The group of cheetahs hadn't shown up yet, but it didn't worry Caelius much. For the first time since he started his journey, he was having a good time. Naida had been welcoming since the first moment they met. Since then she had shown him around the land, introducing him to the locals as well as share her catches with him.

He had done everything he could do to repay the favor, by offering to help her whenever she could use it. During his time with her he started feeling a connection to her. A feeling he hadn't ever felt. He did his best to ignore the feelings as he didn't want to ruin his current relationship with the lioness. She had been one of his first friends in this land. He couldn't imagine what he would do if he confessed his feelings toward her and she rejected him.

Plus he couldn't stick around here. He had a job to do, find his father. Of course he wasn't in a rush to do so. He wanted to allow himself time to relax now and then. Right now was a time to relax. He would just remind himself that he couldn't stay here for too long.

If he did confess his feelings toward her and she was interested in him, then he would feel obligated to stay here. He couldn't do that to himself and he couldn't lead Naida on.

As he laid in the dirt as she worked on catching fish, he felt himself putting a paw over his face. His feelings toward her felt more like a cubs crush on a friend, at least that's how he thought she would look at it. In his adult life, he had never had feelings like this. It was all rather embarrassing.

He moved his paw away from his face to see Naida looking back at him with a playful grin, a fish caught in her mouth. She tossed it toward him. It just made Caelius want to hide his face in the ground. Instead of continuing her fishing, she walked toward him and laid down.

“That should be enough for now.” She said, looking at her catch. There were three rather large fish all squirming on the ground. Her hunting skills were decent enough, but she had always been a skilled fisher. It ran in their family. As her father would say, water runs through their veins.

Lately Caelius had been acting a little different. She really didn't notice it until this morning. He didn't look at her the same way. She wondered if she did something to upset him, though she couldn't think of anything. For the time being she thought she would just put it in the back of her mind.

It was hard though, especially when he acted like this. Hiding his face from her? It was all very odd.

She pushed one of the fish toward him. While he acted this way, she just tried to be nice and open, hoping he would explain himself. If she did something that upset him, she couldn't fix it unless he told her.

Caelius looked at the fish in front of him. She had given him the larger of the fish. He looked over at her and admired her skills. Her skills with fishing were amazing. “Thank you for the fish Naida.” He thanked, bowing his head. When his red eyes matched hers, he quickly looked away, feeling a hint of embarrassment.

“I'm sorry. I've been a little embarrassed lately.” He confessed. In his mind, he was screaming. He should not be doing this. This was not right. “We just met and I just. You have been so nice to me since we met.”

Naida didn't have to listen to him finish. She already knew in her gut what he was talking about. It was unexpected. He was still young. She was young, just not that young. She looked at the ground as he continued. “I know any feelings I'm feeling toward you probably aren't real, that they are just lust, but they are there.”

She raised her head and looked at him. He was joking, he was being completely serious. She took a deep breath in. “Caelius I have enjoyed our time together. You really have cheered me up the last few days and I appreciate it.” She leaned closer to him and gave him a soft peck on the nose. “I felt a connection with you as well. As you said, it just might be a moment of bliss we're feeling, probably nothing more. But it wouldn't hurt to indulge in those feelings.”

As much as she was a mother, she had never been the type to settle down with a male. Before Ceto's father, she had had a couple flings here and there. They weren't meaningless flings. Just ones that came and went.

Eventually Caelius would leave and he would just be a memory. Nothing more. And that was okay with her. If he was interested. She could understand if he wasn't and would respect that.

“I have to leave as soon as I get the information from those cheetahs. I can't stay here.” He said. The idea of starting a relationship was something that made him happy. He would love to have a mate and they could adopt cubs. But now wasn't the time for that. “I don't want to start a relationship and then leave you.”

“I understand Caelius. I have had flings in the past where I didn't want my partner to leave, or I didn't want to leave him. Must of the rogue land lions you run across you will only meet for a brief while and then you'll be on your way never to see them again.” She said. “If we did start something here, I wouldn't be upset when you left. I would be happy just to be able to share a special moment with you.”

Caelius didn't think about it like that. He had always imagined that she would be heartbroken if he left. But she said she would just be happy to have those brief moments with him.

He leaned over and gave her a kiss. “I guess it couldn't hurt anyone.”

Naida gave him a huge smile and wrapped her tail around his. “We should finish eating.” She said before leaning down to start in on her fish. She was glad that she had figured out what had been bothering Caelius and that it was a simple fix. It also allowed her to quietly confess her own feelings.

Caelius also started eating, though his mind was racing. He was thinking about everything that could go wrong. There were so many terribly things, he thought. Was being with Naida worth it. He glanced over at her and she gave him a warm smile. One that he returned. It felt right, whatever was between them.

WC: 1,155