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 Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2008 2:32 pm
Ithemba turned her head to hide her grin when Omoa said she liked the nickname. She was pleased that she got it correct.
"Ah, yes, there--" she choked on her sudden outburst and cleared her throat, smiling. "There they are!" she said. She started to trot, but held herself back as to not seem to eager. Eager cubs were meager cubs, or so she heard. She didn't want to seem like that.
One glance at Omoa's face told Ithemba that they both shared the same excitement. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to just get there quickly...So, she took a deep breath and did something she didn't normally do; she ran towards the rock pile. Her target: the largest rock in the center.
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2008 4:55 pm
Omoa couldn't help the rather large grin that spread across her face when Ithie finally let go and ran straight towards the rocks. She would have run along with her, but she wouldn't have been able to catch up even if she wanted to. Ithie was the kind of reserved spirit, she finally decided. But when she cut loose and simply had fun, it was amazing to see and something that Omoa wanted the world to see. She liked her new best friend so much.
"These are all really cool!" she commented when she reached Ithie. She saw the other cub's eyesight directed towards a rather large one and inspected it from a distance. While she rather liked the small ones that adorned the few corners of the pile, she had to admit, this big on was rather appealing as well.
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2008 7:12 pm
Gazing up at the large rock, her eyes completely focused, Ithemba once more realized how small and young she was. She was slowly becoming overwhelmed in the rock's largeness, even though it wasn't much bigger than she was. But no, she didn't want to become enveloped in her thoughts of the large rock. It was better to think of calmer things; smaller things. She didn't want to seem the easily-absorbed type to her new friend.
Ithemba's eyes wandered around the rock pile until they settled on a rock that was about as big as one of her and Omoa's paws put together. It was a nice, medium size. There was a crack running down the center that almost glowed. Ithemba walked closer, pointing her nose closely to get a better look. She licked her lips in preperation ot speak and said, "...Moa, look."
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2008 8:19 pm
True, the rocks were a good assortment of sizes. The one Ithemba was looking at was probably much larger than Omoa, considering the young cub was pretty small for her age. Indeed: Ithie was considerably larger than she.
Her ears flicked upwards as Ithie called her over to where she stood, staring at a good-sized rock with a crack in the middle. It looked like it was glowing. Her tail twitched and she bent closer towards it, nosing it and smelling it. The rock didn't smell any different, but who knew what was inside that thing?
"It doesn't look any different, 'cept for that crack," she commented. Excited, she turned to face Ithie and asked, "Wanna crack it open and see what makes it glow?"
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Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 10:09 am
"Crack it open...?!" Ithemba said in a harsh whisper, her eyes practically bulging. She gaped at Omoa, not believing her ears. How could Ithemba damage what wasn't hers? It was her family's. Besides, she'd surely be scolded by her mother if it happened to upset her father...
But then again...
It was only a rock, right? And Omoa acted as if she were around rocks all the time. Maybe she was? There was still so much Ithemba didn't know about her new friend. She wondered how long they would know each other, or if after they parted ways (which Ithemba new they had to), would they ever see each other again?
Ithemba frowned at the rock, pawing it gently. If only this one time, for her friend, for the sake of the fact that they may never see each other again, maybe it would be okay...
Ithemba stopped pawing the rock testingly and instead, pressed her foot down hard. There was a tight-sounding CRACK and a little poof of dust. Ithemba's heart pounded. She looked to Omoa for the next move.
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Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2008 9:25 am
Omoa's eyes were wide, watching her friend pressing her weight on top of the rock. When the huge CRACK sounded, she jumped, surprised. But she couldn't help but be even more curious, since the first little crack they had found had just erupted into a much wider one.
"We could probably pry it apart now," she said to herself, though perfectly loud enough for Ithemba to hear as well. She glanced at Ithie for permission, and moved closer to the rock, taking her turn. Putting her two paws on either side of the crack, and angling her body to pull from both ends (she had to sit down for this one), she gave a tug, and it barely moved.
Omoa blinked, furrowed her eyebrows and tried again. This time it shifted outward, letting her see a little inside.
"You think one more tug ought to do it?" she asked Ithemba, turning her head to look at her friend.
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Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2008 1:11 pm
Ithemba was glad when Omoa took over the rock-cracking for her, because after she had pushed down on that rock and broken it, her heart was fluttering and her paws felt weak. She had moved aside swiftly, wanting eagerly for Omoa to try. Ithemba loved honesty and telling the truth, but she wasn't sure if she could be honest with herself and admit that she had been surprised--no, scared of her own strength. She never knew she held such power. She'd never even tried to break a rock apart before, either. She wondered what other things she could break...
As she watched Omoa try to pull the rock apart, she finally realized their size difference. Ithemba noticed that she was substantially bigger than her friend. She glanced down at her own paws and then at Omoa's, comparing them. Slowly, a feeling of self-consciousness seeped into her and she lowered herself a bit, trying to seem smaller.
"Oh," she cried faintly, remembering she had been asked a question. "Yes, one more tug..." Her heart sunk at the look of expectancy on Omoa's face. Did she want them to break it open at the same time? As in, together? Ithemba swallowed, not wanting to feel that surge of power again. But if Omoa wanted her to...Maybe...
Ithemba took a slow step forward and tried not to meet Omoa's eyes.
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Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 8:59 am
Omoa glanced at Ithemba as her friend moved forward and gave her a reassuring smile. The crack was significantly larger than it once had been; she wondered what was inside! Treasure? Was it an egg from some far away land?
