[PRP] Lost children [Tifu x Posca]

[honey.roasted.ferrets]

Takatifu'moja sat on a rock. The little brown lioness was nearly into her adolescence and with her increasing age came a greater frequency of her visions. She had just recently found out her adopted father actually was her father through these blinding occurrences, and that had been a huge shock to both her and abu-Nafasi's minds. Plus there was the lioness Cala. So many weights upon the young female's back. She couldn't help but wonder if she would have had this much on her mind if she had remained with her pride, if her mother hadn't been killed, if she had grown to become high priestess to the goddess.

But, despite all these things on her mind, Tifu was completely and utterly...
"Booooooooooooooored," she drew the word out for as long as she could without having to draw in another breath.



Posca was drifting through the skies at a leisurely pace, her wings spread wide to keep her aloft. The wind was blowing this high up, so she barely had to beat her wings. The clouds and sky around here were beautiful, but it was starting to get a little dull... She prefered the ground, seeing all the trees and landscape.

So she tilted her wings and started darting down through the sky, diving quickly down to the ground. She landed without really paying attention to where she was... Or who was around her. She perched onto a large rock, wings flapping wildly to stop her fall.



A shadow fell over Tifu and she turned to see what bird caused the wing outline around her. She looked and blinked. And blinked again, certain she was seeing things. Landing not a few rocks away from her own, was a creature most other lions would not have believed. No doubt if her goddess hadn't come to her when she was young, she probably wouldn't have believed her own eyes, either.

The young lioness stood and hopped a few rocks closer before bowing before the other lioness.

"It is a pleasure to be in your presence, Lady," she said, her voice respectfully hushed. Even in her young age, she had learned enough to properly address and respect the gods, whether they were her matron or not.



The goddess blinked, head snapping to the side towards the cub. "Oh.." She had not noticed her when she flew down, thing again her fur made it easier to blend in, probably.

"Hello, little one." Her voice was soft and had a motherly concern to it. She glanced around, looking for any sign of her parents... And she frowned when she saw none. It seemed like more and more cubs were left alone lately... Not that she had any room to talk. She glanced back to the little lion and bowed her head in reply.



Tifu straightened, a smile on her maw. She caught the goddess looking around and her smile grew as she assumed she was looking for her papa.
"I'm afraid I have a bad habit of sneaking away from my papa to think, if you were wondering where he was. My name's Takatifu'moja. Might I have the honor of knowing yours, goddess?" she asked, light violet eyes blinking curiously.  

[honey.roasted.ferrets]

Posca smiled softly down at the cub. At least she seemed mature for her age, and thus perhaps capable of taking care of herself. "I see... You should be careful about that, dear... There are many unexpected dangers in the world." She folded her wings against her back and settled down a bit more onto the rock. "My name is Posca. It is a pleasure to meet such a delightful young lady."



Tifu nodded a bit and shrugged.
"I know. Sometimes I kinda forget, but I'm usually good about taking care of myself. And I'm never really far from my papa, and I believe my goddess is always watching over me," she replied, sitting down and smiling. She liked this goddess. She was pretty and nice and she got a good feeling from her, almost like the one she got around her Goddess.
"I like your tail," she said with a little giggle, her own tail swishing back and forth.



Posca turned her head to glance behind her at the short tail. "Ah... thank you, dear." She turned back to her and smiled softly, nodding. "Oh? And who is your Goddess? Perhaps I know of her..." Her wings twitched anxiously as she sat there, the small patches of grass around the rock starting to turn a bit brown and dry.



Tifu nodded in response to her thanks.
"Upole. She was my pride's goddess. She brought me my papa when I was sent away from the pride when I was a cub," she replied, failing to notice Lady Posca's effect on the area around them. Part of her wanted to ask what she was goddess of, but that, she had been taught, would be rude and she knew very well NOT to be rude to a goddess.



