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 Posted: Wed Jan 14, 2009 9:15 am
 Lady Skadi yawned and stretched, feeling the twang in her muscles - they ached after her exertion, but in a good way. She was still in top physical condition, even after that damnable 'ball' that had turned into such a fiasco. She still had her mask and her fripperies, but just now she couldn't stand the feel of it on her skin, and they were too fine to waste on practice in any case. The half-frozen earth was covered in the hoofmarks and tail-swishes of her dancing, or as close to such a thing as an equine could come. The Kalona mare looked at the marks with some satisfaction. Her family prided itself on grace, agility, and elegance of movement; she'd lost none of that to the 'curse' that had overshadowed the great meeting. She wouldn't be doing that again, even as a sign of goodwill. So what if her family wished to demonstrate to society at large that not all Kalona were brutish, bloodthirsty beasts ruled solely by their passions? Even if it was politically advantageous, it wasn't worth the price of such... stupidity. Skadi shook her mane out and let out a long breath. It was cold even in the daytime up here; her breath was marked by a plume in the air, and the sweat on her sides was rapidly cooling. More than that, she was hungry, and nothing but the very smallest and most useless meat-creatures would run up here. It was time to descend down the mountainside to more living regions to hunt, at least below the treeline.
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Posted: Thu Jan 15, 2009 5:44 am
Puchi Puri had been lucky enough not to be subjected to the bizarre stream of events that had occured beyond the most prominent part of the Kawani. The nobles that had gathered for such a 'ball' were not creatures that the majority of her kind knew and as such their plight was unknown to her. This wasn't to say she wouldn't have enjoyed such a dazzling display or revelled in the opportunity to dance with all the potential Prince Charmings that had attended but... Well, her ignorance towards the very existence of such a gathering ensured she wasn't disappointed or distracted. Instead she continued on her daily business - swooping low so that her wings had the opportunity to brush gently against the tips of the fir-trees. They had always been so mych softer than those within the lowlands and as such, weren't inclined to tear at her wings in such a malicious manner. She had learnt that the hard way and not long ago she had the bumps to prove it!
Alas this afternoon was a very important one in the sense that she had left the company of her pet Bonsai tree, who was admittedly a soquili with plants growing off him; and had turned her attention back towards her next goal. Long ago she had encountered a Kalona who had 'traumatised' her, in essence he had informed her that Kalona such as he were perfectly content to dine on smaller animals such as rabbits if they came too close. As a foal this had horrified the young mare but as she had matured she had come to the conclusion that it was better to do something about it than to weep at the loss.
...So she'd started a crusade.
No one had the heart to inform her that Kalona needed to eat meat to survive. No one had the heart to tell her that if they ate too much 'vegetables' they could get ill. As a consequence she had made it her life's duty to convert all meat eaters into vegetarians. Well, this was half of her life goal - the other half of that goal was to make as many friends and help as many creatures as she could. Unfortunately when it came to her aid though it followed much the same lines as her crusade. Her heart was in the right place but her help wasn't always needed, it was just as well that so many humoured her so willingly and the spirits regarded her with favour enough not to have her killed!
This in mind she had travelled into 'unexplored' regions of the land. Having never set hoof nor tail into this location she didn't know what to expect, but these particular slopes lay on the borders of the graveyards that her parents had warned her about. The most dangerous creatures lurked in Graveyards, Kalona guarded them and therefore it was only logical (in her mind) that said Kalona would also be in the nearby mountains. She was in essence walking straight into the lion's den and remained oblivious to the dangers that lurked within.
It was with a soft 'thump' of her hooves upon the snow that she came in to land and with a flick of each winged, she furled them against her sides and ruffled them to encourage the warmth to flow through her veins. As of yet she hadn't spotted the kalona female nearby, her pelt so pristine that it blended in almost seamlessly with the snow itself...
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Posted: Thu Jan 15, 2009 8:54 am
The quiet thump on the snow did not escape Lady Skadi's hearing; the Kalona stilled, then tilted her ears forward. A horse-shape was not ideal for hunting, and she often envied the sleek grace of the hunting-cats and other predators. She would had envied even those who could step into those forms, if skinwalkers hadn't proven themselves so ragingly insane.
Still, she did what she could, and - she prided herself - probably more effectively than those other brutish, barbarian Kalona. She moved as silently as she could across the snow, heading for the source of the noise, hoping to find some unwary beast to sate her hunger. It would be nice to finish quickly and have more time to practice or rest, as she chose. An afternoon of leisure was tempting indeed.
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Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2009 9:01 am
Puchi had never been hunted before, on the contrary she would have probably found the whole idea fairly entertaining if it didn't result in her death. In a way it would have reminded her of hide and seek, whereby she would scuttle along and try to keep the other guessing as to where she was hiding. Generally speaking her wings had proved to be her pride and joy as a foal, she'd been able to hide in the most awkward places including trees. Well, when she'd been a baby the branches could support her weight and as such she would come tumbling to the earth. There was nothing worse than landing in a crumpled heap on top of your playmate after all. Alas, she was absolutely oblivious to the mechinations of the approaching predator.
It had long since been recognised among her family members that Puchi Puri lacked 'instincts'. She had them when she realised a creature needed her help, could express sympathy and empathy in droves... but when it came to her own welfare and safety things went a little topsy-turvy. With Skadi's approach her hair should have been rising on the back of her neck, her spine should have given a quiver and yet she had absolutely nothing to go on. She was totally oblivious to the potential threat and because of this maintained the blissful expression upon her young features.
Not exactly the best way to be if you were on a crusade like her.
