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 Posted: Sat Oct 11, 2008 1:32 pm
 It had taken quite a long time, but Motsu finally arranged everything that he, with the help of Thili, had collected and brought back to his little cave. It was layed neatly along one wall, organized into sizes and what the different objects were. Shells, feathers, vines, stones. All sorts of little things from the beach and among the trees. He had drug the now-stinking and still untouched haunch of meat his mother had left for him outside to get rid of the annoying flys. He was very hungry, but seemed to be punishing himself, not wanting to eat until he was finished. The little red and white cub had also taken the water leaf and filled it, dragging it back and dumping in onto the sand inside the cave. He did this three times, until all the sand was nice and wet, and began pushing it into a mound in the center, molding the sand into, what was at the moment, an ambiguous shape.
As the day grew hotter outside, the little cub continued pushing and shaping the sand until it began to form into a cylindrical shape, roughly two feet in diameter, and grew up to the ceiling. The cub had a lot of trouble stacking it to the roof, but managed, building around it to fill the shape out. His stomach continued growling at him, and soon he became light headed and had to rest. But, stubbornly, he refused to touch the meat, which, by now, wasn't very good to eat. Vultures had descended on the meal, picking it apart as the day wore on.
Motsu's tongue hung out of his mouth as he panted, even the moist air of his cave becoming hot as the sun rose high. He was proud of what he had made so far, but it wasn't finished yet. It was almost looking like a pillar that was part of the cave, and he liked it. But it still wasn't done. He lay down in his little hole he had made for himself as a sort of bed to rest, now being idle, his mind drifting to his mother and Sewelo. Those thoughts made him sad again and he sighed heavily. He wasn't sure how badly Sewelo was hurt...he couldn't remember much of the fight any more. And his mother...she hadn't come by at all. She was still angry with him, he was sure.
Depressed again, the hope that had swelled in his chest earlier when with Thili deflated. He no longer felt very confident in what he was doing...would this make his family forgive him? Would they love him again? Take him back?
Tearing up a little, the weary cub rose and went back to pace around his 'sculpture' frowning. What would make this even better? Then as it began to get late and the sun drooped in the sky, he noticed the light coming into the cave and hitting the pillar of sand. "That's it!" He remembered his dream, the shimmering tree of rainbows, and knew exactly what he needed to do. He darted out of the cave, heading towards the one he had discovered the first day with his mother. His steps slowed as he neared, however, as he stalked closer to his family's den. He cringed, scared of being close, wondering if he mother was inside, ready to scold him again, or worse, ignore him completely...
But he had to get into that cave! So, darting inside, he was relieved to find no one there. The large cave was empty and dim, and he trotted straight to the back of the cave, grunting as he shoved a rock aside and revealed a small dark hole. Without hesitation, the cub crawled inside, crawling the few feet before it grew taller and he stood, crawling through the narrow space with excitement as he saw a soft green glow ahead, and smelled the sweet water within.
A minute later, he came out in the large cave, the stalagtites and stalagmites glistening wet, the sound of dripping water echoing around him. A small pond sat to one side, and the walls and ceiling were glowing, crawling with glowing grubs. But there was what he came for. The walls shone with clear crystals of all shapes and sizes, some larger than the cub. He headed over and began pulling some off, making a pile in front of the enterance. It would take a while to get them all out, but it would be worth it.
An empty stomach made the work harder, though, and after making a small pile, Motsu rested beside it, sleepy and hungry. Maybe he should have eaten...licking his lips, he headed to the pond of sweet water, drinking deeply to fill his tummy.
Wiping the water from his chin, Motsu sighed heavily, feeling a little better and going to his pile of crystals. He picked several up in his mouth, the smaller ones, and began crawling back out, setting them just outside in the first cave, and going back in. He made almost six trips before he finished carrying them all out and lay them down. He'd need something to carry them in...a leaf. The ones in his cave were being used to hold things...so he headed out towards the trees to get some more large leaves, leaving his pile of crystals next to the open hole in the wall. Night was falling, but the cub pressed on, climbing up into a tree to get the large leaves that he needed.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 1:18 pm
'Lost in your eyes' the young mother had the words going through her mind as she and Thili gathered food and water for their son. It was the pools of silver that captured her and refused to let her go, and he talked of her eyes. So long the only love she knew was the love between sisters and the love she had with her cubs, it was so wonderful to add romantic love to that list. Her life was complete, her life was happy. Well, it had been before she got to the cave and discovered her son wasn't in it.
