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 Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2009 1:51 pm
It was raining and Justinus had been separated from his older brother. Now he sat in the mouth of a seemingly empty den waiting for the rain to pass. Not that Justinus minded the rain or anything. There just wasn't a big enough reason for him to wander about the plains getting wet when he could sit and wait for the rain to pass.
Sides, it gave the leopard an excuse to take a break from his searching. Maybe after the rain passed he would go look for his older brother or some pride mates that may have scattered after the great earthquake.
He wasn't sure.
Thunder cracked over head and the clouds lite up. Yeah, he was grateful for the cover right now. With a stretch the leopard did a few circles and laid down, making him self comfy. Perhaps a nap would be good right now.
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Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2009 2:11 pm
Drenched down to the bone Himeru looked quite pathetic as she padded along through the rain. Being wet was something she was quickly growing accustomed to, so the flat, skin tight grip of her fur against her body and the rivers of water that streamed from every peak upon her person hardly bothered her anymore. Sleek, cream colored ears pinned against her head so as not to fill with water, though it made it hard to hear, not that the leopardess could hear much of the drone of the pounding rain.
Thick mud splattered the leucistic femme's once pristine coat with each step, hugging her legs and making it difficult to walk as her tiny paws sank with each step. Himeru was not a large female, nor was she a particularly capable or self sufficient one, which had ultimately lead to her current demise. As much as she missed her sister, the thought of her painful enough to cause Hime to nearly burst into tears for the millionth time, she couldn't face her.
So the leopardess had condemned herself to social exile, trudging miserably through the storm and cowering low to the ground with each flicker of lightning or malevolent clap of thunder. Not that she even considered to take cover, worthless and unable to fend for herself, Himeru didn't deserve to be sheltered.
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Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2009 7:16 pm
Movements in the near by area caused the gladiator to lift his head. He had to squint, but from what he could tell , the shape was that of a leopard. Gender from so far away was not clear, but he could tell it was having a hard time.
Mildly interested, the leopard stretched and sat up. He observed the shape for some time and watched as it cowered low to the ground. Justinus smirked and shook his head. Poor fool.
Yawning lazily he got up and entered the dreaded down poor, allowing him self to get slapped by down coming drops. The mud and lightning did not bother him, he had been through worse and was not so easily scared off.
The closer he got the more apparent it became that this was a female and that she was not having a good time. The leopard padded closer, but kept his distance in case he was intruding on something.
"Muds not very becoming of a lady sweet heart. Why don't you take shelter over there? Unless this is some new beauty secret you lady's seem so found of," He tilted his head to the side and offered her a friendly smile.
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Posted: Tue Sep 22, 2009 8:19 pm
Himeru recognized the outline of another feline moving towards her long before she could make out the species. Of course her natural response was to pin herself to the ground and cower, as if by some fortune the stranger might over look her entirely. Some part of the small leopardess hoped that it might be her sister. No doubt angry at her for running off and having to track her through miles of mud, but she would also reassure the frightened femme the way she always did and lead her back to a warm, quiet spot where they would curl up together the way they had been for years.
But no!
She couldn't allow herself to hold her sister down anymore. Hime would find her own way, even if it killed her! And at this point she was certain it would.
His voice barely reached her through the crash of the rain, though he was close enough now for her to realize that she had been spotted by another leopard. A male. So much for being over looked. Round, mismatched stare could only peer at him, drenched and looking pathetic. There was no amusement in her expression at his wry sense of humor. Only sorrow and a fading light. Shaking her head timidly as she glanced towards the cave, quickly turning her eyes away before she could be caught peering too longingly at the warm, dry shelter where she could take refuge at least until the storm had quit its howling.
N-No.. I.. I can't. Hime chattered dismally, slowly continuing her painstaking trek through the mud without much more explanation then that.
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Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:06 pm
The leopard male's smile dimmed at her decline to dry off. But Justinus shrugged it off and paced along side her. Couldn't well leave her out here in the fury of the storm. The males lilac eyes trained on to the female with intense curiosity.
"You have some place to be in weather like this?" His voice was neither mocking nor amused, just matter of fact. Out in the open, it was cold wet and miserable. The gladiator couldn't imagine why any one would want to be out here unless they had a purpose.
"Come now, you'll wear your body down if you continue on your way like this. " He frowned studying her face. Justinus wasn't the touchy feely type, but she seemed a little off in his book.
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Posted: Tue Sep 29, 2009 11:17 am
That was the end of it then right? A brief conversation. Enough to get the point across that she wasn't a big talker. Not when she could get away with it. Once--when Himeru had dared to give herself the benefit of the doubt that she was at least mildly capable at being social--she had ventured to befriend a kindly male leopon. That had ended disastrously and ultimately wound her up in the position she was currently in. As such, the leopardess had learned it better not to speak. The possibilities of all the wrong things she was bound to say were infinite and endless. No need to prove it.
She had expected him to return to the warm cave he had exited unbidden. It was apparent to those who were able to gauge the value of a person's company in a look that she wasn't worth the effort. But to her horror, the unfamiliar leopard took up pace at her side as Hime continued to slink onward and continued conversation.
Waves of ill ease passed beneath her drenched pelt in tense twinges. It made the rogue female uncomfortable that he would chance becoming ill for the sake of... of what she didn't know. Rescuing her maybe? Such a pointless notion. Rescue. She prayed to some kind god or goddess for mercy. Maybe if she was short with him he would take a hint and leave. N-no.
