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 Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 8:32 pm
Roka had always found comfort in what would unnerve the majority. Nature or nurture, who knew? She could have been born this way, a product of her upbringing, or something in between. She had issues with her parents, sometimes bickered with her siblings, but none of them tried to kill each other and there was love among them. Her days as a cub had been typical if you took out the details. What made them different was the details, though.
Tanana was a strange mother. Her twin sisters, Ava and Ava, were a strange pair. And she hadn't met anyone like her father or brother either. How many cubs could ask their parents about slavery? How many siblings could complain about being named the same thing?
Roka had always thought if she could get a better grasp of her mother first hand it would abate much of her hostility. She tried not to hold a grudge like Ava (either or). Being controlled by her feelings was further agitating.
Tanana had been coaxed into speaking of her parents three times. She never called them "mother" or "father". It should have been out of spite, but it wasn't. Tanana didn't recognize them as parents, or even the idea she had parents. Roka had always felt there was a piece she was missing when she listened to these recollections.
When through sheer luck (bad or good she wasn't sure yet) she found her grandmother, it didn't provide the answers she had always wanted. Ohahira was as Tanana had said: a stark raving lunatic. She would talk with no one there, pace restlessly, lash out at trees, just to name a few odd quirks.
The time spent observing her only cursed Roka with more questions, and damned if she was going to live with more riddles unsolved. She had a feeling Ohahira had sensed her days ago. Either she was too far gone to care or Roka was incorrect about the matter.
That morning, Roka followed her to a place she recognized as not far from the Pridelands. There was nothing but grass on all sides, so Roka was left with two options: a) stay far enough she could run if attacked, or b) run.
Ohahira had curled up some number of hours ago several yards away and slept. It was the first time Roka had seen her take more than a sorry excuse for a nap.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 8:50 pm
Uuni wasn't a terribly violent goddess - which was to say, she probably couldn't directly hurt a fly. If and when she acted, it was purely visceral. Running was first and foremost the answer to most violent situations.
After watching Ohahira for an unimportant span of time, even she had begun to wonder if perhaps death would have been an act of mercy. It was not something that she could bring herself to do - but there were many who walked in her name, and death would be quick.
Uuni had mosied along, taking long breaks between watching the crazed lioness. Playing creeper-stalker-god was a terribly boring process. On the plus side, no one was bothering her, and until she fulfilled this pact, only the most powerful rituals could drag her other places.
Now, they'd left the shelter of the trees, and Uuni was forced to make a decision.
She'd seen a lioness in the area, several times, and had discounted it as nothing. Well, sort of. The brown lioness had an exquisite jawset, and these hard intense eyes. Ones that clearly said words not meant for juvenille ears. And if she didn't, well, Uuni was happy to put them in her mouth.
That this attractive nuisance was still in the area, however, was beyond interesting. What was more, she seemed to have her eyes focused on the very same lioness.
And if this brown hottie was so close to the menace, Uuni decided it was safe enough to be as well. Her mortal form was thin, sleek, and far too clean for a rogue body. The red runes were stripped away, leaving blanch white fur and long, straight black hair readily caught in the long wind.
She tossed her head, letting it fall predominately to one side of her neck as she padded her way warily towards the other. She wasted no time in letting her eyes rake down an exposed backside, though she was polite enough not to make a pause of it. She slid in, as quiet as a snake over water, to a spot just slightly to the right of the brown lioness. No sense getting her face bitten off if she proved hostile. "Is this a safe spot to be?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 9:32 pm
One was not naturally gifted with the fortitude Roka had. Maintaining a stillness in the presence of a mess like Ohahira while someone sprung up from nowhere wasn't a skill, but a practiced art. Her sisters could sing, her brother could paint (when provided adequate supplies), and she had learned this.
"No, not really," Roka told her, matter-of-fact. Not hostile, but not welcoming. For the stranger's own good, mind you. Not just anyone should be loitering around this high risk lioness in front of them. "You'll probably want to be on your way."
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 9:41 pm
Hello brave and dangerous.
This definitely wasn't the type of situation in which she should be smiling. No one would be grinning after a statement like that. No lion but Uuni could be that dumb.
"I trust you to keep me safe."
Don't start laughing, Uuni. Mwokoti was right. She had a bad problem with downgrading the severity of the situation. With every situation, really.
Especially in this case. Because while she should probably have had her eyes kept focused on Ohahira, they kept moving to the left and wandering.
A long, inward breath. "I'd leave if I could." Uuni tore her eyes away and moved them towards Ohahira. Still asleep. Damn this was boring.
"If you're still here, you're either dumb, or you know something I don't. Care to share?" She could share as much as she wanted, as far as Uuni was concerned. The less words involved, the better.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 9:55 pm
By "not just anyone" Roka meant someone who didn't give the impression they were mentally impaired too. She'd have relished some company of good sense to discuss -- in whispers -- her observations so far. This one wouldn't due for that. Too pointlessly chatty and just... She couldn't put her paw on the other thing. A lioness had never -- actually, no one had ever... that. She was Roka. That just didn't happen. Uuni's flirtation was dismissed as a smartass (less smart and more a**) living up to their full potential.
