|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Mon Aug 24, 2009 2:45 pm
Mtumile'maliki made it a point to patrol the Tete'boma borders for new recruits as often as he could, not because he wanted to recruit lions but because usually, he was left alone for the time being. Maliki wasn't against social encounters, but he wasn't nearly as smooth as other lions in the pride, and he was okay with that. His job was not to be charming and flirty; it was not to court ladies of the Court. It was to protect both the ladies and the lords and the commoners within their realm. He took his job seriously. Some would argue that a Farasi should be seen as often as he isn't, but Maliki wasn't one to agree; he couldn't do his job if he was stuck listening to some fool plathering on about their daily trivial problems. They weren't his, and so Maliki didn't concern himself with them.
Once he was far enough away to feel truly, entirely alone, Maliki slowed the previous trot he had taken up to a gentle walk, ears perked as he walked along the border of the Tete'boma. Though his ears were erect and his eyes were sharp and flicked to any sudden movement, looking at him, one could see that he was entirely relaxed. He didn't expect anything unexpected. They weren't having trouble with any nearby prides, and as far as he knew, he hadn't been followed. As far as he knew his brother was off watching the Princesses or else with the Ufalme. No one else he knew would have need of him, at least not that he knew of. And if they did, they'd be hard pressed to find him if they didn't already know him enough to know where he was going.
Right on the border of the Tete'boma was a tree. It was a simple tree, just like any other, but it was also Maliki's tree. When he needed solitude, when he truly needed to figure things out on his own without interruption, this was where he'd gone. He'd found it as a taraji in his youth, and had been coming back ever since. It was a closely guarded secret; as far as he knew, even his brother didn't know of this spot. With a small, pleased grin to himself, Maliki slowed when he arrived at the tree, and laid down beneath it's shade, looking around. Though he looked around with alert eyes, his mind was a million miles away. He was planning.
Like Maliki, Tethys was also having a hard day. Children, children, and more children had been irritating her to no end, and she'd ended up snapping at them and reducing them to tears. It was their own rotten fault, though - why were cubs so stupid? Why couldn't they learn more quickly, grow up and learn that life wasn't fair? You didn't get everything you wanted, and you had to deal with it. They needed to learn, and that was why she was there. To teach them. Sighing softly, Thys lowered her head onto her paws, gazing down to the ground from where she was lain, perched up on the thickest branch in a tree, just on the borders. One she'd found as a cub, with Maliki - she even managed a small, nostalgic smile, remembering the excitement when they'd found it. Ah, good times.
Sighing, she wished she could've rolled onto her back at that moment, but alas that would've resulted in a fall and rather a bit of pain. So instead, she remained where she was, gazing off boredly into the distance. She did care. People accused her of not caring, but she did. That was part of the problem - she cared too much. As a cub, she'd cared what people thought of her. Wanted so much to be like her brother. But she'd learnt quickly that there was no point, and her wishes were quickly crushed beneath cruel, unforgiving paws. All she was doing was helping the cubs to realize this would happen, before it broke their hearts first. It wasn't easy, to see the tears. But she put up with it. For their sakes.
Eyes flashing at the sudden noise, Thys glanced downwards, smile twisting into a wider smirk as the familiar brown shape sat down below her, in the shade of the tree. Chuckling quietly under her breath, not wanting to let him know of her presence just yet, the female suppressed a yawn with a paw in a somewhat lazy manner, eyes shining as they turned onto the one she considered a rather close, childhood friend.
"My, my. Look what the cat dragged in."
Maliki should have expected to see Tethys, or at least hear her since he hadn't seen her yet. He smiled slowly, a rare smile he reserved only for Thys, and lifted his head to look up into the tree. "Why, if it isn't Tete'boma's very own shrew." He teased quietly, smirking at her. Jibe for jibe; it was comfortable to talk with Tethys, even if he didn't talk as much as she did. He nodded for her to come down, amused. "You're too big to be a bird, Thys." And clearly trees were for birds and birds alone. Logically, she wasn't too big to be in the tree, and damn if it wasn't a good advantage spot to have in the event that someone was spying. He considered briefly if she was spying on him, but it was clear she'd been there first.
