Leila tucked a paw up to her chest and smiled at the other feline's reply. They had a very impressive mane, now she had a chance to sit and inspect their pelt. Leila wondered how much of a time investment it'd be to keep oneself neat and tidy with such a mane, but she did think the maintenance might be worth it. "We do! That's fun" she agreed with a prick of dark-tipped ears, bobbing her head enthusiastically - she would be in a good mood for a while now.

Leila paused to consider @Lyric's question with a soft hum. "More recently, yes. Before, I used to hunt alone." she tilted her head, "I think I like hunting with a partner, though. It's easier. If you mess up, you've got someone to rely on." The tigress's muzzle lifted in an enthused expression again, "I understand now, why lions hunt in groups."

A moment of consideration, and Leila had a question. "Are you a pride lion?" she realised quickly that it had been a little left-field. "Sorry- um. I'm curious. I'm want to know more about the groups in the area."

Air came easier to them moment by moment, panting eventually settling into huffed breaths. Each cheer the tigress gave served to unwind the tensed exertion Lyric felt, loosening muscles and lubricating the interaction between near-strangers. She certainly appreciated not having to carry the conversation, as less-social types often required.

"Most things are better with a partner," the lion teased, clicking their tongue against the back of their teeth. In Lyric's typical fashion, she skirted right past the neatly-placed innuendo, leaving her company to wonder if it had ever been uttered at all.

"C'mon, aren't you hungry? You didn't do all of that for nothing," they urged, jabbing the still-warm hide of the Blesbok with their nose. "But, hmm... if you're not a lion, you're a... ?" She allowed her gaze to wander back to that rich chestnut, narrowed slightly with hesitant wonder as she faltered in her grand show. How do you ask a girl what species she is without sending her off in tears?

Almost at the same time, Leila stammered questions of her own. Lyric tossed her head back with a breathy laugh, wriggling slightly closer to the huntress subconsciously as she delighted in their shared, breathless curiosity.

"I am; I like to settle down when I can," they answered lowly, their tone that of confiding an intimate secret. "Joined the lagoon pride a while back. It's nice – not many men to deal with," Lyric teased, allowing her eyes to linger in subtle studying. Will you defend the beasts?

---

@Leila

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Naive beast she was, the alternate meaning skips Leila's notice - so she nodded agreeably. Although she greatly cherished her privacy, most things were indeed better with company.

Leila blinked at the lion's well-meant prodding, seeming to remember what she'd done all that for in the first place. "Oh. Of course." she said, seeming to come back to focus. "I like the hunting more than the eating, I think." a soft laugh, a guilty admission in one. It wasn't that she disliked food... but there was nothing that could beat that feeling of satisfied success. She didn't hesitate after than, shuffling closer on her elbows through the grass to soon stain her own pelt with blood.

Finishing her mouthful, Leila was quick to answer the next question, almost expecting it. "A tiger," she supplied. "But most of my kind are the 'Leave-me-alone-I-want-to-be-a-grumpy-forest-hermit' sort." So she didn't blame @Lyric for not knowing. To be honest, Leila did get the forest hermit urges here and there. But actually living that lifestyle was tedious and scary.

She falls to feeding silence, letting Lyric answer her own question with small, conversationally-encouraging nods. Oh, so she'd joined the Lagoon? "Oh, I went there!" Leila recognised, "To watch that uhh, challenge. Claim? I dunno what it was." her whiskers did wiggle in amusement at the following comment though. "Must be refreshing," she chuckled, "Lots of big grumpy guys at the bluffs. That's where I'm staying at the moment." In their defence, most lions in general were larger than her. But it didn't mean they had to be so gruff!

She watched the cat with a sideways stare, regarding each subtle gesture in an attempt to take in more information about her. After all, aside from the look of resolve upon her face as she took down unsuspecting prey, Leila was a mystery. She revealed that she liked hunting more than eating, of all things, eliciting a hearty laugh from the tabby lion as they shook their head in wonder.

“You’re funny,” Lyric praised, a fond gleam in her eye. The velvet of her muzzle creased with a smile easily-pressed, her chest brimming with delight that threatened to spill over. The feeling did not depart when she explained she was a tigress – if anything, it spurred them on in it. "But most of my kind are the 'Leave-me-alone-I-want-to-be-a-grumpy-forest-hermit' sort." “What sort are you?” She prodded, her tail tapping gently against the grassy plains with musing thought.

