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 Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 11:57 am
Bahati'Farai growled softly as he batted playfully at a bit of grass growing up from the mostly bare desert floor. He and his sister had just recently gotten to the point where they were allowed to roam a little ways from their parents, so long as they could hear when one or the other older lion called - and came back promptly.
Tapiwa had a habit of wandering off farther than she was supposed to, but Farai was a more obedient cub, staying closer to home, more often than not.
Today, though, he was distracted by all manner of new things - as it had rained a bit earlier in the afternoon. Such a thing was rare out here, and now there were all kinds of fascinating new scents and things to see and do.
Moving on from the grass, the little blue cub wandered over to sniff at a brightly colored flower and sneezed at the pollen clinging to its center. Shaking head, he looked around ... and suddenly realized just how far he'd come.
Oops... maybe it was time now to turn back toward home...
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 2:17 pm
Xibalba rested on the top of a large rock, enjoying the sun on her fur. It had rained earlier that day, something that the lioness was not entirely pleased about it. The birds had warned her of the oncoming storm, but somehow she hadn't made it to her shelter in time. Thus, she had managed to get uncomfortably wet, something that no amount of grooming could seem to fix. But the sun had come up, and she had found a suitable rock to sunbathe on. Yes, her fur would be dry in no time. Just the way she liked it.
A sneeze made the lioness open her eyes, lifting her head from where it rested on the rock. Where had that noise come from? She was sure she had been alone when she settled. With a small frown, the lioness moved to sit up, golden eyes seeking out the maker of that noise. It sounded too large to just be a little bird or a bug, which meant that Xibalba had to investigate.
It was only when Farai looked around did the lioness spot him. Aha, so it was a cub! A quick glance around told her that the mother was no where in sight, something that interested Xibalba. The lioness put on her best concerned face as she leapt neatly off her rock, and approached the young lion. "Hello there, dear, are you lost?"
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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2008 11:56 pm
Farai paused mid-turn, blinking up at the lioness that had suddenly appeared. He hadn't seen her up on the rock, but he didn't seem to be afraid either ...
Apparently his parents hadn't really warned him about the whole talking to strangers bit.
"No ... not really," he answered quietly, tone polite but a just a bit wary. "I live just... over that way," he went on, flicking tail tip in the direction of the little oasis they'd been staying in.
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Posted: Sun Feb 24, 2008 5:03 pm
Good, he wasn't afraid. It was always nice to know that lionesses did not warn their children about the danger of strangers. While it was true that the majority of the Savannah was made up of nice lions who wouldn't lay a paw on such a cub, there were always those out there like Xibalba. It was a pity that this little one's mother had not warned him of such things. That way he would have been a little more prepared. Now, what to do with him.... Perhaps she would just converse. A plan would come to her.
Xibalba moved to sit across from the young male, listening intently as he spoke. "Just over there? Well that's good. You parents aren't worried about you being missing? Surely your mother is out looking for you. Unless, she is busy with your siblings?" Step number one was know what you were dealing with. It was always good to know if she would be jumped by a pride or if this was just a lone family without a home.
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Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 12:33 pm
Glancing back once more toward home, Farai decided after a moment that it should be fine to talk for a few minutes. After all, he had never met anyone else outside of his own family before... this could be interesting!
"I'm not s'pposed to be back yet," he confessed easily, tail tip twitching. Eventually someone would come looking if he didn't show up, but he and his sister had practically been told to go off and play somewhere else for a bit - apparently mommy and daddy wanted alone time.
"I just have one sister anyway ... she's someplace..." he said then with a little nod. Probably hunting, or trying to. Neither of them was very good at that yet, but Tapiwa liked to stalk and pounce on mice that she found.
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Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2008 5:53 pm
Aaah, not supposed to be back yet? Perfect. The gears were turning in Xibalba's head as she listened to the cub. She would need another male to manipulate, to mould into the new, perfect warrior. Utesaji, her current project, was starting to get a little rebellious. Though she had gotten her claws into him when he was fairly young, he had a natural stubborn streak that caused the lioness worlds of problems some days. Thus, why worry about him when she would take a new boy? Yes, that would be wonderful. A new boy for her to play with. And if she got tired of him, she could always send him away.
"Just one sister then? And what's she like?" She would keep the conversation about his family for now. Then, when the time was right, and he turned to head back home, she would take him. Farai was but a young cub, and she would surely be able to take him out if he struggled. Yes, all she had to do was wait. And waiting was something Xibalba was very good at. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I didn't even introduce myself. My name is Xibalba. What's yours?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2008 2:38 pm
Farai relaxed just a bit more when the lioness introduced herself and plopped himself down in the dirt, tail twitching back and forth a little. It was kind of exciting to meet new lions, after all!
