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 Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 6:24 pm
 Tamariku had been home for quite a while now, and he had grown into adulthood. His scar was partially covered in fur, and he was glad of it. Whenever he met with new lions he was self concious and knew they were pitying him inside. He hated it. He couldn't be happier now, and he wanted everyone to know it.
The morning sun shone through the dens entrance with a soft golden light, but the adult lion was already awake. He was sitting outside the den, his silhoutte glowing. He was thinking, as he found himself doing more and more often lately. Thinking about the past and about the future. Mostly about the future. He wanted to amke sure his cubs were never subjected to the tyrany he saw, and the thought sometimes amde him a bit overprotective. Like now, as he sat and stood guard outside the den, still as a statue.
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Posted: Tue Nov 14, 2006 7:02 pm
 Sunlight began to work it's way into the den. Eventually shining upon a small pile of cubs. Nakawa now slightly larger than his aunts and uncles, as he had just barely became a Juvenile, was forced to sleep towards the bottom of the pile so he didn't squish the others. With the extra weight on top of him it was easy to see why he didn't mind waking up.
The elder cub blinked quickly a few times as the sunlight awoke him. Closing his eyes again he yawned and pulled himself to his feet. Squinting, his golden eyes searched the den for another one awake early like himself. No one... Smacking his chops sleepily he began to pad his way towards the entrance of the cave.
Though he had only made it halfway there before stopping again. His head tilted as he watched the silhouette lion before him. For a moment it was hard to tell who it was but a quick glance back to see his grandfather sleeping confirmed his thought.
"Dad?" Nakawa whispered in his small whisp like voice as he walked into the shadow of his father. Without another word Nakawa moved up next to him and began looking over the land like his father was. He wasn't sure why he was doing it but it looked important and like something he could do as well. "Are we looking for something special?" Nakawa looked shyly to his paws and then to his fathers green and blue eyes.
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Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2006 5:32 am
Riku looked 0over at his son, smiling warmly as the sun down at him. "Not really, son." He said in his equally soft, yet much deeper voice. "Just keeping a look out." His multi-toned eyes resumed their scanning of the area. He smiled as he got an idea. "We haven't really had much time alone, have we son?" He asked, looking back down at him. "I think you and I should take a little trip today. I have a few things I'd like to show you." He smiled and glanced back at their sleeping family. "Let's go before someone else wakes up." He said with a childish grin and he pounced to his feet with agility that contrasted his size.
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Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2006 8:20 pm
With a soft understanding nod Nakawa returned his gaze to the land before them as his father did. He sat there still for the moment wondering what was going through that lions head but it didn't take long for him to find out. Quickly his gaze shifted back to his father. "Let's! I could use a break from all those girls." Nakawa whispered half giggling at his father's suddenly cublike actions. A grin covered his face and his stomach filled with butterflies of excitment. Since moving to the jungle he had yet to explore it very much and spending time alone with his father was something he had been anticipating for a very long time. Nakawa jumped to his paws and scampered quickly a few paces ahead before looking back with slight confusion. "Where to?"
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Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 6:29 am
Riku laughed softly, a low, purring sound. "It's a suprise. Just follow me." He said with a wink as they began walking through the jungle. He knew that his son had yet to explore the prides lands. He decided to take him on a tour of the lands, and maybe meet some other lions he shared them with.
"And I agree on that son; too many girls." He said with a grin as they walked. "Although when you';re older, you'll come to find they're not all bad." He said with a soft chuckle, his multi toned eyes searching for their first pit stop.
"Ahhh, here we go. I don't think I've shown you this yet." He said, as they travelled through the trees towards the jungle surrounding their lands. "You see how right over there," he motioned with a paw, "there's a space in the trees? Hard to see with the untrained eye, or unless it's pointed out to you. That's the secret path into this valley and our prides lands." He said with a smile.
