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 Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 8:54 pm
The ground underfoot was sunwarmed and soft beneath her paws where the lioness passed along one of the many paths through the roguelands. She was a far more open and cheerful sort than many of the wanderers through the travel-worn paths with no home to call their own. Wandering through the grass, her golden eyes bright with happiness or joy or some other pleasant emotion. She'd walk or bounce or prance along her way to nowhere in particular, watching the clouds pass or admiring birdsong or flower blooms. The world was truly a wonderful place, Keena loved everything about it and everyone in it.
Still, it was a quiet sort of day, and she was considering settling down to watch the clouds as she occasionally did, though there weren’t all that many this afternoon. Well, it would be evening soon, perhaps she could watch the stars come out instead. Or she could go a bit further and see if she might find some company to watch them with her. That would be nice, she’d not met anyone all day.
"Bugger," cursed a deep purple male as he moved slowly over the roguelands, a slight limp in his step. It had been an annoying day. With children in his party and many mouths to feed, he felt it was his responsibility to go out and hunt something for them to eat when they started to complain of hunger. It seemed like the noble, kingly thing to do.
He should have made Fara do it.
Not only had he lost the prey he had been hunting, but he'd twisted his paw in the process of chasing the damn thing. Now he didn't know where he had left the others and he knew his war council bodyguard Fara was going to give him hell for wandering off again. Sometimes he felt more like a child than king. Grumpy, the animal sat himself down on a soft patch of dirt, lifting his front left paw and giving it a few licks. There was no blood, but his tongue seemed to ease the pain a little.
As nice as it might have been to curl up and watch as the day darkened into dusk, Keena just didn’t quite feel ready to settle down for the night. And, inevitably, if she lay down to watch the sun set and the stars start to shine, she would probably wind up falling asleep there. It wasn’t as if there was only one patch of sky to watch after all, she could find a place for herself anywhere she was. Besides, it had been a rather uneventful sort of day and she wasn’t really tired. It might be nice to walk a while under the stars as well.
It wasn’t long after lioness had decided to continue that she caught a flicker of movement in the corner of her vision. She turned to look as another lion sat not too far from where she’d been walking, and her head tipped curiously as she watched him for a moment, wondering if he would mind company or if she would be intruding on his privacy. Some creatures were quite upset when she bothered them, and she hated to upset anyone. But when he lifted his paw to lick it her uncertainty about being a bother turned into concern.
“Are you alright?” she asked as she approached the male. If he was hurt, perhaps there was something she could do to help, though she had never been taught to heal. But there couldn’t be much harm in trying, right?
Bwana let his ears perk forward, his orange eyes flicking over to the female that had come over to see if he was alright. Had he made it that obvious that he had hurt himself? Perhaps all the muttering hadn't been as quiet as he thought. Or maybe she was just the kind of lioness that saw someone licking their paw carefully and didn't think it was an odd way to clean.
"Ah, yes," He replied softly, lowering his paw again so as not to continue on looking like a complete baby, "I'm quite alright. I just twisted my paw the wrong way on a run earlier. I'm sorry, is this where your den is? I can move myself if it's better for you."
Keena often didn’t think things through quite the same way others did. She liked to be able to help, she liked the way others seemed when they were happy or felt better, and loved to be a part in it. If someone was merely acting odd, she didn’t mind being mistaken. In her opinion, it was better to err on an offer to help someone who didn’t need it than to mistakenly ignore someone who might. Besides, she’d been hoping to meet a friend today… and today had been on its way to being over before she saw the purple—furred male.
“Oh, no, don’t move, you’re fine where you are,” she hastened to assure him, “I don’t have a den. I was just wondering if you might want help…or maybe just a little company?” Keena offered a little hopefully.
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Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 9:42 pm
Bwana smiled, nodding his head.
“I don’t think there’s much you can do for a swollen paw, unless you know where I might be able to find some water to dip it in, but I would be happy to have the company of such a kind lioness such as yourself.” He let his tail flick, his mood instantly lightened at the prospect of meeting someone new. It seemed as though he met with a lot of females, which he found a little strange, but it wasn’t something he could complain about. After all, he rather enjoyed spending time with the ladies.
“Please, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Bwana- I’m usually much better at telling others who I am before too long, I apologize for leaving you guessing for a while.” He chuckled mildly, bowing his head towards her before continuing. “And what’s your name, If I may be so bold as to ask?”
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Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 9:52 pm
Keena's expression fell slightly when he mentioned water to dip it in. That did seem like a fine solution, but the last time she'd passed water had been early that morning. He probably wasn't interesting in a day's worth of traveling to dip his paw in a small creek. Surely there was more water than that around here somewhere, but she'd not found it.
Still, he did seem to be rather...nice? Sweet? Polite? Ah, cordial. Yes, that was it. A smile curved its way warmly across her maw as he spoke. Perhaps he was a tale-teller of some kind, he certainly seemed to have a way with words.
