[PRP] After the Storm (Nyarai & Inkumbulo)

[Z o m b i k ii]

It was no secret that Nyarai hated the rain and when heavy clouds formed overhead she was the first to complain about it.

The orange lioness spent most of her time outside and had the unfortunate habit of getting caught in storms when her guard was down. The many shameful walks she had made back to the den, drenched to the bone and shivering was enough to taint her view on the weather. However, laid under the tree with Inkumbulo was rather pleasant.

Admittedly they had not talked much since the rain started, she had just been laid against him, grooming him here and there. Considering she was meant to have spent the afternoon tracking a herd; the day had turned out to be rather calm and lazy. Besides, Afya did not have to know she had been slacking - she had done more than her fair share of the work lately.

Finally, the rain seemed to be slowing down and Nyarai rested her head on his leg when she realised. It meant she would have to move soon, a thought that almost made her groan. The truth was all she wanted to do now was nap; though that might have been pushing her fellow huntresses patience a little too much. Vibrant eyes looked up at the large male. ”I think it is settling down.” Her voice was soft, half dreamy to reflect her relaxed state, tail rhythmically tapping behind her.

”It means we need to go back to being adults, with responsibilities and duties.” It was almost a whine but delivered with a warm smile. Inkumbulo probably had much better things to do than hang around with her all evening and she did not want to get him in any trouble. Another twist of her neck and she found herself reaching up to his large, fluffy ears, taking one in her mouth and giving it a light nibble;

As if to say she was not ready to go back to adulting just this second.  

[Anderleit]

Between the tapping of rain through the leaves and the rhythmic motions of Nyarai's grooming, Ink succumbed to a peculiar lethargy. Wedged as he was between the trunk of their shelter and the lioness, there wasn't much more he could do besides cuddle and be cuddled in return. Well, and watch - because apparently, even at the most comfortable he could remember being since his mane had grown in, that was something he couldn't stop doing. But the sentry kept vigil through half-lidded eyes, and while he could swear all was clear, he was certain that he would look back on this moment and be able to recall what happened beneath the branches with far more clarity than anything outside of them.

It seemed to Ink that the silence slipping its way around them wasn't as awkward as he might have thought. Instead, it was comfortable - almost welcome. Like there wasn't anything that needed to be said. If only they were farther inside the pride's territory, he might have been able to doze like this. In fact, there was a kind of waking dream stirring in the young male's head; where Nyarai's words from earlier buzzed incessantly in the background. How would it feel not to sleep alone, forever? He could probably doze several nights away like this, truth be told...

The grooming had stopped. He started softly, blinking reluctant awareness back into his eyes. He couldn't decide what surprised him more: how quickly the sensation had blended into the norm, or how acutely aware he was that it was over. "Eh, what? ...Oh." Yeah, now that he listened to it, the downfall did seem to be tapering off. Damn.

Although, he was somewhat gratified to hear that the lioness' voice shared that dreamlike drowse. One that she threatened to send him right back to, grabbing his ear like that. Ink chuckled quietly. "Yeah, we probably should...in a minute." He was just as unhurried, judging first by his slow, almost slurred tone, and second by the way he lowered his head further into her reach. "Had something to ask you first."  

[Z o m b i k ii]

Anderleit

If one could be held hostage by the whims of a grown lioness than Ink certainly was being, and the approved of the fact that he had even lent down to make it easier for her to do so. Nyarai held his ear between her teeth, applying enough pressure to keep him close and have her presence felt, but not enough to cause discomfort. There was a strange mixture of a growl and a purr rumbling in her throat as she laid next to him. She was at ease, and bit by bit her cub like playfulness was beginning to shine through.

Her tail flicked, gently hitting his body as her ears flattened against her head. Truth be told she was about ready to pounce on him and turn their lazy afternoon into a wrestling match and would have done if he had not spoken. The lioness had too much energy; energy that had not been used up by her usual scouting routine. “Hmm?” She hummed into his ear, raising an eyebrow at his remark about a question. Curiosity got the better of her, she let go of him and shifted to lay on her back, paws folded into her chest.

“What’s on your mind?” She mused, reaching up and kneading into his mane with sharp claws. Ink’s hair seemed thicker and denser than her brothers, but there was no surprise there. The orange siblings were more streamlined than fluffy and always the first to feel a chill when temperatures dropped. Giving their vibrant colouration it was not beyond the imagination to think somewhere down her family line they had lived in a desert area with constant bright sunlight. Though, there was no way to confirm that theory now it was only the two of them.

Any members that would remember such the time had their bones laid to rest before she was even born.

She smirked, having held back on her attack long enough, with her paws in his mane she leant up with a small growl, her legs wrapping around his neck as she did so, trying to pull him onto the ground so she could dominate him. Whatever conversations that were to be had, could be done so with her in a position of power. Nyarai had not tried her luck with a male as large as Ink before, but she would give it a good go. If he wanted to relax a little bit longer then she would just have to disappoint him.  

