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 Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 12:43 am
 The bird hopped pathetically in the sand. Its crippled wing hanging loose at its left side and dragging along the sands, crying desperately for help that would never come. Mwali was returning more and more with smaller, wounded, but still very much alive game for his offspring to take advantage of. Learning to kill at a young age, learning to take the lives of the weak, and learning to hunt. Essential for their development.
Sinbad grinned at the creature's obvious strife, prowling slowly in its wake. Now and then he'd throw a clawed paw out to slap the bird, sending it rolling through the sand. It would get back to its feet, hopping pathetically away from its tormentor.
Mwali watched not too far off, but far enough to give the cubs a sense of independence. The others were with their mother. Not one would be let out of either of their sights... they'd risk nothing with them.
"Why don't you even fight back?" Sinbad cackled, prowling himself around to slap the bird once more. He didn't understand. It was weak, it was wounded, and it was facing death. Why didn't it even try? It was almost sad... but sympathy was often rewarded by the stern paw of their father. He sent a short glance over to Mwali's looming form, ears flattening back. He almost didn't want to kill it...
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 12:59 am
Then again, she'd been brought up to think herself above others; the only ones that escaped Kenna's obvious superiority complex were her parents and her inmediate, full-blooded sibblings, "Just kill it already, Sinbad; it's squawks are giving me a headache," again she sneered down at the beast that twittered just barely out of reach, watching it out the corner of an eye, almost as if didn't warrant enough attention to recieve the full heat of the female's red gaze.
Out of her many sibblings, Kenna felt a particular tug of softness towards two of them; Sinbad being one of them, Azula the other, and where she would had doubtlessly protected all of them, and treated them well, it was obvious she favoured spenting time with the aforementioned two. This was just as well; her parents seemed to have no problem with favoritism so long she remain loyal and firm to their small family. Which Kenna doubtlessly was. As she watched the bird, she tilted her head to one side, the sadist in her idly wondering how long it'd take for it to die if she clawed at it and allowed it's blood to spill on the already almost scorching red sand, "Do you think it will bleed to death, or die of thirst first?" such morbid words for one so young; Kenna paused only briefly in her thoughts to glance at Mwali languidly before turning her attention back to Sinbad.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 1:26 am
Sinbad twitched as his sister approached, kind of hunching himself over and lowering his ears. She was the oldest of the bunch and was due for as much respect as he could give her, being among the youngest. Kill it already...right.
He took a deep breath and looked back to the bird, gathering himself back up onto his paws and padding himself purposefully towards the tormented avian. No weakness he reminded himself. According to their father it deserved to die! Then again... it wasn't its fault it was hurt. Then again, yes it was. It was its own fault for being caught in the first place!
The thought process left Sinbad starring blankly at the bird for a moment, mentally kicking himself afterwards. He lifted a paw up above the bird, letting lose his ebony claws but once again hesitated at his sister's question. "...Dunno...", he looked back to her with an honestly dumbfounded look on his face.
He was kind of a scruffy cub. He never took time to groom himself and he was almost constantly rolling about in the sand playing with the other siblings. The fluff of fur that would one day become a mane even stuck straight up from his head and curled up a bit. "Are we supposed to kill it like that?"
Death...was still a strange notion for him. It didn't seem nearly as serious as it should have been. Death in his mind was when the food was ready to eat. He'd never seen a lion die, never seen a real lion fight. He was only encouraged to wrestle with his siblings whenever he approached Mwali. It was only natural for a cub to want a bit of affection from their parents, but they were quickly being taught to think otherwise.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 1:43 am
She honestly had no idea, but she'd be damned if she was going to allow herself to admit that much outloud; it was a show of weakness, not knowing. Weakness was not to be allowed. Her parents had been quite firm in driving that thought into her mind, and thus the cub, rather than answer Sinbad, merely padded forward, peering over his shoulder down at the still squawking beast. Swiftly, she came to a decision; when in a doubt, she thought to herself, aim for the kill.
All other questions would be ironed out later.
Thus was how she found herself dipping her head down and sinking her fangs mercilessly into the bird's throat, snapping it's neck in an instant, and so, successfuly putting it out of it's misery. Shaking her head, the prey still in her mouth, she made it a point of making sure the beast was dead, going for over-kill before dropping it to the ground languidly, almost emotionlessly, "We shall never know now, shall we?" this was said softly, effortlessly as she had killed the poor bird, almost as if she had been talking about the time of day, rather than over something as morbid as death.