Lyric tilted their ears forward at the revelation that the tigress had been to the lagoon, her head giving an involuntary tilt.

“Oh yes – the Dramatic Happening!” She titled it, another chime of a laugh escaping her at the thought. They bloomed at the memory, visions of the shouting queens coming to mind above the disgruntled men demanding a brawl. “I love a fight ‘s much as anyone, but it was a fun change of pace,” Lyric explained with a casual shrug. As yet, they had yet to touch the carcass, deciding instead to gift it to the little cat. Watching her tear into it was more fun than a measly meal.

“The bluffs, hmm? I’ve only met one grumpy guy from there,” they confessed with a bob of their head. How long ago it seemed since she had last been through the passage. “They treating you right?”

---

@Leila

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"You’re funny" Lyric tells her and Leila can't help but blush, a bashful toss of the head given in return. Praise was not something she really knew how to deal with, and so it felt easier to just shrug it away. But truly, it felt good to make someone else laugh! It was not familiar, but she liked it. @Lyric's laugh was joyous and pretty to hear.

"I used to be like that," she mused on the topic of tigers, "But I dunno. Being lonely kind of... sucks?" She was not as social as even the most grouchy of lions, sure, and big groups still made her feel like crying, but honestly? They had the right idea with the whole pride thing. "So I guess I'm like... Recovering-grumpy-forest-hermit?" she chuckled at the silliness of it.

Leila was interested to hear of Lyric's opinion about the Scillan claim, nodding slowly as she listened and ate. "I thought they'd all be like that! It was the first fight I'd gone to. Imagine my surprise when the next one I watched, they looked like they were going to kill each other!" She was exaggerating a touch, true. But it had been a bit of a shock.

"Mm, there's quite a few intimidating types there." she tells Lyric with a twitch of her whiskers, "Everyone's polite enough. But I haven't really gotten close to anyone yet." She sighed. "I get a lot of stares. I think a lot of them haven't met a tiger before too." Leila was comfortable enough and she'd frequently busied herself with her hunting... but it did get a little lonely feeling.

She painted an interesting picture – on of isolated longing bringing the tigress out of a previously-occupied shell.

"I can hardly imagine you grumpy," Lyric insisted with a small shake of their head as if they really knew the cat laying before them. Still, the olive of her gaze glittered with warm amusement at the thought. It only crescendoed as Leila explained that it was her first exposure to such challenges and had done little to prepare her for their usual brutality. Her chest shook with laughter, her eyes squinting as she let out another bellow at the notion.

"They don't usually end in new friends," they insisted, the corners of their eyes wet with the threat of tears. She let out a deep breath, trying to still her quaking frame lest she break out in true hysterics in front of one she had only just met, though that cheery smile never did leave her expression.

"Either they haven't seen one, or they haven't seen such a pretty one," they mused as they finally gathered themself to their golden paws. Lyric flicked her tail idly, allowing the typical cues of the end of an encounter to shuffle into place. After all, she far preferred to be missed over overstaying her welcome. With their prey conquered and names exchanged, there was little that could sour the beach lion's mood that day. "You should come see me. I'd like it," she requested, allowing her stare to linger for a beat of intent. "'til next time, Miss Leila," and then they were off.

---

-exit- @Leila

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“Mm, I can’t say I’m usually this chatty.” Leila admitted with a sheepish bob of her head. At least, not with new acquaintances - something about Lyric made Leila feel less standoffish than usual. The hunt had helped, most likely.

To hear the golden cat’s absolute amusement toward her story blossomed a glee in Leila’s breast, and she found the cheer infectious. “Definitely not. But maybe they should.” she snorted, her light tone not really connecting with how seriously she believed that. The world would be a better place if such things were even a little more frequent, the tigress thought.

With her belly full, Leila was a touch disappointed as Lyric gathered themselves to leave. She flustered a little at the compliment, shifting where she lay settled and offering a deflecting shrug. Pretty? That was very kind of them to say, but it was a very unfamiliar thing. “Maybe.” is all she commits with a soft laugh.

An invitation is left open and Leila blinks before she answers. “Alright.” Leila agreed with a smile - though she would not be summoning to bravery to cross the water to the Scillan border anytime soon, so Lyric would have to be okay with meeting mid-way at the coast. “I’ll look forward to it.”

Watching them depart, Leila would gather up the remains of the prey and head back toward home.

/exit Leila