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 Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:27 am
 Maua opened his eyes slowly, blinking blearily against the light. The lion tried to get up, but hissed at the sudden, stabbing pain in his head. He laid back down, instead looking at his surroundings from his current position. It looked like he was in a cave of some sort, resting on the rocks. There were various types of plants scattered over the floor. The soft sound of rain echoed from the cave's entrance. He was sore all over, though his head and shoulder were the worst. What had happened? Maua couldn't remember anything beyond jumping to the other ledge and falling. Somehow, he had gotten here.
He tried to move to a sitting position, but pain wouldn't allow it. He settled instead for lying on his stomach, feet pointed towards the cave's opening. Maua looked around again, but there was no sign of anyone else in the cave. But someone must have dragged him here. Perhaps a strong leopard? Possibly another lion?
As Maua turned his head, he felt something sticky pull at his fur. He went to lick his paw to swipe whatever it was away and found a large patch of green paste on his leg. The male frowned and licked it away. It was bitter, obviously an herb of some kind. After a few rasps of his tongue, Maua began tasting blood. He pulled his leg away, inspecting it. The paste had been covering a cut. The lion licked his other paw and carefully dabbed it at the sticky mess on his head, ignoring the dull ache it caused. Green paste covered his toes. Huh. Whoever it was that had dragged him here had also treated him for his wounds.
"Oh hey, you're awake! Maua brought his eyes up to the entrance of the cave, expecting to see the feline who had saved him. Instead, the lion found himself staring at a large hyena, fur dripping, with two hares gripped in his jaws.
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Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:42 am
 Waridi grabbed the second hare by its ears and began trotting back to the cave. The lion had survived the night and had been doing well just this morning. His breathing had evened out, and his heartbeat had been strong and steady. Pleased with his patient's status, the hyena had gone out to hunt. He had no idea when the lion would wake up, but Waridi knew that food was essential to recovering quickly.
The rain had let up a little. It was still soaking through his fur, but the wind no longer threatened to send him over the edges of the mountain pass and the thunder couldn't be heard. The storm would most likely pass by tomorrow morning.
Waridi slipped in through the entrance of the cave, stopping short when he saw the lion staring quizzically at the green paste on his paw. "Oh hey, you're awake!" The lion looked at him warily, staying silent. Waridi hoped he didn't have amnesia. The hyena dropped the hares next to his pile of agrimony and shook the water out of his fur. "You took quite a tumble down the cliffs last night. Busted your head up pretty bad." The hyena sat down in front of his patient, grinning widely. "But you seem to be alright. How're you feeling?" The Jedi asked cheerfully.
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Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 9:56 am
Maua couldn't believe it. A hyena. Of animals. A hyena. It was practically written in the laws of nature that hyenas and lions were supposed to hate each other. But here he was, having been saved by one. His ex-pride would never believe him if he told them about this. Not that he would ever get the chance, given the whole exile situation. He was even more surprised it had been able to drag him here. Though it did seem rather big for a hyena.
The hyena seemed...cheerful. Plus it was acting rather friendly and didn't seem to mean him any harm. It also had food. "I'm fine but...uh...who are you?" Maua asked, eyes darting back and forth between the hares and the hyena.
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Waridi couldn't help but laugh. He hadn't even introduced himself! "Silly me! Didn't even give you my name. I'm Waridi. The hyena followed the movement of the lion's eyes and chuckled again. He was obviously hungry. Which was good. A hungry patient was a recovering patient, and the blood would help rehydrate him. Though Waridi supposed he should also go find some damp moss for the lion to drink from if he couldn't walk.
The Jedi grabbed the larger of the hares and brought it over to the lion, placing it at his paws. "Figured you'd be hungry. Hungry is good. I can always go out and hunt more if you need it." Waridi took the other hare and sat close to the lion. "So what do they call you? And what brings you all the way out to the mountains?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 10:14 am
Maua dug into the hare as soon as it was placed in front of him. He was sharing a meal with a hyena. Maybe the fall really had killed him and he was in some freaky afterlife. But the ache of his injuries and the taste of the hare seemed too real for the afterlife. "My name is Maua." He answered between mouthfuls. The hyena was looking at him politely, bright gold eyes never moving from Maua's face. It would have been slightly intimidating if the hyena didn't have bits of the hare's fur stuck to his muzzle. "I'm traveling north, but the mountains blocked my path. I thought I could climb over him." And oh, how wrong he had been. If weren't for this Waridi, Maua would very well be dead.
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The hyena licked at some of the blood that had gotten on his nose. "Traveling, huh?" Waridi nodded in approval. "Must be on your spirit-name quest. Never met a pilgrim before. They usually don't come past the mountains." The hyena took another bite of the hare, chewing thoughtfully. "I'm kind of on a spirit quest too. I have to find a gemstone for my Knight beads." He puffed his chest out proudly, showing his necklace. It only had his red Youngling bead and his two Padawan beads, but soon it would carry the red jasper of the Guardians as well. He hoped.
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Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 10:30 am
Maua frowned, swallowing audibly. Padawan? Name quest? Pilgrim? It seemed like these words had some meaning to them, but he had never heard of them before. Maua wasn't looking for a new name. He was just traveling. "I'm sorry, what it is a pilgrim? Or a Knight?" The lion asked, taking another small bite of his hare. He had nearly finished it off and was already feeling much better. He still didn't feel like he could walk very far though. "I've never heard those terms before. I'm not really from around here. My old pride is a long ways to the south." Maua explained.
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Waridi frowned. So Maua was a stranger to these parts. No wonder he had thought climbing mountains in the rain was a good idea. "Well, a pilgrim is what they call a member of the Jini-msemi out on their name quest, which is where they have to find their adult name." The hyena paused for a moment, making sure he had the information right. "I think they live in the swamps somewhere on the other side of the range. Northeast." He had never been good with geography. The Jedi knew it was important to be aware of the nearby prides, but he could never remember which pride was which. "And a Knight, well, that's what I hope to be when I get back to my own pride. Right not I'm just a Padawan. A knight-in-training." Waridi clarified before going on to talk about the different beads.
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Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 10:47 am
The pink lion took another bite of the hare, finally finishing it off. He still wasn't entirely sure why someone needed a new name, or even what this padiwon thing was. He felt his eyelids grow heavy, and had to work to keep himself awake as Waridi explained the difference between the various types of gemstones. Each stone stood for a different job, he gathered. It seemed like the padiwons went through an awful lot of trouble just to get a little stone. Why couldn't they just be promoted to a new rank and be done with it? Thoughts beginning to jumble together, Maua drifted off to sleep as the hyena rambled on about random nothings.
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So many things he had to go over! "The moonstone is white, like the moon. Those knights have to go out to other prides and form alliances and boring stuff like that." Waridi took a moment to catch his breath. Before he could go on and explain the different Youngling clans, a snore grabbed his attention. Maua had fallen asleep. Waridi chuckled. His mother had always said that he had the ability to talk someone's ear off. It would be good to let the lion rest.
Waridi tore at the last bits of his own hare. It would be good for him to rest as well. He had stayed awake all last night making sure Maua had been alright, and the sleep deprivation was beginning to get to him. The hyena grabbed the carcasses of the hares and threw them outside. He watched briefly as the rain swept them down the path and out of sight, then turned back into the cave. He curled up next to Maua, fluffy pink tail wrapped over his nose, and fell asleep.
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Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 10:50 am
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