[PRP] I Don`t Think We're Allowed to Play in the Lava [H/H]

[ShinosBee]

In the months since joining the Aikanaro'hini Mahewa had become familiar with nearly all the local spots the pride held dear. He knew who lived in which den, where they met, and where they went from there. But what he didn't know much about was the volcano. It was a sacred place, he knew, and oft he'd sat nearby, watching the smoke rising from out the top, wondering what it was like inside. He knew there was a priestess...or something like that, who spent most of her time there. And he was welcome. He'd heard of the younger cubs meeting her even. But he'd never really gotten the gumption up to do it.

That is, until today. He'd been given nothing to do immediately upon waking, and so he'd bent his steps once again to the steaming mountain that housed the most sacred area to the pride within. Today would be the day. He would pay a visit to the entrance to hell, and see it for himself.

Of course, just his luck, no one had been there when he'd found the pool of lava inside. It was so hot...and at first he expected to hate it, but perhaps his firekin blood had stirred at last, and rather than shy away, he reveled in the shimmering heat and the occasional bursts of sparks from the glowing liquid.

"Well I may as well sit a bit..." With nothing else to do, he settled near the edge of the pool. It rumbled, and made soft 'goopgooping' sounds...so strange, soothing and yet terrifying. Feeling the stirring of what he know understood to be the demon within him, he sat tall on his haunches, puffed out his chest, and wailed a few notes. They echoed off the vaulted walls of the magma chamber, bouncing and wavering, the rapidly rising air distorting them. He liked the sound, and went on, crooning to the flames, discerning the song of the volcano and making it one of the many in his repertoire.  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Haramu frowned as she noticed a dark form enter the volcano. From where she was, whoever had gone in was large, but didn't have enough of a mane to be any of the grown males, and too much head-fur to be a female. Sighing, she shook her firefly-and-fire head. She'd best go an retrieve the adolescent before he did something stupid. She remembered adolescence and the impetuosity related to it, very glad she was over it.

Red paws carried her to the entrance, and down the paths she caught the freshest lion-scent on. This was no place for any but those seeking their Name and the sacred demons...certainly no place for one who wasn't even full grown! When she finally caught up to him, he was watching the entrance to Hell. He was...singing? It was an energizing, comforting sound...but one he should not have been singing yet. Sighing once more, the small lioness spoke up.

"You are lucky it was I who saw you go in, and not one of the Aran'shale or cubs. Come...you are not yet old enough to be in this place."

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa startled when someone came up behind him, and his song cut off on a note half sung, which hung, tremulous and unfinished in the bowels of the volcano. He looked back over his shoulder, spotting Haramu right off and grinning bemusedly at her. "Oh but I've seen Kasdeya come and go as she pleases. I meant to find the priestess...but she's not here. I thought I'd spend some time with The Gates before I left," his grin widened, "And when I saw the lava, my demon stirred. He's the one who wanted to sing. When I don't let him it makes my chest tight, you see, and it feels like I'm swelling up all over." He was surprisingly nonchalant with how he put his feelings of resisting the urge to sing. His demon was an understanding one at least, who knew that though Hewa would gladly comply, others often would harm His vessel for making music out of turn.

Nevertheless, Mahewa stood, stretched, and gave a last glance at The Gates before trotting over to Haramu. Goodness, she was tiny! Or maybe he was just big...Both, he decided and tossed his mane out of his face. "I'm Mahewa, a simple Hirao'alph. I don't think we've met." He was casual, respectful sure, but he didn't differ to the female like he would one of the kings or the priestess. She'd joined after him, he knew that much, and so far he didn't even know her name. He distantly wondered if she'd found her own demon name yet.  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Haramu sighed and shook her head. "The cubs are rarely allowed this far...It is likely our Ele'aine does not allow Kasdeya this far into the volcano." Kasdeya...Haramu still had many pride members to meet. At the talk of his demon, she smiled. "Well...you can continue your singing on the way out." Though he was right...her own demon was stirring inside her. Though her own demon was far more...war-like. Perhaps that was why she was so suited to battle, despite her size...
And like the Aran'shale, this...adolescent was larger than her...much larger. It seemed many of the demon-lions before her were of a similar stock...Large and built for power. She nodded acknowledgment to him. "I am Haramu-chanua, a Tsafare." For now. Haramu knew she had a higher calling once she proved herself...her demon whispered of it, and not in the way a conspirator whispered. With introductions said, she started out, not bothering to slow her pace too much, since his own strides would easily match hers if his size was any indication.

