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 Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 5:06 pm
So far, Iseq's short time as a Stormborn was proving to be most enjoyable. She could have done without the fighting, but even that wasn't bad. Positively abuzz, she had already found Ember after having been found by Odd. The fellow she had sparred with out in that circular arena on the path on the way into the pride proper hadn't been all that bad either. In fact, he had proved to be most informative. But that was that. Having no relation in particular in mind, she let her paws roam where they may with slight clues from her nose. The lioness felt great and alive and the urge to just let loose was really starting to build within her chest, mostly healed wounds be damned! It wasn't as if she didn't have the know how to mend any damage that she may do to them. Even if she didn't know, they would heal on their own and her coat did a pretty damn good job of hiding any scars and the like that hadn't come from any major or terribly serious wounds.
While to the casual observer, the fox pelted lioness seemed to meander aimlessly here and there, she was in fact closing in on another family member, a nephew. Her path was taking back towards the woods, which she was grateful for, else-wise it might seem a tad odd if she simply broke into a wild dash in the middle of a populated clearing. She was positively itching to chase the wind, to run herself breathless, to lose herself amid the trees and shadows. She felt as though she may well fly and anyone who was anyone knew that flights of fancy were best shared. And who better to share it with than kin?
Iseq paused and took a deep breath, letting the air that carried salts and scents from the sea fill her up. Her expression bore an ecstatic wildness at the prospect of tearing through the trees until the world fell away around her. He was near now, Herryk. She could smell him close by. She did so hope that he would join her.
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 6:28 pm
 Herryk did not have a den deep within the pride as many of the others did. The handsome lion did not feel comfortable surrounded by so many other bodies, and so he had created for himself a den of sorts. The treetops were his ceiling, the ground his floor, and a hefty pile of various grass gave form to his bed. He needed nothing more than this, and so Herryk was happy. Well, as happy as he could be. He missed his brothers and sisters. He missed his mother. He missed the days past when they would spend time together in the forest as a family, and though those times had been so, so long ago, Herryk yearned to steal those days back. Gracefully climbing up the knotted trunk of a tree, Herryk perched with inane agility and inhaled deeply. A scent he recognized from long ago, those days now gone. He could not see her, but he grasped at the scent he'd caught drifting on the lazy breeze that whispered gently through the leaves around him. "Aunt Iseq." In a smooth, fluid movement, the young lion landed leapt from the gnarled tree trunk, landing deftly on his feet. Those eyes of his peered about, a shiver of excitement tickling up his spine.
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 7:09 pm
Exhaling, the lioness let that breath of sea air empty out of her, taking in another, one that was thoroughly of the forest. The rich earthy scent of the fallen leaf litter gradually breaking down into soil, the woody scents of barks, and the smell of a recently passed rain. There was something so very sumptuous about the combined smells of the forest that always felt like a welcome home. There was something else on the woodsy wind, a voice. A voice a deal deeper than what she remembered it as, but it was without a doubt Herryk's. Iseq immediately looked into the direction of the wind, her ears erect and alert, eagerly listening for other signs of her nephew.
The soft sound of a landing focused her attention. He was close indeed. Adjusting her angle, she trotted on in the direction of her name being called and the landing, not wanting to run just yet. Soon, but not yet.
"Herryk..." She echoed. She moved around from behind a thick old growth tree and let a genuine smile break across her features. "Well, I'll be...You've gone and gotten big on me. Have you had to start fighting back the girls yet?" She asked with a light chuckle before closing the distance to give him a few affectionate nudges with her nose and forehead. "It is so very good to see you again."
"We must catch up," Iseq said as she took a small step back and smiled to him. "Do you think you can talk and run? I'm being called to it. Tell me how this place has treated you while we give these woods a taste of those who have truly lived within them. What say you to joining your aunt on a flight of fancy?" Her smile had taken on a little wildness, but that was because the urge to sprint into through the woods was growing stronger by the minute.
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 7:55 pm
Herryk smiled, a genuine smile of happiness though the gesture did not reach his eyes. Expressions of happiness rarely made themselves at home on Herryk's face. He was far too serious, far too staid and contemplative to allow smiles to etch themselves onto his muzzle.
The smile on his face now was likely the closest to a genuine smile that he could pull off without looking ridiculous.
"I do not let the girls close," he said, the smile melting into a more serious expression. "They are all big and muscled. They fight," he added, as if finding the prospect of big and brawny females distasteful, "and none of them know their way around the woods."
The wildness in Iseq's smile was presented in Herryk's eyes, and he jerked his head indicating that she should lead the way and he would gladly follow.
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 8:58 pm
Oh, there was a seriousness in him. Perhaps that was simply who he was, but she could definitely tell that he was pleased to see her. Maybe she should have expected some degree of change in their personalities as well.