She thought for a moment, then shook her head. Though the small, tender smile remained. "I'm afraid I have no met or heard of her... I am sure she is quite nice though, to look over you. You live close to here, yes?"



Tifu started to shake her head, but paused and just shrugged instead.
"Yes and no, I guess. My father and I are sort of without a steady home right now. We're travel around until we find a place we like, I guess. He leads, I follow, and he doesn't really tell me where we're going, so I've learned to just go with it," she explained.

"But we are stopped nearby. There's a lovely little pond and a shady tree and stuff. What about you? I've never gotten to really talk to a goddess before, so I don't really know much about them other than what I was taught by the other priestesses and my mother. Do the gods live somewhere special?"



She was about to offer to take her back to her father, but decided against it. The cub seemed curious enough, and surely it wouldn't hurt to talk to her a bit longer... So she got more comfortable and chuckled at her question.

"Well, there is a place. No living mortal can go there, only Gods. It's a city made from ice, high above the world... I don't go there much, to be honest. It is too cold and... unnatural for my tastes. I prefer to wander the world, and see all of nature's beauty."



Tifu's eyes widened at the description and her imagination ran wild trying to picture this place.
"It sounds really pretty," she said, a little awe-struck. She nodded as well, when Posca explained that she didn't like to stay there.
"I can imagine. The best part about traveling with my father is getting to see new and different places and people. I keep hoping I'll run into older seers so I can better understand what I can do, but so far I've only run into one a little bit older than me. Only his were different from mine."



She nods slightly, ears twitching as she listened. "Interesting... So you are a seer... It seems like a burden as well as a gift, though I'm sure you did something to deserve it, for the gods to bless you. Anyway, I wouldn't worry too much about it, dear... You will learn in time. Now... I think perhaps I should lead you back to your father." She stood, stretching out her wings.



Tifu nodded her head. She always considered it gift, since all it had really told her was Aber had a pink bird-friend and her father really WAS her father. So far so good, really.
"You sound like my mama," she said with a small, soft smile, unable to keep the thought to herself.
"Uh, you don't have to, it's not far and I can get back to him myself," she added, her smile becoming more child-like and friendly where the other one had almost a wistful quality to it.



Posca smiles, shaking her head. "It would give us more time to talk, unless you need to get back quickly. Or I could fly you, I suppose." She glanced back at her wings. They were large enough to carry her and some weight, and the cub didn't look too heavy...

She looked back to her, her expression turning more warm when she mentioned she reminded her of her mother. "Thank you... It is an honor."  

[honey.roasted.ferrets]

Tifu looked at the wings, then to the sky. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, but could she really take the offer.
"Would you really? I mean, you don't have to and I'm perfectly fine walking and everything. I'm not in a hurry, not at all. I kinda thought you might be. What's it like to fly?" The questions spilled out of her like water over a cliff, once she started it was difficult to stop.



She chuckled, stretching out her wings to show them off. A few feather were bent at odd angles, and some bones stuck out where they shouldn't... But they seemed strong and capable. "It's... well, it's hard to explain. It's quite fun though, I must say. But most of the time I prefer to walk. I would not mind, for a short distance, if you wanted."



Tifu's face lit up and she hopped up, bouncing over to her happily. True, she was quite mature for her age and knew to be polite and sometimes formal with her elders, but deep down, she was still a child that wanted to have fun and do new things.
"It's not far at all. Just a little ways back in that direction," she said quite eagerly, pointing behind the goddess. Then she waited for Posca to direct her, face alight with her excitement.



She nodded, glancing to where she pointed. It wouldn't be far at all, and the contact wouldn't be long enough to harm the cub. So she flicked her wings, then bent down to grab the cub by the back of the neck and lift her. She then lounged into the air, quickly rushing upwards into the sky. Her front paws were held up, craddling against the cubs back legs, to make sure she didn't wobble or fall.



