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 Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 12:45 pm
-- AIM rp between Felyn and DFA (Tejasvi & Kianga)
The sun was past its zenith overhead, casting long shadows in the sparse trees littering the jungle's treeline. The bright green eyes of the young queen swivelled to watch her borders, though she was out more or less for a break, not necessarily to be a guard. Old habits die hard. In the distance, Tejasvi could hear the laughter of a few cubs and the simple thought of them put a smile on her maw. She could smell their father on the winds, and as such, she simply lay where she was - no need to interupt the little time a father had to bond with his daughters.
Her eyes shifted to stare up at the cloudless sky, tracing over the color there that graced her own pelt. Then, with a gentle sigh, she lay her head down on her paws and let her eyes drift out across the savannah that stretched beyond her jungle. Sometimes, it was simply nice to have a break from it all. A queen's duty was not always an easy one. She'd needed to get away; there were times she needed peace and quiet, and as much as she enjoyed the current company she dwelled in.... sadly neither offered her the atmosphere she'd once enjoyed when she'd been part of her pride. There'd been a camaraderee amongst the lioness which Kianga missed; she couldn't say she regarded Nadra as an equal as she had those lioness of old. They'd been wise... figures she'd once looked up to whence young, and figured she'd smiled and laughed with after hunts. There'd only been one male; the king. The rest had been female and while she did like her current.... home, per say, she missed those days more and more of late.
She'd come to accept the truth; those days were gone, as was her pride... alas, that didn't keep her from dreaming. Hoping and dreaming. It was that, what the pink lioness found herself doing as she padded the territory, violet eyes fixed somewhere beyond what she could see; distant hopes and dreams of a past long gone. She was unsure where her paws were carrying her, and it didn't matter at the time. She was a strong lioness, she'd find her way back later. As it was... for now, Kianga was content to walk on. Her pelt made her vividly visible against the savannah's background, where she padded, near the jungle border.The pink of the distant figure stood out even more so than the queen's - however, being raised in a jungle taught one a few tricks of hiding. Still, she pulled herself up from where she had been resting, her stance slightly rigid out of sheer instinct. Her eyes followed the female until she was within hearing distance, and then she simply moved her form out of the shelter of the few trees she had been using for cover while she rested.
"You are a very long way from anywhere," came her words, at just the right pitch to be heard without having to yell. They were niether cruel or inviting - they just simply seemed to be adressing. She saw no reason to be afraid of the lioness, and as of yet, the pink-toned female had not done anything that showed signs of her being hostile. She stood there, waiting, stance rigid and still and slightly regal as usual. At first, she'd been so absorbed inside her thoughts and memories she had hardly even distinguished the blue figure in the distance; she'd not been alert enough. Alas, she had seen no reason to. She'd been out in the open and she'd eatten well enough - Kianga had allowed herself to withdraw within her own mind, letting her feet carry her on where ever they might take her. It was what she'd done when the pride had been dispersed... and it'd done her well enough. It wasn't till she was within hearing distance that she finaly noticed the Queen, her violet gaze drawn to her like a moth to a flame.
How was it she'd never even noticed her scent? Had she been that out of it?
Swiftly regaining the manners she'd been brought up with, the lioness drew to a stop at a polite distance, her head held high, for she had nothing to hide, and her body relaxed to show no sign of violence, "Perhaps," she replied, her eyes setting on the blue female's face briefly, as long as politeness allowed before she turned her head to look at her surroundings; it was true. She was a long way aways from the den itself, "I've been a long way away for a very long time," her brows knitted together as she spoke the words, a bit of sadness washing into them, but only briefly before her attention returned to Queen, "I am not intruding upon your borders, am I?" where she'd sneered at Nadra, Kianga seemed to be showing an astounishing amount of respect for the female; after all, instincts alone were telling her this female, unlike Nadra, was not one she should ever cross.She had the spark of a warrior... a huntress, in her eyes, "Forgive me if so; I've been...." a pause, concern creasing her features at that point, "Dazed," she said after a moment's thought; the best word she could find to describe her situation. Tejasvi watched as the lioness stopped short, keeping her distance in a manner tha showed she felt the need to show respect. In her mind, the simple gesture made her smile, but she didn't allow it to show across her features. Her brows, however, did knit at the first words she allowed to pass her maw. She wasn't sure of exactly what she was saying, but the brief sadness in her tone was enough to make Tejasvi feel as if it has a lot more to do with a hidden meaning than what she was actually saying. As such, the young queen did the proper thing and didn't comment upon it.
