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 Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 4:55 pm
Sumati = Den // Xenia = Sarge  Things were going really well and the young blue cheetah was very happy about it. There had been a lot of newcomers in the Achana recently and Sumati was absolutely thrilled. He was pleased his home flowrishing. And he had yet to leave the borders of his home so he held a great interest for the outside world.
He had learned from his mother this morning that a leopardess had left her cubs in their care recently. Sumati loved young cubs and found great pleasure in playing with them. Their minds always came up with such interesting and strange ideas. He wanted to meet the cubs and welcome them to the Achana. They were all one big family here and it bothered him when there was someone here he didn't know.
From what he knew about leopards, they loved to climb trees. So naturally he went to the jungle thinking he had the best chance finding them there. He himself loved to play there as a cub but as he had gotten bigger it was harder to navigate trough the thick plantlife. Cheetahs were not made for a jungle life. As a matter of fact Xenia did love to climb trees. At least, she used to love them. Now she was not so sure. In the fun of climbing this particular tree she forgot to watch where she was going. When she finally paused to catch her breath on a limb long enough to realize how high up she was, she dug her little claws into the bark and froze on the spot. The ground looked much farther away than she thought. Suddenly, she wasn’t sure if she could remember the way back down.
The first time she looked around the jungle looked empty. There may have been an adult near by, if only she could see through the dense trees. Her heart started to beat very fast. Deciding that there was no way she could jump down from this height without hurting herself (it only looked very, very high to a cub her age) she tried to turn around and head back down the branch. Her back foot slipped and she let out a squeal. She clung to the branch with three little paws, whimpering and gasping for breath as she desperately tried to pull herself back onto the branch, too afraid to call for help. Her other back paw was starting to slip.Sumati wondered if the jungle was really the best place to start. There was no sign of anyone and he couldn’t hear anything other than the usual bird-chirping and bug-buzzing this place was filled with. He was just about ready to turn around try to find Toh Ni or one of the nannies instead. They would know where the cubs were for sure. He was just about to head back when his ears picked up the sound of claws scratching against tree bark. His eyes scanned the trees around but he couldn’t spot whoever was making that sound. He finally saw the pink form of a cub perched on a branch when she yelped.
“Hey, are you alright? What are you doing up there?” he asked as he stepped closer and saw she was about to fall down. “Don’t move! I’ll get you!” Sumati instructed and stood up on his back legs. She hadn’t climbed very high, thankfully. He didn’t know if he’d be able to get her if she had. Sumati gently picked up the scared cub with his mouth and placed her on the ground. “Are you okay?” he repeated his question in a soothing voice.Xenia and her siblings only recently started spending more time away from their nanny’s den, so many of the pride members were still unfamiliar to her. When she saw the big blue thing reaching up to get her she tucked her legs in and screamed. She clung to the branch as hard as she could with her claws, too tired to hang on when the big blue thing picked her up in his mouth. He gripped her by the scruff of her neck, the way her nanny did, which reassured her a little. As she felt herself lifted away she closed her eyes so she wouldn’t be afraid.
When she touched the ground she spread all her legs out across the forest floor, happy to feel the earth beneath her belly again, and lay there until she caught her breath. “Uh-huh.” She turned to her big blue rescuer and opened her eyes. “My name’s Xenia,” she stammered, a little shaken from the ordeal.
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Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 4:19 am
Sumati felt relieved that the cub was okay. "Nice to meet you, Xenia. I'm Sumati." He introduced himself as he laid down next to her."You are a brave little explorer, huh?" He asked with a smile. He remembered how he and his brothers used to be just like that - always trying to do things cubs shouldn't. "But it seems to me you bit off more than you could chew with that tree." He wasn't one to scold cubs and he was just hinting at her that she should to be a little more careful.
"Do you like it here? In the Achana I mean." Sumati asked, changing the subject to distract the girl from what had happened. He could see she was quite shaken.
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Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 9:31 am
Practically speechless, she nodded and said, “Uh-huh… uh-huh… uh-huh.”
Wow. Sumati. He was so big and blue, like a big blue flower but strong and brave. In fact he was kind of pretty. Even his name had a nice sound. Sumati~ She smiled and nuzzled against his side. His baby blue fur felt soft and warm. Usually strange grown-ups frightened her because they were so big, but Sumati made her feel safe. “Thank you for saving me, Sumati! You’re my hero!”
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Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 2:00 pm
From her answer Sumati understood that she wasn't really listening to him. The way she nuzzled against him made him smile. She was so small and cute, he was already starting to love her. Xenia was like the little sister he never had.
"You are most welcome little lady!" Sumati replied in a gentlemanly manner. "Damsels in distress are my specialty." He said winking at her.
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Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 2:59 pm
Xenia giggled. She had a musical giggle, like birds singing in the morning. When he winked her little cheeks flushed and her fur prickled all over, but that didn’t stop her from smiling. “I’m not a damsel,” she said, wondering what it meant. “I’m a… a hybrid!”
