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 Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 2:29 pm
 ((OOC: Su is played by Kimaria. Members of any age are welcome in this RP. Feel free to jump in at any time. As usual, there is no specific posting order so that things can be kept moving. ))
The Firekin Ambassador had made it safely to Gakere's care, only two days prior. As of yet, she had not deal with the pride, but it was only a matter of time before Su got curious and so did the rest of the pride. She would be officially introduced tomorrow, and until that time, those that knew were expected to keep their information on the low. But, there were rumours about that, too. The pride knew they were due for an Ambassador from the red-pelts, they had just not known when.
There was mist in the air, Matifa could smell it. Moisture was rare during the drought months. But when it came, it was brought on the wings of cool wind.
The brown lioness was struck with an idea. Even two nights away from the snuggled group of her mother and siblings left her restless and there was some selfishness in her actions as she had prodded Su awake with a foot.
"It's a good day for a hunt," she explained. The brown lioness did not wait long for Su. Her footsteps were excited as she moved away from their temporary sleeping area.
A momentary pause, as she considered a horrifying fact. Matifa turned to look over her shoulder. "Do you know how?"
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Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 2:44 pm
The moisture in the air...would take some getting used to. A lioness who was used to intense heat and parched land where the air was hot and dry thought that this weather felt wrong. It was silly, really, but she'd underestimated how different it was living without the shifting tides of gold beneath her paws. The ground was cooler beneath her feet but harder, too, often hiding thorns and sharp stones that could work its way into her pads. At least, however, it was easier to keep her fur clean. Such a task had been nigh impossible out in the sands; where the winds carried the golden shards into eyes and ears and nostrils.
So yes, it would take time to get used to, but Su had little doubt that she would. There were many advantages to living in a slightly cooler temperate--
--and hunting would be one of them.
The prodding on her back roused her and, slowly, she rolled onto her stomach; stretching and yawning and blinking - bleary eyed - up at the young adolescent. Her announcement was completely unexpected but it brought a sharp purr of delight to her throat as she found her paws and stretched the last of the sleep from her limbs. Why today was better than any other day, however, Su wasn't sure. Perhaps the young female was simply bored and wanted something to do.
"I'm game. Lead the way." She took a step after Matifa and then paused, blinking. She hesitated before she replied. "I...was taught how to hunt, though on this terrain...I could not say." She smiled. "Nevertheless, I'm certainly a better huntress than I am a warrior. I shouldn't think I would be too much of a burden." Her mind skipped across the lessons she had been given as an adolescent, trying desperately to remember them. Perhaps if she appeared confident, everything would go to plan. No point going in with a defeatist attitude.
Holding her head up high, Su trotted out into the open, watching the other female out of the corner of her eye.
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Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 2:58 pm
The idea to hunt in such great weather conditions wasn't only limited to two, as even Umoya was willing to stop slacking off for a while and head into the hunting grounds. She was sad that Quba would not be joining her, sad that her friend still seemed quite weak from when the accident had happened... Umoya winced a little and rid her mind of the thoughts. She always felt guilty when they came up. Even if Quba was in perfect health though she probably would have found some way to skirt her hunting duties, the black lioness was the laziest female Umoya knew! She didn't care though, she thought it was part of her friends charm.
She moved freely for now, having yet to scent any prey on the air and she wasn't feeling particularly cautious. She would know when caution was expected, now was not the moment.
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Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 8:13 pm
"Orabela, guess what? I think, I'm hanging out here today."
-
The bold little voice echoed into the den, jolting Orabela from her peaceful slumber. The adolescent's bright eyes snapped open and her gaze darted about the den for a moment as the lioness sought to orient herself. It was a little too early to be woken up by little voices.
"You're what now?" She answered, climbing slowly to her feet and fighting to suppress the urge to yawn. Her gaze landed on the little tan cub peering in at the mouth of the den with an expression of self-assured contentment on his face, as if he didn't imagine for a minute that Ora might say no. He had, by all accounts, simply showed up in good faith that she would be there.
Of course, there weren't many other places that she might have been at this point, but there was still a certain sort of ego and guts involved in the cub's sudden appearance on her doorstep. Ora had to admit that she appreciated that sort of fire.
