|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 2:42 pm
Poa was not a hard lion to find once you knew him and getting to know him wasn't that hard either...he was a workaholic and as such, could almost always be found patrolling the borders of his clan's territory. As for his personality, well; grumpy and serious pretty much summed him up in one package.
Compared to the majority of his siblings (save a couple of his brothers) he was generally regarded as a bit of a bore, particularly by his older sisters. Fortunately, he simply regarded them as 'silly' and 'immature' and even more so now that his mane was growing fuller with the sign of adulthood close to paw. Once he was a fully grown adult he could take on more and more responsibility and make sure that the clan was properly protected from anyone who might mean to wish it harm. And yes, just because no one had tried to harm it before didn't mean it couldn't happen. After all, that's probably what his ancestors had thought before they'd all been wiped out...or most of them anyway.
Poa was not ever going to let that happen.
He was on his usual route that morning, patrolling the borders that fringed the rogue lands. His sister, Laka, had attempted to sneak past him that morning (her way of a test) and he had firmly told her to go back and help mother with the day's hunt. She had not been impressed but at least she had listened. No one got by on Poa's watch, that was for sure.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:00 pm
She had considered just walking right up to him, or walking right past him.. or trying to sneak past him.. but then she thought it would be more fun to follow him around and see how close she could get before being found out. He wasn't hard to spot, his fur was just bright enough.. but staying quiet enough to get near was trickier than it sounded in her head.
Still, she didn't get caught right away so she wasn't completely hopeless.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:06 pm
Amongst the Shadows, it was likely that Kalanu would have been revered for the deep shade of her pelt and the silence of her paws. The Shadows took great pride in excelling in the hunt and of stealth and silence of motion. Clearly the young female of Mantis Clan had talent. Talent enough for Poa to not notice her, in any case and he did tend to notice such things.
Once or twice he had sensed that perhaps he was not as alone as he had thought. He'd cast a glance over his shoulder to see nothing but empty landscape.
Now, again, he thought he heard something. The shuffle of paws, perhaps? The crackle of dried grasses stirred by a passer-by? Was it Laka again? Probably. Did she never tire of her games? Surely she couldn't have been finished with her hunt already. The sun was barely at its peak!
Frowning, he sat slowly on the well-cropped grasses and turned his head to see if he could spy a flash of silver fur amongst the greenery.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:18 pm
Despite her enthusiastic and excitable nature, Kalanu worked hard to practice her skills as a huntress- though only recently had it become important that she do well at it. Soon she would be really helping to provide for her clan.. for now, she seemed perfectly content to make a game out of it. That was one way to learn, after all!
The only problem was that this was a far more entertaining game than usual. Stalking her brothers, they always had some idea of what to expect. Poa probably had no idea she would ever come back this way. Every time his ears moved and he glanced around, she had to fight to suppress a laugh. When he finally sat down and looked out around him, she couldn't contain herself.
Her giggle was quiet and short at first but when no immediate signs of being caught came- she kept laughing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:25 pm
Poa really did have no idea about what was out there 'hunting' him. Perhaps he would have continued pretending he hadn't heard anything if he had known.
Wait. A laugh?
His eyes narrowed and his head whipped around to seek the source, though he couldn't seem to see anything. "Alright, Laka, enough with the games. I know you're there." He huffed, his tail thumping against the ground. "Come out." Where on earth was she hiding anyway? She'd normally given her position away by now (patience had never been a skill of hers) but there was no sign of her anywhere.
"Laka?" He called again, less certain now, as he got back to his paws and stalked through the grass in search of her.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:32 pm
When she heard him call out another name, she managed to pull herself together- she had no idea who Laka was and, while she was extremely curious, it didn't really matter. He definitely wasn't expecting her, though he definitely knew someone was there now.
Kalanu took a couple small, shaky steps forward but realized she was going to give herself away far too quickly if she moved now. She tried to get a sense of where Poa was but that was hard to do now he was looking for someone.. so she simply waited until he sounded close enough and then..
"Hello, Poa!"
She jumped up, beaming.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:38 pm
He almost had a heart-attack.
His vibrant eyes went wide as he staggered back, pressing a paw to his chest as he tried to calm the sudden increased drumming there against his ribs. This female was dark of pelt. Certainly not his pale-pelted sister!
It took a few moments for it to sink in and then, all at once, he recalled who it was he was looking at. Kalanu. The young female who had ended up dragging him off on some wild goose chase across to the mountains. It hadn't been all that long ago, but he hadn't thought he'd see her again after that day. Apparently she'd decided to play 'hide and seek' around here more frequently than he had imagined.
