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 Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 2:00 pm
"I had something small... but I could eat more, I suppose..." The idea of extra work did bother her a bit... but why not? It wasn't as though she had some big plans to be doing something else. Maybe getting out and about was better than nothing.
"I wouldn't say that it's boring... I find ways to keep myself busy... but it does get... lonely..." Weird to say it out loud, but that much was true. She had never had the energy to look into furthering any relationship, but that did tend to make her lonely... but not bored. She remembered her old training. She still had to hunt. She still had things to do... but... having someone to speak with was nice.
"I'm glad... it doesn't bother you. My old pack... we were of few words." True enough. Fight. Sleep. Eat. Fight. Train. Sleep. Fight. That tended to be the only words she heard. Fight more than anything else. Comfort and companionship could only be used for being closer to a pack member.
If you were closer to your pack, then you were more willing to die for them. That was what her mentors had told her. She could believe that... and she had probably left because she hadn't ever been close to anyone in her pack.
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Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 2:47 pm
"I guess it's hard to break old habits. If you were trained not to talk much, then I guess you won't for a while," she smiled and laughed. It was an obvious thing to say, but at least it was true, "I'm not very familiar with this area, but I'm sure would could find something to eat!"
She bounced a bit as she thought about hunting, looking at Ani with her bright, warm pink eyes. She was excited to be doing something so normal with someone else, because it made the activity feel so much more important and far less lonely. This much have been what happened when someone found a pack they enjoyed being a part of: hunting with someone else every day, and never feeling completely isolated.
Looking around, she sniffed the air and then turned her nose to the ground. It didn't take long to pick up the scent of a number of animals who had been in the area recently, though the most enticing of them all amounted to a rabbit. Or perhaps two. Maybe a family. She followed the scent, tail held high in interest as she wandered.
"I can catch something for you, if you don't feel like hunting!" she said, feeling like she was getting to know the yellow wild dog better. It seemed that the other was not much for going out of her way for anything, and expending energy for a snack was probably not her idea of a good time, "I don't mind."
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Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 3:08 pm
"Yes... I suppose you could say that old habbits to die hard..." Ani agreed, following the other wild dog as she sought out their food. True, looking for something more to eat than she had already had didn't sound like the most fun thing she could be doing... but, at the same time, she wouldn't have been able to say that she didn't enjoy having another wild dog around.
"I think I'll... watch, if that's alright with you." Maybe she wouldn't hunt, but at least this way she would be doing something in the general sense. It wasn't as though she hadn't been planning on walking in a random direction in the near future anyway. This suited her just fine.
"If you like hunting... I won't try to stop you, I suppose..." She said, slow to speak as usual, "I just suppose if I had the choice... I might forget to eat..." She probably would too. She only did the things nessesary for her survival because they were... well... Just that.
Things she had to do. Not her choice.
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:07 am
"That's fine!" Tumai said brightly, lowering her voice as she realized she was supposed to be on the hunt. It would not do if the scent just kept getting further away, because it heard her talking. Sniffing, she was glad to find that the scent was coming to her strongly on the wind, telling her the rabbits were nearby.
Sniffing carefully, she moved toward the bushes, crouching lower with every step until she spotted the prey in front of her. There were two rabbits, but she wasn't certain she could catch both. So she aimed for one and sprang at it without much hesitation. She was fast and apt, catching it with only a small run. She killed it and turned to find the other rabbit had tried to run but got lost or confused and had turned around.
It gave her the time to catch up to it and she enthusiastically charged, catching it and triumphantly returned to Ani with two rabbits in tow. One she dropped for herself, while she brought the other to her new friend and carefully placed it in front of her.
"I hope that's good!" she said happily, panting, "I got lucky."
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:44 am
Ani blinked a little in suprise... though that was about all the expression she gave. Even her voice was dead-pan as she looked down at the food in front of her and spoke, "You're pretty good at this..." Her hunting was usually more leisurely done... a lot of sneaking, a lot less running. Too much work to be running around like she had when she was a pup.
Finding ways not to do much was the most work Ani ever did on anything. Even when she lowered her head and took a bite, she didn't chew quickly. Every bite and tear was done in order to conserve energy. Getting the most done with the least amount of force. That was almost Ani's motto. And it was well-suited for her.
"How did you learn how to hunt?" She asked after a while, curious... well, curious enough to ask, but not to do much more. If her new... was she a friend? Ani wasn't sure. She had never had friends. But if Tumai didn't want to answer, Ani wouldn't press.
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 1:43 pm
"I'm not sure how I know how to do it," Tumai admitted sheepishly, watching Ani with interest. She had never seen someone eat with such well-paced, purposeful motions. Everything was done carefully, slowly, as if to some bar of perfection that Tumai could not even begin to imagine. She didn't realize it was because Ani was not interested in wasting energy, though she probably should have.
"I remember very little of my past. I mostly remember being nearly full grown, and by then I knew how to do most of the things I needed to get by. I'm not sure if I learned it all before I can remember, or what, but since I have it in me, I might as well take advantage of it." She smiled, bending to tear at her food with far less grace than her companion.
