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 Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 9:20 am
Alula was very interested in the pride she had found herself a part of so suddenly, now that all the official stuff was taken care of she was free to make herself more comfortable. The only problem so far was that Kuku seemed so intent on showing her around and telling her stories that she hadn't really had so much opportunity to really chat with other lions. She wasn't too worried, though. It was the chattiest he had been and it was a sign she had made the right choice in allowing herself to be dragged along by the poor bird, he was obviously happy to be back to his home.
"So, what did this look like before the earthquake, Kuku?" she asked conversationally, looking upward to where Kisukuku was flying.
"It's hard to explain," he said, swooping downward so he was at a more conversational height but then ultimately landing on the ground by her feet to hop along beside her, "It all seems about the same but not quite."
He was slowly adjusting to her nickname for him, raising no more objections while they were chatting privately, at least.
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 9:36 am
Tanz yawned. Guard duty was boring. The best part of it was the training and practice sparring that would occur once in a while. It was obvious that Ngao would never forget the disaster that had happened before Tanzania and Ethiopia had arrived, orphaned and hungry. He still thought it was amusing that Mapatano had taken them in, being a father-figure of sorts. Tanz had tried to butt heads with him, but it never worked as well as he had hoped it would. Growing up here had been wonderful...at least until Umbika had come. Then it was like a second mother had come, she drove him nuts."Why are you yawning?" Umbika chided him. "You're supposed to be keeping your guard up, and you're falling asleep!" She reached over and nipped the back of his neck, getting the male to snarl and snap back at her. Chuckling, she drived up into the air, out of his reach. He was so easy to aggrivate, the poor male was hopeless. "Maybe you should ask Ethi to keep you awake during the day. She seems to handle everything better than you!"
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 9:53 am
"I see, I see," Alula murmured thoughtfully, looking around. The landscape seemed so dramatic to her, but she wasn't used to being anywhere near mountains so she easily accepted that if Kuku said it was all about the same, it must be.
Her eyes mostly staying near the ground, she spotted the nearby blue lion first and raised a brow curiously, glancing down to Kuku.
"Anybody you know?" she asked, nodding toward the lion.
Occupied chatting (and hopping) with Alula, Kuku didn't notice someone enter the sky just after he left.. or the blue lion below her. He turned curiously when she spotted them, staring thoughtfully for a moment though he knew immediately it wasn't anybody he recognized.
"No, but it's been some time since I've been home," he said. Alula couldn't have been the only new member, and this lion didn't look like he was from any family Kisukuku recognized. But that didn't mean anything, either.
"Oh," she murmured, the smiled, "Let's go see who it is, then!"
She was happy to stick with Kuku but she was still eager to get a little more involved. It couldn't have been a bad idea for Kuku, either. He didn't seem the type to be shy but she hadn't really ever seen him around anybody else except when they were rejoining the pride, and he had to be vocal then to vouch for her.
"Fine, fine," he muttered, not hesitating in letting her have her way. He knew it was important for her (as well as to her) to socialize so he wasn't going to complain.
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 10:51 am
"Heads up, we've got company," Umbika alerted the stupid male. Ok, so he wasn't stupid, but there were times where she wasn't certain if he was or wasn't. She'd just blame it on the fact that he was male.
"Wha?" he grumbled, still a little pissed at his bonded for giving him a n**. He felt lucky that it hadn't bled; sometimes Umbika was a lot tougher than she needed to be. He certainly was awake, now.
"Hello," the african fish eagle greeted their visitors. She herself hadn't been here too terribly long, as living just outside of the lands and kept her from really knowing anyone. If it wasn't for that stupid...urge to be with Tanz, she'd be out doing whatever she wanted instead of keeping an eye on him.
Tanz's ears swiveled upwards as he noticed just who was visiting. A stranger, yes, but as she had quite a comfortable vulture with her, it didn't alarm him to alert anyone. She must be allowed here, or a new member, if she was walking around so calmly. "Hey," he replied as well, just as outgoing as ever.
