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 Posted: Wed Oct 03, 2007 10:15 am
Ruffian raised a brow at Siri when she reached her side, but did nothing else. She watched the herd again with her brown eyes, making sure that the herd of zebra were still ignorant to them, and especially their position.
"Now," she whispered, barely audible over the sound of the grazing zebra. "You look for a weakness, one that it just a little less fit then the rest. Do you see one?"
She knew she was putting a lot of pressure on the adolescent lioness, but if she really wanted to learn how to hunt, she was going to need to learn right off. Experience was what made you a great hunter, not pure skill or drive. As long as she didn't get a kick in the face, Ruffian bet on Siri learning a lot today, and perhaps excited for the next time to go out.
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Posted: Fri Nov 02, 2007 9:47 pm
"Um..."
Siri's dark eyes narrowed as she scanned the herd grazing below them. Most of them were just standing there, eating. How did you tell if it was 'less fit' than any other one? But she didn't want to disappoint Ruffian, so she continued to search carefully --
"Oh!" Ears flattened, and she lowered her voice. "What about that one there?"
She nodded slightly towards a zebra closer to the outskirts of the herd. It's back was bowed, head lowered to the ground as though contemplating the grass it wasn't eating. Hip bones and spine vertebrae jutted from it's body like a ragged mountain range, and the neck was long and ungraceful. It looked like a shadow of the strong young stallion standing nearby.
... well, at least SHE thought so. The lioness turned to Ruffian, an expression of barely contained hope on her open face.
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Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2007 7:47 am
Hmmm. Siri seemed to pick an alright one. She offered a nod to the novice huntress. "That one is weak with age, but that doesn't mean that the mind is weak as well. The only trick with going after the older ones is that, while they might not be as fast, you don't know what to expect from them. There is a reason why they have grown to old age and escaped our claws time and time again. Just keep that in mind if you go after the older ones."
She approved.
"Good choice, though, I should add. Now, do you see if there is a certain side that perhaps may be weaker? A leg, an ears that doesn't seem as alert, perhaps even a bit more of a blind spot?" She coaxed the purple lioness to observe for now, in these first few hunts, until she would be ready to take one down all on her own, the practice she was going through now something that was quick and automatic.
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Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 10:25 am
"Alright. I'll be careful."
She hadn't even thought about that! But it was true - it had managed to stay alive this long through both strength AND wits. Even if it was only a matter of time before strength faded...
Siri listened to Ruffian's instructions and turned her attention to the male zebra she'd picked out. For a long moment she was silent, studying the way he moved and his body posture. Finally she spoke again.
"He has a limp. His back left leg, see?" She waited for Ruffian's opinion, her blue eyes hoping for approval.
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Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2007 1:17 pm
Ruffian nodded, agreeing with Siri's pick. The preybeast was certainly weaker than the others, that limp an obvious sign that he could not run as quickly as a healthy one. And with that limp, there was a better chance of it tripping, and making an easy meal.
"Very good. Now, the next key thing is to see if they roam towards the edge of the herd. Once they seem to hobble behind the rest of the group, that is your chance to strike. Less of a chance of any of the other zebra to spook and accidently hit you with a hoof."
She hoped that was she said made sense, since it was another important thing to remember.
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Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2007 8:01 pm
Siri gave a slight nod and focused on the herd. It was a long wait - for her, a least. She shifted carefully to avoid alerting the herd and to keep blood flowing through he muscles. Slowly the old Zebra grazed his way towards the edge of the herd, until finally he was at the back, the rest of the herd having moved onward more quickly than the old one was prepared to.
"Now..."
She paused, tense, waiting for Ruffian's go-ahead. Her heart thumped hard in her chest and her breath came quick, almost seeming to get caught in her chest.
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Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2007 10:27 am
"I will be your back up," she mentioned, nodding to the purple adolescent.
Ruffian had decided, in a split second, that she would follow after Siri was well, but only be as back up to make sure that the old zebra did not get away from them. This first hunt would be sucessful, even if there was a chance it might turn a bit awkward.
The black lioness' muscled tightened in a flash, old habits that never left her, as she constantly hunted for herself, even if she was just a scout.
"Now."