"My name is Keena, and it's lovely to meet you," she said, utterly sincere. She was sorry that she'd met him because he was hurt, but it really was quite nice to meet someone new. And he seemed to be of a similar mind, not the least bit irritated or bothered by her presence. "I'm afraid I'm not really from around here though, so I'm not sure if there's water nearer than the creek I saw this morning..." She trailed off, glancing at the late noon sky, "I could look around if you'd like though, there might be something around here?" the lioness offered, her ears perked attentively. She did like the way he spoke, it was interesting and rather nice to listen to.
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Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 10:09 pm
“Ah, no need to go through the effort for something small like this,” Bwana assured her gently, smiling as he looked down at his paw once more. The swelling wasn’t too bad, and he knew he hadn’t managed to break anything. Under that deep purple fur, he imagined it wasn’t even bruising or anything like that. The last thing he wanted was to make her go looking around for water that might not even exist just so he could make a small wound feel a little bit better.
Even though, as a king, he probably should have been a little more used to that kind of treatment. His father would have ordered her to get to it already, he imagined, and would have growled at her the whole time like she was some kind of servant.
No way he would treat her like that.
“I’m sure some conversation would be more than enough to distract my mind from the minimal pain,” he added with a smile, “so you mentioned you’re not from around here. Where is it you hail from, then, miss Keena? Or were you born to roam like so many I’ve met on my journeys out here?”
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Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 10:22 pm
Her head tipped slightly to one side as he assured her she didn't need to go to the trouble. She wouldn't really have minded all that much, though admittedly she would rather prefer to stay and talk to him instead. She liked his way of speaking, it was different in a...a polished kind of way perhaps?
Of course, she'd no inkling that he was a king of any kind, she rather believed him to be a wanderer like herself.
"Well, if a little conversation could help, I'm sure I could do that," Keena said, moving to sit down not too far off from him. She was mindful not to get too close either, some folks were picky about personal space, but it would be nicer to have a conversation when they were both sitting and not so far away that talking would be a strain. "Well...I guess I was born to roam, as you say. My mother was a rogue, I've been walking around like this since as far back as I remember. It's kind of nice, really, I get to meet all sorts of people," she added brightly. Like Bwana, for instance.
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Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 10:54 am
"That is nice," Bwana replied, "that's why I lived the rogue life for a year or so, but I know I'm not born to roam as you are. Sometimes I used to wish I had been. Pretended I was, actually." He sighed heavily. Good times, but times he still would have to come to regret.
He shouldn't have run away, that was the bottom line.
"My pride calls me back, so I'm going to make sure I listen to it this time and return." He didn't mention to her that his role in the pride was a little bit more than a simple member, figuring it wasn't something she really needed to fret about when they were having a nice, normal conversation. Sometimes it was nice to step out of his kingly role and just enjoy a normal situation.
Then again, that was kind of what had gotten him into trouble in the first place. "So what sort of others have you met on your journeys? Anyone interesting?"
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Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 9:27 am
Oh? So he wasn't a traveler like her? Or, rather, a rogue as most seemed to term it. But being a rogue seemed to her like it almost had negative connotations. It never seemed quite accurate to describe most of the wonderful people she got to meet. 'Fellow travelers' seemed much nicer, as did 'wanderers'. But it was just a word. No harm was meant.
Still, Keena was a bit surprised, in a pleasant sort of way, to hear about his having a pride. She didn't know if she'd want to stop exploring the world and meeting all its people herself, but she thought she might understand the way a pride could call to someone. Many of those she'd seen had been like giant families...
"Oh, yes, lots of people!" she beamed, "Everyone is so different, it's like hundreds of tiny little adventures getting to know someone! I meant this amazing huntress the other day, I didn't even know she was there until she pounced for her prey. And I met an older lion who collects information, it was as though he knew something about everything, and-" Keena giggled nervously, "Sorry, got a little carried away. But I love meeting people."
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Posted: Thu Mar 11, 2010 5:02 pm
The male laughed, looking at the female.
“I don’t mind, there’s nothing to say sorry for!” The male hummed with a chuckle, “there’s a lot of truth in what you’re saying! It is little mini adventures getting to know someone. And when getting to know that someone leads to real, not so mini adventures, it’s all the more fun. Though I tended to get to know the wrong animals in my youth. Our adventures, while fun, weren’t exactly the kind of days I would allow any future children of mine in indulge in.” Wild youth- who didn’t experience it?
That need to do the wrong thing just to feel what it was like. Surely he hadn’t been the only lad who had wanted to experience fresh, fun experiences.
“And I love hearing about the kind of animals you’ve met! So don’t stop- tell me more. Was there anyone in particular you really enjoyed meeting?” He had a couple fond memories mixed in with all the party-animal encounters. Creatures he truly would like to meet again some day. This encounter was turning into something he’d like to remember too.
