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 Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2007 12:59 pm
 "So these are the Pridelands..." Usu said quietly to himself. While the cub was purely of prideland blood, he had been born in the roguelands. His parents and his brother had just gotten back, and both Valse and Usu were already off on their seperate ways on a daily basis exploring. Usu knew what to watch out for- what NOT to listen to. Anything with a gold coat is a traitor, his mother had warned him. Listen and nod your head, don't be violent or anything, know that you are a descendant of Taka, it is YOUR family that should be ruling, not theirs. And as such, anything with a gold coat (not yellow, his was yellow, that's what he constantly told himself,) was looked down upon in Usu's emerald eyes.
With his mother's warning constantly in mind, and the terrible tale of what had happened to his great-grandfather, the bright-colored cub headed out for the day, to get his bearings and to meet some Pridelanders.
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Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2007 1:11 pm
 ((Sorry about the huge image. Let me know if font color is too hard to read! <3))
As he wandered about the den opening, Hodari's eyes became wide with curiosity. The pridelands were filled with many other dens and other lions with a variety of markings and patterns. What amused him was that his mother's beautiful golden coat seemed to be a prominant color. He was proud to be of golden decent.
With Usufii nearby, however, Hodari was lucky that he was of black pelt. He would have no idea that it was his fur color that might keep him out of trouble.
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Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2007 1:36 pm
((That color's fine. (Noy has that color. XD) And I like big pics. <33))
This was Usu's first real jaunt in the Pridelands. He'd seen his family (the "royal" side, not his mother's side at all) but that was it. More and more he grew disgusted at the masses of gold. He perched himself under a tree and crinkled his nose, beginning to realize exactly how much work his parents had to do. This pride was Taka's! Didn't they realize what that golden jerk had done to his only brother?! He'd stolen his brother's birthright, his brother's lands. These lands belonged to Taka, and his descendants. The cub gave a small growl at the injustice of it all an turned away from that rock formation in the distance. Where those wishy-washy gold-coats lived.
He turned to see a black cub. He couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. Not gold. "Who're you?" He asked fairly roughly, his tone coming from the annoyance with the Pride, and not this other cub.
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Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2007 2:58 pm
Hodari, still caught up in just how much there was to explore in the pridelands almost missed the quiet growl coming from nearby. When he did realise that it came from beneath a tree, he cocked his head curiously and padded over to inspect. Once he was almost able to see the figure resting beneath it, he paused. What would be the smart thing to do in this situation? He wondered. He didn't have his mother to help him out, but he trusted his gut feeling in knowing what to do.
Taking in a deep breath, the small freckled cub then cleared his throat and introduced himself, "Hello. I'm Hodar--" But he was cut off when the other cub glanced over towards him and spoke. The other cub seemed rather annoyed and although Hodari was curious as to why, he felt it would be wiser to answer the question first. "I'm Hodari. I was born here. Were you?" Hodari wasn't the most tactful of lions, but he had some excuse because of his young age. Naive to many of the ways of the pride, he only hoped to learn as he went along.
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Posted: Thu Dec 13, 2007 3:57 pm
Were you born here? What the hell kind of question was that!? Only angered because he wasn't, the cub knew how vital it was to keep a straight face. "I was," he lied seamlessly with a single nod. Valse thought he was a good liar. Usu never got caught because he knew how to lie sparingly, unlike Valse who lied all the time. "Nice to meet you, Hodari." Usufii knew that, if everyone saw you as the nice guy, you could get what you wanted from them, a favor. He saw that as the number one mistake in his dad's "game." He hadn't always come off as nice. No matter how much Usu liked (or disliked) someone, he always put on a nice face. Not to save their feelings, but just in case they could be used later down the road. Pretty clever, for a cub. "What are you up to today?" Usu asked with a sincere-looking smile. As if I care, he added in his mind. His act, however, was like his lie- seamless.
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Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 10:34 pm
Hodari, clueless to the lies that Usufii was telling smiled when he was told that this new cub was also born in the pridelands. "That's cool!" He said, sitting back to listen to what else the cub had to say. If the two got along well enough, perhaps they could become friends. The thought caused the cub to smile brighter. "It's nice to meet you too..." And Hodari paused. The cub hadn't given him a name to call him and having felt as though he lost his opportunity, the darker cub simply waited until the other finished speaking. Maybe he could ask again later.
When he was asked what he was up to, Hodari returned to his feet and began to walk around curiously. "I was planning on exploring the pridelands! I haven't seen much of them, but mom says I should get out more. Did you want to look around with me?"
