[PRP] Someone my own age? [Aeskilegt & Håpe Lys]

[Sareibear]

Aeskilegt was getting to know a little bit more about the pride as the days passed. Some here were compassionate to him, some were, well...not so much. But it all helped. He was going to have to learn his place in society on his own, and while he was indeed small and frightened, he was determined to be able to take care of himself if he had to be alone. Most of the other cubs he had seen around, he hadn't been allowed to speak to, so he looked forward to more chances to mingle with some his own age, see how they got along. The young, pale-furred lion noticed that many his own age seemed to have caretakers...Aeskilegt wondered where his siblings had ended up and if he'd ever see them again. He hoped they were taken care of and not sad.

The little lion cub sniffed about, putting his muzzle to the ground for a moment. It seemed as though someone had been this way maybe not too long ago, and he began to imagine what sort of lion it may have been. Had it been a big strong, fierce warrior, or a young one like himself? He had a little smirk on his features as he created lions in his mind, sniffing around. Aeskilegt could have been paying more attention to where he was going, but he had been so preoccupied with sniffing around and dreaming up who may have been this way last, he didn't notice that he was coming awful close to the scent he had been following...

ShinosBee

 

[ShinosBee]

Håpe Lys was not terribly pleased. That wasn't anything out of the usual--he was hardly pleased at any time when he wasn't alone with his little family, and even then more often than not he had reason to feel disquiet. The reasoning for that wasn't really so hard to figure out. He was the lone male cub, nay, the lone male at all in his den. He had four sisters (two younger, two older) and his mother, and the whole lot of them were thralls. And so was Håpe.

Thrall life wasn't...all bad. It was busy though, and from time to time he would be yelled at, even cuffed. It didn't bother him so much - he knew he was young and would yet grow into his strength and skills - but it made his little hackles rise to see one of his sisters being treated so, or even his mother. With her, though, there was also resentment. She was a good mother, of course. She loved them dearly, and would do anything to protect them. But she was a simple thing, and didn't seem eager to leave the rank of thralldom. Didn't she want a better life? He was certain she deserved one. Instead though when he'd ask her she'd only tell him of some long-missing lion who'd sworn to come back some day. Håpe didn't much care for the mystery male either.

All that combined to put the blue cub in a rather sour mood when he was suddenly bowled over from behind. In a flurry of limbs he was on his feet, mouth open to babble some apology for spacing out and not working...until he realized it was just some other cub. Even freeborn cubs could boss around an adult thrall, but insensibly, the boy snarled instead, swinging in misguided ire at the offender. "Watch where you're going!" He'd probably regret that later, if it was some reaver's son, but at the moment he was too miffed to care.

Sareibear

 

[Sareibear]

The young cub had gone bumping right into another, and now he was a little bit scared, to say the least. He hadn't meant it, and he worried as well that it would be someone higher in ranking than himself. Although, basically any lion in the pride was of higher ranking than a lowly orphan, even the other thralls, at least some of them had owners and caretakers...He narrowly dodged a flying paw, and took a claw to the cheek. It could have been worse. Aeskilegt whimpered a little as he was knocked off balance as well, and shook his head to come eye to eye with a cub about his own size, a deep blue color. And the other cub seemed pretty angry.

"I'm sorry...I was just...looking for something..." The little pale-colored thrall stumbled with his words a bit, looking down at his paws as he mumbled an apology to the other cub. Well, this wasn't going as well as it could have. Hopefully he wouldn't see trouble over this from the other cubs master later...that had happened already, some claw drags across his rump reminded him of that, still painful a few days after the fact. "I really didn't see you..." The little lion added, trailing off again as he looked up sheepishly at the blue cub.

In all fairness, Aeskilegt figured the other cub must have been distracted at least a little bit as well, if he hadn't seen the pale cub coming his way anyways. Though, he didn't feel that it was worth bringing up right now, since the way this blue cub had reacted seemed to not bode necessarily well for this interaction. Although maybe he would feel different now that he had been apologized to.

ShinosBee

 

[ShinosBee]

Sareibear

The moment the other cub cowered the blue male realized he'd been mistaken. This wasn't someone he had to fear, it was just another thrall. He even thought he'd seen him around before. Now and then his mother would allow other thrall cubs into their den for a night - those without parents. It was hard to see in the dark still, but maybe that was where...? No, he wasn't sure.

The boy might be angry, but he wasn't cruel. He forced out a sigh through his nose and half rolled his eyes. "It's fine. Just watch where you're going. Someone more important might get bumped next time, and I don't wanna have to hear some cub crying all day because he got smacked around." His words were harsh, but there was sympathy in the cub. He didn't send the younger male packing, nor did he lash out. He wasn't going to pretend to be some reaver-son just to be a bully, that'd make him even worse than the real bullies. He looked him over again and hummed mildly.

"What were you looking for anyway? Something important, must be, if you're going around with your nose in the dirt." A long pause. "I'm Håpe. Got a name?"  

[Sareibear]

Aeskilegt was a bit ashamed. What he had been looking for was food, and perhaps a nice warm place he could huddle up to sleep, out of sight of anyone that may object. He gave a little gurgling noise and looked away from the other. "I try to watch where I'm going...sometimes I'm thinking about stuff..." He trailed off, feeling maybe that hadn't been a necessary thought to process into words. He always felt so awkward, scared that those he met wouldn't take to him, or wouldn't have time for him. All the little tan lion needed really was someone to talk to, maybe a friend, maybe someone to take care of him. He shrugged these thoughts off and looked back to the blue cub.

"It doesn't matter what I was looking for...it's not important." He trailed off for a second, shaking his head a little in an attempt to get his bangs out of his eyes. "I mean...not to be rude. It just wasn't terribly important." Aeskilegt's grumbling stomach refuted that idea, but he was getting good at ignoring it.

"My name is Aeskilegt." He said quietly, more of a chirp than words. His name he had chosen himself, and it was suiting. Maybe other cubs wouldn't know what it meant, but he had heard it from an elder lion and decided to take it upon himself as his name.

ShinosBee