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 11:26 am
Alula flinched as Kuku suddenly decided the most efficient way to proceed was to take up a spot on her back, his claws digging into her fur. She shot him a brief glare before approaching the strangers, finally spotting the eagle as well. She put on a smile as she daringly walked closer.
"Hello there," she greeted them confidently, "My name is Alula, and this is Kuku." She introduced herself without any hesitation, not seeing any other good way to proceed without explicitly stating the situation. It might be kind of odd to just run up and say hello to someone.
"We're new here," she added.
"Kisukuku," he said, ruffling his feathers up a bit when she introduced him, "And she is new, I've just been away for some time."
He looked up from Tanz to Umbika and then back to the lion again. Up close he was positive he wasn't seeing someone he knew, or family of someone he had known (or seen) before. At least nothing obvious, and not everybody looked exactly like their family members.
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 11:58 am
Umbika was a bit more content with strangers coming up to them. Tanz was just...not sure. He wasn't the most socialized lion, and only really cared about his sister. So he didn't really have an idea of what to say. "Tanzania," he replied with a grunt. What else was he supposed to say...?
Umbika picked it up for him, since he was obviously being a failure at it. "I'm Umbika," she replied happily, as she liked to chat. Figured it was a female thing, with how quiet Tanz was when there was anyone else around. "It's great to see newer members. Tanz grew up here, and I met him when he was growing up." She shifted her wings, feeling content.
"How do you like it so far?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 12:07 pm
"It's a pleasure to meet you both," Alula said brightly, smiling at Tanzania despite the way he grunted and the less-than-social expression he wore. But she looked attentively to Umbika when she explained about the pair of them.
"Oh!" Alula smiled at the brief history Umbika gave them, she was very curious to learn more about how the birds came to be attached to the lions here. It was very obviously an important part of the pride, she knew that, but Kuku hadn't exactly explained anything more than it was just how it was supposed to be. More stories, she thought, might give her more insight without her having to ask.
"Kuku is very happy to be back," she said, glancing over her shoulder to where Kuku sat and smiling at him before looking back, "It's hard not to like it when he's being so cheerful, but I really do!"
Kuku glared at Alula when she called him Kuku again but he didn't seem too seriously upset about this, he shuffled himself over a bit so he could get a better look at the conversation continued.
"I didn't think I recognized either of you," he commented thoughtfully, "I've missed quite a bit since I've been gone, I guess."
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 12:19 pm
Umbika shook her head. "I didn't reside within these lands, but just outside of them, actually. I blame the pull on Hestia, but I'm thankful and grateful for it now." She glanced at Tanz, but he was avoiding her glance. Well, he was still a foolish headstrong male, and he wasn't a fan of these "mushy" thoughts. They were pretty much stuck with one another, and it wasn't going to change.
Tanz shrugged. He still didn't know what to say, but he didn't want to look like an a**, staying silent the whole time. So...since there was really only one question hovering in his mind, he went for it. "So...Kuku went out to find you? That's...different." He had never heard of something like that happening, but he didn't know much stories of lions in the past. Perhaps it had happened in the past. All he knew was that it wasn't very common at all.
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 12:45 pm
Alula's smile widened and she glanced from Umbika to Tanz again when the eagle explained how grateful she was. He didn't look that happy about it, but he didn't look upset either, almost indifferent. That was a little bit disappointing. She didn't fully understand why Kuku wanted to stick with her but she liked him.
"Well, I more found him," she explained when asked about how she and Kuku came together, "He couldn't really take care of himself, he'd be injured during the earthquake some time back. I decided to help him out, he didn't tell me much about himself or where he was from for a while. Eventually, I guess he got tired of it and said he was coming back here and that he wanted me to come with him."
"I lost a lion in the earthquake, I decided to bring one back with me when I so happened to find one after it," he explained with a slight shrug, and ignoring Tanzania's use of the nickname he tried to resent. He didn't talk much about his previous bond, and he wasn't really about to start.
"Alula has been allowed to stay so there's nothing to worry about," he added, almost smiling.
