Please

Sometimes, Nasaba still dreamed about her.

He had worked so hard to purge her from his mind, to forget whatever connection they may have once held. But no one ever forgets their first love, and Nasaba was no different.

That didn't stop him from hating how he'd wake up with her name on his lips.

"Altea," he'd begged her that day, "Altea, please."

The two met while hunting the same pack of zebras. A scuffle had ensued between the two, though for Nasaba at least it had lacked some of his usual aggression. The lioness was different than many of the other rogues he had encountered, and though the two tussled over the kill, they eventually agreed to share it.

It didn't take long for Nasaba to pry her story from her; his mother always said he was a charismatic cub, claiming he got his silver tongue from his father. (Though he personally had always felt she said it as more of a backhanded compliment.) Her name was Altea, cousin to her pride's queen.

Well, former pride. The headstrong lioness had decided to forge her own destiny and left her pride behind to set forth and make her own. Nasaba had always heard stories about prides, but Jiwe was always the one who carried a fascination for them; perhaps it would have been different if Nasaba had grown up in one, but he personally didn't see the appeal.

But there was something different in the way Altea talked about a pride, something that made the black and white lion's heart thump just the slightest bit louder. When a storm broke out that night, he convinced the wayward lioness to take shelter in a cave with him. Though he wasn't sure why, Nasaba was not ready to let her go just yet. He wanted to understand what made her so fascinating to him.

Eventually, they struck up a partnership of sorts, looking out for each other and hunting alongside one another. It all fell into place so nicely, and Nasaba found himself at ease with the world. This felt right. And when she spoke of prides, Nasaba could see himself going alongside her.

It wasn't long after that that he realized he was in love.

And yet, that one day changed everything. It shattered the normal that Nasaba had grown so accustomed to.

"Just wait!" Nasaba bounded after Altea as she left the cave they had unintentionally made into their den. "Altea, where are you going? What changed?"

Nasaba had learned very early on that, despite her quick-temper and head-strong attitude, Altea was loyal above all else. It had worked out in his favor up till this point, but now, now it was ruining everything. Somewhere deep down, he'd always known it'd come to this, and yet it still somehow managed to blindside him.

She felt a duty to return to her pride, and Nasaba was far too stubborn to go back with her, frustrated that she would be so willing to leave him. He gave an ultimatum, wanting her to choose him.

She walked away and never came back.

Nasaba always tasted salt when he woke up breathing her name. It had nothing to do with the wet fur under his eyes.