[PRP] Youthful Innocence [Nchekwube x Nchapu]

[oo Ded]

As far as general everyday life was concerned, Nchekwube didn't have much to complain about. There was no famine. No plague. He wasn't caught up in all-consuming adolescent love (though the thought reminded him that he should have a chat with his brother soon about how that was going for him.

Things were... okay. Just okay. He wasn't about to be exclaiming his joy from the hilltops, or anything. The adolescent was content. Almost sickeningly so.

The sandy lion sat at the edge of a watering hole watching the clouds pass in the clear reflection. Just another day. Uneventful and moderate. Maybe he should go on a hunt. Or go explore some of the area near the edge of the caldera. It just felt as though things in the pride were well protected and, in doing so, dreadfully boring. Anything that might have brought excitement was, by nature, forbidden. The catacombs, the steep edge of the caldera...

Numbingly safe, or exciting and not allowed. Such was the nature of things...

puhterodactyl

 

[Puhterodactyl]

Nchapu, a measured and content lion by most standards, was accustomed to 'numbingly safe' himself and preferred it by and large. Having been born during the plague, it was probably to be expected. Boredom, safety and caution were his constant companions. As one of the few members of the Agadi family, he always planned on dying of old age and that meant having a mostly unremarkable life. But again– unremarkable was exceptional and amazing in comparison to the time of the plague.

As he neared a watering hole, he spotted his nephew and he quickened his step a little. He had no mate or offspring of his own, so Nchapu helped his sister and her mate as often as he could while they raised their litter of three. Maybe someday he would have a mate and cubs of his own, but... eligible bachelorettes weren't in huge supply, and after eliminating those too closely related, Nchapu was hardly left with the freedom to have standards like what he valued in looks or interests or hobbies so... he still had no mate. It didn't bother him very often; he tried to turn his mind to his asmusu duties or to helping his family if it did, and today seemed like a good opportunity to do the latter.

"Nchekwube, how are you?"  

[oo Ded]

"Uncle!"

Though they weren't technically a part of the same family, Nchekwube felt a fondness towards his mother's brother. Blood was blood, after all, and if anything his amusu uncle made for interesting discussion and welcome company.

"I'm..." the adolescent raised a foreleg in a 'not-much-to-say' sort of shrug. The paler lion stretched his legs out before him before moving towards him, giving Nchapu an affectionate bump on the shoulder with his head in greeting.

"How've you been?" He asked before pausing, searching for something else to say to deviate from the normal, boring, every-day conversation. "I imagine things are busy? With the trials coming up?" Of course, all the planning for the Trials of the King were out of his knowledge. But it had to be coming up, right? They couldn't really go without an onyeisi for long...  

[Puhterodactyl]

Nchapu had felt a slight sense of unease in the air lately, in his bones, too. He heard whispers from the skeletons of their ancestors in the crypts– or perhaps they were the sounds of slight breezes brushing over the skulls and bones and Nchapu interpreted them to align with his own feelings and beliefs. Either was possible, he supposed, as he did feel a deep, spiritual connection to their forefathers. Ever since the old Onyeisi died... But he tried to push the thoughts from his mind. Maybe he would 'confer' with the bones later, try to recenter himself and dismiss these fears...

He nodded in return to his nephew's question, glad the adolescent was there to ground him in reality in a sense. He sighed and nodded but did not miss how his nephew had avoided his question.

"And what about you, nephew?" His purple eyes searched Nche's bi-colored eyes for answers.  

[oo Ded]

"Fine? I guess? Not much to say..." His paws kneaded into the ground a few times thoughtfully as Nchekwube met his uncle's eyes. He kept the eye contact for a short while before he diverted his attention back to the watering hole. Nche didn't have the same uneasiness that his uncle did--the adolescent had never really been an overly-spiritual lion--but something did feel strange around here. He couldn't find the right word for it. Tense, maybe.

"I think Ebere's falling for someone," he starting, wracking his brain for something to talk about. These days, his brother's love life seemed one of the more notable things going on. It wasn't hard to make the list, though.

The lion swatted absent-mindedly at a bug moving along the ground. "I haven't talked to him about it, but he seems dodgy. It's weird."  

[Puhterodactyl]

Nchapu watched his nephew thoughtfully, the way he pawed at the ground, the way he looked at the water. Maybe he felt it too. That something was... Different. Tense? It was to be expected during the transition of rulers, he supposed, but maybe there was something else besides it. Time would tell.

The lion raised an eyebrow and tilted his head thoughtfully.

"Oh?" His eyes followed the bug now, too.

"Aren't most a little more private about their love lives?" Or maybe it was different. Ebere was probably the most reliable judge of circumstances. At the very least, Nchapu preferred speculating about an adolescent's love life than worrying about the latest death tolls from the plague.

oo DeD