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 Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 5:56 pm
Times were tough. Lives were at stake, politics was often deadly, and the lives of Amira's family were often at risk. Amira often felt like she was useless. Fila had superb fighting skills, and Kudha was a top-notch diplomat. Between the two of them, they could achieve anything. Amira often wondered what she had to offer, what her place was among her siblings. Of course, she was far too busy these days to do much thinking. Amira smiled. No, her cubs kept her far too busy to worry too much.
She was taking them out to the middle of the valley, to a small-but vivacious-forest, full of new saplings. Amira liked the place. It seemed to say that something new and wonderful could come out of a troubling situation. She figured the cubs would like it as well, and she figured that they'd endured enough of Sahen's oppressive presence to deserve a bit of a break.
Truth be told, Amira hadn't been too fond of the idea of becoming a mother at first. But now, as she watched her cubs romp and play and tumble over one another, she realized that she had no greater joy in life than seeing her offspring happy. A warm, maternal smile brightened her face. She would do everything she could to give them the best life possible.
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 6:40 pm
 Kafele was running in front of his mother as quickly as his small paws allowed - though never quite far enough to ever to lose her out of his sight. He often looked back, eyes searching for the brown shape of the adult and waited for her to move closer before running off again, his expression the perfect image of carefree bliss.
“I’m gonna be first!” His voice, loud and excited, was not without a hint of a challenge. When he stared back at each of his siblings, his eyes were clearly stating he would the winner, the first to get there. Wherever there was. It was thrilling to go somewhere different where they’ve never been before and for some reason today he felt like there was something different, like they were free to do anything they wanted. He waited for Amira to take few more steps before lounging into another childish sprint.
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 7:11 pm
 Azubuike trailed behind his siblings with heavy paws, and a big, whining voice. "Moooommmuh." He groaned loudly, making certain Amira would pay attention to him. "Why do we have to move so much? I wanna go back home." He was clearly unamused as Kafele dashed right past him, leaving clouds of dust in his vision - and mouth.
"Pleh! Ew, Kafele!" The cub scolded his brother, spitting the grime from his tongue. Azubuike couldn't understand why he was always running. That took so much energy, why run when you could walk? Or better, have someone carry you. What a great idea. Azubuike's eyes lit up with the idea, and pranced over to Amira. "If we have to move so much, you can at least carry me there." He sprawled out in path with helpless eyes. This way, she couldn't move forward without picking him up. "Besides, my paws hurt." He added, just for some extra sympathy.
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Posted: Wed Feb 24, 2010 8:07 pm
Amira smiled. Kafele was truly a fireball of energy, though she was glad he wasn't running out of her sight. The Ligi weren't ones you wanted to cross, and they were known to prowl around the pride just looking for an excuse to rough someone up. Even cubs weren't immune from their violence. Amira shivered. She was glad that Fila had promised to watch over them from the precipice overlooking the glade.
Amira nuzzled Azubuike fondly, nudging him to his feet. "Love, I only have one mouth, and if I were to carry you, everyone else would want to be carried too. Besides," she added with a soft grin, "you need the exercise. We haven't been out and about in days. You'll forget all about your sore paws when we get there." Amira chuckled, remembering all the times she had played that "I'm tiiiiired" card with Fila. Fila hadn't bought it then, and Amira wasn't going to buy it now. Nah, he'd be fine. He'd figure out that the trees were fun to play in, and he'd forget about how long of a walk it was to get there, just like she had forgotten her troubles ages ago when she was a cub.
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Posted: Thu Feb 25, 2010 1:58 pm
“Aw, Azu! Come on, catch me!” Kafele wasn’t particularly happy his brother didn’t use a nickname when addressing him but right now the most important thing was to get the lighter-colored cub to play, something that seemed rather unlikely at the moment.
He had just dropped to a playful position, red bottom waving madly to the sides as he invited Azubuike to join him when he saw his brother lie on the ground – which was, from Kafele’s point of view, the same as begging to be pounced. It was more or less on instinct that Kafele dashed towards his Azu with all the sneaky determination he had and as soon as he was close enough to leap, the little red and black lion sprang into a silent pounce aimed at the white cub.
