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 Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 11:55 am
Shesha was a bold little thing and a reasonable size considering her somewhat precarious beginning in life. She was growing into her legs now, beginning to cast aside the cub-fat for a more lean and leggy look. Her bright eyes were fixed with interest on a trickle of water running from underground and trailing down between a shallow dip filled with rocks. The water was not deep enough to keep a fish alive nor even deep enough to drink from - but it was pretty and it made the most lovely of sounds.
So there she sat, watching the currents glisten beneath the dappled sun, occasionally reaching out to splash a paw firmly into the shallows.
Her mother would be about soon enough, no doubt, to gather up her daughters and teach them the basic elements of hunting. She supposed, in a way, the hunt could be considered a game. She wouldn't dare say that to her mother, though. Nissa had grown strangely serious and withdrawn ever since she'd spoken with Charon - who, apparently, was her uncle...or half-uncle.
Families were awfully confusing.
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Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2012 7:16 pm
Families could be very confusing, indeed. Manju, however, was blisfully unaware of anything wrong or strange about his own. In fact, he thought family was the best thing ever. Really! He was quite excited to have one someday, even if he was jut a little cub.
The young male wasn't really doing anything in particular, just walking along on his own. His family certainly couldn't be too far, and he'd never been the sort to worry much.
Manju was briefly interested in a small moth flitting about the grasses, and just began to stalk after it when something much more interesting caught his eye. Ooooh, who was that? the young cub blinked, looking ahead and spying another cub. Older than him, considering her height, and all, but... It was a girl. He smiled, hurriedly looked around and found a little flower. It wasn't the prettiest of flowers, but it was cute.
Ever the little gentleman, Manju quietly picked it out, then hurried over. He dropped it on the floor behind Shesha, then hopped up to sit beside her. "Hello!" He greeted happily. "You're very pretty!"
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 11:45 am
So engrossed in watching the water and trying to divert its paths with her paws, she didn't notice the cub until he dropped to sit beside her. She turned and blinked rapidly at him, her mouth lifting in a smile. "Hello!" And at his compliment her ears flicked back briefly in pleased embarrassment. She was pretty? No, she was very pretty?
"I am? I mean, um, thank you! So are you!"
She shifted her weight to turn and face him, the tuft of her tail accidentally brushing into the water as she did so. "My name is Shesha! I'm playing with the water. You want to join me?" She continued. "If you're here when Mama comes looking, maybe I won't have to go on my hunting lesson."
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2012 7:10 pm
Oh, good! He'd made her happy! Manju found some girls were a little weird when you complimented them, which made it hard for him to demonstrate affection and love and all that. He thought compliments were what you were supposed to do, and always felt confused when girls didn't seem happy about it.
"You are! Your eyes are very green, like leaves. I think it's nice." He nodded, then felt briefly taken aback. She compimented him! "Thank you, too." There he turned shy, because this might be the first time a girl had called him 'very pretty'. Or, returned his own compliment.
"Sure! I mean, if you don't mind. What're you playing?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 11:38 am
"They are green." She nodded, happy. "Green is my favourite colour. I love the trees and the grass. Everything here is very green, so I'll blend in well. Will make for a good hider in 'hide and go seek'."
She giggled and then shifted her weight to make room for him. A second later and she dragged her paw through the shallow waters and swung it up to flick droplets at him. "Got'cha!" She squeaked and then leapt up and splashed through the 'little stream' to get to the other side. "I don't think it has a name! I just like to go," She lowered herself into a pounce and then, as she leapt back at the water, she finished: "SPLASH!" And as she landed, the water sluiced up around her.
Shesha laughed again, then fixed him with a look that seemed to dare him to try and create a bigger splash.
This was going to be fun.
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 12:38 pm
He wondered how well eyes made you hide, but since Shesha was a girl, Manju found himself totally unable to agree with her, so he nodded enthusiastically. Yes, surely she would be a good hider in hide and go seek!
When she made room for him, Manju happily moved to occupy it, expecting perhaps that he would be able to sit with her and they could be sitting together, and it would be nice. But no sooner had she done that, that she moved and there were drops of water flying at his face. He blinked, surprised, and pulled back.
This was new! "You did!" He responded, though initially unsure of how to proceed, as Shesha splashed through the stream. It's not that Manju had never played with water before, but-- water came flying at him once again-- well, it had always been with siblings.
Looking down and realizing he was all wet, though, he completely forgot about the little flower he had meant to give her, and leaped into the water. "Ha!" He laughed, flinging some at the older cub.
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Posted: Wed Mar 21, 2012 1:19 pm
"I was beginning to think you were a'scared of the water!" She teased, shaking her head from side to side. Her high-pitched giggle of utter joy was enough of a sign that she was happy he had risen to the challenge. The water from his jump had splashed up and caught her in the face and it dripped from the ends of her whiskers - that was until she shook herself vigorously and planned her next course of action.
Water was fun.