"I'm Bahati'Farai. Usually I just get called Farai, though... " he said after a moment. "And Tapiwa's my sister, she's all dark colored, more like Dad. She uhm. She likes to go out farther than me ... like more than she's s'pposed to. But then she always comes back, so she gets in trouble a bit but then it's ok again later."
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Posted: Sun Mar 02, 2008 6:42 pm
"Farai... .such a pretty name. What does it mean?" The name would have to fit her purpose for him after all. If it was a terrible name there was a good chance she would rename him, however if the name would suitable she would let him be. It would be no good to have her new spy in training named something like butterflies and sunshine, unless it was for a good cover. But if she wanted him to be a warrior for her later, then he most definitely could not have a name like that.
Xibalba listened intently when he said that his sister seemed to wander off more, idly wondering if she could pick that one up too. No, if she took this one her family would be more on the alert later. Just the boy would do. "So she goes out farther? Wouldn't you like to go out a little farther, see more of the world?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 2:38 pm
"Uhm..." Farai paused for a minute, frowning as he thought about that. His mother had told him once what his name actually meant, but he had to remember it. "I think somethin' like luck and joy..." he said finally, with a little wrinkle of his nose. His parents had obviously been very happy with their cubs, even though there had just been the two of them.
"Yea she does... but we're not s'pposed to. I ... I might like to see more, but I can wait til they can take us. 'Cause then I won't get into trouble ... she gets in trouble a lot."
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Posted: Thu Mar 06, 2008 3:58 pm
Mmm, not too bad. Xibalba could do without the joy part, but a name was a name. Besides, she could always just shorten it and say that the one part was the luck part and the other was the joy. Or she could just give him a nickname. She would decide later. Right now she had to decide how best to get the cub away from here. The lioness knew that her time here was quite short. Surely his mother would come looking for him if he stayed out too long, and she did not want to get into a fight with another lioness over one cub. It wasn't worth it.
"Aaah, so you're not supposed to," Xibalba said softly, sounding somewhat thoughtful. The look on her face was pensive, though inside she smiled wickedly. "Do you always do what you're told then? Never wander too far from your parents or do things that will get you in trouble?" If Farai was so obedient to them, surely he would be the same to her with a little persuasion. He would be perfect.
[ How did you want to go about having him taken? Did you want her to persuade him to come with her or to just knock him around the head and grab him? ]
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Posted: Sun Mar 09, 2008 1:03 am
At that, Farai shook his head. Sometimes, he did wonder what else was out there... but he loved his parents and was content to wait until they said it was all right to go farther. "I usually do what they say," he said then, vocalizing his thoughts. "They said when we're older we c'n go out farther, so I can wait ... it's ok."
Tail tip twitching a bit, the young lion glanced back toward home, knowing he should probably be getting back. "Uhm... well ... it was nice talkin' to you, but I should go," he said then, trying to be polite.
[ Probably best to knock him on the head XD
Oh, and totally unrelated... did you want me to start something for my cheetah girl and your lioness in the music pride? ]
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2008 8:36 pm
[ Haha, works for me. <3 And that would be awesome! In the Nchi lands or in the rogue lands, whatever works best for you. ]
"Aaah, pity." Too bad he would be seeing the rest of the world, as Xibalba had very little patience for arguments. Once she had decided something was going to happen it would happen, for otherwise she could not consider herself a seer. Really, it was a surprise that Utesaji hadn't figured her out yet but he was a bit of a dumb one. With any luck her beloved hyena would return to her soon, and her spy network would be in full function. This cub would grow up beautifully under her tutelage, to either become one of her spies or to be dropped off in some pride if he became boring. She would have to wait and see.
"Well, it is good you do what they say. Obedience is a very good quality in young males, I must say." The lioness smiled sweetly at him, waiting for her opportunity. Like him, she too could be patient. All he had to do was turn his back on her and Farai would be hers. It seemed her hour had come when he decided it was time to leave. "Of course dear, wouldn't want to worry your mother, now would we?" The moment he turned away from her, he would get her paw to the back of his head, in a rough attempt to knock him out. Farai belonged to Xibalba now.
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Posted: Tue Mar 11, 2008 10:55 pm
Farai smiled at that, not suspecting a thing at all ...and indeed, he did turn his back toward the lioness in the next moment.
And then he wasn't entirely sure what happened, only that his head hurt very suddenly, and he was tumbling, world a blur ... fading to greys, then black. And he was out.
[ XD Should we end this one here and start a new one for training? >D ]
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