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 Posted: Thu Mar 26, 2009 11:54 pm
Lee wandered through the thick brush, her eyes half lidded as she glanced around. It'd been quite a while since she had come to this pride, and already she was getting used to things. She no longer stumbled through the bushes clumsily. In fact, she'd learned to be somewhat graceful. A hard thing too, with her large bulk. She looked almost more like a male at times... Her body a little too awkward and bulky, and her hair a little too shaggy...
She was happy that her sisters had welcomed her though. She tear markings on her cheeks had long healed, and she wore them proudly. A sign of acceptance... Still, she sometimes missed the outside world... Which was why she liked being a scout. It gave her the opporturnity to wander out to the outskirts of the jungle, where she could stare from a high tree and watch the sun set of the horizon... instead of a mass of branches. Which was what she was doing currently. The large lioness climbed her way up onto a high branch that was thick enough to support her, and slumped down with a soft grunt.
A short distance from the tree line, Fiara lay down in a heap, she was tired, a little hungry but mostly she was disheartened. It had been weeks since she heard rumor of the Antianeira but no matter where she had searched there was no sign. It didn't help that she really had no more than the words of birds to go on, lucky creatures only cared for themselves, so easy it was for their kind to travel, did distance really mean anything to those with wings? Fiara looked to the sky, at least the weather was nice, she lay with her back to the jungle and sighed, lowering her face to rest on her paws.
There was no going back for Fiara, so she just lay to rest for a bit, she had left her home, run away and there wasn't a reason, a force of nature or the will of a god that could make her go back. That she had determined the first step out of her fathers' land, so now she only had more steps in front of her, carry herself forwards, even if she couldn't find the Amazon pride, each step would carry her forward and away. After a time Fi stood again and eyed the thick mass of trees, she didn't want to venture in there for fear of getting lost in the trees, she liked the open spaces of the plains the open sky above, but she had not yet tried the jungle, her tail twitched in indecision.
She yawned widely, eyes falling half lidded as she watched the lands that sprawled out in front of her... She was dozing, and Fiara happened to wander into her line of sight while her eyes had fallen closed. It wasn't until Fiara had stood again did she suddenly jerk to attention, blinking her eyes widely. The dark form stood out in the grass, even in the dying light.
It seemed that Lee still wasn't the most graceful... And so when she started to slip off of the branch she couldn't quite catch herself in time. The end result? The large lioness ended up dangling from the branch, claws stuck deep enough that she wobbled back and forth for a few moments before falling the rest of the distance to the jungle floor.
The noise that Lee made as she fell and landed startled Fiara, she didn't quite see the large lioness, though her brite pink hair did flash through the foliage, Fi thought it might be a bird for an instant, but the resulting crash wasn't at all bird like, so she warily ventured forward at a quick trot, "Hullo?" Maybe not the best idea when she didn't know the area, who or what might be in these trees but she had to, it was just reaction, "Is someone here?" She ducked through the brush and climbed deeper in, her eyes adjusting to the dim and she searched left and right for the other, if they were still around, she didn't know that Lee had fallen, her voice was concerned but only just a little, because she was diving head long through unknown territory, if she had known, she would have been far more, concerned.
Lee pushed herself up with a groan, leaves and small branches that she had knocked over on the way down now coating her. She frowned and spits a leaf from her lips, then glanced around, suddenly anxious. Even more so when she heard Fiara's voice. A voice that was unfamiliar to her...
She gulped and looked around frantically, searching for a spot to possibly hide. But... hiding a large lioness in thin foliage was... hard. In the end she ended up ducking behind a somewhat thick tree, peeking around it to look at the lioness.
Fiara stopped at the spot where the other had fallen, she looked up and noted the small broken branches, the loose leaves drifting down, but there was no one- Fi turned full circle, eyes straining to catch something, some sign. "Hullo?" Her voice was lost and sad now, swallowed up by the dense trees all around, it didn't travel far, though it didn't need to. She turned back and blinked, was that someone looking back, was the pink, the same someone from before. "I just..." she began, unsure if she should even try, "I'm not... Is this area, taken?" She ventured at last, speaking a little louder, her tail curled in around her hind leg.
The larger lioness blinked slowly, head tilting a little as she looked over the girl. Lee felt her throat tighten slightly, and for a moment she was unsure if she could speak... But the girl seemed so lost and lonely, she couldn't just hide forever...
So she slowly stepped out, her bright pink hair falling over her face. She tried not to look too threatening, only frowning at Fiara cautiously. "No." She said softly and shortly, not continuing unless she was asked. Lee was a lioness of few words, after all.
