, with the very faint sound of the feast in the background and closed eyes. He, like Aedeze was also losing touch with his muse, and it troubled him terribly. It was not that he didn't try, and not that he did not spend time listening, just that... as the days passed, the voices were weaker and weaker for most everyone but their mother and possibly their father. His younger siblings suffered more, and he was sure for all her talk, Aedeze could barely hear her rocks. Binti could no more hear her fireflies, and he often walked out to see her simply sitting in a field beyond the territory, watching the bugs flicker in and out with nostalgia.
"They're shy," she'd said with a sad smile at the time, "I'm sure that's all this is." But Nili was older... and Nili knew better. They were not shy. Just weaker with every passing moon.

The cheerful words hit him almost like a punch, and the lion's reaction to them was rapid and guttural; his head turned towards the sound, and the previously sad expression morphed into a sneer, pulling up his lips over his teeth. He fixed his gaze upon the intruding lioness, almost as if ready to hiss at her, but stopped. Not because of anything she'd said, mind you, and surely not because he felt remorse over his initial reaction, but rather, because in the back of his mind, he'd heard his mother.

Always be kind. Be polite to travelers, Nili. They have it harder than we do. He'd never understood it until he'd been out in the rogue land, but still, the notion at least made his ears relax from the tightly pinned position against the back of his neck, "This flower's retired," he told her, "And isn't in the market anyways," he made motion down the beach, to the sound of the celebration, "Feast's over there, you know."  

[LadyPipen]

Oh.

Oh boy.

Aladra recognized the hostility as soon as he turned on her- he didn't have the face for ferocity, really, though he certainly got a gold star from the cerulean lioness for trying. He was too pretty, and though the scowling and sneering was certainly unbecoming, it wasn't truly frightening. Not to her, anyway, perhaps some other tiny, delicate little lioness, but not to her.

"That it is," She replied, smile unwavering, "But I'm a fan of more private parties, myself. Old habits die hard," Surely he knew she was new- even without the strange speed with which rumors seemed to travel in this pride, had he lived on this beach for any length of time, he'd have the sense to know she was not an old face. Besides, he didn't seem one that particularly enjoyed strangers- she'd have to fix that avoidance.

That being said, she sat, neck craning to enjoy the fragrance of the flowers, before she smirked back up at him, "A tragic day for me, then," she sighed dramatically, not sounding incredibly crushed in the least, "That my favorite flower's already enjoyed by another lioness, though I suppose I can still enjoy the sight from afar until you wither, and content myself with that," Dramatic, yes, but some fellows liked that.

Perhaps he was the type. He sat alone, grumped viciously at her, and with his face twisted so, looked rather........ Well, bitchy. So ferocious, Aladra found herself thinking him adorable, truly, "Since you seem so insistent on your thorns. All I have are delicate petals to share, you know."  

[Daffupanda]

Hardheaded, a little dimwitted or perhaps hard of hearing; she'd fit right in, Nili figured with a mild snort, turning his eyes to look at the hibiscus which offered no words of agreement or disagreement. They remain silent, as they had all night since he'd hunkered down there. He only turned back to offer a mildly annoyed look in her general direction when she sat down and made herself at home, forcing a long suffering sigh out of the male's mouth.

He was Very Clearly Not Interested, so he idly wondered why she was willing to push it when he was sure there was a beach full of other lions that could tend to whatever needs she had at that moment in time. Why him?

At her second string of words, his ears pinned back again, and he offered her a hurt look. It wasn't her fault she didn't know about Sewti, and it certainly wasn't her fault she was unfortunately dragging up unhappy memories for him, but at that moment in time, Nili felt like the lioness was intentionally digging her claws into his side, as irrational as that was, "My mate is dead," it was said with no growl, and no anger, rather just flatly, and as coldly as possible, as if to detach from the reality of it.

