[PRP] Meet the Family [Tawa & Umthunzi]

[Quaji]

Exhaustion clung to every movement of Umthunzi's body. Her legs were sluggish at best, eyes droopy, tail dragging along behind her. She was so damn tired. Two. That was all she had, but it felt like six as far as she was concerned. Gede had proven to be an invaluable asset to her during delivery, allowing both cubs to survive. For that she was thankful.

Despite all outward signs pointing to Umthunzi being grumpy from having not eaten in nearly a week now, she was happy and the small smile on her face showed that. She had since shed a good portion of the weight she had managed to put on during her pregnancy during the time where she had been unable to hunt. There was no time to, not with vultures always a threat, rogue hyenas, and possibly even the brave wild dog or jackal to watch out for. Umthunzi's stomach had since stopped aching, but the lust for something to eat was strong. It had been so long, at least a week or so since Gede had returned to the pride, leaving the new mother with her cubs until they were old enough to be running circles around her paws.

The day was just breaking over the horizon, peaches and pale reds painting the sky as the white orb slowly rose. They would be going home now, to meet their father, to meet their pride.  

[SilverLutz]

Scampering along behind the large lioness was a young cub who looked startlingly similar to her mother. Ukufana wobbled along in her mother's wake, pouncing through the tall grass without a care in the world. She had a scrap of skin over her back from one of Umthunzi's meals prior to her birth that had been saved for the occasion of one of the cubs being albino like the ex-Firekin, and although she didn't know why she was wearing it just yet she would come to find out its importance soon.

"Are we almost there?" she asked, her voice high and airy. "My paws are starting to hurt."  

[Quaji]

"Soon, my dove." Umthunzi cooed to her paler daughter. There had been panic that had overtaken her when the strikingly similar pale coat. Worry had quickly followed. Would she survive? Would the sun take her before they could even do anything? All of these had panicked thoughts had quickly been smothered when Gede had draped that ratty skin across the newborn.

They were close now. The smells, all familiar, rushed at her with the intensity of a stampeding herd. Tawa's was the one that stood out the most. A scent she had grown familiar to. It comforted her frazzled nerves. Somewhat. It was a start at least.

Another cub padded quietly on, trailing behind her sister as amber eyes watched the world with wonder. So entranced was she that her paws thought to teach her a lesson in the form of tripping over an exposed root. With a surprised sound, she tumbled forward, ending on her back, eyes screwed shut.

Those bright eyes didn't open until there was a familiar nudge--mother's nose, pushing her back up and onto her too-large paws. "Not too much further, come on."  

[SilverLutz]

Ukufana sighed softly at the reply. That wasn't a good enough answer, but she took it for the time being. The noise from her sister and the pause from her mother had the pale cub turn around to wait for her darker twin to rise once more.

"C'mon," she said with a little grin, bounding towards her. "No time for falling over!" She twisted to run forward again, but she failed to heed her own advice and tripped over the scrap of skin on her back. She fell to the ground with an 'oof!' but rose quickly, laughing off the fall.

Not far off Tawa stood watch. His mate - for she would always be that to him now, despite his duties to the pride - had gone off a week or so ago, heavy with cubs. He had waited anxiously for her return since she had left his sight, and now he was growing weary with worry. Surely everything had gone according to plan...Gede had returned but hadn't said a word as to the number of cubs, the gender, the state of them or Umthunzi...she had simply told him to be patient.

His ears turned forward as he caught sight of the lioness moving through the grass, looking down from time to time. The dead foliage was too tall to see, but he could pick out a bit of rustling where Umthunzi was not walking. He set off in her direction, cautious but curious.  

[Quaji]

"Tawa~!" Umthunzi called out, her voice dripping with joy as having seen his mane brightened her day in ways she couldn't even imagine. Despite all of her senses telling her to run to him, to embrace him, she didn't. Her cubs, their cubs, came first. Pale eyes glanced to the twins with that same motherly smile before she leaned her head down to lift the darker of the two up into her mouth with minor protests from the young lion.

Their mother's pace quickened buy only slightly to allow Tawa's pale daughter the ability to keep up. Ukufana kept up better, her little body seemed to want to be done with this journey as much as they all did, but she had stamina greater than her sister. Legazi resigned to her fate being carried by her mother, her mewls dying in her throat before they even truly formed.  

[SilverLutz]

"Huh?"

Ukufana looked around, unsure of who 'Tawa' was or where they might be. She knew they were going to meet new lions today, but so far all she had seen was grass, her sister, and her mother. Boring! As Umthunzi quickened her pace the little cub followed, trotting along behind her bobbing tail while she kept on the lookout for this Tawa character.

The voice carried to Tawa who quickened his pace. Once he saw a dark red small thing in Umthunzi's mouth he broke into a full-blown run, his heart pounding with joy. A cub. There was at least one!

He realized running up to his mate wouldn't be the best idea as he'd probably startle the cub and possibly trample any others that might be around her feet, so he stopped with a few paces to spare. His eyes were on the little bundle of fur in Umthunzi's mouth, clearly captivated by her.

"Arita," he said quietly, his voice weak as he shifted his gaze from the cub to the lioness. He didn't say anything else after that, his voice too thick with emotion and happiness to say more. Cubs. Their cubs.  

