[FIN] Count the Stars (Adaeze and Nthanda)

[belloblossom]

Adaeze had always craved silence whenever Ginga was beside her, chattering on and on, but now that he was in the Mwezi the silence seemed stifling. She perked her ears, hoping to hear any words directed at her about how the stars above looked just like his pelt (usually accompanied by a laugh) or how he wished he could fly. Yet, no words came and Adaeze was left to feel painfully alone.

She hadn't felt alone in a very long time. It was unfamiliar and left her feeling as though she hadn't eaten in days. Clearly the solution to her feeling was not to think of her lost companion and instead to hunt. If she felt hungry, surely eating would solve the problem and after that... Well, then she'd deal with it later.

So she started to roam about the rogue lands for any sign of a gazelle herd. Gods, even something as small as a hare would do for her. If only she could track it and not be constantly distracted by the feeling in her gut. What on earth was wrong with her?

dbz2010

 

[dbz2010]

Nthanda couldn't hunt for himself even if his life depended on it, which it did right now. His siblings would normally have helped him hunt but they were long gone with mates of their own. He was left all alone. It didn't help that his starry pelt made him stick out like a sore thumb in the day time so he stuck to night-time hunting. Sometimes he got lucky and caught a weak prey but there were times were he wasn't so lucky.

Today was one of those unlucky days. He had chased away the last small herd of small game and was s**t out of luck in finding more game. He had stopped for a brief rest when he spotted something in the distance. Perking his ears up, he began to stalk it, not knowing it was another cheetah in the distance.

belloblossom

 

[belloblossom]

Adaeze continued to roam about, but she didn't manage to catch a whiff of anything. She wasn't sure how far she was willing to search for a hunger that may not go away, as she wasn't completely certain it was hunger she was feeling (she was just too proud to admit that it may be anything else.)

She eventually came to a halt and was scanning the horizon when she spotted a shape coming towards her. Perking her ears and narrowing her eyes, she saw a vaguely feline shape with a pelt that looked as though it had been plucked from the night sky. Could it be...?

"Ginga?" She called and in a burst of excitement, she jettisoned forward for several strides, only to find the other become slimmer as she approached and with several defining features that marked them as a cheetah and not the lion she sought after. Oh dear, that was embarrassing, she thought slowing, but she had to address the other properly now, for there was no where else she could go on this open savanna and to not speak to the other cheetah would be just as mortifying, if not more so, than her mistaking him for her friend.

"I'm sorry, you must forgive me." She said as she approached. "I mistook you for a dear friend of mine. Your pelt is so similar to his..." She glanced up at him and felt her cheeks warm slightly. "My, you have striking eyes..." She murmured, before realizing her words and fluffing out her pelt in her boldness. "Oh, I mean, well, that is to say... My name is Adaeze. Who might you be?" She asked, goodness, she had never been so bad at interacting with others when Ginga was around. What was she saying?!

dbz2010

 

[dbz2010]

Nthanda came to a halt when the thing that he was stalking suddenly came at him...and yelled a name at him. He felt his haunched slide under him as he allowed his body to halt into a sitting position. It was an awkward sitting position but it was one nonetheless. He tilted his head to one side and saw that the thing that he was stalking was a feline-another cheetah to be exact.

"Ginga?" he asked curiously. "I'm sorry but I am not this Ginga you seek. I am Nthanda. Maybe I can help you find Ginga?" He lifted a paw up to start to get up and move again. "I am certain there are very few star-pelted felines around...well, other than me and your friend Ginga."

He looked back at her with a sorrowful look on her face. In his eyes she looked a little lost and alone. Just like himself. He had wished that one of his sisters had stayed with him but they left him. Just like this Ginga had left Adaeze.

belloblossom

 

[belloblossom]

"Nthanda, it's a nice name." She replied with a smile. Yet the smile dropped at the name of her companion-former companion and she shook her head. "No, it's no use. I know where he is, but it's somewhere I cannot follow." She sat down and let out a weary sigh. "He went to join other lions in the same pride my father, well, adopted father, but still, went to join. It's called the Mwezi'johari." She smiled a little. "Since they're a close-knit pride that worship the moon, I thought he'd do well there, having a coat that looks as though it's made from the night sky." She glanced up at Nthanda, her own expression a mirror to his, though she was doing her best to look cheerful. "It's a lion-only pride. I'm only permitted to visit from time to time because my father is there, but not for more than a few nights."

