Pride of Exiles

[TheWhistlerify]

At first Laini thought, for the first time, that she was actually having a conversation with Rav's mother that wouldn't make her uncomfortable somehow. But as Kaith revealed her intentions towards her and her son, the young lioness did a surprisingly good job in keeping a straight face. So did the older lioness like her, or was she just making do with what she had? She had a feeling the older lioness was serious in what she was saying. When wasn't she serious about anything, though?

Once again Laini felt like she was being thrown into the deep water. If a lioness like that was to show up tomorrow, before she's had her chance to learn and mature like Kaith said she needed to, what would she do? Did she even need to worry about this, though? Rav could make his own choices and they've grown very close since they'd met. So if this was the real thing, the young lioness probably didn't have a thing to worry about. Or did she?

How would she know that Rav wouldn't change his mind after they became mates or even had cubs? Would this happy relationship just hurt her in the end? If Rav's feelings for her were true, then he would probably listen to his heart. But that didn't mean Laini wasn't going to keep learning what she had to learn. However, she was starting to seriously doubt whether she would ever be able to feel comfortable around his mother. It was like her own feelings didn't matter at all to the older lioness.

[Ravvij]

"I'm sorry, dear. I must seem very over powering. I don't want you to feel you can't talk to me though. If you ever need something there's no harm in asking. I won't bite your head off... maybe." she teased her. Kaith couldn't help herself sometimes. She laughed to herself a tad. She'd curbed her anger and thought about more pleasant things.
The impending smell of rotting bodies and unfinished kills Kaith had been expecting finally came to her nose. It was sickening and wretched. She kneaded the ground angrily and folded her ears back, all the while looking for the source of the smell. It might have only been slight but the smell was still there, being carried by the north winds.

[TheWhistlerify]

Laini took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "I know you said I have to grow and mature. I'm not saying that I don't." she started, feeling like she needed.to get that off her chest. "But I can't do it on my own and I definitely can't do it in the blink of an eye either. You've been teaching Rav his whole life and he still says he has much to learn... I would really appreciate it if you helped me instead of reminding me what might happen if I can't do it or making it feel like I have to get everything right right away."

She wasn't trying to sound rude - not at all, but this whole thing would be easier for her if she were to have Kaith's support. Besides, if Rav's mother couldn't listen to the opinion of others and accept their rights to have them, just what sort of leader would that make the older lioness? Soon enough, the smell that had caught Kaith's attention reached her as well. It was disgusting in every way possible. "That's-" she didn't even know what to say. How could any lion be so brutal? The smell was faint, meaning that the source wasn't all that close and maybe even far away. "Wait... What is that?" She asked, noticing a different scent as well.

[Ravvij]

"Two lions. They're headed this way. We should hide." Kaith said in a low tone. She moved slowly into a thick patch of brush. "I meant..." Kai looked back towards Laini as they crept to safety, "That you can ask me for help. I'm willing to help you if you wish to be a good mate for my son. Asking for help isn't a sin. There's your first lesson."
Kaith was trying her best to sound helpful during her heightened state of alert. She scanned the mountains and foliage carefully. Looking for the lions she could smell. Fore their sake they'd better be prepared to fight.

[TheWhistlerify]

Laini nodded her head a few times. "Of course I want to be a good mate for Rav." she said quietly. "And I know it's not a sin. Otherwise I wouldn't have asked for your help." It was clear in her tone that she was nervous about the two lions headed their way as the two of them made their way to their chosen hiding spot. Her heart sank when, after a few moments, a male lion came into view. His fur was pale cream colored and his mane was black, but what caught the young lioness's attention the most was his size. He was as big as Kaith at the very least, meaning he was a little older than Rav was.

For a moment she thought this was one of the males who'd taken over Zuyu's pride, but her anger ganished when, all of a sudden, an adolescent lioness came into view as well, following the lion. She looked pretty much the same as the male, which meant that they had to be related somehow. "I'm tired... My legs hurt..." complained the lioness, her voice shaky and choked up. Had she been crying? "We've been up all night..."

"I know, Marini." said the lion with a sigh as he stared at the ground, obviously upset because of something. "We'll stop as soon as we find a safe place, I promise."

