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 Posted: Sat Aug 10, 2013 3:38 pm
The fight had been long and the lion had been a warthog's behind, but Sebor had finally made it into the Stormborn. She was quick to learn that females weren't treated as equals by all here and, while that was a bit annoying, she knew that this was the life she wanted. You could come and go as you pleased, there were no other creatures wandering around, and while some of the males were rather pig-headed, there were those few gems she had met that were kind. Yes, this was the place for her to be. She could ignore the males that were more traditional and surround herself with those that were like-minded. The problem was, she hadn't found too many just yet that she wanted to spend any amount of time with. There were nice males, yes, and kind females...but the males would ultimately leave her to go with their male counterparts, and the females were such pushovers. Sebor was positive she wasn't the only strong-willed lioness here, she just hadn't really found any others yet. Granted, she had only been here for about a fortnight. She still had time to meet new friends. Today wasn't shaping up to be one of those days, it seemed. There were hardly any lions in sight. It seemed quite a few were off on some sort of viking adventure that she couldn't go on. What a mood killer. Rather than sulk, though, Sebor set off to explore her new home. The lands were vast and far different from the rouge lands she was used to, and around each corner there was something new to see.
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Posted: Fri Aug 16, 2013 2:16 pm
 If Sebor could differentiate one stone from another, tell the trees apart, and see beyond the waters over the wall, then and only then would Asban agree Stormborn territory was a place worthy of sight-seeing. Watching those around you was rarely more engaging, since anyone arrogant enough to fight their way in knew what to expect, and lions born here (like him), became accustomed to the boorish essence of the place. Granted there were still those of particularly acrid character, such as his own captain and their reigning Warlord, but even they had a method to their madness. Asban would not claim he was bored here, nor would he believe anyone who said otherwise. Still... It wasn't offering much for those like him, lions as determined to use their minds as their claws.
They would cross paths by chance. Him going one way. Her going the other. The pride was not so massive he didn't at least recognize its residents by face. Hence, he presumed her a new inhabitant among many -- and not one he minded, so to speak. Her eyes were a color that did her no favors. Her coat would have been better had it darkened some. But the shape of her face, ears, and the way she carried herself was enough to compensate.
Probably.
Asban was bound to disappoint should she expected some boisterous greeting. His voice was impassive and his word but one: "Hello." He didn't bow his head or raise his nose, simply regarded her with an idle curiosity.
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Posted: Sat Aug 17, 2013 1:07 pm
Still growing accustomed to new faces, Sebor didn't go out of her way to stop and say hello. She never had out in the rouge lands, either, but that was more because lions out there could be hostile. While she could hold her own in a fight, she never went out of her way to start one, with the exception of the one she needed to get into this pride. She hadn't really had someone stop her to greet her while she had been here, either, so when the male spoke to her, her ears pressed back in surprise. Turning her head to face him while she slowed her pace, Sebor sniffed before letting her ears fall to a normal position, her tail twitching just a bit. He seemed innocent enough, she supposed. The males here were very hit or miss. Some of them treated her like a child simply for being a female, while others acted like she was equal to them, which was what she was used to. "Hello," she returned, orange eyes taking in the mish mosh of patterns on his coat. She was quiet for a bit, unsure of what he wanted, and finally gave a little snort. "Can I help you with something?" Sebor could be counted on to be blunt, if nothing else. Her time was precious to her and she wasn't really one for small talk.
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Posted: Tue Aug 20, 2013 2:10 pm
Asban shook his head. Fresh blood, but not a thrall. Too mouthy. A temperament like hers would be accommodated here, in the land of brutes and bullies, but he suspected she'd find this disposition was better suited to the males: Immigrant females had nothing better to do with their time but chattering, breeding, and homemaking for as long as Njal ruled. Some time spent with him would have been the highlight of her day. "Thank the Goddess of Beauty tonight," he chortled.
Then Sebor would find her path cleared of any unwanted bystanders -- namely, him. The end of his tail whisked across the ground, roiled what was there, and an airborne mist of filth swept toward her by the same winds that had carried it there to begin with. Motions spurred by habit, not malice. Intent -- or lack thereof -- wouldn't keep the dirt from blowing in her eyes if she stepped forward before it settled again.
Asban was already turning, going, dedicating his thoughts to other matters.
SilverLutz If it's IC of her to walk away at this point, I'll make my next post a bit of a timeskip to their next encounter, unless you'd prefer to end it here?
