[PRP] Family

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If anybody that had met Halili as a cub and knew nothing of her life between then and now had seen her this night, they would think they had the wrong lioness. That Halili had a doppelganger, a twin who was night to her day. The once happy-go-lucky cub had grown up into an angry, bitter lioness, living alone in a den meant for a family. She was not - would never be - as bloodthirsty and cruel as the infamous Tyfu...but she could almost understand why the black lioness had acted the way she had.

Maybe Tyfu had onced loved too.

And see where it got them! First the problems with her father. Then her daughter. Now her mate. At this rate, Halili would find her whole family ranged against her when the Rebels made their final push.

These were the beige lioness' thoughts as she sat in the darkest shadows in the back of her den, pale purple eyes glaring blankly at the faintest trickle of moonlight that made its way back to her.  

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Halili had been glaring blindly, but her gaze was quick enough to sharpen and focus on the daughter standing before her like a shadow.

"Tatamisa," she said. Not a loving nickname, not a fond shortening. A simple, cold, acknowledgement of the lioness who stood before her. The silence between the pair stretched on as the Slave glared.

"Have you come to abandon me too?"  

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The silence was not encouraging, but what hope did Halili have left after what had already happened? Her children were adults, she had raised them as best she could, and even if they had abandoned her, a part of her (if she could bother to reach for it) was still proud that they were standing up for themselves.

In the icy coldness that had encircled her heart, the older lioness could not have predicted what her daughter did next.

The warmth of the younger lioness against her own cold body, the weight of Tatamisa leaning against her, these were sensations Halili had not thought to ever feel again.

The ice around her heart began to melt, reflected in the tears that began to fill and then overflow her eyes.  

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For long moments, Halili was silent, nuzzling her daughter, leaning on the younger lioness to feel her warmth, wetting both their cheeks with her tears. She wanted to wonder which of her other children Tatamisa was referring to, whether it was just her littermates or all her siblings, but there was too much risk, too many who already stood openly against.

"But you did come, 'Misa. And I'm glad you did," Halili told the girl.

Tatamisa wasn't much like Halili had been at that age, but she was caring and loving and what more could a mother ask for in a daughter?

"When you have children of your own, Great Lion grant that you have one just like you." At the moment, she could think of no greater blessing for this most loyal of her children.  

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The older lioness smiled, many of her cares and worries falling away from her face. All of her children had moved out, being adults, and it had been lonely, empty, and cold in the den without Orion.

"Of course, 'Misa," Halili replied. "I'd love for you to stay."

Perhaps, after some sleep, the future would look brighter. The night certainly did with Tatamisa present, despite her daughter's dark fur.