"No, actually, but you are skimming it," she said with a nod, though her words were not hostile in the slightest. The female was doing nothing to show that she was trying to intrude, and in fact, her story about wandering was highly believable. "Our territory lies inside the jungle, and as such, you are just barely touching it here on the treeline," she let a weak smile spread across her maw as she spoke, her green eyes drifting out to the horizon for a moment before turning back to her. If she was this close to the pride, then she deserved a proper introduction.
"My name is Tejasvi'Nila, matron of the Nihang clan and Adhi-raj of the Kunanda'Nakhun pride," she dipped her head slowly with shut eyes as she said this, letting them open as she brought herself back up to full height. Then, of course, almost as an afterthought, she added, "I believe Adhi-raj is what other prides call a queen."
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Posted: Sun Dec 30, 2007 1:46 pm
Her eyes slowly passed the blue form and looked towards the jungle; ah... that made sense. With a small curt nod, the pink lioness offered the queen a fond gaze, "I'm sorry; I meant no harm. I wandered... perhaps too far, and perhaps just a bit too much in a daze. It's not often I allow myself to daydream, but the day oddly seemd to call for it," she paused, her head raising up, her nostrils flaring as she took in the scents; sure enough, the air itself seemed to signal a pride living nearby. Kianga frowned to herself and mentaly kicked herself; had she known, she'd have skirted out of the proximities. Her pride had been rather territorial after an incident they'd suffered where a rogue male had attempted to take over the throne, killing some cubs in the dead of night before the lioness along with the king, had done him out. She could understand the need to be protective, if not OVER protective of one's land.
Her ears perked as the lioness spoke once more, and due to being offered a proper introduction, the pink female did that what she'd been taught to do; she approached, allowing the stranger a better glance and a proper wisp of her scent, "Kianga," she said as she approached, seating herself near the trees, yet still at a proper distance, "Jua Kali member. Former," again the sadness washed over her, her eyes diverting away from the blue figure, "The plague weakened us till we were forced outside the lands," she need say no more; the fact she was alone spoke out volumes of just what happened, "Fierce sun, they called us. Small pride," a pause, "More like a clan - we were huntresses, females mostly, and one male. Our king," she smiled fondly at this, dipping her head forward into a formal bow, showing her upbringing, "A pleasure, alas, I was but a huntress at the time, being taught, is more like. I was young."
The queen simply nodded, a ghost of a smile on her maw. She never really showed too much emotion, simply because it was uncalled for in her position. THe less emotion she showed, the easier it was to deal with all her duties. There were really only a select few that she relaxed around. Her sisters, and Usha were perhaps the only ones. To everyone else, she was simply the queen. "It is not a problem. Had you been hostile, or showed some sign of danger to my pride, it would be different - but you have not, and as such, you've not truly intruded upon us." She nodded slowly at her next words, but could find no answer for them. She never really had time for daydreaming, and it was not something promoted among the lionesses to a grand degree. "I can't say I've ever felt that need, but I suppose I can understand your reasoning," she said, and nodded finally, as if she really were trying to figure it out for herself.
"We have many clans," she said with a smile, glad to be to a subject that she understood, "And they are very closely knit. I understand what it must feel like to no longer have them. Without my clan, I think I would be lost." She sat down slowly, after Kianga did, her tail flickering slowly behind her, "it is a pleasure to meet you, Kianga." However, as the female mentioned a king, Tejasvi's jaw gritted slightly. "I'm afraid that in our pride, male's have little honor. There is no king." She said it calmly, a slight shrug to her shoulders, as if to say that it was simply how things were.
"Daydreaming," she said as her brows knitted, "Is not something you, or I, for that matter, should indulge in, really... if my mother were alive, she'd tell me it keeps me from paying attention to the present," there was a smile on her again, faint, barely there, alas, a ghost of the former thing, "I can't help myself on certain days though. There's things I miss. A rogue life can't offer these things, and though I get freedom, and will to go where my paws wish to take me, they long to see those days again," she waved a paw slightly then, as if dismissing her own words and thoughts, "They are not thoughts that should trouble you though," almost as if she were berating herself, like her mother and pride members would have. Instead she settled and listened to the queens words.