-
"I said, I'm hanging out here today," Kayin replied, his words coming out just as slowly and calculatedly as before. Though young, the cub had a habit of carefully considering everything he said before he said it, and rarely did any unnecessary word slip from his mouth.
He was a dignified little creature, somehow fully confident in the comprehension of his own self worth and in knowing that others recognized the same qualities in him as he did on his own. Kayin was still young, still a cub by all measures of the word, but he had an ego befitting a much older youngster and he didn't try to pretend otherwise. Perhaps he simply couldn't, or didn't know how.
-
"Oh are you, I thought you said something entirely different," Ora said with a slight roll of her eyes. With a slight stretch, she brushed past him and into the open. "And no, you're not. I'm not sitting around all day babysitting you, so run along and find your momma, little runt."
That Ora was not the biggest little lioness around was not a secret. As a cub, Kayin was already almost half her size, and she used the term with affection. But it was still enough to draw an indignant huff out of the younger lion.
-
"I'm not a runt." He liked to remind her, though they both understood perfectly that Ora was well aware of that. "You're more interesting than my momma," he added, turning around and promptly following the little lioness. "I'll just come with you."
-
"If you insist," Ora replied, barely managing to suppress a sigh. It wouldn't have mattered anyway. Kayin wasn't the most receptive of subtle social clues. He was like a bull, that one, stubborn and one-track minded almost to a fault, and little details didn't register as quickly or as easily with him.
But in the next moment, her frustration was forgotten as she saw a familiar sight - her sister - and a grin split her face. It was always a treat to see family, and Matifa had been oddly absent for several days. Time to find out why.
"Hey, Matifa!" She almost yelled across the open ground at her darker sister. Almost, but Ora was Ora, and she had never had to yell to make herself heard. "Who's that?"
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Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 8:17 pm
 Hlengiwe had been enjoying a short nap. She let out a big yawn and blinked her eyes up at the sky. There was a nice cool breeze passing through. It made her smile. It felt good on her fur. She hoped that it would possibly rain but that was a rare occurrence that she didn't get her hopes up. Maybe some stretching would help wake her up more, just some running to help energize her muscles.
She stood up on her paws and stretched out her legs before heading off in a random direction. The air really did fell good. She didn't pay too much attention to where she was going but kept an eye out for her sisters. That was when she spotted Matifa with what looked like one of the Firekin. What was Matifa doing with the red lioness? Curious, she started towards them.
Hlengiwe almost laughed when a familiar voice called out to Matifa. It was Orabela. She quickened her pace to meet up with them.
((OOC: Hlengiwe is headed towards Matifa, Su, and Orabela!))
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Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 8:51 pm
Knowing how to hunt was a start. Afterall, Matifa considered knowing a state of being. No one had lectured to her the art of hunting; she had practiced on her siblings from day one and had been accompanying hunts since a juvenile. Hunting was built into her lifestyle.
"Bringing home a strong kill will make a good first impression." Matifa's mood increased with each passing step. Both lionesses were trotting now. The cool air left a healthy spring in Matifa's step.
"Hey, Matifa!"
The brown lioness dug her feet into the ground and came to an abrupt halt. Ears swiveling, Matifa's eyes landed on a brightly colored adolescent.
Oh no.
"Don't shout!" Matifa answered, before she realized that she too was shouting. Anyone within the vicinity was sure to hear them. Most were used to Orabela's antics, but their fellow females would sometimes come to inspect potential fuss anyway.
She was about to open her mouth to say something further, when movement was caught from the corner of her eye. Another of her sister's was jogging her way towards them. It seemed Matifa wasn't the only one woken by the weather -- leading a bright red lion through gold grass was not the most inconspicuous thing Matifa had ever done.
"I hope you're ready to meet people," Matifa called back to Su. The ambassador was about to have no choice.
A pause, as Matifa caught sight of a yellow lusizi attempting to keep up with the closing group. To Orabela she inquired, "Are you cub sitting?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 2:42 am
"But I wasn't!" Orabela protested once she had closed the gap between them. It was close enough, though. Ora didn't really understand the concept of being quiet. Being the littlest one out of a sizable litter like theirs meant that something had to give, and it certainly wasn't Ora. Being overlooked was not part of the equation for her.