[Anderleit]

The male pushed his head further into her attentions, that sluggish feeling creeping back upon him with a vengeance. Going for his ears was bad enough - it was cheating, really, and here was hoping Nyarai would forget about that particular weak spot in the future. By the time she started in kneading his mane, Ink would have accused her of some serious wrongdoing if only he could think straight long enough to do so. As it was, everything was fading back into that pleasant, rain-patter lassitude...

If only the rain was willing to cooperate. The receding drops weren't nearly as rhythmic as their forebears, and the lack of that drumming sound on the leaves was just enough to keep him grounded. Remind him that there were responsibilities they were neglecting, here beneath the branches. And if that was the case, Inkumbulo figured he'd better be productive in their slacking.

"You asked me what made me decide to watch the borders. Well...what about you?" He blinked, just aware enough to realize that she was on her back (when had that happened?) and looking at him with an expression he couldn't quite decipher. "What made you decide to be a huntress?"

And then - much too late - he realized that her expression was something like 'cublike impishness', and her paws were around his neck. And pulling. He didn't resist, letting himself be mushed into the ground and rolled - and just that easily were their positions reversed. Ink held his paws against his chest, gesturing half-hearted supplication even as his face froze in a wide-eyed, incredulous grin. "Whoa, whoa! No need for practical demonstrations, words will do just fine!"

Z o m b i k ii

 

[Z o m b i k ii]

Anderleit

Nyarai looked down at him with a smirk on her lips, a brow raised at his question. The young lioness was not too sure how to answer it; because it was something she had not put much thought into. In truth, she had fallen into the role. Nyarai was not a planner, she just pursued whatever felt natural, followed her gut and the heart beating in her ribcage. “I don’t know. I guess Afya just told me to follow one day; I have followed her out every day since then.” Nyarai had never wanted to lead and was happy following the most respectable lioness in the hunt. Afya was one of her best friends, her Pride Sister.

Besides, the orange lioness was all too aware of what the Pride thought of her; nobody ever expected her to take on a serious role or accomplish great things. She was always just so painfully average. She was not special like Khwezi, nor Ink. “I am not noble, or brave and I don’t have the strength to protect anybody. But I can make sure you are well fed, so you can keep us safe.” She looked down at him, pressing her nose against his for a brief moment before pulling back. She said the words much like he had done earlier; all she wanted to do was bring joy to her Pride.

Though in answering his question she had failed to notice that Ink was not fighting back. She looked down at his face, his eyes, taking a moment to take in his voice. Why was he acting so docile? Could he not easily overpower her? The orange lioness paused for a moment, vivid eyes blinking slowly a few times. “I…” She began, feeling his paws against her chest; all too suddenly she realized that she was not a cub anymore, and what someone would think if they caught two adults acting like this.

Her cheeks went pink, but unlike Ink, she did not have dark fur to hide her bashfulness. Instead, she just cleared her throat, her eyes drifting to look anywhere else but downward. “This is a little close... isn’t it?” She asked, her breath catching in her lungs for a second. With ears flattened against her head, she looked back down at him but made no attempt to move from their current position. She always just followed what her gut told her, but despite realising the implications of such a situation, this did not feel wrong.

She had got carried away again.
 

[Anderleit]

Scrunching his nose against the brief touch of hers, Ink had the sudden, wild desire to laugh. He refrained, but barely. For some reason, he was almost certain that it would come out as a decidedly unimpressive giggle. The set of her ears told him that she was feeling just the same way...maybe? Did he want that? What should he hope she was feeling right now?

At her words, his smile started to fade. He didn't want this. The idea stuck in his head then that Nyarai would remember this night, and think of this moment before any of the others; she would recall the expression she wore right now over anything else. Ink blinked owlishly into her gaze, thinking instead of pleased purring, the warmth of her fur and their tails tangled together. The thought of ruining that...Ink couldn't bear it. He was not going to let their only memory of this afternoon be awkward. If that meant cublike, then damn it all...

Big paws lifted, dark toes splaying out before uniting behind the golden lioness' neck. Bewilderment had given way to a toothy grin that radiated much more confidence than he felt. He could only hope to mirror her mischief as he flipped them again, bracing his paws on either side of her head. Let her see what it felt like to have an ear tugged on.

He only kept it up for a moment, though, nipping the shell of her ear before chuckling into it. "This is closer," he joked.

At least, it was meant to be a joke. It was meant to come out lighthearted. So why did his voice sound so much huskier aloud than it had in his head? And had he always been that much larger than she was? Heat spread from his nose to the tips of his ears. Avoiding her eyes, the male sprang free of their tussle, bursting out from under the tree at a dead sprint. He forced a guffaw from the depths of his barrel, spinning around to duck into a play-bow and growl at the still-prone lioness.

Now who'd gotten carried away?

Z o m b i k ii

 

[Z o m b i k ii]

Anderleit

Nyarai was so distracted by her own thoughts that she did not realise her companion had literally wrapped himself around her. All she could do was blink all too innocently as her gaze drank ink his toothy grin and the feeling of them rolling once again. Her eyes closed instinctively as she felt his teeth on her ear and in that moment of darkness she realised how fast her heart was beating. This was indeed, closer. His words made her racing heart skip a beat, and if she didn't know better she would have thought it audible to the male. For probably the first time since she had come of age (though some did question if she was mature enough to be classed as an adult), she was having very strange feelings. Another first was the fact that Ink’s actions had left her utterly speechless and all she could do was slowly open her vivid orbs to look at him dumbfounded.