Yes, the female before her was of a much higher rank than her, a mere rogue, however, it was clear she'd spent her life in a social habitat, for she managed to listen to her as she would a repected equal - someone she nor admired, nor belithed.
The words didn't seem to catch her by surprise; in fact, the pink female snorted mildly, albeit not disrespectfuly, "I can understand why..." she shook her head, her head turning to look over her shoulder, towards the savvanah around her, "Since I began my travels, I have stumbled upon many-a male, and none thus far have shone to have a spec of intelligence aside one, whom shows more comfort than intelligence really..." she nodded, once, twice, then talked on, "Our pride's king protected us, in a sense, but it was us whom did most the work; the hunting, the moving...ยท looking up towards the heavens, she closed her eyes, "I can see why one would like a pride in which males have little say... most what I've seen come out of of their mouths is nonsense and an excuse to get just a tad closer. I don't like it. It's disrespectful," of course, Kianga had beeen brought up in a closed enviroment, within very traditionalist lioness. It showed.
The queen nodded slowly, her tail flickering as she glanced away towards the horizon. "Indeed, daydreaming does not seem a healthy habit," she murmured, her eyes sweeping the horizon, the tree line, and then settling back on her. "Although, I do not think the present is necessarily what I would be in danger of missing. There are many things that require my attention - duties, questions, any number of things the lionesses can think to push on me." She shrugged, her eyes watching Kianga, curiousity gleaming in their green depths. "I would not be able to be a rogue, not after all these long days of companionship, of knowing my pride, and no matter the duties - my heart is here." She shook her head slowly, looking down at her paws for a moment, "you are taking it better than I think I ever could, queen or not."
"Have you ever considered finding a new pride?" she asked casually, her eyes flickering back to where she knew her own was. "There is surely at least one other that would be similar to the one you remember, even if it takes you a long time to find it."
Tejasvi couldn't help the chuckle that flowed from her maw as the other female admitted to finding no males with a worthy intelligence. "The male's place in our pride was set down for them a long time ago," she said with a small smile still lingering on her mug, "but I can understand what you are saying. I think, perhaps, the way they were raised here led to them being a little different from the rogues beyond our borders, but in a sense, they still retain some of their former selves." The thought made her quite amused, and she simply shook her had again, shifting her paws where she sat in the simple mirth of it. "They don't interact with us much, however, and we are spared some of their nonsense."
"No it isn't," she agreed with a small nod of her head; look where it'd taken her! Away from the den, almost traspassing into lands that were not her own. A small chuckle was offered as the queen continued, her head tilted to one side; she could relate to that in a way. Back at the den, when Ushaufu wasn't talking to her about A or B, Nadra was whimpering at her, and when she wasn't whimpering, Ushu himself was trying to get away from the clingy white female. Chaos. Good lord. They made her head feel like it was about to explode more often than not, "It was forced on me; I long to belong again. I searched for my own, high and low. Not one of them have I seen. I've come to accept the plague ate them up, despite our efforts to remain," she spoke not of the other female's duties however, after all, intruding on such matters was uncalled for.
A pause followed, solemn eyes raising to meet those of the queen, a soft smile gracing her maw, if only briefly. Sadness passed her eyes, merging with bitterness that disolved even as the queen watched, into acceptance, "I have no choice but to be strong; what would they think?" she looked up at the heavens then, almost as if expecting a signal, something, "If I refused to carry on," looking back down, she tilted her head, "I have," another pause, her ears flickering back, only to perk, "I passed prideland territory amongst a few others, but..." her brows knitted then, distressed for a moment, "They're not what I am looking for; I crave a particular atmosphere I've yet to see from any pride I've crossed paths with," she seemed to have trouble at this point, as if trying to figure out a way to describe a feeling, "We were a small pride; we knew eachother, each by name, scent.... we slept in the clearing together, all us females, and we took care of eachother, protected ourselves. We were a group. We were family, even though not bonded by blood. I was in fact, adopted into the pride by those same females," she waved a paw, "I've seen many-a pride. They're large... males, female, all alike. There's too many of them. I want that same feeling of camaraderee amongst the member," another pause, her maw wrinkling as if in confussion, "There aren't prides like that, that I have seen... all too large, all strange. There's so many males... I'm used to leading a life amongst females. We only had one king, and even he, was pretty simbolic. We were a group."
