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 Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2011 2:21 pm
Of course, Farrah had plans to make herself at home in both dens, if she could. Ilyas was practically an extension of her paw. If Namir had even the slightest thought that she wouldn't escape the den now and then to go see her brother, they'd have to have a Serious Discussion about it.
As the day began to wean into night, Farrah gave up on her elusive hunt, and gathered up the few rabbits she'd managed to fell during the day. It'd be enough for Ilyas and his banus, she thought. Or at least something enough to snack on. Farrah enjoyed hunting, but today her mind had been elsewhere. She was lucky to have the rabbits at all.
She treaded up to the den where Ilyas now made his home, and set the rabbits down, looking around from in front of the den. Most lions and their banus were home and settling down for the night. A few dens over she could hear the sound of cubs; it made her grin. Finally, she lifted her rabbits, strung together haphazardly, and dragged them inside.
"Honey, I'm home." She called dryly, dropping the rabbits on the floor of the den.
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Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2011 2:28 pm
 Ilyas heard his sister's joking call and smiled to himself. She had been gone for ages, it seemed, and he had news he wished to share with her. Very early this morning, even before any of his banu had emerged from the den, a pad by the name of Naim'Namir had come by the den with a very interesting proposition for Ilyas. The first of its kind the blue-eyed pad had ever been required to field, and probably the last for some time. Until he had daughters of his own. He didn't intend to acquire any more banu.
"Oh, dear, I missed you so much," he quipped, coming to greet his sister with a friendly headbump to her shoulder. "My hours without you are so lonely, full of tedium and loneliness. I don't know how I survive."
Only after greeting her did he turn his attention to the rabbits she'd deposited on the floor of the den. That was a pleasant surprise. He would miss having her as a banu. Not only was she excellent company, but she was a more than competent huntress, and he would miss her contributions. Not that his other banu would let him starve, but Afsar would likely get very tired of being the only one to keep Itzel on track and focused.
"And you brought dinner. I don't deserve you."
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Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2011 2:34 pm
Laughing, Farrah bumped her head against Ilyas's shoulder in return of the fond greeting. "I'm sure your other Banus feel the same way." She deadpanned, sitting down and dragging one of the carcasses over to strip down. More of a habit than anything, really; Farrah had done the same in Faiz's harem. She found an unusual peace in stripping fur from the meat. It was soothing, or something like it.
"You really don't." She agreed, smirking at him as she pulled a strip of fur off. It was a sort of game to see how long it'd go before it ripped... Finally, she cut it with her claw, and held it up, practically dangling it in front of Ilyas's face. "I'm pretty sure that's the longest one I've got in ages." She said dramatically, dropping the fur on the ground and laughing a little. "Where're the girls?"
The girls, of course, spoke of Itzel and Afsar. The 'real' banu, as Farrah often thought of them. She was just a sort of fourth wheel in his little family of three, hanging on until someone took her into a harem of her own. "I didn't see them on my way back, but I took an odd trail." As she usually did to avoid the rush to get to the dens and settle in. Sometimes it seemed like the pride subsisted solely on cubs, and she hadn't wanted her rabbits to get trampled by anxious paws heading home to their mothers.
Y'know, like she used to do.
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Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2011 2:49 pm
"Oh, I forgot. You think you're funny," Ilyas retorted with neither the expression and vocal tone of someone who suffered a great deal, and usually in the stoic silence of a martyr. Rather, he sounded like one of the sharp-tongued pads Tariq'ra'd tended to turn out from among his sons.
"Someone really should have disavowed you of that notion ages and ages ago. However, I suppose it will fall to whatever poor sod is your next pad. I think the task is beyond me."
It seemed a decent way to lead into a discussion of the pad who had come by earlier. He wanted to talk it over with her before she left. He didn't know if Namir had sought her out immediately, or if he had thought to maybe come by and ask her while Ilyas was around to verify her willingness, but he did want to hear from Farrah herself that she wanted to be a part of Namir's harem before he gave her over to him.
"They're around somewhere, I expect," he said. "Usually it's impossible to catch only one of you at a time."
Here he thought rather ruefully of the evening before, when he'd had to come up with errands to get rid of Farrah and Itzel so he could have some special alone time with Afsar without an audience. The idea of people being present, or even around while he did that sort of thing was very uncomfortable for him. Though he remembered it fondly. One advantage to having Farrah go with Namir - assuming she did - would be that she was one fewer banu to distract when he wanted alone time with one of the others.
