[PRIVATE] A Loner's Pride

[zorayda]

Taro found himself sitting in the background, absorbing all of the new information and new lions here in the den. Now that he'd stopped carrying Sius, he'd stopped to clean his fur, meticulously getting all of the crispy, dried blood off of it and returning it to its natural golden color. He ended up sitting next to Eeve, who was also taking all of this in with a frown. Eeve and Taro didn't know anyone, so they both felt uncomfortable with the proceedings. Talk of brothers, and strangers...

When Ushujaa, one of the new lions, had exclaimed that Kasi, apparently Sius's brother, needed help, they both perked up, instantly alert.

"Is there anything we can do?" Taro asked, Eeve hanging just behind him.

((sorry if it was short and generic...sort of had a lot to catch up on and I'm still a bit confused ^.^;;;))

[TheWhistlerify]

(( The profile says that, but in my first post I stated that he's 3 years ))

Dakari didn't show alot of interest in Wafu's comments, after being through such situations so many times, he was already used to it. "I've been in this position a countless number of times." he said, walking a little closer before looking at Wafu once more as the adolescent told him not to let any of the beings inside the cave he was there. It was wierd, but what did it matter? If they let him stay, then he would be happy about it, if not, then nothing would be any different from the way it had been so far.

[Harvs]

Sius stopped talking for a moment to think. He shot glances to all the other lions surrounding him. Zera looked ready to defend Sius if any danger befell him. Sius touched his paw to Zera's and looked at her with a relaxed look. His look was telling her that they had nothing to fear... for the moment at least. Syira also seemed to be protecting Sius, questioning Ushujaa for him. Meanwhile, Taro and Eeve seemed intrigued by this lion's statements. Something about Kasi being in trouble. But something was very wrong in this situation.

"Ushujaa... Ushujaa..." Sius muttered quietly, trying to place the name. Suddenly, he remembered Kasi talking about a younger lion. A sibling of Simba if he remembered right. Yeah. That was it! "Oh, Ushujaa! Yes, Kasi has talked about you before." Sius gestured toward Shujaa. He was somewhat happy that his memory had for once served him well. But there was still a hint of doubt in his mind.

"But hold on... if there's ever any danger in Pride Rock, Kasi would send Zazu to tell me. We had an agreement on that." Sius, still laying down, slowly crawled a bit closer to Ushujaa so he wouldn't have to talk so loud. Though his pains were starting to subside, he still couldn't stand, let alone make a trip from his den to Pride Rock in the pouring rain. That was a movable feast just waiting to happen. As the gap between him and Ushujaa was closed off a bit more, Sius asked the suspicious lion "Why did he send you?"

[XxRinaRoguexX]

She hadn't realized she was so close to Sius' body, and when she felt the paw on her own, she couldn't have shot away from him without knocking into Syira any faster. This rogue lioness wasn't used to having someone touch her like that and she didn't intend on letting it feel like second nature either. After all, these were only temporary lions and lionesses...they wouldn't need her for long, she was sure. When she had realized her face was frozen in a scrunched and defensive manner, she melted it away into her usual sarcastic looking persona. Her frame was arched and low to the ground for attack but in realization that this was Sius and not another lion, she was back to her original stance with a relaxed neck.

When Sius warmed up to this newcomer male, she knew there wasn't much need for acting like she would kill him. The lioness peered down at her claws even trying to retract them but they were staying there for good, she figured. Syira didn't seem to have anything to be jumpy about either by the way she was confronting the whole situation that just thrust itself upon the 'pride' and so Zera eased herself back into reality once again. They were now going to be free of her, as she walked past the two of them to present herself no longer as a potential threat but more as someone who could go with the flow. And the flow of this situation: no harm was going to be dealt. And if there were, it would have probably been from the lioness beside her.

As she walked forward, she eyed the newcomer male from behind her to which Sius and Syira were paying attention to, not even noticing that she almost rammed herself into a body that had replaced the bare space before. "Whoa!" She healed herself and backed up slightly before looking to the newer male that had come to the territory. Seriously, doesn't Sius know the act of 'marking your territory'?, she asked herself before looking up at the lion. Her face was again sarcastic, but with the twist of confused insecurity of being near this new one who she hadn't even met. Nor had he been here when they first arrived. "Can I help you, or something?" She questioned harshly, not much in the mood for helping but she was of course being sarcastic and telling him to leave. Not like he would probably get it.