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa nodded. "That's true. Kas isn't one to break too many rules, but she's tricky, no doubt." He'd not put going out of bounds beyond that little spitfire of a female. Oh no, he knew well not to by now. The long scar arcing up from one hip wasn't the only reminder he had of her now. He bobbed his head again at her offer to let him keep on singing. Not that her disapproving would have stopped him anyways. He could feel the familiar presence in the back of his mind, just waiting to come to the forefront again.

His legs pumped lazily to catch him up to Haramu. It only took a few strides, and he easily matched his slower, longer steps to her quick small ones. He seemed to ignore her a moment, watching their feet.

-Shht shhTHU shhTHU shhTHU shht shht shhTHU shhTHU shhTHU-

His tail swung loose behind him, and his shoulders wobbled in time to the beat. In the background the steady -goohgoohhhrr- of the lava made a pleasant counterpart. Ahh, there it came. He could feel the demon inside willing him to fill his lungs and sing. Not one to disappoint, he took a long breath and began, letting the wordless. sonorous sort of rumble build from someplace near his toes, rising in pitch and volume before slivering off into a ululation before falling back to a low, barely audible sort of rushed murmuring tune. The words weren't anything in particular, no, more sounds and half-words, all feeling, less meaning. Hewa cast a glance at Haramu and tossed his head, as if urging her to try and join in any time.  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Haramu just chuckled. "There seem to be many tricksters among the demons. Those who think every moment is a battle, and their every move a feint to throw off their opponents." But though her own life had revolved around the training for battle...it made her appreciate the moments of peace when not everyone was an opponent.

She kept an eye on Mahewa, curious. His eyes watched their feet, but not in a way that was measuring. No...She smiled slightly. By the way he was moving, she suspected it had something to do with his singing demon. And when he began his wordless song, her suspicions were confirmed. At his half-urging, she raised an eyebrow. She'd...never been much for singing. Chanting or cadence maybe...after all, those were a good way to ensure you kept a good pace. But...she supposed it wouldn't hurt. But she would do it her way.

While he was focused on singing Outside, she followed the one rhythm she could always hear...the steady rush of her blood, pumped by the steady beat of her heart Inside. Haramu changed her steps into something of a march, to match the low crooning of her voice...beat to his melody.

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa was delighted when Haramu joined in, and his song showed it, swelling to a much louder, more vibrant tune, emphasizing the moment they passed back out of the chamber into the sunlight. He stopped there, reveling in the light, and dropping his own singing off to catch a good earful of Haramu's melody before she would realize he'd stopped and quit also. "You're not bad you know. For a teeny little lioness." He joked, walking out a ways from there into the grass and sitting on his bum.

"So you're a Tsafare. What's that like?" He cocked his head innocently. The time was coming for him to make his own choice of what to do, and with so few adults around he was pressed for information. So far he had a few ideas, but he wasn't sure. Whatever he was, it was likely he'd be the first of it, so finding a mentor was...well hard, to say the least.  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Daylight...it was something Haramu enjoyed seeing. The light of the sun made the deepest of shadows...a perfect paradox. She did continue with her rhythm for a moment, before realizing the other had stopped. Oh...She stopped and followed, though did not sit. "All the better to gnaw on your ankles." It was one of the few jokes she and her teacher had shared...and it was one she felt appropriate for now.

"It...is needed. The pride must eat, especially the young ones. And...there is always a thrill in the hunt. It may not be there when you start, but it makes itself known before fading away after the kill." She wondered what the large adolescent before her would follow. Perhaps...he could find something that made use of his singing, in a way unexpected.

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa tossed up a real, hearty laugh at Haramu's quip. "Indeed indeed! I bet you were a wild cub. Not that you're old now, of course." He ruffled his budding mane and let it drape over his shoulders. "I should say thanks." He grinned again, playful and slightly mischievous. "I can tell you what, I sure appreciate your talents. The food here is pretty good. Better than what I got alone, at least." He took on a distant look...thinking of home perhaps? But no, that place was far away, and long ago. "I should know. I do enough o the eating, as you could guess!" It was true. His massive size required a hearty diet, and he had no trouble making sure he got plenty and to spare.

Ahh the thrill of the 'kill' again. That was something he'd never quite clicked with, it seemed. Sure, he liked winning and being able to eat, but killing just for the thrill wasn't on his list of things to do. Not that he'd ever let anyone know, though. "I was thinking of being a Seeker." He puffed up a bit with the reminder of his grand idea. "I've been wandering for ages it seems, so I'm best for it, I think." He'd been on his own from the day he was cubnapped oh so long ago, and even though he was happy in the Aikanaro lands his paws still occasionally itched for travel.  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Haramu raised a brow. "Old, hm?" The brow-raise turned into a sly smirk. "It's right of you to respect your elders~" She used a voice she thought was a good imitation of her teacher when she had 'lectured'. Of course...it didn't last long. She couldn't help but chuckle. "I've had some help from the other adults, since I am but one...But I do strive to provide as much as I can." The lioness chuckled again.

