Sombra
From the Temperate Savannah | Joined during the middle of the Wet Season | at 3 years, 10 months old
{Cubs born into Pride: 5 | Cubs rejected by the King: 5}
*Interaction with the viewer/greeting*
BioSombra is the first lioness to join Vesper's pride. She was on her way back from a hunting trip with her party when she spotted him in the distance. A big, dark lion. Normally, the sight of a male would cause alarm and send her straight to her King to report the threat, but there was something about him even from a distance that didn't scream threat and more like help. Sombra slipped away from her pride mates with an excuse and calmly approached the male. She was struck breathless when he fully came into view. He was beautiful even though he was obviously struggling, weakness hanging over him like a second pelt, there was a strength in his eyes that could never wane.
"Come to chase me off, lioness?" He asked gruffly.
"My name is Sombra," she corrected him. A tickle of delight caught her off guard as she watched his eyes spark with surprise. "And yours?"
He didn't speak at first but when he did, his voice was gentler. "Vesper."
"It's nice to meet you, Vesper. How would you like to eat?"
He stood up, the notion of food seeming to bring him new energy. "Don't tease me, little lioness."
She narrowed her eyes, returning his intense gaze. "Sombra. If you want what I can offer, I suggest you remember it." She could have sworn he smiled, his lip curling up in the slightest motion before he sat down and bowed his head in agreement.
"And what a lovely name it is. Now, why would you feed a lone male like myself? I'm sure your King wouldn't approve."
"No one should go hungry during the Wet Season. There's plenty of food to go around. And I assure you, even at your full strength, my King can take care of himself. Feeding you is not a threat to him, by any means."
Vesper did smile this time, and it shouldn't have caused her butterflies to run rampant in her stomach. "How sweet of you," he praised. "I would appreciate your help, Sombra." At the sound of her name, the butterflies were there to stay. "And I'll stay clear of your King as well. I have no interest in taking his pride." The way he stared at her as he said so, made her mind race with a possible hidden meaning behind his words but she shook the feeling away, telling herself he meant just as he said. He wasn't a threat to her pride.
In the following weeks, Sombra would swipe a carcass from her pride and meet with Vesper outside of her pride's territory. They had their own special spot where he ate his meal and afterwards, they would talk and share things about their past as they lounged in the sun. One day when he was exceptionally messy and doing a horrible job at cleaning himself, Sombra took it upon herself to help. The gesture led to bathing each other on the regular and an impromptu tussle here and there. It wasn't long before he consumed her thoughts, and she was reluctant to leave his side. But he was getting stronger, quickly and she was sure he would move on. That's why she was shocked when he demanded she forsake her King, leave her pride behind, and build one with him.
He confessed to hating that she belonged to another male and how she left him every day to serve her King. He promised to take care of her and protect her with his last breath. He had begun to go on about not being able to leave here without her before she quieted him by rubbing herself into his mane and under his chin.
They left together that day and Sombra has stuck by her King through it all. She stayed when Vesper accepted the responsibility fate placed on him and his brother. She stayed when she found out how he must maintain the balance of peace. And she stayed when he followed through with the grewsome acts, because she knew the kind of lion Vesper was, and he would always put the wellbeing of his family first, no matter the consequence. And that was the lion she fell in love with.
Adult: {4 years, 10 months}
Sombra groomed her cub, trying to calm her nerves as she waited for her King. She had given birth to a male and she knew Vesper wouldn't keep him. He had rejected every male born to him save for one. She hoped he would accept their cub, but she knew he wouldn't. Sombra knew she only had a couple of hours at most with him, and the fact left an ache in her chest that refused to go away. He was able to nurse to his content before Vesper entered Mother's Den. His presence, for the very first time, caused her dread. She did her best to hide her turbulent emotions and greeted him quietly when he reached her. He looked delighted, but that delight drained from his face when he inspected their cub. She fought the disappointment that rose like bile in her throat. He sat down beside her, simply watching their cub when she spoke up. "He's not staying, is he?"
Only then did Vesper look at her, the guilt she saw there making her feel worse. "I'm sorry, my love."
She shook her head, understanding and yet not wanting to hear it at the same time. "It is, what it is." She said breathlessly. "We'll try again." He gave her a reassuring lick over her ear and it almost worked. "He won't suffer, you have my word." Vesper leaned down to pick up their cub when she demanded him to do it here. He looked at her in a mixture of shock and confusion. "I want the last thing he feels to be safe and warm and I don't want the last sound I hear from him to be crying for a mother who cannot save him." Vesper swallowed, that guilt returning, before he nodded. He hesitated, but her King granted her this mercy, taking their cub's last breath in his jaws as he laid beside her. He also left her to quietly morn him, taking the limp body of their son to burry with the other cubs now resting in the stars. They would try again, but it would be a long time before she felt okay again.