"You better watch out! Because I am very tricky indeed!" She replied, leaping backwards and dropping into a pounce position. Then, without another word she sprang forwards, aiming herself straight at him: her intention to bowl him straight over and into the water.
Ha! Then he'd be completely soaked and she'd be the winner!
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 12:16 pm
"Well, I'm not!" He laughed, prancing away from her to avoid another attempted attack. Of course, he had expected to be splashed at, not tackled, and was struck by Shesha's attack. Though his dodge had been good enough to avoid getting hit in, say, the front or the side, the older cub successfully slammed into his hindquarters, and Manju dutifully lost balance stumbled over.
"Heeeeeyyyy!" The cub didn't know whether to laugh or feel upset that he was losing, but instead decided he should be upset with Shesha because she was very pretty. Instead, he decided he was in prime position to kick out his hind paws and fling water back at her. Hu-hah!
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Posted: Fri Mar 23, 2012 10:49 am
Success! Or...part success, anyway, but she was pretty sure she was winning. With a yowl of excitement she moved her paws in an attempt to kick some water up at him, except he'd had a similar idea.
Shrieking as he flung water at her, she attempted to dance away from the splashing, though she could feel her sides and back suddenly drop in temperature where the water sloshed. Okay, so he was trickier than she had come to think! This was going to be a lot of fun. Now, if only she could find some way to--
"--Eek!" Her front paw had slipped on a moss-covered stone and where one moment she had been bouncing away from the splashes she had now slipped straight on her front, soaking her chest and face. Unfortunately, because the water was so shallow, she'd also winded herself against the rocks and took a moment to try and catch her breath. "Stones. Slippery." She gasped, trying to regain her paws and find a more secure footing and turn back to face him. "Stone ruined my plan now!" She continued, though she seemed to be getting over her slip rather quickly.
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Posted: Fri Mar 23, 2012 8:04 pm
Ha! Manju still had a chance of winning at this somehow, because his little attack had worked! He laughed, enjoying the small victory for a few moments. Then she fell, and the cub immediately felt bad. "Oh no!" He squeaked, and splashed through the water towards her. He couldn't really help her get up, but stood by looking all worried, unnecessary as it was.
"Are you okay? You're not hurt, right? I'm sorry!" He wouldn't be this apologetic with a sibling, or another male. But Shesha was a pretty girl! He couldn't forgive himself if he had hurt her!
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Posted: Sat Mar 24, 2012 8:41 am
"Oh, I'm okay!" She replied, moved by his concern. He was pretty cute - for a boy, anyway. "It'll take more than a slippery stone to keep me down." And she bounced up and down once as if to prove her point. "See?"
Distantly she heard the low call of a lioness: a mother calling to her cub. Shesha recognised her mother's call instantly and knew exactly what that would mean. Playtime was over. Her ears fell and she sighed, sitting quite suddenly in the water - clearly not in a rush to go answering.
"That's my mum." She explained. "I wonder what would happen if I ignored her..." She turned questioning eyes to her new friend. "What do you think?"
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Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2012 5:18 am
Oh, phew! Manju was very glad she was okay, even though he still felt a wee bit guilty anyways. She had fallen, and it was partially his fault! that was so un... un... ungentlemanly. Oh, that reminded him!
He blinked and turned, intending to go for the flower that had remained where he had placed it on the floor, when a voice called. Manju barely heard it himself, but Shesha apparently recognized it. "Aww..." He frowned, lowering his ears. "If you ignored her, she might get mad." That might not be the answer Shesha wanted, though. He tilted his head, then continued on towards the flower, picking it up gently then hurrying back to Shesha.
"But it's okay! We can meet and play again, right?" He felt silly talking with a flower in his mouth, so he raised a paw and balanced it on top, instead. "Here, I got this for you! It's pretty, just like you are!"
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Posted: Sat Apr 07, 2012 12:58 pm
She supposed he was right. She'd only come looking anyway and then she'd get told off and walked off to her lesson. Her mother could be a serious-faced lioness at the best of times, though Shesha couldn't blame her. The family had been through a lot and she had a feeling her mother had never had an easy life.
"I suppose..." She trailed after a moment, folding her ears back against her head. However, she instantly brightened at the option of being able to meet and play again later. "Oh! Yes! I'd like that a lot! It'd be nice to hang out with you again and come up with new games to play."
And then she blinked, realising that he'd gone to fetch something whilst she had been in thought. Her eyes widened in surprised delight at his next words. "For...for me?" The last word came out as a high-pitched squeak. "It's so pretty!" She wriggled, embarrassed and flattered, as she took the flower from him. "Thank you so much! I've never gotten a present before." And, carefully, she threaded the flower into the tuft of fur between her ears and smiled prettily. "There! How does it look?"
But the roar summoned again - angrier this time - and with a deeply apologetic look, she started towards the sound. "Uh oh. I'm in trouble now. I should go, but we'll catch up later to be sure!" And with that she fled, the flower pinned in place as she went.
/fin
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