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Posted: Tue May 11, 2010 8:13 am
Keena felt her fur prickle, slightly embaressed though he had laughed and assured her there was nothing to be sorry for. Sometimes she got excited, and got a little carried away. She didn't mean to talk too much, and she loved to listen to what others had to say. Many times, she'd discovered, people preffered to talk about themselves. So she could make them happier by listening, and she wasn't at all disappointed to learn new things.
"W-well...let me think a moment..." A meeting she particularly enjoyed? She loved every single one! But one or two must have stood out somewhat... "A beautiful leopard tried to teach me to make flower crowns once. I would love to meet him again. And...and Kisun is a friend of mine, she comes and goes but she's such a vibrant sort of person..." And also a hare, but Keena completely forgot to mention that tiny detail. Which it was. It hardly seemed to matter to her at all.
"What about you?" Keena asked eagerly, "You said you'd met a lot of people. Anyone especially special?"
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Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2010 10:50 pm
“Ah, sounds charming.” He said. Actually, it sounded a bit like that leopard with a little bit of a charmer, rather than charming. Doing something like teaching someone to make flower crowns… that sounded like a tactic. But maybe that as his past catching up to him a bit. It sounded like something he might have done in order to make the females fall for him. Oh yes, he had been such a player in his travels. Good thing he hadn’t let himself make cubs with any of them or he would certainly be in trouble now.
At least, he thought he hadn’t made any cubs with any of them…
“Me? Well, I don’t know. This encounter is becoming more pleasing by the moment. There was also a few other animals I met along the way that I enjoyed speaking to. A few males who helped me when I was lost, and a good friend of mine who has decided to come back with me to help keep me safe. He is a very loyal male and I can’t really believe a fellow like him was living out here in the rogue lands. But… the most special came from before I left home. A female named Kal, whom I grew up with. I hope to see her again at some point.” He smiled faintly, a dreamy sigh escaping him.
“Ah! But I fear I may have kept you too long. I’m sorry.”
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Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2010 4:28 pm
There were so very many people out here, so many of them absolutely wonderful! Dysi and Kisun and Maktaba and now Bwana. She loved traveling, she loved getting the opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. Seeing new places, learning new things. But the people were the best part.
Keena cocked her head slightly, catching the dreamy sigh with a faint smile on her features. How sweet... but she jumped slightly when he apologized. That was completely out of nowhere.
"Kept me? But I don't...oh." Was this a tactful way of ending the conversation? Maybe he was the one who was supposed to go somewhere and was only trying to be polite. Her tail swished briefly as she thought, trying to come up with a good way to comply. "Well, uh, if...if you're sure you're all set...with your paw and all...I guess maybe I'll see you around?"
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Posted: Tue Jul 27, 2010 6:02 pm
Bwana observed his paw a moment, thoughtful. “Well, I suppose it’s not one hundred percent,” he replied honestly, “but I should not linger too long to wait for it to heal. I should return to my journey before the others start to go frantic looking for me. Anyway, I really don’t want to leave you stranded here talking to a fool like me for too long. My charms will wear off if I linger,” he teased lightly, offering her a wink.
Getting himself to his paws, carefully applying pressure to his injured foot, he looked at the female once more, offering her a respectful bow of his head.
“If you ever find yourself in a strange pride with a large cliff and a vast forest, you may well find me leading the place. I hope we do meet each other again- it was a pleasure speaking to you like this. I’m glad kindness still lives in the rogue lands.” He turned from her slowly, smiling contently as he started away. Though he wasn’t really certain he wanted to leave, he knew he had obligations to attend to. Like a group of animals who needed someone to feed them.
Hunting was back on the table.
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Posted: Tue Oct 05, 2010 7:58 am
...leading?
Keena blinked at him in surprise. Her concern for his paw had hardly faded, though it was good to know he had others about to help him if he should need it. She knew better than to press help at someone by now, though she strongly wanted to continue to ask him and offer him assistance until he did accept. But she'd learned some found that irritating. Even if she was only trying to help.
But leading? He hadn't mentioned... was he a guide? No, that didn't fit quite right. He was a something, surely. A leader though? That was a surprise, and an honor she was sure, though she didn't know much about him. He must be a good leader though, the lioness decided, rising to her paws as she watched him go, realizing too late that she'd been too lost in thought to bid him a proper farewell. He was so...charismatic. Easy to talk to, to get along with. All of those who followed him surely did so because they loved him.
Maybe...if she'd been the sort to settle in one place. Maybe she might have followed him, or at least someone like him. But that itch was there, spreading through the pads of her paws, and with a last lingerin glance at the noble purple lion, she turned and allowed them to, once again, lead her where they would.
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