"You aren't surrounded by your usual cloud of cubs; what happened?" He asked, his tone quiet and neutral as it usually was. It took a great deal to make Maliki upset and even more to make him concerned. Perhaps the better description would be to make him sound concerned. Whether Maliki showed his emotions or not, he was always concerned for a few things. Himself, his brother, Thys, the Ufalme... Not necessarily in that order, but they were all close enough that making a list would prove difficult. He returned his gaze to the lady in the tree, smirking a little. He remembered for a moment how jealous he'd been when he was too big to climb the tree. It was by far the best spot to hide, and he couldn't even use it. What rotten luck.
He lifted his head, and at his smile Thys' lessened into one to match his, as she carefully stood herself up, stretching her back upwards, always aware of where on the branch her feet were. She snorted softly as she was called a shrew, then a bird, simply replying with another yawn as she gracefully leapt out of the tree, going from her branch to another, to the ground, landing just to the left of her friend. Instantly flopping back to the ground again beside him, she did as she'd wanted to up in the tree, rolling onto her back with her legs in the air, purring as a breeze cooled her somewhat hot belly.
"I'm not fat, if that's what your implying," she replied simply, finally giving an answer to his bird comment. Her somewhat playful good mood soon disappeared, though, at the mention of cubs. Flopping back down onto her side, facing away from the brown lion, she growled softly, although it soon increased in volume. "The little rats had the nerve to cry. You should've seen them - enough tears to solve any drought! So I finished the lesson for the day - couldn't be bothered with it."
"Oh, no, I'd never imply such a thing." He said innocently, smirking over at her. His smirk dwindled as she flopped onto her side, and sighed quietly, dropping his front leg over her side. "Thys, what did you do." He asked dryly, pulling her closer. It wasn't proper, but Maliki cared little for propriety in the case of Thys. He doubted she much cared either.
"They're only cubs, you know." He said absently, tilting his head towards her. "Of course they're going to cry. They're born crying. I know I was." He smirked. "And I'd almost bet you were, if I didn't know for a fact you probably shoved your brother right out so you could stomp past." His eyes danced a little in good nature; he didn't like Thys as much when she was sulking. Especially over those poor cubs. For sure, this particular Yaya was a little... difficult... But she was good with the cubs as a teacher, and that was her job. It wasn't her job to fawn and coo over them every time they managed to do something right.
"Perhaps it's good if they cry that much, though." He smirked. "If we ever have a drought, we only need you to make them cry." Maliki's humor was lacking, but at least he was trying!
She grumbled, batting away his paw but without much meaning behind it - more she was pushing it away just for the sake of it. If she had to admit it, she actually liked being comforted. It wasn't proper for a Farasi to be positioned like this around a Yaya, but Tethys honestly didn't care. Maliki was her friend, and she liked him giving her a comforting hug, like friends were supposed to. It was the only love she'd ever gotten in her life, and she was going to snatch it with both paws. She wasn't going to give in and admit she liked it, though. Maliki probably knew well enough she did, but admitting it out loud really made it true. And loving was a weakness Thys had discovered a long time ago.
"They're born bratty and stupid, too," she snapped, using the discussion as an excuse to vent her anger, as she usually did. Claws unsheathed she lashed at the ground before her, gorging into the dirt, eyes shining in odd wonder as she watched her claws rake through the ground, cutting it. Wounding it. "I didn't cry," she quickly added, defending herself, "Crying's stupid. I learnt a while ago that crying gets you no attention. And they should learn that too."
His joke only brought a dry, mocking smile - but it was a smile none-the-less?
He simply nodded when she snapped, watching her wordlessly. It was his way, remaining silent while he let her vent. It was more useful then trying to talk sense to her, because she wasn't in the wrong. Cubs were clingy and bratty, and cried at the drop of a rock if they thought for a second they'd get away with it. When Maliki and Makali had been born, he didn't remember much, but he did know he wasn't any better. Instead of crying as he got older, though, he took to causing trouble and just-barely-not breaking rules. It'd been a phase he'd grown out of, but he hoped that none of his cubs went through that same phase. He gave his father a lot of grief when he was young.