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Posted: Wed Jan 09, 2008 10:52 pm
This time, though, his response was genuine. "I could use a tour. I haven't seen much of the lands myself... Beyond what's close to my den, anyway." Usufii got up to his feet, rolling his shoulders on the way. "I'm Usufii, by the way. Usu for short," he introduced. What was the point of acting nice if people didn't know your name? "So which way is your den? We should go the opposite. That way we can cover more unseen ground, yeah?" This time, he was truly genuine. This had been his plan all day, and he could use some company. He supposed it was good for him... socialization and all.
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Posted: Sat Jan 12, 2008 9:47 pm
When Usufii asked about a tour, Hodari suddenly became nervous. His mother was always telling him to leave the den with his siblings and finally explore, but he hadn't really had a chance to check out much beyond the front of his cave. With a nervous smile, Hodari let out a light laugh and responded, "Oh yea... I could give you a tour. The pridelands are a place to see! Very pretty!"
And thankful for a sudden change of subject, he nodded at the other cub's introduction. "Well, it is nice to meet you, Usu... and yea! That sounds like a great idea!" Having previously been worried about needing to come up with where to go, Hodari was almost entirely relieved. "This is the way to my den.." he said, nudging to the left, "So how about this way." He smiled and began to head towards the right.
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Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 12:40 pm
Usufii padded off after him, unsure of how to make conversation. He wasn't really good at this type of social... stuff. He guessed he'd have to wait until something interesting happened... Or he could start complaining about something, that's what a lot of lions seemed to do when they were unsure of what to talk about.
"Awfully hot, isn't it?" he asked, deciding to go with complaining. His face contorted into a little scowl towards the sky, one very much like that of his great grandfather, Taka. Of course, the other cub would probably find it more unbearable than he did- he had a light colored coat and Hodari had a darker one, so he figured he'd have no right complaining about heat. Oh well, he'd already started.
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Posted: Sun Feb 10, 2008 12:02 pm
Hodari smiled as he led the way on the cub's new adventure. While he was still unsure about this cub, he noticed that the other now seemed to have a change of heart. While they walked, the darker cub looked about for curious things to comment on. He wanted to be an entertaining tour guide and explain to his new friend about how wonderful the pridelands were.
Before having an opportunity to say anything, Usufii commented on the heat. The darker cub felt the heat, but took this comment as though it was a direct attack on his homelands. "W-well.." He began, trying to explain that it was bearable. "There are also plenty of shady trees that offer cooler resting places if you'd like to look for one. And there's also small pools of water that we're welcome to play in. That would really cool us off.
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Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 8:10 am
"A water hole would be awesome." Usu said actually genuinely. "We could try to catch something there, like a fish or something." He'd only had fish once, and that was because his mother had caught it for him. He wanted desperately to try his own paw at it. "I don't know of any around this area..." He said glancing one way then the other.
He doubted Hodari would know, they'd headed in the opposite direction of his den. It was worth a shot, though. "Do you? I guess we could meander around until we find one if you don't." Usu said as he put his nose to the air and tried to see if he could smell water. His mother often said that once you know what water smelled like, you could find it that way.
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Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2008 10:21 pm
While Hodari's intention was simply to defend his prized home, he was very glad to have inspired the cub in his company. With a new bounce to his step, Hodari pushed on forward with a grin, "I know of the perfect spot!" And then pausing for a moment, the cub thought hard and then turned his direction. "Ah.. This way." He remembered visiting many watering holes with his mother and grandmother, but wasn't sure as to which was closest.
During his adventures, however, Hodari had never stumbled across fish. Curious, but afraid to sound silly, Hodari was reluctant to ask as they walked along, "So.. what are fish anyway?" He tried to ask the question calmly, as though he wasn't really scared, but as a cub, it was difficult to mask strong emotions.
As the two walked along, the scent of water became stronger. The watering hole that Hodari had found was one of the smaller ones, but deep from what he could remember. Plant life decorated the top, creating a perfect hiding spot for small fishes.
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Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 10:38 am
From the distance came someone's voice calling out, "Hodari! Hodari!". While the voice did not sound upset, it sounded somewhat frightened or worried. By this alone the small cub knew exactly who the voice belonged to - his mother.
Looking over towards his new friend, the black cub's ears were folded down and he wore an embarassed expression. "I hate to run, but it looks like my mom wants me back at the den! Maybe we can play another time, right?" Though he waited for some kind of response, Hodari was quick to return to his mother, understanding the need to stay out of trouble and not keep her worried!
Even if his adventures had been cut short, Hodari was glad to meet a new friend!
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