Alas, it was with a budding determination that she glanced around her landing pad. The snow was considerably more 'icy' than home... slippery if one wasn't careful but otherwise the slopes weren't bad. They were sort of like home - there were trees and everything! Ahhh, but it was with a soft sigh that she couldn't spot any soquili and so she began to move, her orange coat shining like a beacon in the white snow.
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Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2009 3:32 pm
Lady Skadi slunk quietly, drawing closer, her own silvery-white pelt blending perfectly with the snow... until she caught sight of the source of the noise and sighed, noiselessly. Damn. Another Soquili, blazing orange, wildly out-of-place. And while some Kalona certainly might eat other Soquili, doing so was considered rather poor diplomacy in her herd... not to mention not worth the trouble.
Skadi squared her shoulders and shook her head, then held her head high and moved out towards the bright mare, not making any effort to hide her presence. "Good afternoon. Are you lost?" she asked, bluntly. She couldn't think of any other reason for such a creature to be here. The only reason she was here was because she was hungry, and that couldn't possibly be the other mare's excuse.
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Posted: Sun Jan 18, 2009 3:49 pm
She was never one to contain her emotions and as Skadi approached the mare she gave a squeal and unceremoniously plunged backwards into the snow. It wasn't the most dignified of responses to a greeting and the mare sat dumb founded in the snow (much like a dog) as she gazed up at the mare who had seemingly come out of nowhere. It was during this time that she had the opportunity to mull over Skadi's appearance, noting that the mare lacked leathered wings but appeared to possess ample amounts of additional appendages that indicated she was a kalona. Horns, teeth and a funny tail - she knew she wasn't a unicorn either because Unicorns had much fluffier tails.
"Where'd you come from?" she blurted out with a gasp. It wasn't long though before she recovered her composure and with a giggle she pulled herself up and gave herself a shake. From rump to wings, she rid herself of the snow and turned her pale gaze back to the mare. Well, needless to say she wasn't bruised or bumped and her surprise had worn off. Now she couldn't help but giggle at the assumption and shook her head in amusement at the very idea.
"Oh no no, I'm not lost!" She gave her rump a little wiggle before puffing herself to her full, yet meagre height. "I'm looking for Kalona, I'm here to save the bunnies," she announced grimly before tilting her head to the side. "You wouldn't happen to be a Kalona would you?"
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Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 8:46 am
"Here to... save... the bunnies?" Lady Skadi gave the bright mare a blank look. "There aren't many rabbits here except the snow-hares. You'd do better to go back to the meadows where there are... bunnies... in abundance for you to... save."
She was thoroughly bemused and a bit nonplussed by the newcomer's reactions, and by her words. Couldn't she tell that Skadi was a kalona just by looking? "I am indeed a Kalona, yes." What connection her breed had to rabbits, though, she couldn't tell.
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Posted: Thu Jan 22, 2009 9:01 am
"Yes," Puchi Puri was completely serious, her expression grave as Lady Skadi repeated her declaration with what appeared to be disbelief. It was unsurprising for the mare, she'd heard many giggle at her decision to embark on a crusade like this but there were just some things that had to be done. She had been taught to aspire to great things and to follow her heart, both led to this. She would rescue the bunnies from the clutches of the hungry soquili and deliver them into the realms of peace and tranquility. Unfortunately, she hadn't really accounted for other predators sticking their noses in but it was the thought that counted.
"The bunnies are in grave danger, helpless against the hungry soquili that prey on them for their dinner," she shook her head and continued on solemnly. Her pale eyes seemed to gleam with determination and her tiny form had risen to it's full, if diminuitive height. "It is my duty to protect them and that's what I'm here to do!" She announced. She had attempted to be dramatic but such a performance would probably have seemed somewhat surreal to a Kalona...if not ridiculous.
"So you're really a kalona?" she gasped, creeping forward a little more to prod the mare's horn lightly with a wing. Well, it certainly wasn't stuck on and while she lacked the leathered wings of a kalona she had confirmed her identity. "That's so awesome!" She squealed at last, hopping from hoof to hoof as she regarded Skadi as though she were the golden goose. "That's perfect!"
She didn't wait for an answer.
"I've come to help Kalona learn not to eat the bunnies, I'm gonna teach them how to eat fruit and stuff, cause it's just as juicy," she pointed out with an enthusiastic nod.
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Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 8:40 am
Lady Skadi stared for a moment, then started to laugh - she couldn't help it. The laughter wasn't unkind, but the situation was just so patently ridiculous that she couldn't respond in any other way. "Fruit? Here? Good luck finding that," she said, taking a deep breath and trying not to burst out laughing again. Going on and on about one's own amusement was rather uncouth.
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Posted: Mon Feb 02, 2009 6:39 am
She had heard that type of response a few times already and as a result spent the majority of the time smiling. She had grown to know better than to expect everyone to agree with her or to cheer her on. Still, she would not be deterred from her goal. She aspired to aid Kalona learn to dine upon something much nicer and less cute... She would not be steered away from this goal either. If it took her years then she would attain it and soon the Kalona of the Kawani lands would be featsing on fruit as opposed to the little fluffy rabbits that made their homes underground.
She'd never figured out why they hid underground until recently, now that she knew that Kalona ate them it all made sense. Frankly if something that big was about to smoosh her she would hide underground too! Consequently, even at the predicted response Puchi could do nothing more than giggle and shake her head. Lady Skadi hadn't said it was impossible she had merely inferred that locating fruit was going to be difficult at this time of year... Which it was. It was winter (obviously) but that didn't mean it was completely impossible, Puchi had seen various berries lurking about, they weren't huge like apples but they were still fruit!
"It may be a little hard to find fruit in winter," she agreed when Lady Skadi had recovered most of her composure. "But it's still around and I can show soquili like you how to find it, that way you won't need to eat the bunnies and they can feel safe in the open again!" she announced confidently.
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