"We could do one on each side," she suggested, unknowingly reading Ithie's mind. "If that would work. Though I think it might be better if you just open it by yourself, if you want to. I don't mind trying, but it's your rock," she explained. "I don't wanna intrude or nothin'."
She had stepped forward again to break the rock one last time, but Omoa moved backwards, giving Ithemba plenty of room to do what she wished with the rock in question. But she couldn't help but notice Ithemba's change of character, that had just changed. Her brow furrowed in worry.
"Are you okay?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 28, 2008 2:32 pm
"I'm..." Ithemba murmured. Her paws felt clammy. "I'm okay." she said, smiling weakly. How could Omoa feel like she was intruding? Ithemba was surprised. She'd never really felt like she owned anything before, so how could she be intruded upon?
"You can break it, too." Ithemba paused after speaking, realizing she didn't word her sentence quite right and ended up sounding childish. Her heart was fluttering and she couldn't think straight. Her own realization of strength was clouding her mind with thoughts of doing damage to her own brothers. She swallowed and closed her eyes. It was just a rock, she told herself. Omoa was her friend and was going to break it open with her.
Ithemba placed a paw on the rock, leaving enough space for Omoa to squeeze her paw in, if she decided to. Ithemba hoped she would decide to.
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 8:31 am
"Really? Thanks!" Omoa jumped at the chance to be co-explorer of the rock, and eagerly placed her paw in a small spot to help pull the rock apart. Actually, she probably could use her two paws compared to Ithemba's one. Her friend was so much more stronger than she, but Omoa was only glad she was her friend in the first place.
"Ready? We'll pull the sides on 3.
"1...
"2...
"3!" and she yanked her end as hard as she could, slipping a paw into the crack to gain more leverage.
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 10:37 am
Ithemba's heart jumped at Omoa's enthusiasm. Perhaps...She really was a good cub. Yes, she must've been. Ithemba gave a quirky smile and placed her paws on the rock. On three, she helped split it open. Her mouth opened in awe and she gasped. She had no idea something so beautiful could have come from a rock.
There, in the center of the rock, were shining, purple stones that glowed and sparkled. Their light reflected off of Ithemba and Omoa's faces as they stared in awe of it all. The rock wasn't that big, and it was light in weight since it was hollow, but it held something so amazing within it all that time. Ithemba felt a deep frown creep up on her face and she felt a connection with the rock. Suddenly feeling stupid, she shrugged it off and looked to Omoa. "Thank you for helping." she said, smiling lazily. "It was fun."
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 10:52 am
Omoa couldn't believe that such an ugly-looking rocks could hide such beautiful inside jewels. The color of the purple rocks was absolutely breathtaking and she couldn't help but stand there and simply stare at all the colors.
She blinked when Ithie thanked her, returning the smile. "Thank you for letting me help," she replied. "It was fun."
Tentatively, she touched one half with a paw, separating it from its other half fully to inspect the sides. She wondered how it was made. Did it start off with one tiny jewel inside? Did it stay at one spot at accumulate dust dirt over time, creating the rocky exterior, but keeping the jewels inside? It was such a wonder.
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 11:42 am
"You're welcome, Moa." Ithemba said, grinning shyly. She rubbed her paw over her nose, looking away to hide her embarrassment. It really had been a fun day. She's met another girl cub and actually made friends with her. They even made up nicknames for each other. Ithemba sighed happily and watched Omoa examine the rock halves interestedly. Then, an idea struck Ithemba.
"Would you like to keep half of the rock?" she asked Omoa. Before she could hear Omoa's reply, she heard a great roar far off in the distance.
Her father was coming home.
Heart leaping to her chest, Ithemba tried her best to stay cool and calm, while hurrying things along. "You can take half, and I can keep half. So we'll both remember." she said quickly. "I...I have to go now." she murmured, staring over her shoulder. "Thanks for being my friend, Omoa." Ithemba said slowly, staring at Omoa for a while. A smile wiggled onto her face and she hoped, deep down, that one day, they'd meet again.
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 11:58 am
Omoa couldn't help but blink at the strange request. Keep it? She really could keep a half of the rock? It wasn't like she wasn't going to ask for a small piece, but a whole half? She couldn't believe it.
"I'd love to keep half! Thank you! I'll always treasure it and whenever I look at it, or see the sun hit the jewels, I'll remember my new friend Ithie." She grinned, dragging her half of the rock closer towards her.
Oh, she had to go?
"Well, I probably have to go, too, actually. It is getting pretty late. Thank you for being my friend, Ithie!" In a gesture of pure friendship, she approached Ithemba and placed her head on the other cub's shoulder, in a standing hug. Then she backed away rather quickly, worried she had overstepped some sort of boundary.
But she was still grinning from ear to ear, tail flicking happily.
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 12:07 pm
Ithemba gaped at such a strong gesture of friendship. Only her mother had ever shown her such affection. Ithemba swallowed harshly and blinked. "Y-you're welcome," she stammered. "Have a safe journey home." Wherever her home was, Ithemba thought. Wherever it was, Ithemba hoped Omoa would remember where she lived and come back to visit some day.
She watched her friend go with her tail flicking in happiness. Ithemba sighed sadly, staring after her. She was alone again. But then she smiled. She'd be back...
Her friend would be back.
(End)
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