He would take the smile as a victory, even if it was at the expense of others. "You deserve a bit of a break. Dealing with cubs all day, I don't know how you do it." The other Yayas, he could see them doing it out of sheer joy of being with cubs, but Thys didn't do it for the cubs because she loved them. Maybe she did, but Maliki didn't accept that as her reason.
She did it because she thought they needed someone jaded to teach them that the world wasn't always a nice, perfect place. And the cubs did need that, but they also needed to be cubs. "You have to admit, cubs have a lot of fun." He said finally, smiling a little. "Remember our games?" He glanced over, eyes gleaming a little. "Perhaps they just need to be allowed to be cubs for a little while every day. A game or two to wind them down for a lesson."
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2009 2:43 pm
She snorted at the mention of a break. She never got a break. There were always cubs, and they always needed looking after whlst their parents went about their duties throughout the pride. Whereas whilst on a hunt, you might get a rest, or whilst patrolling the borders you could slip away for a drink, you couldn't do that as a Mayaya. You had to constantly be watching the little brats, otherwise they'd run off and get themselves into trouble, and you were the one who got blamed.
"Me neither," she grumbled, casting her gaze up to the sky with a sigh, "Little rats just need a good whack. That'll set them in their place. But no, that's too harsh - all the mothers would come and create a bloody uproar." She sneered softly, but nothing more as she continued watching the sky, tracking a bird as it soared across.
She looked back to him with mild shock as he spoke about fun and games, narrowing her eyes a little. Was this a trick? What was he on about? Fun was...she couldn't even remember what fun was anymore. She'd never had any, and she'd turned out fine. The mention of their games brought a look of realization, though, Thys gasping softly as she clasped the memory. That...that had been fun. She soon regained her facade, though, erasing her mistake and adopting her uncaring expression once more. "They need to learn that life isn't about games. They can't play games their whole lives to 'wind down for work', Maliki."
"Now, now, Thys." He warned, snorting a little at her comment. "You're right; they would be roaring for your blood." Though the cubs were by custom with the Yayas, no mother would allow a paw to be raised against their children. Maliki couldn't blame them, if he had his own he'd be so protector he might not even allow them to go with the Yayas if he had a say in the matter. It was probably a good thing he wasn't a father; his poor cubs wouldn't be allowed to do anything until they were well into their adolescence.
He smiled a little at the gasp, and shrugged. "They're still young; they have a whole life ahead of them to be knocked from their little pedestals. Besides, some cubs learn better from play then from lessons." He'd learned a lot of things from playing with his brothers and his father then he ever did as a Yaya, but perhaps that wasn't a good example. His family was born and bred practically for the sole purpose of being Farasi. The kind of play he involved himself in with his family was almost like training, sort of. It was useful things he'd need in his future, but it'd been fun when he was younger. A small smirk pushed its way onto his face as he thought of the times he'd tackled his brother when he wasn't looking.
He wondered what Makali was doing, but shook his head. He'd go find his brother later. "Sometimes I wonder why you ever agreed to be a Yaya. You'd seem to have more fun ripping apart some poor antelope." He smirked, nudging her playfully.
She watched him with a thoroughly bored expression at his warning tone, staring at him for several moments before loking away, laying her head in her paws with a loud huff, blowing upwards and causing the small tuft of hair on top of her head to blow upwards momentairily. She didn't care if they wanted their blood - they should teach their children to be polite and respectful before they were weaned and put into the Yaya's care. It was their job to teach them the rules and traditions of the pride, not how to bloody well listen!
She ignored his smile, instead sulking, not wanting to admit he may be a little bit right. Their games as cubs had been so exciting, and so much fun. Chasing each other for practically a whole day long, getting so exhausted they'd sleep through the whole day. Her eyes flashed momentairily - now that was an idea. getting the little runts so exhausted they couldn't possibly bother her. "We allow them to playfight, to teach them to hunt. That's plenty," she grumbled, refusing to admit he may be right. She was too stubborn, and prideful.
"Me too," she reluctantly admitted with another sigh, allowing herself to close her eyes. She blamed it all on her parents. Her parents and her brother. It was their fault her life was so miserable now.
