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 Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 7:42 am
She didn't feel as strong as she once had, that much was clear to her. During her last pregnancy she had felt brighter and more energetic. Having lives growing inside of her had, in turn, given her life. But these ones...these seemed to be tiring her.
She chuckled to herself. "Maybe I am too old for this."
She was moving awkwardly across the sand, her belly seemingly growing larger by the day. Had she been this large before? She didn't remember having quite such a difficult time getting about. Then again, she had her leg injury now and...it had been a long time ago when Jua, Wakia and...when they'd been born.
Today she was heading out to see Jua. She hadn't seen her daughter recently - probably because she'd been bound to her den most days to save her energy. But she needed some social time and Jua and she had always been close.
She wasn't sure where to start looking, however, and merely hoped that her appearance above ground would catch the dark lioness' attention.
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2008 8:27 am
Indeed, the appearance of Ripuka above ground had caught Jua's attention. The dark lioness looked down from her constant perch above on a rock formation, spotting her mother. It was hard to miss the distended abdomen, made large by cubs. Carefully stepping, she moved down the rock face. "Mother, you're out and about? Shouldn't you be resting...?" Jua herself thought it not a good idea to be out like that.
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Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2008 10:06 am
Ripuka's eyes softened at the sound of her daughter's voice and she turned her head to get a look at her dark-pelted daughter. She was so beautiful - so distinct.
She purred and reached out to touch her muzzle to Jua's neck. "Now, daughter of mine, would you have me stay in that den till the day I die? I needed some fresh air and I wanted to see you." She smiled teasingly but was forced to sit to take the pressure from her injured leg.
"I wanted to ask you for something. For...help, actually." It seemed to take a moment for the words to come out. "I'm old, Jua, there's no denying it. Not so old that I can't do things, mind you. But...since the war and my injuries, I've found getting around a little more difficult. I worry about your father, too. He's a good lion and he's far stronger than I, but...well...what I'm trying to ask is..."
She chuckled at her own hesitation. "Would you be able to help raise my little ones with me? I fear there are gonna to be more than there was last time and they'll dance circles around me."
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 10:51 am
Licking her mother's ears, Jua rumbled. "I still worry about you, though, Mother... Your health wasn't the best to begin with after the war... Impending cubs makes it more trying. I just don't want you to wear yourself out."
She tilted her head, frowning. "Mother... Of course I'd help you..." She paused, ears flicking back. "I had a vision of the future... Something I have happen rarely... Very rarely... There were... Little fuzzy things... Following me, one emulating me... The rest... Acting like Sinbad..." She looked at her mother, gold eyes holding just what she was saying.
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 11:15 am
"I promise I'll do some more resting." She smiled softly. "To be honest, I don't feel up to much else." She sighed and thought for a moment on her health. What was she going to do if she really wasn't strong enough? No...no don't think about that.
She turned her head as Jua spoke again. "Thank you." A pause to listen to the rest of her words. "A vision?" Both ears lifted. It wasn't something they had spoken much about before. Ripuka had always considered it a gift from Finar-Si. Maybe a way of making up for Azarax's pelt...
Though she wasn't so sure of that now-a-days.
"Following you?" She paused. "This Sinbad. He's one of the royal's yes? A brother of Queen Kenna?" They hadn't spoken much about him. "Do you love him?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 11:18 am
"You'd better... I may be grown, but on an emotional level... I still need you."
Nodding, Jua sat down. "Yes, they were following me. Four of them... Though... There was a fifth one, lagging behind... Then it was gone..." She shook her head a bit, clearing it from her head. She knew exactly what it meant... her ears lifted up, gaze returning to her mother. "Sinbad? Yes... He's one of Queen Kenna's brothers..." She made a face, a look of utter disgust. "I shed no love for him, though."
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 11:25 am
"Just as I need you, then. We'll rely on one another." She purred. Being a mother certainly had softened the once hard edges of her personality.
"I wonder what that could possibly mean?" Ripuka murmered, though she was fearful. Cubs were so delicate when they were born...what if...what if it. No, stop thinking such things. Jua's litter were different from her own. They were being born to a strong, young female.
"I'm sorry there is no love between you. Maybe something will come of it? I did not love your father when I took him as a mate. Now look at us? I could think of being with no other." She smiled softly. "But love or no love, you think there may be children on the horizon, yes? I'm to be a grandmother?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 11:48 am
She could only nod, smiling at her mother. There were few things Jua allowed herself to be soft about. Her mother was one of those things.
The black lioness gave an impassive shrug. "I don't think I'll ever hold any emotion for him but negative." She looked to her mother, eyes starting to dance. "But... Cubs... I will enjoy." She nodded, ears foreward. "And yes... I believe there ARE cubs in my future."
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 12:00 pm
Ripuka nodded. "Perhaps some day the right male will come along for you." But would he? In these lands where outsiders were forbidden and the last of the lines were closing up? Would she ever find love unless she left the lands to seek him?
Ripuka thought of this for a moment, saddened by this realisation.
"And until then you'll have cubs and you'll have me and your father." She smiled. "And little brothers and sisters." Her smile widened. "And with us both expecting, we'll need to help each other as much as possible. Yes, yes, I'm old and tired, but to help you with your children - my grandchildren - it would be the greatest joy in my life to do that."
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 12:14 pm
"I'm not sure if I'll ever find the right male..." Jua sighed, then smiled at her mother. "It's not like a guy can lie to me and tell me he's Firekin. I'd know... Eventually I'd know.." Like she knew about Makaa... But she'd never tell anybody in the Safi.
Jua's tail flicked, as she looked down at her belly. "I can't help but.. Worry... Shouldn't I be a bit bigger by now?" She'd never exactly been pregnant before... And the rounding was only just becoming evident.
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 12:23 pm
"No. Lies cannot stay concealed forever..." Though she was doing well at concealing hers. Though, she could feel those lies fraying at the edges. She knew that, someday, someone would discover that she'd kept many things hidden from knowledge.
It was hard, keeping lies for so long.
"Don't worry, love. Every female is different. This is your first litter, too." She nudged her encouragingly. "You are young, strong and you are my daughter. Your cubs will be just as strong as you are. It's slow at first, but you'll be ballooning before you know it." She chuckled.
It was happening.
Life was continuing despite the hardship and grief.
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 12:28 pm
She left the lying discussion at just what it was. She felt bad, after all, knowing the lies both her parents hid from others, even one another. She lied herself, by not telling them that she knew.
Letting out a sigh, Jua could only nod. "I hope they're healthy, and strong..." And that the lagging and vanishing cub wasn't true. She didn't know if she could handle that, with her first litter. A dead cub... What would she do with it, hide the body from Sinbad so he'd never know?
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Posted: Mon Nov 17, 2008 12:38 pm
Ripuka stood and tucked her nose briefly under Jua's chin. "They will be. They are Firekin. They are yours." She paused a moment to stare at her dark-pelted daughter, gentle-affection in her eyes.
"I think I'm going to go back to see your father." She purred. "If you need anything, you know where to find me." She leaned back her head and smiled softly.
"I love you, Jua. You make me very proud, do you know that?"
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