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 Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 2:57 pm
She supposed they all expected her to be a sullen, rebellious creature not willing to pull her weight, but her Pad's banu knew differently, at the very least. She was bound and determined that, hurt feelings or no, she could not ever be accused of being lazy or useless. So today she was out hunting. Granted, she was hunting. Perhaps it was because her status as kajira was not actually due to insubordination, or whether somewhere under that gruff exterior he had a heart, but her Pad did allow her to hunt alone.
Today was one of those days. Since she was still within the pride's borders, she felt sufficiently protected, and game seemed to linger about stupidly, as if simply waiting to become someone's dinner. She hadn't yet chosen a particular type of prey yet, but was padding along steadily, waiting for inspiration, when a feline form came racing into view. It chased a nimble but aging antelope, but it wasn't the chase itself that caught Jazua's attention. It was the powerful, graceful form of the predator. Why... was that... Jazi?!
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:15 pm
Jazi had been learning hard lessons almost daily, it seemed like. One of the hardest was that she had been lied to. That isn't to say she wasn't cared for. The other females made life easier, but very little could soften the blow that her Pad did not see her at all as his one true love. She could get over practically every disappointment, but that one stung the worst. Twice now, she had been fooled. This time, however, it seemed she was stuck for life. She often wondered what her twin would have to say about the matter, but generally she tried not to let it darken her days much.
Instead, she found new things to become enthused about. She had learned surprisingly quickly how to thrive here, and found that she actually enjoyed the company of the other females, both in her own Pad's harem as well as from others'. She had come to delight in chattering with them, gossiping, and discussing cubs. She avoided the topic of becoming a mother herself, but cooed over cubs as much as anyone else. She really didn't feel right just now, having cubs with a Pad who did not truly love her. Her old sense of romance stuck with her, though the situation did look pretty much hopeless for her to find that "one true love" she'd always dreamed about.
But most surprising of all was that, under the tutelage of some of the older lionesses, she had become an excellent hunter. She loved how strong and swift her body felt as she chased down even some of the fleetest prey. It turned out that she was fleet of paw and light of frame, and practice had developed lean, hard muscle over that frame. She savored the flex and stretch of her muscles as she ran, and liked to find any reason she could to pursue some of the more challenging animals. Today, it was this antelope.
It was a grey-chin, aging and feeble, in compairson to its herdmates. It was rather sad how they had so swiftly abandoned this one to his fate, but all the better for her. Normally antelope would be too strong and too big for her to pull down, but this one, fleet as he was, clearly did not have the same strength that would normally have endangered her. With a last surge of exultant speed, she reached and caught one of the flying hind legs in her claws. Flexing them into flesh and around bone, she swung her paw wide and put on the brakes, throwing the animal to the side and out of her path as she slowed.
There was a crunch as the ancient antelope went down, and she pounced on him immediately, darting in to seize his throat in her jaws and bear down. It was mere moments before he stopped thrashing, but it took much longer for the pulse beneath her teeth to ebb and fade. Breathing harshly but triumphantly around her grip on his neck, she kept her grip firm as she had been taught, waiting for the very last vibrations of life to disappear before letting go.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:23 pm
As the antelope came down and the lioness leapt upon it to finish it off, Jazua still stood there, mouth open in shock. How... when.... she was at a complete loss for proper reaction. Her twin, long sought after and missed, was here of all places?! She shook her head to clear it and broke into a ground-eating lope. Surely the distance had fooled her, for the lioness had indeed been a long way off. Surely she was mistaken? How could her sister, gone so long, hunted after so determinedly by Jazua herself, finally be found here, in this odd pride that she had only recently managed to get herself entangled in?
