let's make a new beginning [Zoketi & Amy]

[Zoketi]

my characters;;
Mwanga
Shomari
Tufaha
Jioni

--

[just starting with Mwanga and Shomari for now. c;]

The peachy-tan lioness strode across the crest of the hill, her tail stretched out behind her, dipping and fluttering like the grass that rose up around her. A few steps to her right, a young not-quite-teenage grey cub padded hesitantly, his amber gaze darting constantly around as if worried danger was planning to jump out at him at any given moment. He lowered his head, steps quick and somewhat jumpy, quite contrasting to the young adult female's easy grace.

Mwanga began a smooth descent, heading towards a small waterhole a the base of the slope. A couple of gazelle rimmed around it, as well as a lone buffalo and a pair of hartebeest. No other predators, which was comforting. Her younger companion didn't seem that happy with the creatures already present, but then again he always seemed this shaky, so she didn't think much of it other than to give him a gentle flick with her tail. She'd be here for him, always, she told him that.

The two continued down to the edge of the pool. The close-by gazelle scattered a bit, aware that they were small and easy targets if distracted. Mwanga didn't give them so much as a glance, though Shomari's eyes trailed nervously over each of the ungulates. He scurried at Mwanga's heels, and nearly bumped into her when she stopped by the water's edge and lowered her head to quickly lap at the liquid. He shook his head and crept alongside her, jerking his small muzzle to the water and slurping up a drink. Mwanga gave him a playful nudge. "Don't inhale it, silly." she murmured teasingly.

Shomari huffed and licked his muzzle, but gave her a quick nuzzle on the side of her foreleg. Mwanga ruffled his head-tuft with a paw, then turned away from the side of the waterhole. She trudged a few paces away and plopped her haunches down on the short grass. "Let's relax for a bit." she suggested, baring teeth in a yawn. The grey cub trotted to her side and lay down on his stomach, resting his head on his paws but keeping a sharp gaze scouring the land, as he always did.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

My characters: show

Kadija
Chesi
Sefu

The three figures drifted across the grassy plain almost in sync. Occasionally, one would sprint forward, or one would stop to look around. For the most part though, they stayed together. Young adolescent lions knew better than to go off on their own. Kadija, Cheshi and Sefu were cousins, but they had felt like siblings since they were cubs. The small cream-coloured female, Kadija, bounded a few steps in front of her male companions, turned around and stopped them in their tracks.
"We really do need to find a place to stay for a while. We've been walking for days". The stockier male Sefu, a darker colour to the female, stopped and nodded. He sat on his haunches.
"I agree, I'm shattered".

Cheshi, the other male of yet a darker colour again, rolled his eyes and came to a stop.
"Aw, come on guys. It's just walking. We could cover more ground today!" He saw the miserable look on his cousin's faces and gave in. "Maybe we've done too much walking..." he admitted. Cheshi was the more excitable of the group. He wanted to travel far away, he hadn't even considered starting a pride. Kadija approached him and gave his muzzle a lick out affection.
"Maybe just a bit too much" she responded with a small smile. "It was for our own good I suppose, we needed to get far enough". She began walking off towards some higher land. "I don't suppose there will be some sort of water supply over this hill?" she called back to them.

Sefu stood up, it was worth investigating. He glanced at Cheshi and grinned.
"Race to the top?" he questioned, looking mischievous.
"I thought you were tired" Cheshi cut back with a matching grin.
"Never too tired for a race" Sefu retorted. Before he could say more, Cheshi had started sprinting. "Oi!" Sefu shouted, matching his pace to catch him up. The two males sped past Kadija who observed them,trying not to laugh, they were trying far too hard.

[Zoketi]

Mwanga lifted her head, sniffing. Shomari tensed; she could feel his muscles tightening next to her leg. There were some other predators nearby. Lions, to be specific. Well, it wasn't too surprising. Water tended to draw every sort of creature, and she had been almost surprised to find it with only prey animals. Perhaps it was time to move on...at least she knew Shomari would be all for that idea. But Mwanga on the other paw was more curious. If they presented a friendly outlook, she'd be all for socializing.

The creamy lioness got to her paws and stepped in the direction of the scent. Ears flicking, she cocked her head. Voices. Faint, so she couldn't make out what they were saying. And pawsteps, fast, as if they were running. Mwanga trotted forwards, mint-green gaze alight.

Meanwhile, Shomari had crept towards her from behind, but then abruptly turned and ducked against a scrubby bush. He lowered his head and wriggled beneath it, peering out with a frightened orange set of eyes. He watched his companion move onward, her tail lifted in curiosity.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Cheshi and Sefu arrived at the top of the hill, both huffing and puffing. Sefu collapsed in a heap on the ground and Cheshi looked down at him.
"I won that, you know" he said, catching his breath after a few moments.
"Sure you did" Sefu retorted sarcastically. Kadija made it up the hill too, she felt a little weak on her paws. Cheshi sensed that she wasn't alright.

"Kadi, you alright?" he asked with a worried frown.
"I'm just a bit tired, I'll be fine" she sat down to rest her legs. She had been a bit weaker than most of the other lions in her pride and it hadn't changed now that she went off with her cousins to start a new life. She still needed protecting. Cheshi and Sefu were all too happy to offer her their protection, for now anyway. The light coloured lioness gazed down towards the visible waterhole. All of a sudden, she jumped back to her feet. Approaching was another lioness, she was older than the three of them. "Guys, look". Kadija beckoned towards the lioness. They hadn't been able to smell her because of the wind. Sefu got to his feet; whenever lionesses were involved he was attentive. He lifted a paw to ruffle up his half-grown mane.