He watched her, and his smile faded a little. Maliki shook his head, and sighed loudly. "Thysssss..." He flopped over next to her on his back, dropping his head on her back. "We're too old to be making sad grumpy faces, you know. You'll get wrinkles." He smirked a little, glancing over at her. She was the only person he allowed himself to be like this with; she wouldn't judge or care if he was in a playful mood or if he was serious and as grumpy as she usually was. He even reserved himself in the face of his brother for fear of letting everyone down. But Thys didn't need to be impressed.
"You're free for now." He grinned a little, looking up at the tree. "Be thankful for that, and the fact that eventually they'll be grown up and out of your fur." He smirked a little. "At least until the next wave of cubs comes along and you're stuck with more brats..." He braced himself for a hit, glancing over at her.
Thys gave a slight yelp at the sudden weight on her bak, kicking at Maliki with a loud growl, even giving one, single, harder kick as he mentioned wrinkles. "I will not get wrinkles!" she hissed, turning her face around rather awkwardly so he could see how angry she was. She soon flopped down again, though, sulking once more. She liked to sulk - to feel sorry for herself. It made her feel better. "You might be too old, but I'm still plenty young enough, thank you."
Free? Yeah, right. She was never free. Any minute now she'd have a lionness come up to her, asking if she could take their little brat for a few hours while they had 'time to themselves'. What if she bloody well wanted time to herself!? She growled at his words, kicking him again, although more softly this time. "That's the worst part. There's always more. Why can't mates just be happy with themselves!? Why spoil it?"
He grunted at the kicks, laughing in spite of the dull ache. He knew that'd shake her out of it, at least for a minute. "Well, sure, if you'd smile more." He teased, eyes gleaming deviously. "All that grumpy grrrr face is gonna do is make you look as old as an elephant mother." He smirked, looking back up at the tree. "We're the same age." He laughed at the last comment, shaking his head. He might've been slightly older, but he wasn't that much older then her, the exaggerater. "For every wrinkle I get, you get two. One for you and one for the cub causing it." He smirked at her, laughing quietly.
At her next question, he shrugged, frowning. "I'd want cubs one day." He said after a minute, looking up at the tree. "Kids of my own, to teach all about how to be a true Farasi." He said, glancing over and smirking a little. "I imagine there's something rewarding about watching something you contributed to grow up and make the same stupid mistakes you did as a cub." He added, looking up at the tree again. "Most pairs aren't mated for love, anyway. Maybe having cubs helps that." He snorted. "Or at least makes them more tolerable." He rolled his eyes.
He was laughing, which meant she wasn't kicking hard enough - so she gave one, really quite hard kick, growling loudly as she did. "Shut UP! You're as annoying as the little rats!" she snapped, temper finally fraying, another, softer kick being thrown in for good measure, "Smiles give you more bloody wrinkles anyway!" She hissed, kicking him again, but her kicks were softer now - she'd kicked a little harder than she'd intended to the first time. but he'd deserved it, teasing her like that. Thys didn't like being teased.
Breathing heavily, she calmed down a little, or at least enough to give a collected response to his comments, "Well, they're wrong then. Cubs make everything worse. The reason you should be together is 'cause you love each other, not 'cause the sex is great or you want little morons." Yeah, maybe Maliki would be lucky enough to experience that. She doubted she would.
He grunted when she kicked him harder, and twice more, and finally got wise and rolled away from her. He got up, shaking himself off. "Well smile-induced wrinkles are nicer to look at then grump-induced wrinkles, so there." He smirked, sitting down against the tree trunk. Whether she liked it or not, Maliki didn't much care. He'd tease her all he wanted, and deal with the abuse of it. It was simply his way. But for the love of God, she kicked hard. He rubbed where she'd kicked against the trunk of the tree, grunting a little. "Jeez, Thys. That hurt." He'd deserved it, sure, but it'd hurt!
"Some lions are stupid enough to not believe that, though." He pointed out, laying down again and resting his head on his paws. "Maybe they really love their cubs." He snorted, shrugging. "Not everyone is so..." He trailed off, tilting his head. "... Anyway." He snorted. "Any news you managed to pilfer out of the cubs?" He asked, arching an eyebrow at her. Gossip was always a fun topic.