Dropping the leaf with the water in it, panic set in really quick. She could see the things he gathered and the evidence of the work he had done, but none of it really hit home yet. Rushing it, it was luck alone that kept her from destroying and messing up what he had created; the cave was only big enough for one full grown lion with just a little room to the side. Backing up, she was stiff with terror, "He isn't here, he isn't here! Where is my baby, where is Motsu?" While the questions were said in Thili's direction, they weren't exactly directed at him. She would have asked them to air if she felt it would help. They also weren't meant to sound accusatory either, while he had been the last to see Motsu and might know where to find him, worry more then anything fuled her.
Weaving around Thili and the leaf, mother instinct was in full blown mode. She moved to where she was close to the jungle. Ears going back, air in, a second later she let out powerful roar. It wasn't one of anger that she had unleashed just the day before when the cries of pain reached her, no, it was a mother's call for her cubs to come home. Everyone else was in the cave with Sewelo, they would know she wasn't calling for them, it was Motsu she was calling for as the fears of something cubnapping him filled her mind with sticky, dark dread.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 1:34 pm
Life was so perfect at the moment… well, ok, it wasn’t. Thili knew that, logically, there was a lot wrong in his life right now. He still hadn’t met Kam and Jethro officially, still hadn’t made it clear to Kam that he intended to stay with Senny forever, Motsu was having emotional issues, Sewelo was still injured… yeah. There was still much to do. But, at the same time, things seemed pretty good. He and Senny could handle whatever the world threw at them. With this thought firmly in mind, he trotted at Senatla’s side, holding a haunch of zebra in his mouth.
That is, they could handle anything except for a missing cub. Once again, Thili’s mouth dropped open and the meat rolled in the sand. Again. He really had to stop doing that. But… Motsu was missing! That was far more important than meat. His ears pressed back automatically as Senny asked him where Motsu was; it sounded accusatory to him, especially since he had seen Motsu last.
“Senny… let’s not lose our heads about this,” he said soothingly, although panic was taking over him as well. The idea of losing a cub, any cub, was hard enough. The fact that it was Motsu… well, they had to find him, and soon. “There’s no danger around here. And he couldn’t have wandered very far…” images of a cubnapper danced in his mind, some nefarious lion just looking for someone confused and having problems like Motsu. He was… vulnerable right now. Tracks! Yes, tracks… the nice thing about living on a beach was all the sand, and that sand---especially this soft wet sand----held tracks remarkably well.
Why was the sand wet anyway? It was in the cave, so it should’ve been dry… Thili sniffed Motsu’s tracks, taking in the cub’s scent before setting off towards the jungle. The trees. The cubs were all part leopard and the red and white cub in particular, Thili recalled, had a talent for scaling trees when he wanted to be alone.
“MOTSU! It’s alright… we’re not angry. Just… please, come down…” hopefully, he was somewhere in those branches. Somewhere. If he wasn’t…
Thili didn’t want to think where else he could be. The waves could be treacherous.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 1:42 pm
Motsu had several large leaves in his mouth and was in the process of tearing another off when his mother's roar reached him. His eyes went wide and he turned towards the rocks in shock, then a fear gripped his chest. She had found out he left the cave...was Momma going to be angry with him? His tail curled under between his back legs, ears pressing to the sides of his head as he turned and began climbing down, hearing Thili calling him.