She swallowed thickly and then asked.
"If you wouldn't mind accompanying my lonesome self-it sounds so pitiful, I realize, but I would truly enjoy the company." She perked up slightly. "I was searching for a herd I might hunt from. Perhaps you'd like to join me?" She inquired.

dbz2010

 

[dbz2010]

Nthanda blinked a few times when Adaeze began to talk about her father-a lion. He wasn't sure how a lion could be a father to a cheetah but it worked for her. He nodded his head when she explained that he went to an all-lion pride and sighed. Lions were picky like that sometimes where they didn't want the other felines to intermingle with them.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Adaeze," he said to her somberly. "At least you are able to see him every once in a while...but I know it isn't the same. I, too, have lost family but in a different way. My sisters have found mates of their own and have decided that having a baby brother around was too troublesome so they left me."

Nthanda could feel his cheeks flush a bit when she mentioned a herd that she might hunt from. He gazed around at the surrounding area and gave a nervous chuckle. "Ah, right...hunting." He shook his head a little bit before continuing on. "I am a horrible hunter, to be honest. I've only managed to survive this long on my own due to pure luck. I also think I might have scared away some of the game around here but if you really must insist I join you then I can always scare them towards you...if that is alright with you."

belloblossom

sorry about not replying earlier. wasn't feeling too great

 

[belloblossom]

Adaeze smiled a little and nodded at the words of the male. His sisters sounded very irksome and she dug her claws into the ground at his story. How dare they find their own mates and just leave him on his lonesome? When he moved on to the notion of hunting and heard that he was a terrible hunter, she smiled.

"Don't you fret about that, I'm sure we can work something out together. Your idea sounds quite promising." A pause and then. "I'd be happy to show you a thing or two about hunting too, perhaps after we've eaten though." She suggested and perked her ears, interest at the idea.

She'd hunted with Ginga plenty of times, sure. With his mass it was much easier to bring down larger prey, but with two cheetahs... She would be happy to hunt with her own kind again, even if it was apparently with a bad hunter.

"It's quite alright. C'mon, let's see what we can find." She said, getting to her paws and taking off. "We're sure to find something sooner or later, right?" She was in a much cheerier mood now that she had some company. She did so hope it would last.

dbz2010

 

[dbz2010]

Nthanda noticed the reaction from the female as he mentioned his sisters and he winced slightly. It was a very strong reaction but he didn't apologize for saying his mind about his sisters and them leaving him behind for their mates. If he had gotten a mate he probably would have stuck around long enough for them to kick both him and his mate away from them. Instead they kicked him away when they got mates of their own. Maybe it was for the best. It was, after all, time for him to head out on his own and find a mate to call his own.

He flicked an ear when he heard her say not to fret. He wasn't fretting...okay, at least not too much but he was a little uncertain about hunting. "Yeah," he said slowly, a little worried that he may have scared away the rest of the game for a while in the area. At least she had confidence that they would find something.

"I guess you're right," he said with a shrug before he stood up and followed after her with a quick pace. He didn't want to get left behind but he also didn't want to be the bearer of bad news when it was revealed that either he was as bad a hunter as he had been while hunting alone or all the game had been scared away in his lone hunting earlier that day.

belloblossom

 

[belloblossom]

Adaeze blinked sympathetically at Nthanda when he winced, but said nothing more as they began to set off. His worry was clear, but it didn't bother her any. She was more than happy that she had a hunting companion, even if he claimed to be a bad one.

"We may have to walk a bit." She said, looking around. It really did seem like the area they were in currently was deserted. How odd. "Well, I know where there's a watering hole nearby. We're sure to catch something there. C'mon!" She said cheerfully and pranced off. What a pleasant day this was turning out to be!

dbz2010

One more post from you and then we can call this finished!

 

[dbz2010]

"It's okay," Nthanda said in a reassuring tone of voice. "I am used to walking long distances." It was true. He had gotten used to walking for hours on end mainly because that was all he could really do to pass by the time. He had no one to talk to up until now and he didn't really get a good hunt in unless he got lucky. Walking a long time to get any place was the least of his worries at this point in time.

"A watering hole? I have no idea why I didn't think of hunting near those begin with," he said in a curious voice. "Alright." He scrambled to keep up with her. For the first time he was actually happy to hunt.

belloblossom

alright. I think this is finished!