But the closer she came, the more sure she grew. That had to be Jazi! It was as the other lioness dropped her kill that Jazua drew near enough to call out. "Jazi?" she called in cautious inquiry. She almost hoped the other would not turn, would not be her twin. This was a very unusual group of lions, and she wasn't sure she wished that upon her headstrong, starry-eyed sister. But of course despite that vague desire, she really truly wanted the lioness to end up proving to be her sister. It would be such a glorious delight to discover an ally here in this land of strangers, someone who wouldn't turn up her nose at the title of kajira.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:32 pm
Her soaring joy was high as she finally dropped the carcass, savoring the fulfilling feeling of accomplishment. At last, something she was good at! She had been known by her family as being rather dreamy and impractical. She supposed she had been, but life since she'd left the family group had definitely caused her to grow up... at least some! As if summoned by the wistful thought about how proud her family would be of her now, she heard her twin's voice, calling her name. She stood for a moment, head tipped, puzzling over how she would start hearing the voices of her family now while thinking of them. Was she coming down with some illness and hallucinating?
But her name was called again, and she turned to behold a brown version of herself, loping across the grass towards her. The shock was like an ice storm in the middle of summer. For just a moment she stared at the accelerating form of her twin, before bursting out with a roar of joy and bolting towards her sister. The met in mid-air, a much rougher greeting than probably either had intended, but neither seemed to mind. For several moments there was nothing but unintelligble shouts, babbles, and much touching, embracing, and exclaiming.
Once the initial surge of greeting subsided, Jazi beamed at her twin her heart bursting with happiness. Here, here was what she had lacked! Well, aside from her true love, of course. But having her twin in the pride's lands made everything complete. "How did you come here?" she asked eagerly. "How long have you been here? Who is your Pad?" She began racking her mind for any bits of gossip she'd heard that would give her an idea of who had claimed her sister.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 3:41 pm
She had had to call twice before the other lioness had turned around, making her wonder if it was indeed her twin, but once she caught sight of the other, there was no question. Her long search was over. Here at last was her twin sister! She'd broken into a dead run, all those months of worried hunting and asking culminating in such a fierce surge of joy that when Jazi also ran, meeting her in a teeth-rattling embrace, she could do nothing but shout, cry, feel. Tears still trickled from her eyes as Jazi recovered her breath and began talking.
Right at first Jazi's words flowed over her in a senseless wash of sensation, a welcome joy to hear her twin's voice with her ears and not just her memory. But the words finally penetrated, allowing her to focus once more and let the tears fade away. "What do you mean, how did I come here, you little imp!" she exclaimed indignantly. "Do you know how long I have searched for you? Running off like a little nitwit like that! I was worried sick!" She caught her twin in a rough embrace once more and bit her ear rebukingly and lovingly. Though they were born of the same mother at the same time, Jazua had always felt like an older sibling to her flighty sister. "I'm so glad you are alright," she rasped, nearly breaking down into tears again. This was very unlike her, to be so weepy! But how often did she have the chance to reclaim her twin from unknown dangers?
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 8:39 pm
Jazi was taken aback by the depth of emotion in her sister's voice, and the tears! Jazua never cried! Not ever! It seemed she was not the only one to have changed in the time since they'd last been together! Touched by her twin's sudden show of vulnerability, Jazi wrapped her paws around her comfortingly and purred a little in reassurance. "It's okay, I'm alright, I promise!" She rubbed cheeks with Jazua lovingly. "I'm just glad we found each other, aren't you?" She playfully tousled her more sober twin's headfur and smiled infectiously.
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Posted: Fri Sep 23, 2011 8:43 pm
"Yes, yes, you are right," she sniffed, getting control of herself again, enough so that she swiped at Jazi in mock exasperation for the tousling. "It is a strange wind that blew us both here, though. What are the chances?" She gave her twin a thoughtful look. "Perhaps it only shows that though the miles separate us, we still remain bound to each other by love." That seemed to please Jazi very much, which only made Jazua smile.
"Here, let me help you haul your kill back, and we can take turns telling each other about what has happened since we last met," she offered. While one hauled, the other could talk, then switch off both with the work as well as the stories. With a much lighter heart, she turned for home, taking her turn dragging the antelope while her sister began to tell her about the smooth-talking lion who first had lured her away from home. Now, their home was once more together.
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