[GO] Writing Contest

[Leeu Elder]

Itemless

To win the girl above, I need you to tell me a story. Tell me a story about her dangly items. It can be about how she obtained them, what they mean to her, how someone else has reacted to them, or anything else that strikes you as needing a story. Please remember that humans no longer exist on the island, so her items could not be directly given to her by a human. However, there are remnants of human society around the volcano and maybe even on the outskirts of the island. Be creative and have fun!


Please use the form below to enter


[b]Username:[/b]
[b]Lion's name:[/b]
[b]Entry:[/b]




One entry per person! You may not submit multiple stories/concepts.

Entries must be written by you. If you are caught plagiarizing someone else's work you will be disqualified and may be grey- or blacklisted.

There is no word count requirement. However, please be reasonable. Entries should be long enough to tell a story that intrigues, but not so long that it could be published as a novella. Please be kind to me I have to read them all.

 

[Owlsomniac]

Username: Owlsomniac
Lion's name: Sade
Entry:

She is a Queen Without a Pride; a female lion who wanders, alone, across the exapnse of the island, following the line of the coast. From the soft, ash-stained sands to the roughened crags where lava once flowed, long ago, into the mouth of the sea.

It doesn't seem to matter how hard or dangerous her path may be at times. Like the rising of the sun and moon, her journey is predictable; constant.

When she makes it to the Old Ruins by the river, one of the largest she's ever come across, she will rest, and marvel at the strange rocks with their many carved faces. Some look like two-legged creatures she has never seen - others are more familiar. Birds, fish, and even lions are all rendered in fantastic shapes, so smooth they could almost be alive.

The first time she visits, she is startled by one carved in the rendition of a male lion in full, furious, splendor, his mane shaggy and full, his face drawn up into a hideous snarl.

Then, she discovers the inside of those strange caves-that-aren't-caves; half-rotted wood and crumbled stone and clay that house things even more strange than the carved stones and, sometimes, even more marvelous. Metals and stones glitter now and then, half-hidden by debris and plant matter.

It is here that she first discovered her sparkling accessories. She had been pleased, though it had obviously been worn down by time.

Time and again, she makes her way back, however, and gradually she begins to discover, more often than not, some small bit of metal to add to her ornamentation. It becomes a tradition, of sorts.

Perhaps, one day, she will find others with which to share this fantastic place, and all its secrets, but for now... it is hers, and hers alone.  

[trinkuh]

Username: Trinkuh
Lion's name: Sola
Entry: These shiny things where a gift from her mother and from her mother before her. These shiny things that helped in finding a good mate was handed down over many generations. The story that came with them that there was once these things that walked on two legs who lived here long ago and when the volcano became angry and killed everything in land many of these beings things where left behind. Her relieve found many shiny things and tangled them together. Once together they where given to the oldest female in the family who had yet to find her mate. They say that these shinnies helped her find her mate and now they are pasted down to the old female still alive who has no mate of her own.  

[PixelDeerest]

Username: PixelDeerest
Lion's name: Ravinna
Entry:
When she was small, she was often told that her paws where too big for her body. They dwarfed her, made the rest of her body look minuscule in comparison to them. Her paws weren't the only thing she saw that day, though - despite their size.

Too often the barren wastelands that she once called home, would take the life of her loved ones. Food was scarce, and fighting over food was more of a common occurrence than shared meals. Many had lost their lives in the battle for dinner, and a similar amount had wasted away to nothingness from having lost too many meals to more worthy opponents.

Before long, the wasteland's resources were so little that no one had the energy to fight or hunt. Ravinna's parents always gave the biggest share of their meals to her, instead of themselves, in an effort to keep their daughter fed - but to the disadvantage of themselves. She remembers their smiling, but emaciated faces staring down at her as they gave her small bits of already small portions. "Here Ravi, our gift to you. Because you are already a gift to us." They were golden, they radiated a warmth and love that she had felt since birth - and she loved them with the same ferocity. Their smiles were what reminded her that living here in the wasteland was worth it, because she was with them. Each smile directed her way expanded her love to its breaking point - filling her with a liquid, golden warmth, like their cups overflowing and filling hers.

This was why her heart tore to pieces each time the feeding came. The look on their faces when she tried to refuse their gifts was worse than seeing them slowly waste away. "Please Ravi...for us." They smiled, huddled together in their little hut, trying to keep both their bodies and spirits warm, "You need to grow big enough to match your paws. Grow strong, grow big. Please Ravi."

And so, Ravinna would eat - and play with her parents, tired though they were. She would sit on her father's broad but bony shoulders, and bat at the golden earrings lining his ears. Ravi's mother would sit across from the scene, watching them - grateful for having seen such a sight, even as her complexion was sallow with hunger. The strings that were woven across her mother's back once looked mighty and elegant - like a Queen's dressing. Now they hung like spiderwebs waiting to consume her.

Even so young, she knew what was coming. She had to. There were only five lions left in the pride, including the three of them, and even less animals to hunt across their territory. They had waited too long to move, and now their pride was too weak to travel.