"Especially since there are so many bottomless pits in the pride." That was her acknowledging he likely was one of the biggest eaters. "Mmmm...Neumar is a good path to follow. Not all of our kind can find their way here as I did. It is good to have someone who seeks them out and guides them here."

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa feigned terror at Hadaya's tone. "Of course Ma'am!" His 'fear' gave way about the same time as her resolve. He tossed his mane and laughed. "You're not old. Really, and you're smaller than me. Hunting has to be interesting. Most lion use their weight, right?" Thinking about new ways to fight and hunt must have been hard for her. "Our ranks need filling. There aren't many adults I've seen...but imagine when all the cubs become adults! We'll be begging for them to be small again, and have smaller stomachs." As for Hewa, well he planned to remain a bottomless pit until the day he died, and assumed several other cubs would fell the same.

"Oh yeah. Lets just say eating is one of my special skills. Or the demon in me is young to, and I'm eating for two, as it were." That made him laugh again. He sounded like a new mother, curious about eating for her cubs. At least he didn't have to get fat though. "That's true. I miss wandering about a bit, I think. So, do you have any family nearby?"  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Haramu nodded. "Most...but I was taught to take advantage of my size. Prey rarely expects you to go for their legs." She sighed and shook her head. "It is sad we haven't had many adults find us yet...Though I know they are out there. Ah...but yes, when the cubs are grown...things shall certainly balance out. And by then, I should have some help!" She chuckled.

"You sound like a pregnant lioness, Mahewa. Best be careful others don't hear you like that~" If she grasped things right...the poor boy wouldn't hear the end of it! At the mention of family, she shook her head. "Sadly no...My teacher has not yet found this place, though I hope she does soon, and my birth family...are far to the west of here."

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa nodded. "That's true. I think if I tried to go for the legs I'd end up bowling the whole thing over. Not that that'd be a bad thing mind." He had to grin at the image of himself aiming for the legs of some poor beast and leaving it toppled onto it's back. He'd probably end up letting the thing go just for giving him a good laugh. "That's true. But more cubs eventually too, and more food and more and more forever. Are you planning to be a hunter through it all?"

Hewa laughed. He might sound like a lioness with cubs but he sure didn't look the part. His mane had come in and was rather luscious, if he did say so himself. But he really didn't like to be teased. "That's a shame. You should go get her. Or send a seeker...I know Iartuupe leaves on occasion. Or if you'd like to wait, I can bring her back." It was true that as a Seeker he'd be able to come and go and find new members. "What was she like?"  

[Truth.Be.Told]

Haramu nodded, feeling she would have rolled over laughing by now had she any less self-control. "Mmm...I think I shall manage. After all...more cubs may mean more mouths to feed...but once they're grown, there will be even more pride members!" Her smile was small, but bright. "And...I rather like the idea of this pride growing. It's home after all."

She thought a moment. "I...I do not wish to be. But, the pride needs me as a hunter right now. And so, until I have proven myself, I shall stay as I am." It was the simple truth. She was a loyal warrior, and a loyal warrior did what was needed of her. Haramu laughed softly. "My teacher...she was a great lioness. She is of many years, yet does not look much older than me. And size wise...she is VERY big. At least as large as Verge'lian. Dark blue fur, like deep water, with silver markings. And...her muzzle, front paws, shoulders, and tail tip look as if they are drenched in old blood. Her eyes are what get one the most though..." She nodded, mostly to herself.

"Like a pair of fireflies, staring right through you...and yet you can't help but trust her. It's like...like she's someone who should have been there with you all along."

 

[ShinosBee]

Hewa nodded. "For a pride so strong and sure, beliefs-wise, there are far fewer members than I expected. The way Kasdeya made it sound, there were legions of lions here, all big and strong. Of course, the ones that are here are fine enough, but it's a little surprising. But I guess that's why they have a seeker job, to get more people here."

"Well once we get the cubs grown the ranks will fill out and you can do what you want. I mean, how many of them might become heir? Tons, but only one or two can right? The rest will do other stuff, and how we need hunters I'm sure some will take that job gladly."

"I bet she was a demon then. Your teacher I mean. Demons live much longer than mortals, I hear, so it works, right? I'll be sure to find her for you if I can."