|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 12:27 pm
 It had been by a stroke of chance that Tukutu and Tapelo had run across a pair of lions conversing... and it was that same stroke of luck that held Tukutu back long enough to hear these two identify themselves.
Oh ho, so this was Sakata, the mate of that dreadful lioness who'd been so irritated with her. And Shinda, the daughter from a previous mating?
Her mind was racing with ideas, schemes, and tricks to play. Both she and Tapelo had since hidden themselves among the nearby brush, the goddess ordering her partner to keep himself quiet and out of sight.
Tukutu had learned much about the royal family during her investigation of this curious pride, and now would be a perfect time to start a little mischief with the ruling family.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 10:50 pm
 Shinda didn't like being confused.
But it was something she had to deal with now with so many things happening, things that made life a lot less boring, yet aggravating as well. For example, her half-siblings. She still had mixed feelings towards them, towards her father, and the voices in her head were telling her to make the best of the situation, but she didn't know yet how.
She kept a sharp eye about while on her patrol; Shinda was not about to get distracted just because of some family complications. That intruder was still out there somewhere, and had, perhaps others with her, what with the numbers of the lack of prey.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:15 am
She waited until Sakata had clearly moved out of sight, and Shinda was alone.
Now, Shinda's story had intrigued the goddess, resulting in her asking many many questions to those willing to divulge many many answers to her (it was surprising how many lions and lionesses she could con into believing that she was already an existing member of the pride!). Shinda was indeed the firstborn of Sakata, but this took place before he became the Warleader and mate to the notorious Jinichongo. Which then prompted her to question where Shinda's mother was, in all of this, if Sakata was to move from one mate to another.
While the concept of sacrifice did not phase Tukutu, the idea that a lion would be willing to have his mate killed and practically abandon his daughter for a higher position... well, that simply amused her. And undoubtedly created a deliciously devilish plan of how to get to Sakata, which would in turn affect the Queen herself.
Orange eyes studied Shinda's appearance. Keeping focus on her coloring, Tukutu swiftly and quietly began to morph. Her wings disappeared, her long hair dissolved into thin air, and her size began to shrink.
Stepping out into the brush, the newly disguised Tukutu cleared her throat, crouched, and hissed out, "Shinda!"
It was time to have some fun.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:33 am
Perhaps, Shinda decided, she would get to know the cubs before making any judgment on them. After all, one of them would be the next Queen and Vates. It wouldn't be good to shun them when she could very well use their relationship to get close to them.
That didn't mean the resentment she always had against her father was gone now, however. It was enough that she had always grown up in his shadow, but now, Shinda was sharp enough to see that he would be more of a fatherly figure towards her half-siblings than he was to her. Yes, the circumstances of her birth had shaped her into who she was now. It didn't mean that she had to like how she had been treated.
The dark lioness blinked, ears perking up at the sound of her name being called. It was an unfamiliar voice, one she didn't remember having heard around the pride before. She spun around, a growl upon her lips. "Who are you?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:43 am
She suppressed a giggle, despite the giddiness she was feeling all over, thanks to what she viewed as a clearly wonderful trick to play. Feigning a nervous expression, she flattened her ears and kept low to the ground.
"Shinda, my darling.... don't you remember me?"
Her mouth moved to form a hurt expression, her body finally rising from the crouch to draw closer to the young adult. Tukutu hoped she'd managed an old enough looking lioness, in her illusion, for she was playing off the hopes that Shinda had no recollection from her cubhood.
Taking one step closer, her head tilted. "Please tell me you have not forgotten me already? Why it only seems like yesterday that you were just a small cub, aspiring to grow up big and strong like your father!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:00 am
The lioness instinctively drew backwards, frowning at the other, a curious and shocked gaze sweeping across the other from head to tail. "I don't know you." She said crisply. Was this the intruder the Warleader had spoken about?
Her orange eyes narrowed. Shinda had a hunch about what the lioness was insinuating, a hunch that made her blood run cold, but...no, it couldn't be. "My mother is dead." She informed the older lioness, taking a stab in the dark. Oh, were the spirits trying to play a trick on her?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:13 am
"Oh Shinda," Tukutu sighed dramatically, shaking her head as she gave the other female a mournful look, "That's just what they want you to think, darling."
Stepping forward, she bowed her head, showing respect for the other. Tukutu was never one for physical contact or comfort, and she wasn't about to get herself clawed up by trying to nuzzle her long lost 'daughter'. So instead, she decided to skip right to the point, so could convince Shinda of her ploy and get her trick on its way.
"I'm so sorry I haven't appeared to you sooner; I'm risking both of our lives as it is right now, just by talking to you!"
To add dramatic effect, she took a moment to glance around, ensuring that they were indeed alone together. "I have missed you so, Shinda, though if Sakata knew I had never perished...." Pausing, she closed her eyes, as if contemplating. "If he knew I was still alive, I would surely find myself dead within moments."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:33 am
Really. Just what she needed. Another complicating issue to think about. "How do I know you are who you are?" The lioness said suspiciously, peering at her 'mother'. It wasn't as if she could look for any physical similarities; she was too alike her father to pick out what exactly she had inherited from her mother.