[Quaji]

As her mate approached, the cub in Umthunzi's mouth began to struggle weakly. Amber eyes were wide, surprised, shocked even as they watched Tawa with awe and fear mixed as one. Craning her neck downward, the new mother released the cub from her grasp to land on the ground with a little -thump-. Legazi still stared.

Umthunzi's attention shifted to Ukufana, their pale daughter who shared the same condition as herself. With a gentle paw she lead her forward. "These are your cubs, our cubs." There was no reason to be sad, there were none stillborn, none of them had been snatched by a stray hyena, brave vulture or foolish jackal, but still she felt her eyes begin to water.  

[SilverLutz]

Tawa's brown eyes rested on the red cub as she was put down in the grass before him. He leaned in just a bit to get a better look at her, unable to help feeling proud at her rich, dark reds. She would be able to go with Umthunzi to visit the Firekin for certain. Surely she'd help the little one find his parents so they could meet.

Ukufana looked up at her mother as a large paw helped guide her to Legazi's side, and once she broke through the grass to see the large lion before her, she let out a gasp. Whoa! Who was this? Tawa? She listened to her mother speak and finally it clicked.

"Dad?" she asked with a grin, moving forward a pace or two more. The scrap of hide flopped down into her eyes and she scowled for a moment, swatting at it with a paw. "Stupid thing."

As Ukufana made her appearance Tawa's heart ached. The little cub had the same condition as his mate if the pelt that adorned her back was anything to go by, but she looked like a near duplicate of the new mother. Our cubs.

Lifting his head, he stepped forward - mindful of his daughters - and pressed his forehead to Umthunzi's, his own eyes wet with tears of joy. "They're beautiful," he said, his deep voice weak and a bit pitchy. "Look at them...they're perfect."  

[Quaji]

Perfect hadn't been the word her pride, their old pride would have called their pale daughter. That was another life altogether. They were perfect here and they would thrive in ways that the Firekin would never have let them.

Umthunzi's shoulders sagged as all of her muscles seemed to relax at once. She didn't need to worry as Legazi approached her father, as he watched over them both with such awesome awe that it made her heart swell even more when his forehead pressed firmly against her own. "I'm tired," she admitted sheepishly, the fatigue that ate at her body finally began catching up to her. Each step had been a challenge, but each one had been taken for the sake of their cubs. Now bordering on home, she wanted that chapter to be done and their life with their cubs to begin.  

[SilverLutz]

His mate's admission had Tawa chuckling very softly. He could only imagine what giving birth was like, and then having to take care of two cubs on top of that for a week completely alone. He didn't doubt she was exhausted.

"I can only imagine," he murmured, nuzzling his nose against her neck. "You don't need to be tired anymore, though. I'm here to help." He turned to look down at his daughters once again, the quiet but handsomely red and feisty but beautifully pale duo staring up at him by his paws. He lowered his head to them, surveying their small faces for a few moments in silence.

"We're going home now," he said, his voice soft and a bit rumbly. "There's lots of other cubs to get to know and play with, things to see and learn. It's just a bit further. Do you think you can walk?"

Ukufana stood star-struck as her father lowered his giant head, his bright mane just begging to be played in and tugged. She was a bit frozen for a few moments before letting out a high-pitched laugh.

"Yeah! Been walking this whole time so far, I can go a little more," she said with a challenging grin. She was going to prove she could go as far as her parents could without any help at all. Her mother had warned her her coloration would make her weak to the sun, so she wanted to be strong in all other aspects to make up for that.

"C'mon, Legazi!" she said, bumping her sister with her nose before bounding off in the direction Tawa had come from. Her pace was fast to her but slow and bumbling to the adults, paws tripping over every rock and stick she encountered. That didn't slow her down at all, though, and she pressed on through the tall grass.

Quaji

I'll do one more short one after you post to wrap it for it to count for Ukufana X3

 

[Quaji]

Legazi mumbled something under her breath with a little scowl to go with it as she toddled off after her sister with all the speed her awkward legs could muster.

"Stay where I can see you!" Their mother quickly called out to them, her voice nearly frantic as they rush into the tall grass, though the little red tail that goes right up calms her heart a tad. Umthunzi's pace wasn't leisurely, but rather exhausted as she walked beside the red Inselelo. They were safe, they were alive, they were home. One of the most dangerous moments was done and over, but it was only the beginning of something more as now she had to watch the skies even more vigilantly. There were other cubs to entice vultures and eagles, more to lure in jackals and the stray hyena.

At least she had Tawa to help defend them.  

[SilverLutz]

Her mother's call made Ukufana roll her eyes, but she called back a quick 'yes, mom!' before darting further ahead. There was so much to see and do and smell and explore...there was no way she was going to slow down! She'd keep in mind her mother's request, though, and not stray out of earshot.

"C'mon, Legazi!" she said again as she disappeared into the dry grass, blending in fairly well with the pelt on her back.

Tawa kept beside his mate, watching the rustling grass and the little red tail tuft to help him keep an eye on where his daughters had gone off to. There were a few lionesses that had expressed interest in having him sire their cubs, but none of them would never be as dear to him as the two before him and it was because of the lioness beside him.

"Don't worry," he said as he led his mate through the grass as well. "I will watch them when you cannot."

FIN