Lazy afternoons

[Too much muse, too little to do. October 1st, open to everyone, basically. It'd be appreciated if you kept fighting to a minimum. And yes, the title sucks a lot xP]

The middlelands had basically become more of a home to the young lioness than Nottingham was. There were bigger prey to hunt here, eventhough they weren't any less scarce. Speaking of which, the lioness had just finished enjoying a very decent meals, leaving the leftovers for the vultures to scavenge on as she rested her frame below a tree, which didn't really help since said bark could flaunt very little leaves. Didn't matter, though. Zukkiza wanted to enjoy not being in Nottingham and dealing with her best friend's problems for as long as she could (which she admittedly felt terrible for, but she just didn't like the tense atmosphere around her army's base), and she also wanted to enjoy the familiarity of the savannah, and taking a nap seemed to be the perfect way to do so.

So there she was, velvety figure pressed against the golden stems of the high grass, muzzle and claws still slightly noticeably tinted in crimson, guard completely down as she simply rested. She probably shouldn't be so careless, she knew as much, but her body didn't only politely ask, it demanded for a rest after such an exhausting activity. It'd become harder to hunt, especially since she tended to do it all by herself, but the feeling of a full of food stomach made up to it, definitely.

A gentle, pleasant breeze blew for a moment, making the young lioness lift her head slowly as she picked up a scent that didn't seem to be very far from there. And it definately wasn't a vulture. Way to ruin a nap, she thought, her ears perking towards the direction the smell came from.

Angel could have been doing any number of things to keep herself occupied. She could have sought out Stitch and asked if he wanted to do anything, provided he wasn't busy doing any duties as a General. Angel could have also sought out the company of the full time medics and asked if they wanted to spend time with her. She wasn't doing any of those things, though. The pink-furred alien had decided she wanted to take to the grasslands for the day and spend some time alone. What had prompted this notion in her remained a bit of a mystery, but Angel didn't care. She wanted to get away from the Pridelands for a little while, and so she did.

Whether she was aware of the fact Zukki had scented her or not remained unknown to the little alien. At present, she was more focused on enjoying the warmth as it soaked into her short, pink fur. Her pace was slow and she kept to all fours, not wanting to alert any potential enemies of her presence if she could avoid it. So far, Angel had concluded she was the only one out and about. Maybe she'd gotten lucky and would have some proper time to herself.

Eventually, she came to a stop and sniffed the air. She thought for a moment that she could smell someone else present, but who they were escaped her. Carefully, Angel rose up on her hind paws and continued to sniff the air. Whoever else was out there, she hoped they were friend rather than foe. Angel hadn't come looking for a fight.

So much time, so little to do. Curls bounced with buoyancy with each upbeat stride of the young feline. Claws were sheathed, pelt was groomed. An unnatural sight for the flirtatious lion. Usually he was unkempt, ragged, wild. However as of late he's been more reserved, less Chumvi and more...soldier. Chest was puffed out while head was set back in a rather regal fashion. Ears remained perked while his gaze was transfixed on what lie ahead. A light breeze snagged tendrils of his silken mane, no doubt dragging his scent to whatever was out there. Paws collided with the luscious grass, nails appearing for a split second to snatch us the thin stems by the roots. A single fluent swipe. You'd miss it if you'd blink. Muscles rolled smoothly beneath his dark pelt, the shadows playing within the mass of curls. A rather stoic expression was set upon his features, lips drooping to some degree. To someone who personally knew Chumvi could tell something was up, though to any other, he was just patrolling the region.

A lion upon the grasslands. Perhaps he was hunting. Come to think of it, he began to notice a rather barren void in his stomach. When had he last eaten? Though his stomach was empty, he didn't feel hungry, yet he knew he had to eat. How interesting. The thought intrigued him, had the wheels in his head spinning erratically. Brows furrowed as he shook his head, no longer caring about the hair that fell into his line of sight. The thick mane cast an obscure shadow across his face, darkening his features. a wrinkle in his muzzle became apparent before he became an empty plate once more. No smile, no chuckle. Just a steady silence as he walked.

Within another pawful of moments, he came across a very familiar lioness. Her pelt was a beacon, her scent a guide. Eyes tapered, softened, then extinguished. No flicker happiness. No light. His movements stiffened and he faltered, his paws offbeat. Now this was rare. Rather than being a suave, fluent lion, he was more stiff, less life like. Memories of Zukkiza departing after she learned of Chumvi's night with Chippy. It left him broken to say the least. He wanted to walk past her, escape the weight of her eyes. It burned into him, reminding him of this odd feeling. Yet he found he couldn't move and his gaze dropped to his paws like a dog ready to be beaten for chewing up a pair of shoes.