{6 years, 11 months old} - Another male. Sombra gave birth to another male and she already knew the outcome. Her heart fluttered with disappointment. Her King was particularly picky with this season of cubs, and she knew her son would not make the cut. She tried to enjoy him while she could, nuzzling and grooming him until Vesper entered Mother's Den. She could see he was hopeful, but one look from her and she saw it die away. "Male, again." Sombra raised her head, welcoming the comforting head nuzzle he gave her.
"Heir worthy?" He asked needlessly.
"I don't think so my love," Sombra replied.
He sighed and licked her head in an apology. "Do you want me to take him away?"
"No. Not until he's gone."
Vesper stared at her for a moment, a note of admiration in his gaze, before he met his son. He sniffed him, have him a few licks and a quick nuzzle before he did what he must. Sombra looked away just before he took their son's life and she didn't search for him as Vesper carried him out of Mother's Den. She'd give herself the day, one day to mourn what could have been and then she would carry on. There were too many mouths to feed, to many lions counting on her to keep their pride running. Today she was a mother who lost her cub, but tomorrow she would be a Lead Huntress.
{8 years, 10 months old} - Sombra was overjoyed, at first. She had given birth to two females and one of them sported her father's markings. But something told her that it wasn't enough. After grooming them and nuzzling each little body, the idea of keeping them didn't sit right with her. Her king had gotten even more particular with the cubs that stayed, which simply meant the odds were not in their favor. It was becoming a rarer occurrence that a lioness was allowed to keep her cubs. And Sombra couldn't see it becoming any easier as the seasons past and the pride grew. It was simply a fact of pride life. That was what she reminded herself whenever the thought of losing her cubs threatened her peace of mind. It was also the thing she would remind herself when the pain would inevitably creep its way into her chest as Vesper took her cub's last breath. And he did just as she predicted. He visited her, greeted their daughters, and then mercifully took their lives right in front of her. He gave her extra love afterwards, grooming her head and rubbing into her with more affection than he usually gave and Sombra could tell in that moment that the last few days had been hard on him, with all the death sweeping through the pride. She knew he didn't show how much it truly affected him. She returned his gestures with just as much affection and he and his Heir took her cubs to bury. It still pained her, knowing she'd have to leave tomorrow, but it truly was becoming a fact of life. Not all cubs made it in the Eternal Eclipse pride. That was just that.
{10 years, 9 months old} - Sombra spent time with her daughter. She had only birthed one cub this season. She didn't know if that was a blessing or a curse. More cubs meant the greater chance she was able to keep one, but it also meant more death if they weren't accepted. She hadn't given birth to more than two cubs at a time in all her seasons and now that she was getting older, multiple cub litters were starting to feel impractical. But she was thankful for what she had, which in this moment was her daughter. She groomed, and nuzzled, and tended to her until Vesper came by for his visit. He was getting quicker and quicker in deciding which cubs stayed and which ones would leave. But it seemed taking the life she created wasn't getting any easier. There was either an extra sense of guilt toward their cubs or he simply allowed her to see more of the turmoil the act caused him than his other lionesses.
"Next time, for certain my love. I have a good feeling for the coming season." He whispered his empty promises and rubbed his head against hers.
She smiled a soft smile. She wanted to believe him, but she wasn't sure if it was simply hope driving his words or information from a viable source like Sybil, their Soothsayer. She didn't have the strength to ask. Sombra savored the cuddles and affection Vesper so openly gave and then watched him carry their daughter's body out of Mother's Den just as she did with all of their cubs. She would enjoy her day with the lions that called Mother's Den their home and then it was back to work.
Pride Interactions
~● You were pacing back and forth, frustrated at losing to a puny hyena earlier. Suddenly Sombra comes up to you, and softly tells you that no one is thinking badly of you for it. She soothingly kneads your mane.
{5 years, 5 months old}
~● Sombra gives a soft purring sound as a greeting, and moves over a little so you can lay down beside her.
{5 years, 10 months old}
~● Sombra is lying on a nearby rock and gets up from it to greet you.
{6 years old}
~● You were pacing back and forth, frustrated at losing to a puny hyena earlier. Suddenly Sombra comes up to you, and softly tells you that no one is thinking badly of you for it. She soothingly kneads your mane.
{6 years, 3 months old}
~● You were pacing back and forth, frustrated at losing to a puny hyena earlier. Suddenly Sombra comes up to you, and softly tells you that no one is thinking badly of you for it. She soothingly kneads your mane.
{8 years, 11 months old}
~● Sombra is lying on a nearby rock and gets up from it to greet you.
{9 years, 7 months old}
~● You were pacing back and forth, frustrated at losing to a puny hyena earlier. Suddenly Sombra comes up to you, and softly tells you that no one is thinking badly of you for it. She soothingly kneads your mane.
{ 11 years, 4 months old}
~● Here
{ # years, # months old}
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