[~ Private RP with NukaKun ~]

[Applejack]

(Initiating Timeskip- ONE WEEK LATER---)
(... /corny)

Nuka smiled as he wandered along the river, lazily floating about. Not much had changed in the past week, that is, except that Tupa seemed to be showing her affections for him more and more each day. Having been unable to find her this morning, he had decided to make his way to the Alcove for a nice relaxing dip in the cold water of the cave. It always helped him think, and anymore it reminded him of that first night. He smiled softly. Maybe he'd see her there! At that thought, he splashed happily upstream, finding the path by memory, and padded eagerly up to the cave, poking his head in. "Tupa?" he called in curiously. "Are you there?"

\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\

Vitani sighed, out on another regular border patrol. A week since Baya had opened to her. A week since she had opened to him. A week had passed since she had tried to comfort him and been rejected, and she was still convinced that all she'd done was isolate herself from him. She raised her read and realized she was near a desert border. Just being close sent a tingle of despair down her spine. She shook her head and jumped at the shadow of a dune. She could have sworn that a second ago, there had been the shadow of something in it. She hook her head and kept walking. The sooner she was away from this border, the better. Thankfully, she was halfway done with this patrol route.

[Baya]

One week in these harsh lands, and Tupa had already felt like staying forever. She and Nuka only got closer and closer with each passing day. Zira worked them both now, instead of just sending Nuka considering it brought in better results and a more motivated Nuka. On this particular afternoon she had gone to the old Alcove to rest in private, but it turned out Nuka had showed up. She wasn't in direct view so when he entered, she smirked from a corner.

She pounced on Nuka from behind, pinning him down. "Well look at you, knowing exactly where I am. I'd say we think alike now, hm?" Tupa asked as she ran her claws through Nuka's mane, trying to untangle the tangled bits.

//

The lion that was stalking her kept his amber eyes fiercely fixed on her. She seemed strong up close, but with the element of surprise this black maned' rogue could do absolutely anything to her, and she wouldn't be able to fight back! When she turned her back, his sand colored fur contrasted with his surroundings when he stood. His eyes fixed on her as he slowly but surely approached. When the time was right, and her back was turned again, he pounced pinning her to the ground with considerable strength.

"Well, look's like I've caught myself a young one..." The rogue purred as he pressed down on her neck. "Older lionesses don't quite work for me, and in the desert they are all...pretty worn out if you catch my drift." The lion growled into her ear, his voice sounding a bit older than a lion like Baya. "By the end of it, you won't be alive to regret not being able to spot me..." He mused as gave her neck a tender but courting bite.

Within seconds, his weight was lifted from Vitani as he snarled and fall to the ground. The rogue quickly stood, and let out a roar glaring at the other lion who dared interrupt his activities.

"If only you picked another lioness, I wouldn't have cared." The voice of the attacker murmured. It was Baya! He had broken his pattern of silence just now, and was seemingly a bit different. He walked in front of Vitani, making sure the lion didn't have any openings to get back at her.

"You should've minded your business pretty boy. Now I'm gonna have to kill ya. Or maybe i'll break your legs...and make you watch what strength can provide you with..." The rogue said, giving off a wide toothed grin. Baya cackled.

"Pride is a fool's fortress. Less talk, more action." Baya roared as he jumped at the rogue. They pawed, snarled and tore into the flesh of one another for a few moments before Baya came out on top, his right cheek dripping his own blood.

"P-Please. Spare me. I'll leave her alone! I'll never come back! Mercy!" The male hollered. Baya thought for a moment, and looked to Vitani.

"If only you had chosen another lioness..." Baya said with a tut tut as he raised his right paw and swiftly ended the rogue's grotesque pleas for mercy. Baya panted as he wiped the blood off his paws in the sand, looking over to Vitani. He walked over to her, concern obvious in his eyes.

"I asked your mother where you were, and was coming out here to apologize for...for closing myself off from you." Baya said quietly, his eyes not moving from hers. "I came here right on time." Baya pointed out, looking to the dead carcass of the lion.

"I had reason to kill this time, hm? You aren't going to scorn me for saving you hours of torture?" Baya asked, an eyebrow raised.

[Applejack]

Nuka giggled as he let himself fall forward, Tupa cooing over his mane. He slowly turned around under her so that he was facing her and nuzzled her gently. "It's good to see that you remembered the way here," he said. "I knew I made the right choice, showing you this." He looked up at her and chuckled, remembering how this was the spot that she had told him to keep his intimacies to himself. "So," he said, "I guess I should keep my intimacies to myself." He poked the small jibe at her, purring softly.