Another scent was apparent. One of the experiments. He'd forgotten her name, actually he'd never formally met her. She was just a soldier in the army to him. Though she seemed relaxed, there was no reason to be on high alert. At least not for now.

Zukkiza blinked repeatedly at what was before her eyes. She'd really never had enough interaction with any of the experiments; I mean, sure, she'd seen Leroy and some others, but never this particular one. The lioness couldn't help but to feel full of childlike curiosity, since she had yet to grow used to the obnoxiously odd pelt colors and anatomy of said individuals. This one flaunted shades of pink that were pleasant to the eye, and she (he? Zukkiza wasn't sure) looked harmless enough. She was aware, though, that appearances weren't what they seemed with those creatures, so she remained wary. Instead of greeting the experiment, in fear she might surprise or scare her, Zukkiza flicked her tail so it rustled against the grass, hoping to peacefully catch the alien's attention. Her relaxed posture made it clear she wasn't looking for a fight either.

Moments later, the young lioness noticed the alien alone didn't quite smell like what she'd catched a scent of before, and her crown turned towards a different direction. Of all the people she would've liked to see, he was the last on the list. The female wrinkled her nose slightly, however, no harsh words escaped her muzzle. She was out of them, had been the day she discovered she never meant anything more than just another lioness to him. She looked at him for a few moments, expectant, though she didn't dare break the silence between them. Eventually, she decided the least she could do was attempt to be polite, because being angry wasn't something that suited her. She simply dipped her head slightly in acnowledgement, a subtle greeting gesture she always used when making sure people she knew but wasn't friends with knew she was aware of their presence, pleasant or unpleasant as she found it.

Angel finally caught sight of Zukki, and she tilted her head to the side when she did. That was a lioness she was unfamiliar with, she realized. At the moment, though, Zukki didn't appear to be threatening anyone. She seemed neutral, just like Angel for the moment, and the pink-furred alien felt safe to approach her. What was the harm in doing so? Neither of them seemed to be looking for a fight at the moment, so surely it would be safe to approach.

Angel dropped to all fours again and carefully approached Zukki. When she did, she happened to catch sight of Chumvi as well. He was yet another lion Angel was unfamiliar with. A soft purr of confusion escaped the little alien as she began to wonder if the day was just perfect for a lion gathering. Angel didn't mind if that was the case; she would welcome their presence if they wanted to hang around.

When Angel was close enough to be within speaking distance of Zukki, she offered a little smile of greeting and prepared herself to speak. Getting closer to the lioness revealed the scars littered about Zukki's body, and internally the pink female cringed. What sorts of battles had Zukki been through? A small part of Angel was tempted to ask about them, seeing as she was a part-time medic, but she decided to withhold that question for the time being. She wanted to speak with Zukki as a friend, not start an inquisition.

"Aloha."

She hated him.

The fact hit him like a train causing his lungs to sharply deplete, a hoarse sound rumbling from his throat in a raspy manner. As she dipped her head to him a low sound resembling a croak crashed from his lips. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but found no words. This was repeated a few more times until finally he just hung his head, walking past her, his tail in the dirt. Shaking his head rather sharply, he remembered he was supposed to be a regal soldier or something. Paws fell heavily to the earth as he made his way to a slight clearing, a mere few feet from Zukkiza. Yet he seemed to no longer notice her, a glassy sheen clouded his gaze as he stared off into nothing in particular. How was he supposed to apologize for what he did? Surely here were no words he could say that would make it all better. A frown tugged at his features as he slumped to the ground causing a billow of dirt and debris to shy away from his massive form.

Eyelids drooped as he stared at the pebbles, thinking of what to say. Maye just an apology or perhaps he could get her something. Shifting she glanced over at her periodically. When he was sure she wasn't paying attention, he would scoot a bit closer, his movements slow and calculated. After a few long moments he was within reaching distance of her. Ears perked in a moment of hope as he spoke in a husky tone, his words sounding pain stricken, "Um, I know you hate me, but I uhh." His gaze dropped again, words being caught in his throat before he forced another set of broken lyrics out, "I don't expect you to forgive me, but I want you to know that," He met her gaze solidly, pupils fully dilated, "You weren't just 'another lioness'."

After he said what he had to say he dipped his head,allowing her to know she was free of having to deal with him. He rose to his paws, moving forward without another word. Angel replaced him former spot and a foreign word rose into the air yet it wasn't directed to him so he felt no need to respond.

