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 Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 10:50 pm
Now that time had passed and Boipelo had grown he was determined to go out again, back to the place he knew he shouldn't be. Where he had been told before he was not welcome, nor wanted. However he had a rather cunning plan in mind, which if it worked he would be welcomed with open paws. He meant to convince the Zahina fools that he had changed and was willing to turn from his wicked ways and be "saved". During this time he aimed to find himself a suitable female to (hopefullly) take back with him or at the very least find a few cubs. It was an act he was sure would make his father proud of him for the first time in his life. New blood was sorely needed among the Da'Lin whose numbers grew fewer every year.
So he began on his self imposed quest, retracing the steps he had made as a curious and too headstrong cub toward the borderlands. A little piece of him wished he had his brother, Zesiro, with him this time but he knew it was better to go alone. The story would be more believable this way. The trip took less time than he remembered and before too long he was within sight of the borderlands.
Boipelo paused a distance off, letting his gaze wander the landscape seeking the shape of any lions nearby. Anyone who saw him at a distance might think him a lost Zahina lion who wandered too far past the border if they didn't look too close. He was fairly healthy, all things considered, and quite hardy. The only thing that could give him away from this distance was his size, he was a bit smaller than most Zahina males.
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 11:30 pm
 The sun was shining, the warthogs were wart-hogging in the mud nearby, and Zalla was, as always, completely lost. She sighed, sitting on a log as she watched the wry warthogs who watched her watching them. Normally, she might have tried to chase them, either just to 'play' or for a meal, but right now she was just too confounded. She knew that she'd been around here before, or at the very least close by before, but having spent a good three days walking, she couldnt remember just which way home was anymore. Her lavender eyes shifted left, then right. She knew this place.....but it had been so long. Whining like a child, she lowered her head in defeat. "WHERE THE HELL AM I?!" She bellowed, then jumped off the log, sending the warthogs that were watching her to their feet and off in the opposite direction. Slowly, she spun in a circle, then sighed and started to walk to her right, thinking. "Markie? No...Mmmm...Marley?" She shook her head. This was very close the pride lands of.... "Martoph? Gah, nooo......" She growled slightly, poutingly continuing her trek in thought. She knew it started with Mar. Or was it Mal? Maybe Mat? Huffing, she sat again, this time looking toward the border of Zahina's land, her eyes scanning the Da'Lin lands curiously. She's been unable to get the cubs off her mind, not once since she'd met them had she felt the least bit okay with letting them go. They were only babies, and in a place like that...Tears entered her eyes as she looked around, trying to figure out where she might be. She hadn't meant to follow the Da'Lin border for so long, but her own curiosity and guilt over letting the cubs go with their despicable father had given her the courage to come even closer then she'd ever been to Da'Lin territory. "Wonder....if they're okay..."
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 12:02 am
A sudden flash of movement caught Boipelo's attention as started the last of his journey toward Zahina lands. With any hope it was a rogue, just a passerby who would pay him no mind. He had hoped to remain just outside of the nearest pride's lands for a few days and see what happened from there. After all, if he was truly a runaway he would have to appear a bit more cautious, humbled and even a touch helpless. Hopefully with a persona like that the Zahina lions would consent to 'help' him.
His red and yellow gaze never left the figure of the unknown lion as he continued on. Boipelo eventually determined the unknown lion was in fact a lioness. She didn't seem attentive enough to be on any sort of patrol, so that was reassuring. The fact that a lone Zahina lioness had wandered so close the borderlands alone puzzled him. From what he knew most didn't even hunt close to this border. Perhaps she was just a rogue, unaware of the danger she was heading into?
Since this female was so close it would be hard to avoid her and cross undetected, so the snake colored male decided to make the best of things. It was time to look to the dirt, walk loud, look pathetic and possibly injured. Perhaps she would even help him make it to the nearest pride, if she were welcome on their lands?
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 12:27 am
Zalla picked herself up again, scanning the horizon back toward Zahina lands, then turned her back on her own world to examine the Da'Lin horizon. Was it really such a different place? A place without love...A place of constant anger, hate, and pain? She took a step toward the outlands, her uncertainty apparent in her body movements. They couldnt really be so different...could they?
She was startled out of her thoughts by the wind, which carried with it the sounds of someone approaching. She 'eep'd ' softly, crouching down though she knew there was no way someone wouldn't have seen her. The grass wasn't long enough for that here, to her misfortune. Nervously, she glanced around toward the border, watching a figure coming toward Zahina lands for a few moments in silence.
