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 Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:16 am
(w/c: 1,250)
The Mtaishi were generally a lax pride, beautiful in their simplistic and jovial ways. Every member slept easy, ate well and knew as long as they remained within the borders their lives would never change for the worse. That was true.
For most of them.
Their leader was not the most unlucky soul in the pride - surely, Hasana and Triv'an had faced greater hardships - but she was the most tense. No one could tell because they had never seen Waseme in any other state; her shoulders were permanently knotted, her eyes forever troubled. If anyone did pick up on her distress, they rarely dared to comment or ask about it. Those who did were either brushed off or had the subject changed to something else.
Such was the case of Winza; he'd asked his mother about her sister - and their sister pride - only to be told it was about time he learned to hunt properly.
Waseme felt like a poor excuse for a mother from the start. She'd only had children because her sister had, and now here she was out, taking them out one-by-one in the hopes they'd just-so-happen to be hunting prodigies. She wouldn't hesitate to rub it in Kitambi's face if they were.
Before one could learn, one must be taught. For that reason, Waseme told him to wait and chased down the herd of zebra, all of which escaped.
She probably would have caught one...
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:17 am
Winza probably should have known better than to dare bring up that name, but he felt bold and exceptionally curious that day. He had always been interested in knowing the full extent of his history, and figured easing into the matter by asking about his aunt rather than his father was a good idea.
What a mistake that had been.
He watched the zebras flee, leaving behind a lioness - his mother - who had failed to complete the very task she was trying to teach him. As a result, his expression was no less than crestfallen. Was she this distracted because of his simple question? Did she really detest her own sister that much?
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:19 am
Waseme didn't hate her sister, but she hated that she didn't. By all accounts, she should have loathed Kitambi. Not because she was born first; she couldn't control something like that. She should have hated her only because everything and everyone else loved her. Luck, their mother, the Nchi.
Sometimes, she wondered... did her own children prefer her?
The paranoia crept up on her every time she had to discipline them. Lakisa was given that task most of the time; Waseme would have called it a burden except that her elder obviously enjoyed it. The few times she was the cause of their unhappy faces, it hurt.
"What's wrong, Winza?" she asked cautiously when she was close enough.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:20 am
Trying to make his mother relax was fighting against the tide. Winza knew that by now, though he wondered if she knew he did. None the less, he could at least give her some peace of mind when he informed her his reason for that disappointment was a shallow one.
"You didn't catch one."
There was no harm in pointing out the obvious, or so he thought. While he did recognize his mother's qualms concerning anything involving her sister's supposed superiority, he didn't understand just how deep it went.
None of them did.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:21 am
Winza felt his commentary harmless, but the truth was Waseme felt a pang in her chest that was more damaging than he'd ever know. Than any of them would ever know and likely ever care to know. Most of those who she remained aloof to on a personal level returned the favor.
It didn't help Waseme was aloof to everyone as of late.
"Most of the time, you don't succeed your first try," she explained. Though she tried to sound confident, there was no mistaking that masked shame in her tone. "Even experienced hunters miss out now and again. Let's find another herd and you give it a try next time, all right?"
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:22 am
The next herd was not far off in the other direction. The zebras bellowed at each other, saying words he wished he didn't understand. Wouldn't it be so much easier to kill something that couldn't tell you its name? But a lion was a lion was a lion, and lions were meant to hunt. So, he crouched down and approached, stopping when he felt he was close enough. With his breath on hold and his body still, the hoofed creatures took no notice of the lion determined and couchant in the tall grasses.
His hunt was ultimately a bust, leaving him to wonder if that "like father, like son" saying held any truth and his sire had too walked away from his first attempt a failure. A heavily panting failure, at that.
Ears pinned and eyes downcast, he returned to his mother.
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:22 am
Waseme waited there for him with a sympathetic smile and a post-failure nuzzle. That wicked part of her was forlorn he had not taken down a massive zebra she could brag about later, but it paled in comparison to the gentle and motherly feelings seeing him trot back sparked.
She chuckled softly and murmured, "Don't worry. Like I said, most of us fail the first time."
Except, as she recalled, Araiya had done in an antelope on his first go around...
Waseme shook her head and nudged her son in the side, telling him, "Go get a drink before you choke to death. I'll catch something to bring back. There's probably some smaller game close by."
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Posted: Thu Nov 11, 2010 1:23 am
"Don't worry. Like I said, most of us fail the first time."
'Most' being the keyword. Like her, he had heard of Araiya's impressive feat. He had no ill-will toward his cousin - in fact he rather liked the lion - but he knew his mother expected them to best that side of the family at any given opportunity. And, that aside, he wouldn't have been opposed to the temporary glory that came with being such a good hunter right off the bat.
"Go get a drink before you choke to death. I'll catch something to bring back. There's probably some smaller game close by."
Winza sighed, but other than that verbal cue, put up no resistance. He turned and went straight for the watering hole.
The sight of his reflection was nothing if not depressing. Seeing himself so defeated only made him feel more so. Coming home empty-handed was enough reason to feel a bit irked; however, he was still pondering about his faceless father. How was he suppose to ask about him without upsetting the parent he did have?
Winza lifted both his ears and his head.
Suddenly, the smell of blood was thick in the air. He couldn't shake the fear it stirred within him and wondered why he was so quick to hightail it back to his mother's side. It wasn't as if he'd never seen or smelled blood before.
Maybe it wasn't the blood. Maybe...
Maybe he should just not bother thinking about it with so much else going on, he decided, and dunked his head into the water.
That notion stayed with him long after he'd returned home with Waseme.
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