He didn't really know if she was dead. Hoped she wasn't but... she wouldn't have stayed away otherwise. Wouldn't have willingly walked away from him and their children. Nili was sure of it, and yet in some back, deep part of his mind, he hoped she had, as that would mean she was still alive, even if he'd never see her again, "I'm really not in the mood," and then, in a rare show of emotion, let out a sigh, weary and heavy, "It hurts. Stop. Please. Stay if you must, but please... stop."  

[LadyPipen]

Oh.

Oh boy.

The reaction bubbled up again- in a very different way this time. She was no stranger to loss- did she bury it under doting on her mother, flippantly flirting with any attractive lion she saw? Yes, of course, because enjoying the life she had was better than mulling over what she had lost, in her mind, but that did not mean she was so heartless as to push her interest and rub salt in the poor, pretty lion's wound.

"I'm not quite so heartless," She answered softly, scooting closer- no longer in interest of flirting touches, and not touching at all- but close enough to share warmth in the cooling air. Lions were social creatures, after all, and having someone sit beside you and fill the silence with purring was more help than sitting and being broody and moody alone, or so she figured. So she had always been told.

"I do find myself partial to hibiscus, though," She said idly- she wasn't about to pry into a stranger's personal life, and she was sure it would not be welcomed- she was in a pride now, and chances were he had all manner of close friends and family to lean on. Gone were the days of lone strangers passing in the night, gleaning what little comfort they could before passing on. "Impala Lilies are nice, too- and Proteas, but I don't think I've found hibiscus anywhere else. It has a rather carefree look- I think that's rather fitting."

The lion clearly liked flowers- and Aladra was not one who was prone to silence, and besides, silence with a stranger was likely as odd as prying into his personal life and struggles, so here was an offered distraction from the misery at hand. Go get it, you big, sad, beautiful thing, you.  

[Daffupanda]

Lions were not mind readers after all. Who knew? Not Nili, anyways, given he'd never really tried to explain his feelings or situations much until his mother had grabbed him and pulled him aside, not that long ago, actually. It was a testament on how lowered his defenses were that he'd given it a go with a total stranger, and further testament to the wisdom of mothers everywhere that Misae had been right all along.

That all he needed to do to actually get through to someone was explain how he felt and try to get through to them that way, rather than by barking and hissing. Fat load of good the later had ever done for him.

The moment he'd spoken, Nili had felt the shift in the air, the tension dissipating, leaving behind a vague sense of calm instead, and when the lioness scooted closer, the intentions were clearly different. His hackles slowly lowered, and he allowed his muscles to relax, slowly melting back into the previous calmness and the sad silence of the flowers around him. He let the stranger's presence to stay and found it... not nearly as annoying as he'd thought he might.
It was an odd sort of companionship, given that Nili was not used to people willingly offering their presence as comfort. Aedeze was socially stunned, given he himself was actually more adept at it; the few of his children that remain were much too happy to notice, and while his parents had always been there... they had their own things going on at the current moment. Most of the pride had kept a wide berth, a thing he had actively encouraged, and this lioness no longer seemed to be aiming to gain something, instead offering it free of charge. It was new.

He remain silent for a really long time, and then, "I've always liked water lilies," he said, "They were the least prone to gossip," the comment could have been taken as a joke, but the lion seemed serious enough, "The Hibiscus were the loudest," which was why he'd chosen the spot; he'd always felt a kinship with them, and he was sure that one day, when his time came, he'd return to them in particular. That was why he'd always carried some in his mane; he'd always felt accompanied then, "Used to sing to them," he said in another bout of strange openness, "Back when I was Song Keeper."  

[LadyPipen]

Song Keeper? That rank sounded familiar- sounded important, and yet she couldn't remember which it was. There were a great many ranks, after all, and.... Ah.

Ruler.

Royalty was no new concept- her mothers were queens and had life taken a different turn, at some point, so would she have been. As it were.... Well, she couldn't find much complaint. Life was giving her no shortage of pretty faces to gaze on, even if some were sadder than others. "I suppose I could believe that," she chuckled- she knew there were those in the pride that believed they heard 'muses'- it was cute, if a bit... insane, but that was the point, wasn't it? Believing or not, Lilies did sound like the quiet sort.... And she could believe hibiscus, big and bright as they were, would be very loud.