Hime tried to sound irritable, but the quiver in her voice was unconvincing. Mud squelched between her toes as she made a desperate effort to move at something quicker then a crawl. Jumping nearly out of her skin as a particularly loud blast of thunder caught her offguard. Though she refused to look at him, her bi-colored eyes trained upon the ground, the frown in his voice made her stomach twist in knots. Why couldn't he just leave her alone?
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Posted: Wed Sep 30, 2009 10:21 pm
The male just eyed her as she slunk along the mud, trying to keep up with her pace exactly. In the mud and the horrifying weather, this was no easy task, but Justinus did his best. The mud and the rain just were not pleasant.
On top of that he had no earthly idea what was going on in this females head. She was being quiet around him. Either she was shy or she just was a woman with years of experience. Had he been mistaken for a lone male looking for some action? That thought alone smacked the smile off his maw. Not that he didn't think the leopardess wasn't pretty, but that it seemed like a lowly thing for him to court a female while in a storm who obviously was not having a good time.
His lilac eyes continued to eye at her face, and he continued to get no answers.
"You can have the cave your self and I'll go off else where. I'm not here to take advantage of you." He offered a weak smile, but it melted off his maw quickly. This was a tad confusing.
"I mean, you could catch a cold or something."
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Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 3:09 am
He was making assumed accusations now and he didn't even know her name! She felt herself struggle against the urge to cringe at his words. He hadn't done anything wrong, but her silence seemed to suggest other wise. He thought that she had pinned him with questionable intentions when she hadn't even bothered to humor the idea. Why would anyone have wanted her? The idea was laughable, but Hime didn't find it funny as her gut twisted with guilt.
Even despite what he seemed to think she thought of him, he continued to follow her. Even offered her his dwellings minus his company and for the life of her the young leopardess couldn't understand why. Pausing abruptly in mid stride as she whipped around to stare at him, flustered as tears brimmed pale hues. Even though they were camouflaged by the rain, her voice choked on them, broken and uncertain. Making otherwise invisible sobs disconcertingly obvious with her hiccuping. W-why?! Why won't you just leave me al-lone?! I.. I don't un-unders-stand why you're even h-here! J-just a w-waste of your time. Why would you r-risk this weather for me? You do-don't even kno-ow me!
P-Pleease go away! It was Himeru's last cry and it verged on a plea. She couldn't stand to see anyone else impaired by her incompetence. Nor bare the thought of burdening another soul with her empty friendship for she offered nothing of value to anyone. For the briefest moment her gaze searched his in search of answers to why he acted as he did. What drove him to follow her through such unfavorable weather? As if his eyes held the answer, she realized that it was the first time she'd actually taken a moment to take in his appearance.
He was a handsome leopard, no doubt, with unusual and bold blue markings that added character to his otherwise perfectly natural pelt. Finally, when orbs, glazed with bubbles of water, recognized that they had lingered too long Hime turned away again as sharply as she had turned back to him. Continuing her aimless travels to no where in particular with no visible end in sight.
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Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2009 10:22 am
Justinus took a few paw steps back from her, he was shocked. The reaction was something totally out of the blue and not what he had expected. Though, he supposed, that it was not with out reason. He had come out of no where and bothered her with out knowing anything about her even if his intentions had been good. And now she wanted him to go away.
The confusion and hurt chiseled about on his face as her words echoed through his mind. Go away? It just seemed so far away, she wanted him to go away.
The leopard just stood there frozen for a few moments, which felt like hours, as what she said slowly sank in. Go away?
"You're right," He finally said after long moments, his eyes now focused on his own paws, "I had no right to bother you and it I've caused you some distress. But you're not a waist of my time..." He chewed his bottom lip some, his ears now flat on his head in a submissive fashion.
"But I don't want to waist your time and clearly I've stepped paw in to something with out fully understanding. I'm sorry, if you really just need to be alone , I'll be going." The male felt wrong saying that. He wanted to stay and get to the bottom of what was wrong with this female, but at the same time, he knew she must have a good reason. So, Justinus turned and slowly started back for his small shelter out of the storm.
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2009 12:29 am
Despite the urge to look back at him Himeru resisted, allowing his wounded voice to scald her backside as she retreated. It was the coldest she'd ever been to anyone and the little leopardess was certain that it was killing her. Step wavering at the sound of the unfamiliar male's reluctant retreat. Perhaps... perhaps he at least deserved to know why. She owed him that much at least, didn't she?
Convincing herself to double back at a rushing jog, muddy figure skidded to circle around the sullen stranger. Quiet voice was barely audible above the storm rumbling over their heads but she tried her best to make him understand. Sniffing back tears and spilling apologizes and half explained excuses for her behavior breathlessly and as quickly as her tongue would allow. W-wait! I-I'm sorry. Don't be upset. It.. it's better off this way! Y-you're better off not knowing me.. forgetting that.. we ever met. I promise. I.. I have to go now. I'm sorry!
Twisting on her haunches Hime sprung away again, her last apology called over her shoulder as she struggled to keep a sprinting pace. At least her conscious didn't feel quite so heavy now. She hoped he'd understand that her actions were all for his benefit.
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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2009 7:36 pm
The male blinked his mouth half opened. Her logic really didn't make much sense but at the same time Justinus knew that the full story was a big chunk of the missing puzzle piece. The male just eyed the female as she sprung away. He was unable to think of anything to say to her apology.
So the male turned his back on her after she had gone a good distance and went back to the safety of the little den he had found. It felt wrong to just let the female go all alone in the rain but what right did he have to tell her any different.
Unsettled and unsure of what had just happened, Justinus just stared off into the rain misted distance where the female was still well on her way to where ever she was going.
He smiled and whispered, "be safe," and closed his eyes slowly drifting off to a dream world.
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