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 Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 4:29 pm
A large figure paced over the grasses of the rogue lands, nose pointed south. He was quite an oddity in this place... for one, he was massive, larger than any grown lion really had a right to be. For another, he was a deep, rich blue color, his black mane thick and heavy on muscles shoulders.
Eyes as green as the Nile were solemn on either side of a shining star on his forehead, and his white-tipped paws were suprisingly light on the packed dirt. Matsai was breathing easily, his long travels having left his body in top physical shape, and his gaze never stopped panning, searching for a similarly blue form.
Where did Ahai get to? He was here a moment ago... The large male sighed as he shook out his mane, padding on. His brother would catch up soon enough, and it would be better to cover more ground now than waste time looking for him. Besides... it was better sometimes to think when he was alone, and his latest string of visions was more than enough food for thought.
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 4:51 pm
Today was just like any other day, Banjoko thought. More walking. Same scenery. Nothing much to do but think...
Banjoko wasn't a thinker. He wasn't dumb, but he liked doing. But the one thing about traveling alone aimlessly...nothing much to do.
Sighing, the juvenile lion found a semicircle of shade under a stubby bush and decided to rest his paws a while. He had barely sat on his haunches when he saw it: a patch of blue moving across the grass. For an instant he thought of his mother - but no. This was a male, a large one.
Having not had many good run-ins with male rouges lately, Banjoko preferred to sit and watch cautiously...if the male noticed him, he would respond, but it would be best not to bring attention to himself if he could.
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Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2007 8:00 pm
Such was Matsai's awareness that, as soon as the younger lion in viewing distance, his attention was drawn to him, and held for a long moment. Since he was no longer alone, the blue lion's face fell into neutral lines, loosing whatever emotion he might have had before. A mask to cover his real self, and he paused in his tracks, lifting his head as his soft ears perked forward.
His voice came as neutral as his voice, though it was thoughtful. "Hello, stranger." He said politely in greeting, raising his large head.
"Nice day." He said softly as he pondered approaching the younger one, but... he didn't want to scare him away. His paws itched to touch this new one, wanting to see what visions would be conjured, but at the same time, he feared the pain that always came with them.
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Posted: Tue Oct 02, 2007 1:52 pm
"Hello to you as well," Banjoko returned, his guard up but his voice cordial. "Certainly seems a nice day so far." Banjoko kept his eyes on the male as he approached, curious and reserved. The male was carefully concealing his emotions, but Banjoko thought he could sense the male wanted something. Otherwise why would he redirect his original course and approach him?
"My name is Banjoko," the blue juvenile offered, not knowing if the other male would give a name in return. But he thought it polite to give his first.
Banjoko sat and waited patiently for the other to come nearer - he had all the time in the world. It had been a boring past few days, and rather than be afraid of this newcomer, he hoped his arrival would mean some sort of break in the tedium of his travels. Still, the frightening black lion who had attacked him in the beginning of his journey was not forgotten - Banjoko was preparing himself, if need be, to fight or flee.
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Posted: Wed Oct 03, 2007 12:31 pm
In a moment, Matsai's mind was made up, a course chosen, and he slowly came closer to the younger lion. Each paw was placed carefully, his locomotion betraying the attitude of one who is very, very concious of where his body is in space, as well as the other objects that occupy that space with it.
"My name is Matsailema, Banjoko. It is a pleasure to meet you. My other half, Ahaiyuta, might be nearby, if you happen to see another lion that looks much like me in your travels." His voice paused for a moment for a deeply drawn breath, then he raised his green eyes to look the cub over solemnly. "I have a very odd question for you, Banjoko... Might I be able to... touch you?"
There was no betraying look, no twitch or other sign of the blue lion's body that would give away the purpose in his question. He meerly came to a stop just out of paw's reach, an aura of expectation surrounding him. "I know it's a strange request, but I give you my word that I won't hurt you. And it doesn't have to be much... a brush of paw to paw would suffice."
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Posted: Fri Oct 05, 2007 1:29 pm
Banjoko's eyebrows raised in suprise and suspicion. What kind of game was this guy playing?
"Why on earth would you want to do something like that?" Banjoko asked with a hint of accusation. Adult male lions were turning out to be nothing but trouble - he really should avoid them until he was is big enough to fight on his own, Banjoko thought. Of course, he didn't seem threatening; the juvenile could tell from his body language that he didn't appear violent or out to get him.
Perhaps he would agree to being touched...depending on the reason. He didn't want any funny business or trickey.
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Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2007 3:52 pm
Matsai paused for a moment, as if in thought. He was surprised by the question, merely searching for an answer that would satisfy.
"If you allow me..." He said slowly. "I will tell you after. I promise that I shall not hurt you... This is... to satisfy my curiosity, you could say."
The large blue lion sat quietly, then reached forward, offering his white-tipped paw to the cub. It was his choice now, to accept or deny the familiarity. He wouldn't force the other, and if the truth were known, he really couldn't. There would be more pain on his side than on the younger lion's.
"Make your choice, Banjoko."
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Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2007 6:29 am
Banjoko looked at him through narrowed eyes, trying to see into Matsai's intentions. He sensed no hostility. But it was definitely an odd request.
Banjo tossed the idea back and forth in his mind for a while, like a cub batting around a rodent. At the end of his mental back-and-forth, Banjoko simply shrugged and said, "Alright, go ahead. Knock yourself out." His heart thumped a bit, adrenaline beginning to trickle into his system as he considered all possible outcomes of this action. He tensed, not sure what to do, but wanting to be prepared for anything.