"I'm sure they enjoyed it," She mused, not daring to ask about all the past tenses- from what she had overhead, the lions here were very, very serious about their muses- past tense was bad, poor thing. "I always fancied that the world grew a little sweeter, a little brighter, around a lion enjoying his craft," it wasn't flirtation anymore- the statement of a fact, marked by the wistful softness of remembered days... Oh, she'd enjoyed that- the grumpy, stand-offish lions were still the best, even then, she enjoyed the privilege of their rare attention, but even the more open ones made life a little brighter when they graced your presence.

Or so she had always thought- it was the part she missed most about home, perhaps.  

[Daffupanda]

"You know... I never did enjoy singing in public," her musing was all it took for the ghost of a finger snap to flash through Nili's mind, reminding him that this lioness, was not, in fact, part of the pride. She did not know, and could not understand. She'd never heard anything speak to her in the way he and his siblings had; at least Aedeze had been claimed before she'd stopped hearing her rocks, "I did it for me, not for them. Was not a craft. At least not for me. I always felt it was meant to be an intimate affair," a pause, and then a frown, "Not that anyone ever asks me what I think."

He was smart enough to detect the empathy she clearly felt, and sensitive enough to understand the way she tiptoed around the issue. After all, it had once been his job to meet potential pride members and introduce them to their ways. As such, he was not new to the strangely polite way rogues spoke of the muses, as if afraid to offend. He turned his head and regarded her for a moment, up and down, as if attempting to figure out what made her tick, "Planning on sticking around, then?" he allowed himself to finally lower his frame down to the ground, accepting her presence there; she seemed unwilling to move, and he was most unwilling to exert the effort necessary to actually offend her into leaving anyways. That aside, she'd offered comfort when really... there was absolutely nothing in it for her, "I'm intrigued over if they gave you a run down of the place, or if they just offered you that repulsive beverage," it was clear from the way he spoke that Nili held no love for the brew.
"Load of Bullshit, that," he told her as he focused his gaze on the flowers again, "The muses left these lands many years ago, and perhaps they were right to do so. Maybe we should've left too," he made motion in the opposite direction, down the beach, "The escalating tension with our neighbors is really not going to end well," he would never have allowed it to get to this point, had he still had a paw in anything, but again... no one asked him.

No one ever really asked him about anything.  

[LadyPipen]

Perhaps that was what made him so prickly- Aladra had never been shy about what she wanted. for all her tiny stature, and had never been shy about letting everyone know exactly what she thought. "Perhaps your thorns might not be so vicious if you spoke up without prompting every now and then- I certainly don't hear much complaint with the change in which flower I'm admiring," she winked, before pausing, head tilting to the side for a moment in contemplation before speaking up again, "I'm sorry, that came out terribly rude. I'm not used to being proper company these days."

Innuendo was all well and good, but not appreciated here- not yet, at least, she still hadn't decided if she put it out of her mind entirely as a possibility for the future yet. "I am, though," she said, watching him as he settled down- that was a win, then, if he was comfortable enough to enjoy the cool night and her company, "Sticking around. My mother and I- I don't know if you've ever had the pleasure of roaming the roguelands- forgive me if I assume not, with the royal blood- but for all it's charm.... It's not a life I'd like to settle permanently into." She had no secrets to keep, no reason to withhold what he asked for- so, she didn't, simple as that.

"I have a feeling I should be thankful I took no part in the drink," she remarked- she might have been amused, if Nili's own apparent vehement distaste wasn't quite so obvious, "Something about insanity, I'm sure- there's rumors, but I enjoy what I see. Every pride is strange, from an outsider's perspective, but Kizingo'Zaa don't seem malicious- and the pleasant atmosphere reminds me of home, even with your own brand of oddity," She was glad to answer his questioning, really- it was so much better than 'I'm from nowhere in particular, passing through to nowhere in particular'.