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Posted: Thu Feb 25, 2010 8:53 pm
Azubuike didn't put any effort into hiding his displeasure as his mother rejected his request. "Aww! But Moooommmuh!" A pout formed on his face, something Azu had developed a talent for. Though, at this point, it didn't seem very effective... Just frustrating the little lion even more. Not to mention all of this talk about exercise just went right over his head.
"Oh- OOF!!" The majority of the cub's troubling thoughts dissipated as his brother had pounced on him. He was taken by complete surprise, though he never was quite prepared for Kafele's antics. Inevitably, Azu burst into laughter, using his overgrown tan paws to shove at his crimson coated sibling, despite how futile his efforts may be.
"That's it, you're gunna get it now!" Azu grinned, revealing his needle sharp baby-teeth and a strong determination to repay his brother for catching him off guard.
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Posted: Fri Feb 26, 2010 11:38 pm
He had barely touched the white cub and Kafele was already jumping backwards - with a little help from his brother - ready to dodge the possible even if unexpected retribution.
“You wish, whiny Azu!” Kafele teased lightly, delighted by his brother’s reaction. He matched Azu’s grin before offering his mother a mischievous expression and then suddenly turned on the spot and dashed off once again, glancing back to see if he was being followed. “Can you even catch me?”
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Posted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 5:59 am
Dada'Ntombe was too busy daydreaming to pay her brothers much mind. Mother had said they were going somewhere nice to play, but she was already sure that it just couldn't be as nice as where Sahen had taken her. That place was their special pace, just for him and her. She thought about the supposedly terrible Shatkona almost constantly since he'd come to sweep her off her little paws, and today was no different. He'd just been so wonderful to her, everything a prince (yes she knew he was really a king) should be to a princess.
"Ack!" She was startled from her reverie by nearly tripping over Azubuike. What was he doing in the dirt? Whining? SO un-gentlemanly...and he was getting just FILTHY! She turned up her perfectly-groomed nose at him and daintily stepped to the side to keep walking. Just in time too, as Kafele came flying out of nowhere onto Azu, where they tussled like the common cubs she saw in the streets. How could I be related to them? She asked herself. Certainly she loved her siblings, but they acted so different, got so dirty, seemed to be so immature...
...Well, they WERE boys. That explained a lot. Having stepped around her scuffing siblings, she looked up at her mother and resumed her walking in silence. None of that whooping and roughness for her, thank you! Boys were so silly. But then...Sahen was a boy, wasn't he? Her cheeks flushed with warmth and she stumbled. "Oh!" She squealed before scampering ahead, eager to be where they were going so that she might sit and daydream properly!
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Posted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 10:50 am
Amira grinned as Azu began to play with his brother. He didn't realize it, but he had fulfilled her words completely. She wondered if her boys' camaraderie would continue to adulthood, if their easy playfulness would hold them together through life. Sure they were always wrestling and fighting, but that's what boys did. And that was the glue that held them together.
"My, my. Everyone's impatient today, huh?" Amira laughed, her walk quickening into an easy lope, something slow that the cubs could keep up with easily. "Well then, we might as well get there then, since you all don't seem to want to stop and enjoy the scenery!" she joked, chortling as she ran.
There wasn't much farther to go, so in only a matter of minutes they rounded a bend and tumbled into the lush forest. Young trees dotted the ground, spreading their new leaves towards the sun, and a soft breeze filled the air with the scent of wildflowers. "So, what do you think? This is my favorite spot in the whole pride," she said softly, stepping into a bed of violets. "It reminds me that no matter what happens here, there will always be someplace I can go to find peace."
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Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 3:23 pm
When Dada’s tiny “Oh” reached Kafele’s ears, the red cub stopped mid-sprint and turned around to look at his sister with a very serious, worried even, expression. His narrowed gaze seemed to be analyzing the situation for a few seconds before he concluded that she was perfectly fine and there was nothing he could do for her. He would probably have asked Dada if she was okay if they were alone… but she didn’t need his concern if it was something that would make her look weak in front of the others.
He was excited when his mother started moving faster and with a quick turn on the spot, Kafele hopped like a baby gazelle as he tried to stay ahead of the group.
