If Jianyu was as famous as he wished he was, it would be a well known fact that his patience was short. IF he was famous in the pride for his lyrical skills, he expected that he wouldn't find himself pacing, waiting for a love strike lion to make his way to him. Nor would he even be in this mess. If Nianzu understood just how talented Jianyu was, he would have accepted his help right away. Instead, he had to wait for Nianzu to come up with his silly poem, that would obviously have to be edited to pieces.
It was clear from their first meeting that Nianzu hadn't the faintest idea how loved worked and how to woo his lady love. There was a lot of work ahead of him, to get Nianzu to the point where he could confess his feelings. It would be worth it though, Jianyu thought, to see the two of them together because of his work.
As he thought about different songs Nianzu could potentially sing (ignoring the fact that Nianzu said he would not sing), he saw a lioness approaching. It was a surprise, but not a terrible one. She had cloudy white fur, with a rainbow running through her. A beautiful site.
She looked lost as she approached him. With a smile, she spoke. “Afternoon! I was looking for my friend. I saw him wander this way yesterday. I was hoping that he would be in this area. He's a blue lion with stripes.” Her voice was strong, but a delight to the ear.
Jianyu thought on her description. He hadn't seen a blue lion in this area today, yesterday however, “Ah, I see, you are referring to my good friend Nianzu. Unfortunately he has not been around here. He met me yesterday and we conversed and he said that he would like some time to think and went on his way. He was supposed to meet me here today, but it appears that he has other things on his mind."
The lioness seemed disappointed by his statement. "Oh, but Nianzu is a lion of his word. A soldier would always keep his promise, so I am sure that if you stick around here, it will only be a matter of time until he shows up. Until he does, I would be honored to entertain you." He gave the lioness a bow.
She gave a laugh. "I would be delighted. Are you some sort of entertainer?"
"Only in spirit miss. I am a hunter, with ambitions to become a bard someday. For now I must work on harnessing my craft and keeping my wit sharp. Truly, I believe what I lack most is a proper muse. But that is something that cannot be forced nor practiced. When it is time, my muse will find me and it will surely be the brightest day." Jianyu said, with a hint of sadness. He knew that someday he would change ranks, but it just wasn't time.
"I wish you the best of luck. I know how important it is to find your true calling and sticking with it no matter what. Before I came here, my father felt that I was never meant for anything more then to be a hunter and someone's mate. He thought female's had no purpose being fighters. I did everything I could to prove him wrong." She had a wide grin. "In the end, he still didn't accept me, but I found my calling and I never looked back."
Jianyu's eyes widened. "What a wonderful tale. Do you mind if I take pieces of it for a story?" He could imagine it now, a lone lioness warrior, fighting not only for her life, but for her honor. To return to her father, to show her accomplishments ending with a final life and death with him. And in the end sparing him, to make him question the choices he had made.
For a second time she laughed. "Well, if you would like to. Don't tell Nianzu though. Sometimes I feel like he thinks that I have a big ego. I don't want to give him any more reason to think that." She said.
"It shall be our little secret." He said. Then he started to think of the lioness and Nianzu. Wasn't his lady love a warrior as well? He couldn't help but wonder if she was the one he had fallen for. "If you do not mind me prying, why were you looking for Nianzu?"
She looked away, as if ashamed or embarrassed. "Well, he has been avoiding me lately. I don't know if it was something I said or did. I just want to apologize to him so we can go back to training. I miss training with him." she explained. Jianyu patted the lioness on the back.
He realized at that moment that it was clear that Nianzu was an idiot in love. Not only could he not find the right words to confess his feeling, but he was clearly blind if he couldn't see how important he was to the young lady. He pushed her away to the point where she thought that he was mad at him.
"I know Nianzu like he was my brother. Please trust me when I tell you that he isn't mad at you. It is Nianzu we are talking about. The lion hides his feelings like it is something shameful. He needs some time to himself, to work through his problems. I am doing all I can to help him. That was part of the reason he was going to meet me today."
This seemed to cheer her up. "He does keep everything locked up doesn't he. He never even told me that he had a friend outside the North house. Once he feels like talking to me again, I will have to get him to tell me more about his life outside of training."
“Nianzu will only have the kindest of words to describe me. I have been there for him in his largest life crisis.” It had been fate for Nianzu's desire to show up. In some ways a better outcome then if Nianzu would have shown up himself. But now he needed weave their fates together to insure that they ended up together. Nianzu was no where close to ready to confessing his love to the lioness before him.
“I should get going. I still have a lot of training to get to today.” She said. “It was wonderful to meet you. A friend of Nianzu is always a friend of mine.”
“You have been a delight to talk to. By the way, my name is Jianyu, in case you ever need to seek me out.” He said as she got up.
“It has been a pleasure Jianyu. My name is Suyin. If you run into Nianzu, tell him to come talk to me.” She said, before turning away and heading away.
Jianyu smiled as he watched her walk away. Everything was in motion now. All that he needed to do was coach Nianzu. The two were destined to walk side by side. It was his duty to help guide them there.
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