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 Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2007 5:17 pm
There was a definite feeling to the air that was different. Something... something important. Kizuka dared not hope for that one important thing they missed, but it was a crumbling resolve. Whatever it was, it certainly added a certain sense of.. prestige to the day they'd all chosen without her knowledge. It'd been long in coming, long in drama and bated breath, and with or without her consent, the pride members had spoken.
Kizuka, chosen to lead this make-shift ceremony, padded slowly up the cliff face to the place she knew Masika lay. They'd waited for the blossoming queen to shake the illness that had befallen her. They'd waited for her mind and heart to settle.. but today there would be no more excuses.
"masika." She stated as she came up behind the female, "It is time."
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Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2007 9:29 pm
The princess of the Mists turned her head to blink at Kizuka, rather perplexed by the tone in the other's voice.
Slowly she got to her feet, turning to face the elder lioness fully. Whatever was going on, she apparently was needed. With a nod, and crystalline necklace tinkling with her movement, Masika stepped past her friend to head back down the way Kizuka had come.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2007 8:37 am
Kizuka smiled slightly at her Princess, her friend... and her Queen. She bowed her head slightly, enough to confer deference as Masika passed her, then turned to follow her back down. There the pride would be waiting, or at least as much as could afford to turn up for this. With the area as half-dead as it was, not everyone could be here of course... but a good percentage would still come about for this.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2007 9:10 am
He'd been watching from the side, eyes narrowed, entertained in a way, relieved in another, and extremely content on a whole; this was what everyone had been waiting for, no doubt. After such an event, there would no longer be a reason to run around squawking like beheaded chicken. He couldn't help but smirk at his own analogy, however as soon as the princess neared him, Ushaufu closed his eyes and lowered his head; he still towered over her, and even without his wings he looked out of place, but it did not matter to him. Not now. Things were turning out like he'd hoped they would.
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Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2007 2:19 pm
Sekhmet perked her ears, as tightly strung as a bow string, bright red eyes glittering as the princess, shortly to be queen, drifted past like a long missed wisp of mist through the thirsty land. It was well and high time for this, she felt, surprised that this ceremony had not happened long before, and she ducked her head almost as a distracted afterthought, not so much from lack of respect but from a wandering mind.
The sturdy ghost gray lion beside her lowered his own head on a more dignified measure, deep green eyes sparked with some veiled considerations. Enki was, however, a rather staunch soul, given to curt opinions and keeping his own council, though unlike his niece, his colors didn't leave much doubt toward his breeding. His colors, the gray of his pelt and brown of his mane, were the faded tones of the Mistweavers.
"Pay more attention." He rumbled, under his breath, to Sekhmet, who twitched an ear in embarrassed 'dismissal' of her uncles chastisement.
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Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2007 3:01 pm
Kizuka followed the princess still, keeping that respectful distance. As the others began appearing shortly, lining the wider sides of the clif faces, she glanced at them. To Ushaufu a quiet smile, to Sekmet a nod of her head.. but a curious glance to her uncle. He looked... familiar. but he looked like most true mistweavers did. Enki, she decided, from the names Sekhmet had supplied and the thought that he was familiar to her. It could just as easily have been Ramses, though. Her eyes turned back to the princess they were 'herding' towards a particular outcropping of rock that best overlooked what had once been the great waterfall.
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Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2007 3:40 pm
He padded out to join the others, Sekhmet and Enki, head bowed and tired looking, a charcoal and white lion, most of his fur as dark as the patches around his brothers eyes, except for his somewhat dusty white mane, and the half buried marking on his chest. Only the matching color of their eyes might have suggested he was the energetic Sekhmets father, because the pride and exuberance of his youth had been worn down by disasters that had befallen the pride.
"Enki." He noted in greeting to his brother, before sitting down and lowering his head in respect, though he turned his head slightly to watch the lioness making her path through their midst. There was indeed a certain nobility to her, something hard to put your paw on, though he felt a little torn.