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Posted: Tue Aug 20, 2013 2:20 pm
Sebor frowned slightly at Asban's reply. Thank the Goddess of Beauty tonight? What kind of reply was that? It certainly wasn't a proper way to answer her question, that much was for certain. The dismissive body language of the other made her fur stand up just a bit, though, and habit was too hard to ignore. Rather than letting him stroll off, she followed him. The dust billowed into her face, but she closed her eyes as she walked through, too used to the dry spells in the rouge lands to let that bother her. "If you're going to speak to me, at least say something that makes sense," she said flatly, pausing a few feet from the male. He certainly appeared very confident in himself with the way he held his head and tail. There was nothing wrong with that, but the males around here that looked down on females... they rubbed her the wrong way. Sebor waited for an answer, orange eyes stuck to Asban with a confident gaze. She had no desire to fight him, just clarify his rather cryptic reply. And maybe rattle some sense into his head for walking away and tossing dirt in the air like that. SilverLutz As soon as someone gives her a little attitude she's all over them XD So it's all good.
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Posted: Fri Oct 04, 2013 8:00 am
SilverLutz Sorry for the wait, yo. ;~;
"You're not in the roguelands anymore." He spoke calmly, and he watched with more intrigue than he had a moment past. The slight, sudden jerk of his head would have been more subtle if not for the mane that swayed with it. "You'd be doing yourself a favor to watch your tongue around here. Does that make sense to you?"
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Posted: Sun Oct 06, 2013 2:34 pm
The way the lion turned slowly made Sebor press her ears back against her skull and narrow her eyes. She didn't mean to make a scene, but her fairly easy to answer question had suddenly been turned around to another conversation about her 'place' in the pride. "I realize I'm not," she said dryly. "And no, it does not make sense. I can't speak to males without being reprimanded for it. Surely this pride isn't so backwards as to silence their females and treat them as nothing more than a means to make cubs, because that's what I seem to be understanding." She knew the pride wasn't that strict, but every time she'd spoken with a male she'd been ignored, belittled, and told to be quiet. It was hardly the comradery she'd been looking for. Perhaps it was the fact that she was so new and used to her 'freedom'...a bit of a change was okay, but so far she'd met nothing but resistance to fitting in.
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 9:56 am
In determining whether or not Asban's question had been rhetorical, Sebor would essentially be playing a guessing game. He'd been that way as long as anyone bothered to remember, always grumbling away in lackluster tones empty of any indication whether or not he should be taken seriously.
Oh, but he was a very serious lion.
"It is," he replied, calm but swift. Words succeeding those were pondered a moment before they were spoken. "You should get used to," Asban advised. By now his voice carried the distinct sound of contemplation. "As long as Njal is Warlord, these are the laws. His predecessor isn't liable to have your freedoms in mind either."
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 10:23 am
Sebor did her best not to growl in irritation, but it was hard battle. Her tail lashed instead and she wondered if she'd made the right choice in joining the pride. It was certainly better than being on her own in the rouge lands, but was it worth it? "Are there chances for females to prove themselves?" she asked sharply, wanting to know just where she stood in this pride. Perhaps, as a newcomer, she wasn't given any respect because they didn't know anything about her. She had won her way in, yes, but that was probably nothing in their eyes other than the lowest requirement to 'fit in'. "I imagine this Warlord wouldn't even entertain a meeting with me to ask him directly," she muttered, glaring at nothing in particular before looking back to the male. 'And what about you, then? Do you agree with 'the way things are'? You know that some prides rely heavily on the females to do the work and the males are the ones lying around all day. Most split the duties evenly."
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 10:45 am
Were he a mind-reader, he'd adamantly agree with that. The rogue lands exposed even the most able-bodied to starvation, illness, and perhaps worst of all, other predators. Like them. Why did he stay? As with most things, Asban had more answers than questions. Most were not that way.
This lioness, for example, was not that way. He waited for a lull in her interrogation before he lent further guidance. Starting with the obvious: "There are always chances. Is it worth the consequence is what you should ask." Njal had decided being Warlord was, and love or hate him, Asban did have a certain degree of respect for staring death and dishonor dead in the eye while the entire pride watched.