"I don't think anyone mentioned tensions, though," Aladra said, ears perked forward, "I assume that means we arrived at a bad time....," the tiny lioness wasn't sure she liked the sound of that- she wasn't keen on the idea that she and her mother settled down into a new pride, just days before they were to be wiped off the map by a more aggressive pride, and they sent to wander again. She wasn't keen on that thought one bit, and if Nili were to look, her carefree, gentle smile would have been replaced by a concerned, distasteful frown for the first time in this conversation- no, she wasn't pleased to hear that at all.  

[Daffupanda]

A brow arched as he watched the lioness seamlessly slip back into character once more, and somewhere deep, Nili was vaguely amused to watch the mild horror and concern flash over her expression when she realized what she'd said. It was clear that rather than this being a spur of the moment thing, like he'd first thought, it was more of a character trait, "Thorns are there for a reason," he said, in what he hoped was enough of an intonation for her to realize he was not exactly offended any more, now that he was aware she was not purposely trying to take a dig at him.

"I did," he said, and his features clouded, "For a while, anyways... came back here to chaos. Should've never left. I made a mistake," but then again, hindsight was twenty twenty and he figured he could not have done anything in any other way, "What charm? The rogue lands were terrible. Inhospitable, and mostly just... devoid of, well, this," he turned his nose towards the sound of the cheering in the background, "For all that I don't enjoy being in the center of it, I don't want it gone."

It was a strange comfort to doze off and then lift your head and hear it in the background, steady and going. He'd missed that in the rogue lands most of all.
"Perversion," he said, "Drugs meant to make you hallucinate. Which is fine - they're fine. But they're not what we had before. It was never about that. It was never a drink, or a poison, or gas or anything. Just... magic. And then, one day, the magic fled the land," Nili had seen Gods. He knew what they were, and how they worked, and knew magic was just one more thing about the world; one did not have to explain it, "A God came... 'blessed' our land, and just like that, we no longer heard them. I guess he undid what someone else had done; I wouldn't know."

He saw the panic in the younger female's gaze, and he shook his head, "The Bahari are no more aggressive than we are. Don't worry about that, but the tension's still there... and it'll blow up at some point. Even if 'blowing up' just means screaming at each over the huge ******** wound on the ground that separates us like old harmless lions," he placed his head over his crossed paws on the floor and looked up at her from his position for a long moment before uncrossing his paws and then reaching out to pat the ground, "Relax, rogue. You will not come to harm."  

[LadyPipen]

Aladra might have arched a brow, had her maw not split open in a yawn, instead- he wasn't so bad, when he wasn't prickly as a cactus, though even after such a short aquaintance the tiny lioness felt sure in the knowledge that he'd be loathe to ever admit it.

At the moment, though, she was content to settle in and lay beside him, stretching out a small paw to place on his nose in a very cub-like gesture, "That's a very rude way to welcome a new pride sister, young lion," she teased gently, not bothering to move her paw from his muzzle until he pulled away or mored it for her.

It wasn't a particularly intimate or flirtatious touch, anyway, just gentle as Aladra's eyes fluttered closed- there were worse things than sleeping with a pretty lion, even if she weren't sleeping with said pretty lion. Besides, after a lifetime of travel and a full day of the pride's seemingly never-ending party... There were worse things to be had.  

[Daffupanda]

Amusingly enough, if the lioness had known him longer, she'd have realized he really did had no problem getting in touch with his more feminine side. That the prickliness was less that and more... a mild inability to express what he felt and let the world know so it could adjust accordingly. He watched the lioness' maw split into a giant yawn, and he rolled his eyes, letting out a sigh, as if to allow the tension and weariness out of himself such a way, "True," he said, "But I've never been known for being particularly polite anyways. Got nothing to lose at this point in time," he huffed her paw away and turned to watch the flowers sway in the breeze. The flowers Nili felt were almost lost to him the further the days crawled by...

As the lioness closed her eyes, Nili opened his mouth and began to sing. One of the many songs he'd whispered to the flowers he hoped still listened, even if he could not return the favor. The party down the beach a backdrop to the soft song the old song keeper sang.

[ THE END ]