"Glad you decided to get your head out of the sand, little brother." Enki noted, stiffly, nudging the other lion with his shoulder. "This will be....memorable.
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Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2007 1:58 am
Seated a little apart from the others, Makadara inclined his head also, feeling a little out of place in the midst of such a gathering--on the one hand, he remembered enough to feel confident supporting this 'coronation', of sorts...but on the other, he'd been away a long time, and being around so many other lions at once still made him slightly uneasy.
It was still somewhat hard to believe that there were so few of their once-prosperous pride left--but perhaps that was something that would change as the pride moved forward under their new queen.
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Posted: Tue Dec 25, 2007 3:21 am
"Quite a gathering." Taban noted with a raised eyebrow, glancing over the gathered individuals. Of the three approaching, he was the only one with his ears relaxed on the top of his head, his maw pulled back into a bit of a smirk, and his eyes parted rather than narrowed. While not a member of the pride, he was a common enough sight in the lands. If he was asked to leave, it wasn't a big deal. But it was interesting enough.
Maji didn't answer. He came simply out of his duty to the pride. Nothing more or less. He never saw Masika as a worthy ruler. Not a brash lioness who had come into the lands with only her word and a few lions at her back to prove otherwise. Like Ciyari, she claimed these were her lands. And her claim, while legit, sat as easily with the prince as Ciyari's departure had. False queens. Brutes... but Taban was right. He was best to attend. Show his support for the -pride- and swallow any protests.
He took a place a bit from the group and lifted his head to watch. Neither lowering his eyes or his head. She'd not earned it. Unfortunate as her situation had been. Ciyari's had been unfortunate as well. It was no excuse.
Kisuli took a seat beside him, eyes narrowed and head dipped just in-between his shoulders. He didn't like them either. Of course, he didn't like anyone new into the lands. Where had they been when they needed them? Certainly not driving the outsiders away, or hunting when the herds had left.
He glanced shortly to his father and cousin. They'd always been more sociable than himself. "Let's just get this over with." He muttered.
"Now now." Taban took a slow seat as well. "There's no reason we can't be civil."
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Posted: Tue Dec 25, 2007 9:54 am
Enki's blazing green eyes fixated on Maji and his outsider companion, flicking an ear in acknowledgment of the illegitimate male's behavior...and his bringing an non mistweaver to such a ceremony. It was sort of funny, in a wry way, they sat so close to whisper they looked like lovers. "It's good to see the princess I remember grown into a queen." He noted, out loud. An underscoring of the fact that the older lion had no memory of Maji, or his claim to the throne, but he did know her. Her scent, her markings, the necklace around her sleek neck. The memories had been dimmed by time, but to see her here, now, it brought a sense of Unity he had almost forgotten.
Sekhmet purred softly, missing the jibe, and completely ignoring the arrival of others. "Uncle, show me when this is painted. I want to tell my children about this someday."
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 5:22 am
Oh, he'd heard Taban and Maji's arrival; at first, merely an ear flicked their way, however, as soon as Masika passed by his side, the God turned his head to watch the newcomers, a nod offered lightly at the cheetah before he seemingly focused his attention elsewhere. He did, however, keep an ear perked their way, a brow arched as he regarded Enki, during the whole while, the ghost a smirk haunted at his maw, his eyes narrowing somewhat.
Civil?
Ooooh... the situation had the potential to turn out less than bloody civil, apparently. Remaining at a seated position, he turned to watch his mate and the soon-to-be-queen, idly deciding he'd step in if the situation called for intervention. Chuckling softly, his smirked at Sekhmet, leaning in to whisper in her ear lightly, "Paint it in your heart too; best way to tell a story, kid, ain't it?" this said, he turned back towards Masika and Kizuka. As far as he was concerned... the way would be edged in his memories for ever, and thus... due to this fact, it would remain immortal, as he was.
Hopefully that was a good thing.