Amber irises trailed behind the lion as he passed her once, and she thought the wordless conversation was about over. She instead focused her attention on the approaching experiment, deciding hers was indeed a friendly approach, being completely unaware of Chumvi and the way he got slightly closer to her and, a few moments later, he was in her range of vision again. The young lioness merely raised a questionable eyebrow, staying firm on her desicion of keeping silent, and deciding she could at least hear what he had to say.

Even when her expression remained the same, she could felt her heart sinking at his words just like the titanic had sunk to an iceberg, perhaps because it wasn't what she'd expect to hear, it was much better than anything she could've expected, but it still hurt, it hurt a lot. She simply withrew her gaze away from him when he was done speaking, opting for looking at the ground instead, her ears perking towards the direction he began walking towards. "There's a thing you should know." Her voice adressed him, and she finally decided to look back, "If you actually want to know it, you should maybe drop by later." Her voice remained casual, having decided she had to keep the calm and collected facade going on.

Finally, her crown was turned back to the experiment as she greeted her in an unfamiliar langauge, and Zukki smiled in a friendly manner again. "Hello." Yes, Angel was indeed friendly, which was a relief. "I don't think we've met before. I'm Zukki. And I'm guessing, uh, you're an experiment?" She tilted her head to the side slightly, curious about this new individual, pretending to have forgotten at what just happened. "I guess it's rude of me to ask, though. I'm sorry. What's your name, anyways?"

Angel happened to catch sight of the retreating form of Chumvi, though she wasn't certain of whether or not she should say something to him. There seemed to be tension of some sort between him and Zukki, and somehow she felt like it would be better not to ask about it. Besides, she found that Zukki was addressing her at last. The interaction between lioness and lion could be forgotten for the moment. Angel was more focused on getting to know Zukki to some degree, seeing as they were both on neutral territory and had nothing better to do. Since it didn't appear as though a fight would break out any time soon, it was even better for both females.

The question of her name wasn't unexpected. Neither female knew the other, so it made sense that they should swap names with one another. She sat down, making it easier on her so she wouldn't have to stand the whole time, and prepared herself to speak as best she could.

"Angel. My name Angel." Angel said. She nodded, confirming that she was an Experiment, and wondered if she ought to mention which number she was. A small part of her doubted it would hold any significance to Zukki, seeing as it likely wasn't common knowledge that there were over 600 of them, but she thought it would be helpful to know all the same.

"Meega Experiment 624... Prefer to be called Angel, though. Your name is...?" Angel asked.

Zukki nodded as Angel introduced herself, both as a number and with an actual name. Angel was a rather nice name to have, she thought, though it was a lot to live up to. "My name is Zukkiza, but you can call me Zukki. It's nicer and easier to remember." Her friendly tone remained, "It's nice to meet you, Angel." Also, the alien's tone of voice had been enough for Zukki to assume 624 was indeed a girl, which made things a lot more pleasant, since the young lioness didn't exactly feel like dealing with the opposite sex right then.

"So, uh, what brings you here?" Evidently, the velvety feline was not the best there was with the whole being sociable thing, but hey, she tried. Besides, starting a conversation seemed like a good idea, considering there was nothing she'd rather be doing and she wanted to get her mind off of things and just chill for a while. She was indeed curious, though; it was still pretty hot, and heat tended to scare most creatures away. Perhaps Angel had been hungry? Did experiments hunt like lions did? Did they even eat? Questions about the experiments suddenly flooded her mind, and she found herself staring at Angel with an overbearing amount of curiosity.

"Zukki. Ih... Is pretty name." Angel said. She liked the sound of it, really. It also helped that it was easy enough to say. Some names proved difficult for her somewhat broken English to make sense of, and so she was glad that Zukki was at least a simple enough name to say. Thinking about it, she kind of wondered why the lions had names of that nature. They sounded kind of strange to the alien, but she'd never been able to piece together why that was. Maybe sometime she'd be able to ask around about it.

As far as Zukki's question of what she was doing out there went, Angel didn't have to ponder it for very long. She could have chosen to stay in the heroes camp but had instead wandered the grasslands looking for a bit of peace and quiet. With all the spotted dogs and other little animals running around, who could blame her? Angel just felt like she needed a bit of a break that day. So, there she was.

