[PRP] Grown Up [Ukulwa x Iki`renkli]

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Ukulwa was woken by a sudden noise outside - was it that late in the evening already? She stirred, got to her paws and gave a brief stretch. Surely as she had figured when she stepped outside her den there the moon was. Giving a smile upwards in a kind of greeting to the Great Lion she looked away and left her den.

This was not a common occurrence, the lioness certainly wasn't okay with tardiness, but she must have needed her rest. Soon she was nearing the borders, she would need to begin hunting almost immediately, just to make up for lost time.

She huffed slightly as she picked up the pace to get a little further.

Mouselet

 

[mouselet]

The Hunt Leader had been waiting, but that was irrelevant. It had been hard enough forcing herself to get out of her den tonight, as it had been every night since her grandfather's horrible, awful, senseless demise.

The black lioness looked up and caught sight of Ukulwa, the partner she'd been waiting for, though she'd forgotten that fact until just now.

"Oh, you're here. I guess we should go," she told the other female, getting to her feet.  

[Ctrl F Greenie]

The lightly colored lioness was relieved when she finally caught sight of Iki. Had she been certain they could go without the day of hunting she may have asked to call it off, the look on her partners face appeared to be just as weary as Ukulwa felt. The times were certainly pressing on the pride and it was beginning to show.

"Yes."

Was the simple answer she gave, though no words were truly necessary. The yes seemed to linger briefly between the tired pair before Ukulwa could even begin to gather words once more. Yet, all that time and all she could come up with was an unnecessary - "How are you doing?" - lame, she knew.  

[mouselet]

Iki'renkli was silent as the pair moved out towards their assigned hunting ground for the night. She knew the lighter-furred lioness was only trying to help, but it was hard. Everything was hard.

"I...don't know," she replied at last. "You know...Uchanjaa was my grandfather?" Just because most of the pride was related didn't mean everyone instantly knew how everyone else was related. People usually stuck to their own families as far as memorization went, and frankly, she didn't blame them.  

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Their walk seemed to take a life time as the question hung between the pair of them, suddenly Ukulwa almost regretted asking it.

When the hunt leader spoke she seemed a shattered image of her former self. Ukulwa couldn't hide the shock that crossed her face, sure the whole ordeal had been emotional, but she certainly didn't know this.

"I'm so sorry Iki."

Moments like this always struck the lighter lioness in a weird way, was there anything she could do to comfort her companion? Instead she hung her head a moment and tried to find the right words. "Though he was taken to soon he is at least with the Great Lion now."

A silent plea went to the Great Lion at this time that she had uttered the right words.  

[mouselet]

The two lionesses walked in silence again for a few minutes before Iki'renkli finally replied. "if you ask my mother, she said he didn't go soon enough." The black female shook her head.

"Can you believe this? My own mother. His daughter. She said that."

And that didn't even begin to explain Nyeusi. And no one really knew how sane Iki's older sister was or wasn't. Sure, she seemed better, but no could really tell how deep that went.  

[Ctrl F Greenie]

The silence was much more understandable for her this time. It gave her companion a moment to gather her thoughts, so it seemed, Ukulwa figured this wasn't an easy topic.

"Really?" She was baffled by the words that had slipped from the hunt leaders mouth. "You're own Mother wished that on her Father? Why? How could she?" Not really thinking about how insensitive she may have become she just simply couldn't fathom a family that would turn on itself in such a way.

She almost apologized again, but caught herself before becoming repetitive.  

[mouselet]

"I don't even know," the Hunt Leader replied, shaking her head sadly as they walked. She didn't know everything, and some days she was afraid to ask. She'd been so young, she didn't really remember all that had happened. There was so much of it, and so much was terrible.

"You're lucky that you and your brothers haven't been involved in things to this degree," she told the other lioness, dredging up a weak smile.  

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Mirroring the shaking with her own head she was just dumb founded. Recalling her own family she was suddenly very thankful.

"I couldn't agree more. I'm honestly not so sure what I would do if my family had been plagued in such a way." Ukulwa hung her head a bit as she truly took the time to think on this. Thinking of her brothers, her family.

"At least we have the hunt, that should help to take your mind of off things, even for the briefest of moments?"

She tried for a smile to match the weak one of Iki, she never knew a day where it was hard to smile. This was the first and it was a struggle.  

[mouselet]

The smile grew across Iki's face. In some way, Ukulwa had helped her, at least for tonight. And that was no small blessing at all. Sure, her grandfather had still died a horrible death, but she was still alive, along with the rest of her family.

"You know? You're right. Suddenly I'm in the mood to do some serious hunting."

The Hunt Leader took off, trusting Ukulwa to follow her in the pursuit of their prey.