Then as quickly as it had all happened he was gone, almost so suddenly that she lost her balance. Quickly picking herself off the ground, and backing up closer to the trunk of the tree until she felt the bark against her side; she just looked at him. Ink was lucky in the fact he was dark-furred, because the lionesses cream fur did nothing to hide the fact that blood had rushed to her face and shoulders. With a few heavy breaths and a small wheeze (which she forced a cough to try and hide), she composed herself the best she could. Things had most certainly changed from the time they used to play as children.

When his growl demanded she look at him again he looked about ready to pounce. Still lost for words she felt her mouth open slightly and then close. With one last deep breathe she finally found her voice. “W-when did you grow up to be so-?” She shook her head, tail flicking as she remained sat at the base of the tree. Handsome? Charming?

”Disarming?”

Smooth Nyarai, very very smooth!

She had never quite wanted to have the ground swallow her quite as much as she did in that moment.  

[Anderleit]

He eased slowly out of his crouch. Half of that fanged grin lingered on his muzzle, mostly in spite of himself. "Disarming?" Asking what he'd done wrong... Well. Ink could single out all kinds of things that hadn't gone according to an admittedly terrible plan just then. Better not to bring up the myriad, really.

Wasn't just because he didn't know what to make of it, nope. Certainly wasn't because he didn't want to face the flush on her face, or the way it made him feel.

"I think," he began, edging tentatively closer, "you're just sore because I never pinned you when we were cubs. You just didn't know I had it in me." Now that the moment had passed, and she wasn't quite so far away...don't even mention the way she looked at him! Any and all bravado threatened to fade away as quickly as it had come. "I'd apologize for not warning you, but you didn't exactly give me any." Smiles would make up for things, right? Even if they weren't nearly as cheeky as the ones before.

Even if he was panicking inside, because the twitch of her tail did not suggest happy feelings and the way she was looking at him was turning his stomach in circles.

Although he'd set out to make sure this didn't end gracelessly, Inkumbulo was growing increasingly concerned that he had managed to do just precisely the opposite of that. He wasn't so sure which of the memories he'd prefer she forgot: the flustered closeness, his brazen missteps, or whatever it was that was happening right now. All were pretty darn miserable, so, y'know. Good times.

Z o m b i k ii

 

[Z o m b i k ii]

Anderleit

Nyarai just stared at him as he approached, her face not giving away the thoughts that were rushing through her mind. She was confused, over thinking things, at odds with a realisation that hit her so suddenly she felt like her world had been turned on its head. He was talking to her; but she would be hard pressed to repeat his words. It was like she was underwater, her vision and hearing both distorted by the thundering beat beneath her fur. Did she have a crush on Ink? She couldn’t, she knew him before his mane had grown in.

She stood back up tentatively, walking towards him with caution, like each touch of her paws on the ground risked making the earth crack open beneath her. There were no words then. Just a very brief moment when her vivid eyes caught his much paler ones. The cream lioness leaned towards him without any hesitation, pressing her nose against his own in an attempt to shut him up. She closed her eyes and lingered in the position a little too long for it to be comfortable. A little too long for it not to have intent. If she was to remember one moment from this afternoon, it would be that one; though she was sure she would remember them all.

When she pulled back and turned and ran as fast as she could back towards the pride lands and the den she shared with her sibling; looking over her shoulder for only a brief moment to see if he was totally disgusted by the way she was acting. What was she doing? Khwezi would kill them both, Ink was one of his brothers in arms so to speak. A friend. A protector. And she had gone and done that.

Stupid. Naive. Foolhardy. Lioness.  

[Anderleit]

What could he say? What could fix this? The fluttering in his stomach had reached a fever pitch; Ink could practically hear the frantic beat of it in his ears. On top of that, with the way his belly was flip-flopping? Maybe it would be better if he didn't say anything. That way, he could at least be sure he wouldn't throw up on a very pretty lioness' paws.

Pretty was kind of the problem, though. Warm, too - the memory of her pressed against him rushed, unbidden and unexpected, to the forefront of Ink's thinking. Her laughter, and the feeling of steady nibbles in the rain. The idea of never sleeping alone, ever again, and keeping her safe.

Ink wouldn't have been able to think of anything to say, anyway. Thankfully, he didn't have to. There was, for the second time tonight, the not-entirely-unwelcome sensation of Nyarai's eyes swimming before his own. Then there was only silence. In his thoughts, outside, between them. Nothing but the touch of her nose on his own and the beating of his heart.

She was running away from him, and Ink couldn't follow. He couldn't move; his eyes were still closed, held in place by the ghost of a kiss that had ended too soon. When at last pale eyes did open, the male swayed on his paws. Idly, he wondered if he would be able to stand on his own ever again. When Rai looked back, she'd see the dumbfounded male in her wake with eyes only for her, lips quirked up at the corners in a lopsided gape that was amazed and bewildered all at once.