She was nervous. Who wouldn't be? She was meeting one of the leaders of the colony she would be now taking refuge in. Refuge... Or was it sanctuary? She looked around at the jungle, mesmerized by it all. It was stunning, and she found herself forgetting why she was even nervous to begin with. Where had she been again? She stopped, blinking. What was her name again? She watched a bird land on a branch, singing merrily. Oh, right, Shakuntala. Another leopard had brought her here... What was his name again? She looked around, then spied a pink flower. Oh, right, Sakura! She smiled a bit at herself, proud to have remembered that much.
From a safe vantage point, Sayen watched this new leopardess her nephew'd brought home. She was certainly a stunning leopardess, that was for sure. If she recovered fine, she'd make a good huntress. There was still that matter of recovery, though. Sayen could see from the way she moved that this new leopardess was still limping. She doubted there were any broken bones - The newcomer stood on her four paws with no problem. Likely bruising... The striped leopardess exhaled slowly, then went padding out of hiding. "Good afternoon, newcomer, and welcome to the Usafi'tukufu lands!"
The young leopardess had been occupied with carefully plucking a flower when the pink male's aunt greeted her. She let out a surprised sound, dropping the flower and whirling aroun as best she could. Her footing ended up slipping as she fell, letting out a grunt of pain as her bruised side was irritated. She heard the other leopardess let out a surprised sound, and hurry over, and then she found herself helped up to her paws. As she wobbled, she offered a sheepish smile. "I-I'm sorry, I'm... I'm still unsteady on my paws..." Her ear flicked as she thought she heard a thundering. Was it rhinos? No, it was just the distant river, booming its way through the jungle.
Spots but this one was skittish! As Sayen stepped back from the other leopardess, she admired the coat. It needed some cleaning, and she needed some food in her, but overall she looked good. She took a seat, ears pricking. "So, you're Shakuntala, the leopardess my nephew told me about..." She chuckled, smiling. "He seems to be just a bit smitten with you, my dear... I'm sure many young males around here will be. But I don't think we'll be letting any of them court you.. Not yet..." She still needed time to recover. "Tell me something that my nephew hasn't, though... I'm curious about you."
She hesitated, not really sure how to answer. "Well..." She tried wracking her brain, but nothing came up. Finally, she let out a sigh. "I don't even know anything about myself..." She saw the confused and surprised look the statement earned her. "It's a bit complicated, but... I can barely hold onto my own name. I have to look at things to remember it..." She motioned to a bird on a branch. "I forget it until I see a bird. I don't even remember if my parents named me, or if someone else did..." She trembled all over, ears going back. She felt so ashamed in herself for not remembering much of ANYTHING.
The brown leopardess gave a nod, before moving to sit next to the other. "It's alright... Shakuntala, was it?" When the younger leopardess nodded, Sayen smiled. "See, you're already doing very well! I think what you may need, besides time, is something to focus on. A repetitive task, as it were... It can help the memory." She reached up, rubbing her neck. "It's just a matter of deciding WHAT that task would be..." She looked around, trying to decide on a course of action. They didn't need a nanny, really... There were so few cubs in the colony at present, it was hardly necessary. They'd never had a nanny to begin with, anyway. About all they needed were hunters and huntresses... But that wouldn't do at the moment. Finally, as her eyes fell on a stone, an idea came to her. "I think I know what to do with you now..."
Dark eyes shifted, eyeing the brown leopardess worriedly. She knew what to do...? Suddenly she felt worried. Would it be bad? Would she be a slave? Where had she even gotten the idea of a slave, anyway...? Shakuntala swallowed, shifting stiffly on her paws. "It... It won't hurt... Will it...?" She didn't want MORE pain to deal with! Was it a hard task? Was it easy? She hoped it was easy. What if she failed at it? Would they ease her into it, or would she be forced into a sink-or-swim situation? Where had such a term even come from? Sink or swim.. What did that apply to? She suddenly stopped, shaking her head. "Ooooh, too many thoughts in my head!"
Sayen's brows went up, watching in mild amusement. "Oh, no, don't worry!" She got up, starting to padd along the path near by. "Come with me, you'll see soon enough!" She flicked one ear, listeing as Shakuntala followed. As the path became broad from the stone road inlaid, the temple soon came into view. Sayen easily climbed the steps, stopping at the top to wait for the younger leopardess. "Don't strain yourself, now..."
Finally reaching the top, Shakuntala collapsed in a heap of panting. Next to her, Sayen patiently waited, until the young leopardess finally picked herself up. "I think I'm good now..." She looked around curiously, having not been in the temple yet. "This is big..." She slowly padded over to a half-crumbled wall, examining it. Carved into the stone were runes. "Oh this is amazing...!" Shakuntala raised a paw, placing it on the wall, as if that would help her absorb the meaning.
She smiled, watching the younger leopardess. "That's what you'll be doing, Shakuntala. You need to concentrate, so I'll have Nava teach you how to read the paintings on the walls and make your own. It's a good excercise to focus on." She looked at the walls, ears lightly twitching. After a moment, she turned back to Shakuntala. "Do you think you could do that?"
She turned in surprise, eyes widening. "What, really?"
Sayen nodded, smiling. "Of course! Now come on, I should show you around... You should find you'll enjoy it here very much!"
Her ears twitched, before Shakuntala's face lit up. "Okay!" She moved from the wall, hurrying after Sayen as fast as she could with her injuries.