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 Posted: Tue Apr 01, 2014 3:38 pm
He couldn't help it. It was just there, and way too easy. Ru turned and looked directly at Gyllene and gave her the most deliberate, obvious wink-smirk combination ever. Then, in a tone that hinted at all kinds of things, from exploding turtles to adult fun time, he promised, "Next time."
He twisted away to peer at the thrall he was helpfully squashing, not so much because he was concerned about being overheard. His concern for and about the thrall was barely measurable, it was so minimal. He was here to lend Gyllene a helping paw. The thrall was basically an object to him at this point. So mostly he was looking at him as one might a curiosity. He wondered at what point the thrall would notice he'd lost part of his tail permanently.
"I don't like the way Njal and his supporters discourage females from pursuing more martial ranks, or the way females seem to be treated like objects to be bartered and traded by their families." He knew arranged marriages existed from the stories his mother had told him as a cub, but he had never thought to see a freeborn lion submit to having their future determined by somebody else."
He didn't want to go into the fact that he also felt a certain inclination to punish Njal for the way he had dealt with Aesir's family. That sounded too childish. But he did mean to do whatever he could to reverse Njal's actions there.
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Posted: Tue Apr 01, 2014 3:55 pm
That obvious wink-smirk combination might have been deliberate, and he might have been joking, and he might have been hinting at bizarre ways of occupying their next time, but Gyllene's thoughts immediately turned to the more depraved things she could think of. True, they were probably not totally corrupt or sinful compared to the thoughts that others might have, but they were to Gyllene. His look gained him a wibbly sort of smile in return, as if she couldn't tell if he was merely teasing her or not.
When he turned to peer at the thrall, Gyllene allowed a quick tremor to shimmy down her spine before she cleared her throat and forced her thoughts to more acceptable things - specifically, what Ru was saying.
"I don't like those practices, either. I'm a little worried that I might be forced into a marriage I don't want - I don't have any family here in the pride now, but my old blood has me marked as desirable, and Thorgrim has a habit..."
Gyllene trailed off and cleared her throat again and finally glanced over at Ru.
"You can step off of him now, if you'd like."
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Posted: Tue Apr 01, 2014 4:55 pm
Ru's attention was yanked away by Gyllene's concern that she might be married off without her say-so. He fixed her with a glare that was actually directed at Thorgrim and didn't move off of the thrall for a moment while he made sure he would not do anything embarrassing like growl. He hadn't known anyone personally who had been the victim of an arranged marriage. Just female fighters who were discouraged from pursuing their profession. The marriage thing made him angrier, on the whole.
"Right," he muttered, stepping away from the thrall.
Ru was still glaring when he sat back on his haunches. "I don't see how you can be forced to marry someone. Doesn't the ceremony itself require consent from both parties?"
He wasn't arguing with her. He was fact-finding. The captain had only attended one wedding since joining the Stormborn, actually, and that had been recently. If the pride did allow marriages to occur without the consent of both parties, that was something he would want to work on changing, too. He had always been under the impression that a truly bold lion could defy any arrangement made on their behalf at the altar, if nothing else.
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Posted: Tue Apr 01, 2014 7:48 pm
"Well, of course," Gyllene's voice was placid and soft, though she had to speak a little louder once the thrall at her feet began snoring. "But sometimes the merging of old lines is best for both parties involved." She didn't sound as convincing as she'd have liked, but Gyllene only knew that if she'd been approached by Thorgrim and propositioned with an arranged marriage, she'd agree out of sheer intimidation. The old lion was big and strong and the driving force behind Njal's rise to power. "There's the issue of pride, as well. Old blood marries old blood, certain shifts in power require arranged marriages. It's certainly old-fashioned, yes, but.. well. It is what it is, I suppose." Gyllene stepped over the thrall and moved past Ru towards the mouth of her den. The sun was bright and warm on her pelt, and she closed her eyes and turned her gaze skyward for a brief moment, inhaling deeply to clear her mind.
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Posted: Wed Apr 02, 2014 1:44 pm
Ru shook his head. The dynastic machinations of the pride's old blood members were beyond him and, frankly, didn't concern him. If other people cared so much about it, that was their concern. He really didn't. He couldn't afford to. He had been born an outlander, and no matter how high he rose in the pride, he would not be able to change that. He might be able to get people to overlook it or forget about it, but he couldn't change it.
"Seems like sort of a contradiction to be freeborn and unable to determine your future for yourself," he said with a dismissive shrug.
"I hope you don't let anyone force you into something like that. There are always other options." He paused for effect and then went on: "Murder. Suicide. changing your name and going about in disguise for the rest of your life. Deciding that you are a seagull, or just general insanity. Marrying someone else and murdering them. All sorts of options."
Ru was so helpful.
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Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2014 3:08 pm
Gyllene didn't respond to his first comment, merely shrugged her shoulders as she glanced over her shoulder at him. Yes, it was a contradiction in all honesty, but Gyllene would do what was asked of her if she felt it was for the betterment of the pride. Well, so long as she didn't have to marry someone like Gaved or Kjar or Bruten or any of the Grei brothers, really. She could work with someone who had convictions and stuck to them, someone who was strong and handsome with black, black fur and pretty green eyes, and --
Gods, there she went again.
"Well, Captain Ru, if I ever find myself in a situation where I need to explore other options, I'll be certain to come to you for help."
There was a bright smile on her face, as though she found the entire topic of conversation humorous. Act insane to free herself from marriage? Well, it certainly wasn't the worst idea she'd ever heard. She wouldn't go so far as to hurt herself, or kill another, probably... but everything else sounded completely viable, as far as Gyllene was concerned.
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Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2014 3:20 pm
"Please do," Ru replied. "I like to be helpful when I can."
Actually, that was probably pretty obvious at this point. He'd just helped her perform surgery on someone. Okay, so the extent of his help had been to sit on the patient and prevent him from moving, but that was what she had asked him to do and he had no idea what sort of other help he could have offered in that situation.
"Probably I ought to get going. I mean it though. You can always come to me if you need anything."
It didn't occur to him that he could offer to help clean up the surgery area. He disliked messiness in others, but he was the sort of lion who would be totally fine having plates and cups and silverware littering his room if he was a human, as long as there was no food in or on them. The only times he could be bothered to clean up was if he was trying to impress someone or if he was angry.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2014 1:09 pm
There was something satisfying about knowing that she was welcome to seek out Ru if she needed anything from him. The fact that she didn't really need to assume that she could call on him - that she'd been given a direct invitation, well. It made Gyllene feel a little better about enlisting him if she needed anything. Anything... appropriate, anyway. "I appreciate that. And I appreciate your help, too, in helping that foolish thrall." Gods, she wanted to eat him up. Gyllene's eartips pinkened.
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Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2014 1:12 pm
"Maybe next time we meet it won't involve blood." He grinned. "Or, I guess if that's what you're into, you can always come watch me training. There's usually blood there."
Oh, no. Not showing off at all. Just inviting the nice lioness to come watch him do something he happens to be very, very good at. He knew there were some lionesses who came around the sands to watch specific reavers train, or just to "appreciate the scenery," as he'd once heard someone put it.
"Anyway, you're welcome." He continued grinning as he nudged her shoulder with his and set off. He could not even begin to remember what he'd been doing before the thrall found him. Probably nothing important.
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