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Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2006 5:12 am
Nakawa followed his anxious to see what he had in store for him. It was hard for the cub to stand back and follow with his excitement building. He listened to his father speak admiring his greatness but a small frown came across his face at the thought of girls not being annoying and he mumbled something about Tui.
As his father began to lead him though the trees and stopped at his first stop, his smile quickly returned. "Wow! I didn't know you had you find a secret place to get in... Wait... In? If we're inside what's out there?" Nakawa squinted his golden eyes to see the path but with his question he quickly turned his head back up to his father.
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Posted: Sun Nov 19, 2006 9:00 am
Riku chuckled and put a paw atop his sons head. "I'll show you what's out there someday. For now, you have to promise me you'll stay within the prides boundaries. Never go past the jungle. Okay?" He smiled down at his son, but his eyes held a seriousness in them. "The world can be a dangerous place, Nakawa." He spoke with a faraway tone, and he was obviously re-living his slave days, which he had yet to explain fully to his children.
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Posted: Tue Nov 21, 2006 7:46 pm
Nakawa watched his father with his mouth slightly ajar, listening closly to his words. When Riku finished Nakawa's eyes returned to the path ahead of him and he took a step forward trying to see what was beyond the enterance. "Oh... I won't! I promise I won't ever go out there alone!" He grinned sincerely back to his father, only so happy to please him.
Nakawa hated to break the rules and seemingly would do anything not to get ridiculed by an adult but... The elder cub sat still for a moment hardly blinking as his golden eyes as he stared at the secret path. There was something about the outside world that drew him to it. Maybe it was his rouge blood from his mother or just pure curiousity but he had a strong craving to see beyond the trees. He had only had scattered memories of his birthplace but other than that he knew nothing of the world around him. It made him curious as to why both of his parents seemed to restrain from leaving the jungle to explore the other lands. Is our world really that bad? Looking back to his father, Nakawa only had to see his eyes to get his answer.
He took a few pads into the jungle in another direction away from the doorway to their world. He didn't like the look in his father's eyes, they told stories of pain that he could not understand but he could easily see. "Come on... Father, Don't you have more to show me?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 10:43 am
Riku shook his full and fluffy mane from his eyes, then smiled back down at his son. "Yes, I do. Let's go." He said, his voice still a bit distant, but much happier now. He wanted nothing more than to protect his children, and although he knew that someday they would go out on their own, for now he would block them from the dangers of the world.
As they traveled for a while silently, Riku's eyes caught sight of something else he had yet to show his son, although he was pretty sure the youngster had seen it from a distance. "This is the watering hole. I know we usually use the river that extends from it, but this is where that little river comes from." He said as he trotted up to the waters edge and got a drink.
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Posted: Wed Nov 22, 2006 7:47 pm
Nakawa padded along as his father lead him to the next place he had planned to show him. He watched silently as his father walked slowly up to get a drink. Suddenly a mischievous smirk crossed the juvenile’s face, one that rarely showed on this particular lion. He looked from his father, to the lake, to his father again and then back to the lake. Oh what fun... Taking a few quick steps back Nakawa began to race towards the water and took a running leap into the watering hole. Water splashed up into the air and quite close to father if not on him although that is what the cub had wanted.
It was only a moment before Nakawa appeared on the surface of the water again. His back was to his father and he snorting as he tried to withhold his giggles, almost afraid to see if his father was angered or amused by his childish behavior.
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Posted: Thu Nov 23, 2006 8:48 am
Riku heard the running steps but he was too slow to turn away as the water soaked him. He laughed loudly as his son surfaced, and shook the water droplets from his mane. "Ah, you're just like I was when I was a cub." He said with a mischevious grin, the same one that had crossed Nakawas face. Riku backed up a few yards, then galloped towards the water. He pounce up, flying high above the air, and landed with a loud splash that sent waves at his son. He surfaced and grinned, his mane plastered to his face.
