Roaming wasn't new, but it was nice not having visions to explain or to accomodate for the past few days. Idle and looking to see if a sibling or two was near, Terra was wandering about quite frequently in the area close - but not too close - to the demons. The godson moved lazily and roamed calmly, and admittedly enjoyed the calm before roaming into the grasses and through them until finding an oasis that seemed occupied. Not scenting pride borders, however, he drew near enough for a night or two to drink.
What he did not expect was for a large black and white lioness to approach calmly.
In fairness to Terra, she was a semi-fluffy giant, but she was large and heavily muscled and Terra breifly wondered if the big lioness might hard him, but she approached with a smile and walked at a bouncy pace, a sparkle in her eye before she sat in front of him, the male blinking as he bottom plopped down and she beamed.
"Hello, you are a male who won't make life awkward. Can you help me make babies?"
The question made Terra doubletake, and he stared.
"What?"
Mpeko honestly hadn't known what to do. She was quick to pace and anxious lately because, according to Talos, hybrids were usually infertile, and Maisha was a hybrid. This meant she needed a male - but Yuuichiro was still feeling awkward over his own litter and Talos overall wasn't very friendly, leaving Mpeko to worry she'd never find someone to give her cubs to have with Maisha.
And then she saw the bright coloured male approaching for water and considered things. While green was his brightest color, followed by icky blue, there was orange, black, and white, and no longer living at home in the desert the male;s coat was ignorable, if he could give her cubs to raise with Maisha, and as much as it bothered her, she was reqady to negotiate. So she'd hailed the male and asked point blank, earning a puzzled look. Mpeko, however, motioned.
"I want you to give me cubs. My mate is likely infertile and he's the one I want to raise them with." Mpeko stated. Terra stared, blinking at her with a confused look before he tilted his head, blinking.
"With a stranger? What do I get out of it?" He asked firmly.
Internally, Terra was wondering why he was being approached by a strange lioness for this. He was only looking for a drink, and the earthen-themed lion made an expression similar to that of confusion, before scowling, before he shook his head, squaring his shoulders.
"I'm not just any lion you know. You can't just demand anything of the son of a god." And Terra eyed her, scowling. Mpeko stared, blinking several seconds.
She'd expected the risk of a demand, but not of a demand for the lion to get justification because he was the son of a god.
Odd concept, gods, and Mpeko had never thought of the notion, instesad blinking and sitting as she gave her answer.
"Half. You get half the litter." She paused, Terra taking the moment to preparte to speak and open his muzzle before Mpeko spoke again. "But I get to choose my half."
Terra stared, astounded at the audacity of this large female, making demands of him like a cub, and he frowned, eyes narrowing. He knead the ground and glared a moment, huffing.
"And I don't get to choose the offspring I'm to raise? Why not?" Yerra snapped. Mpekoa eyed him.
"In my birth pride, you would be considered non-Firekin and cast out at adolescence. I'm related to too many lions, and so I plan to continue the tradition here, and since you'd be siring them, you can help raise a few."
Terra stared, scowling a moment before sitting.
"And what if more than half are "huria" as you call it?" He snapped. "What if we only have one?"
Mpeko eyed him, and snorted, trying to look far more intimidating than she truly was.
"I will raise the least huria ones."
Finally, Mpeko paused, expression breaking to one of someone desperate.
"I just want cubs for my mate and I to raise. That's all. It's all I can givbe." She whispered. Terra regarded Mpeko idly, thinking. He didn't know cubs well, but he supposed he had va sibling or two he could foist them off on if he needed to - particularly, his sisters or parents if needed. Cubs were not something he really considered as something he'd want, and the male lion frowned, idly playing with some dirt as he considered his answer. On one paw, he could foist offspring off on his mother of brother or some half sibling and carry on, but on another - cubs to deal with could be useful or creative. If any of them inherited half of his intellect, he could certainly see potentiasl, and he didn't really hate cubs either. On the other, he didn't get to keep the entire litter. That needed rectifying - he would want to see and appraise them, but then this 'mate' might attack him.
Did he cut his losses? Perhaps. Many didn't know the future, but if needed, he could track cubs down, he decided, and the masle shrugged, nodding.
Mpeko watched Terra in an awkward silence, internally shakingh. He could say no. He could say yes. He could say bollocks or who knew, and the female worried incessantly as he seemed to hum and haw over his choices, making faces and squints and all manny of odd looks before nodding, and she sighed in releif., nodding.
"I'm Mpeko, by the way." She said carefully. Terra shrugged, a semi-commitasl motion to someone he just met but somehow was suckered into making cubs with.
"Terra." He drawled. "It means Earth."
Mpeko nodded, idly wondering why he was named such when he looked like sky, plants, and red clay and night, but decided not to, instead motioning.
"Uhm... This way. I'll show you a place to sleep until things, uhm, blow over."
Mpeko turned, Terra noting the female seemed a bit more awkwardly and snickered, moving to follow the female toward a den nearby and shrugged. Couldn't hurt if he succeeded.