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Posted: Tue Mar 15, 2011 5:31 pm
"Oh, right." Farrah deadpanned, grinning a little at her brother and rolling her eyes. "I like to think you're one of my worst influences." She pointed out, laughing a little as she stripped the rabbit of its fur and set the waste to the side. She'd leave it out for the vultures later, but for now she didn't have the urge to go walking around again. Especially after last night's little adventures in fulfilling Ilyas's wishes.
Pfft. Like she didn't know what he had planned. Naive was not a word to describe Farrah.
"I think that's not the only task beyond you, brother." She teased, eyes gleaming a little at the jab. Really, a better pad she couldn't hope for her brother to grow into. He had turned into a gentleman and a strong Pad, like their Father. It was something she was proud of, how Ilyas had grown. She was, for a time, worried for him. What with Zeki and Thabiti's origins, and how Ilyas had been hurt over it...
She was glad to say it was all behind them, now.
"Besides, I need to receive an offer before you can go shoving me off on some poor sod who doesn't know what he's getting." She pointed out, grinning a little. She had had an offer, of course, but was unaware if Namir had come to see Ilyas yet. If he didn't do it soon, she might just have to shove him into the lake again.
Laughing a little at his remark, she shrugged her shoulders. "We are like sisters. Which is as it should be, I suppose. But it must be awful when you're trying to make little Ilyases to terrorize the pride with." She said with a knowing wink.
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Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2011 4:56 pm
"Hardly. I am an example of all that is good in humor, and you seem determined to do exactly the opposite."
He sniffed with feigned scorn, which morphed into one of those looks which said the topic she'd just brought up was off-limits. One thing he really didn't want to discuss with his younger sister, even though she was only younger relatively speaking, since they were from the same litter, was his sex life. It was hard enough to envision himself having one for real without her input. Besides, it was just an inappropriate subject to discuss with a banu.
"Mm, that's true," Ilyas agreed. "Oddly enough, there was a pad who came by today and wanted to talk about the possibility of you joining his harem."
He had been busying himself sniffing inquisitively at the rabbit, but as he delivered his news he turned his gaze to his sister to watch her reaction. He was hoping for surprise and curiosity, because that meant he got to have more fun drawing out the reveal. He was planning on making it very dramatic, if he could. Not with singing, dancing, and instrumental accompaniment or anything, but a little bit of drama was never a bad thing when it came to sharing good news.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 6:49 am
Farrah grinned at her brother, rolling her eyes again slightly. "I think you have it backwards, Ilyas. Are you getting senile in your old age?"
She glanced back at the mean, now more or less just picking stray bits of fur that still clung to the meat beneath it off for the sake of having something to busy her paws with. She had the other rabbits to strip, yet, but if all else failed she could give them to Afsar or Itzel to do. It wasn't necessarily brushing off duties, so much as... Giving a wrapped present? Whatever it was, her attention went from the rabbit to Ilyas when he mentioned a pad.
Had it been Namir? She hadn't noticed any other males even glancing at her as of late, but that didn't mean they weren't. Could it have been someone else? Someone Ilyas was impressed by?
"Really?" She lifted an eyebrow, feigning surprise. And hoping that it was her big blue fluffball and not someone like the other vizier. She had respect for Tariq'ra'd, of course. What he did was impressive and worth respect. But she had heard stories in her youth about how cruel he could be and, despite not meeting any of his banus or his cubs, the stories alone had stuck with her for some unknown reason.
And Tariq'ra'd was not the only pad in the pride with a cruelty streak.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 6:56 am
Whatever reaction Ilyas had been hoping for his sister to display, he was disappointed. She kept her calm with what seemed to him ridiculous ease. It really just wasn't fair. He had all this exciting news, well one piece of very exciting news, and she was acting as if he'd told her he preferred gazelle to antelope.
Her feigned surprise didn't fool him, and instead he felt like he was being made fun of, like he'd shared some piece of information only interesting to himself. Ordinarily when he got that feeling he just shut up and if people wanted to hear more they could ask, but this wasn't something he could just not mention. Namir would probably want a real answer at some point, and while he could just leave Farrah wondering who it was until the blue pad asked her himself, it would be better for him to tell her.
"Yeah," he said, striving for nonchalance. "Some large blue fellow named Namir. I don't think he and I had ever spoken before, so I don't know much about him. I do rather wish I knew more about him or his family."