It was a male, though he didnt seem as if he were in any sort of rush...She raised herself up a bit, curiously trying to make out whom he might be. Was he the pride leader from here? Her eyes narrowed slightly. He certainly didnt look like what she remembered of the kind lion that had rescued her from the Da'Lin cubs... And what was he even doing so close to the border anyhow?
Puffing her cheeks up a bit in annoyance, she started toward him. Didn't he know how dangerous it was to be so close to Da'Lin territory?! She raged to herself, as if she were one to talk. She halted her progress toward the unknown male when she was a good several meters away from him. "What are you doing here?" She demanded, quite frankly, looking the lion up and down. He seemed....familiar. Had he been one of the lions that had helped her? Surely, if it was so, she was going to get in a LOT of trouble being caught not just once, but TWICE trespassing, and so close to the border....
Best to act like she belonged here....at least long enough to trick the male and make her own get away. "Don't you know it is dangerous to be here?"
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 12:43 am
Boipelo's ears pricked and he looked up when he heard the sound of the female approaching. Thankfully he was at least somewhat prepared for this.
"I was...trying...to get away.." He shifted his weight, wincing for dramatic effect before lifting a paw off the ground, acting as if it hurt him. He cast a weary glance over his shoulder, back into the distance and sighed in relief. "Maybe I managed to evade them finally..." His voice was low, but it was loud enough that the female would hear him he made sure of that.
"Dangerous?" His red and yellow gaze turned back to the female before him. "It can't be any more dangerous than back there."
Now that he had a good view of the female, she seemed vaguely familiar. He had made a point not to go near Zahina lands since that incident in his cubhood. Back then was the only time he could've seen her. Was she the female he and Zesiro had quarreled with back then? A hint of puzzlement crept into his features, but he kept quiet on the subject for now.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 12:57 am
Zalla blinked, slightly stunned. Had he been attacked? She walked closer, all caution thrown to the wind. When she met his eyes, her own were dark with worry. "Was someone after you? What were you doing in Da'Lin territory? You could have been killed!" Nevermind that she herself had been contemplating crossing over to investigate the Da'Lin lions with her own eyes.
She came even to his shoulder, examining his hurt side carefully. She didnt see any blood, so at least he wasn't in risk of getting an infection. "Can you put some pressure on your paw?" She asked nervously, moving a few feet away as she glanced back toward where the male had indicated he'd come from with his own nervous actions and glaces. "If someone is after you....then you have to get back into Zahina lands quickly.."
She moved to his side again, though she kept looking around for any sign that whomever was chasing him had caught up. "If you need help, you can lean on me. I'll support you." She met his eyes again, her own genuine concern shinning from hers.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 1:34 am
"If you need help, you can lean on me. I'll support you." Bingo. That was easier than expected.
"I..ah....it's a complicated story." Boipelo managed a restrained chuckle and went to put pressure on his paw as asked. For a moment he seemed to manage then pulled it up again, wincing. "Only a little it seems. I do think I can manage to keep moving though...albeit a bit slower than usual."
The snake patterned male shifted his weight again. "Would you happen to know a safe place to rest for a while?" Logically he would need to rest his sore leg for a time before moving on. Perhaps he could convince her to stay with him and he could learn a bit more about the lay of the land, and about the Zahina lions, from her. If he was going to wrangle one to bring home he needed to learn the best way to win the fair lady's trust.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 9:46 am
Zalla glanced at him, then nodded quickly and started forward, her eyes focused on him in concern. "Yea, I kind of know this area's pride leader......" Which wasn't really a lie, since she DID know him from that one time, even if she didnt remember his name.
"But I have yet to meet the pride from here, so....we should be safe as long as we ask to meet with him, if someone wants to know what we are doing here..." She looked around quickly, then examined his leg as they moved forward. It looked quite painful for him to put weight on it. Zalla hoped it wasnt broken. Maybe just a sprain?
She circled the male, making sure no one was following them from Da'Lin lands, then came back to his side again. "Do you think you can make it a little further in? There is a waterhole that we could rest by and we'd be fairly safe." Though the waterhole was more a mud pit thanks to the warthogs she'd seen earlier, but at least she'd have a good view of someone coming closer to them if she sat on the log there.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 2:07 pm
"I've made it this far, I think I manage a little farther." Boipelo half hobbled along side the female as they headed toward the watering hole. He noticed her eyes on him the whole time and she looked genuinely worried. How cute. This might be even easier than I thought.
