[PRP] A Brush With Fate (Boyko/Yuda x Mamake/Beltaine)

[Neon Fly]

Almost immediately after making the suggestion Mamake had almost regretted it. To make decisions without first consulting her daughter wasn't like the usually level-headed doe. Being around Boyko made it difficult to keep her wits about her apparently, though she wasn't exactly ready to admit that to herself just yet. Hearing that Yuda was likely to agree to the idea of their traveling together did make her feel less uncertain. Beltaine's reaction, on the other hoof, was another matter entirely. She hadn't seemed particularly fond of the stranger to begin with, but maybe the buck was right.

They'd had a little bit of time to get to know one another now, perhaps she was worrying over nothing. Titling her gaze back towards Boyko the lioness' pale guardian smiled prettily in silent agreement and--with a playful flick of her tail--bounded down the path the predatory pair had taken. It wasn't difficult to follow their tracks, even with the ground dry they left a trail of rumpled grass in their wake.

No. How hard he could make such a simple word sound. Not necessarily unkind in his manner, but the weight of his voice made Yuda's answer as unyielding as a mountain. He wasn't going to leave her alone no matter how hard she fought to turn him away, that much he had made perfectly clear. So what was the young sculptor to do?

Beltaine started by turning her face away from him, it was easier not to think about him if she couldn't see him or at least that would have been the logical conclusion. Strangely enough, she could still feel his presence. The heat from his large body as he walked with her in easy tandem, occasionally almost close enough for their fur to brush. Every gentle step echoed in her ears as if it were thunder. Even the rhythm of his breath seemed to reach across the distance to her as the air grew still between them. How was it possible that he could become even harder to ignore when she wasn't looking at him?

His voice invaded her thoughts.

While the rest of her remained purposefully inattentive, the tiny lioness couldn't help it when her ears pricked with interest. His waterbuck companion had taught him to track? Not other lions? That was.. it was a strange thing for their kind to admit and yet he said it without any undertones of embarrassment or shame. Yuda was not what one might commonly expect of an average lion a fact that might have put him at odds with others. For Beltaine it made him more relatable, reluctant if she was to admit it.

Still. She didn't want to learn anything from him. She didn't want to be that close to him--or anyone--ever again. Clearly, Yuda just wasn't taking the hint.

You will so leave! You'll leave right now because I--oof! Tripping over the small leather satchel and some small woodworking pieces left in a nest of flattened grass where she had slept the night before, Bel immediately recognized the gear as her crafting tools. A newly triumphant look on her face. ...Because I'm perfectly capable of handling myself!

They both knew she had found her things entirely by fool's luck, but that wouldn't stop her from attempting to use it to her advantage. Sliding into the belts and riggings that held the harness in place across her chest and ribs, the talented runt began anew. Drawing a deep breath as she prepared to chew off his ear. A-and another thing...!

Whatever that thing was it never was made clear, her tongue lapsing into silence upon noticing her mother and Boyko in the distance. They looked pleased with themselves. Maybe there wasn't any reason for the sinking feeling in her stomach, but she could stop it no more than she could stop a rock from dropping to the bottom of a river.
 

[Ovarian Paint]

Boyko had little trouble following the trail left behind by the lion pair, though he was a bit baffled as to why it circled around itself for a while. He didnt comment though, for all he knew there had been a game at hoof or something as innocent as that.

He wondered if he had been hasty as well in agreeing to staying with the pair, but he knew that really it was for the best. Yuda needed to push his past away and heal from the deep wounds left from it, and hiding out with the buck was not the cure that he needed, it wouldnt make things better, it would only make them worse.

Boyko couldn't let that happen. Yuda needed to heal, and it seemed the lasses needed their aid somewhat and their protection, it was an ideal choice really. Yuda wouldn't protest to much in front of the pair, but the buck knew in private that he would protest to the buck, but it wouldn't change anything in the end. Yuda wouldnt allow them to be defenseless, specially when he understood to well how dangerous, and difficult it could be to live the life they both seemed to share.

When she stumbled over her own things, unknown to him at the time they belonged to her, he moved forward with concern. "Are you alright?" He asked carefully, she was a bristly thing it seemed, and only made it clear how little she wanted to do with him, but some how...he couldnt just turn away and leave.

Why. Why couldn't he just leave her here to defend herself even though he knew, they both knew that it wasn't as if she could, though she would do whatever she could to keep her mother safe. That was brave, braver than any lion he had fought in battle, or who had fought at his side. Death was a risk with the job, one you knew when coming into it, though the cubs being dropped into warrior titles had little concept of what lay ahead of them. Yuda hadn't at the time, but he had thrived on it later.

"Beltaine..Please." He voice was gentle now, almost pleading. "I just want to ensure your and your mothers safety is all. Please allow me to do that, and after..I'll leave. You'll never see hide or hair of me again." He didnt understand why these words were coming out, he really should drop her in a river so she could see the sense in his words.

But with her next onslaught, he took it until her words fell silent, and he turned to follow her gaze to the see the pair coming towards him, Boyko seemed..different, the lion tilted his head as he eyed the buck he'd known all his life.

Neon Fly