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 Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 12:28 pm
The gates had been left open that morning, as sometimes happened. The villagers had long since lost their fear of the lion, and the children often entered his enclosure to retrieve lost toys. He'd escape then, wandering around the village until night approached and he was drawn home for a warm bed and a bowl of food.
This time though he'd wandered further. When his shadow grew long and reached out toward the horizon he turned for home, but he'd gone too far and realized too late that he was lost.
He roamed for weeks after that. Catching a mouse, grasshopper or even a snake when he could, every two or three days if he was lucky. By the time he reached the jungles his meager diet was wearing him down. His coat was muddy and his ribs were visible. He needed larger prey, but couldn't find anything large enough that couldn't easily out run him. The jungle seemed like a good idea though. Lots of hiding spots for rats meant lots of rats! Didn't it?
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 1:00 pm
"Prepare yourself."A low, feminine voice whispered in the undergrowth of the jungle. Her companion drew tighter around her, ready to move should aid be needed in this endeavor. Within the next heartbeat, she was running, a dark, powerful force speeding towards its prey. The gazelle didn't see death coming before it was too late. Jivutatia stood over the smallish preybeast, its neck in her mouth as it continued to kick in its death throws. "Well done, Jivu. Your mother would be mosssssst pleasssssed by your hunting ssssssskills," Mwandani whispered in the lioness' ear, loosening a bit from coiling around her neck and front left leg. But Jivu didn't catch her comment. She was too busy focused on the older blue and gray male not five leaps away, her eyes narrowed in warning.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 1:36 pm
He backed off at fist, ears flat and head lowered. He hadn't been near another lion since he was only a cub. He had no clue what to do, or say, and if it came down to a fight she was well fed and strong. There would be no contest.
Still though, she'd made a fresh kill. Perhaps if she didn't finish it he'd be able to get to the remains before the other scavengers. With that in mind he stayed and watched, from his poor hiding spot in the bushes.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 1:54 pm
Jivu dropped the neck of the now dead gazelle and tilted her head a bit, watching the male with wary eyes. He was older, larger, but scrawny. He looked half-starved. Really quite a pathetic sight, really. Had her father or brothers been in his place, they might have bared their teeth and growled out a warning or perhaps a sarcastic comment on her form or something or other. She wasn't used to defensive.
"Rather scrawny, isn't he?" she asked her snake, turning her head slightly towards 'Dani, who had since turned her own blue gaze on the lion. The snake smiled slightly and nodded.
"I do believe ssssssso. Perhapsss you should share?" the snake hissed back. The off-black lioness curled her lip for a moment at the thought, then closed her eyes and shrugged dismissively.
"Whatever," she said and bent down. Paw on the carcass' side for leverage, she bent down and tore a large portion of meat from the shoulder before stepping back a few paces to lie down and eat what she had taken.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 2:36 pm
Chane had gotten to the point where he was just hoping the snake would leave it's perch on the lioness' neck. It was just the right size for a snack, after all.
When the stranger tore a chunk off her kill and left it off to the side he remained in his 'hiding spot' not really sure what to think of it. After a while though hunger over came him and he crept out, slowly. Maybe the meat was too tough and she didn't want it. She looked well fed, after all. Maybe she was choosy about which portions she'd eat.
Just maybe, he thought, if he was quiet, maybe he could steal it.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 2:52 pm
'Dani kept an eye on the lion while Jivu busied herself with eating.
"I think he'sssss sssssscared." Jivu glanced up and saw the male creeping towards the kill rather than already eating it. She gave him a "You gotta be kidding me" kind of look.
"Heh, you know, if you keep creeping about like that, I might just forget how pathetic you look and take back my charity," she shot at him, ending her statement with a smirk and a few more laughs in the back of her throat. The paw with the snake marking upon it flexed slightly before she returned to her eating.
"That meanssssyou can eat it, you know," 'Dani clarified, in case it was needed. The snake slithered up the back of the lioness' neck so that her head could rest between Jivu's ears, more or less.
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Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2009 3:37 pm
(( =/ I always forget how many spam and scam PMs you get when you're selling on the market. /sigh ))
His ears perked up. Charity? Wait, it was intended to be for him? He watched her for a few moments. When the snake spoke he got to his feet, feeling more then a little embarrassed.