“Wooow.” He whispered when the new scenario unfolded in front of the family and with the fascination of the inexperience child he was, Kafele eyed the sun rays that pierced the thick foliage and ran all the way down to the pretty wildflowers of the forest ground, glimmering eyes and mouth agape only two of the many visible signs of his excitement.
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Posted: Sat Mar 20, 2010 1:04 am
The cub dashed after his competitive and quick brother. "I'll get you, Kafe! You just wait, you'll be so sor- OOF!" The cub slammed into Kafele's rump as he came to a sudden stop. Azubuike shook himself from the short daze and watched his brother's expression toward Dada.
Azubuike gazed from one sibling to the other, a giant smirk appearing on his face. "Whatza matter, Kafele?" He took special care in announcing the entire name, knowing full well how much it bothered his brother. "Scared the stupid girl mighta gotten a lil booboo?" He chuckled darkly, bouncing ahead to shove Dada with his dirty paws. The result of the attempt escaped his attention as the beautiful scenery revealed itself before them.
"Wooow! ... There's so many colors!" Azu found it hard to believe so many colors could exist in one place together. He wobbled towards Amira, nuzzling his mom and the flowers as he plopped down beside her. He stretched out his paws, flexing his claws and moaning just slightly. The cub was still begging for Amira's attention and sympathy, after all. "My paws might feel better if we stayed here for a while."
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Posted: Sat Mar 27, 2010 12:03 pm
Livius was a quiet one. He wasn't shy so much as preferred to observe; and this forest was one huge observation to be taken in. His orange-gold eyes flashed about, lingering on the small things; the beetle scuttling beneath the roots of one of the larger trees, the small yellow flowers beginning to bud on one of the other trees. The forest as a whole was quite a beautiful thing; the lush greenness and new life was apparent all throughout made Livius smile a bit, a task hard to do.
Lingering behind his siblings, Livius found his smile widening a bit at his siblings' very open wonderment at the gorgeous forest, especially Azubuike's. His excitement made Livius proud inside; being related to one so open with his feelings was awesome, but sometimes Livius wished he could only be the same way. Instead he had some sort of figurative walls built up, as he found it to be a type of barrier only for the strongest of lions. Now was one of the only times he wished those walls would crash down and he could share in his siblings' exclamation at the forest's beauty.
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Posted: Fri Apr 02, 2010 5:30 pm
“Stupid? I think you’re getting her confused with your stoopid stooopid head.” Kafele replied instantly, rather ticked off that his brother had noticed the brief worry and used his full name to boot, oh that runt!
But the forest demanded his attention and it wasn’t long before the red cub had once again resumed the loud adoration. The colors, the scents, the birds and butterflies and flowers… oh, the flowers! How would it feel to run through the large flower patch? It looked so soft. He looked back at his family. Mom, Livi, Dada and Azu. He wondered if they would always be together like this. Which reminded him…
“She’s not that weak, whiny Azu.” He said with a nasty grin, his tone teasing. “But I’ll show you who is. You caught me so it’s your turn to run.” He challenged, lowering his body as if readying himself to leap in pursuit, tiny claws extending and flexing, scraping the ground as if whispering the silent threat: We will not go easy on you.
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Posted: Tue Apr 13, 2010 3:26 pm
Amira chuckled softly as she bent down to nuzzle Azubuike's velvety muzzle. "We will stay here a while, I think, plenty of time for your paws to recover." She smiled as she watched her cubs' reactions to the beautiful meadow valley. Livius was silent, but though his reaction was slight compared to the others, Amira saw the wonder in his eyes. It was no crime, she thought, to be the strong, silent type. Though she herself was talkative, Fila was of nearly the same temperament as her red-tufted nephew. Just as quiet and thoughtful. There was no one that Amira respected more than her sister. She just hoped that Livius could see that his stoic silence was a gift, not something to be ashamed of.
Amira sighed, stretching out in her chosen bed of flowers, flicking her tail to ward off a wayward bee. It was so peaceful here, though the effect seemed to be lost on Kafele. "Hmm, Kafe!" Amira called, "Play nice with your brother, okay? And Azu, that goes for you too mister."
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