He rolled away? Good. it wasn't like she liked him sitting next to her anyway. ...Maybe. Grumbling softly, realizing she'd maybe gone a bit far, she rolled over onto her other side to face him, staring at him rather intensely. She wasn't going to admit she'd been wrong, nor say sorry. no, that wasn't Tethys at all. But her eyes shined with it, and she figured that would be enough for Maliki. His smirk only aroused a sneer from the female, and a snort afterwards. "Good," she spat, although a little softer than she might usually. She didn't like fighting with Maliki, even if it wasn't a real fight, like now. It was just her being stubborn. But he was her only friend, and she didn't like getting upset with him. That was the main reason she was angry at him, for making her get upset.
Another, cynical snort, "How can you love something like that? It's a little ball of fur that does nothing but make your life a misery," she grumbled, laying her head in her paws once again. He began a statement before trailing off, and she furiously looked away, glaring at a rock. She knew perfectly well what he meant, and it angered her. it wasn't her fault she was this way! Tears shined in her eyes momentairily before she furiously blinked them back, answering his question just a little too quickly to cover up her momentary lapse.
"Not really. All they do is moan and whine. Surely you get more interesting gossip, being around the Ufalme so much?"
He recognized the way she looked away; he knew her far too well to hide things like that. He sighed and crawled over to her on his belly, bumping his head against hers. "You know I didn't mean it that way, Thys." He offered, having the good grace to sound sheepish. He spoke freely with her, and perhaps he was so used to that that he was taking certain liberties he had no right taking. It was a fine line he was treading, and even now he was still figuring out just where their boundaries were.
"Some parents seem truly blessed with their cubs, that's all. I know my parents were thrilled with us, spent every hour they could with us instead of leaving us with the Yayas." His family was something he adored, but perhaps that was a unique situation. It would seem easy to abuse the nannies and not take care of one's own cub, but it was truly such a... change... that it wasn't something Maliki thought of. He scratched at a spot on his maw, snorting.
"Hardly." He said, shaking his head. "Sometimes the Ufalme asks our advice, but mostly it's simple things that everyone else would already know by now." He shrugged. "He is preoccupied with things involving his family, but that's hardly our business. He hasn't yet asked us anything of that manner yet." He shrugged a little, wondering how the Princesses were. "The Juu-yuzi might be a better source for gossip, but it's hard to comprehend what's actual gossip and what's not chatter about mates." He grunted. They were getting older now, and it was soon to be time for the young ladies to be betrothed to their mates. It concerned him that there weren't enough males for the princesses, but it wasn't something he needed to deal with. He felt bad for Kibwana, though, and silently prayed that if he ever had cubs, he wouldn't have six girls at once.
She growled, but allowed him to bump heads, looking somewhat grateful that he did. It was the only affection and love she was ever shown, and whilst she didn't outwardly show it, she treasured it, locking the memories away in her mind. "I know," she mumbled under her breath, half hoping he wouldn't hear, but knowing he would because he was so close. She nuzzled his cheek briefly with her nose, before laying her head in her paws again with a sigh.
"Lucky you," was the bitter reply, Tethys not bothering to say anymore. He knew her family situation, and he knew how much she loathed both her parents and her brother. She didn't need to go into detail, and she didn't bother for that reason. She glanced up with mild interest as he went into detail about this so called 'gossip', which wasn't even that amazing. Simple things? Pff. She sighed, half listening and half planning to sleep. "I s'pose," she mumbled, her only response as her eyes fluttered shut, Thys wanting to block it all out. She needed a rest, both mentally and physically.
He closed his eyes, grateful for the affection, and rested his head down next to hers, watching her quietly. He smiled a little, nodding. "Yeah, lucky me." He muttered, tilting his head. He grinned a little, closing his eyes. "Think I'm gonna take a nap. What about you?" He asked innocently, as if he hadn't even noticed how tired she seemed. Of course he had, she was too close to him for Maliki not to worry over Thys. It was just his way.
She growled softly at his repetition, though it softened further into a rumbling purr at his suggestion, Thys not needing to speak to let him know it was a definite affirmative. She was exhausted, and needed the nap. "If any cubs wake me, I'm not responsible for my actions," was the last thing she managed to murmur before she drifted off into a contented sleep.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