He barely managed to mutter a 'thank you' before starting in on the meat. It was good. Fresher then anything he'd ever been fed in the village. Far more meat then what he'd been able to get off a mouse. Stomach shrunk from weeks of meager portions he wasn't even able to finish the whole thing.
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 8:29 am
"Not the chatty type," 'Dani hissed in Jivu's ear, gaining only a shrug in response from the lioness. Jivu had since finished eating and had laid her head on her paws, eyes narrowed slightly as she watched the lion eating from her kill. When he stopped, there was still a good bit left and she tilted her head.
"Full already?"
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Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2009 9:19 am
He'd been licking the blood from his paw but when she spoke he stopped and nodded. "Yes, thank you," part of him wanted to apologize for thinking about eating her snake but he thought better of it. It wouldn't do him any good to offend her.
"If you need anything..." he started, but stopped short. He was disoriented, worn down and out right lost. What favour could he possibly offer her?
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 8:32 pm
Jivu gave him a look that clearly said she thought he was kidding with her and snorted with a small smirk.
"Yeah, uh-huh, whatever. You look like you can barely take care of yourself. How'd you get to be grown up all skinny like that?" she asked, her eyes roving over his form. Ever the blunt one, Jivutatia. She never had been the one to take consideration in anyone's feelings besides her own and her family's. Not that she cared what other people thought about her. She went her own way.
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Posted: Wed Jul 15, 2009 9:11 pm
He looked down at the ground. How indeed? He had lived with other lions once. Looking at her now he had to wonder if he'd stayed what that would have been like. Would he be just as proficient a hunter as she was?
He shook his head. Wondering about might have beens wouldn't change anything. One bright day he'd been attacked by something. What exactly he'd never been sure. All he could remember clearly was knowing for absolute certain that he was about to die. Everything had gone dark, and then he was playing with some of the children at the village. Everything between was a blur.
But he could tell by the way she was looking at him that he was taking way too long to answer a simple question. Shifting his weight uncomfortably he said, "I wandered too far and I couldn't find my way back to my village..."
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Posted: Thu Jul 16, 2009 8:15 pm
"Village?" both females asked at the same time, 'Dani moving to the side of Jivu's head so that they could look at one another before returning their questioning gazes to the male lion.
"Is that like a pride or something?" Jivu asked, her look bearing a frown while 'Dani just looked passively curious. Having been raised by Jivu, 'Dani's knowledge was only as much as Jivu's, and neither Jivu nor her parents knew anything about humans. Or, if the two older lions knew anything, they hadn't mentioned it to their children.
They were more or less isolated in the jungle, usually running into other jungle-dwellers and those that were lost. There were a few jungle prides and leopard coalitions that they knew of, but they avoided the members of those groups and vice versa. Jivu's father wasn't the friendly type, and despite Chikala's happy and friendly personality, it had rubbed off very little on her children.
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Posted: Thu Jul 16, 2009 9:36 pm
He looked more then a little uncomfortable. "A bit like a pride... but with people. They took care of me while..." he stopped again. While he was healing? If he said that she'd ask 'from what' and that he couldn't answer.
Now that he was fed though another need was slowly becoming more urgent. "I'm exhausted... Is there anywhere safe I could sleep?"
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Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2009 9:02 am
People? He had lived with humans? Jivu frowned even more, but said nothing on that subject. She would simply have to ask her parents about this. Why would humans care for a lion? And why would he accept their help in the first place? What little she knew about humans told her to avoid them as much as possible.
"You're in my territory, so you're pretty much safe here if you don't piss me off," Jivu replied before standing and walking to the remainder of the carcass. She tore off another good sized portion and set it down so that she could speak.
"But I have a cave I go to on rainy nights, if you mean something more like that."
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Posted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 8:17 pm
"I'll try not to piss you off then..." he said as he watched her tear at the carcass. What did she intend to do with it? Save it? The more he thought about it the more it seemed like a good idea. Maybe he should take the rest of what she'd given him for himself. Who knew when he'd be able to catch his next meal?
"I'd prefer the cave, but I can find somewhere if it's too much trouble."
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