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 6:35 am
Sekhmets whiskers quivered slightly at Usha's words, still tight strung with excitement. "It's already there." She answered back. "It's been there since she first came. It'll be there forever."
Ramses gave a slightly soft smile at his daughters comment, it was so nice to see their enthusiasm, even if he still found it hard to feel. After all the work they'd done before she'd come, they'd still lost his son. A blink and poisoned words had taken Moses away. A blink, and the lioness he thought he'd have stayed with had slipped away. His daughter didn't put the blame on him, on her father, for the choise to let them in, but he did.
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Posted: Thu Dec 27, 2007 11:59 am
Ignoring the newest arrival, save for the slightest lifting of his lip, Makadara continued to watch the procession--he still had lingering memories of Masika as a cub, since she'd been born just prior to his own departure...but this male, who, he assumed, must be the one who had been ruling in the absence of a true ruler, had no right to be so defensive of the return to power of the true queen, as far as he was concerned. Especially as, from what little he'd heard, she had the strength of character to hopefully pull the pride back together, and give it some hope of not disintigrating completely.
Idly, his gaze flicked from pride member to pride member, recognizing very few--there were a few wispy memories, a familiar pelt...but it had been so long...hopefully, in time, these faces, too, would become familiar.
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Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2007 8:04 am
The princess of the mists strode across the rock towards the waterfall, a shiver running down her spine. A glance to both sides greeted her with the faces of familiar and unfamiliar alike. She did not miss the hostility in Maji's eyes, even at a quick glance, but did not move to acknowledge it. Now was not the time to be airing out differences. Neither did she miss the absolute adoration in the eyes of Sekhmet. Her gait slowed the closer to the edge she got, her steps more deliberate and sure. Crystalline eyes raised to glue themselves to the skies as they had done several nights prior, searching for something that was never to be seen.
I just need to know whatever has happened.... The Truth will free my soul.
A cloudy night, the stars did not seem to want to grace the pride with their presence. Searching for a single star, anything to guide her, Masika's heart seemed to fall slightly. Was he not watching? Were the clouds too that he could not see, or did he not approve?
"Look at the stars. The great kings of the past look down on us from those stars...."
Never stop hoping, need to know where you are... But one things for sure, you're always in my heart.
The final steps to the top were like stepping on rock shards for her, painful and sharp, and she turned back to look at Kizuka for a moment. Her eyes locked with her closest friend's for a moment before the tinkling of her necklace from a sudden gust of wind brought her attention back to the skies. A small clearing in the clouds had formed, just enough to show a trio of stars. A pair set off to the side, one shining bright and big, the other faintly, as if radiating light off of the other. The third star shone nearly as brightly as the first, and almost as big. Masika's eyes widened as the stars seemed to twinkle ever so slightly. It was the answer she'd needed for so long, although who, or what the third star represented, she did not know. But the fact that they were there, meant the world to her, even of the others had no clue at all. It was all thanks to the talk Mufasa, the great king of the Pridelands, had given her about the great kings of the past, and most of all about her parents in particular.
Kizuka was right. It was time.
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Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2007 9:57 pm
Kizuka stopped below her queen, daring not to continue up to the peak with her. She waited, though, guarding the bottom as she would always guard her Queen from this moment forth. Masika turned and met her eyes... they understood each other. This Kizuka knew, no matter the differences between them. Unlike the Mistweavers of old, they had seen the horrors and the hardships of the world outside. True, Masika had felt it more firmly, some might say, but for the lack of that Kizuka held the wisdom of old. Of the pair of females, she was the one old enough to remember and that counted for something, at least. Once more she dipped her head to Masika, but did not divert her gaze until the Stars called the queen.
"The winds call you, Masika, Princess of Umande'mfuni." Kizuka spoke, never yelling but pitching her tone that all could hear. The wind tugged at them as it pushed along the first cloudy day in so very, very long. The female knew not where she got the words, but they seemed somehow appropriate to her ears.
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