Mwali was, no doubt, proud; his daughter was a small, emotionless little assassin in the training. That much was obvious. And she was doing a fine job at corrupting her sibblings, too, aparently, "You're dirty," this said, she ignored the bird she'd killed and leaned in, placing a delicate paw on her brother's neck, licking at his face and forehead, where the beginging of a mane was starting to emerge. The action was delicate, constrasting deeply with the way she'd previously dipped her maw to kill the bird; not that she noticed a contrast, really. The bird was sentenced to die, just like she was MEANT to take care of her sibblings, for she was the eldest amongst them, "What say we eat it?" she said between licks while she groomed him; she was as efficient as she was merciless. Efficiency required they eat the kill; it required they do not let anything they hunt go to waste.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 11:06 am
Azula had been watching the entire mess from an outcropping of rock, or compacted sand--she wasn't sure which--that overlooked the other two. It wasn't very tall, of course, just enough that she could see slightly over their heads, and the now-dead bird beyond. The entire scene was pitiful. "If you wanted to know, you could have tried it," She finally voiced with a roll of her eyes. Though she felt closer to Kenna than most of her other siblings, there were times when she thought the majority of them were far too much brawn over brains. There wasn't anything wrong with being particularly physical, of course, but she was simply of the mind that it was better to be choosy of when you used such force and when you didn't. Her father wasn't likely to be pleased, which made Azula flick an ear in thought. She killed enough of her share to get his favor, though the male's indifference was a growing sore spot.
"A good, deep gash to the leg, slice that little tight bit of stuff--what did Mother call it? A tendon? Yes, slice the tendon so that it cannot run.. and merely watch." Azula gave a slight, graceful shrug, "If father brings a hare back to us soon, try it on that." Like Keena, Azula prided herself in being clean, but it wasn't only that. No, cleanliness and never-flinching poise and grace were her obsessions. To show herself as clumsy or careless would be the worst possible act in the world, an embarrassment she'd be hard-pressed to live under.
In keeping with such, Azula lowered her maw a moment to casually lick the fur flat on her arm where the wind had stirred it. Never once did she shift in her seat, even if she became uncomfortable--fidgeting was not graceful. One ear did turn, however, towards the direction of Mwali. Azula made certain to keep track of their father at all times, though it may not have been noticeable to the others. There was more than a little truth in thinking that she had, somehow, managed to become a "daddy's girl" in heart, even if she wasn't allowed to do so in practice. Not that this seemed to stop her in the slightest. "Really, Sinbad, you could bother to do your own bathing once in awhile."
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2007 1:08 pm
"Guess not...", Sinbad slowly reached a paw out to poke at the bird, insuring that it was dead. How could it not be? She'd mauled it! Maybe that's how you were supposed to do it. Brutal, even after it stopped moving. He twitched a bit, even more so when he suddenly found himself the victim of another bath. He knew better than to protest or pull away, he'd find himself on the sharp end of her paws in no time. Instead he simply groaned and slumped over, glaring at the sand as his claws tested it under them.
Dirty!? He wasn't dirty. He was just a bit...grungy. That's all. Of the cubs, perhaps he was the one that was having the most difficult time grasping the notion of looking like the nobility they supposedly were. He had better things to do with his time. Learning to prowl, pounce, and growl.
Azula wasn't helping... "I don't wanna." He protested in the form of a low mutter, finally pulling his head back away from his older sister's tounge and ran a paw along the small floof of fur, now groomed back into the rest of his fur. Kind of a bright patch sticking out of darker fur. "I bet we can catch our own hare." He put in, tipping himself slightly to scratch at the nape of his neck, his eyes kind of falling half-closed as he did so, "W-w-w-w-weeeee c-c-c-could impr-r-r-es-s-s-s-s moth-t-th-" He broke off from his scratching, realizing how silly it was making him sound. Clearing his throat, he continued, sitting himself upright, suddenly remembering a bit of dignity, "Mother and father would be impressed. Maybe they'll even let us sleep next to them..."
He trailed off, glancing in the direction of their sire. He wasn't without the childlike longing for praise and affection either. It might be nice...
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Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2007 8:08 am
Oh, Kenna knew Azula meant no real 'harm' by her claim to her; in fact, she knew that if there was someone that Azula liked above the rest, it was her. It was a mutual feeling, really, however, in playful banter, the elder of the two sisters turned and bared her fangs, "Come down here and repeat what you just said!" a pause her brows knitting together before she twitched; her sister's face always produced that reaction from her.
Azula had a single dot on her left cheek. But not on her right cheek.
It was greatly distracting to her, and each time Kenna looked her way she found herself wanting to dunk a paw in mud and draw an identical dot on her sister's other cheek. Of course, Azula would have none of this, and each time the fact was mentioned that she was 'not symmetrical' the two sisters somehow ended up running across the red sands, bellowing obscenities at each other, one of them flinging paint or mud while the other tried desperately to escape.
Needless to say both would always end up falling on the ground, exhausted after such runs. Mwali, if he disapproved, had never said a thing against this; probably because he thought that chasing each other was great training for the two females. Regardless, the fights would continue day in and day out, "Also, get down here, so I can FIX you," Kenna voiced loudly, just as emotional as ... she'd been un-emotional just bare seconds ago towards the poor non-dead bird.
