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 Posted: Thu May 29, 2008 6:32 pm
Her tree was her home and her shelter, and right now Mchanga'Alfajiri was luxuriating under the shade the higher-up branches provided with her. Speckles of light fell down on her brown-esque pelt, the wind ruffling the leaves of the branches lulling her into a slight doze. But even so, her amber eyes remained open, observing the gentle roll of the grasslands that stretched on for miles. The tall grass was tinged with green, but for the most part remained dominantly yellow and dry. It was making it difficult to see prey, since they usually stood out against the bright green, but camoflauged well in the yellow. She camoflauged as well, so perhaps it was an even playing field after all.
The young leopardess yawned, showing off pearly white teeth. Ah, it really was a nice day, a day that was best spent lounging around. But, she couldn't spend the entirety of her day doing just that, and she she stretched, claws digging into the bark, muscles straining underneath a tawny coat. The leopardess stood up, balancing easily on the boughs of the tree. She climbed down head-first, no longer fearing falling onto her skull. No, that fear had been chased off a long while ago.
She looked back into the distance, and for a moment she thought she had seen something. But, she brushed it off, and walked away from her tree, intending to find the younger lioness Shishi, where ever that girl had gotten to.
A certain god was just coming to a slow, panting softly as though he'd just run a feline marathon. With the speeds he'd been getting Rio might as well have. Being the god of flight gave him a few advantages, not just in the air. He loved to run with no particular purpose from time to time, no goal other than to savor the wind rushing over his fur and the burn of his legs that let him know that they were working along with the racing of his heart as he flew across the landscape. It was the shade of her tree that he sought now, bushy ended tail swishing across the grasses as he let out a satsified, loud exhale.
"Ai mi! Now this is how every day should be! Satisfying to the max." He sighed with a grin, flopping onto his haunches at the base of the leopard's spot unknowingly. His wings and front paws were under the guise of normalacy, for the sake of not terrorizing any mortals he came by. He did, however, still reveal his braid, and still wore his head sash, and his tail was still no normal lion's tail, but like that of a cheetah's, but at least no wings or bird claws. Oh well.
Her tree. Her spot. It was suddenly being invaded, and she did not know if she appreciated this or if she did not. The least the creature could have done was ask her. Really, technically she did not know what to consider him. He looked like a lion, but his tail was more like a cheetah's or a leopard's. Perhaps he was one of those hybrid creatures, and if that was the case she might be able to pity him and not get angry at him for sneaking underneath her tree.
Where had he come from anyways? Alfa was sure she hadn't noticed him before, unless he was that little thing in the corner of her eyesight that she had seen before. But, that wasn't very likely. So, for now she put his sudden appearance to the back of her mind, and fixed upon him a curious expression. "I'm hoping you'll ask me if it's all right to doze off underneath my tree." Her eyebrow arched silghtly as she approached him, her steps languid and smooth. She didn't seem particularly upset, but there wasn't exactly a happy expression on her face. In fact... it was merely more curious than anything else.
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Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 2:14 am
"Oh? Sorry miss, I didn't realize this was someone elses' spot!" The god called back with an easy going smile of apology, turning where he stood so that he could face her instead. "I hope that you can forgive me, mi seniorita, but I needed a place to rest my head after such a long run. Could you help a fellow out and lend me shelter for a short spell?" He purred, sweeping a paw in front of him and dipping into a bow with his front half, dipping his head as well in a deep show of respect. Women, ladies, were to be treated with the utmost after all.
She had always had a weakness for men who treated her with the respect she deserved. When one got down to Alfa's core, it was easy to see that she was a vain creature, and needed being reassured that she had some importance. On the outside, though, she didn't care one little bit whether someone was polite to her or not. But, since Rio was, it was getting him places... currently her place underneath the tree. "It's all right, don't bother yourself with it," she told him, and without further ado took a seat next to the odd creature.
"You can stay here, I don't mind so much. I could use a little company to pass the time. It has been an awfully uneventful day." Her lips were tugged up in amusement at the bow he gave her, but she didn't say anything about it. She did like being treated this way, after all, and there was no way she was going to tell him to stop. "I'm Mchanga'Alfajiri, by the way. You can just call me Alfa, if that would please you."