[Ravvij]

Kaith wondered what was happening. This older lion was leading the younger one around. If he was helping her he wasn't doing a great job of it. The poor cub could ride on his back if he really wanted to continue.
She waited until they passed. "Play along. Don't make a sound." Kaith told Laini in a very hushed tone. Kaith gave out a whine like she was in pain. Not a loud whine, but loud enough to get the male's attention. From within the brush, which was too thick to see into, she spoke, "H-help... please."

[TheWhistlerify]

(Ride on his back... I should have thought of that...)

The two walked on a little further before the adolescent, whose name was probably Marini, spoke once again. "Can you carry me?" she asked, looking up at him with big, sad eyes.

The male turned around, looking like he hasn't been paying too much attention to anything, really. "Oh... Yes, sure..." Just as he was about to crouch beside the younger lioness, he heard Kaith from behind the bush. "H-hello?" he asked, sounding hesitant. After what he and his sister had seen it was pretty understandable.

He took a step closer towards the bush, but his sister suddenly tugged on his tail. "Don't go..." she pleaded, looking scared.

"Relax, 'Rini..." he said with a small smile. Laini looked at Kaith in confusion. Just what was she trying to do? The lion continued to approach slowly, but stopped a noticable distance away from the bush as a safety precaution. "Who's there?" His tail flicked about behind him; a sign that he was on alert. "Show yourself."

[Ravvij]

Kaith then smiled a devilish smile at Laini... and pushed her out into the open. She was using Laini as bait if the situation escalated to that. The smaller lioness wouldn't pose much of a threat to this male, but Kaith was much larger than Laini and only a tad larger than the male; being a Tsavo after all. Kath's plan was to surprise the male if he posed a large enough threat.

[TheWhistlerify]

Laini yelped in surprise as she suddenly found herself being pushed forward and out of their cover. She stumbled and fell in her confusion, looking up at the unfamilliar lion in front of her with wide eyes. He looked at her with squinted eyebrows. The whine he'd heard earlier sounded like it belonged to somebody who was injured, but the yelp this lioness had let out didn't. Also, the way she immediately rose to her paws out of instinct after tripping, even if she stood perfectly still in fright afterwards, made her look lime she wasn't hurt at all. What was going on, exactly?

"Who are you?" he asked with a somewhat agitated look on his face, still keeping his distance. His sister was standing behind him, looking scared and curious at the same time. Laini tried to say something, but nothing came out of her mouth. What would she do if this lion attacked her? He was as large as Rav was if not a little bigger. "Well?" he demanded eventually, causing the young lioness to gulp.

"Uh... I..."

"You called for help but you're clearly unharmed." stated the male, frowning.

"I-I'm not hurt... My, er... friend is... She's over there..." she pointed at the bush.

The lion in front of her was still obviously suspicious. "Okay, go over there and carry her here, then." Not only did Laini not know what Kaith was planning, but she also wasn't going to argue with an adult male. She did as she was told and boy was Rav's mother heavy. "Stop." The male ordered as soon as Laini had re emerged from behind the bush. "Put her down where you are." This lioness, clearly a Tsavo, didn't look hurt either. "What's the matter with you?" he asked, him and his sister still keeping their distance.

[Ravvij]

Kaith grimaced. Laini shouldn't have given up Kaith's position or that fact that she wasn't alone. A lesson she would soon teach the young lioness if they got out of this situation... a situation Kaith now had to defuse even more.
"So he's perceptive. Alright." Kaith said a sly smile on her face, "How about this... I have a lioness from your Pride hidden somewhere. If you want her back you'll have to let me hold onto that little one behind you. If not I'll kill Zuyu myself."
Kaith was seeing if anything she'd said would push this male's buttons enough to get the response that he was either a potential friend or enemy. She had intention of killing Zuyu, but she hoped the threat would be enough to get what she was after. She saw the male tensing up, so, before he could respond she said, "Remember... that cub behind you may not survive a fight between the three of us."
Kaith was cold and ruthless when she needed to be. A part of her that was natural to a Tsavo lioness. Of course, just as she was bluffing about killing Zuyu, she had no intention to harm the young cub, but the male didn't know that and Kaith made no indication otherwise. It was more or less a stand-off. She trusted that Laini wouldn't give them away this time.