(if you wanna control her movements in your reply, go for it. X3)
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Posted: Fri Jan 18, 2008 10:52 pm
(( Okay! Thanks! >w< ))
Siri gave Ruffian a quick nod and dropped into a crouching run, her paws soft and sure underneath her. Her mind relaxed and gave the reins over to instinct, which carried her downwind of the grazing zebra. Her ears twitched, catching the sound of Ruffian slinking nearby. It was nice to know the black lioness was there. Blue eyes darted once to the side, but she couldn't spot Ruffian - Siri smiled. That wasn't too much of a suprise, though!
Her blue eyes settled now on the old zebra. She crept forwards, her heart steady and her muscles quivering with impatience. Closer...
Just a little closer...
The wind shifted, the old zebra's head came up --
NOW!
Siri launched herself forwards, claws extended and teeth bared. The zebra froze, his expression a mixture of surprise and something else. ... resignation?
Siri's mind grabbed control and she fumbled, her claws barely scraping across the old zebra's shoulders. He cried an alarm and started to turn, but Siri had recovered. She pounced just as Ruffian came in from the side. The black lioness killed swiftly, and Siri released her grip.
"I..."
What was wrong with her?
But... it was hard to taje a life...
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Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:09 am
Ruffian's sides heaved as she struggled to gain the breathe that she had lost in the hunt. The zebra's body was underneath the lioness as her brown eyes searched all over Siri's body. The blood of the zebra from her final attack was still all sticky around her maw, but she didn't care too much about appearances right now.
"Siri?" she called out, worried about the pretty lioness. "Are you alright?" She was worried that somehow, withing the scuffle she had gotten injured. That was the last thing that she wanted to have happen, but the first thing that came into her mind. She stumbled over the zebra's body to get closer to Siri, to check her out for herself. She couldn't help but nudge her sides a bit, making sure there wasn't a broken rib, or anything else that was out of sight.
"Are you injured at all?" she repeated, taking a good lookat Siri's face.
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Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2008 8:36 pm
Siri let Ruffian nudge her for a few minutes before she pulled away. Her eyes were fixed on the still form of the zebra, who had only moments before been a living, breathing, happy animal...
"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine." She stepped back, unable to meet Ruffian's eyes. "Nothing's wrong."
Ha, if that wasn't an obvious lie, Siri didn't know what was! She finally peeled her eyes off the carcass and transferred her gaze to her own purple paws. Paws that were conspicuously free of blood.
"I just..." She sighed. "I couldn't do it."
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Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2008 9:43 pm
Ruffian was still more concerned about the lioness than the kill. She only half believed her, though, and gave her a good, hard stare. She stood there for a moment, thinking about something, before her eyes softened.
"It's alright. I couldn't the first few times either. Perhaps we should of started on something smaller." Her swayed her tail, her normal trademark of movement. "I actually couldn't my first couple times, I had to teach myself with hares and such. They're harder to catch, but it's not as big of an impact, I guess."
She didn't really know what else to say, though. Comfort wasn't her strong suit. "It'll come with time. Perhaps when you're hungry, and need something to eat. Just remember to not do it needlessly; that is when you should feel guilty."
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Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2008 9:30 pm
Siri finally looked up, meeting ruffian's unwavering stare with a hopeful, unbelieving (and still slightly shameful) look of her own.
"Really?" Itwas hard to believe that this unflappable lioness could really have EVER had problems with hunting! Maybe she was right - Siri should just work on the smaller prey first, and definitely only when she was hungry!
It's the circle of life, she reminded herself sternly. Someday I'll go back to the earth and help them live too.
At least, that's what her Mama had said, and Mama'd never lied before. Siri mustered up a smile and realized she felt a little better. She was a lion after all - they ate prey. Someday it would be her turn. Someday, she would help another's life go on.
"Alright." She took a deep breath, and the smile became her usual grin as she glanced at Ruffian's kill. "Is lunch still on?"
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Posted: Wed Feb 06, 2008 2:10 pm
Ruffian smiled. Good, so she wasn't too sorry about it. The black lioness could understand just why she was feeling the way that she did, but she did need to eat! She was still growing, even if she was getting close to the ex-Mistweaver's size.
"Of course! You did help me, after all. No matter what you think," she said with a grin, returning back to the carcass of their catch. She peered back over at Siri, inviting her to hurry over.
Ruffian would still count this as a success, if only because it seemed like Siri learned to understand herself in a deeper level.
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