"Muchos gracias, mi seniorita." Rio grinned, straightening as he was granted her name. "Alfa, I will, though your full name has a lovely ring as well... My name is Rio, just Rio, very short and most say very sweet as well, and I'd be happy to repay the favor by offering you some friendly companionship. Do you get visitors often, Alfa? Or am I one of the lucky few?"
The words he was spitting out in a foreign language intrigued her, but she decided not to comment on them. She figured it was something polite enough, though, since Rio seemed like a feline that wouldn't dare insult a lady. It was definitely a personality trait that put him in her favor. "Thank you, I personally think it's a little tedious, having such a long name. I scorned my parents back when I was young for giving it to me. I much prefer Alfa, it's short and sweet. Rio is a fine name, though you know already that it is my preference to have a short name."
She was feeling awfully chatty this fine day... maybe she needed company more than she had originally believed. "I don't, though that's because I will be leaving soon with a companion of mine. You are one of the fortunate few beside my friend that get to spend a few minutes chatting with me." She gave him a smile, though the formation of her lips in such a way was foreign to her. In the end, it was only a partial smile, the corners of her lips barely twitching up into the right position.
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Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 2:16 pm
"Then I'm privledged indeed... Will you be traveling or simply taking a vacation of sorts, if you don't mind my asking Alfa?"
He settled onto his haunches, fighting the urge to ruffle his large wings which were still hidden. He'd ask her for her permission to breathe freely soon enough, but he didn't want to alarm her by simply changing shape out of the blue. They were having such a lovely conversation so far and doing so might likely disrupt that, otherwise he wouldn't mind.
"I will be travelling, and I don't mind questions, Rio. If I don't like the question, I won't answer, and you can simply ask another one. Don't be offended if I don't answer." She shrugged her slim shoulders, tilting her head slightly so she could observe the strange feline out of the corner of her eye. He was certainly a catchy creature, and she liked that he had a tail more similar to a leopard's than a lion's. His way of talking was foreign, but that was an attractive feature too. Even the way his fur was, though it was so very unusual, was nice.
Hmm, why was she analyzing him so carefully? She didn't know, she was just interested.
"So, what brings you to these parts?" She decided to keep up the casual conversation, since it was harming neither of them. Alfa pictured herself easily coming to enjoy Rio's presence, simply because he wasn't do anything insulting, and was looking for genuinely nice conversation. "It seems that more and more often I have felines plopping themselves down underneath the tree that I've decided to stay in. I swear, it's some sort of phenomenon."
"Hmm, good policy to have, I won't take offense, promise." He winked and grinned, easing down onto his stomach with his front paws stretched out somewhat before him. "Maybe I'll be lucky enough to see you again in your travels. As for myself, well, I just kind of go wherever the wind takes me right now. I'm looking for a friend but I haven't got any clue where to start so I'm just wandering aimlessly looking for clues."
The total truth.
"Would you mind if I was totally up front with you, Alfa? I don't want to sour such a nice conversation but I need to stretch my wings a bit here."
"It keeps me from saying something that I would later regret. I don't need to lay out my life story to strangers. Those are reserved for felines I've known for a long time, which in total is really none right now." She watched him lay down, and after a few moments of careful considersation, she lowered herself down onto her belly next to him. Her tail idly flicked at her side, but she kept her head high and her eyes alert. "I would consider myself fortunate to meet you again during my travels. You're more favorable then some others I've happened to meet."
At his question, she met his eyes with curious amber ones. "I wouldn't mind," she said with a soft shrug of her shoulders. He could do whatever he liked, just as long as he didn't expect the same out of her. This was the respect she demanded. "Your... wings?" She blinked once, and then twice. He was definitely not a bird, but the only other thing that had wings were gods, and she was a little skeptical about their existence, having never met one before and having been given no reason to believe in them.
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Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 3:32 pm
"All the more reason to practice such a policy." He added with a smile, agreeing with her, though he didn't feel the need himself. Not all the time at least. Rio was more or less an open book and he liked sharing his experiences with others if only to give them hope, or advice, or something to really think about. Rio respected almost everyone's opinions and beliefs, or at least their right to have them, however, and would never go out of his way to insult such sacred values as one's own.