--And wait just a minute.
"Shouldn't you be worried I might be a cohort of hers?" Had their roles been reversed, that would have been the first conclusion Roka had drawn from it. Was she this dumb to not think of it? Too trusting?
Up ahead of them, Ohahira had rolled over some number of seconds ago. Still asleep.
-- or not.
Roka wasn't the only one who could keep still.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 10:14 pm
Uuni wished she could say that was the worst answer to a question she had ever heard in her life. Which was to say - it wasn't an answer to any question at all. Unfortunately, she had heard far worse and deduced from much less.
"Maybe." A shrug of narrow shoulders. "If you are, you're one hell of a body guard. Facing the wrong direction, watching her while she sleeps - can I hire you?" A shudder worked its way down her spine; Uuni didn't want to imagine the kind of sick freak that would get sexual gratification out of a lioness like Ohahira.
"One hell of a crush you've got there." Oop. The black and white lioness was moving. Uuni felt her hair rise, just a little. It settled quickly, when the crazy lioness stilled. Still safe, for now. Hopefully she'd keep on sleeping.
Back to miss-matter-of-fact.
"What is it that you're standing here for?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 10:32 pm
She might not have qualified for the harsh label of "sick freak", but something was probably off for Roka to look less disgusted than she did. And she could blame her upbringing on that one. Had she turned her father upside down and shook him until an opinion fell out, it only would have been that his opinion was everyone was entitled to their opinion. Tanana had been the one she'd first learned the concept of incest from and mother didn't know to be outraged by it.
Roka overheard some things between her parents she hadn't understood until later: Tanana admitting she had wondered at times if someone named U-something was going to force her brother or father to breed with her sisters to make more slaves. Additionally, she had encountered Firekin that gladly lay with their distant cousins to keep the bloodlines pure.
Having been exposed to it so young... Roka could shrug off the accusations Uuni didn't know she was making.
Still, gross.
"Observing."
Roka observed Ohahira lift her head and roll so that she no longer laid flat on the ground. She observed her growl and, at first, wasn't concerned because Ohahira growled often and loudly. But when she jerked her head their way, s**t just got real.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 10:50 pm
"Sounds thrilling."
The instant the sarcastic, playful words dropped from her mouth, Uuni regretted them.
The growl was more than audible. Even if it hadn't been, the eyes which were fixated in their direction said deadly enough. Any god who was arrogant enough to think a mortal couldn't kill them was stupid and would live a short life.
Uuni had hoped she'd been give more time before she had to confront Ohahira, but her time may have been cut short. She had three options: Hold her ground, run like hell, or wait and give herself away by making a quick escape if things went badly.
"I think that's our cue to run." But Uuni wasn't running. She'd taken a deep breath and assessed all the dumb things she'd done in her life that she'd lived through. Usually, the crazy murderers broke the ice with her. She was not accustomed to creating idle conversation with claws and teeth.
Don't talk down to her, be submissive. Easy rules of thumb, in theory.
She held off on further action - her eyes were locked on Ohahira.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 11:00 pm
Ohahira was the worst kind of dangerous in Roka's opinion. Too instinctive and entirely unreasonable. She reacted to things on first impulse and only that. Roka's hope was she was just giving them a warning to back off. Two against one couldn't read as good odds.
Living with those unanswered questions didn't seem as bad as not living at all, when Roka thought about it. "Now, wait," she started. "It might be better if we just --"
It might be better if we just keep still. She might just wander off on her own.
Yeah, no.
"Yes, running," Roka agreed shrilly. She gave Uuni a well-meaning nudge (ah, daddy's nobility had been passed down after all) and took off. They had a head start courtesy of Ohahira's permanent back injury.
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 11:11 pm
No talking? No death threats? No talk without the act? What kind of crazy, deadly lioness was this Ohahira?
All of these were thoughts cut short by the shove at her side. Uuni was spinning, and the weak muscles in her mortal back legs were shoving off. A cloud of grass and dirt kicked up behind them.
Running was so not her thing.
Usually, a run meant a few outpacing feet. Most lionesses and lions did not wish to waste unnecessary energy on opponents that weren't worth there time. In this case, Uuni stuck close to her "valiant knight" and kept running until her mortal lungs burned and they were certain that danger was left safely behind them.
Perhaps 'safe' wasn't the word.
Uuni flopped, panting, against a tree that had once been an absent speck on the horizon. She was certain, somewhere, a handful of gods were enjoying a proper laugh.
When she'd caught her breath enough to speak, she focused her eyes on Roka. "You've been watching our crazy friend a lot?" A deep heaving breath. Uuni looked all around them, before she stomped all over her pride with the words, "I think I might need your help."
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 11:28 pm
Safe was not the word. It wasn't in the dictionary right now.