"She looks friendly" he suggested. Cheshi rolled his eyes,
"Sef, you think all lionesses look friendly". Still, the young male stood up straight. There appeared to be only her so she wasn't a threat. The three adolescents certainly didn't want trouble so with a few murmurs of approval, they headed down the hill towards the stranger.

[Zoketi]

The young lioness blinked as a pair of adolescent males stumbled into her view, over the top of the hill. They looked a little younger than her, who was just leaving her teenage years, and a good bit older than Shimari, just entering his. Mwanga slowed her steps--they hadn't seen her yet, too busy catching their breath. That was why she'd heard sounds of running. A moment later another adolescent joined them, a female.

The female spotted her first, and Mwanga continued on, trying to appear kind. She had relaxed once she'd seen them. They were just bumbling kids, not a threat. Beng still rather childish herself, she thought it would be nice to socialize at least for a little bit. As one of the males ruffled his mane she let out a soft giggle and continued forwards. They moved towards her too, now.

Mwanga paused once the distance between them was only a few paces long. "Hello," she greeted brightly, allowing a slight smile to appear on her creamy muzzle. She coiled her tail up, letting it give a few flutters.

Shomari watched, crouching and low, hidden mostly by the bush. By the friendly way Mwanga had spoken, he doubted they were bad, but he was still tense. Like always.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Cheshi pushed forward from the other two after seeing the reluctance from them to respond right away. They had not come across any friendly rouges. The one's they had come across told them to 'get lost or else'. The dark orange coloured teen was fairly relaxed.
"Hi" he murmured back. He noticed her smile so he returned one.

His cousin stepped forward after Cheshi spoke and grinned.
"Hey" he said with an air of confidence. Kadija groaned and batted him lightly from behind with her paw.
"Don't make a fool out of yourself" she warned. The annoyance at Sefu slipped away into a kinder smile at the new lioness. She too got a little closer. "I'm Kadija" she started, feeling as though names would be appropriate. "These are my cousins, Cheshi and Sefu" she pointed out who was who as she said their names.

Cheshi, being more weary than he seemed, was edging to ask questions about if she was part of pride. He wanted to know if he was trespassing or not. Some lions reacted differently to being on their land; Cheshi didn't want to get into any fights.

[Zoketi]

She tilted her head, minty eyes bright. Amusement twinkled in them as the female came forwards, scolding her companion. Mwanga nodded warmly. "My name's Mwanga." She introduced. "Nice to meet you," she added, dipping her head. Remembering Shomari, she glanced back, searching for the cub. A flash of amber from underneath a bush made her sigh.

"Come out, they're not here to harm." She called to him. A moment later the skinny grey cub emerged from the brush, fur askew. He scuttled towards her and blinked warily at the three adolescents. "This is my 'adopted son' of sorts, Shomari. Please excuse his anxiety, he's had a troubling start in life." Mwanga explained, flicking her tail against the cub's side.

She fixed her attention fully on Cheshi, Sefu, and Kadija. "So are you just passing through like we are?" She asked, genuinely curious. She'd pretty much relaxed completely, as this looked to be just friendly interaction.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

"Nice to meet you too" Sefu cut in with a beaming smile. Kadija echoed his words with a nod. The three young lions eyes were fixed upon the younger grey cub; Cheshi could tell he was a little nervous about being around them, so he relaxed his stance so he didn't look as big. He gave the cub a nod and a smile.

"Yeah, we're just passing through-" Cheshi began. Kadija gave him a nudge and he suddenly remembered.
"We're needing to rest up somewhere close for a couple of days though. We're all pretty worn out". Kadija stretched out her hind legs as if to envisise Cheshi's point. She was about to head over to the water, but an important question had to be asked.
"Is there a pride in this area?" she questioned with a soft voice.

[Zoketi]

Shomari merely stared, unable to form words. He crouched next to Mwanga, his breathing shallow. Relax, he told himself over and over again. It was like a paranoia. He swallowed, licking his muzzle. But he knew they were friendly. One of them smiled his way, so he felt a bit better. That at least was good. He began to slow his breathing down and unclench his claws.

The young lioness pricked her ears. She nodded as they answered her question. "Understandable." she murmured, smiling cheerily. As the other lioness asked, Mwanga shook her head. "Nope. It's unclaimed all around here." she replied, flicking her tail up and glancing around at the stretch of grass. She hadn't scented any pride on their travels yet, which was mostly a good thing, since some could be hostile. But they'd been lucky, and hadn't had a single encounter with any unfriendly creatures.

"Come rest with us, then. We're just chilling here for a bit." she offered, stepping back and gesturing with a paw towards the small waterhole. The few prey animals lurked around, wary that there were suddenly more predators abound. Mwanga smiled lightly again and began to head towards the side of the pool, Shomari hurrying after her.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Once her back was turned, the three adolescents gave each other looks to communicate instead of speech. They all agreed that she could be trusted, and that spending time with someone friendly was probably good for all of them. Kadija made her way down to the pool behind Mwanga, when she reached the water she lent down and carefully began drinking. She was not the best around water and had to be constantly weary. Sefu joined her, stopping to give her a nuzzle.
"I'm glad we're resting up" Kadija said softly, "My legs were hurting".
"Mine too" he retorted, lying down next to the waterline.

Cheshi didn't go to the water straight away, he stayed near to Mwanga to socialise.
"It's a weird how this land is unclaimed" he began, speaking to her, "On the other side of this hill there are a couple of caves, and there's this waterhole...it seems so perfect". Kadija had been listening,
"I noticed tracks from over the other side of the hill too. It seems a lot of prey moves through here" she said the word prey and the remaining gazelle flinched, but this went unnoticed by the lions.