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 Posted: Tue Jun 22, 2010 7:49 am
 Muscardini stalked away from the den he shared with his sister, positively fuming. In the way of a hunter, his footfalls were soft and silent, even in anger, but the way his blue eyes flashed had little to do with the rays of the setting sun burning across the land.
"Why do females have to be so gods-damned incomprehensible?" he demanded of the stream near their den. The water gurgled at him and made hushing sounds, and generally did not offer him a great deal of advice. However, the sounds were peaceful. It galled him to admit that his sister might have been right about the necessity of putting some distance between them for the time being.
"It's not as though I've ever given her any reason to think I would be unreasonable about this. And if I have been, it's because she left me no other option."
He was reminded of a story his sister had told him once in which a god loved a young lioness very much and did everything in his not inconsiderable power to woo her. One of the things the god said to the lioness in the end, after he finally gave up on her and she realized too late that she loved him was, "You cowered before me. I was frightening." He hadn't understood the line at the time, but now he did. He had been fulfilling Gliri's needs all his life.
Now she needed an enemy, and he was filling that role for her because she needed it. If he could look at it that way, he thought he could be far more accepting of the situation, and feel that he had maybe a modicum of control.
"I still feel betrayed," he told the water.
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Posted: Tue Jun 22, 2010 8:11 am
 Anger. It was something Lipi hardly ever felt. Sure, there was anger toward that guy who got her pregnant all those years ago, even a little bit of anger toward her son who hated her for not letting him go with their father. But the more Lipi thought about it, the less it was anger at both of them and the more it was annoyance. The short lioness stretched out her almost stocky form and shook her head. Amber eyes searched the horizon for any movements. Her son would be trailing her, thinking she was leading him toward their dad. Hell, she didn't remember who it was!
She set across the fairly flat land at a slow, lazy pace. Clearly she wasn't in a hurry. if one looked at Lipi, they would think she was an adolescent or something. But that wasn't the case. She was just a small lioness who didn't know why she wasn't as big as the others. Her sons came out HUGE. Bigger than her, anyway.
As for siblings, well, Lipi didn't remember hers. She didn't even remember her parents. It wasn't because she was old; because she really wasn't, but it was because she'd been alone. Maybe they were killed? She grew up amongst traveling families who would give her food every now and then, teach her skills from time to time to survive. Taught her plants could be really useful; and she found that amazing. So she'd spent a long part of her life learning what plants were good for what, and that's what she was still studying today, besides remembering things and recalling them at a dime. Those were really her only talents.
Words caught the lioness's attention and made her head swivel to them. On the distance she saw a figure, smaller than her son, but obviously no less male. Interesting. Was it Sylar again? She headed toward him to figure that out.
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Posted: Tue Jun 22, 2010 8:27 am
Movement in the near-middle ground caught Muscar's attention and he glanced up hurriedly, focusing his gaze on that spot. He'd told his sister that he was going hunting, and though he'd actually intended only to go out sulking, it occurred to him that if he maybe brought back some sort of prey it might mollify Gliri somewhat. He was already anxious to smooth things over with her. He'd never fought with her before, and now that he'd had the experience he had come to the conclusion he didn't like it. The only thing which kept him from returning to the den that very minute was his pride, which was still stinging from everything.
And so he decided not to go back and make his peace with his sister. That could wait for the morning. Let her see how she liked being alone all night, he thought unkindly. Personally, he hated to be alone, and wished that tormenting his sister didn't also mean that he had to suffer, too. Maybe, if the figure approaching him didn't prove to be hazardous to his health, he could pass the night in their company to spare himself the horror of being alone.
He began to walk toward the lioness - he was positive he was looking at a lioness. She was petite, like his sister was, but more so. He stopped about ten yards from her, deciding to come no closer unless she wished it. A lifetime spent with a sister who was afraid of everyone and everything had built certain habits in Muscar, one of which was not to come too near to a person without invitation. Not that he needed to do that with Gliri, but somehow he felt he had to do it with everyone else.
"Good evening," he greeted the lioness. "Are you traveling alone? Whether you are or not, you are welcome to spend the night here."