[XxRinaRoguexX]

SORRY FOR THE DP! D: FORGIVE ME <3 [[Alright guys, I don't know if you're all aware of the leave of VM, so I'm taking the villain position with Taz to restore some more drama to the RP. I'll be introducing her here, but there will be no posting of Zera on this one-- just to get you familiar with the character I've created. : ) ]]

Unknown to the other lions of the pride, there walked one more lioness. A little smaller than the average female, she was nothing short of beautiful looks that emitted from her brimming self-confidence and stunning way with movement. As she walked, she held her pose as a regal female with her orange eyes skimming over the scenery where she stepped. The rustic brown female with almost a white underbelly and toes strode across the grasses with her tail high and eyes open wide to account for the darkness of the descending day time and the rain.

Soon though she came to a scene that seemed more lively than she would have guessed. For such a small space there was a bunch of lions and lionesses there. A pride maybe? Well, there was only one way to find out. And so the female strode in soundlessly to lay eyes on a lioness confronting a male...who she seemed to recognize. He looked like...Wafu? No way! She hadn't seen him since they were cubs, and now it was almost too perfect for her to just walk in and take a hold of him and the others in her grasp. But she would play with them a little...who knows, it would give her somewhere to stay for free and possibly some kind of activity in the lazy days of the rogue. "Wafu?!" She exclaimed, bolting through the grasses with her ears laid back and her eyes sparkling. "Is it really you?"

She was a totally different girl than she usually was. Too sweet and innocent to be herself, she was inwardly smirking to herself as she acted it up. "Remember me? I'm Chanya" she smiled sweetly and flicked her tail from side to side in fake happiness at the sight of the male again after all this time.

[TheWhistlerify]

[[ You said she recognizes Wafu, but Dakari's the one confronting Zera. =o ]]

Dakari continued walking slowly, not wanting to get the entire pride started at him by running inside like he owed the place. He did stop however when he saw the lioness approach him, and when she nearly ran straight into him, he slowly moved away a little as he saw the startled look on her muzzle. "I'm sorry, miss," he started, doing his best to not seem threatening, "I didn't see you there." It wasn't really true, since she was the one who nearly ran into him. But telling the lioness to watch where she was going was literally a bad idea. When she asked him what did she want, he was about to simply tell the truth by saying that he was looking for a place to stay when he suddenly heard Taz' voice, which caused him jump around out of prue instinct. For a moment, he just stared at the smaller female with a confused expression before answering, "Wafu?" he asked, the name not sounding familliar, "Ahh... Sorry, I'm not Wafu. I think mistook me for someone else."

[zorayda]

Taro was thoroughly confused by the proceedings, not knowing who all these lions were and having only just met Sius, Zera and the others. So much drama, already...he felt like saying something and having someone explain what was going on, but he didn't feel like being so rude. Eeve, however, apparently didn't have a problem doing just that.

"All right, that's it! What the heck is going on?! Who are all these lions? Who's related to whom? Whose den is this, really?" She frowned, her eyebrows angled over her bright orange irises. "My brain can only take so much confusion, you know..."

"Eeve, don't be so rude..." Taro muttered, shifting his paws uncomfortably. His friend could really rub others the wrong way sometimes, due to her overreactions to things...

[Nukascar101]

Wafu's ears perked up as he heard someone call his name. 'who could know my name, and that definitly isn't dad' he thought to himself then looked down from his treetop resting place at the lioness who had called him, at first he didn't recognize her. He never took the time to fully remember the smell or look of any of his cub-hood 'friends'. After looking closely though and hearing the name part of his memory came back and he smiled.
"Chanya!" he called out standing on the branch now but then the smile fell into a bit of a frown as he also remembered that almost all the cubs he met teased him because of his differently colored eyes. He couldn't remember if Chanya was one of them that did it but chances are she was. "What are you doing here?" he asked void of any real emotion.

[Ushujaa]

[ I AM SO SORRY!!!! it took me forever but I've had some serious issues come up so i'll try to make this a good post again i'm really sorry it took so long :( ]

As Sius leaned in towards Ushujaa, Ushujaa realized that they didn't need to make this conversation public... He whispered into Sius' ear as quietly as he could "Kasi did not have time to get Zazu, he sent me here because he was leading a pack of rogue lions away from the Pridelands." Ushujaa turned his head and sighed... "He was leading them away from me. I don't know who they were or what they wanted... but your brother put himself in grave danger so i could escape."

Ushujaa thought back to that chase, he could remember it like it was still happening. He looked blankly to the darkness behind him, he was deep in thought. He kept replaying the scene in his head.

The sky was a gloomy gray, filled with clouds just waiting to release their watery tears. Him and Kasi were running together as they usually did, Ushujaa often challenged Kasi to races; the only times he could win were when Kasi let him. They would always run the border of the Pridelands and Kasi would always speed up into the lead, right when they were in the final stretch of land; like he hadn't been trying at all.

