Welcome home? (Ajili & Sethunya) -Fin

[[Eskimo]]

Ajili was content with life that day.

The sun looked so relaxed as it shone down on the valley. It was a perfect afternoon...Ajili wanted to mimic it. She was lounging in the shade of a tall, thin tree, smiling as she dozed. Dhani was perched in a branch above her and was dozing as well.

Ajili thought of her cub. Ingi was safe, playing with his friends. The rest of the pride were still picking up the pieces, but things were getting better.

The blue and yellow lioness sighed. She opened her eyes and sat up, deciding she was done with napping for the moment. There were certainly more important things to be doing. She'd go ask anyone if they needed help with something. Dhani was disturbed from her nap at the sound of movement below and jerked her head around to see if there was danger. Once she saw things were alright, she fell back asleep.

"Dhani," Ajili called softly. Dhani jerked awake, making a loud snirking sound. She looked to Ajili. "I'm going to see if I can be of use to someone, alright?" Dhani nodded lazily and promptly fell back asleep.

As Ajili began to walk away, something caught her eye. An unfamiliar shape in the distance...It looked like a young lioness. Ajili's heart skipped a beat and she stood still, watching as it approached.  

[dragonfire_kaen]

Home. It was close; she could taste the familiar scents on the wind. It wasn't the home she remembered, true enough, but they always say that home is where the heart is, right? And in Sethunya's dreams over the last few months, her heart had always soared with the wings of her pride.

But she was far from soaring now; her movements were grimly dogged. The juvenile's hind leg usually only ached after a good day's worth of travel, but by this point taking it slow was almost a habit. It was hard to feel safe now, after the earth had tossed up everything she held most dear and sent it crashing down like shattered bits of bone. And besides, her judgment was increasingly clouded with hunger-induced fatigue. There'd been plenty of carrion at first, sure - though she'd kept far away from anything that might have been remotely lion-sized - but the vultures had quickly and efficiently eliminated much of that. What was left was nothing she'd try her luck on. And she was still too young to be much of a hunter yet, which became painfully clear as the days turned to weeks. Not for anything large, anyway.

By now, the juvenile was exhausted and dangerously near her breaking point.

Walk. Walk. Keep. Moving. Forward. Walk. The mantra was part of every breath and every beat of her heart, something she barely noticed anymore. She'd been running on automatic even more than usual the past few days, so eager to get to where she was sure the Aka'mleli awaited that she'd started traveling during part of the day as well as night. So it wasn't until Sethunya was quite close to the lioness that it finally clicked in her brain that that vivid splash of yellow up ahead was no landmark. It took a few more seconds before she realized that this was no creature she knew, either.

But at that, a sudden panicked burst of energy sent her into a defensive stance, eyes wide and teeth half-bared in some strange mix of terror and last-stand defiance, eyes darting wildly for a good escape route should things turn dangerous. This was what happened when she let her guard down, thinking herself safe: she was caught.  

[[Eskimo]]

As the young lioness approached, getting ever closer, Ajili's worry faded and her expression softened. The lioness was only a juvenile. From the look on her face, she was very frightened. How could you fear such a small, sweet-looking thing? So much tragedy had befallen so many after the earthquake, Ajili included. The young juvenile looked like she had been through much suffering.

"Hello..." Ajili said carefully, trying to look nonthreatening. The last thing she wanted was to agitate the little lioness more. Her eyebrows creased and she wondered what to say next. The poor thing looked so weak and lost. Did she even know where she was? Where were her parents? Why was she alone?

When was the last time she had eaten anything?

"Are you alright, dear?" Ajili asked softly, worry inching onto her face once more, but for different reasons than the first time.  

[dragonfire_kaen]

Normally Sethunya would have gone on the offense at the slightest sign of pity such as the lioness clearly felt right now. As it was, her expression barely registered. The scent of her pride, the scent of home - it was on this lioness, too. At that, Sethunya relaxed somewhat, though she moved no closer.