"Kalanu!" He wheezed out her name. "What are you doing here? Don't tell me you're after that Sesere again." He tried to cover up his shock with a loud huff. "Did my sister put you up to this?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:43 pm
His reaction was priceless but she managed not to laugh too much to his face about it, limiting herself to a short chuckle. She didn't say anything else until he gathered together his thoughts and finally spoke in a huff.
"Don't be silly, Poa Subiani," she said, shaking her head at the suggestion she was here chasing Sesere again, but she looked curiously at the question that followed, "Your sister? Laka?"
Hmmm, apparently she wasn't the first to get some fun out of causing him trouble.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:50 pm
"Don't be...?" He didn't quite get the echo of her words out, though he looked a little offended. Silly? He wasn't being silly! It was a perfectly valid reason why she could be here, wasn't it? After all, why else would she be lurking around? Unless Laka really had put her up to this, in which case, that was also very understandable.
"Yes. Laka. This high." He lifted a paw to about his shoulder height. "Grey fur, blue tattoos. A little menace." He said it without any malice, of course, but she really was a menace. Always hurrying off on some adventure or leaping about in everyone else's business. "She was here this morning trying to cause trouble instead of out helping with the hunt."
He sat again and eyed her warily. "So...is there an explanation?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 3:56 pm
"Oooh," she seemed very interesting in hearing about Laka, especially when he described her as so small compared to him. But then, it wasn't that surprising. Kalanu and her siblings weren't all the same size. Whatever else was going on, knowing his sister had been around causing trouble already made Kalanu like her.
"You don't have many friends, do you?"
Her tone and expression were about the same but she felt very sad asking it. He had jumped to blaming his sister pretty quickly.. and even when she made herself known, it still had to be his sister's fault.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 4:02 pm
He opened his mouth to object instantly but was only a few words in before he trailed. ("Don't be ridiculous, I have...") Then he just stared at her a moment. What counted as a friend exactly? Did his older brother Kohana count? How about Nekoda? Sure, he hadn't seen the lion since his youth but...he'd say hello if he passed by.
Wouldn't he?
He frowned deeply. "My duty is to the clan." Not exactly an answer. "I'm friends to everyone in Shadow. They know who I am. That I am one of their guards." Technically, that was true, right?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 4:12 pm
Kalanu frowned back at him. Not because his answer was lame (it was) but because of the hesitation leading up to it. And he didn't really say it like he was sure about it. He was obviously super dedicated to his job but he wasn't blind to normal social existence.
"Well," she said, attempting to perk back up but not quite getting back to the same level of excitement, "I'm your friend, too. That's why I'm here, no tricks."
She grinned.
"Pretty stealthy when I want to be, eh?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 4:20 pm
"You...are?" Since when? He added silently. He hadn't set out to be her friend, only to make sure she hadn't been attacked or injured whilst she was seeking out that avian friend of hers. That was his duty. He would have done that for anyone...
Well...so long as they had bullied him into it, maybe.
He blinked slowly and drew his head back as if surprised. Then, glad of her shift of conversation, decided to sweep over the whole 'friendship' thing and tackle something that was easier. Stealth was a very good skill to have, after all.
"You have talent, I think. My mother would have been impressed to see it. She's always taught us the importance of quiet and stillness. It is the way of the Shadow, a new way if not the old way. Nothing is much remembered about the traditions of old. But new is good and we all have our place. I'm not much one for moving quietly, but I have patience and a good eye. That's why I'm a guard." He puffed his chest out proudly. "We are mainly, however, a family of hunters and huntresses. Not many fighters amongst us, which is why my job is so important." He nodded. "I'm needed here to oversee things that others can't."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 4:31 pm
Kalanu narrowed an eye at Poa as he took her self-centered, playful comment a little too seriously. It was nice to be praised but she hadn't been fishing for compliments. And he was quick to make sure he also received some credit for his own abilities and purpose within his clan.
"Thank you," she said, tilting her head, "So, you're one of the only guards and you couldn't even spot me?"
She smiled again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2011 4:37 pm
"Well...yes...but." He floundered for a moment, shifting his weight from one paw to the next. He clearly wasn't able to pick up on teasing, despite the fact that he had suffered a lot of it in his relatively short life so far. It made him a good target to pick on, if nothing else.
"Rogues don't know how to be so sneaky." He gave as way of a comeback. In truth, he had no idea what rogues were capable of.
"Besides, I could have found you if I had tried. I figured that if it was Laka, she'd just get bored and come out without me having to waste valuable energy." He wrinkled his snout. "I didn't expect it to be anyone else. Don't you...have somebody else to...hang around with?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