"I took a nasty fall when I was running. Don't think its broken, or I doubt I would've made it this far." Experimentally he put a little weight on his paw again and let out a little noise that sounded almost like a whimper. He tried not to overdo it on the dramatics, lest she suspect something or catch on to what he was about.
"We should probably request to see this leader at some point soon, once I'm able to stand a bit longer without it being painful." Boipelo didn't doubt that scouts would likely come across them at some point and having this female with him would likely make this meeting easier especially if they remembered who he was.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 3:10 pm
Zalla nodded, glancing around. "I..I guess so. Hopefully they'll be willing to help you." She looked at him again, studying him. "Dont try to put pressure on it if it hurts. If you try rushing yourself, you could make it worse."
She carefully looked him over, then tilted her head. "Have we met somewhere before?" She questioned, her curiousity getting the better of her. She knew him from somewhere, she was certain. At least, she felt like he looked familiar, but she never recalled meeting any males of his color before.
They'd made it to the waterhole, and she nudged him gently on the side. "Go lay in the shade of the log. You can rest your paw out of the sun." She fairly ordered him, concern in her eyes again. She shouldn't press him for answers when he was in pain, and she felt slightly guilty now that she'd asked who he was.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 4:48 pm
"I feel like we might've met as well, though if we have it was a long time ago. I haven't been past this way in quite some time." Boipelo answered her as he made his way carefully to the log. He left his answer fairly vague on purpose, if she was the Zahina female he had met as a cub perhaps she would put two and two together. After all he wasn't old, he had just reached adulthood not too long ago.
The snake colored male settled himself comfortably in the shade, as he was told. It wouldn't do to upset the lady looking after him and put a wrinkle in his plan. He rested his head against his 'good' forepaw and regarded the female silently. Boipelo wondered if she would fit into his plans, she seemed very trusting after all.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 5:36 pm
Zalla frowned slightly, her curiousity sparking again. While she didnt want to burdon him with her questions, she couldn't place where she could have met the male before. "So....then you have been here before?" She asked softly, hopping up onto the log to keep a look out. "But if so, then you should know the pride from here."
She took a moment to peek at him, her eyes wide with innocence. "Or were you trespassing like me?" She inquired with a smirk. "Is that how you got hurt, trespassing on some Da'Lin pride's land? You're pretty brave to even go out there, and lucky you made it back alive."
She sat up again and shifted on the top of the log, removing herself from his view as she scanned the area. "They're dangerous, both the lions and the land. You should go exploring like that without someone to watch your back..."
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 6:05 pm
"I've seen a few, whether they would remember me or not is hard to say. Technically yes, I was trespassing." In reality there was no technically about it, he had been trespassing the last time he was here. The leader and his cronies had only given Boipelo a pass because he and his brother had been cubs at time. They had been foolish and were very lucky things had turned out the way they did. If they hadn't one or both of them would be dead now.
"I got hurt from falling off a ledge while I was being chased. I've survived in Da'Lin lands a long time. For the most part they left me alone so long as I left them alone." Part of what he said was true, he had lived in those lands all his life. Most of his siblings had grown out of their childish need to torture him and his brother Zesiro and had left their mortal siblings alone for the most part.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 10:33 pm
Nodding, Zalla looked around again. "I...kind of get lost a lot. So I end up trespassing a lot." She sighed, a bit embarrassed. "But...Its not always a bad thing. I meet a lot of friends that way, like the singling buffalo calf, and the warthog who did pretty plant arrangements." She never actually made friends with them, since the warthog had ran from her, and the calf's mother had been rather....displeased at her attempt to make friends with her son.
She didn't blame them, though. She was a predator after all.
Zalla frowned, her mind wandering a bit before she blinked and once again was hanging almost upside down to look at him. "My name is Sizallae, by the way." She smiled, blinking at her new companion. "But my friends call me Zalla." She blinked at him, waiting for him to return with the favor of his name.
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Posted: Sat Aug 27, 2011 8:55 pm
The snake colored male stared at her for a heartbeat before blinking, clearly a little surprised. "Pelo...Boipelo." This was the female he and Zesiro had come across that day! She had mentioned her name back then but it hadn't clicked until just now when she introduced herself again. He closed his eyes and sighed softly, hoping she wouldn't think too much of him staring.
For the life of him he couldn't remember if he had mentioned his name back then or not? If he had and she recognized him things could get...interesting.
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