This time however, as they climbed the summit of pride rock Kasi paused for a moment looking back in his dust. Ushujaa remembered shouting to him, something about not letting him win... then Ushujaa turned to see what Kasi was looking at; then he saw. there was a group of at least six fully grown rogue lions crossing the borders into the Pride Lands. the two friends looked at each other knowing they had to stop them somehow, As they ran to confront the rogues Kasi yelled if anything goes wrong go to the jungle; my brother's den is near there, hopefully you'll be able to find him! Ushujaa had only heard short descriptions of Sius from Kasi, he had always spoken very highly of him. Ushujaa wasn't worried though he knew everything would be fine... until they arrived at the border.

As the two friends confronted the rogues, the rogues looked to them "Do either of you know a king Simba?" one of them asked. Ushujaa was brave, sometimes too brave for his own good he yelled back at the rogues "Yeah that's my brother and you better leave now before he finds out you're here..."

The rogues looked to each other chuckling. one of the bigger of the lions stepped out of the group. Then we think you should come with us... He said stepping closer and closer. Ushujaa froze up he was to scared to do anything, was this really it? Kasi ran up to the threatening rogue and clawed his eye with almost perfect speed and accuracy.

Run! Kasi yelled.

Ushujaa and Kasi ran out of the Pridelands border, the jungle was to the left and a canyon they had never traveled before was to the right. Go to the jungle! Now! I'll lead them away from you, find my brother he can help! Without warning Kasi turned around and jumped in front of the rogues then dashing toward the canyon.
Ushujaa's flash back left filled with terror. he was shaking with fear... He turned his head back to Sius Listen i need to help your brother, not only because he saved my life... but because he's one of the few friends i have in the pride lands! then Ushujaa looked around the room noticing all the others. he raised his voice a bit ...And we could use all the help we can get!

[Harvs]

Sius listened to Ushujaa's story, intrigued and horrified. He had never thought that Kasi would get into a scrape like this. This made what Sius had been through seem like a cub's play date. Sius' eyes were wide open in fear and his mouth was ajar. He could even feel himself gasping for breath when he thought about the danger that Kasi had put himself in. Rogue lions chasing after his younger brother wasn't exactly his cup of tea. Kasi was fast. There was no doubt in Sius' mind that Kasi would be able to outrun some pride rejects. However, if Kasi were to be tripped up, or by some chance the rogues caught up to him... it would be over in a second. Kasi was fast... but he was at the shallow end of the gene pool when it came to brute strength.

Visions of Kasi's death shot through Sius' mind. Whether he was injured or not, he couldn't let Kasi die. And if he managed to save the Pride Lands in turn, then all the better. Sius would not let Kasi die... even if that meant putting himself in harms way. Kasi had risked his life to save Sius on multiple occasions. And even when Kasi started living in Pride Rock, he still vowed to never let anything bad happen to Sius. Now, it was his turn to return the favor. Now, Kasi was in danger... and it was Sius' job to save him.

Sius' stomach bled. And as Ushujaa finished explaining what was going on, Sius' expression of worry turned to an expression of determination. He thought that the other lions in his den would hardly recognize him now. The fun-loving, carefree, Hakuna Matata rogue was gone. And in his place stood a brave, powerful lion. Whose love for the only family he had left was far greater than the pain he was forced to endure. He shifted his paws into a standing position and readied himself for what he thought he couldn't do a few minutes ago. Something about his brother's life being on the line gave him the strength to stand. And he did. Slowly and steadily, Sius' back became erect as his legs supported his weight. The cuts along his stomach were nothing but a small inconvenience now. Kasi needed him now more than ever.

"Ushujaa, has Kasi ever told you about my sister Hisani?" Sius asked. His question didn't seem in the mood and Sius felt a few confused looks shoot at him from around the den. Yet he continued. "Kasi fought so hard to save her... but in the end, he just couldn't." Normally, Sius would start bawling from merely thinking about the tragic loss of his sister. He put it in the back of his mind, telling himself that Hakuna Matata was the way to escape the pain. Telling himself that the pain was an unnecessary emotion. And that Hisani wouldn't want him to feel sorrow for her death. But at this point, not a single tear fell from Sius' eyes. He remained strong, and remembered that Hisani hated it when he cried. "We are the only two remnants of our forgotten pride... But... I'm old. My time on this earth has been spent well. And his life is far more valuable than mine." He looked around the den, hoping that the others present would hear his speech and see it his way. Kasi's blood was more important than his... and now it was in trouble. The very memory of Sius' pride had to be preserved. Sius prayed that his new found friends would aid in his brave suicide. But he could only hope. Syira, Taro, Eeve... Zera... They were his last hopes. He turned back to Ushujaa and said "Take me to him."