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 Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:07 am
Peace and quiet. Solitude was the only thing Kioo looked forward to these days, and she had already begun to doubt the strength of her commitment to the small lion from the mountains. She did not like him and she did not like her fellow tribemates. The gray lioness had always given priority to duty over personal wants, but she was not sure that even she had the patience to give up so much to help them.
There was no use fretting over it now, she told herself. She had to honor her commitment, at least until the tribe grew more. She could not allow her own feelings about the brutish leader and childish lionesses take over.
Kioo glanced around, admiring the lake that expanded all the way to the horizon. Would there be lakes in the mountains, she wondered? She closed her eyes, shaking her head. What had she gotten herself into?
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:08 am
In a way, Ziarre was glad to be traveling by herself again. Mwindaji had been pleasant enough, but their encounter with Ananasi had left her unsettled. Gods were lions, of a sort, but a sort that left her distinctly uneasy with their sheer power...even if their domains were quite strange. In fact, this had only added to her uneasiness around this god, and she had been only too happy to strike out on her own after the meeting. Casting a glance at the massive lake that had come into view, she found her mouth practically watering with thirst. Looking around quickly, she broke into a trot toward's the water's edge, alert for the slightest ripple that might signal the crocodiles that loved to use such watering holes for an ambush.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:09 am
Kioo lifted her muzzle, scenting the other's approach before actually seeing her. She had not seen a rogue in days and it was somewhat refreshing to see a new face, one she didn't have any negative feelings attached to.
"Hello," she called, her tone friendly. She had no natural inclination to be unfriendly to those that she didn't know, which was yet another thing that separated her from her tribemates.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:14 am
At the strange lioness' hail, Ziarre ended her drink swiftly, inwardly cursing herself for a blind fool. How had she not seen her? It was a lucky thing the other wasn't immediately hostile, to be sure. After a moment, she inclined her head slightly. "Hello...sorry for not noticing you, I should have been paying attention. I hope no harm's done?" Her tone was somewhat neutral, but friendly enough towards a stranger. At least it wasn't one of the 'lesser' predators, which was always something to be grateful for.
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:19 am
"Not at all," she said with a small smile. "I was seeking solitude, but that was more to get away from my companions than the real desire to be alone."
Kioo cocked her head to the side, reconsidering this. "Not that I need to escape from them, you know, but a bit of time for yourself is always a good thing."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:21 am
Ziarre nodded. "Being alone doesn't trouble me too much...it's inconvenient when hunting, but differences in opinion are too, at other times." She laughed slightly. "And then there's just the lessers, which are more than inconvenient, unless you can chase them off of a fresh kill. Then, it's just a stroke of good luck if you've the strength to do it." Ziarre stretched, still keeping half an eye out for possible lurkers in the water. "But I forget to introduce myself. My name is Ziarre'ari."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:23 am
"The lessers?"
That sounded awfully familiar, she thought suddenly. "I take that to mean leopards, cheetahs, those creatures. Sorry, that just struck me as odd. It sounds like the kind of thing the king of my pride would say."
Kioo didn't hate the 'lessers', but she was rather indifferent to them so there was nothing accusatory in her tone, merely a comment.
"Nice to meet you, Ziarre'ari. My name is Kioo."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:28 am
"Kioo...I'll remember that." She bowed her head. "Yeah...competition for us, if you could call it that. That's how I was raised...and they've given me little reason to think differently of them." Ziarre shrugged. "King, huh? Didn't know there was a pride that actually felt anything near what I might...most of 'em are more than happy to...attempt to correct my views." Ziarre's face twisted. "I can make up my own mind, which they didn't want to hear. One even interfered when I found a perfectly good kill that happened to be...occupied."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:28 am
Kioo chuckled, shaking her head. "I don't understand that. You feel how you feel. I doubt they've ever successfully changed someone's mind about an issue they already feel strongly about."
She looked away for a moment. "That's one of the core tenants of the pride, actually. Lions first. Everything else is inferior."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:30 am
"Interesting...you sound almost like you don't agree with them. Why are you with them, then?" Ziarre tilted her head slightly, brows furrowed. The pride sounded almost like a dream come true for her...but Kioo sounded...almost unhappy. "I don't think anyone's changed my mind, period. Not without a lot of effort, and a lot of proof."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:35 am
The lioness chuckled again, although it wasn't out of humor so much as it was being uncomfortable with the truth in Ziarre's words. "I don't, really, but Zaliwa - the king - he came down to the rogue lands to try and recruit new members. A plague wiped out his entire pride and he's trying to rebuild it. I offered to help, because..."
She paused, trying to find the right words. "I can't imagine what it would be like to have your entire life just disappear. I suppose I feel bad for him. Truthfully, I don't plan on staying forever, although he doesn't know that and I'm not exactly sure how to break the news when it comes time. For now, though, I've made a commitment and I plan to honor it."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:40 am
"That is what I would do too, were I in your position," Ziarre commented. "When it comes down to it...if you commit yourself to a pride, that means you owe them loyalty, at least until their need of you is done. Not that I'd know, really," she laughed. "I've never had a pride. Mother raised me, trained me, and promptly got herself killed hunting when she ran into a group of hyenas." Her lip curled. "She made me hide...I was little more than a youth, and I doubt I would have made a difference...they left her alive, but wounded enough that it didn't take long for Death to take her."
She quieted a moment, thinking. "I suppose...that if this Zaliwa is that badly in need of members...that I could talk to him. It sounds like a place I might...feel comfortable."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:41 am
"Exactly," she said, although her expression became grim when Ziarre recounted her mother's death. "I'm sorry to hear that. I don't have anything personal against, as you say, lessers - although gods forbid Zaliwa hears me say that - but I don't feel the need to defend them, either. I am a lion and they are... well, whatever they are. I don't see any reason to get caught up with them."
"You could," she said slowly, "although I've been given permission to accept members as well, though I'll have no real authority over the pride once it's stable again. The pride, although he calls it a tribe, is up in the mountains." She flicked her tail towards the great rise of mountains in the distance. "There are four different parts to the tribe. One part raises the tribe's cubs, one part leads, one part hunts and one part fights and defends. I chose to hunt, and for whatever reason Zaliwa decided to appoint me as the leader of the hunters."
Kioo thought a bit about any other important information. "You can't join the part that leads, and I don't think he wants any more hunters right now, either. We have no warriors or caregivers, as far as I'm aware. I understand that there are some traditions and rituals held as well, but he's rather... protective of that information and hasn't shared much with me yet."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:44 am
Ziarre shrugged slightly. "Traditions are easily enough adapted to, although extremes such as cannibalism would of course be an issue. It doesn't sound like that kind of...tribe, as you say." She grinned a little, crookedly. "Sounds like most prides, only kept nice and neat and without all that nonsense about treating them like they're worth something. I think I like the sound of this the more I hear about it...unless he tries to stick me with a pile of cubs." She made a face. "I...don't have much experience with the little buggers."
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Posted: Mon May 19, 2008 12:46 am
"Cannibalism is not a part of the culture, as far as I'm aware," she said with a more heartfelt laugh. "Sacrifices have been alluded to, but only with regards to birds, rodents, those sorts of things. The lives of lions are prized."
Kioo smiled. "You'd be able to choose. The only case you'd be stuck somewhere you don't want is if you get on Zaliwa's bad side in a very big way." She thought, somewhat amused, of Fira. "One lioness has already done that and has been assigned as a temporary mzazi. Oh!" She twitched an ear. "That's the other thing. Apparently ranks such as "hunter" and "warrior" are too simple, so you'll have to memorize a bunch of uncommon titles. Zaliwa is pretty picky about that."
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