A bush rustled as he jumped to the ground and hurried out of the trees, head hanging, mouthful of leafs in his face. He was half-crouched as he ran, afraid and guilty. He trembled as he looked up to see Thili and his Mother and lowered his gaze, spitting the leaves out. "I...uh..." He looked away, brow furrowed, unable to speak. He was going to be punished again...but...he had to get these things for what he was making! So he could show them...that he was sorry, that he wanted to come back home. Tears welled up in his eyes, "I'm...sorry..." He muttered softly.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 2:00 pm
Had she been less worried with her whole thought process on Motsu, she would have noticed how Thili took her questions. His trying to soothe her didn't work too well and she responded as her eyes searched for her little boy, "There aren't patrols around yet, if a rogue came in and saw him, or he went too far into the waves.." She didn't finish, her imagination was doing more harm than anything.
Fear had her, all the things that could happen to a young cub. He could have gotten into another fight, run away like she had when she was a cub, so many dangers. She had to know he was alright and unhurt, there was no being empirical about it.
Then the sounds of the rustling bush caught her attention and she turned her eyes from the waves back to the jungle. Out of the bushes came a very terrified cub. Allowing no time for words, she rushed forward checking him over completely, she would not be able to relax until she was sure there were no signs of trauma. "Motsu, you shouldn't have gone off like that, I was so scared." Logically, she knew he couldn't just come to the cave and tell her, and she hadn't asked anyone to watch him. Therefore, there was no way he could have told her where he was going, but it didn't lesson how worried she been. There was no anger in her eyes, she relief he was alright, none of her worries had come true.
With danger gone, she was cooling back into the same steady mother she always was, it was the inexperince of handling crisis that had showed that very cub like side of her. She was growing, slowly but shirly she had only grown from a cub herself six months ago or so, it was a bit of an uneven growth and a down side of having such a big heart.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 2:20 pm
No patrols yet? Oh dear… that wasn’t good. Not every rogue out there was as friendly as Thili.
Thili let out a sigh of relief as Motsu emerged from the trees; honestly, right now, he was far too relieved to be angry at the cub. At least he hadn’t wandered very far. And he hadn’t been snatched up by some cubsnatcher eager to get a more exotic hybrid. Or been taken by the waves. He glanced back towards the beach, suddenly realizing just how dangerous the waves could be for a cub. Mentally, he made a note to try and find a place where the undertow wasn’t so… severe, a place where he could take the cubs swimming, if they ever wanted to.
“It’s alright, Motsu… we were just worried about you,” he said, smiling softly at the cub. At least he was safe. Honestly, Thili should have stayed around to make sure he stayed in the cave or something. But, he had to see how Sewelo was doing… ah well. What was done was done. And nothing harmful had come from this, so there was no point in angsting about what could have happened. “We… err… brought you some food and water.”
Actually, now that he reflected on what was back at the den, he remembered the festering hunk of meat just outside of it. Motsu hadn’t been eating much, clearly. Hopefully he had been drinking, at least. A lion could go without eating for a while, but not without drinking. Instead, the cub had evidently decided that collecting leaves was more important than eating.
“Senny,” he said very gently. “He couldn’t have told any of us that he needed to leave the cave.” He wasn’t trying to make Senatla feel bad or anything; he merely didn’t want Motsu to feel guilty over something he couldn’t control.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 2:52 pm
Motsu quivered as his mother looked him over, not looking up at her. She had wanted him to tell her where he had gone? She hadn't even spoken to him since yesterday...said nothing when she left the food and water. His trembling slowed, but his head remained hung in shame. "I'm fine...I'm not hungry. I have to finish..." He stepped away from his mother, unsure of how to act around her at the moment. "I'm...going back to the cave now, Mom...I won't leave again." He said, though he remembered he had to get the crystals first. He stooped to pick up the leaves, shoving them back in his mouth. His stomach rumbled, but he ignored it, hoping that the adults didn't hear. He didn't think he could eat anything...he felt like he was going to be sick just thinking about it.
Skirting around both lions, he trotted back up to the rocks without another word, wanting to escape being yelled at. Maybe...if he asked nicely, Thili would grab the crystals for him? He needed them before tomorrow morning. He was sure his mother didn't want to speak with him. He knew she cared about him, but...she didn't seem to love him any more. She was still angry, he was sure.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 3:04 pm
She was alright, Motsu was fine and thats all she needed to know. Thili didn't know the punishment, how she had laid it down, his correcting her seemed to her as usurping her decision. Motsu was told to stay in the cave; it had only been a full day! Sure, they were supposed to have open communication, but in front of Motsu wasn't the time. Poor cub was already so upset he didn't need his punishment spoke again. Instead, Sen stayed silent, but her tell was screaming as her back paw twitched violently.