The idea of catching a rabbit soon enough perked at the young firekin's attention though, and she found herself narrowing her red hued eyes at the possibility. Much like Sinbad and Azula, Kenna was not without the childish wish for her father's love, and after peeking his way, she snorted through her nose, still in thought, "Bet we could..." she nodded and turned to leer at Azula, "And then we can try what she said too-" she broke off her words as the need to groom Sinbad's tuff of hair assaulted her again; it was a compulsion. She couldn't let it go... it was beyond her.
So thus, the lioness, dominant in her ways, once more pressed her tongue to the male's forehead, grooming the hair back into place, "The day he keeps himself clean will be the happiest day of my life," she murmured as she attempted to climb onto Azula's perch; height was good. I gave an advantage.
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Posted: Sun Oct 28, 2007 5:46 pm
"Sister, how many times must I remind you that perfection cannot be fixed?" Azula gave a slight sniff, eyes narrowing contemptuously towards her favorite sister. There was a bond between them that allowed them to snip at each other like this, constantly, without any true harm to their friendship. Of course, all siblings fought, but sometimes they seemed more "catty" than what should generally be within those bounds. Their parents never seemed to mind, much, and so they never learned any better. "And as far as coming down there goes, I wouldn't dream of it. I much prefer my rock, thank you very much."
Sinbad's idea of catching a hare for themselves was intriguing, though. Azula's dark ears tipped forward in interest, brows raising slightly. Catch a hare on their own... and perhaps win some slight affection? She doubted their father would let them sleep near or beside him quite so easily--after all, she made an attempt at it every night--but perhaps that would be the way to tip the scales. After a moments more consideration, she gave a wicked smile and jumped gracefully to her paws. A short leap landed her on the same turf they trod upon, though she gave Kenna a wide berth, "Though hunting something for ourselves is interesting enough to move me."
The backpedal was obvious, but Azula paid it no mind. If she didn't point it out, they wouldn't notice.. or if they did she would ignore any teasing from them, it was just how they worked. "You know, brother, you would not itch so much if you would keep yourself clean for once.. instead of relying on Kenna or mother to do it for you." Unlike Kenna, while vain, Azula did not suffer the twitch that forced her into cleaning everything or everyone else about her. She did, however, fall victim to an excessive amount of vanity and self-importance which showed itself in similar symptoms, at times. "Its more likely, Kenna, that you will continue to do that for him.. until the day you die." She gave a little smirk, knowing full-well that Kenna couldn't help it, even if she wanted to.
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Posted: Sun Nov 04, 2007 9:59 pm
Sinbad grunted at the second assault to his fur, slouching over with a disgruntled sneer all over his face. He often tried to shove Kenna away from him during grooming time, scoot himself off, or pull away. All such attempts normally resulted in a long scuffle followed by a longer grooming session- weather he came out on top or, in most cases, pinned under Kenna.
He took her complaint as an opportunity to pull away and toss up his mane again, slicking it back out of his eyes. "It's a waste of time! Instead of licking myself I can be sharpening my claws." He grinned, lifting up one of his paws to inspect them.
However, having gotten both his sister's interest and Azula to hop down from her perch, Sinbad sat himself upright and flashed a bright grin. It was all his idea! Maybe they'd make a real hunting party. Maybe he could lead them...likely not. But still, it was -his- idea.
"Yeah! We'll bring back a hare and we three can sleep with the adults tonight. The others will have to respect us." He chuckled a bit, getting himself up to his paws and shaking out some of the sand from his coat. "Where do you think we can find one? Dad always brings them from that way. That's all I know." He nodded out towards the west, flicking the tip of his fringed tail.
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Posted: Mon Nov 05, 2007 12:47 am
Indeed, she thought to herself as her blood-red eyes turned to glance off into the distance; catching a hare would be rather sattisfying. She had not missed Azula's backpedal at all, but rather than bring it to Sinbad's attention, Kenna merely gazed at her sister, a brow arching in mild question before she brushed it off; she was well aware of Azula's fixation with their father, and though she'd come to think it was a horrible waste of her younger sister's time, she could not condone it. Rather, she seemed to understand perfectly what was going on through the other female's mind, even though she'd long since repressed such feelings in her own; she was much more emotionless than Azula was.
Later, she'd have a talk with her sister, but not now. Not with Sinbad present; it was, after all, a matter between both girls, whom had (surprisingly enough), bonded extremely well the one with the other (strange fights over perfection aside), even better than they had with their own parents, "Let us go catch it then," and this said, the female, rash as she was, turned and headed off towards where Sinbad had indicated.
