"how could you read me?"

"maybe i'm the white ninja to your black ninja."

"how do you know i'm the black ninja?"

he laughed. "oh, i know you're the black ninja."

okay. but anyone who's seen me play basketball can make that assumption.

"do you ever rewatch a movie you watched when you were younger and catch something you didn't catch before?" he asked.

"Like what?"

"I just rewatched The Lion King. You know how Nala's always jumping on Simba and he can't do anything about it? In the end, when Simba jumps on Nala and pins her, I never noticed it before but she gets this look in her eyes like she wants to pounce the hell out of him."

My mind immediately went to Michael's birthday party where he had told me his way of dealing with people was just looking at them like they're completely stupid. We had a staredown where he tried to give me that look, and I flashed him one that I would eat him if he tried. He'd started laughing, and he has such a beautiful laugh, but I remember thinking he was too immature for me.

Later, he quoted the movie and I asked him if he was still thinking about his Lion King revelation. He wrote, "Yes, both untamed female predators and hidden meanings."

I wrote back, "Enviable food for thought."

"I'm inclined to believe you'll agree that thinking isn't near as much fun when you can't share the thoughts."

This kid's a mental wrestler. I don't know his intelligence but his quickness is a match. I have to stay very focused with him. In fact we both are--I watch his pupils dilate when we talk, and I can feel mine as well. We get hyper focused. Show a card, see a card, tests and tests and tests and tests. But they're games, at least on the surface. I've always been a sucker for someone with a quick mind. But I've learned before that when chemistry is based in a mental dance like a dog chasing its own tail, even though the sheer act is incredibly enjoyable if not because it's so frustrating, but then you get so caught up in the mental gymnastics that you don't realize you really don't know this person. You may not even like him. So I'm staying wary.

But it's funny he brought up Lion King and its particular dynamics. "All black except for two yellow eyes burning through darkness like the fire of a Tigress before she's pounced."

Women who have warrior spirits can not rest unless under protection of a man who is a greater warrior. She will not trust or respect anything less. These women tend to mate for life. Avatar was a nice example of this breed of woman as well. The two sides of the coin are the warrior and healer. In the course of a lifetime, she has the potential to embody both.