Twisted Wonderland Moments

Sweets in the Savanna (Leona/Mara)(Tamashina-mina)

"Shut up. It's bad enough that I'm back in this boring country. No way I'm playin' the humble tour guide." Leona argued with Kifaji before storming off, away from the group, and Kifaji. Mara sighed as she watched him leave, and his tail whipped in the air fiercely.

"I apologize to everyone. He's rather a handful." She heard Kifaji speak and glanced behind her to see the chamberlain talking to her friends. But her mind was more on Leona, and she started going after him.

"Leona! Hold up!"

Mara called out, running after him. He didn't stop walking, but his ears did tilt to her voice. Clicking her tongue in annoyance, she zoomed straight in his direction and stood in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. One of the perks of being a cheetah.

Leona stopped at his tracks, giving a Mara a nonchalant look. He had gotten used to her doing that, only it wasn't easy to time his walking to a stop and her suddenly being there.

"What?" He asked, his tone agitated. "Where are you going?" She inquired, her feet reading to move if he tried to walk away from her. "Anywhere away from that royal pain in my tail." He huffed, having no energy nor patience left to get him through their trip in the market. "Leona, you know how Kifaji is. And no offense, but he has a point. Your explanation wasn't exactly clear on where Lilia and Kalim can get snacks." She reasoned calmly, eyeing his tensed shoulders and his rapid tail movement.

"So you prefer Kifaji's strict and fancy way of doing things? Just like everybody else?" He retorted angrily, crossing his arms tightly as the speed of his tail quickened.

Mara glanced at his hands. His fingers grip hard on the brown robes wrapped around his arms. She knew that he had already hated being home and training the team for Catch the Tail. But she wished he had least found something to make him happy so he would get out of that grumpy mood of his. The only thing that cheered him up was that lamb meat earlier.

"Hmm.." she hummed at a realization as her ears perked up. That caught the lion's attention, looking at her suspiciously. "Mara. What are you thinking about?" He inquired, forgetting about Kifaji's criticism on his tour guide skills.

She didn't answer him, scanning their surroundings at the stalls around them. Her golden eyes caught one selling what looked like to be candy.

The cheetah thought to herself that if meat made him happy, then perhaps a snack might put him in a good mood. She glanced at him, smirking a little. He raised an eyebrow at her. Normally, she was more level-headed headed, but when she wore that smirk, she could be playful and mischievous, he learned.

"You know what you need, Leona?" She asked him, gently bopping his nose. "A snack." She suggested, giggling at how his ears rose up and he blinked startled. Her hands reached into his, taking them off his arms and intertwining them.

"Huh?" He looked at her confused, letting one ear drop to indicate that, but before he could question her further, she started pulling him to that stall. That was the difference between them. He wasn't too thrilled being home, but she was. He remembered back at NRC how she would question him about not missing his home. The only thing he did miss was his bed in the palace and the meat. That was it.

As they drew closer to the stall, his eyes caught something that he recognized. There were these little pieces of candy of green, pink, and yellow. Some had different shapes to them.

"Maybe you need some sweets on your tongue." Mara suggested as she started analyzing the type of candy selling. As the cheetah looked, Leona noticed their hands were still connected. Actually, learning that she was back home for Catch the Tail and the festival was one of the few good things for him on this trip. Personally, Leona wanted to spend more time with her in their home.

"Hey, you more of a sweet guy or a sour guy? Because I would say you're more sour." He heard her tease him, and Leona chuckled at that comment. His eyes caught something candy he recognized from his childhood.

"Hey. I'll take some of these." He ordered from the vendor, catching Mara's attention as the vendor scooped some of the candy into a bag. "Thank you very much!"

Mara nodded to the vendor as a way to say thanks. She directed her attention to Leona only to find him holding his hand out with candy resting on his palm.

She looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "What flavor is it?" She asked, but he took her hand and placed all of it. "Just try it."

The cheetah rolled her eyes at him, but she obliged and picked one of them up. She popped one jnto her mouth, and her ears rose up and eyes widened at the taste. It was sweet and sour at the same time, making her tongue tingle. "Whoa! That's nice!" She exclaimed, popping another candg in her mouth.

"See? Good, huh?" Leona took some as well, humming in pleasure from the taste. "I used to take these when I was a kid. It's still my favorite." He informed her before taking another piece.

"I didn't know you had a favorite candy." Mara commented, slightly surprised. She would always see him eat meat, so to hear he liked candy was kind of surprising. She was about to pop another candy in her mouth, but an idea came in her head.

"Hey Leona. Wanna try to catch one?" She asked eagerly, holding one out in front of him. He looked at her uninterested, not really into the idea. "Nope." He said dismissive. However, when he saw her smile falter and her ears droop in disappointment, he felt  his heart ache with guilt.

"Ok, fine." He sighed in defeat. Mara perked up, her ears and tail going up and smiling. "Hold still." She ordered, aiming the candy to go into his mouth. Once she was sure she got it, Mara threw it at him, and Leona caught the candy in his mouth with ease.

"Nice!" The cheetah told him, clapping her hands as he smirked at his little victory. Seeing her happy again was enough for him to bear this trip longer. Glancing down at the candy, he found it nice to share something he liked with the person he was fond of.

However, their time together looked like it was about to end when his ears perked at Kalim's voice bear them. He turned arojnd to see their friends coming. His ears dropped in disappointment, but they immediately perked up when Mara pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. 

"Hey. Lighten up. And Leona. Try to be a little sweet as these candies for me, would you?" She requested, taking another candy. He rolled his eyes at her but smiled nonetheless. "Alright. But only because you're here." He told her, pressing a quick kiss to her lips before the group drew closer to see them.

The sweetness from the candy was on her lips and made his tingle, but he loved that. "Leona!" Mara grumbled flustered, pushing his arm as she blushed red from that quick move. He chuckled amusingly as he thought that if anyone was gonna give him the sweeter side of the savanna in this trip, it would be his favorite cheetah