Iseq angled her head as he described the sort of womenfolk that populated the area. She made a little sound, somewhere between casual interest and distaste. Large females rippling with muscle were not exactly her idea of what normal ladies should look like. Of course, seeing as this pride seemed to be full of warriors and that sort, it couldn't be helped if some of the females decided to pursue titles and ranks that were more often considered to be for males and normal meant different things to different people. Never mind if the pride's normal stock were more inclined to having larger, stronger women. Righting herself, she shook her head. Appearance was one thing, but not knowing their way around the woods was just disgraceful. There was much that could be learned from woodlore, things that could be put to use in everyday life even beyond the trees.
The jerk of his head for the get go to run caused a laugh to bubble up from within Iseq's chest. She leaped ahead and gave a gleeful whoop as she picked up speed. Glancing back to her nephew, she spoke. "It's just a shame that the lore of the woods isn't taken into much account around here. Damn shame. Tell me, my boy, what have you been doing with yourself? You've been keeping in touch with your roots, I see," She said with a smile and returned her attention to where she was running. It would be no good to finally be able to freely interact with her family only to end up seriously hurt by crashing into some tree or rock at full speed due to not paying attention.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 10:44 am
Herryk matched his aunt stride for stride, his legs moving with a rhythm that came as easy to him as breathing did. His toes outstretched with each extension, toes digging into the soft earth and finding purchase there. If he came across an obstruction in his path he did not shift his weight to move around it -- instead, Herryk used the powerful muscles he maintained. Why else have them? He easily leapt over rocks and tree trunks, his lithe muscles visible under his rust-colored coat.
"I do not call the pride home," he said softly, sadly. "It is a lonesome place. None understand the woodland like I do."
He did not say much more. Herryk did not communicate well, that much was made obvious.
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 2:10 pm
The beat of her paws against the earth as she ran mirrored the beats of her heart. This was her element and she was ever so glad to enjoy it again. The lioness had no problem with traveling, but there was a sense of solace to be had in being able to immerse herself in the familiarity of the forest. Iseq felt light, as if her paws barely lingered on the ground before she was sailing forward and around or over obstacles.
Giving a thoughtful hum, she leaped over a rock with fluid ease. "Well, perhaps, now that I'm here, I can help make this place feel more like home for you, at least here in these woods. " Digging down as she ran, Iseq jumped up to spring off of one tree then another before using her momentum and added height to leap into the open air, letting herself carry over in an arc before landing with a bit of a laugh. That was always fun to do. Briefly glancing to her nephew, she sighed. "I only hope that I can offer you a bit more comfort in this place. I'm not going anywhere anytime, so perhaps I can improve this place for you."
Maybe she could see if any of Vikings may be interested in getting schooled in the ways of the woods. It would be interested for her to actively and regularly teach someone in the manner of which she was brought up living. She was a crafty lioness, perhaps she could incorporate some physical activity or other that these lions so seemed to enjoy. That would likely hold their attention longer than just sitting them down somewhere and carrying on about. Experiencing a thing was often much more gratifying than simply hearing about it after all.
"Have you and your siblings stayed close? Or have their paths taken them elsewhere?" She obviously knew that they lived close, but wondered if they so rarely ventured into the green that Herryk felt lonesome out here. Getting involved with the pride in which one lives is to be expected and could very well be rewarding, but if they are letting that cause them to lose touch with their kin and their roots, well, Aunt Iseq might well have to go around and do some fussing. A balance had to be maintained. Losing oneself entirely to one aspect or another of one's life wasn't healthy. (Total word count thus far, including pinch's next post: 2121 words)
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Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2011 8:54 am
Herryk oftentimes lost himself in the woods like this. There was something so freeing about running until your lungs ached and your heart felt as if it would burst from your chest. It was an amazing feeling and Herryk hungered for it on a daily basis. He was the forest and the forest was in him. He couldn't change something so ingrained in his personality, in every fiber of his being.
He inhaled the scent of the sun-warmed earth they kicked up as they ran, and for the first time in a long time Herryk felt as if he wasn't alone in the pride. Iseq had given him the type of companionship he had craved from his family, and no matter how much he pleaded with his siblings they had a way of making it seem as though he was the one unwilling to change. Perhaps he was, but the feyborn lion had everything he needed in the forest. That is, everything except his family.
"I have not talked with Ormarr or Ember," he said as he leapt over a fallen tree, agilely landing on his feet before continuing, "Broni is working to become a priestess and I fear I have upset her most recently." He fell silent, not wanting to handle the subject roughly. He loved Broni -- out of all of his beautiful sisters she was perhaps the one he felt closest to.
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