|
Samara was born as the eldest cub in their litter, his twin sister Saber being the only other surviving cub. To say the pair of them were oddballs would be an understatement; Saber was born with particularly long fangs reminiscent of ancient lions’ teeth, hence her name, and Samara felt the intense feeling that something wasn’t right with his body. Samara and Saber were twin lionesses at birth, a rarity to say the least, but from the moment they could stand on their own two paws, Samara knew something felt off. He longed for a large, flowing mane like his father’s, and the hefty presence inflicted by only the most formidable kings. Samara was a male lion in a female’s body, and he expressed it to his mother very early on. At first, Sidewinder, Samara and Saber’s mother, played it off as playing pretend like most cubs do, but as her cubs reached adolescence, she noticed Samara sticking mostly to themself, with the exception of his sister, and his disinterest in the typical lioness activities; hunting, accessorizing and, especially, cub bearing. Sidewinder approached Samara one night after a hunt, where Samara had lagged behind and didn’t help out with the hunt, causing understandable frustration from his pridemates. She sat with Samara and let him vent and talk about everything that was on his mind. Eventually, he worked up the courage to confide in Sidewinder how he truly felt; how since birth, he had felt different and wrong and uncomfortable with himself. Sidewinder promised her son that she accepted him and would help him be as comfortable with himself as possible, and would even reach out to King Sunkissed Lake and the Shamans for help with adjusting everything to Samara’s liking. Emotionally, the two embraced and Sidewinder told Samara that no matter what, he would always be her child, and that’s what mattered the most to her.
Moons went by, and slowly Samara began to transition to being a male lion. The shamans had come up with an herbal stew which raised testosterone, and made a batch every moon for Samara to take. He eventually towered above his sister, who was still determined to beat him in a tussle everytime, and grew a lengthy mane that any lioness would swoon over. King Sunkissed Lake acknowledged Samara’s transition, and told him that whatever role he wanted to take in the pride would be useful. After being told they have a way with keeping rowdy cubs at bay, Samara decided to help out the broodmothers and become Ad Astra’s first broodfather, helping keep the youngest Ad Astra members safe and happy.
Samara is a caring, thoughtful lion with a heart that knows no bounds, both in terms of love and of discovery. He is very curious about the world and will often lead “expeditions” outside the camp with young cubs and adolescents. No one else would dare say it in front of the other broodmothers, but Samara was widely considered the favorite broodparent in the pride by both cubs and the adults. Overall, Samara is a kind and adventurous lion with little to no issues within the pride which he loves to serve.
|