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Posted: Thu Nov 30, 2006 4:53 pm
Nakawa turned to face his father hearing his laughter and began to giggle out loud himself as he seen his fathers wet face. The juve's eyes were held tightly shut by his laughter but upon hearing the loud footsteps they opened wide. Without much of a surprised gasp, a wave hit him filling his open mouth with water.
Bouncing on the waves as they lifted him up and down. He was finally able to catch himself and began paddling again as the water calmed. A smirk appeared over his face, his cheek filled with water. Then with another surprise, he spit it like a fountain at Riku, giggling as he finished. "I hope I grow up to be like you. You havn't forgotten to have fun like alot of adults!" Nakawa's giggling continued as he paddled to shore to rest a moment. He pulled himself partway onto the land and layed down with his hind paws in the water. "Dad? What were you looking for earlier?" He looked over his shoulder to his father, a grin still on his dripping wet face.
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Posted: Mon Dec 11, 2006 7:13 am
Riku laughed heartily, splashing a few times at his son. When Nakawa spoke, Riku was filled with pride. He smiled kindly at his son as he swam to shore. Riku floated around on his back, taking a slurp of water he spreayed it up into the air, looking like a living fountain.
But as Nakawa spoke again, Riku looked over to him with sad eyes. "Nothing son." He said with a smile as he swam to shore. He pushed hismelf up onto the bank, shaking the water from his fur in huge droplets. The scar on his left shoulder was showing more than it usually did, the fur plastered to the side due to the water. He laid down and smiled at his son.
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Posted: Tue Dec 12, 2006 7:01 pm
Nakawa giggled watching his father roll onto his back and paddle around. He tried to mock his strange way of swimming by rolling onto his own back but quickly realised it didn't work all so well in the mud on the bank.
The young juve watched as his father slid up beside him. Though the cub returned the smile to his father his eyes also showed a different emotion. One close to an attempted understanding. Nakawa didn't talk much to anyone besides his family and when he wasn't talking he was observing the other lions. Being so shy allowed him to gain a bit of understanding beyond his years.
His golden eyes slid from his father to the muddy ground and then back to his father trying to come up with a better conversation, when he noticed the scar on his father's shoulder.
I wonder how come I've never noticed that before? I wonder what it's from? Why hadn't he told me about it before? Probably didn't want to boast I bet'cha.
No dought it was one such a brave lion like him won with pride. Probably fighting off some evil lion to protect his family. What a great tale it must hold. Nakawa's smile brightened with his new idea of a conversation. "Father, What's that?" He questioned casually as he pointed a very muddy paw to his shoulder.
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Posted: Wed Jan 10, 2007 6:28 pm
Tamariku glanced to his shoulder, at first wondering what his son was speaking of. When he realized what the youth was piointing at, Rikus eyes went dull and sad once again. "Oh... that." He said, shaking off his still wet fur again before settling down next to his son.
The large lion sighed heavily and looked at his son for a long moment. It didn't seem like he was going to speak, but finally he started to. "I think you're old enough to know about this, Nakawa." he said, keeping his two-toned eyes on her son. "This scar... it's a mark of a slave." With another sigh he looked at the mud, recalling the horrible day he was taken from his parents and siblings. "When I was younger than you, just a baby, a horrible lioness and two other lions took me away from Grandma Tana. She tried to stop them, that's why even to this day she has a slight limp, but they overpowered her and knocked her out. Grandpa Kif was out hunting and Moyo and Bakari were just babies as well." He looked almost about to cry as he rmembered, telling his son everything. "I was terrified... And Nyekundu made me his slave until I was released. I still don't know why I was released, but your mother and I were glad to get out of there with you and your sister when we could. We weren't about to question it."
Riku had an inkling of what had happened, but he didn't discuss the kind pink lioness with his son. "Anyway, we left and raised you here." He said with a proud smile. "I am so glad you and your sister weren't raised there. That's why I'm so protective of you, Naka. The world is not a nice place."
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