After all, it was doubtful their parents would move to stop them so long the remain near enough; Kenna had half a mind to remain close enough they'd be able to hear either Mwali's booming voice, or their mother's own roar, were they to call for them. Grumping slightly, her ears flipped back towards both her siblings, "I know; it's a curse," she told Azula, her eyes rolling before she took a peek at Sinbad, her eye twitching; he'd done it again. His mane was completely messed up and out of place; gods, it drve her crazy, "Yes, well, sharpening your nails is quite important, but you could, in fact, sharpen them evenly at least," as she moved, she lowered her head to sniff at the ground, her tail flicking from time to time, "You leave splinters on your claws," she grimaced and shuddered at the thought of such atrocity; even without her slight problem, Kenna was female enough she'd have bee repulsed by the idea regardless.
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Posted: Wed Nov 07, 2007 11:08 am
"Being clean is a waste of time?" Azula sniffed, nose wrinkling at the thought. By the Goddess he was repulsive! Sinbad was her brother, though, and so she put up with it, just as she put up with Kenna's horrible attempts at tattooing her perfect fur. If Kenna thought that she needed tattoos for beauty that was fine, but Azula knew perfectly well that she was gorgeous just as she was. Though she did think she could use a few baubles. The cub had yet to have a chance to find any such things for herself, however, and she made a note of asking Kenna where she'd found hers.... later. Business first.
"Well we know what they smell like. Lets go over that way and see if we can scent on." It sounded like a valid plan and so she moved swiftly to fall into position beside her sister. Well aware that Kenna was leading, Azula had little problem in falling slightly behind her shoulder, and letting Kenna take the front. There was no reason to be in front, in Azula's mind, it was much easier to be the one the 'enemy' wouldn't see first. Like Kenna she shuttered at the thought of splintered claws, immediately looking down at her own to check for such qualities. They were still smooth, shiny and sharp, and she relaxed.
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Posted: Thu Nov 08, 2007 8:18 pm
They were following him. Sinbad couldn't help but swell with pride as he walked, lifting up his head and practically trotting his way across the sand. Of course he had no idea how to even begin hunting a hare. He had to gather up what he knew of the animals. Okay well they had long ears and bounced. That was about it. Even then the bouncing he knew was more of a limp. Mwali hadn't brought anything truly unharmed for them to play with just yet.
"I'm not DIRTY." Sinbad protested sharply, arching his back a bit in a mockery attempt to look dignified. "I'm just..uh..." he looked down to his claws. True, he needed to work on them more... "Uh.... well nevermind, we just need to find a hare. And they uh..." he looked around a bit. Where did hares live? Long ears, bounced...that didn't say much.
"I bet they live over there." He nodded over towards another cluster of rocks. There were a few patches of dry, browned grass but not really enough to sustain anything.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 6:12 am
"Don' try to make sense of it, Azula; it will just break your mind..." the words were murmured at her sister, her eyes rolling somewhat; she'd long since tried to under how anyone, (let alone someone related to her as Sinbad was), could, and would allow their pelts to be dirty, or their claws splintered. It was such a horrible thought that Kenna had been forced to shove it straight out of her mind, "Indeed?" a brow arched at her brother's words, allowing her gaze to stroll towards the grass, the female sniffed at the air, "I'm with Azula; we should go over that way and see if we can scent anything, rather than point wildly at some poor grass. It's not nearly enough to hide a mouse."
This said, the female moved towards where Azula had indicated, her head lowering to sniff at the ground, never quite touching (egh, dirt), but near enough that she wasn't missing the different scents that lingered to it. Her body moved with grace, her claws coming out only to dig into the ground when necessary. Kenna was well aware Azula was letting her take the front, and truthfully, she didn't mind all that much; thought not entirely prone to fighting less provoked (much more willing to toss someone out to fight for her), she was dominant in nature, and thus leading was not something she repelled. Azula had a different nature, and the larger of the two sisters was fine with that; it merely meant they didn't clash. Somehow their ways and habits seemed to mesh against each other, accommodating to each their needs.
Sinbad was a different question entirely; it was probably some sort of... love, mingled with exasperation that forced Kenna to look out for him (The goddess knew he was most likely to fall down and kill himself out of the litter), "Hmmmm..." she paused her padding only when her parents were starting to get out of sight. Her eyes narrowed, obviously trying to evaluate what the actual chances of catching a hare were, and if it was actually worth risking leaving their parents; after all, as perfect and finely made as they were, they were still cubs... any adult rogue could have their way with them. Not only that, but Mwali would give them a good, stern lecture, if not a snarl and a thump over their heads if they left.
Turning to glance at Azula, red eyes narrowed, "What do you think?" there was no need to explain her thoughts to her younger sister. There was no doubt in Kenna's mind that the small princess was on the same brain wave as she was, and thus had no doubt paused to think too.
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