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2007 5:21 pm
Matsai almost smiled as he was given the assent... almost. Reaching forward with the extended paw, he pressed the pads to his shoulder. It was a light touch, claws carefully retracted, and impersonal. With that, he surrendered himself to the visions that boiled up, their source the juvenile before him.
The large blue body went tense and tight, green eyes loosing focus as their gaze turned inward, and they began to flicker back and forth. His breath turned shallow and fast, as though what he saw panicked him...
In his mind, he was flooded, scene over scene playing before his eyes, flashing past faster than he could follow. Once in a while, the visions would slow and he'd get a better look, but much of it was meaningless to him since he didn't have the experience to understand it.
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Posted: Tue Oct 23, 2007 5:46 pm
As Matsai's paw touched his shoulder, Banjoko tensed and jerked almost imperceptibly. Waiting for something to happen, the boy watched Matsai carefully. Banjoko certainly felt nothing. What was the big deal here?
Then as Matsai's face began to change, Banjo began to wonder if something was wrong. What was happening to him? Was he sick? Was he going to attack him? It was almost maddening to see Matsai going into such a state without knowing why. Obviously, the touch was the cause of this, but what...? Was he seeing something? If he was, Banjo wanted to know what it was.
"Um," Banjo began cautiously, not knowing if the other male could hear him. "Are you alright?" He began to plan an escape route, in case Matsai turned crazy like that other lion with the long name he couldn't pronounce.
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Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2007 12:42 am
Matsai drew a deep, ragged breath as he tore himself away from Banjoko, physically removing himself from the visions. He rose on shaky paws and turned away, pacing a few steps before he sat again with his back to the young lion. The heavy, maned head dropped so the hair covered his face, and for a long moment he sat quietly, deep in thought.
What had the visions ment? No matter how many times he tried to control them, to make them make sense, they still overwhelmed him every time. He drew another deep breath, letting it out slowly. It was calming, and he needed that right now to recover his equillibrium.
"So many images... like the flicker of fireflies in the night..." He breathed, more to himself than anything.
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Posted: Wed Oct 31, 2007 8:44 pm
Banjoko's heart grew increasingly desperate in its attempts to escape his chest. He felt nothing, saw nothing that the other lion did, but Matsai's emotional response was so dramatic that Banjo could not help but mirror them.
As the other lion broke his contact, Banjoko searched his face with anxious eyes, waiting. "What is it?" he demanded finally, approaching Matsai impatiently. "Images? What images? Did...did you see something?" He waited only a moment before trying again, voice full of tension and urgency. "What did you see?"
His mind was racing. He had heard very little of seers - only faint tales, brought to his ears as if from a breeze, that he could barely recall. But now he had begun to suspect that Matsai was one of these special lions...he could see into the future or the past, perhaps? Either way, Banjo desperately wanted to know what lay at both ends of his timeline.
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Posted: Fri Nov 02, 2007 4:10 pm
Matsai turned his face away from the young one as he schooled his features into an impassive, emotionless mask. It wouldn't do to appear bothered by what he'd saw, since it wasn't like it had been all doom and gloom.
"Yes, I saw something. A flood of images, thoughts, and feelings overwhelmed my mind when I touched you. Its always like that when I touch another creature..." His ears gently flicked as he stared off into the distance. After a moment, he glanced at the younger blue lion, his golden-tipped tail twitching to curl against his side.
He thought a moment, then eyed the cub a bit more critically. "You want to know what I saw...?" He said softly. "Really want to know?"
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Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2007 6:53 am
"Yes, yes I want to know," Banjoko said quickly, impatiently. "Do you know...if I find my father? Could you see..if he was even alive?" His words came slower and more cautiously as he began to realize...he might not want to know. This whole time, Banjoko had understood that his father might no long be living, but he had refused to believe it. What if he learned that this entire journey - all the heartbreak he had caused his mother - had been for nothing? He would have to return to her, the foolish prodigal son, without having accomplished his goal.
But curiosity was killing him. If Matsai, this seer, had seen his father in a vision...it could save Banjoko a lifetime's worth of wondering. There seemed to be two postive outcomes from this. He would hear that his father was dead, and mourn for the lion he never knew, but then return to his mother to ask his forgiveness and spend the rest of his days taking care of her, as a good son should do. Or, he would learn of his father's location and be able to narrow his search. He wouldn't have to spend his entire life on a fruitless journey. If only he knew - he had to know.
"Do you know..if...did you see..." Banjoko could barely get the words out. Averting his eyes in embarrassment, he continued in a quiet voice that betrayed his emotion. "Will I ever find him?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 10, 2007 7:31 am
Matsai's green eyes narrowed in thought as he shifted through the visions he could remember, searching for a lion that looked enough like the younger one to be his father.
"I saw... a lion that looks like you. Dark blue and striped like a zebra... Its hot where he is, the sun beating down like the cruel paw of a lion on some helpless animal." He spoke quietly, thoughtfully, as he very carefully chose his words. "I see a female in white and grey, slender and lovely... but... I see more than that. I feel anger and fear, pain... Happiness, perhaps, but not openly shown."
Suddenly, the blue lion shook his head hard, his mane bristling in the light wind. "I suggest you give up on searching for this male and go home to your mother and sister. Continuing on this journey is a fool's errand. There is only great danger if you continue. You will find your father, that I see, but not in the way you would have wished to, and your life will be full of harship and pain... just as his is now." Matsai rose and began to stretch, trying to shake off the lingering feeling of ill-ease that came with this vision. When he had seen that place, it had sparked feeling of his mother... yet, why would Kiuma be in such a place, or be there in the future? Why would she willingly go there? Because no lion could force her to do anything... his proud, fierce mother.
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