She remembered that the sky was a bright, burning blue - such a stark contrast to her own feelings, to the bitter darkness swirling around her heart. The feeling of sadness, and a lonely despair clutched at her lungs, threatening to steal her breath. She was just a cub, and yet she had stared straight into the white smiles of her parents - permanently curled around her in a protective embrace. Their golden trinkets glowed happily in the summer sun, reflecting the blinding blue from above - unaware of their owner's circumstances.

When she couldn't bare to look at her parent's unmoving forms anymore, she stared at her paws. She stared at the shining earring that had come loose, and rolled between them - so small in comparison to her oversized mitts. Mechanically, without feeling or thinking, she adorned herself with the bobbles of her parents. Her mother's webbing strung across her small frame, and an golden earring sitting heavy on her ear.

She was alone, and she couldn't look back. Her parents had lost their last battle, and she would have to find her own dinner tonight.

----------------------------

Strong, well-fed, and hefty - Ravinna slowly waded through sifting clouds of sand swirling along the dunes on the horizon. She would never lose a meal again - not to the prey, not to a foe. Never.

Carefully, using her paws and her teeth, Ravi strung the newest golden bead along her mother's strings which were still laying across her back. It had been a long time since her parents had died - and since then, she had collected many more golden beads to adorn herself with. Each bead represented a battle won, and a meal had.

She would not disappoint her parents, or take their gifts in vain. After all, it had taken some time, but she had finally grown into her paws.

EDIT: (the places in the story are meant to be very vague - as I do not know much about the geography right now xD Sorry!)  

[DarkHeartedSorrow]

Winner of our writing contest! I found your backstory compelling, and a good start to a personality or motive for the lioness! I'd love to see you continue to flesh her out.

Please take her to the certing thread when you can!

PixelDeerest

Username: PixelDeerest
Lion's name: Ravinna
Entry:
When she was small, she was often told that her paws where too big for her body. They dwarfed her, made the rest of her body look minuscule in comparison to them. Her paws weren't the only thing she saw that day, though - despite their size.

Too often the barren wastelands that she once called home, would take the life of her loved ones. Food was scarce, and fighting over food was more of a common occurrence than shared meals. Many had lost their lives in the battle for dinner, and a similar amount had wasted away to nothingness from having lost too many meals to more worthy opponents.

Before long, the wasteland's resources were so little that no one had the energy to fight or hunt. Ravinna's parents always gave the biggest share of their meals to her, instead of themselves, in an effort to keep their daughter fed - but to the disadvantage of themselves. She remembers their smiling, but emaciated faces staring down at her as they gave her small bits of already small portions. "Here Ravi, our gift to you. Because you are already a gift to us." They were golden, they radiated a warmth and love that she had felt since birth - and she loved them with the same ferocity. Their smiles were what reminded her that living here in the wasteland was worth it, because she was with them. Each smile directed her way expanded her love to its breaking point - filling her with a liquid, golden warmth, like their cups overflowing and filling hers.

This was why her heart tore to pieces each time the feeding came. The look on their faces when she tried to refuse their gifts was worse than seeing them slowly waste away. "Please Ravi...for us." They smiled, huddled together in their little hut, trying to keep both their bodies and spirits warm, "You need to grow big enough to match your paws. Grow strong, grow big. Please Ravi."

And so, Ravinna would eat - and play with her parents, tired though they were. She would sit on her father's broad but bony shoulders, and bat at the golden earrings lining his ears. Ravi's mother would sit across from the scene, watching them - grateful for having seen such a sight, even as her complexion was sallow with hunger. The strings that were woven across her mother's back once looked mighty and elegant - like a Queen's dressing. Now they hung like spiderwebs waiting to consume her.

Even so young, she knew what was coming. She had to. There were only five lions left in the pride, including the three of them, and even less animals to hunt across their territory. They had waited too long to move, and now their pride was too weak to travel.

She remembered that the sky was a bright, burning blue - such a stark contrast to her own feelings, to the bitter darkness swirling around her heart. The feeling of sadness, and a lonely despair clutched at her lungs, threatening to steal her breath. She was just a cub, and yet she had stared straight into the white smiles of her parents - permanently curled around her in a protective embrace. Their golden trinkets glowed happily in the summer sun, reflecting the blinding blue from above - unaware of their owner's circumstances.

When she couldn't bare to look at her parent's unmoving forms anymore, she stared at her paws. She stared at the shining earring that had come loose, and rolled between them - so small in comparison to her oversized mitts. Mechanically, without feeling or thinking, she adorned herself with the bobbles of her parents. Her mother's webbing strung across her small frame, and an golden earring sitting heavy on her ear.

She was alone, and she couldn't look back. Her parents had lost their last battle, and she would have to find her own dinner tonight.

----------------------------

Strong, well-fed, and hefty - Ravinna slowly waded through sifting clouds of sand swirling along the dunes on the horizon. She would never lose a meal again - not to the prey, not to a foe. Never.

Carefully, using her paws and her teeth, Ravi strung the newest golden bead along her mother's strings which were still laying across her back. It had been a long time since her parents had died - and since then, she had collected many more golden beads to adorn herself with. Each bead represented a battle won, and a meal had.

She would not disappoint her parents, or take their gifts in vain. After all, it had taken some time, but she had finally grown into her paws.

EDIT: (the places in the story are meant to be very vague - as I do not know much about the geography right now xD Sorry!)