"Mother?" A voice called out, followed by a familiar shadow itching it's way deeper into her den. Zimran's ears would lift to the soothing sound of her daughter, Yorkshka, before returning the greeting.
"Yorshka, love, what brings you home?" Her voice was unsettled still, though she tried to mask any distress she might have been feeling. The Goddess refused to worry her own children with her silly misfortunes, Zimran's eyes widened as her daughter came into view.
"I just thought I'd come by and see how things are." The pale lioness nodded, her icy eyes matching her mothers with the same intensity. She looked a lot like Zimrain to be honest, they shared the same eyes, pelt color, and white face marking that swirled along their eyes like waves of pale water. Though Yorshka was a mortal and was not a child of Griffiths, Zimran never treated her any differently. She loved every cub she had birthed, God and mortal alike. She had even adopted a few in her own loneliness, wanting to give a home to other cubs in need. To give herself some purpose in this life.
Still, though, the Goddess felt empty inside.
"You alright?" Yorshka questioned with a puzzled face, something felt strange, her mother didn't fully seem like herself.
"You look.. ill." Her words short and followed up with a frown. What was going on here? Why was her mother hiding in her den mid-day, in solitude?
"I-I'm fine." The Goddess nodded in return, her paws pulled close to her chest.
"I'm just tired, that's all." A lie. She was telling lies to her own child. What was she becoming? She felt her heart sink into her chest as she looked away from Yorshka with a heavy sigh. How could she mend this? Apart of her wanted her daughter to leave so she could be alone again.
This... this was hard for her, Zimran had never felt that sort of thing before. That desire to be alone.
"You aren't good at telling lies, mother." The pale lioness spoke with a frown, her brows wrinkling as she glared at the Goddess for a long second.
"Please talk to me?..." She hoped that by making room for the conversation her mother would feel better about opening up. But she also felt like this wasn't going to be that easy. Yorshka moved closer to her mother, close enough to offer her a soft nuzzle.
"I do mean what I said, I'm just feeling ill. I haven't felt like myself lately. It's... hard to explain." As she spoke she took in her daughter's nuzzle, closing her eyes softly.
"I just don't know what to do with myself. I don't think I've ever felt so... " ZImran sat up and allowed her child to sit beside her, both female's now facing one another.
"Lost?"
"Lost?" Yorshka repeated the word with a puzzled look, her left paw moving to cover her mother's right.
"Why do you feel lost?" It was painful to see such a happy soul drift off into a dark place. Trying to help the Goddess felt confusing, like Yorshka had very little control over what was going to happen next. What could be eating at her mother like this? She couldn't ever remember a time that Zimran had been this way, not once in her life.
"I wish I could give you an answer. I just feel misplaced, to be honest. Misplaced and confused. I haven't had much to do lately... and seeing Griffith was hard. My cubs are all grown, one lost to the circle of life..." As she spoke she trailed off, her eyes heavy with tears.
"I just feel like I don't belong." The Goddess looked away again, her ears going flat against her head. She felt so guilty for feeling sad, her eyes could hardly handle it. Tears started to trickle down her cheeks with every whimper that left her, her body aching with sadness.
"Mother..." The younger lioness said with a soft sigh, moving closer to the Goddess. She wanted to comfort her and love her the same way her had done for her for all of her life. It was so hard seeing her mother like this.
"I will always be here for you. I'm sorry seeing him was hard. I know that you aren't together anymore and my heart mourns for you. But you can not let that to crush you. You have to allow yourself to love and live." She knew her mother would agree if she was in the right state of mind, for now that, Yorshka would be her solid ground to stand on.
"I can stick around if you'd like, just to keep you company while you wait out this storm?" Yorshka wouldn't allow herself to leave her mother like this, so, she would stay. With or without her consent.
"Yorshka... " Zimrain spoke with a weak smile, her figure leaning against her daughter's, nuzzling into her shoulder.
"I would love that, really." The company would be a warm welcome and maybe it would also help cure her of this awful feeling, she at least hoped it was temporary - if nothing else. Zimrain didn't know if she could handle being this low for much longer. With a smile she motioned for her Yorshka to follow, standing up and stretching before she made her way to the entrance of the cave. It was time to meet the day with a smile.
~ end with 1059 words