She almost craned her head around Matifa, trying to get a good look at the bright, red-pelted lioness standing behind her sister. A ponderous look crossed the adolescent's face as she tried to puzzle out the link between Matifa and the stranger nearby.
Ora was about to repeat her initial question when Matifa interrupted, and she whipped her head around to see Kayin scampering up behind her to join the fray. "No, I'm... well, he's..." Ora didn't cub sit. That was a job for... well, older lionesses. It was boring.
But she had to admit, this looked pretty bad. For once, she wasn't quite sure what to say in response. What could she say, anyway? That she had just stumbled across him one day and could no longer seem to get rid of him? So she didn't. Instead, she turned the spotlight onto somebody else. "I... oh, look! It's Hlengiwe."
That ought to do it. She hoped, anyway.
-
For his part, Kayin made himself difficult to ignore. Being half Ora's size and in possession of paws that were just a little too big for him made it difficult to keep up, especially when the lioness had gone bounding off toward the other two, and he had had to scramble in order to even seem like he was keeping up.
As it was, he arrived on the scene just as the conversation turned, however briefly, to him. The sandy-pelted cub lengthened his stride, tripped and took an unceremonious tumble into the middle of the small group, blinking his wide green eyes as he picked himself up. He might have looked sheepish, if he had been capable of feeling embarrassed.
But rather than dwell on his little mishap, Kayin took to peering up and around him at the older lionesses. "I don't know you," he declared, staring at the bright red lioness. Not that he really knew the darker Matifa either, but he had since deduced that she was somehow related to Ora. And that, Kayin assumed, meant he knew her by association.
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 7:56 am
It seemed the hunt would have to wait, because after a short while Umoya's eyes danced along to something far more interesting. She'd frozen in place when the splash of red greeted the golden landscape, starting rather rudely even though she was still a ways off from the little group that was suddenly gathering.
Three adolescents by her count and a large... red... lioness... like the ones who'd showed up not too long ago. She had yet to spot Kayin, but to be fair the largest part of her attention was on the stranger. She could faintly hear them shouting, but that seemed to cut off quickly enough. Her gaze strayed back towards where she was headed and she winced.
A hunt would have to wait, she guessed. She began to head in the small group's direction.
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 8:49 am
The random grouping of females had caught Kania's attention in an instant, and in her cub state, she hesitated to bound forward to see what was going on. the minute her gaze caught Kayin, however, they might as well have raised a green flag.
It took a small jump and a half for her to get down from her little rock perch she adored, and she was halfway across the gap when she paused.
She she really go join them without her sister?
She didn't want anyone to pick up on the differences that she clearly had with Dania, as that would only mean they would be able to tell when they switched places. After a moment's thought, she came up with the idea to swap between shy and her normal self. That would work, right?
With that to ease her mind, she quickly went back to being nosy, sliding herself next to her brother with a decent amount of silence, only to break a twig when she caught on to the fact she was being light-pawed. that was a close one.
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 10:38 am
Someone was calling out Matifa's name and then all of a sudden the plains were a flurry with activity. Su blinked, dropping back a step as they were approached by a number of pride members. After going the couple of days without drawing too much attention, it seemed like she was about to be slammed head-first into the community. Well...perhaps this was for the best? Although Matifa didn't seem to think so.
"More than ready." Su declared confidently, putting on her most polite smile and taking a short step forwards in greeting. It was strange to see the earthy tones on those around her. The colour had made itself apparent on some of the Firekin huria over the years, but to see so much of it was a little disconcerting. She supposed red was as unusual to them as their browns were to the Firekin. Here, she was the huria. The outsider who stuck out amongst the crowd. Su wasn't quite sure how she felt about that yet. Pleased or...slightly uncomfortable.
Oh, but look, there was a little one too and, oh my, wasn't he just charming? "Not many do, little lion. I've not been here long." She replied, her tail curling with amusement. "My name is Su. What's your name, fierce one?"