The nannies told her there was a special name for her. She thought it sounded like leopard, but when she was around Sumati her words got all mixed up and all she could think of was leopard. She rolled onto her back, staring at Sumati with big, blue eyes. “Am I a pretty lady?”
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Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 3:23 pm
"But you are a girl, right?" Sumati asked with a small smile, not noticing her flush. He was almost grown up, but girls were still an unknown country to him. "I think that makes you a damsel. But if you don't want me to call you that, I won't."
"Yes, a leopon, I noticed. You'll grow up big and strong one day." Sumati agreed. Having grown up in a colony full of hybrids he could easily tell what kind of a hybrid she was. "And yes, you are a very pretty leopon. With your lilac pelt and deep blue eyes you'll be a real heart breaker." Sumati said chuckling. Girls were always so concerned with looks.
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Posted: Tue Mar 17, 2009 6:41 pm
Then Xenia grinned so big that the tips of her cheeks felt ready to catch on fire. She put her head between her paws and giggled. When she recovered, she stood up and batted Sumati on the nose, bouncing to and fro like a little humming bird in flight. “Play?”
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Posted: Wed Mar 18, 2009 3:55 pm
"My, my, what big teeth you've got!" Sumati said jokingly. He didn't know someone could show so much of their teeth when smiling.
"Ow!" He cried, as if he was in great pain. "This means war!" Sumati grinned mischievously as he got up. He assumed a stalking position and said with a playful tone "You better run like the wind little one!"
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Posted: Fri Mar 20, 2009 11:10 pm
“You can’t catch me!” Xenia squealed, turning to run. Sumati was much bigger than her. She knew she could lose him by running through the trees, but she didn’t want to run too quickly or make too many sharp turns. Being caught by Sumati would be the best part of this game. She wanted him to pounce on her, roll her over and tickle her until she cried tears of joy.
Part of her felt a little confused. She always loved getting the attention of the nannies, yet somehow, having Sumati’s attention made her feel different. When Sumati was around she felt all tickled inside. She wanted to squirm and bounce around. For some reason, being around Sumati made her feel very very happy.
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Posted: Fri Apr 10, 2009 6:13 am
Sumati was having a lot of fun with this game. He had played tag with his brothers many times, like any other cub, but he never though it would be this much entertaining to play with someone so much smaller than him. He was having great fun chasing her in the bushes. Sumati almost caught Xenia several times, but he always let her get away.
"Aha!" He cried as he jumped right in front of her, cutting off her way. He caught her in his paws and turned her on her back and began nuzzling and tickling her belly. "Surrender!" He urged playfully.
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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 8:19 pm
((Sorry for the long absense, school got me.))
“Oh no! Don’t get me! Please!” Xenia squealed with joy. She batted Sumati on the head with her paws and squirmed around like a little worm until her eyes blurred and her little lungs were sapped for air. When Sumati finally let up she took a deep breath and let out one last weak giggle. Her head felt like it was spinning, but her insides were warm and fuzzy. She sat up and licked Sumati on the nose.
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Posted: Wed May 06, 2009 4:33 pm
Caught off guard by this, at first Sumati was a little surprised. He wasn't used to anyone but his mother doing this. What with two brothers the usual sign of affection was a playful swat with a paw. He quickly got over it though, and nuzzled the cub again, giving her a lick on the cheek.
"I hadn't played tag like this in ages." He confessed. "I forgot how fun it was."
"But now," he said getting up "I think it's time for us to go back. We played around for quite a while." Sumati smiled apologetically. He didn't really want to go, but he knew the nannies would be worried about this little cub. And he himself wanted to make sure she was safe.
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Posted: Fri May 08, 2009 5:39 pm
“We did?” Xenia looked disappointed. But they only just met! How could he say they’d been playing together for too long? She pouted and started to follow. She didn’t want her nanny to be worried.
Suddenly a smile crossed her face. She bounced along at the cheetah’s side. “Can we play again tomorrow, Sumati? Pleeeeeeease?”
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Posted: Sun May 10, 2009 1:04 pm
"Yes. Time flies when you're having fun, right?" He felt a little pang of guilt when he saw how disappointed Xenia was.
"Of course we can! All day if you want to." He grinned. How could he say no to her? "So don't be sad. I'll come to take you as soon as I wake up tomorrow." He promised. Suddenly an idea come to him and he crouched low to the ground. "Hey, do you want a ride? C'mon, hop on!" He urged the little leopon.
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Posted: Sun May 10, 2009 4:57 pm
“A… a ride?” She glanced at Sumati’s back, cheeks flushing. He was so much bigger than her. If she fell off she would probably hit her head and feel sore all day. “O-okay,” she said, taking a deep breath. “But you gotta promise not to go too fast and you can’t let me fall off either.”
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