So far he had not told her what his response had been, and he wouldn't either, unless she showed a little more interest. Because he was feeling stubborn like that. And because she'd teased him about wanting to be alone with Afsar the night before.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:02 am
Farrah listened intentively as Ilyas spoke, trying to ignore the pang of guilt she felt when she saw his face. Ilyas must have expected her to have no clue whatsoever; poor guy. She hadn't felt entirely comfortable admitting she had seen Namir. Part of it was fear that she'd get in trouble, that Ilyas wouldn't approve at all and would immediately demand that she not see him until he come talk to Ilyas himself. In her mind, that sort of thing might end badly, and she enjoyed avoiding Bad Things as much as she could.
Her whole face seemed to light up at the mention of her big blue Pad. "His mother is Tsubame." She offered, straightening up a little. "I've met her one or two times before." On one such ocassion, Tsubame had been completely and utterly sure she would wind up with Namir. It was comforting to have the approval of his parents, at least. "And his father is Achal. The lion with the mountains on his back?" She offered with a smile. "They had a litter, not too long ago. Achal and one of his other banus."
Just talking about the family made Farrah smile as much as she did when speaking of her own family. She had already begun to think of them as parents; was elated that she got along with them as much as she did. It was a minor concern, not getting along with her Pad's family, that had been put to rest with Namir's.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:13 am
Ilyas wasn't as interested in keeping up with banus' names and that sort of thing as his sister seemed to be, but he felt no guilt or remorse over that. For one thing, he was a pad, and pads weren't supposed to care about things like that. As long as they were taken care of and their needs were met, it didn't really make a huge difference who was doing the meeting. At least in theory. In practice, Ilyas wouldn't exchange Afsar for just any banu in the pride, or even any beybanu. It would take a mandate from the sultan to make him give her up, and even then there was a very good possibility he would try to defy pride rules and make a run for it, taking Afsar (and Itzel, he supposed) with him.
"I should probably go offer my congratulations on the litter, then," Ilyas mused.
He hadn't forgotten for a second the true point of this conversation, but he was willing to let Farrah direct and redirect it for the time being. Eventually it would circle back to the main point: whether he had decided to give her to the pad or not. The delay, at least, gave him time to work on exactly how he wanted to phrase it. He'd thought about it over the course of the day, but his mind kept changing depending on the circumstances.
"I do know who Achal is, actually. You don't need to remind me of these things. Just because I wasn't acquainted with Namir doesn't mean the entire pride is a stranger to me."
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:17 am
She nodded a little at his musing. "I believe it was Ban'ma who bore his cubs this time 'round." She said with a frown. She knew it wasn't Tsubame, but past that she hadn't remembered the mother of the litter. She had only delivered the message to Namir that one of his mothers had bore cubs in his absence.
She grinned a little afterwards, shrugging. "I suppose you'd be hardpressed to not run into a lion with the mountain his back and not remember." She said idly, shrugging her shoulders. "Although with how fast it seems to grow, in leaps and bounds, I wouldn't expect you to know everyone." She couldn't even expect that of herself, try as she might. It seemed with every passing month new cubs were born, new banus brought home, and new families had begun.
It was a cycle, and she wondered if their substantial growth would have an impact on their land. They had lived here for eons, it seemed, since the beginning, but Farrah wasn't stupid enough to think a good thing could last forever. "Namir is a good Pad, though. He's sweet, if not a little easy to push." She said with a wry grin. After the fact, she couldn't believe she had been so angry that she'd gone and pushed Namir into the lake. He'd brought it on himself, though, the prat. Staying away as long as he had just because he was nervous. Pfft.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:25 am
Regarding his sister with a level stare Ilyas gave up all pretense of being otherwise occupied by inspecting her kill. Instead he put all the dryness he could muster into his voice and spoke:
"You do seem to know an awful lot about him and his family. Given the size of the pride, which you've mentioned, and the fact that our families have not had much to do with each other, I'm rather amazed by how well-informed you are. I don't suppose you have any explanation?"
Ilyas had his own suspicions, and what he suspected didn't exactly please him. It didn't make him happy with Farrah, and it made him especially unhappy with Namir. The interpretation he was coming to was that the pair had some sort of relationship, long-standing, and that they must have been consciously keeping it from him. Why else had Farrah never mentioned Namir to her before? And how dare Namir court his sister without asking his permission first?
A well-hidden streak of nastiness tempted him to use these points as an excuse to keep his favorite sister close to home. He knew he ought to ignore it, but it was very tempting, and he was becoming frustrated with this whole charade. It would have been a relief if either Itzel or Afsar had come in to distract him, but that didn't seem to be in any danger of happening, unfortunately.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:30 am
"I'm just more knowledgeable?" She offered dryly, before straightening up.