\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\

Vitani lay on the ground, staring in front of her at the new dead lion that, moments before, had been on top of her, about to steal the one thing she had left to herself. She looked up, a mix of fear and wonder in her eyes, and saw that it really was Baya infront of her. She quickly stood up, not wanting to appear weak, and nodded slowly. "Thanks for saving me from that... excuse for a lion." She knew that what he said was true about yelling at him, because if it hadn't been for him trying to rape her, she would be upset with him. The, something caught her ear as she sifted what he said. "Did you say... appologize for.. turning away from me?"

[Baya]

"Oh shut up!" Tupa scorned as she nuzzled back. She then pulled back her head and grinned as she gave him a long lick on his cheek. "We've been spending a week together, so I figure I should stop fooling myself. I wanted to give myself time to make sure this wasn't just something of convenience...it isn't. It really isn't." Tupa said with a smirk. "When all this is over, I'll be all yours Nuka. After all the war, I'd be proud to have your cubs." Tupa cooed as she nuzzled him again.

[Corny doo doo!]

//

Baya tilted his head. "Are you deaf?" Baya muttered in monotone. He figured he should answer he question, for the sake of satisfying her. A smirk grew on his face. "I said I'm sorry for pushing you away. Don't tell ANYONE I'm apologizing though." Baya warned. He then looked down. "I also figured out that the reason I enjoyed fighting you so much is because it's the one thing that I knew how to communicate through...of course now I'm going to show some restraint." Baya murmured as he flicked his tail about.

"I'm still a fighter, don't get me wrong." Baya warned. "Though I have a bit more purpose now." He said with a smirk as he slowly touched his nose to hers. "I won't let harm come to you."

[Applejack]

Nuka wordlessly nuzzled her back and looked at her, meeting her eyes. His own eyes were shining as he leaned forward and licked her cheek back, slowly pressing his nose to hers. "Tuupaa," He said in a singsong voice. "Liiitle Tuuupa in Loooooooooove." He giggled and smiled agian. He sure as hell wasn't about to complain. Then, a thought crossed his mind, and he smiled, his feelings in that smile. "Why wait until after the war? Why not be all mine now?" He figured he might be being selfish, 'specially since she was promising herself to him like this. He purred softly and kept his nose pressed against hers, refusing to move.

\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\
Vitani's eyes widened as soon as his nose pressed against hers. Her cheeks flushed as she examined her eyes. Instead of seeing the hate and bloodlust she used to see, she saw what looked like... love? She shook her head, surely it couldn't be! But she heard it in his voice, the way he said it. "What do you see in me that is so worth fighting for? I set you off in a state of... madness essentially. I feared I'd completely isolated myself from you." She broke the contact with his nose only to tenatively slie up next to him, her flank pressed against his. Her frame was still shaking from what happened, fear racing through her veins. "And yet..." She smiled softly and put a paw on top of his. "I forgive you Baya. And, dont worry. There is no way I would tell anyone about this. Why would I want to ruin... well, the first good thing to happen to me in years?"

[Baya]

"Well for one, I don't plan on raising any cubs on this dead land...We need more." Tupa pointed out shoving him playfully. "After all, I don't want them to go through what I did...I want to live to see them grow up and be on their way." Tupa murmured quietly, vaguely remembering the death of her mother. She sighed.

"The first attack is tomorrow. Zira said we'll be using fire to trap the princess, and Kovu will go in to save her or something." Tupa murmured quietly. "I hope it ends REALLY soon..." Tupa murmured bitterly. "I'm tired of conflict. Really tired of it..."

//

"You did nothing wrong. My madness is something that piled on me over time. I ignored my emotions and my guilt...I put it aside and masked it with battle. If I only thought of battle, I could take my mind off everything else. I trapped myself." Baya explained as he walked alongside her, noticing she was shaking.

"Don't go so close to the desert again. I'll patrol this area in your place whenever your mother needs you to. He was a weak and talkative one...others would just get right to work." Baya murmured. He had no expression on his face as they made their way back to the termite mound.

Kovu noticed the look on Vitani's face and her trembling and quickly ran up to Baya. "What did you do?" Kovu growled, glaring at him.

"Relax. I saved her from a rogue male that got a bit too eager. The sands rest his bones..." Baya cackled grimly. Kovu looked a bit confused. It was as if something had changed with Baya. Well, not so much. Generally he was the same lunatic, but he had a different look about him. Vitani and him were also standing very close, so it could only mean they probably made amends.

"Where is Tupa?" Baya asked with a blank look on his face.

"Probably off with Nuka again...why do those two hide so much? Everyone knows they are...you know..." Kovu said with a grin.