"Tell me then. What happened back then." If it was true, well, it would be the answers she had always been seeking. If not, it would be interesting to see what story this lioness could cook up.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:57 am
Well, crap. Tukutu thought to herself. She'd been hoping it would be fairly easy to return a mother to a lonely daughter, but Shinda had proven to be quite the cautious Warrior, after all.
Taking a deep breath, she allowed her body to show a physical tremor, as if she were shaking from fear or discomfort.
"I deserve your distrust." She stated softly, raising her head so that her eyes could meet with orange ones. "And would be more than happy to share with you my story... it is the least I can do, as I know I cannot attempt to make up for the seasons of attention you have gone without, due to my and your father's absence. Though happy I am to share with you, the story is far from pleasurable."
She took a moment to sit where she stood, signaling that this would not be a short and quick tale to tell. Tukutu's mind was spinning, her brain weaving a story to feed the other lioness. It was a good thing she was born daughter to Anansi, else she might have found herself in a spot of trouble!
"Jinichongo, our... fair Queen," she drawled, her words dripping with sarcasm, "Used to be a close friend to me. I am now, more than ever, certain that is why Sakata courted me as he had, to gain a closer access to Jinichongo."
One paw drug its claw across the ground, picking up dirt with it, an obvious glare of anger emitting from the older lioness's eyes. "It was not long, before you were born. Nor long after that, unfortunately, that our Queen, Hofu, passed from this world. As is tradition, Jinichongo was announced the new Queen, and Sakata.... well, Sakata, being the Second at the time, decided it was time for him to challenge Afya, the Warleader and Jinichongo's father."
The claw had stopped, Tukutu knowing that this must be the time to express sadness, and she lowered her head as if to wipe away a tear against her shoulder. "Sakata won, naturally, as I'm sure you're well aware of his power and might. He had gotten what he wanted, the most powerful position in the pride.... only, he already had a mate, and I'm sure, just as you know your father, you must be aware of Jinichongo's temperament."
Cranky b***h, the goddess thought to herself, pausing to briefly recollect her own encounter with the Queen of the Mizimu'Tungika. "So thus, despite having an adoring mate and the sweetest of daughters... Sakata chose the Queen over both of us, Shinda."
It was at this time that Tukutu looked the black and red lioness in the eyes, her stare firm and unwavering. "He chose to end my life and abandon you to the others to raise, so that he may start a new life with a Queen, a Queen who has taken notice of you, now that her own litter has been born. You had no meaning to her, nor Sakata, at that time, but now that a heir has been born, you are a threat in their eyes."
She drew silent, then, enjoying the dramatic effect of the conversation. "That is why I chose to reappear now, for the sake of your own life. Jinichongo is going to have you killed, Shinda, and Sakata will do nothing to stop her."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:09 am
Her face set in a grim smile, she sat down in front of her 'mother' and listened. Ever the wary lioness she always was, she still had some doubts to whether this was all true. Yes, she knew the history, named all the names, and Shinda didn't have a hard time believing that Sakata would act that way. It was still a little suspicious.
But perhaps, for now, she would give the other the benefit of the doubt.
A smirk grew on her maw as the other lioness finished. "Me? Dead? How could I be a threat to them, when I'm not of royal blood?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:23 am
Damn it!
Tukutu had been more than positive that the story would have won Shinda over. Granted, Shinda did appear more trusting than she had when Tukutu had first appeared to her, but the hesitance was obvious.
She let out a gentle laugh, her mind racing for an explanation. "Oh, my dear Shinda, how do you not see? The land, the pride, nothing has remained as orderly as it has if it were not for your father. Whispers have started and have flown quicker than the wind itself that Sakata is the true ruler of the pride. Jinichongo does not speak with the spirits, she speaks for the spirits, and it has not gone unnoticed!"
It amused Tukutu that the pride held such belief in the spirit world, when she herself had no reason, nor evidence, to believe in such myths. Being a goddess herself, Tukutu firmly believed that no spirits lingered in this world, not when they were to pass on to the next. It was true that some lions were blessed with the gift of sight, but Jinichongo, she knew, was not one of them.
"Jinichongo knows this," she continued, glancing back in the general direction of where the royal litter slept, where no doubt a lurking Jinichongo lay as well, "And should the revolt occur, as I firmly believe it will, her litter will be endangered just as much as she. And you, Shinda, my darling daughter, you are a Warrior, a strong lion, just as your father is. You are a threat to Jinichongo, for if she were to lose the throne, who else would be the best candidate to continue a Warleader's bloodline than a Warrior child of his own? You've seen the litter Jinichongo has brought into the world... none of them have a stronger spirit than your own."
She held her breath, then, after finishing her long-winded explanation. A small idea popped into her mind, so she added to her comment.
