[PRV] Leopards in the mists (Nava/Chimalli)

[Andranis]

The early morning mists had rolled in again. Like a ghost in the jungle, Nava padded through it. As it swirled around his paws, he paused, looking around. The black markings on him betrayed the fact he wasn't, in fact, a ghost - The black ears, the tear marks, the tail tip, the nose. He let out a light huff, gold eyes scanning the trees. Then he began walking again.

It had been a while now since he'd arrived in the jungle. He'd pieced together so much of the story painted within the ruins, and all of it amazed him. Most of it was left by the humans who'd long ago resided in and built the ruins. A fair bit of it had been left over the centuries by leopards living in the ruins, including his most recent entries on the plagues that had ravaged the colony in recent years. He'd also begun recording every new leopard, though they seemed few.

The white leopard paused, one black ear twitching. After a moment, he sat down in the middle of the path. He may have been born in a zoo, but he'd learned to sense when another was stalking near by.  

[Tanakako]

While the white leopard's black markings revealed him in the wispy haze of the early morn, another's coat hid him completely. The mix of pale grey-blues blended in with the uneven misty fog as it filtered between the trees, turning the usually green world of the forest into a soft blue-grey haze.

It was perfect for the Mistwatcher.

The leopard was ghosting through the forest on silent paws, yellow eyes scanning the forest constantly as he slipped through the thick, damp undergrowth. Born in the jungle, the male knew every forgotten path and hidden trail, meaning he rarely used the more well known paths that the colony frequented. He had been out on patrol, scouting the jungle and watching the comings and going of the colony silently, no one had seen him, or suspected he was there unless he wanted them to. His life was his queens and he served her utterly. The task given to him was one that would never again be spoken of out loud unless he was reporting to her, but it was his life now.

The morning so far had been predictable, but he had spotted the consort and instead of observing from afar he slipped closer, deliberately letting his tail rustle against a bush once within ear shot. Intent yellow eyes watched for the white male's responce and when Nava paused, then sat down, Chimalli glided through the mist to appear a few strides further up the path, as if he had been walking from that direction instead of slinking through the jungle.

Slowly he walked closer, letting the white male see him before drawing to a halt and lowering his head. "Consort." His rough, gravelly voice rumbled in greeting. Few knew the blue leopard, fewer still ever heard him speak much more than a word or two. A loner, he was often missing from the colony for days at a time. Where he went, no one knew and certainly none suspected that he stayed just beyond, hidden in the forest as he watched his pad-mates go about their daily lives. He had no mate and no family that anyone had been able to discern. While e general colony might be rather suspect of the unusual, taciturn male, his devotion to the royal family was unquestionable. he had stood beside Lakshmana resolute silent and deadly, and he now served Fu the same way.
 

[Andranis]

Gold-brown eyes flicked, as did black ears. When the other leopard melted out of the fog and mist, Nava gave relatively little indication that he was either surprised or unsurprised. A youth spent with gawking human children pointing at him and even throwing things at him had taught him to be indifferent to many things. The white leopard gave a nod of his head. "Good morning, Chimalli. Anything interesting hiding in the mists today?" Nava himself had noticed, very recently, his nephew bring a new leopard in. She'd been limping horribly, and from what he understood, she was injured. That was a worrying thing to see.  

[Tanakako]

Dipping his head in reply to the greeting he returned it in his usual, silent way. "Not today." He replied, voice as flat and even, and as lacking in emotion or information as it was possible to offer. Already Nava had heard more from the male than most of the colony did on a day-to-day basis, and it was hardly worth mentioning. Chimalli did not lie, but he was excellent at evasion or if pushed, would down right ignore a question he didn't wish to answer. Any any information he did have would be spoken to one leopard and one only, and she wasn't in attendance.

He did, however, regard the other male for a moment, expression unreadable but neutral. "How is the newcommer?" There were disadvantages to being a ghost in the forest, he might see more than many would be comfortable knowing about, but he heard less than was desirable. But then, that was the job of others like him, working their own paths for their queen. Yet he could not see any harm in asking a question, and was rather more forthcoming than when required to answer one himself.
 

[Andranis]

"She's... Well enough. Sayen's meeting her today. From what I understand, she has memory problems... Which should be fun to work with." His nose wrinkled. What could have happened in her recent past to cause such a thing? Sakura hadn't been very informative... If only because there was a lot he didn't know, either. Nava shook his head, mostly to himself, then looked around. "You know who I haven't seen in a while...? Fu... She didn't seem right in the head last I saw her... Like she'd gotten a fever that went to the brain..." He let out a sigh. "I hope she's alright... We have so few leopards and we need more.." Soon they'd need to start actively searching in the world beyond. It was a bit nerve-wracking, really, to think about that. Would they need to start cubnapping or something? The white leopard hoped it didn't come to that.  