Even though he was planning on relocating in the morning, he'd been living in this place long enough that he felt he could safely make that sort of statement and not be presuming. Shazidi and his large family could be damned. They had never come to this area, as far as he knew. And it was a good thing, too.
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Posted: Wed Jun 23, 2010 6:31 pm
When Lipi saw it was indeed another male, and that he had stopped a good distance from her, she allowed herself to relax a fraction more. Then he spoke, and her ears perked up in interest. This was his lands? That he claimed, or was he a pride? She opened her mouth and took in his scent. Lipi only smelled one other on him, and that scent was strong. It could be a mate, a sister or something. But it was definitely female, the other scent.
"I'm traveling alone, yes. But I don't know if I'm stopping for the night yet. I've grown rather bored." She looked around, wondering if his den was near. Her ears strained to pick up any other sounds of his family or home. But only crickets greeted her. Interesting. This male was probably a ways from his den.
"I'm Lipi. Who're you?" She wasn't even bothering to be extra polite. It was too troublesome to even bother with it anymore. Her tail flicked before she settled on her haunches, making herself appear a bit smaller in size.
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Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 6:46 am
He watched the lioness react to him and was very glad he'd decided to leave some distance between them. She seemed to have relaxed a little because of it. Living with a sister as easily frightened as Gliri was had given him a very good sense for when someone nearby was uncomfortable or nervous, and also for when they were relaxing.
Lipi's lack of extra-politeness didn't register with Muscar. He wasn't really the sort to be offended by someone being straightforward and upfront. In fact, that was what he tended to prefer. And so he smiled and said, "I'm pleased to meet you, Lipi."
"I'm sorry. I should have introduced myself. I'm Muscardini. Muscar for short. I live more or less around here with my sister. She and I had a bit of a falling out this evening, however, so she's got the den and I'm out here." He grinned sheepishly, setting aside his frustration with his sister and turning it into something more socially acceptable.
"Bored? I know we've barely met, but is there anything I can do to alleviate that?" Realizing how that must sound, Muscar shook his head, disgusted at himself for being so thick, and hastened to say, " I didn't mean anything...I just wanted to know if there was anything I could do to be helpful."
He looked off to one side, feeling like an idiot. It was, he supposed, marginally better than being angry with Gliri.
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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 7:35 am
Oh, he was coming-- Ah. Nope. No flirtations there. Lipi's ears twitched a little as she listened to him and then gave a lazy laugh at his slip up. It didn't matter if he was coming on to her, she wouldn't have actually taken it that way, either. A sigh escaped her and she blinked slowly, thinking to herself about what he could do to help her with her boredom. Maybe just talking? Maybe hunting? She didn't have any ideas, honestly.
She was days ahead of her angry son that usually found her, despite where she tried to go. "Muscardini's a long name... No wonder you shorten it to Muscar," she said, her tone lazy but a bit friendlier, trying to get him to ease up a little bit.
"As for how you can help? I don't really know. Maybe.... just talking."
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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 8:12 am
Muscar hoped Lipi's laughter was a good thing, along the lines of "he's awkward but not so bad," rather than "what a complete moron." The rest of her expression and body language didn't seem to indicate that she found him repulsive or imbecilic, though he wasn't sure what sort of posture a person would demonstrate when they found themselves conversing with an idiot. He tried to imagine it for a moment but then abandoned the pursuit. It was rude to divide his attention like that.
"I really don't know what my mother was thinking when she chose it," he said, sighing. "My sister's name is nice and short, and she was born at the same time."
He didn't know too much about his mother. She wasn't present for most of his youth, which had made him into a pretty good hunter, but also given him fairly severe issues with being alone and a perpetual fear of being abandoned by the only other constant in his life - Gliri. It wasn't an avenue he really wanted to pursue. Both he and Gliri knew that their mother had joined a pride and opted not to take her cubs with her, and that was the last they'd heard of her.
A part of Muscar, albeit a relatively small one, was disappointed when Lipi suggested that they just talk. It was difficult to gauge her age, but her small stature gave the impression that she couldn't be too far from his own age, and she was definitely attractive. Perhaps more than a small part of him had hoped she might be interested in something more physical, which would allow him to get back at his sister for sneaking around and falling in love without telling him.