"Why else do you think there is talk of intruders entering the land? The time for revolt is upon us, Shinda. The time for the Queen to be overthrown is now, and she intends to make you the first casualty in this war."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:56 am
It was true, Shinda thought, that Jinichongo liked taking matters into her own paws, and she had indeed heard the rumors flying around. She gave the Queen all due respect of course, but she didn't like her; she never had since young. She had never regarded the Queen as family, never really talked to her, and Shinda disliked it that the birth of the cubs reiterated the fact that she was her step-mother.
Indeed, she had seen them. Most of them resembled their mother more, and only one looked like her father. Shinda wanted to meet them, to assess how they were, though.
A dark look crossed her face at the lioness's last words. The intruder had seemed to distress her father; she had heard that urgent roar summoning a Veteran. She had wondered how one intruder seemed to get on his nerves so; perhaps it was because the Scouts had made a mistake. Or perhaps...her mother was right.
Shinda's heart was not yet prepared to accept the sudden arrival of this lioness as her mother. But this all seemed highly plausible, and perhaps, she would act as though she did, for now. She would find a way to compare stories later. "But, how did you escape, Mother?" The last word sounded so awkward (how long had she not spoken that?) and she had to fight back a grimace.
"If she wants to kill me." She added quietly, watching the lioness with an unwavering gaze. "It's not as if I can do anything. She's the Queen, after all."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 10:46 am
"If that is the case," Tukutu responded gravely, her brows creasing, "Then you are not the cub I gave birth to, and are no better than your own brainwashed father."
She moved to circle the lioness, shaking her head as she finished her circling, letting out a small 'hmph'.
"I did not give birth to a daughter who would simply give up and roll over to accept an unjust death. I did not fight for my life with the Haruspex who sought to spill my innards in the Queen's name, did not live in solitude and in secrecy for this, no. I did not give up the remaining joy of my life, my own daughter, to have her grow up and be no better than the mate that allowed me to receive my own unjust death sentence."
Her face hardened, and she drew even closer to where the younger lioness stood, their noses nearly touching. "I gave up the rest of my life to remain in the shadows, to watch you grow up in hopes to see you succeed, to become a proud lioness and Warrior. I tell you all of this, I warn you, and you continue to choose the path in which you know will be the end of you. Then you are not my daughter, no. I know what I stand and fight for, the Queen knows what she fights for, but do you, Shinda? Do you even know who you are, if you cannot even fight for yourself, first and foremost?"
Heaving one last sigh, she gave a forlorn look to the other lioness. "What do you have to fight for, Shinda, if your father is fully prepared to sacrifice you for his own happiness, and your Queen wants you dead? You were born for greatness, and we can make the world right again, if you choose to allow that to happen. We can deliver justice to all of the wronged spirits of those that Jinichongo sent to an early death. We can rescue your father from her control, if that's what you strive to accomplish. You can remain a Warrior, or even you can find yourself a heir to the mighty Mizimu'Tungika pride, ruled justly with a firm but righteous paw. Shinda, you can finally make your worth known to Sakata... you could make a proud daughter of yourself, and rule by his side as equal! But standing here, doing nothing, will earn nothing but a swift death to a life that had no purpose. Is that really what you want?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 11:24 pm
"All my life," Shinda replied, "I was raised as Sakata, the Warleader's daughter and the Minders taught me everything. I was never close to my father, they told me my mother was dead. It was as if I was an orphan. So I guess," She paused, giving a hollow laugh. "I never really knew who I was. I want to be seen as Shinda, not just the Warleader's daughter, but perhaps that is just stupid; it is part of who I am." But what was she supposed to do, cause a revolt? How many lions in the Mizimu'Tungika were truly loyal to the Queen, and how many were displeased enough with her to rebel?
But perhaps her 'mother' was right, in a way. If this was true, she should not, no, would not just give up without a fight. There were ways, Shinda knew, she could use, manipulating others to get the information she needed.
"I'll see what I can do." She arched an eyebrow. "If I am meant to be killed, well, Jinichongo will not find that to be an easy task to carry out."
Then suddenly, as a thought struck her, she turned to stare at the older lioness in the eye. "They never told me what your name was."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 7:22 am
s**t s**t shiiiiit.
Tukutu as well, hadn't the faintest idea of what that name could be. But improvise, she could manage!
"What is the point of a name, if it is never to be uttered, never to be spoken of again? I have not used my own in so long, there has and will be no reason to. Wanasahau, they have forgotten me. "
She lowered her head mournfully, her ears now all the way back, pressing against her head. After a few minutes of silence, she looked up once more, and took a step forward to nuzzle against the side of the face of her 'daughter'.
"Take care, Shinda," she whispered into the female's ear. "I sense others will be drawing near, soon enough. This location is not secure, not hidden away from the public's eye."
She moved back, then, and turned around. Perhaps now that a seed of suspicion had been planted into Shinda's mind, things could grow to be quite interesting in the weeks to come. Her head glanced back, and she nodded. "I will return to you, Shinda, have no fear. Keep on your toes and your wits about you, my darling. We shall show them all, and they will regret not noticing your potential sooner."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