"Wanted a little quiet. It get crazy with puppies running around. Plus... Boojiboo likely busy. Friends, too. So, Angel come out here." Angel said. Spending time with Stitch would have been her first priority while hanging around with her friends would have been second. Both parties were likely to be occupied at the time, though, so she decided it best to just get out on her own. Angel didn't regret the decision. If she hadn't gone out, then she wouldn't have met up with Zukki. It seemed like a good deal to her.

"Why Zukki come here? Wanted to be alone?" Angel asked. She mostly was guessing by that point. After all, she didn't have any real way of knowing what had brought Zukki to the grasslands without asking.

((Hey look! I'm learning to do short posts. ; u ; ))

"There's a thing you should know. If you actually want to know it, you should maybe drop by later."

The prick of his ears was the only acknowledgment at first. He remained looked ahead, unblinking for a few extra moments. A second later and the female had fallen into a discussion with the experiment. As if his presence was already forgotten. Lowering his eyes, he switched his ears before striding forwards, away from the pair. He'd walked a few paces until he swung his skull around, gazing over his shoulder, a single dip of his skull sent to Zukkiza. He was agreeing to meet with her. Though for now, he was no longer needed here.

Paws met with the parched earth as he began to take his leave, his tail tip twitching with each movement. Muscles rolled gracefully beneath his dark pelt, the shadows playing with each bulge. His mind was racing. What was it she wanted to talk to him about? Why did it have to wait until later? Wouldn’t it be important enough to have it right now? The question were a never ending stream as he departed the region, his eyes squinting as his mind wandered. Maybe she’d finally forgive him.

That drew a smile to his face and a rumble within his chest. That’d make him very happy. Very happy indeed.

(Chumvi has left the thread)

((If it helps, that's a wonderful short post :3))

Zukki smiled fondly as her name was complimented, tail flicking behind her in contempt, her head nodding in a thankful gesture. Her ears listened to the alien's next words carefully, and she looked puzzled for a second, "Boojiboo?" She questioned, tilting her head to the side slightly. She'd been able to gather everything else; Angel wanted some space because of some crazy puppies running around, likely dalmatians because of how high their numbers were, and her friends were probably doing something, so she couldn't hang around them. But what in the world was a Boojiboo? The term confused the lioness to no end, though she wasn't nearly as confused as she was curious about the answer.

For a brief moment, her eyes dragged on to the direction the other lion had walked towards, and she caught a glimpse of his nodding; well, that was settled. He'd come to talk about relevant matters with her later. But for now, she was actually quite enjoying having a conversation with her newfound experiment acquaintance, so she decided she'd forget about Chumvi for a few hours and focus on socializing instead. Angel proceeded to inquire about her own reasons for coming, asking, in addition, if she also wanted to be alone. Zukki nodded her head after a few moments of pondering the answer, "Yeah. Things are a little wild in the camp because of recent events, and it's really become a not-really-nice place. So I guess Zukki wanted a little time for herself, too."

A sheepish grin formed on Angel's face when she realized she'd once again used a term only she, Lilo, and the other Experiments would be familiar with. She'd gotten used to the idea that the others around the war would have some knowledge of what she was talking about, so she'd said boojiboo without thinking her companion might not understand. She realized it was a mistake that was easy to remedy, though, so she went forth with trying to do so. There would be no problems once she cleared up what she had meant.

"Sorry... Boojiboo mean love. Angel's love is General, and very busy. Naga have as much time to spend with each other." Angel explained. Sometimes she wished Stitch hadn't been appointed to the position he had. If he wasn't a General, he'd have more time to play and have a good time... He'd be more like himself, too. With all that had happened in the war, though, Angel could understand why he would have been somewhat different. She could accept that much.

Angel nodded a little at Zukki's words, understanding that she had wanted to get away just like she had. It had been worth it, though. The two had been able to encounter one another and they seemed to be having a good time of it, even if there was a slight bump with language and translations. Angel didn't feel too bad about the little bumps in the road regardless of that. She was glad to have someone to speak with even if her original intentions had been to spend a little time alone.

I wonder why things haven't been so good for her in her camp. Angel thought. Based on the fact that she hadn't recognized Zukki when they'd encountered one another, she could kind of guess what side of the war the lioness might have been on. Angel wasn't about to prod that question, though. She didn't want there to be unnecessary tension while they were meant to be relaxing and enjoying themselves. So, she decided to try and take the conversation elsewhere.

"Angel glad we meet. Was good idea to go out here." Angel said. At least, she thought it had been a good idea to go into the grasslands. What would she have been doing at that very moment if she hadn't gone out there? Angel didn't have the slightest idea. Regardless, she felt like she was making a new friend. That made the whole day worth it.