"Mt. Washington" by DemiAce
Song - Mt. Washington - Local Natives
"Face stained in the ceiling,
Why does it keep saying,
'I don't have to see you right now,'
'I don't have to see you right now.'"
He was running. He couldn't stop running. If he stopped, he might die. If he dared to stop moving, keep his paws churning over the grass, he would die. He would die, just as Moyo had. God, he would die. He had to keep moving. Running. Two paws at a time, through the grasses, not looking back. Not listening to the angry growls. The snarls. God, the snarls. They thirsted for blood, for his blood. The brute was not satisfied with the blood of countless other cubs, not satisfied by the blood of adolescent Moyo. Oh, Moyo, dearest of hearts, Ufufuo's dearest friend.
His love. His true love. His young love.
His sides hurt as he gasped for air, his pale, scant mane flapping in the mane with each long stride. He was only an adolescent. He was too young to die. Too young for this. Moyo was too young. Fates, where was Vaserio?! He desired the company of his cousin, if only to know that he was alright, that he was well, unlike him. His heart pounded in his chest. His legs ached. He didn't dare stop running. Why? Stopping would mean his jaws. His teeth upon your neck, tearing you apart, shaking you like a ragdoll. Flinging you up against the rocks like violent waves in a storm. Ufufuo felt fear grip him. Was he crying? His face felt wet. But then again, blood had splattered everywhere, oh, it had gotten everywhere. Moyo's blood coated his face and the front of his legs, and his chest. His chest, where his heart was, where pieces of Moyo would always remain. They were supposed to leave together, damnit! Together, where they could roam for the rest of their days, not having to worry about the cruel twists of life, not having to ever worry about finding company, not ever again. Just two gypsies on the wind, going where the wind took them.
But the blood spilled that night was taken from him in a heartbeat. Ufufuo wasn't sure if that heart could beat again. Young love was still love.
"Digging like you can bury,
Something that cannot die.
Or we could wash the dirt off our hands now,
Keep it from running under ground."
Ufufuo had found shelter. He had found Vaserio. But the pain still lingered with its cruel grip around his heart, choking all the love out of it. He felt no care for anyone or anything. Only anger delved there, only that emotion dared to slumber in the adolescent beast. How could love exist in a lion when their heart was gone? Moyo had been his best friend. His gypsy love. His dearest, closest friend.
He remembered clearly the day they fell in love. The day his life would be forever changed. The way his pale yellow eyes sparkled in the sunshine, the way he moved so gracefully, his body slim and lithe, more fit for fighting than anything else. A flirtatious tongue that would always cause him to flutter, make him feel a protectiveness over the other male. They both thought it was peculiar how they were drawn so close together, so in love, despite their gender. They had vowed to keep it their secret, promised with soft whispers and midnight rendezvous. Promises to leave the pride together one day, when they were ready, never to be bothered by the likes of other pride members again, promised to be together forever. The promises that had been broken when Moyo had flung his fragile body in front of the invading nomad to protect Ufufuo. Everything they could have had vanished the instant those powerful just locked around his throat.
"Lazy summer goddess,
You can tell our whole empire.
'I don't have to see you right now,'
'I don't have to see you right now,'"
Ufufuo had long left Cairac Plains. Long left the thought of home. He was no longer an adolescent. His powerful muscles and dark mane had come to their potential, his Barbary blood showing with every massive stride he took. His eyes were sharp and intelligent, his mouth smooth and smart with words. His heart had returned, but love was not an emotion that came so easily to it. No, love was still much to painful to endure. He just desired friendship above all else. Friendship. Companionship.
As soon as they had reached Concordus Lavi, Ufufuo and Vaserio had simply stopped communicating beyond what was required for survival out in their nomadic range. Ufufuo was effectively alone to bear the burdens of his past. But he need not worry about it now. His focus had been the pride that lived across the water - Crooked Canyon, led by a male named Tremor. He'd learned about Tremor from lionesses such as Kiniun.
Oh, Kiniun, in trouble because of his mistakes. It seemed that happened a lot to him.
He had met many lionesses from the resident pride, all either very neutral to Tremor or violently for him. In fact, a ginger lioness had chased him off, and had begun to scold Kiniun for what she had done. Figures. Ufufuo was expecting her to show up, likely chased from her pride for being disloyal. His heart felt heavy with guilt at the thought. Would she be as kind to him then? Likely not, he would think. Who would offer friendship to the male who might have destroyed her life? She had lost her pridesisters and the protection of multiple males, only to fall into Ufufuo's paws. He couldn't defend her against the world. He couldn't support her as a friend. He'd failed that once before. He wasn't about to let another get hurt for his sake,
Regardless, he waited, draped over a stone in the sunlight on the edge of his roaming range, waiting for her to show up so that he could apologize in the case that she stormed over there shrieking, or waiting to offer her shelter, in the case that she begged him for such.