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 3:24 pm
Tanz nodded. The both of them would have had to go through Peke, and as such there was no reason to doubt them. That...well, he shouldn't say too much, or even think must, since he was older than him, but Peke had quite the attitude. Tanz did himself, and they even had similar (with a small stretch) past, but Tanz didn't think he'd get along with him. Big egos, that sort of deal.
"I'm sure he's content being home," Tanz grunted, though he was situating to the social scene well. Kind of.
Umbika nodded. "That was very kind of you, and lucky for him that he didn't become a meal for a small predator roaming around." Even if most vultures were large, an injured one was terribly vulnerable. "We could always use more wings in the skies," she nodded.
"What is your position, if I may ask? Or have you not quite decided yet?"
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Posted: Fri Jul 30, 2010 4:35 pm
She nodded at Tanz's comment, and then again when Umbika commented on the situation that she had found Kuku in. He'd been lucky to find some protection, and someone to help scavenge (and hunt). With any added difficulty in flight, it would have been tricky for Kuku to get himself our of danger and limit his ability to scavenge by sight.
"I'm going to be a huntress," she said cheerily, "Something I'm already practiced at, though it'll be fun learning how to do it cooperatively rather than on your own. I'm hoping it's as easy as it sounds, comparatively, at least."
Kuku sat quietly now, saying nothing else but observing Tanz and Umbika as they continued to chat. Umbika was definitely giving a nice first impression, and Tanz.. seemed polite enough.
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Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 7:48 pm
Tanz nodded his head. "The valley is smooth and straightforward, so you shouldn't have any worries." Being a guard was a much different thing, but he wouldn't interject his own self into the conversation. He may be rude, but he wasn't that rude. "The hunters only go to the edge of the mountains if the herds are thin." Which wasn't completely uncommon, since that was how the herds would enter the valley at times.
All business. Stupid Tanz, can't even recognize a pretty lady under his nose. Umbika could poke him about it later. "You'll do wonderfully, and it's a very social job. "Tanz is a Guard, a little more different, but active enough. Keeps him fit," she chuckled, brushing an outstretched wing against a grumpy lion's leg.
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Posted: Mon Aug 09, 2010 8:17 pm
The more Tanz said, the more interesting he became. Even if he seemed to stick only to very general, impersonal information.. it said something about him. And when he said 'the hunters' it became apparent that he was not one of them. She was sure how many of the other ranks open to the general population she remembered but she would have ventured a guessed a guard.. but Umbika spoke before she could ask.
"A guard?" she repeated, smiling at Umbika and then looking back to Tanz, "So, that would be a non-social job? Do you like it?"
Would he answer direct questions?
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Posted: Tue Aug 10, 2010 10:09 am
Eeesh. No, he didn't really want to answer a direct question, but he'd rather face that than an angry Umbika later. She was nothing like the mother he remembered, but she was still so overwhelmingly motherly that he feared that part of her. Gulp.
"Yes," he said with a grunt, but couldn't help puffing his chest up slightly. He was proud of it, since he felt that it proved he was strong. Ngao was not a gentle captain, not in his mind. Which he admired. "Social with training, otherwise alone time doing shifts along the border with Umbika."
Good, he was actually talking. Fur-brained brat. She eyed Kuku, content that he looked just as comfortable as her. Seemed like both of their bonded lions needed a little social interaction, if for different reasons.
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Posted: Tue Aug 10, 2010 11:00 am
His reluctance didn't put her off this time, the fact he was actually chatting (however begrudgingly) was good enough for Alula. His puffing up was a good sign, too. At least he seemed to like something.
"And you like that," she observed, then she paused as she struggled to think of something that might get him to talk without asking more pointless questions.
"So, you've know your way around here really well," she said finally, "Is there anything you think I really ought to see? I haven't really looked around much yet and Kuku can't seem to make up his mind."
Kuku ruffled his feathers up when he was mentioned again but he seemed indifferent to the reference. Whether or not it was true didn't matter, she was trying .. and Kuku was curious about how the blue one would respond.
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