[Tanakako]

The mist coloured leopard nodded slowly at the consort's comment, filing away the names for later reference. He would have to look into this newcomer, see if there was any kind of trail she had left behind that would tell him more about her and where she came from. Not so much so he could help her, but so he wasn't caught by surprise if anything nasty followed her to the pride, like a jealous mate or a pride hunting her for what ever reason.

His ears pinned back at the mention of his queen, golden eyes studying the pale leopard before him. There was no way he could comment on Nava's words, even if he might agree with them. he was loyal to Fu, completely and utterly. She owned him the way only a sovereign could own her subject. However, he was also concerned, having not seen her of late to give his report. he would quite possibly have to leave his appointed task and track her down, just to reassure himself she was alright.


(Am dosed up on painkillers so if my post is a little weird, I apologise. lol )  

[Andranis]

Nava tilted his head, regarding the other leopard. He could tell SOMETHING was going on in his head... The white leopard just couldn't tell exactly WHAT it was. Of course, few leopards had nothing going on in their heads, and those ones tended to be on the side of dead or dying, and thankfully Chimalli wasn't one of those. "I'm curious about something, Chimalli... What would you do if Fu were to never come back, be it because she's left the lands, or is found dead? I think she may have been ill... And I've seen ill leopards make rash choices and either greet the wrong elephant or gorilla, or fall into a river and drown.. I hope it's more the former, because every leopard counts, but still... What would you do?" What would Nava do, for that matter? Fu was Sayen's best friend... He'd have to comfort his mate, yes, but would she get depressed, and would he be able to handle it?  

[Tanakako]

Andranis

The mist-hued male folded his ears back, those eerie amber eyes narrowing slightly. It was the first sign of any kind of emotion the antisocial male had ever shown and it was disconcerting to say the least. It took a very long time for the other male to answer, so long in fact that it almost seemed as if he would not say anything at all. But finally he shifted, tail curling slowly behind him.

"Is anything being done to find her?" Rather than answer Nava he asked a question of his own, for the other male's words had released a floodgate of thoughts that Chimalli had absolutely no intention of speaking aloud, not least because some of those swirling thoughts shocked even him, and the rest had to go through the same filter than every other thought had to on its journey between brain and mouth.. it was the reason the grey leopard was so silent, very few words were ever deemed acceptable to be spoken aloud. The rest remained locked away in his head.
 

[Andranis]

Tanakako

The tone was unmistakeable. Part of him wondered, did this leopard love Fu? Then again... She'd found some leopards that were loyal to her... A thought that worried the white leopard. "We've done everything we can with so few right now. The jungle's been combed, the river closely examined further down the flow... We've seen no sign of her, though." He sighed. "Part of me worries that humans got to her... They prize our pelts far too much for their own good, sadly, and I fear that may have been what happened. Any one of our pelts would fetch quite the high price amid humans." He didn't fault them all, of course - Some were very good people, others had good intentions that didn't pan out so well. But in the end, the bad ones tended to be the ones most animals encountered out here in the wilds, a reality Nava was all too aware of.  

[Tanakako]

Andranis

The slight squint faded back into the classic impassive expression Chimalli was practically renowned for, his face unreadable and those eerie yellow orbs blank, scarily so, for nothing moved within them, no emotion, no tangible thoughts. He may as well have been a leopard made out of rock for all the warmth and animation he possessed. But then... that was what made him so very good at his job.

Finally he spoke again, answering the question posed earlier as if they had never deviated from the conversation, such as it was, full of long silences and disquieting stares. "I serve the colony." Those golden eyes stared at Nava, neither challenging or respectful. Chimalli was perhaps one of the hardest leopards to understand, apart from all of them, yet he served without gripe or complaint. Had done things in the colony's name that had never been spoken of, yet he never asked for, nor wished for, recognition. Content to stay in his secret-shrouded existence, lurking on the very edges of the colony.  

[Andranis]

Tanakako

The pale leopard gave a nod. He served the colony... That was good, and yet complicated. "Just don't spread yourself too thin. I'll find someone for you to train... Perhaps even cubs or juveniles. I don't think you should do this alone..." He inclined his head, hearing the rumble of one of the many frequent jungle storms. "Best to get back to what we were doing, isn't it? You take care... And if you see anything, I ask you please come tell us. We'd appreciate it." He gave a bow of his head, a show of respect to a leopard who didn't often reveal himself, before turning and padding off. From above, a few drops began to fall, one at a time.