This joint parenting was new to her; she had to fight to understand it when it wasn’t all sunshine and zebra legs. More than likely she was overreacting and it wasn't as bad as it looked. They wouldn't know, she felt perfectly secure in the idea that the foot twitching wouldn't mean to them what it really meant.
Motsu looked skin in bones himself, without knowing he didn't eat last night, she couldn't completely understand it. She hadn't eaten either, since that time, thought was much more used to hunger then her young son.
When Motsu tried to run away, she moved around Thili, not brushing against the lion as she moved, "Motsu, we need to talk, but you are going to eat while we do." Oh, he was, even if it was just a little, she had to know he was eating well.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 3:10 pm
It felt a little strange to correct Senatla like that, especially in front of the cub. Maybe if he had actually been the father---like, biologically---and had been there for Motsu’s whole life, it wouldn’t have felt so strange, but… well, they had agreed on a few things: one of those things had been to always, always put the cubs first. And making Motsu feel guilty for something that wasn’t his fault just… wouldn’t be good for the cub. Thili only vaguely noticed that Senny’s paw was twitching; he assumed that simply meant it was in pain. When Motsu apologized and skirted around the adults, Thili stood up, perfectly ready to chase after the cub. But…
A glance at Senny stopped him, reminding him of his place. He was still an outsider to this family, in many ways. Besides… she needed some time alone with her son. A far bigger clue of her annoyance with him was the fact that she didn’t brush by him. For a little while, they had been brushing against each other as often as they could, just for the sake of it. Now that it wasn’t there, Thili had a vague feeling that he had messed something up, somehow.
While Senatla and Motsu went back to the other cave, Thili headed back to get more zebra. He wasn’t about to try and feed his son something that had been rolled in the sand! All of those sand grains could not be healthy for a growing cub. “I’ll go get some more zebra while you two talk, alright?” he looked back over his shoulder at the pair, making sure that Senny understood that he wasn’t running away or anything. Just wanted them to have their chance to talk.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 3:18 pm
The young cub stopped in his tracks as his mother called to him, his body crouching once more, ears tilted down, gaze on the ground, tail curling between legs. He sat the leaves back down, licking his lips as the nasty taste. "I'm not hungry." he protested weakly. He didn't deserve to eat anything, not yet. "I gotta finish...Sewelo's...present..." His voice had lowered at that, pouting as he stared at the sand and rocks underfoot, gazing at the dark shapes of the leaves he had collected. The moonlight was so bright out that it was easy to see, and the cool air washed over the cub, making his fur ruffle. "You...said I could leave when...I figured out what to do..." Another soft protest against the expected telling off. He heard Thili leave, and wondered briefly why he felt bad. Did he expect Thili to stand up for him? Tell his mother that he wasn't doing harm, was working to earn his forgiveness? They were still some distance from his little cave, a short climb up, and he thought of the meat he had set outside. The vultures had gotten to it, maybe his mother didn't know he hadn't eaten.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 3:30 pm
Sen and Motsu had two different ideas about deserving to eat. His weak protests didn't sway her. While aware that Thili had left to get more food, she had only briefly looked at him before giving Motsu her full attention. That was probably the last thing he wanted at the moment. It killed her to see her cub cowering in front of her, all she wanted to do was be a good mother and see how it was turning out. "Well, then eat a little to make me feel better, Motsu. You look skinnier already, please son, eat something. As an adult you may need to go a little while without food, but you are too young to go without at least a little bit." It was probably very unfair to use his feelings for her against him like that. Partly, it was to see if he cared enough to eat just to make her happy, and because he obviously needed food. She had grown up without food as a cub, days without anything to eat and less to drink. There was no way her son was going to suffer as she had.
It was a sweet idea, to make his brother a present, one she fully approved of, "You can, but Sewelo is sleeping, there is plenty of time to make him something after you have eaten and we have talked." She hadn't explained the full reason for the punishment last night because it was all raw, how she to know he would leave after one day? Even being an active cub, one day was the last thing she expected.