An ear flicked, curiosity writen over her features, "They don't?" she seemed to hesitate, but only briefly, "Pardon my curiosity, and please tell me if I've crosed a line, but... do you not mate? Do they have no say?" in fact, this seemed quite proper in her eyes; females usualy had more common sense, "There's a tad more common sense in your pride then, I'd wager."
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Posted: Mon Dec 31, 2007 3:08 pm
The young queen nodded slowly, a gentle sigh on her maw. "I'd hate to think what would have happened to us if the pride had been hit harder by the plague than it actually was. We lost a few, but we were.. lucky. The lionesses that went out on journeys brought us news of entire pride's wiped out, like yours." She dipped her head slowly, in respect, and added quite calmly, "I'm sorry that fate brought you such a misfortune, Kianga."
Tejasvi nodded slowly at her words, her tail flickering as she listened with all the patience in the world. She could understand the female's need to find a pride akin to the one she had lost. For surely, out there in the world beyond her jungle, there was probably no other pride like her own either - at least, she had never heard tale of one. Finding somewhere to fit in after being brought up in a certain environment was probably as impossible for her as it was for Kianga. "Well, my pride is open to you, if you would like to see it. We are large, as a whole, but our clans are not so much." She smiled, nodding her head just slightly, "it seems there may be a few similarities here that could give you comfort."
Tejasvi smiled, however, at Kianga's words. She found it amusing, such a question. Surely they had to mate, how else would they continue their legacy? "They stay in a camp at the edge of the pride. They do not come into the pride unless it is a matter of urgency, or when a female chooses them to mate," a devilish little grin spread across her maw at this, for she knew how it was in other prides, "we choose whom to mate with and when, but we do not usually keep the male as a permanent mate." She shrugged a bit, glancing to the horizon, giving the treeline yet another scan, and then turned her eyes back to Kianga. "We are, for the most part, seperated. The males only stay with the female long enough to raise the children."
"Fate," she spoke softly, almost as if concidering the mere word, then shook her head, "I never believed in fate; fate was what I made it to be," a small smile was offered then, a thanks for her concern, even if the queen was just being polite... it was nice to hear such words. In a way, it was a comforting.
An ear perked then, curiosity swirling deep within her, at the pit of her belly; it was a need to see, to sate that what burned within her, and she found herself looking intently at the blue female, "I'd very much like that," she said in return, nodding carefuly, "I would like to see," after all, if the queen's manners were proof of anything... well, she might have just found what she'd been seeking for so, so long. Kianga was not embarrased by her own questions; nothing further from the truth. She had learnt that the only way to understand was to ask, and to listen what one had to say.
So thus, listen she did, "That sounds.... intriguing," her head tilted to one side at the thought; after all, she'd been raised amongst females. She wouldn't miss male swarming around. It might just be.... perfect. Turning her head, she glanced at the horizon, "I met up with two lions, a male and a female on my way here, really... and I must first see to them. They are foolish, specialy so the lithe female, and I do not feel good just up and leaving," another pause, "I will see to them, and then..." she turned to face the other female, her eyes gleaming, "If I am so allowed, I shall return. I would very much like to see."
The queen smiled softly at her and nodded, "if you believe that you make your own fate, then you are very well suited for our pride." Her tail flickered, vaguely intrigued by the pink lioness and her tale. She had a feeling about her, like she did with some of the wanderers that found peace in the pride.
She nodded slowly to the female, pushing herself to her feet. "I would expect no less of you," she said, in reference to her need to speak to her companions. To leave them alone and never return would have been dishonorable - it would not do for her to join with toh already upon her conscience. "You are very much allowed to return, Kianga - there will always be someone near if you come into our jungle. Tell them I invited you, and it should all go smoothly."
She dipped her head again, in a slight bow to the other lioness, eyes drifting shut, "until we meet again."
"I will say your name then," she nodded to her as she too stood up, shaking her pelt, as if to rid it of non-exhistant dust, "And I will be back," smiling, the female took a step back, her eyes still fixed upon the Queen for the longest of moments before she turned around and padded away, in the direction she'd come from. Unlike before however, she no longer looked lost, but rather, determined like she'd never looked before. THe wings marked and edged upon her pelt seemed to have a new significance; they'd set her free. All she needed to do was find her fate; create her own. But first, things needed to be done.
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