"I can talk. Most of the time I even manage without coming off like an idiot, too." He offered a self-deprecating smile. "Based on my record for today, however, perhaps I ought to count myself lucky not to have drooled on you or something."
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Posted: Thu Jul 22, 2010 6:40 pm
Mothers was something she couldn't talk about. Her own mother; Lipi couldn't even remember her mother. What she looked like, or her father. She didn't know if she ever had a father. But it didn't bother her one bit to listen about them. "I'm a mother," she said after a bit of silence. Might as well get that out in the open. The petite lioness saw no reason for secrets; they were hard to keep and just made things harder if one wanted to get to know someone else. "I have two adult boys. Twins, actually. They're kin d of resentful of me. Not like I care; I did leave them in the care of friends, but they wandered off and did what they wanted.
"One, I know, is trying to track me down. If he manages, I suppose I'll have to feel his wrath..." Not that either parent had much of a wrath to begin with. Lipi was too lazy to be angry a lot of the time. "I suppose he'd call me a dead-beat mother who shouldn't have had kids. I also suppose he'd be right. But I never asked for them. Didn't mean I didn't love them. I did, enough to know they wouldn't survive with a mother like me. But, enough of the depressed talk."
That was the most she had said in a long, long time. It surprised her, too. Lipi knew she'd been rambling quite a bit, voicing her thoughts that kept circling her head. "I'm glad I didn't get drooled on. It'd have dried in my fur and caused it to get stiff and then it'd be a hassle to clean up." She blinked at him, her eyes hooded and looking sleepy. But that was her normal look.
"It would give me an excuse to get in the water, though.."
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Posted: Mon Jul 26, 2010 6:13 am
She was a mother? Muscar hadn't expected that particular revelation. It was even more difficult to believe that she was the mother of adult twins. He couldn't help himself as he protested, "You don't look old enough to have cubs that old."
It was meant as a compliment, really, though it might not have come off that way. He didn't have a problem with the idea that she was a mother, though the fact was he hadn't quite wrapped his brain around the idea, and so his opinions were in something like stasis for the moment.
Lipi mentioning leaving her cubs in the care of friends reminded him of how he had disposed of Gliri's first litter, the one she didn't remember having. He hadn't even left them with friends. He'd just left them. There were days he felt guilty about that, but when he weighed it against the harm they could have done his young sister, there was no contest and his guilt dissipated.
"It's fine," Muscar said. "I don't mind listening. It reminds me that mine isn't the only life which hasn't progressed the way I intended it to."
He shook his head. Lipi had dismissed depressing talk, and so he would go along with that. He grinned and glanced at the water, saying, "You could get in anyway. It's great."
And also very, very cold. Most of the time they'd lived in the area, he and Gliri had played around with trying to convince the other to jump into the chilly water. Neither had been successful because they both knew the dangers, but an unsuspecting victim...that was just too much to pass up.
"I'll join you, and that way we can both stay clean."
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 4:46 pm
The small lioness took it as a compliment and nodded. She got that a lot, honestly, when met with males and they asked. And she was glad that he left the subject of depression with her suggestion. She didn't want to be depressed at the moment. Instead, she found herself wanting to be in this male's company. He provided great conversation and didn't piss her off. Most males were too self centered to think about holding this level of conversation.
Even his flirting was welcomed. Lipi couldn't decide if he realized he was flirting, or she was just taking it like that. Either way, she eyed him with a surprised look. Get in the water now? It would be freezing, no doubt! "It's cold, isn't it?" She moved toward it again to put a paw in it and shrugged. Oh, well. Lipi would get used to the water and warm up in time.
So, she started wading to the deeper parts of the water. She was shivering by the time she stopped, her chin moving so fast it rattled her teeth. Those golden eyes closed and Lipi took several deep breaths and moved around a bit more to get warmed up too it. "Get in here so I don't feel like an idiot?" It was in the form of a question, but her tone made it a demand.
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 4:53 pm
"It's absolutely freezing," he acknowledged with a grin. "Clearly you're too smart for me."
And yet, in spite of the water's chilliness, Lipi was getting in, beginning with one paw. He could barely believe it. Well, maybe he could. Lipi seemed like the kind of lioness who lived for herself and didn't worry too, too much about the consequences of her actions. The thought reminded him a little of his sister, and how she'd acted without thinking about him, but he shook his head and dismissed the thought.