If Fiara had heard the bit about the tear scars she would have been elated, just at seeing Lee's face, she would have danced on the spot and possibly thrown herself at Lee for a joyous head bump, but she hadn't and with the answer that was given Fi assumed that it meant the pride was elsewhere and she had to continue searching, her mood fell further and she lowered her eyes, she pawed at the leaf litter on the ground and managed a small, "Oh," in reply. Fi was usually a friendly sort, so she couldn't bring herself to just mope for long, she lifted her eyes again, searching for some sort of light of hope, "Do you, live your life alone then?"
Lee stared at her for a long moment, almost too long, for the silence grew a bit awkward. But it didn't seem to bother her. She cleared her throat a little and glanced to the side, off through the trees where the boundaries of her pride were marked. She slowly shook her head and glanced back to her, lips curled down in a small frown.
"No." She said again, and it almost seems like she'd leave it there once again. But... after another awkward moment, she clears her throat and speaks more. "I l-live amoung th... the A-Antianeira. Not-t far from here." Her voice seemed misused now that she was talking more. Her demeanor wasn't shy or anything, though perhaps a bit cold and cautious... It seemed that she just couldn't speak clearly.
Fi was worried that she had somehow offended this lioness, why was she so quiet? Letting herself spiral downwards, Fiara's eyes wander over the other just getting a look at her, she seemed healthy, and rather large for a female, her shaggy hair, Fi wanted to brush from her face. Fi then shifted to look over the area, she almost missed the subtle glancing, the sun was swiftly setting now and the darkness seeped over everything, even the two of them, Fiara caught the frown and opened her mouth to speak again, but the other spoke first and then was silent again. Fiara was about to question further, she took a breath but held it at the quiet lioness used her voice... She continued to hold the breath of air and blinked rapidly for an extended moment, then it all came rushing out in a burst. "Antianeira? Here, I've found them, the amazons, really?" Fi hyperventilated for a moment, "Oh, oh oh, you've got to take me in, please, I've searched for weeks, I'll do anything, anything I have to, just please?" She shifted forward and then back and then she lay down before the other, bowing to her, begging almost, so scared now that they wouldn't have her, now that she'd found them.
Lee was completely taken aback when Fiara started to ramble on. She was never very used to conversations, and it always startled her when people talked alot... Though sometimes it was good, it just meant she didn't have to speak as much. For now though, she was speechless.
Her mouth opened a little and she frowned, eyeing the smaller lioness doubtfully. Why was she groveling...? Her lips prused, then she again cleared her throat, one paw extending to gently poke her in her shoulder. "...Come." She muttered softly, then turned a little as if to walk off. She gave one glance back to Fiara though, making sure she followed.
Fi had shut her eyes as she lay there, head down, she was startled into looking up when poked but then she swiftly stood, she was on edge, she was shaking just a little, her breath coming fast. Come, she'd said come, right? Fiara nodded and hesitated only a moment before following after, she had many questions to ask, all of them suddenly wanting to bubble forth at the same time, but Fi didn't want to overwhelme or annoy, her- "Umm, umm, I'm Fiara, thank you, umm?" that one slipped out, she had to at least know that right off, if everything she'd heard about the amazons was true it'd all be answered in good time, she switched between holding her breath and then panting, she couldn't get herself to calm down. As she walked behind the other she stumbled, so worked up that she couldn't keep her paws beneath her.
The lioness bobbed her head a little when Fiara started to follow her, muttering again. "Lee." She continues on, walking easily through a small path she'd made through the thickening foliage.
She blinks and stops, looking over her shoulder again when Fi stumbled. She frowned a little, ears tilting back. Slowly she turned, taking a couple steps towards her. Her head bent down, eyes narrowing curiously. Lee was... a bit odd, at times. The poor lioness just didn't know how to interact that well with others. After a few moments of staring she cleared her throat. "Calmer?"
Fiara let out a quick bark of a laugh, "I'll be, I'll try to be, at least... Sorry, you probably think I'm bananas in the head or something, huh Lee?" She stood again and brought her left paw to her mouth and licked at the pad, it was sore but she wasn't one to complain and kept that to herself. Putting her paws to the earth again and nodding, it seemed talking kept her from worrying needlessly, but she still had the feeling that if she could just follow silently, Lee would like that better. She tried a calm smile, but it might have looked more like a grimace.
Lee only continued to stare at her, since it was fairly obvious that she was not calm. She frowned deeper and glanced her over for a moment, then let out a sharp breath as she shifted to sit down in the soil. "Calm... th-then we'll g-go." She nods slightly, head tilting a little. She blinked blankly at her now.
