Post by Imani on Jul 10, 2009 18:54:39 GMT -5
Name: Imani
Meaning: "Faith" in Swahili
Linage: Sizwe x Sauda: Ikenna, Nkosana, Mbali, Anuli
Species: African Lion
Gender: Female
Age: Adult
Personality/Traits:
As a grown lioness, Imani has learned the lessons of both strength and humility, and though her seasons are still young, she now looks on the world with a more practiced eye. Unlike some of her pride sisters, she tends to be quiet, speaking only when spoken to... and even rarely at that. Most of the time she is merely an observer, keeping to herself in the background, though that is not to say it is alright to think of her as ignorant. In fact, she is quite well aware of all that is going on in her homeland, and among her pride sisters in particular, as well as the cubs. Above all else, she enjoys spending time with the young litters when they are around, and when not hunting she entertains the youngsters to the best of her ability, often with a soft and gentle smile on her face. Soft spoken, Imani is rarely a lioness to cause trouble, or grief, stemming from her upbringing by her father, the late and noble Sizwe. At present, she looks to her eldest brother with great respect, and will bend an ear to hear his troubles or offer quiet words of solace, should he need them.
History:
When she was old enough to understand what it meant to be a princess, Imani carried her title with a young and arrogant regal air that quickly grew tiresome among the older females. She was cuffed and berated for doing so, but it did not stop the young girl from acting better than all those who did not share her magnificent title. One day, her father over heard her speaking to an elder female, a tone of intense disrespect in her voice, and the lion King swiftly put her in her place. Sizwe did not harm his daughter, for though he was a calculating lion he was far from cruel, but the words he spoke to her cut deeply into her heart. "Imani," he said, "To disrespect your family is the greatest crime under the sun. Without your family you are as nothing, as insignificant as the title you bear. To wield a title means nothing; to earn the respect that comes with it is everything."
Imani did not, and could not at that age, understand all of what Sizwe was telling her, but his words humbled the young lioness and from that day she considered herself no longer a princess of Mnara, but a lioness of Mnara. After this, she often withdrew from her siblings, refusing to go on dangerous adventures with them, but... did end up trailing along sometimes in case they ended up needing her. She was often found staring off into the sky, daydreaming of something she would never tell anyone. As she grew she learned to hunt with her older pride sisters, and through practice, and trial, and error, and tears, and sweat, she slowly became more and more aware of Sizwe's words that day. And then her mother's untimely death, her father's subsequent descent into depression, and the shaking ground that ultimately took Sizwe's life rocked her to the very core. Having lost her parents, and watched her brother take the charge that they so much needed, Imani realized what it meant not only to be a lioness of Mnara, but to be herself.
Description:
A predominance of soft tan and gold colors ripple across supple, corded muscles, the fur lightest and at its softest at her chin and neck, cascading down her chest and belly like golden cream. Along the line of her back, the gold transforms into a rich and earthy brown, the darker color spilling out and over her hindquarters, enveloping her tail all the way down to the short tuft of fur at the end, peppered with black and brown fur. Her body and legs are long and powerful, healthy signs of a young hunter on the savanna, but her features are elegantly rounded and gentle; the makings of a future mother, perhaps.
Her face is small, neatly shaped, framed by delicately soft ears that still hold on to a light sprinkling of her cubs spots from seasons ago, and by long, crystal white whiskers that arch down and away from her muzzle. Her eyes are the same rich gold of her pelt, a jewel among the dry grass, and on Imani's muzzle there is always a long and faraway look; perhaps remembering things from long ago, or longing for those things yet to come.