There was no yelling when she answered him, "I did, but I didn't expect you to do so after only one day. I wanted to give you time alone to think about what you had done before I came back to talk to you. You running off alone before I had a chance was terrifying. I am not mad, especially since you had time to talk with Thili and it went well. This time you were out alone, that is not safe." He was trying, she knew that, but it didn't take away the cold sting left over from the ice that hit her stomach when she found her son missing. Of course, if she had known he went back into that cave when she explicited told him not to without someone knowing, that would have gotten hot under the coat.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 3:41 pm
It was strangely difficult for Thili to wrench himself away from the tableau of drama. He just… wanted everyone to be safe and happy. That was all. He was aware that simply staying around wouldn’t help achieve that, especially since he’d basically promised to give Senatla some alone-time with Motsu, but… it was one of those logic-versus-emotions things. And it sounded like he and Senny would need another parenting talk soon, since she was apparently annoyed with him for having spoken up. And here he’d thought they would be parenting as a team!
Nono… he shouldn’t get angry or annoyed at Senny. She wasn’t used to… to being part of a parenting team. Neither was Thili, for that matter, so they both had a lot to learn. Later on, he’d just have to ask what was wrong. Communication was the key to relationships, just as they had discussed earlier. Finding his earlier zebra kill, Thili chased the vultures away from it long enough to carve out a hunk of meat for Motsu to eat. By the time he got to Motsu’s cave, the mother and son hadn’t gotten there yet. Well, that was fine. He carefully left the new meat inside the cave, where it wouldn’t get all gross, and then removed the old meat, especially the stuff that was rotting. It simply couldn’t be healthy to leave that around a growing cub.
The rotting meat, he decided, would be buried some ways away from the dens, just in case there were any dangerous scavengers about. As idyllic as this place looked, Sen had reminded him that there weren’t any patrols around yet. A hungry scavenger might be perfectly willing to make a meal of a defenseless cub, if they could.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 4:03 pm
Mostu cringed at his mother's insisting that he eat. He did want her to be happy... "I'll try to." He said, still pouting. He sat down where he was, ears drooping. He paused, listening to his mother talk, and felt bad about having left. He sniffled, "I...didn't think you wanted me to talk to you. You were angry at me and...and I didn't wanna...bother you. Since...you had to take care of Sewelo..." He chanced a peek up at her with misted eyes, "Is...is Sewelo okay?" He really didn't remember much of the fight, and it had been something that worried him, knawing at him all the time. Had he really hurt his brother that badly?
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 4:15 pm
He earned a smile when he said he would eat. Seeing him eat would make it easier on her to finally eat as well. Going on the assumption he had eaten yester day, she wasn't as worried. Still, he needed a little bit of food. There was Zebra at the cave she had grounded him to.
Hearing him out, she told him softly, "Honey, I wanted you to think before we spoke, but not to not speak at all. Motsu, you must always know you can talk to me, no matter how mad I may be at the time, the same goes for Thili." Her eyes were warmer, but she had to tell him the truth, "Sewelo is really hurt, he won't be able to move properly for a few days or longer. I think he is hurting more inside then out. You are going to have to give him some time before he can get over it. It was a shock to him." It would be to anyone, being shredded by your baby brother.
To give him hope, she told him, "He will get over it, Motsu, we are family, no matter the fight, we will always be family and always love each other." She was unhappy about the fight, but it didn't change how much she loved her son.
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Posted: Sun Oct 12, 2008 4:27 pm
Motsu looked down at his paws in the dirt. So he had messed up again? He sniffled yet again, "I can't do anything right." He muttered, "I didn't mean to hurt...I didn't want to..." Laying down on the ground, he felt lower than ever, "I'm not family...I don't deserve to be." He so wanted to go back to the den, to tell Sewelo how badly he felt, to curl up with his siblings, to have a nuzzle from his mother. He didn't realize he was crying until he saw a tear hit the ground. "I understand if you hated me for what I did." He said with a shaky voice.
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