"What-t is wr....wrong?" She asks after a moment, still blinking expectantly.
"Oh, right, it'd look bad in we came waltzing in with me all a wreak, I'm sure, not that, you ever waltz into your own pride or anything, not, not that you couldn't if you wanted to.. Umm." Fiara sat back down, she lifted her paw again, just bringing if off the ground helped ease it, she shifted her face down again, and clamped her jaw shut, breathing through her nose for a moment, but it wasn't helping, "Could I, if you don't mind, ask, a few, just like a question, or something? It's not that somethings wrong, really, I'm just, I want to just, I belong, want to belong here and I don't want to mess up, and not get a chance, or something." Fi was speaking swiftly, but her voice was pitched low, she knew she was probably making little sense, but she hoped at least that she wasn't rubbing Lee the wrong way, or anything. She at least, didn't seem annoyed, but then again, Fiara couldn't really tell.
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Posted: Sat Mar 28, 2009 3:44 pm
Again, Lee just blinked at her slowly, somewhat confused by her ramblings. She understood the lioness' words well enough, but she couldn't understand why she was so nervous. Did her pride have such a fierce reputation? What did she think they'd do to her if she didn't make a good impression?
She just stared at her until she finally paused, an awkward, lop-sided grin spreading across her maw. She shifted to get more comfortable, her tail twitching a bit. "Ask." She muttered with a bob of her head, gesturing for her to continue.
Lee's calm demeanor was help Fiara to calm almost as much as being able to ramble on, and just sit for the moment, so Fi was rapidly bringing her thoughts and emotions into a line. "Ah, thanks. It's just one thing, it's true that, the amazons, the Antianeira. Allow no males, in the pride, in the surrounding area?" Her tone was so hopeful now, it almost caught in her throat.
She tilts her head slightly, her hair falling over her eyes. She let out a low grunt and glanced away for a moment, clearing her throat as she prepared herself to speak. It always seemed hard if she was talking more than a word or two. "Yes." She muttered, glancing back at her and staring blankly through thick pink bangs. "I-if males are b-b...born in lit-tter...ers... They are t-t-taken away t-to a nei...neighbor prid-de once weined-d."
At the first syllable to leave Lee's lips, Fiara's whole mood was lifted, that was enough for her, she was breathing calm again, with just that, but she politely listened to the rest and nodded, grinning now. "Even the cublings, wow~" Fiara had begun to really take notice of Lee's speech pattern now, she wondered if Lee had been wounded somehow, but she didn't see any outward scaring, maybe it was something inside? She decided she shouldn't comment on it, Lee was probably aware, and asked each time she met someone new, as much as she wanted to ask, she knew there were things that people didn't like to talk about, or have brought up, so she, bit her tongue on that line of thought and settled a little more, the night was coming swiftly as it always did and she breathed the fresh air worry free, for the moment. "That's just, the best thing I've heard in weeks, weeks and weeks, since I heard about the pride. Oh, Lee, I can't thank you enough!" She stood again, she'd wait still, if Lee wanted to, or thought that she should try and calm herself more, but she had to stand, she paced around, continuing to quell the urge to throw herself at, and hug Lee.
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Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2009 7:27 pm
Lee was silent then as Fiara started to ramble again, her head slightly tilted to the side. Her bangs still covered most of her face, obscuring her eyes... But she didn't seem to notice, and very rarely brushed them aside. When the other lioness stood and seemed ready to go, she gave her one last cautious glance, then stood to join her. "Th-thank... me?" She muttered softly, blinking at Fiara slowly.
She shrugged then and turned away, once again starting to trot through the thick underbrush. It got darker and more dense the closer they got to the territory, but Lee seemed to know little paths and hidden holes through bushes and trees, which made it easier to go.
Fiara nodded and moved to follow, the thick close trees and bushes giving her a bit of trouble, but since she was following it wasn't that hard, she just had to keep sight of Lee, and that was easy, Fi has a feeling that she would be looking to Lee for a long time to come.
"Yes, for being there, for not- well, for coming out from the trees and speaking with me, leading me in, answering my questions, -putting up- with me." She smiled even if Lee didn't look her way.
Lee stopped after a while, even after Fiara had stopped speaking. The long period of silence didn't seem to bother her, and there really was no cue to say why she would stop at that moment. There was a flash of pink in the shadows as she looked over her shoulder at her.
"D-d-do p-people not usually p-p-put up-p... with y-you?"
Fi followed when Lee moved and stopped when she stopped, she wondered about the silences, but didn't question them, she looked around, but only saw trees and other plants at this point, her attention was right back on Lee when she spoke, "Ah, yea, you could say that..." And she trailed off, not saying more, but she still smiled, keeping her mood bright, she again lifted her sore paw when they stood still, cleaning it again if they were still for long.