"Tupa thinks I care what she does with him. She's a big girl now. She can make her own decisions." Baya muttered simply as he entered the termite den. He growled at several lionesses making them move aside for Vitani to lay down.

"Are you hungry? I can get you something to eat. You look shaken up still." Baya murmured looking down at Vitani. His compassion was reserved for only one lioness in his life, and it would be her. He could never put battle aside as one of his favorite activities, but perhaps he could try to tame himself more and more. After all, he heard that Vitani had a strange love for battle but as she mentioned before, it had to have purpose. Baya's was clear in his own mind now. Vitani.

[Applejack]

Nuka nodded in agreement with Tupa. "I really hope the fighting ends soon." He sighed softly as she took what he'd said wrong. "I wasn't asking for you to lay down and, y'know, assume the position or anything. I kinda meant... you said you'd be mind after? Why not be mine now? I'll give myself and everything I can offer to you. I know it might not be much, but, well, I will do whatever I can for you." He purred softly and looked at her, not about to force anything on her.

\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\
As Vitani listened to the exchange of words between Kovu and Baya, she shrunk closer to Baya, not saying anything. All she wanted was to curl up and forget. Except for what Baya had said. When he cleared her a space, she instantly lay down and curled up, shaking. As Baya offered to get her meat, she shook her head, but here eyes said everything as she gazed from him to the empty spot right next to her. She knew it was too much to ask, but she looked up at him, a soft, worried expression on her face still, and slowly attempted to ask him to sit or lay next to her.

[Baya]

"There's only so much you could do on your own Nuka. Besides, I'm not just thinking about us, but what could come out of us..." Tupa murmured. "In all technicality I AM all yours you know. It's not like I'm partially yours and partially not." Tupa pointed out as he pinched his cheek again grinning. She knew she could keep Nuka waiting just a bit longer if they were gonna be anymore than just friends. It wouldn't be right to raise a cub amidst a war, it would only turn out like Baya.

//

"Alright then." Baya murmured as he laid down next to her, looking at her every few moments to make sure she was alright. "Lions like him are all over the desert. I'm glad I arrived there on time..." Baya murmured quietly as he looked around the den.

[Applejack]

Nuka smiled as she pinched his cheek, one of her now plenty familiar gestures of affection. "What could come out of us," he repeated, chuckling. "I'm afraid of my own cub. I'm certain it will be as messed up as me, though, thanks to you, I havn't felt as messed up in this previous week." He purrsed for a second, nuzzling her, and then stepped back. "But, perhaps, you're right. It might be better to wait until after the war that is sure to come.. That way... that way our cubs can be safe, free to grow up without worry." If there was one thing he would do, it would be to give her the best cubs he could. He wanted her to be happy, no matter what the cost, and raising the cubs here would do nothing but create another of himself.

\\/\\/\\/\\/\\\/\\/\\/\\/\\/\\
As Baya lay next to Vitani, she was tempted to slide closer to him for shelter, but decided against it, not wanting to overstay her welcome. "I've... never been handled like that, as though I were just a body." She looked down, trying to subdue her shivers. "If... if you hadn't come when you did, I'm not so sure I'd be here, whether from him... doing that, or from me not being able to bear myself." She shook her head, her voice all but a whisper. "But, you saved me... you acted as though you cared, when you said you didn't care for anything but battle." She smiled inwardly, but was unable to bring it outside. The memory of what she had just escaped was far too fresh. "You probably think me weak and incapable for freezing in the instant. He was... so strong."

[Baya]

"Yep. Give's us more of a reason to fight. I think that's why your mom hasn't killed me. She knows you and I have been going off on our own, and figures that if it keeps our mind on the ball...well...I'll kill a hundred of those pridelanders if it means not killing ever again afterwards..." Tupa murmured, knowing it sounded like very flawed logic. Though how many would she be forced to kill, if she left this land? If she lost Nuka, would she end up like Baya?

//

Baya looked to her, noticing her shivering. "It is not your fault. He flanked you like all cowards would." Baya murmured. He figured he would only do this for Vitani, no matter how weak it made him look in front of the others. He placed his head over hers, hoping it might comfort her and make her feel more secure. "He's done and over with. Don't think back on what could've happened. I was there. He is dead." Baya said simply.

Zira watched from her secluded part of the den, not knowing fully what happened. Though the great Baya of the desert, whom was ready to kill without mercy a few days prior, was nuzzling her daughter. Zira didn't feel as threatened by it as a mother should be, she could only think of how she could manipulate Baya to her whim with Vitani. A smirk spread across her face. She had all but won this upcoming war!