"I met Namir first when we were kids, while I was still with our father's harem." She smirked a little. "And then I ran into him while I was hunting, he was by the border, but still on his quest. He wanted a message to go to his father, so I offered to do it." She explained, tilting her head at Ilyas. "It seemed harmless, and I knew bringing word that his son was alive and even healthy would make Achal happy.
"Then some time later, I wound up meeting Tsubame while I was out. We spoke briefly about Namir. She seemed convinced that I was going to wind up in his harem. She seemed to know how he felt about me before I had a clue." She smirked a little, shrugging. "There was nothing untoward, and if not for delivering that message on Namir's behalf, I wouldn't have had reason to meet either Achal or Tsubame."
She knew that it was stupid to not mention Namir beforehand. She had been selfish and sort of vain in keeping it from Ilyas, for the most part because of her own insecurity. Just because Tsubame felt it didn't make it true, and for a brief spell Farrah had wondered if she had misinterpreted Namir's feelings somehow while he was away. Telling her brother she met a lion who might want her only to have him reject her in the end would have stung far more than pretending it never happened, had it ended that way.
Of course, she refused to say it outright, but the fear of rejection had been strong up until she shoved Namir in a lake.
"And he came to me a few days ago." She added quickly, while she remembered. It wouldn't be right if she kept that from him. "I shoved him in a lake for making me worry that he had returned home, but hadn't come to see me or you about joining his harem." She snorted a little. Mean, probably a bit too forward, but it had been deserved, damn it.
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 10:40 am
Ilyas loved his sister. Farrah was his favorite sibling - far better liked than his brother - and he really did want her to be happy more than anything. The thing was that letting her be happy in this instance obviously meant giving up his right to see her and talk to her every day, and letting some other pad that he barely knew - although she seemed to know him fairly well - take her into his harem and have all those delightful moments with her. He resented that he would be missing out so much on his sister's company.
In truth, there were a few things that bothered Ilyas about Namir now that he heard more. He still generally liked the lion, but he couldn't conceive of coming back, even part of the way, just to tell his parents he was all right. It might have been a considerate act, but it also seemed a little bit cowardly to Ilyas. The point of these quests, in addition to bringing back new banu and fresh blood to the pride, was to experience the wider world before settling into a civilized life with the Ukuucha. If one was constantly running home to report on their health and well-being, they clearly weren't wandering very far afield.
But that still paled in comparison to the fact that his sister had never told him about Namir. Not that he expected or wanted her to tell him every minute detail of each and every day, but when she found someone she wanted to be with, as she clearly wanted to be with Namir, he thought she might have at least mentioned it to him. He was hurt that she hadn't. But that was a very feminine reaction, and he told himself sternly that it was inappropriate. He should just be glad that he could be rid of his sister in a way that pleased her.
"I told him he would have to secure your approval," he said, feeling all out of sorts, not least because his delivery had been spoiled. "But I did tentatively consent to his request that you leave my harem and join his."
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Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2011 3:24 pm
Farrah sat with anxiety rolling in her belly. After telling her tale, and explaining how really, she hadn't done anything wrong, it began to set in that while she hadn't broken rules, she had left her brother out of loop out of something rather big. He was her favorite brother, it was no secret how she felt about Ilyas. She was proud of him, and she would defend him with her last breath if it came down to it. There were few that she would give her life for and she counted Ilyas among them. Realizing rather late that she had kept him out of the loop for a silly, childish, ridiculous reason...
She felt a guilty stab in her stomach.
She grinned a little as Ilyas spoke, and got up, bumping her head against Ilyas's shoulder happily. Guilt still riddled her, but Ilyas hadn't outright rejected the idea. She would be joining a harem of her true Pad. She could begin her own family, now, and she would no longer be her brother's fourth will.
She leaned back afterwards, and sat in front of him. "Ily." She said quietly, smiling. "Thank you." She eyed him, and her smirk widened her face. "It's going to be difficult, bouncing between your den and Namir's." Especially when she had cubs of her own. But if he thought for a split second she would just vanish into Namir's harem, he was in for another surprise. "I have to make sure you're taking proper care of Afsar and Itzel, don't I?"
She was thrilled, beyond words, by Ilyas's tentative approval. It would likely be a while before he was as happy as she was with Namir, but she would have time to prove that Namir was the best choice for her. This was one of the bigger hurdles to overcome, and they'd managed it.
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