She did stand there for a few moments, just staring at her while blinking slowly. She wondered why... If there was something odd about the lioness that she couldn't see. She looked normal enough... Talked alot, but there really wasn't anything wrong with that. Her eyes shifted down to her paw when she lifted it, blinking twice before clearing her throat.
"A-are you hurt-t-t?"
"Ah, no, its just sore, its nothing." She shook her head with a slight frown, thinking that she shouldn't have continued to lift it, "I burned it, not badly, its healing." She didn't want the other to think that she was complaining so she tried to brush it off with a laugh, "Pretty dumb, huh?"
Burned? The larger lioness stared at her paw for a moment curiously, then straitened to move off again. "St-tay." She muttered, then lounged through a thick bush.. and very suddenly was gone.
She didn't return for a while, and the forest was getting darker around her... It was nearly impossible to see anything more than a few feet ahead. But finally, there was a familiar flash of pink as she stepped onto a the path behind her, holding a few leaves in her clenched teeth.
"Ah, but!" Fi called after Lee, but she was gone to quickly, Fi's eyes widened, she sat but she couldn't stay still, shifting and looking around, fidgeting , counting the seconds until Lee came back. She would come back, she had to, Fiara lost count and started over again, but that wasn't helping, "Please come back, please come back." She murmured outloud to herself, and when Lee suddenly did return, Fi nearly lept forward, startled and calmed at the same time, she nearly had tears in her eyes. "Lee! You came back- Oh? Umm, what're those for?"
Lee blinked at Fiara, the leaves still clamped in her mouth. "Mm?" She grunted, staring for a moment before she sat down heavily. She realized that then Fiara might have been afraid... But she didn't really think to apologize. She bit down on the leaves, breaking them down the middle. They were odd looking, thicker than most leaves, and odd tentacle-like shapes. And they leaked a green ooze from the cuts, even more when Lee pressed a paw down on them. She then gestured a thick paw towards the pile. "Sme-ear that-t on your... p-p-paw."
Fi let out a nervous laugh and stepped forward, looking at the strange oozing leaves, she put her flame marked paw on the leaves, smearing the medicinal goop over the pad and was surprised when it began to feel better right away. "It feels better, kinda squishy, heh." She giggled the smallest bit and continued to apply the ooze, looking up and back down in a nervous way, her immaturity showing through though she tried to hide it. "Umm, umm, thank you, again, this is better. I, I really didn't think you were going to leave me here for good or anything, I was just surprised is all..."
Lee couldn't help but smile softly, watching Fiara smear on the gooey medicine. She didn't seem to mind the moment of immaturity... She might have done the same thing. Once Fiara seemed soothed enough to walk again, she pushed herself up and stretched for a moment before once again starting to trott along the pathway that disappeared just ahead of her. In fact if it wasn't for the spot of pink, Fiara probably wouldn't have been able to see her at all.
She lead her the rest of the way, crossing over the borders. Now she moved with even more familiarity, hopping over the occasional log, and finally they reached a stream. "We are h-here. I t-t-take you to K-Kiuma... She is q-q-queen."
When she was done, and she caught Lee's soft smile she nodded and let Lee lead them again, Fiara wondered to herself, if -no no- when she was a part of the pride, how long would it take her to remember these paths and ways, she feared she would get lost, the trees muffled everything and it grew darker than a moonless night. Her eyes never left the pink tuft of Lee's tail once they got into the deepest parts, she was nervously silent, because even if Lee had begun to speak more, Fi had caught on to what she thought, Lee didn't like speaking much.
When they passed through the borders, Fi breathed, only female scents, it was so -comforting- but more than that, friendly, familiar- it seemed that Lee felt the same, maybe, or Fiara just wanted to believe that, she moved after the other lioness and then they stood before the stream, "Queen Kiuma." She said the name and title with wonder, lightness, happiness, "Is she ni- what's she like?"
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Posted: Sat Apr 04, 2009 5:40 pm
Lee paused to glance at her and smile softly. "S-she is... queen. G-g-good q-queen... That-t is all you need t-to know." She nodded her head to Fiara gently, then gestured for her to follow, turning to head towards where Kiuma slept. She would explain everything to the female, answer any other questions. Well, the ones Kiuma herself couldn't answer...
As they walked she glanced sideways at Fiara, her usually blank smile looking more content than usual. She thought the two of them would get along rather well...
(Hope you don't mind me wrapping it up. C: We can do another one thats after she met Kiuma or something? <33 ))
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