"Yes, my lady," he said, sweeping a ridiculously complex bow that threatened to overbalance him. He was not in the habit of bowing, and had never actually seen it done, but from the stories Gliri told him - he didn't know how she knew the things she did - he could approximate the gesture. He did know how to tease.
He was used to the frigid water, but that didn't mean his heart didn't threaten to stop when the cold liquid touched his stomach. It contracted automatically, but he forced himself into deeper water until the water came up a little past the bottom of his ribcage. If he had been human, his fingernails and lips would have quickly turned blue, but being a lion he simply shuddered once and exhaled sharply.
"Not too cold for you, is it?" he asked, all solicitude.
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 4:59 pm
"Honestly? Yes. It's too cold for me, but logic tells me I'll be colder if I get out. So I'm going to stay in for a bit and get used to the water until I'm warm again." Brutally honest, Lipi was. The brown lioness waded further until her paws no longer touched the bottom. Now she was floating and swimming and then she dove under to get her head wet.
What a bad idea.
She came back up, gasping and sputtering for breath that was stolen from her when the water hit her nose. She'd opened her mouth under the water and swallowed some the wrong way, which started her coughing underwater with no breath. Now she was dizzy and looked like a complete ditz. Well, hell. "Uugh... At least it's getting a tad bit warmer..." She said, a visible shutter running through her whole body.
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 5:04 pm
"If you say so," he said dubiously as she waded deeper into the water.
Muscar would not have agreed with Lipi's logic, had she asked for his input, but she hadn't. Definitely this was a lioness who knew her own mind. He found it somewhat amazing that she had sons who followed her. Surely she drove them to distraction? She was certainly providing him with ample distraction from his own troubles. He watched her dive under and admired how sleek she looked beneath the surface of the water.
He panicked momentarily when she seemed to have tried to breath water, but eventually it came to be that she was all right. Chagrined looking, but generally all right. Nevertheless, he did ask after her health, genuinely concerned. He would be guilt-ridden forever if something happened to her while she was with him, and he didn't or couldn't do anything to prevent it.
"You know," he said, "I think we might stand a better chance of warming up outside the water. We'll have to dry off eventually, and it'll be easier if at least one of us has a little body heat with which to do it."
He wouldn't mind curling up with her to share warmth for a time. It would be like being at home with Gliri, and it would feel better. Right.
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 5:11 pm
When he inquired about her health, Lipi answered back with a short 'I'm fine,' and proceeded to move about as if nothing happened. She wasn't embarrassed. Everyone made mistakes at one time or another. No one ever held her to the 'perfect' standards. That she knew of, anyway. If they did, they would surly be sorely disappointed. She shuddered once again and nearly curled in on herself as she swam back toward the shore. Damn, but the water was cold!
Warming up sounded nice, but so did swimming. Oh, hell. She didn't want to think about this very long, so he did as he suggested and slipped out of the water, shaking herself off and then let out a disgruntled squeak when the breeze hit her fur and sank to her flesh.
"That was a horrible idea," she stated rather unhappily. Still, it was her own fault for walking in when he suggested it. "....I've learned my lesson in not taking suggestions about swimming." She gave him a grin, though it was ruined but her chin rattling again, to let him know she wasn't that serious. Now she really was freezing.
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Posted: Wed Sep 22, 2010 5:17 pm
"I'm glad," he replied, moving toward the shore once he saw that Lipi was doing the same.
On land, in the face of Lipi's undeniable statement that this had been a horrible idea, Muscar hung his head, to all appearances the very image of contrition. Beneath the concealing curtain of his mane, however, he grinned a little. She wasn't afraid to try anything, Lipi. Or so he wanted to believe. It would be lovely to spend time with someone who didn't need to be protected from every little thing.
"You're right," he said. "How can I make it up to you?"
He felt guilty, seeing how the cold hit her. He was mildly chilled, but he hadn't submerged himself completely like she had, and so most of his body, from the collarbone up, was dry. Damp at the worst. He thought he might be able to offer her some of his body heat, but he wouldn't offer unless she asked. He didn't want her to think he'd had this planned all along. Because he really hadn't.
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