"You could try to speak with him," he went on, "but he has many sons and daughters. A strong wife with the same mindset. Many followers. You would have to entertain the entire brood." Several rowdy females ago, he may have smiled in a bemused sort of way. Maybe, just maybe, he'd have answered all her questions. As it were, his expression was pensive and he let anything directed at him fall to the wayside, ignored.
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 11:06 am
Sebor rolled her eyes slightly at the answers she got. Of course it was worth whatever consequence came along with it. Being looked at as 'that lioness that didn't lay down and accept it' was not something that bothered her in the slightest. Being challenged to fight to the death? She figured that would be the most extreme of situations. She could hold her own, she knew, but if it was up against a number of lions, she'd probably just leave. Nothing was tying her here so far. "You say she's strong, yet she agrees with this way of thinking," she said with a scoff. "Anyone that folds under someone else's paw without a fight is not strong in any way." She did notice her question was left unanswered and lashed her tail once more. "I'll assume you're not entirely satisfied with the way things are here, then, and just don't wish to be overheard saying such things."
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 11:44 am
The kind of blissful ignorance possessed only in youth had seen him through the months before he grew into adolescent paws. At no other point had Asban been 'entirely satisfied' with the way of the world, let alone this pride. He had always seen everything wrong with his home and its residents and the ways it all connected like a spider's web. He recognized that should one lion fall in battle, that could mean peril for his wife and offspring, his forlorn parents. Nothing was ever as simple as being said and done.
Thus, to a point, she was correct. Pure intentions could do more harm than good. Those were the things he didn't want overheard; however, his reasoning was beyond the scope of what she could hope to understand. How could she when the blood and salt in the air here had barely settled in her lungs?
Had she been here long enough, she'd have known Njal would never spare her a passing thought. She'd have known of Asban's reputation to protest through action, of all the times he had been publicly lambasted by his father for the crime of treating thralls with utmost civility.
Asban didn't pause, he hesitated. A rarity for him, grounded in speculation rather than uncertainty. "Why are you females so eager to shed blood and take slaves?"
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 11:57 am
Sebor waited for a reply, which seemed to be the common thread of this conversation. Asban didn't seem to be a lion who spoke what was on his mind, instead weaseling his way around the important questions to answer things on his own terms. It was frustrating, but at the same time she couldn't bare to bring herself to leave. This was the first conversation she'd had that didn't consist of constant belittling and being told to go. The question made her shake her head. "Because that seems to be the only way to get any respect around here. I don't wish to cause harm to others, nor treat any as I have been treated here. I just want to be a pride I can be proud of, both for its history and for its present strength. I like the idea behind this pride. I just wish it wasn't exclusive to males." She gave a little snort and glanced away for a moment. "That being said, just because I don't wish to cause harm to others doesn't mean I won't, without due reason. I'm not a pushover, nor a pelt to be walked over. I have teeth and claws for a reason, and I will use them if I must."
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 12:36 pm
On an average day, Asban muted his expressions, body language, and tones as much as a lion could hope to. Nothing bypassed his outward apathy quite like disappointment. He sounded off a heavy sigh and weaved slightly, bowed his head and frowned.
To him females would always be second best where the battlefield was concerned. Still, as Warlord, he would never have gone so far as to strip them of future titles. Instead he would simply hope they were above wanting them, that their nurturing instincts would get the better of them and they would bring some semblance of decorum and decency that their husbands and sons so lacked. At some point he had come to expect this of Sebor.
Hypocritical of him. Ridiculous almost. There was blood on his claws of the young and the old, the male and the female, the innocent and the bloodthirsty. More of it would stain them later. Who told all these newcomers they would only harm with reason? Being a viking was their reason. They needed nothing else.
"Then I would practice now and hope the next Warlord supports your cause." Spoken with finality and punctuated with his second attempt to turn, excuse himself from their talk, and leave.
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Posted: Thu Dec 19, 2013 12:42 pm
The reply that came didn't disappoint Sebor. While she had voiced her thoughts on his stance earlier and gotten no reply, this seemed to confirm them. She didn't comment further, letting the lion turn and leave. It was good to know that at least some of the lions here didn't completely agree with the way things currently were. She turned away as well, heading off in the direction she had been heading to before they stopped to talk. She flexed her claws as she did so, thinking to herself that Asban need not worry, she certainly would practice now. She wouldn't hope, though. There was no action when hope was the only thing involved. She would do, and she would find out through doing if this was truly the place to call home, or if she had been mistaken. [FIN]
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