Then the little male was joined by another, his sister if their markings were anything to go by. "Oh, look, the earth is sprouting cubs!" She declared, peeking across at Matifa and catching sight of another moving to join the fray. All female - she noted absently. Well, all female except for that little cub just there.
"You're quite out numbered by the ladies, little lion." She added.
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 2:39 pm
When Orabela’s loud voice reached her ears, Thuli rose from her sitting position and quickly made her way towards her sister… sisters. Oh look , a family reunion! Orabela’s voice was like a beacon Thuli absolutely had to follow because where Ora went, fun usually followed and when the two of them were together… well, awesome things happened.
“Ora, I’m not sure someone told you yet but you have something on your paws.” The adolescent said with the usual straight-face she liked to offer the targets of her pranks, pointing at the brown male cub as if he were a bit of dirt stuck on her sister’s paws. “I thought you should know.”
As always, she loked absolutely dead serious, her tone so innocent that anyone not familiar with the blue-eyed lioness might actually wonder what she was really thinking.
“And it’s multiplying!” Thuli said with mock surprise when the second cub arrived but the game was over when she finally noticed a stranger in the small crowd. “Hello, I don’t think I’ve seen you before. I’m Thulisile. Just call me Thuli. Is she a new Busiza, Matifa?” She looked like one those red pelts!
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 4:00 pm
She was cubsitting! Matifa pushed the two-halves of her muzzle together to keep from smiling. Finding herself unsuccessful, Matifa relented and even let out a small chuckle of amusement.
The small, sandy cub tumbled in, further spreading her smile. It was the first time Matifa felt comfortable enough to laugh since Su had arrived. "I think you've warn off on him," Matfa towards Orabela. Her sister had always been full of words, sometimes words which she should not say, but said anyway. Perhaps Orabela was no diplomat, but she had a brute honesty Matifa could get behind.
. . . Thuli on the other hand. Matifa took in a deep breath and turned her eyes towards the prankster. As such, her jaw clenched when Thulisile introduced herself to the red-pelted lioness. She knew how much sarcasm Thuli enjoyed throwing around to undermine Surtak. Not that Matifa trusted him, either. . . but Matifa felt constantly embarrassed that they'd descended upon the Umholi with questions like a pack of hyenas who had freshly stolen a kill.
"Well," she began to explain, looking back to Su. Umzingeli was not exactly the word. Still, things were going well, and how rude would Thulisile really be when there were cubs present? Matifa thought maybe she shouldn't ask herself that question. All her sister's had strong personalities.
"I don't know if she is quite busisa," she began. "She is from the red--" Matifa cut herself off, before the derogatory term left her tongue. "From the Firekin." Su could explain the rest in answering the barrage of inquiries that was sure to come with the statement.
As if to segue from any immediate questions, she quickly added, "We were about to begin a hunt."
Su's voice reached her ears, and Matifa couldn't help but to let out a heavy sigh. "He's about to be outnumbered by one more." Umoya was headed towards them. Matifa knew only a little bit about the female. Hopefully she didn't have the rest of the pride coming in behind her. Would they even get any hunting done this morning?
"Morning, Umoya."
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 6:16 pm
Oh. Oh, more sisters, here to witness her in what was admittedly not her finest moment. Ora would have to find a way to... rectify this situation, perhaps a little later on. She had always assumed that this was just a phase that little Kayin would get over, that he would get bored of hanging around her eventually and find some more friends his own age. But after this, she wasn't so sure. This could easily be the most adventurous thing that had ever happened to the cub, young as he was.
"He was an accident," Ora announced stubbornly, addressing both Thuli and Matifa. Not that she was under any illusions that saying it was going to change her sisters' understanding of the situation. It just made her feel better to say it and to feel like she had at least done something to remedy Kayin's company.
"You're one of the-" Ora's eyes widened suddenly at Su. Them had been the first word to come to mind, but stopped herself. Well that was no way to treat a stranger, and Ora had always bore an odd sort of fascination for the red pelts. "You're one of the Firekin? Why are you here?" By here, she meant... well, here, specifically, with her sister. Of all the reasons Ora might have attributed to Matifa's sudden disappearance in the last few days, keeping a Firekin company would have been one of the last.