With permission granted he finally dropped his illusion, bit by bit, so as to first reveal his front paws for what they really were, his chest became feathered, his front paws retaining their furrier apperance but gaining downy feathers. Next came his wings, one set on his back near his shoulders, large and magnificent, so he had to tuck them so as not to prod Alfa. His tail's wings came next, as large as an actual falcon's wingspan. Last came his demi wings on his hind paws, hovering over his ankles. Now fully revealed the god stretched his wings up and over, shading Alfa for a few moments as they reached their full length. He gave a satisfied grunt, then exhaled with a soft sigh as his body relaxed from the full stretch.
"Much better, gracias..."
"It's the perfect policy for someone like me, who usually enjoys her peace more than anything else. Every once in a while I enjoy some company, like right now, especially when the company is as polite and nice as you are." She was being perfectly truthful. Alfa had always been a bit of a loner, though by now she was getting used to being associated with other felines. She had been travelling with Shisi for a while, and found herself able to engage in conversations easily with other felines now. She didn't dare associate herself with anything else, though. Not her prey items, nor dogs or hyenas. They weren't worth her time, and they only ended up annoying her at some point or another.
Her skepticism in gods was slowly being brutally forced out of her as Rio began to strip down the illusion and reveal himself for what he truly was. There were the wings, more than one set... and now he looked more like a bird hybrid than a lion and leopard hybrid. Somehow the transformation made him look more beautiful and elegant, and she was sufficiently shocked silent. All she could do was take in the feathers and the wings, and his weird paws. She was absorbing this shock as well as she could. Eventually she got over it, and eventually she was able to speak again with confidence and surety in her eyes. "Your wings are lovely, Rio."
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Posted: Sat May 31, 2008 11:48 pm
"Thank you for the compliment, Alfa, I'm glad you think so. They molt something awful in this heat though." He chuckled, speaking truthfully as before. "I hope I didn't startle you."
She was silently pondering to herself, and personally she knew that Shisi wanted strong children for her cause, and no children would be stronger than that of a god's. But she had never particularly wanted children before, even though she was a leopardess in the prime of her life. But... now that there was a cause for it, now that the opening was there, she couldn't help but look at it, observe it with a careful eye. Did she really want cubs? She was not sure. Would she mind having them? No, not really. Alfa could live with having cubs, especially cubs of a god. Now that she had come to the decision... she just had to figure out how to approach him with it.
"You're welcome. They look beautiful now, and I suppose that it is all that matters." She shook her head, laughing sweetly. "You didn't. But, I have something to share with you as well, and it might startle you. But, you need not pay it no heed if you don't want to." She decided that the best approach... would be the direct approach. She wasn't going to get anything that she wanted if she didn't outright try for it, and he didn't seem like he would turn her away for what she had to say. "I want to have cubs... I just haven't found a suitable male for the job. I want strong children, children that can take care of themselves if the time calls for it."
"I see...." Rio watched her quietly at first, bushy tail swishing against the grass and ground under her tree. It was a rther strange and bold request, though not unseemly. Lots of females in these parts, and in other parts, prides and the like-- wanted children. It was a privledge to be able to take part in creating the gift of life. "Well... If that's your request I can certainly try to help you with that." And trying again wouldn't be a problem, as he could travel quite easily.
She was admittedly beginning to get nervous that he would simply turn away and refuse to even listen to her request. She couldn't blame him, though, since she had been so forward and blunt with her wants. Rio had every right to turn her away, despite how much she hoped that he would not. So, while he thought to himself, she sat silently and in pure anxiety. Would he know that it was he whom she wanted to have cubs with? Would he be willing to give her some? Oh, she didn't know, and it was annoying her.
But... surprisingly, he agreed. She nodded her head, a slow smile gracing her face. "Thank you, I would certainly appreciate being able to try with you." And that was that. She was going to try and have cubs with a god... and it was somehow... no big deal.
(( End. :3 ))
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