Tifu closed her eyes at the rush of air when they took off, but quickly opened them again when she felt Posca's paws under her. They were flying! Up in the air!
"This is so cool!" she exclaimed even tough she knew the goddess couldn't really answer her back. And even curiouser, she didn't have a vis-
Tifu's world suddenly went white and she froze in Posca's hold, her eyes clouding a bit as the vision of the past took over her sight. She saw Posca fleeing from something. Somethings... She saw her leaving her own cubs behind, she could almost feel the fear in the goddess as she left them.



Posca noticed the cub going stiff in her grasp after a moment, and she frowned, looking down at her. She wondered if it had been too much for the cub... So she quickly dived down towards the ground, flapping her wings wildly before she hit the ground to craddle her fall. She set the cub down gently in a patch of glass, then fell to the ground herself, eyeing her worriedly.



Tifu shook for a moment before blinking her eyes, tears welling up in them. She didn't want to say anything, but she could how back the question.
"Why did you leave them? Did they do something bad? Why were you so scared of your own cubs?" she asked, her voice that of a child that didn't understand as she looked up at the goddess before her. Posca had been right. Her gift could be a curse, after all.



She blinked, black empty eyes widening. "What...?" She was silent a moment, then backed away, frowning deeply. "You... saw that...?" She considered flying off, perhaps easier than facing the child's questions... But it didn't seem right. She paused and frowned down at her again, then sighed.

"No... I was afraid I would hurt them..."



The tears slowly fell from Tifu's eyes and she padded forward again and leaned against the goddess' front legs.
"I'm sorry. I see things when I touch others. I forgot, was too excited about getting to fly..." she apologized softly. She kept her gaze on the ground, though she didn't move away.
"You're their mama, and you're so nice. I can't imagine you hurting them, not in a million years."



Posca sighed heavily, her eyes half lidded with sadness. "I was very young then... And our powers are sometimes curses too, young one... I could not control my powers that well when I was younger, and I was afraid I would accidently use them against them..." She moved a paw to nudge against her side gently, rubbing her. "I'm different now, but I'm afraid they're lost to me... Please don't cry, little one..."



"But it's so sad!" Tifu sniffed, looking up at Posca, her eyes so full of sympathy. She was a rarity, a soul that never held any of her emotions back, her eyes expressing everything.
"My mama got taken away, and I bet she's really sad 'cause she doesn't get to see me or talk to me or anything. I bet they miss you, really really miss you. You're their mama, after all," she added and pressed her face into the goddess' fur.
"I would, if you were my mama and had to leave me to keep me safe..."



Posca's heart was throbbing, her paw slowly stroking the cub's fur. "Perhaps they do... I miss them too... But they had their father to take care of them... They are adults now. I like to think that they have their own families, their own lives..." She leaned down to nudge her cheek against her forehead. "Come now, don't cry dear one... I'm sure I will see them again. That is one of the reasons I am forever traveling."



Tifu brightened up a bit.
"It's good they had their papa. I was on my own for a couple days. It was hard," she replied and smiled up at her a bit.
"I have a feeling you'll find them soon. I've never seen anything from the future, but I've got a really good feeling," she added and nuzzled Posca, her eyes closing a bit.



She smiled gently, continuing to pet her gently. "Thank you... I certainly hope so..." She patted her, then stepped back away from her. "I'd best be off... And you should get back to your father. I'm sure he's missing you, and worried..." She wondered for a moment if she really would ever see her children again... She hoped, and for some reason the cub's prophecy seemed to give her a bit of hope.



Tifu nodded, smiling a bit more broadly.
"It was wonderful to meet you, Posca. I wish you the best of luck in your travels and searching. And I hope we meet again someday!" she replied, bowed, and bounded off towards where she had left her papa, with a brand new, amazing story to tell him.



Posca nodded, watching her leave, her chest heavy and light at the same time, if that was possible. "I hope we do as well, dear... I'm sure we will. Farwell!" She called after her. And a moment later, she jumped into the skies and took off, to a destination that was unknown to her.