Years have passed, and Mavka was ruling her Pride with a fair paw β just like her caretaker had done before. She was the revenant, the beloved second queen β but she wasn't getting any younger. Her age reverbed through her joints after each battle, patrol and a hunt. But with age comes wisdom β and she sure wouldn't waste time sitting in her Pride's heart doing nothing. As long as she'd been alive, she kept a vow to protect any lost cub who wandered on her territory. Meru was one of them.
β They liked to run through the grasses until all they saw before their eyes was blackish red. They liked to watch the lionesses hunt and practice the same moves and tactics, until his mother's gracious voice called for them to come back. They liked to wake up at the first sign of sunrise, bolt out from the den and watch as the soft light embraced the mountain peaks so, so far away. They didn't like when they wanted to share their enthusiasm and helping paw, and all they got were sights full of the sort of pity one gets when they didn't understand a joke that'd just been told.
β
"Are you lost, young one?" A senior lioness cooed, watching the adolescent before her with calmness that knew no bounds. Her blackish fur glistened with red and blue shades in the sun.
"Uh. Yes. No. Maybe? I mean, I could always go back, I-I, I came from! There!" Meru stopped playing with a small dirt mound they just dug out and jumped around, tumbling on their paws. They nudged their head one, two, three times, their pupils blown wide, to show the grasslands embraced with the soft light so, so far away.
"See?"
The lioness chuckled.
"Ah, wee lad, it is in your interest whether you return to whence you came, or not. If you wish to stay in my pride for a little while, feel frβ"
"WAIT," Meru jumped around, again, and almost lost their balance, again.
"YOUR pride? Oh, oh heavens above, I had no idea I am speaking to a QUEEN, please excuse me, o'mightyβ¦ Uhhβ¦"
"My name is Mavka," the lioness almost smiled.
"Come with me," he turned on her paws and started walking away. After a few beats of stunned silence, Meru bolted forward, screaming their name in return.
β Using a priceless help from a kind wanderer who decided to stay with the pride for a bit, Meru began training until his watchful eye. Patrolsβ¦ Protecting the pride that actually accepted them felt like the least proper thing to do. When they weren't running around and about the territory, they amused the cubs with various stories and chatted their time away with lionesses and submales. Meru wasn'tβ¦ either of those. They fell somewhere in between, neither fully female nor male. The pride hadn't exactly seen a lion like this before, but quickly accepted and embraced the pale member's identity β Mavka got rid of "lad" from her vernacular, and replaced it with "youngin`".
β
"I am an ADULT," yelled Meru, barely suppressing their laugh. Mavka was lying next to them in the shade of a tree, her expression almost calm as ever. Although this timeβ¦
"The seasons are passing by," she muttered and stretched toes in her front paw.
"The lions I've known since cubhood are joining the rank of our ancestors or getting as old as me. Some are leaving, while new ones are joining," she sighed, and drooped her head, closing her eyes. Meru watched the elder queen without moving a muscle, worry clutching their heart in its claws. Mavka, then, glanced at the pale lion.
"I don't take to change as kindly as I used to."
Meru hesistated for a moment, and inched a little closer to the dark lioness.
"Your majesty, no matter how you feel, I'll stay loyal to the pride no matter what it might take."
Mavka stayed silent for a while. And then, she smiled.
"β¦ I see you've been studying the way I articulate with the upmost attention," she chuckled, while Meru cocked their head to the side. Weird joke.
"Change, and the ability to adapt, is crucial to the pride's functioning. Your life has always been in motion, Meru. You make mistakes stemming from youthful inexperience, but are just as quick to learn. I think⦠you will make a good heir, yes."
The elder queen laid her head down on the ground, and succumbed to sleep, leaving the younger one in a stunned silence.
βββββββββββββββused to be named named after
this album!
Meru is my 3rd king, helping me go through my personal combo base hell. After I get a Qahir or two, their base will be changed to Cherry Blossom, to help me get a Citrine-based king in the future! i love how their highest stats are Smarts, but lore-wise they're fucking stupid
βββββββββββββββchange cedar log:
β 20.02.2022
β§ bought as
Mβͺ Orchid maned 6mVit6 !PIE for 5 GB
β§ changed base to
Glacial (11 GB) (Save Africa from global warming with your freezing fur!)
β§ applied
Taste of Peach (80 HS) (and got peach feralis first try! :D)
β 27.02.2022
β§ applied Ardor Splendor (80 HS) and got ardor feline unders! not bad :]
βββββββββββββββYou were enjoying a nice sunbeam when something began clawing your tail. Ah, it's FukΕ. Ouchie, please leave some fur on there, little one.
You were feeling a little bit of anxiety over the rumor that the hyenas would attack soon. FukΕ sat next to you, however, and told you that he would proudly stand by your side no matter what happens.
Meru would love to meet you! :love: clean g4 withered pie β’ glacial base β’ orchid mane β’ 200:sb:/1:gb:! https://www.lioden.com/lion.php?mid=171290 πΈ