In her daydreams about this moment it had always been a familiar face who welcomed her - her mother, maybe, or even just a lion she'd met once or twice in the past. And she hadn't panicked. She'd run forward to meet whoever-it-was, fatigue falling away like dust on the breeze, and... Well, it probably wouldn't have happened like that anyway, she knew. And yet, it hurt more than she'd thought it would to find that longed-for moment had vanished under the late afternoon sun.

"Y-yeah." Her vocal chords protested from disuse, and the juvenile coughed to clear them. When had been the last time she spoke, even to herself? "I'm fine." So go away, she mentally added. Go to sleep or something, just let me pass so I can be home.

A wave of dizziness chose that moment to hit her head-on, and she swallowed, claws clutching at the ground convulsively for a heartbeat. She would not fall flat on her face. Not in front of this stranger, not so close.  

[[Eskimo]]

Ajili's brows knitted upward as even more worry ceased her. The young juvenile sounded very weak and tired. She said she was fine, but it was clear to Ajili that that was a blatant lie.

Ajili's heart leaped when she saw the juvenile sway dizzily. She needed to lie down and rest. Maybe Ajili could bring her some food? Oh, and she had to tell someone. The poor little lioness. Ajili frowned and examined her from head to paw.

"Are you lost?" she asked tentatively. Of course if she was lost she would not know where she was. Ajili was struck with the obvious idea of telling her where she was standing. "You are in the Aka'mleli pride." Ajili explained softly. "I am Ajili." she introduced herself with a slight nod of her head. "Please, don't be frightened..." She carefully took a step toward the juvenile, hoping she would realize she was not trying to put her in danger or harm her.  

[dragonfire_kaen]

Her voice was a golden, soothing brown, Sethunya finally noticed, flecked with pale orange where concern bled through - nothing like her mother's roughly textured blue had been... was. And her brightly splashed pelt was nothing like her mother's cool dark gray one, either.

Why was she even comparing her to her mother, anyway? Come on, focus now.

The lioness had tactfully refrained from mentioning Sethunya nearly falling over on the spot, she would give her that much. But her soft, overly gentle tone of voice and barely concealed concern and pity for the little "lost" juvenile wouldn't gain her any points. There was a time that Sethunya might have recoiled in disgust from such treatment, but it didn't seem worth the effort, now.

"I know where I am," she said stiffly, green eyes flashing with the perceived insult. This was her pride, her lands. To be greeted like an outsider, however well-meaning Ajili might be-! But it would hardly do to alienate the only friendly face she'd seen in ages. The juvenile relented somewhat and added in a slightly more friendly tone, "And I'm Sethunya. I don't think we've met before - have we?" Sudden uncertainty flickered through her voice for a moment, though she tried to hide it.  

[[Eskimo]]

Relief flushed through Ajili and she felt an absent-sounding sigh escape her lips. She smiled, a strange weight lifted from her. So, the juvenile wasn't lost. And if she knew where she was, certainly this was her home! Perhaps all would be well after all?

"No," Ajili began, shaking her head and smiling. "We haven't met. I'm...I'm new to the pride." she said, stumbling over her words at the flood of memories as to how she came to the pride filled her head. "But we have now, hm?" she said warmly. But then it occurred to her that this young lioness must've had family in this pride; friends, too. She must have known the passed queen, as well? And perhaps others who were now...

Ajili mentally shooed her thoughts away and tried to remain on the positive side of things. "Is there anyone I can bring you to?" she asked hopefully. "Anyone you remember from here?" She knew she'd have to take this juvenile to the crown prince regardless of what she said. But if she could find out any relations the girl may have, maybe...Maybe it would help?  

[dragonfire_kaen]

New? The Aka'mleli hadn't accepted any outsiders since farther back than she could remember, or at least that was what Sethunya had been taught. A shiver of fear ran through her at the thought - how much else might have changed in the days since the earthquake? How many of her friends and idols might no longer be?

