With the imminent threat, gone, Zahi slinked away from Mio, and for everyone for that matter. Mio was heartbroken, shaken, and continued to cling to Nia, even though she felt betrayed by her. Why didn't she warn her sooner? Ria was attached to her mother's hip, knowing that this was something more serious than the young lioness could realize. It was a past about her mother that no one had known, save her Auntie Nia.
Mio abandoned Nia, and the teal lioness had enough smarts to leave her alone. Ria followed closely, wanting to support her mother in any way she could. "Mother?" Mio looked over her shoulder at the beautiful daughter of her's, the one that was to inherit this mess of a family. She looked sad, and only sighed. Ria trotted up to her mother's side, walking next to her silently.
Mio shited uncomfortably. "I'll explain it all to you one day, Ria. I hope so, anyway."
Ria looked startled. "Why do you hope?" she asked. "What is it you're worried about?"
"Your father," was the only reply.
It wasn't too hard to follow where Zahi had gone; while he had won the fight overall, he still had his scrapes, and the scent of blood, followed by a few drips here and there made his escape path clear as day. The mother and daughter pair followed it silently, slowly being able to hear how angry Zahi was. He never was one who held onto his anger well, although he had been doing better about not taking out at the first thing he saw. Mio had been the recipient of too many attacks to know just how sour his temper could be. Still....
They came to him as his back was turned to them. It was apparent that they were there, there was no hiding that they were in his presence. Still, he ignored them. Ria moved to get her father's attention, but Mio stopped her. The younger lioness instinctively froze, and Mio walked slowly to Zahi's side. She looked at him sadly, feeling that the happy afternoon that wasn't that long ago was years ago. A stiffness grew between them, and it was Rhy's fault.
Finally, Zahi stirred. Mio glanced up, her eyes still sullen with a deep sadness about them. The male did not look her in the eye. He moved himself so his side was what she saw. "So..." he breathed, careful to not let his emotions get the best of him.
"So," Mio answered just as quietly, their daughter watching on as if she wasn't even there. This was a heavy moment for the two of them.
"He was your betrothed, wasn't he?"
Mio's eyes opened a little more as she looked up at him. His eyes were blocked by his mane, and she could only see the bottom of his nose and his mouth. She let her eyes drop back to the ground, as if it would tell her what to say.
She breathed deeply. "Yes."
"Tch." Zahi lowered his head, angled away from her. Who would have known? He hadn't even intended to keep her alive; it just happened that way. Then things had gotten messy; coming here, growing close. Zahi was protective of her. Obsessively so. He had always worried that their daughters would take her away from him as well. Because of that thought, he had never tried to grow close to any of them; now he realized that it was a mistake. But really, he had no idea how to be affectionate; he was quick to anger and quick to lash out with that anger. Would he have really gotten anywhere, anyway?
Frustrated, he growled, not realizing that it would scare Mio. The pale lavender lioness withdrew slightly, and he quickly stopped. She shifted, wondering what had brought that on. Hating the silence, she struggled to find a way to fill it. "It's alright," she said quietly. "That's in the past."
"The past?!" Zahi growled. "No, it was right here, today. I fought it, you cried over it. It was a disaster." He felt his anger flourishing up again, and Mio quickly withdrew, Ria rushing to be next to her mother's side. She couldn't take it anymore, how he always reacted to what she said. "Oh, stop! You nearly killed him, he's gone, we don't need to worry about this anymore!"
The one thing Zahi hated was being told what to do. He swirled his head suddenly, glaring at Ria and rose to strike her. Crying out, Mio pushed her daughter out of the way and onto the ground. Zahi caught himself just in time, and slinked back slightly as Mio felt her eyes wet with tears again. "I don't care if you hit me," she yelled. "But don't ever hit your daughter!"
Zahi stared blankly at the two of them, Ria rushing up to comfort her mother, reassuring her that nothing would have changed if it had come out with a different ending. Zahi snarled at himself, wanting to withdraw from them again.
Mio regathered her wits, and approached him again. She hated this wedge that continued to grow between them with each passing moment. Things were going so well, and Rhy had to come up. He had to. Was Mio not allowed to be happy anymore?
Ria shook herself better, and glared at her father right back. He couldn't see because he had shrunk away a bit, but that wasn't going to stop her. She had certainly inherited his stubborn streak. "Oh, Father. Just stop this crap." She wanted to give him a good smack, but knew better than to act on her impulses. She at least had that control.
"Stop acting like Mother is anything but herself. I'm so sick of the way you treat her. You don't trust her, you don't care about how she thinks about things. I'm just sick of it!"
Zahi growled, angry at his daughter for talking back to him like that, but unsure as how to discipline her. She was the heiress, and she was an adolescent. She deserved to know, even if he didn't want her to be anywhere near them right now.
"Please, Ria, it's alright," Mio said, answering for Zahi before her could. She could read him that well, he had just never noticed before. "Please, go find your sisters and make sure they're fine. I'm sure word spread on what happened, and they need to be reassured that everything is alright. Nia can't do everything on her own. Go help."
Ria was torn. She didn't want to leave, but she could tell what was a request and what was an order disguised like a request. She nodded her head respectfully to her mother, and padded off.
Mio watched her daughter leave. She didn't want anyone to be around, in case things got ugly again. It was alright, though. It would get better, and it did. Right now, though, they would merely just sit near one another, hoping that the distance that had grown between them would shrink again once more.
