Seaki
It took getting used to - all the traveling about. Mpenzi wasn't used to roughing it as well as her brother was. She'd been pampered - one of the few hybrids born of a hybrid within a pride that catered to her constantly. Still, the adventure - it was nice, getting away from literally everything. It was - well, it'd be a lot nicer if Gaige didn't keep wandering off on his own to talk to that girl.
She didn't approve at all.
Not one bit. She stretched out, seeking out her brother's company. She was lonely out here! She made a small sound in an attempt to gain his attentions when she didn't spot him right away.
Painted Moose
Gaige was adjusting well to this new state of life. Having Mpenzi by his side was infinitely more pleasant than travelling with his mother, whom had only agreed to letting him out of her sight knowing that he was with his sister. If he could only get Ishara to be as comfortable under his paw then life would be so much simpler.
It irritated him. It got under his skin like nothing else. In truth he wasn't even that far away from Mpenzi at the moment, just off in his own little world, murmuring about the different ways he would show Ishara pain, when he heard her noise. Dutiful as he was he came to her side as soon as he could.
"What's wrong? You seem..." He gave her a weird look. "pent up."
Seaki
The young cheeton frowned. She didn't like speaking allowed. "Your being sulky and boring," she grumped. In truth, she was probably being boring, holding her brother back. Still though, it pleased her that he came when she called.
Perhaps if he didn't spend so much time with that girl he wouldn't be so difficult. "You should entertain me."
Painted Moose
Gaige mirrored her frown. "You're the sulky one." He pointed out. "How long are you going to mope about when I leave?" He knew nothing of pride life and the connections built within, so he wouldn't have understood the loneliness she felt. Getting a break from your travelling partner was a rare reward for him.
"What do you expect me to do? Dress in bones and dance?" Looking about him, the young line grinned. "I did see a hares den not too far from here..."
Seaki
“I’m not,” she protested, though the words sounded sulky and petulant even to her ears. She winced at that, and stretched, pushing herself up. She would probably always sulk when her brother strayed too far. She craved him being close, if only to know exactly his every breath and movement. It frustrated her that he wanted to run off.
It was like he thought with his loins and not with his head sometimes, she swore. The tiny cheeton was quite glad she hadn’t felt the stirrings of desire yet - she hoped never.
“It would amuse me at least,” she chuckled, the thought of her brother dancing in bones brought a nice image to her mind. “Show me the den?” She asked sweetly.
Painted Moose
If they sounded sulky to her they sounded twice as bad to her adolescent brother. He gave her an arch stare, and rolled his eyes with a chuff. Maybe it was a bi-product of the way he had been raised, but having someone so close to him all the time chaffed the male. He loved his sister as much as Gaige could love, though he wished she would cut him a break.
The world was meant for the taking, and all females that he wasn’t related to were fair game, so why hold him back?
“Well, I live to please you.” It was meant to be snappy, but he couldn’t help smiling. Gaige bumped into her, and led the way to a moderately sized hare den. Or at least, the exterior. “I pissed them off earlier, but they’re still inside.” He was hoping he had scared the mother enough that she would have eaten her young by then. Hares did that, right?
Seaki
Mpenzi gave a small laugh, immensely pleased. If there was only some way to make this last - but Gaige had his own desires and they did not align very closely with Mpenzi. She wasn't ready to accept that though.
She would have to, of course, but not now. She supposed she would show him a little slack though, and not sniff him out whenever he was so much out of her sight. But, being alone was boring and she'd never learned to make friends.
"Are they really?" She peered into the hole, snuffling to see if they were there. It smelled strongly of hare, and blood and it was enough to make her want to taste the blood on her tongue and tear it apart. Nothing she knew of had satisfied the craving yet, and she had an inkling that Gaige knew what the craving was, if she would tell him of it.
"What do you propose?"
Painted Moose
“Smoke, if we had a fire.” They would have pumped it full until the fur balls came tumbling out one by one, or choked to death in their den. “But maybe there is a rear entrance? An escape tunnel.” He had noticed that most prey had one to confuse predators, but Gaige had been hunting so long he had figured out their little tricks.
Someday he would have a meal worth eating on his tongue. To tear the flesh off his prey and consume them down to the bone was a treat, but nothing quite filled the ache he had for the prey his mother caught. That she would never share with him. If Tikoto was feral before she was absolute unstoppable when it came to that sort of hunt.
“You’re sweeter and they haven’t seen you yet. I’ll go to the back and flush them your way.”
Seaki
Mpenzi gave a small hum of agreement. She didn't know hares had back exits - but Gaige knew more than she did. She was excited. It was like a game - but a game she would actually enjoy. A fun game, and she was excited. She wondered if Mother had taught Gaige some of these things.
She was ready, patient and waiting for the flurry of movement that would have the hares right in her clutches.
Painted Moose
Taking care to be as quiet as he could the young adolescent made his way to the back exit. It took a bit of work to find it, as they had tried their hardest to hide it, but with a grin he found it. Gaige stuck one slim paw in the hole, relaxed his claws and started wracking out as much dirt as possible to really freak them out. He grunted and snarled, making as much noise as he could.
Seaki
Mpenzi heard the flurry of panic in the den, the hares racing towards her in an attemt to flee her brother. Her own heart was racing in anticipation. She'd never done this herself before. She lived a plush life - never having to lift a claw to get what she wanted. There were hunters for that after all - but that's not how it was anymore and
And she nearly missed them. She smacked the hare sharply on its way out. It wasn't dead, no, just dazed likely, and possibly injured. She was quite proud of herself. She couldn't hear any more flutters coming up from the burrow, and she pressed some of her weight on the weak life so it didn't have any ideas and try to scamper away. She puffed up a bit proudly and turned her gaze to her brother.
Painted Moose
Gaige rose to look out over the collected brush. He had heard the scurrying, but it was quite a weird sensation not to be on the catching end. Normally he would be waiting while his mother dug them out, or even running after the hares at this point. But when he saw Mpenzi with the injured prey he felt a surge of pride. His pampered sister was learning far faster than he could have ever hoped, and she looked just as pleased with her catch as he was. This trip was looking better and better with every passing moment.