Instead, he got the scent of a pride male. The pride male that all of the lionesses wore. Tremor. King Tremor himself had ventured from his territory to see him, likely to make him feel his wrath for stealing away his lionesses, even though Ufufuo was doing no such thing on purpose, or at least, not in the way Tremor might assume. Regardless, to back away from the angry king would be a mistake and mark him as a coward. From what he'd heard about King Tremor, he wasn't in any shape prepared to fight him, either, especially since he'd come alone.
Then, he saw him, although furious and huffing with rage...
Pale yellow eyes. Sandy fur. A short mane. A more slender body than his own.
"I don't have to see you right now,
I don't have to see you right now,
I don't have to see you right now,
I don't have to see you right now..."
"Face stained in the ceiling,
Why does it keep saying,
'I don't have to see you right now,'
'I don't have to see you right now.'"
He was running. He couldn't stop running. If he stopped, he might die. If he dared to stop moving, keep his paws churning over the grass, he would die. He would die, just as Moyo had. God, he would die. He had to keep moving. Running. Two paws at a time, through the grasses, not looking back. Not listening to the angry growls. The snarls. God, the snarls. They thirsted for blood, for his blood. The brute was not satisfied with the blood of countless other cubs, not satisfied by the blood of adolescent Moyo. Oh, Moyo, dearest of hearts, Ufufuo's dearest friend.
His love. His true love. His young love.
His sides hurt as he gasped for air, his pale, scant mane flapping in the mane with each long stride. He was only an adolescent. He was too young to die. Too young for this. Moyo was too young. Fates, where was Vaserio?! He desired the company of his cousin, if only to know that he was alright, that he was well, unlike him. His heart pounded in his chest. His legs ached. He didn't dare stop running. Why? Stopping would mean his jaws. His teeth upon your neck, tearing you apart, shaking you like a ragdoll. Flinging you up against the rocks like violent waves in a storm. Ufufuo felt fear grip him. Was he crying? His face felt wet. But then again, blood had splattered everywhere, oh, it had gotten everywhere. Moyo's blood coated his face and the front of his legs, and his chest. His chest, where his heart was, where pieces of Moyo would always remain. They were supposed to leave together, damnit! Together, where they could roam for the rest of their days, not having to worry about the cruel twists of life, not having to ever worry about finding company, not ever again. Just two gypsies on the wind, going where the wind took them.
But the blood spilled that night was taken from him in a heartbeat. Ufufuo wasn't sure if that heart could beat again. Young love was still love.
"Digging like you can bury,
Something that cannot die.
Or we could wash the dirt off our hands now,
Keep it from running under ground."
Ufufuo had found shelter. He had found Vaserio. But the pain still lingered with its cruel grip around his heart, choking all the love out of it. He felt no care for anyone or anything. Only anger delved there, only that emotion dared to slumber in the adolescent beast. How could love exist in a lion when their heart was gone? Moyo had been his best friend. His gypsy love. His dearest, closest friend.
He remembered clearly the day they fell in love. The day his life would be forever changed. The way his pale yellow eyes sparkled in the sunshine, the way he moved so gracefully, his body slim and lithe, more fit for fighting than anything else. A flirtatious tongue that would always cause him to flutter, make him feel a protectiveness over the other male. They both thought it was peculiar how they were drawn so close together, so in love, despite their gender. They had vowed to keep it their secret, promised with soft whispers and midnight rendezvous. Promises to leave the pride together one day, when they were ready, never to be bothered by the likes of other pride members again, promised to be together forever. The promises that had been broken when Moyo had flung his fragile body in front of the invading nomad to protect Ufufuo. Everything they could have had vanished the instant those powerful just locked around his throat.
"Lazy summer goddess,
You can tell our whole empire.
'I don't have to see you right now,'
'I don't have to see you right now,'"
Ufufuo had long left Cairac Plains. Long left the thought of home. He was no longer an adolescent. His powerful muscles and dark mane had come to their potential, his Barbary blood showing with every massive stride he took. His eyes were sharp and intelligent, his mouth smooth and smart with words. His heart had returned, but love was not an emotion that came so easily to it. No, love was still much to painful to endure. He just desired friendship above all else. Friendship. Companionship.
As soon as they had reached Concordus Lavi, Ufufuo and Vaserio had simply stopped communicating beyond what was required for survival out in their nomadic range. Ufufuo was effectively alone to bear the burdens of his past. But he need not worry about it now. His focus had been the pride that lived across the water - Crooked Canyon, led by a male named Tremor. He'd learned about Tremor from lionesses such as Kiniun.
Oh, Kiniun, in trouble because of his mistakes. It seemed that happened a lot to him.