Roka wouldn't say they were safe since she had a thing against using made-up words. Instead, "She's going to catch up." What she wouldn't give to go back in time and take that overly-friendly cheetah up on her offer to build some endurance. Lions tired too quick for how slow they are, she'd said. Damn cheetahs and their being right.
"She's my grandmother." You wouldn't know it with the way she ran when she got going. Somebody must have had a lot of cheetah friends growing up. "Up there," Roka said. Claws dug deep into the bark and she managed to get high enough to be out of harm's way. She had been more inclined to have a leopard teach her to better scale a tree.
Time and again she watched Ohahira tree leopards, birds, and monkeys. She would always relent eventually. It took Roka only twice to realize the back injury must have kept her grounded.
Neither of them were going to outrun her. Especially -- uh, whoever this was.
"Help with what?"
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Posted: Fri Oct 26, 2012 11:45 pm
Since it was easier to climb the tree as a leopard, that was exactly what Uuni did.
It was a simple transformation. A longer back, a thicker tail. By the time the change was complete, she'd nearly scaled the tree. It was only necessary long enough to slide onto a branch just above Roka.
Then, her hair was growing again and it was if she had never transformed at all. While she didn't care if this young, stunning young female knew she was a god, Uuni had no intention of letting Ohahira in on that little secret quite yet.
"Funny story," Uuni breathed out. Being out of breath sucked.
"It involves your great-grandmother." Uuni grimaced. That made the earlier comment especially creepy. Oh well. She'd said far creepier things in her lifetime.
"Long story short, our foaming beastly predator is now my responsibility. I have to help her." The lioness rolled her shoulders back and flicked her tail.
"Right now, I'm hoping she accidentally falls off a cliff. I'd rather not have to end her life, if there's another way. But I am not a patient lion." That wasn't exactly the truth. However, if it encouraged her companion's urgency regarding the situation, Uuni could invent an entire conspiracy.
She wouldn't be entirely against forcing Ohahira into servitude, if she didn't think she'd make an absolutely s**t servant.
"What do you think. Should I find a cliff?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2012 12:00 am
Leopard --?
What--?
Roka just about fell out of the tree. She gripped desperately to the branch at the last second, finding her balance, and growled; not as fiercely as Ohahira and not as direct. A noise of frustration is what it was. She had always gone out of her way to avoid surprises, and she had never been "surprised" like this. It was despicable and insulting.
The work of a Goddess. It had to be. Roka didn't know they could all shapeshift, but she knew enough. She knew they had enslaved her grandmother. They terrified her mother, and small as she was, that was saying something. Her father hadn't told her anything, but he hadn't denied anything either when Roka asked if they were all so cruel.
There were only two types of lions she assumed the worst about as a group: Firekin and Gods. "What do I think? The nerve of you --" Things. Bastards. Monsters. "You made her this way, and now you're trying to toss her off a cliff to clean up your mess?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2012 12:16 am
Wait, what?
The usual witty, dry retorts were completely swept from her mouth. The goddess blinked.
Well, she had to say one thing: She wasn't as upset that her companion was in a rage as she should have been. Uuni shifted quietly on her branch. Then she rolled her eyes.
"Oh, shut up." What was this, hate gods Wednesday? I mean, there were a lot of assholes out there, and she despised them herself, but really. Did she have to start covering her body in flowers? She supposed black and blood red weren't the most welcoming of colors.
"I haven't done anything to her." The same couldn't be said for half the rest of her family, apparently. "Except utilize her shamelessly for bad humor." Which, she couldn't really blame Roka for that one. Mortals were sensitive about their short lives and emotional bonds. "If I actually wanted to throw her off a cliff, I don't need anyone's help for that." She could be an elephant for goodness sakes. That was an end-game, for sure.
"I can help her on my own, or you can have a say in it. This is one of those situations in all the stories you hear about where the hero gets to make the ultimate decision. You're the hero. Make a decision." Would it help if she threw in a "do you trust me?" Probably not. Uuni had a feeling the answer was no.
Uuni decided the 'And because you're cute, no strings attached' line was also not appropriate. But it was tempting.
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Posted: Sat Oct 27, 2012 12:31 am
Six out of ten times Roka didn't get involved with the welfare of others. Three out of four of the exceptions, she acted out of principle rather than emotion. She was a creature that needed time to think on the heavy stuff, and she had always been granted more than enough of it. These nownownow dilemmas weren't her forte.
Make a decision?
Decision: Principles.
A God was to blame for this. For a God to kill Ohahira was just... so... haughty. Uuni might not have brought her grandmother there -- or she might have and been lying, she seemed to like doing that -- but it didn't matter. To "help" her was the same slap in the face bringing a Firekin home to meet the folks would have been.
"I'll be patient enough for us both," Roka snapped, and made the trip back to the ground. "You're all just like I thought you were. I can't believe --"
Up ahead, Ohahira was charging straight for them. Roka's glowering didn't slow or calm her.
-Err.
Roka returned to her branch and leered at Uuni. "I can talk her down," she insisted.
You know, from up here.
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