-
Kayin himself seemed quite unfazed by all the estrogen that had suddenly descended upon him. His home, after all, was a place quite dominated by lionesses, and this could not have been the first time he'd found himself surrounded by girls.
"It's okay, they love me," the little cub reassured the red lioness, who quite towered above him. She was a far cry from Ora, whose size would never be her most intimidating asset. "I'm Kayin," he added, looking as pleased as punch that he, of all the lions around, had managed to get Su's name.
A sudden frown came over the little cub's face as his sister slid into place beside him. Kania, he thought she was... was pretty sure she was, but as was the case with twins, it was difficult to be sure. Kayin loved his sisters, but he did not love being made a fool of, and Kania and Dania had an uncanny ability to fool most people with their looks.
He wasn't sure how much he wanted to look stupid in front of Su. She was new, after all.
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 7:36 pm
The days had been long ones for Dina, between caring for a recent litter of cubs and keeping up with her cinga duties kept her busier than she would have liked. Although, it had kept her mind off the lingering problem of the Firekin, and as a result she hadn't been too worried about them recently. In fact, she might have been comfortable with them so close to the pride with how distracted she had been recently. Almost as if they didn't really exist, and all she had to do was ignore them. She wasn't sure how the rest of the pride felt on the matter, as opinions tended to shift, but Dina was a stubborn and cautious creature, set in her ways and happy to be so.
The splotchy lioness was on her way out to find Bora, her vulture, in order to get the day's scouting out of the way and spend the rest of it with her cubs. She may have been more than a few paces out when she noticed something off to the side. A grouping of lionesses quickly caught her attention, keen eyes use to spotting prey picking up on the cluster. Now what was going on here? They weren't ganging up on an Umholi again were they? Dina had missed that encounter, but had been informed of the questioning by her daughter, Chazama. In her day, lionesses didn't question Umholi, not unless they had caused some harm to befall the pride. And as far as she could tell, Surtak had done no such thing... even if he was weird. Slightly irked that this might be the case again, the stocky lioness trotted forward, intent on finding out just what was going on here.
As she approached, she noticed it was mostly a grouping of adolescents, and Dina quickly recognized them as Njalo's brood. And even Umoya was making her way over! Though no Umholi in sight. Sooo, then why were they- ah. That was the problem. Dina's cool blue eyes came to rest on the large red pelt in their midst. Had she gotten lost trying to find the outpost? Or was she making trouble for the young lionesses of the Bonelands? Dina wasn't certain, but she did quicken her pace when she noticed the two sandy cubs at their paws. That was Kayin! And... it took her moment but if she had to guess she would say, Kania as well. Her ears flicked back slightly in alarm. She wasn't sure what thought might have crossed her mind at that point, but the mother wasn't about to leave her cubs unattended around a red-pelt. "Ladies, these two haven't been causing trouble I hope?" she spoke evenly, keeping her tone pleasant as she approached, but her eyes remained on Su despite these efforts to remain collected. Thus far, the posturing of the group didn't seem threatening, so Dina wasn't all too willing to tip the scales in that direction with her own accusations. But these were her cubs, and she wasn't entirely certain she could trust this stranger. Best to keep an eye on her.
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Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 9:30 pm
Despite being able to see her sisters, she still had a ways to go before reaching them. The shouting easily reached her ears though. It made her laugh, a laughter that could probably be heard by others. Soon enough what started out as not that much soon turned into a crowd. Most likely it was that Firekin that was with Matifa that was drawing the lioness to them. No males, except for the cub, were around it seemed. This could go bad depending on which lionesses decided to show up.
She reached the just as Dina showed up. "Wow, you guys are loud. Care to wake up the whole pride?" It was said in a light, joking manner. Hlengiwe smiled at her sisters.
She then marched right up to the firekin and greeted her. "Hello, are you visiting? I'm Hlengiwe, Matifa's sister." Her welcome was genuine. Hlengiwe accepted the Firekin and trusted them since Gakere did. Mother would probably have been much more friendly as she always was. However, she felt that affectionately rubbing her head on the red one's wouldn't be smart. Might scare the poor thing away. As it were, she was already being assaulted with curiosity in the form of the rest of the lionesses.
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