He had met many lionesses from the resident pride, all either very neutral to Tremor or violently for him. In fact, a ginger lioness had chased him off, and had begun to scold Kiniun for what she had done. Figures. Ufufuo was expecting her to show up, likely chased from her pride for being disloyal. His heart felt heavy with guilt at the thought. Would she be as kind to him then? Likely not, he would think. Who would offer friendship to the male who might have destroyed her life? She had lost her pridesisters and the protection of multiple males, only to fall into Ufufuo's paws. He couldn't defend her against the world. He couldn't support her as a friend. He'd failed that once before. He wasn't about to let another get hurt for his sake,
Regardless, he waited, draped over a stone in the sunlight on the edge of his roaming range, waiting for her to show up so that he could apologize in the case that she stormed over there shrieking, or waiting to offer her shelter, in the case that she begged him for such.
Instead, he got the scent of a pride male. The pride male that all of the lionesses wore. Tremor. King Tremor himself had ventured from his territory to see him, likely to make him feel his wrath for stealing away his lionesses, even though Ufufuo was doing no such thing on purpose, or at least, not in the way Tremor might assume. Regardless, to back away from the angry king would be a mistake and mark him as a coward. From what he'd heard about King Tremor, he wasn't in any shape prepared to fight him, either, especially since he'd come alone.
Then, he saw him, although furious and huffing with rage...
Pale yellow eyes. Sandy fur. A short mane. A more slender body than his own.
"I don't have to see you right now,
I don't have to see you right now,
I don't have to see you right now,
I don't have to see you right now..."
"The Gay Knight Rises Story" by Tremor
Her heart was racing.
The poster was there, lit up and cleaned 'till perfection. Grasping one of the flyers in her paws, the bulk of a lioness would practically squeal. It was nearly time! Just a few weeks away, and she would be watching one of the greatest movies ever. Starring Abanolaka, the fearsome and sassy dark gay knight who would prevail against all- even heterosexuality. Alongside her is her faithful companion, Kubwa, of course. Feeling the desire to whip out her mobile phone and dial one of her closest friends, Raku, the lioness quickly made her way back in front of the movie theater. Fishing for her phone from one of her pockets, she'd quickly search for Raku's profile.
Where was it? Becoming angry with the damned device, she was in the process of considering just visiting the other's house when a voice was heard a bit away.
"The Gay Knight Rises poster? Weird. Straight Pride's are so in right now. Not Gay Prides. Right, guys?"
The lioness' eye twitched. Spinning around to tell off these close-minded pricks exactly what was in, namely the stick up their-
Her heart stopped. There stood Void, one of the cutest looking lionesses in the pride. She was pretty short, but her curvaceous figure and bright, pale eyes definitely made up for that. The lioness thought, anyways. She was chattering with two others, whom the lioness scarcely knew. Watching them chat for a moment, she suddenly remembered exactly why she had turned around. The idea of telling off her crush wasn't exactly appealing. It'd destroy her chances, for sure. A small voice in the back of her heard argued different reasons, and the lioness' heart shattered.
Of course. "Straight Pride's are so in right now."
Void didn't go...that way. Suddenly, it seemed as though the world was spinning out of control. The lioness propped an arm against the concrete wall to steady herself, but it hardly helped matters. She felt as thought her heart was being torn in two, ripped to shreds by ravenous hyenas. The lioness vaguely registered the image of Void noticing her, asking what was wrong.
Sifambaya blacked out.
The poster was there, lit up and cleaned 'till perfection. Grasping one of the flyers in her paws, the bulk of a lioness would practically squeal. It was nearly time! Just a few weeks away, and she would be watching one of the greatest movies ever. Starring Abanolaka, the fearsome and sassy dark gay knight who would prevail against all- even heterosexuality. Alongside her is her faithful companion, Kubwa, of course. Feeling the desire to whip out her mobile phone and dial one of her closest friends, Raku, the lioness quickly made her way back in front of the movie theater. Fishing for her phone from one of her pockets, she'd quickly search for Raku's profile.
Where was it? Becoming angry with the damned device, she was in the process of considering just visiting the other's house when a voice was heard a bit away.
"The Gay Knight Rises poster? Weird. Straight Pride's are so in right now. Not Gay Prides. Right, guys?"
The lioness' eye twitched. Spinning around to tell off these close-minded pricks exactly what was in, namely the stick up their-
Her heart stopped. There stood Void, one of the cutest looking lionesses in the pride. She was pretty short, but her curvaceous figure and bright, pale eyes definitely made up for that. The lioness thought, anyways. She was chattering with two others, whom the lioness scarcely knew. Watching them chat for a moment, she suddenly remembered exactly why she had turned around. The idea of telling off her crush wasn't exactly appealing. It'd destroy her chances, for sure. A small voice in the back of her heard argued different reasons, and the lioness' heart shattered.
Of course. "Straight Pride's are so in right now."
Void didn't go...that way. Suddenly, it seemed as though the world was spinning out of control. The lioness propped an arm against the concrete wall to steady herself, but it hardly helped matters. She felt as thought her heart was being torn in two, ripped to shreds by ravenous hyenas. The lioness vaguely registered the image of Void noticing her, asking what was wrong.
Sifambaya blacked out.