"Yeah. We have now," the juvenile agreed, smiling a little. It was a pathetic, shaky little thing, but she had to start somewhere, right?

"I'm looking for my family," she said, the question igniting a last stubborn spark of hope. "My mother, Matufani, and my brothers Shupavu, Makali, Mawingu, and Mb... and Mawingu." For a moment her voice broke; it was the first time Sethunya had had to leave out the names of her father and brother, and it felt like a betrayal, as if she could no longer claim them as family. "Have you... have you seen them? Are lions and birds still returning - like me?"  

[[Eskimo]]

Ohh, the poor dear...Looking for her family.

Ajili's eyes watered, but she tried to maintain her composure. Breaking down in front of the young girl right then wasn't a good idea, especially since the girl was so shaken up herself.

Ajili remembered when she had first truly grasped that her mate was missing; missing...Gone. And even harsher was it for her to come to terms with the fact that he would never come back. She would never see him again. The last conversation they had had, just a simple, normal conversation before he had left...Had been her last conversation with him. And then he was gone forever. The lioness still didn't understand it. She still didn't want to think about it. It was still painful. But she was an adult. Adults had the experience to cope with such matters on a better level. A juvenile, on the other hand...So young, losing her family...Even though there was a good chance they were alive, at least hopefully, to be without them must've been quite hard for the girl.

Offering an apologetic frown, Ajili shook her head. "I haven't...Heard of anyone by those names here..." She was new, but not incredibly so. She had met pretty much everyone in the pride. But then the lioness simled, trying to remain optimistic. "But there are some pride members who were...Separated, and out there somewhere." she said. "And some have returned, yes. Not that long ago. I'm sure your family is...Is somewhere." she said, tripping over her own words in her struggle to remain looking confident and happy.

"The earthquake took many, but not just lives...It separated many. Many still live, I'm sure of it. I've seen it with my own two eyes." Ajili said kindly, walking a bit closer to the juvenile. "...How about I take you to Umoja? Maybe he'll have more information for you?" she offered hesitantly. She didn't want to smother the girl with too much at once.  

[dragonfire_kaen]

"Okay." The slump in her shoulders was barely visible; it was just one more disappointment to round off the day. Thank Hestia there'd at least been enough of the pride left to stick together, even if they'd had to take in rogues like this one.

She didn't notice the change in Ajili, wrapped up as Sethunya was in her own troubles. For a moment she heard the roar of falling rock, her father's answering roar as he called up to his bird to find them a way to escape. Mbingu trying to shield her with his body before the cascade ripped him away...

Sethunya shook her head roughly, blinking hard. The time to cry had been long ago, and she wouldn't give this lady the opportunity to baby her any more than necessary. Her paws felt like lead, and she staggered slightly as she began to move off, bumping her into the lioness. She hadn't realized they were that close. "Sorry," the juvenile muttered, tail lashing in embarrassment as she pulled away from Ajili again. For a moment she was tempted to linger there, breathe in Ajili's warm fur and warm voice and pretend she was home - until she opened her eyes and saw that bright golden coat. No: she was still alone.  

[[Eskimo]]

Ajili forced a smile at the other lioness, feeling a great deal of pain inside for the girl. She knew what it was like to lose loved ones...It was horrendous pain. Indescribable...And though it never truly went away, it did get better over time. It got less painful.

She just didn't know how to tell Sethunya that...

She turned to find the leader of the pride, but stopped short when the girl bumped into her. Smiling, she looked over her shoulder. Her motherly tendencies took over and she gave the girl a short nuzzle, before turning around and going on her way again.

The girl might've lost her family, but Ajili would make sure that she'd always have someone to talk to. She'd be the girl's friend; a mother-like figure, even in the smallest sort.

So it was then, walking to find Umoja, that Ajili silently declared herself Sethunya's surrogate mother. And it made her feel a little happier about those dark times.