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 Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 12:54 pm
How long had he wandered these seas of grass and stone and sand alone? It seemed an endless world, with only he in it of late...And so the lion found himself deviating from his pre-made plans, and wandering towards a distant line of trees. Surely something lived within, and he could win himself a bit of talk or gossip, if only enough to break the monotony of life alone.
Stepping into the shade of the boughs above, the pale blue lion gave pause, reclining his head, letting eyes drift closed, and inhaling deeply. The air was damper beneath the shading influence of the trees. A different place than a few feet away, under the burning sun's rays, so different from the dank caves of his past. Someone had to be here, in this oasis of green amidst the gold. Surely someone, anyone, called this space home.
With gentle determination he began to nose his way through the foliage. Deeper into the trees. Another lion? Would he find one here? Likely not, he thought, feeling a branch catch on his mane. Far too close for it to be comfortable for most of his species. What then? He hadn't spent as much time with the other species of the continent as with his own sort.
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Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 8:19 pm
 The territory was small, but it was all her own to keep. The trees were her living room, clumped all around a small pocket of fresh water that must have been forsaken by the river miles off still, long before she was ever born. Young as she was, Rukiya was still the largest predator to be found around these parts, and vivacious enough thus far to keep it that way. So far nothing too challenging had come her way, and nothing that could climb a tree as well as she. She had been sleeping most of the day under the canopy of one of her favored trees, draped over a sturdy branch that rocked her every now and again with a faint wind. When the night came, she would hunt. But for now, she was content enough to laze around and think about the future. Pale golden eyes observed the bright sky overhead, a whisper of a sigh through her muzzle. She did hope it rained soon. Warm, spring rain. Or else things around here were going to start turning yellow and brittle like the grasslands surrounding it. It would be high time for her to get up and leave. The heat was just starting to get oppressive on her thick coat, and the thought occurred to her that it would probably be a good idea to take a dip in her pool. The leopardess stretched, and then she was up without a second thought. She liked the water, hadn't been for a swim in a while. Why was that? As she thought, she moved easily from branch to branch, familiarity allowing her to leap the distances and climb with little problem as she made her way toward her destination. And then she caught his scent, something that made her paws falter on the wood, her instincts suddenly drawing in sharp. She may not have been planning to keep the territory for much longer, but it was still hers! She was obligated to at least see who this stranger was. She didn't have to wait long, as the male lion came crackling through the underbrush soon enough. Rukiya crept after him as silently as she could, twitching the end of her tail. "Excuse me," She called from above, polite, "May I help you?" Then, as a second thought, she added, "There's no food here." Which wasn't entirely a lie.
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Posted: Mon Feb 16, 2009 11:16 am
The sound of something moving above made the lion give pause. Had he finally found someone then? A quick thought passed that they might not be friendly, but he shrugged it off. He needed to asociate with someone genial, therefore this person simply must be good natured. It could not be any other way, and thus it would not. He kept on his path, so as not to alarm whomever it was until they chose to make themselves known. Still, the anticipation was agonizing.
"My apologies," He replied when the voice finally came. "I find I'm seeking something other than food at the moment. I regret trespassing and troubling your attention, I am but a humble bumpkin of a wanderer, who wants little more than brief respite from the quiet monotony of traveling alone." He held still, glancing up and around. Where...? Ah, there. A patch of white that didn't belong. A leopard, given it was in the trees. He nodded, as close as he could come to a more proper bow in such cramped foliage. "I am Hak'Zhakuu."
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Posted: Wed Feb 18, 2009 12:20 pm
Rukiya studied the stranger from her perch, wary because her strained lifestyle had taught her to be. When a lion came, that was usually the end of it for a territory. She thought she could at least stand a chance against another of her kind. But this male insisted that he had no intention of taking anything. She believed him.
"Not very simple words for a 'bumpkin'," She pointed out, feeling a slow smile cross her maw at the foreign show of a bow. The leopardess moved to the trunk of her current tree and climbed down head-first, pooling down like a moving mural with all the marks present on her pale back. She approached the male at easy pace so that he could see her, and get a better view of him and return. Quite honestly she was curious and her nature did not allow her to sit idle for long.
"I am Rukiya," She would introduce herself as she stopped some distance away. "This is my territory, at least for now. As long as you're willing to behave yourself, Hak'Zhakuu, you're welcome to my shade." Her teasing was evident, but quite warm. While solitary by occurrence, she wasn't unwelcoming of company.
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Posted: Thu Feb 26, 2009 1:47 pm
Hak'Zhakuu offered a sharp grin and a deep chuckle. She was right, of course. He may be a 'bumpkin', but that didn't mean he couldn't be a learned, mannered one. He admired the grace with which she departed her tree. A rare skill, the leopards had. His own frame was easily too lard, too broad to consider such a trick. He shifted to face her more directly as she came, deftly flicking a few stray strands of his mane back and from his way.
"Thank you, and it is my pleasure, fine lady. Shade would be a boon, but company more so. It becomes quite dull speaking only to hares and the wind." He glanced around and spotted a fallen log. With less grace, but respectful stability nonetheless, he slid onto it, using the dry length of wood to keep himself from the more damp underbrush.
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Posted: Fri Apr 10, 2009 12:39 pm
"I don't know how stimulating you'll find it, but company is something even I can provide. Not very many come through here, and even fewer stay for long, if they look edible." She licked her lips with a soft purr of thought.
"I was just about to head off to take a dip in my pool before you came along. Would you like to join me?" Rukiya began to pad past him, her shoulders rolling lazily with each pass. She didn't seem to mind the underbrush for now, or else knew how to pick her way through it without having to slow her gait. Certainly he'd come, she was sure, even if it was just to watch.
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Posted: Sun Apr 19, 2009 9:04 am
Hak chuckled and nodded. "I'm certain your company will do quite fine. I don't think I seem the edible sort, so I shan't fear you...disposing of me too quickly." He moved to follow along with her, slightly more hindered by the brush but not unduly so.
"I'll join you, if you don't mind. I fear the road has made me a bit of a mess." He did his best to keep up, and he glanced around now and then to inspect the small patch of jungle more. "You live here alone then? IT seems a nice enough spot."
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