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 Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2010 4:51 pm
Egil had snuck off from his mother's watchful eye yet again, avoided being caught by any grownups, and was sniffing around the underbrush trying to find something interesting to do. He didn't want to do any training or fighting right then; he just wanted to be left alone with all of these danged females running his life and the pride, and looking like his dad did, like his stupid sister. Or yelling at him and telling him to be nice. It wasn't his fault all of the other cubs were such weaklings.
Egil had found a plant that had a strange scent. It was kind of sharp smelling, and fresh.
It smelled intriguing.
Egil knew plants were really just for preybeasts, but this one smelled different. So he decided to taste this strange plant, just to see what it was like.
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Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2010 9:40 am
Although that brown lion that had come and fetched away some of her cubs seemed like a very troubled fellow, Pumzi was a bit grateful to him. There had been six - or was it seven? - to start with. That was a lot of cubs, more than it seemed possible for any one lioness to keep track of. Even if she'd had her soul and full possession of her memory, Pumzi doubted if she would have been able to keep all those cubs straight. On top of that, she was helping her friend Sutala with her own unexpected litter of pups. It was all very difficult.
Now she had three. Three was a number Pumzi could live with. Two girls, and one boy. All the rest of the ones that were gone had been boys - three, or four? Whatever the original number, she felt she could focus on this boy.
If only he didn't keep wandering off ...
Spotting the boy cub's dark fur in the distance, Pumzi changed course and headed towards him, making her slow and careful way through the underbrush. "Egil," she called mildly. "You're far from home."
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Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 8:57 am
Egil had already chomped down on almost the entirety of the strange plant. It was making his head feel fuzzy. He looked up and saw his mom coming toward him.
He was kind of surprised she found him this quickly. Usually it took longer then that for her to notice he had scampered off, much less track him down. Maybe his stupid sisters and her friend's stupid pups hadn't been as whiny and helpless today. He hoped she wasn't going to try and give him a bath. Real males didn't get baths from their moms.
"Nuh uh, Mom, I'm still in the pride lands." His mom looked funny too. Kind of crazy and wild. Everything looked weird now.
"Mom, why is the sky purple?"
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Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 10:15 am
Still walking at her usual calm, careful pace, Pumzi finally reached her cub and sat next to him, gazing down at him. He was still in the pride lands, that was true, but cubs could get into trouble straying too far from home. No matter how fierce her strange little son thought he was, he was no match for some of the adult dangers that prowled the rogue lands. Sometimes they didn't respect borders. She could attest to that.
Egil didn't take well to nagging, so she simply nodded her head. "In the pride lands, but far from home." She eyed him in puzzlement, nonplussed by his question. It took her a moment to respond, considering the question as she considered everything carefully. "The sky looks blue to me," she said at last. Was he playing some incomprehensible cub game? It seemed like a strong possibility. The cubs often did things that perplexed her, like Naja carting her rocks around. On the chance that he was ill, she had to ask though. "Are you feeling all right, Egil?" Pumzi asked kindly, bending a bit closer to peer at him.
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Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 2:45 pm
He felt woozy, but his mom didn't need to know that. Also, he wasn't quite sure that actually was his mom. It sounded like his mom, but everything felt and looked all twisty and gross.
"I feel fine, Mom. I'm just . . . watching the borders. Gotta keep an eye out for intruders, so's I can fight them."
Egil stood up and his head started spinning. Maybe he shouldn't have eaten that plant. It made him feel like he was floating away, but also sick. Maybe he just shouldn't have eaten as much of the plant.
He took about five steps, and vomited, and (to his horror) started crying for his mom. He didn't feel good at all.
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Posted: Tue Dec 21, 2010 11:56 am
Poor Egil. Watching the borders. She didn't often think about her cubs' futures, being more concerned with their present, but Pumzi hoped that Egil would find a way to be happy. He could be a guard, perhaps, although Pumzi thought the point of being a guard was to protect the pride and not pick fights with strangers. After all, they welcomed peaceful strangers.
Pumzi was about to gently remind Egil of this when the cub vomited and started to cry for her. She would have been touched if she wasn't so mortified. What did mothers do if their cubs became ill? Take him to a healer? She didn't know if he was seriously sick. How could she tell?
"Egil!" Pumzi said, alarmed, moving closer. "Are you sick? Did you eat some bad meat?" There wasn't any meat around here that she could see, but it was a possibility.
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Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 11:41 am
"I think I ate a bad plant," Egil sniffed trying to keep his paws out of the vomit and still crying. He didn't like to be this gross and weak, especially around girls. And his mom was a girl, kind of. He'd much rather be bullying someone, or running critters off the land like that red lioness a few weeks ago.
He went over and leaned against his mom.
"I don't feel good. I want to go home."
Hopefully mom would just take him back to the den and his sister's wouldn't be there to see.
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Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 8:31 am
A bad plant? Pumzi didn't know much about plants, but then, she had never tried to eat them. It surprised her that one little plant could make poor Egil feel so ill. Maybe it stood to reason. Maybe all plants made lions ill, and that was why lions didn't eat them.
She could think more about it later. Now she had to get Egil home. "Do you want me to carry you?" Pumzi asked before just picking the cub up. Egil was touchy, and although the cub's motives often confused her she sensed it would really hurt his pride to be carted around like a newborn. Especially if his sisters spotted him.
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Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 11:03 am
Egil didn't fight his mom picking him up, even though he was mortified. He just wanted to get clean and go to sleep and never eat plants again. He felt so bad, he was even polite.
"Thanks, Mom."
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Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 11:10 am
Pumzi was worried about her son and his mysterious plant-induced illness, but it was kind of nice to carry the cub with no complaints or fussing. Egil's sisters were so much more cooperative ... carrying him by the scruff of his neck, Pumzi could not talk to soothe him, so she hummed a little nonsense tune as she walked slowly and carefully back to the den.
Once there, she sat him down and observed him closely. "I do not think you should eat any more plants, Egil," Pumzi said thoughtfully. She wasn't going to shout at the poor cub. It wasn't as though he had made himself ill on purpose. "It does not seem like plants are good for lions. That is why we eat meat."
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Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 9:18 am
"Alright," Egil said, and got up and tried to wobble over to where he slept. It was slow going but eventually he got to his little nook of the den and curled up. "No more plants."
In seconds, he was asleep.
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