"So. Hare over lizard?"
"Mm. More fur, I know, but I just like the taste. It's smoother, and it tastes the same as home. Hares from home. Well. My old home."
"...Ah. They do."
"Your other home had hare too? I guess it's something that is pretty common everywhere. Hmm. That's a nice thought, eh mo chéadsearc?"
"...You call me that often. I do not know the meaning of it."
"Ahhh...words from my homeland. It, ah. It means...well, it's sort of...a name."
"...Name?"
"Ah, a nickname. It means...it means 'my true love'."
"...I see."
"Sorry. I know it's...soon. But I think it feels right."
The ruddy lioness chuckled as she tore another strip from what was left of the hare pinned between her paws. Alongside her reclined a massive white and black lion, his thick mane rustling in the swelling wind. Hopefully it wouldn't lead to another sandstorm, but for now it was nice and cool. He seemed unhappy, to the plain observer, but the blue eyes watching as the lioness ate were quite gentle. Their nearness made plain their comfort with each other, and being seen with each other - nothing unusual after they had both come to terms with what was apparently a mutual infatuation born out in silence until one of them had cracked.
The lioness had been amazed that she was not the one to finally give in and make a move. She'd had no idea he even knew who she was beyond having dueled her to gain her entrance to the pride.
As was common with young love and the love of the young alike, they'd spent a great deal of time together since the day he'd first met her at her den, a hare between his teeth in an offering to share a meal. Of course there were duties and jobs to be tended, and neither of them neglected their other acquaintances and friends - but any and all other free time had been devoted to gingerly testing their compatibility. And thankfully they seemed to be even better suited to each other's tastes than expected.
Lumt was quiet, near silent, stoic, a powerful sentinel, happy to listen, and despite his serious expression often well-meaning and if not cheerful, at least content. Thema, on the other paw, was rather happy to ramble on, and while studious, her observations were based more on her feelings and thoughts than facts or anything solid. She talked so that he could listen, and was the more energetic of the two of them when it came to anything other than fighting. She could hold her own, but she was no great fighter like he was. She could make a home, but he could defend it.
All in all much worse matches had been struck before, and interest grew into fondness and then a stronger passion. A month and a half was not so short a courtship, not for a lion. And the both of them were devoted to settling the matter of their compatibility with alacrity and frankness. It made them both open, both receptive. And they were being rewarded for it.
"Did you want any more?" Thema paused in her gorging to offer what was left of the tattered hare to the male. He made a subtle movement that she interpreted to the positive, and she slid it towards him over the stone. Wordlessly he bent to peel back the last of the meat and savored it a moment. His tongue dragged over his teeth and he turned back to face her.
"Thank you. It was a good hare. Fat."
She beamed, leaning over to lick a bit of blood from his face. It stood out brilliantly against his stark fur. "I'm glad to hear it. I wasn't sure which you'd prefer, but since I caught two, no one minded that I kept one." The other had gone to the pride in general - someone would eat it, and it didn't really matter who. As long as the pride as a whole was fed. "There really isn't much bigger than them out here though. I do miss the grassy fields of...my old home...sometimes. Antelope and zebra. We even had a giraffe once."
"But you left."
"Well...it just didn't seem quite like home. And I always had itchy paws. Until here. Until you, mo chéadsearc." She butted her head against his now clean muzzle, and he stoically tucked her head under his chin. "You put up a good fight. I know I've asked before but-"
"I did not go easy on you."
"Mmmhmm. So you say. Well I won't give your secret to anyone. You know I just like to tease you."
"You do."
She rumbled contentedly against him, and his deep, nearly silent purr in return was all the reassurance she needed of his feelings. Sometimes she did worry that her chattering, her open affection irritated him. He never seemed to want to express such feelings though. And she could look past his cool mask to see the fire inside. She knew his feelings were just as strong, though he never was as comfortable expressing them. It didn't matter. She could hear his heart beating in his chest and when they were alone he would whisper words of confirmation that its pounding was for her.
She sighed as she rested against him, and he took a deep breath before he gingerly shook free of her and began to rise. She pouted as he stood, drawing a rare twinge of his lips upwards in a reassuring smile.
"Time already?"
"Yes. I've duty."
"I know. Doesn't mean I don't wish you could stay. I suppose I'll be here when you return though. Or somewhere nearby."
"I know. I'll find you."
He bent to lick a wet stripe along her muzzle and up between her eyes. They hadn't solidified anything yet, no promises had been made, but the both of them were beginning to think of the other as their own. Having someone to return to was nice, for him, and having someone to wait up for was better, for her. It wasn't quite there yet, but things were going very well, and suddenly the frozen nights didn't seem quite so cold.
It helped, Thema thought to herself as she gathered the bones of the hare to carry back to the den (they would make fine trinkets or toys for younglings) that neither of them was having to spend it alone for now.
[Words: 1086]