She lifted her head again suddenly, "not that I think I'm very good at hunting. Or anything, really. But I do know that I'm not bad at it, you know? I'm really not egocentric or anything, but... yes. Sorry, I should let you eat and stop all this babbling." She returned to her meal, smiling.
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Posted: Tue Nov 04, 2008 12:27 pm
"It's alright, doesn't bother me." Ani said with a shrug. After all, barely anything bothered her... except when something got on her nerves, which barely ever happened. So nothing bothered her. She supposed... was that a bad thing? No point in over-thinking it. Why put in all that unnessesary effort? Really.
The fact that Tumai could not remember her past though... that perked Ani's dwindling interest in... everything, "Really? You can't remember anything? Not your parents or... the people who mattered to you?" Honestly, Ani usually tried to forget them. But then, they hadn't ever meant all that much to her.
"I thought you did quite a good job... reguardless of how you feel about it." She said with a shrug, glad she was getting more used to the whole... talking thing, "The way I hunt isn't so... exciting." Really, it just about bored her to tears. But that was nothing new.
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Posted: Sat Nov 08, 2008 8:54 am
"No," Tumai said, smiling and shrugged, "I don't remember ever having anyone I cared about. I'm sure I must have, but it's like... it's like I just... started... one day, and that's it. I'm pretty old for a pup in my first memory, but there's really nothing before that. And I don't know why it's gone. But it's really okay, though, because I've never met anyone I'm supposed to remember, and I've never been made to feel bad about whatever it is I'm forgetting. It's hard to miss something that feels like it never existed."
She laughed and blushed under her fur. She chewed at the rabbit for a moment, enjoying the taste, before perking her ears forward and arching an eyebrow at Ani, "how can you hunt without feeling some sort of excitement in it? I mean, when I hunt I can't help but get jazzed by the idea of a kill, or even the fun of a chase. It's fun, really."
Her attention was drawn to her food as she settled down in order to pull a leg from the body. She chewed on it happily, looking up at her friend and wagging her tail.
"Not that I think it's bad. Everyone has their own style."
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Posted: Sat Nov 08, 2008 9:12 am
Ani listened, thoughtful, "How strange... but I suppose you can't miss something you've never known." Truthfully, she didn't really miss half the things she had known. But... she had never really had a family. She had never really cared for anyone... so how could she miss other creatures? No one specific, that was true. But as she lived like a hermit... sometimes she wished she had cared for them.
Of course, that would have made her miserable now, as they were all either gone or dead, but that was hardly the point.
On the subject of hunting though... "Hunting is nessesary. I will either hunt, and eat, or I will not, and I will starve. It's all very simple, really, so all I feel about it is... indifferent. I don't feel any thrill when I do it. I only know that if I do not, I will die. I wouldn't eat or drink if given the choice... I don't get anything out of it. No more than I would out of breathing. Though I suppose others like yourself might enjoy it..." Ani shrugged, not meaning to offend her, "I would just prefure not to."
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Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2008 10:31 am
"That makes sense," Tumai said with a smile, closing her eyes for a moment and laughing, "it is as important as breathing, so I don't see why it should be treated any differently. That's a very good point. I do enjoy a good hunt, though, if just for the chance to keep my mind off... of things. Boring or sad things, or anything."
Sighing, she licked her lips and sat back. With her small meal done, she found herself wondering how she might stay in this new friends company without an excuse. Though, she didn't want to keep the quiet, reclusive wild dog longer than the other would like. Not wanting to push her limits for company, Tumai sighed and decided that she should leave.
"I'd better head off, before I talk your ear off," she said jovially, "but it has been a pleasure meeting you, and I would love to meet you again some time, if you ever need company. I wander these areas, most of the time, and I can come back... if you ever felt like talking to someone..."
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Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2008 1:20 pm
Ani paused a moment and then nodded. She did... in her own way, like this girl. She had been polite, listened without judging, and seemed to be... well, happy. Something that Ani was rather certain she herself was not.
"I would rather like that... if I could see you again..." She admitted with a small nod. If she knew where the other wild dog generally was... then she would be easy to seek out and find. Which made Ani more inclined to see her. She wouldn't have to look very hard.
"You have been a good..." What was the word? "Friend... when I don't know... much about talking to others. Polite... honest... I will come back, if you don't mind... the next time I feel... lonely."
That seemed about right. And considering how lonely Ani often got alone in the wild... having a safe place to return to seemed like a nice thing to have indeed. Had she been anyone else, she might have smiled. But instead, Ani continued to look calm. Though more content than she had seemed before.
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Posted: Tue Nov 11, 2008 1:28 pm
Tumai smiled, blushing from happiness. She felt the tips of her ears burning. It was nice to hear those kinds of things from the stoic wild dog, and she was happy to have earned this friendship. She nodded and wagged her tail.
"That sounds like a plan!" she said enthusiastically, "I look forward to when we can keep each other company again. You're a nice person to talk to, for the few things you say, and I'm glad we met."
Not minding the lack of a smile, Tumai almost felt as if she had seen it regardless of what the other's facial expression was. It was in the air, and it was nice. Moving off slowly, she waved a paw before walking off, tail wagging behind her.
"See you again some time, Ani!"
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