Forest forest and more forest. This was so BORING. Duma growled loudly, flopping down onto the ground eventually with a minature, leotah-version of a roar. He was tired, bored, and although he wouldn't admit it he was a little lost too. The jungle all looked the same! He snorted, watching a beetle crawl by in front of his nose. Lightning-quick, a pink paw shot out and squished it.

He liked this power. He could decide life or death. He was pretty amazing, after all - he was a Leotah! He could climb trees AND run fast. But...then why did he still feel like a weirdo? Murdoc was always teasing him and..and sometimes, it really hurt, too.


Several days had gone by since Carnadhiel had last seen someone at the border of the Antianeira. In a way, she was relieved. It meant the pride was secret and safe, and it also meant that those who knew of the pride were too scared (and smart) to go near.

However, there was a feeling of discontent within the lioness. She wanted to see someone, something...Someone to chase off and reiterate her position. But there was nothing; no one. Carnadhiel disliked this feeling of wanting something to go wrong, but at the same time, she lived for it.

And then she saw it.

A small animal...A leopard? A cheetah?

Oh. It was a hybrid.

Carnadhiel flexed her claws and raced towards the small male, skidding to a halt in front of it, a spray of dirt flying up beside her.


"HEY! WHAT WAS THAT FOR!?" Duma actually roared, scrambling to his feet and hurriedly pushing the dirt from his sore eyes. Crazy lady! He'd just been lying there happily, when she'd suddenly ATTACKED him! He finally removed it all, growling loudly.

"You're CRAZY, dude! Stupid, moron, idiot..." he grumbled, sitting himself down again and proceeding to clean his coat, ignoring Carnadhiel.


It took a lot of the lioness's stores of self-control and years of experience to ignore the young one's insults. The did her best to let them roll off her instead of roll into her. She succeeded for the most part, but was still vastly irritated by the hybrid's presence near the border of the pride's lands.

He was a hybrid and a male. He was not welcome.

White eyes catching pink ones and holding the gaze, Carnadhiel drilled in a look of seriousness. "Are you aware that you are near the Antianeira lands?" Carnadhiel asked.


Duma watched Carnadhiel lazily, clearly not afraid in the slightest. He licked his paws quite contentedly, not even looking up to meet her gaze as she spoke. He continued with his paw for several silent moments, before finally speaking. "The what-lands? I've no idea what you've talking about, crazy-lady."

He turned to the other paw, cleaning that, before eventually looking up to Carnadhiel, raising an eyebrow. "...Are you still here?"


Hm.

What an unfortunate situation.

Carnadhiel was sure it wouldn't end well, one way or another. This hybrid youth was making things difficult; very difficult, indeed. He lacked discipline it seemed, and needed a good smack across the face. But Carnadhiel was not one to harm a young one without reason. Besides, adult or youth, taking physical action was the last resort. That was how she worked.

"If you do not remove yourself from this area, I will be forced to take action." Carnadhiel said icily, white eyes piercing.

She was not in the mood for cub games and back-talk.


Duma clambered to his feet, snorting as he looked up to Carnadhiel. He didn't have to look up far, due to the fact that she was rather small, and he was quite big for his age. He bared his own teeth, before it turned into a sneer. "Take action? Oh, now I'm scared."

His voice dripped with sarcasm, but he clearly wasn't scared in the slightest. Or at least not yet. His tail flicked from side to side in a cocky manner, arrogance practically dripping off of him.


Black hair bristled on the lioness's back slowly, but steadily, and she lowered her head, tail stiff and claws outstretched. Her pupils were thin slits and her eyes appeared so white that it was hard to tell what was iris and what was eye-white. Muscles bulged beneath her fur, and suddenly the small lioness didn't seem so small any more.

Lips curling to reveal sharp fangs, the lioness let out a deep his, never taking her eyes off the youth.

"You should be." Carnadhiel growled. "I'll give you one last chance. Leave, or I will force you to."


Woa. She like...grew bigger. He hadn't quite counted on that. Nevertheless, he continued smirking, rolling his eyes a little at her words. Such a silly lionness - he was Dumanla! No-one could hurt him! Besides, she wouldn't dare hurt someone younger than her, such as him. he was still only a juvenile, after all. And that was like, child abuse, right? He definitely had the upper hand here, oh yes.

"But you're just a girl," he spoke with distaste. Duma still thought girls had cooties. "And why don't you make me, huh! You don't own this land - no-one does!"


The youth was right to say that Carnadhiel didn't own the lands. That was the truth. She didn't. But she was in charge of patrolling its borders, which DID belong to the pride, which Carnadhiel was a part of. So even if this cub was right in some aspects, he was wrong in many others. Disgustingly so. He was even more disgusting to her by putting her on a lower level than him simply because she was female. That was the final straw.

The lioness was sick of his back-talk and his smug air, not enjoying his presence in the slightest. They had bantered long enough. It was time for him to go. Now.

In a blur of motion, the lioness slashed a red-gloved arm out over the juvenile's head, cuffing him hard enough to knock him off his feet. One of her claws had snagged his ear and sliced it a bit; enough to draw blood. But it was mostly a smack-warning. And she prayed, for his sake, that he would take that warning and run before she had to do a little more than delicately slice the ear.

"LEAVE." Carnadhiel roared.


He was smirking smugly - she'd quietened down. Did that mean she was going to leave him in peace at last? ...No, apparently now. He didn't see it coming at all, yelping loudly as he was smacked rather hard, tumbling to the left. He landed awkwardly on the ground with a mew he was quite angry at himself for making, though he quckly hurried back to her feet, trying to ignore the pain that now coursed through the right side of his face. That had HURT!

But wait...BLOOD!? She'd actually made him bleed!? He snarled, looking as if he was about to attack her before...well, she roared. And he suddenly realized how much scarier she was. Trying not to show it, he snarled once more, loudly proclaimed "That HURT! You're all CRAZY!" However, he did take the hint, turning and racing off into the vegetation, as far away from the crazy-lady as he could get. ...But on the plus side, he could tell his brothers he got into a fight and won! They'd never know what really happened! Ohoho, just wait until he got home...


It filled Carnadhiel with an almost foreign sense of triumph to watch the foolish hybrid race off and away from the border. His insults, once again, went unnoticed by the lioness. She was far too used to and to mature to feel belittled by a mere juvenile, male or not. Males did fill her head with the echoes of jeering males of her past, but it wasn't so bad with young ones. Just the same, it was still satisfying to prove just how much better she was, and just how well she could serve the Antianeira.

Face donning her usual look, the female calmed down and allowed her tail to sway once. Then she turned to the trees and slipped through them, continuing her patrol of the borders.