Eira'ffres - -_Wish of the Goddess_-
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Kichomo'damu - Das Tor
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Mikā'īl - Truth.Be.Told
These lands were unfamiliar to her. They were foreign as the sun. Her large paws pressed quietly into the earth, the feeling unfamiliar beneath them, as she made her way down the terrain. This was something so new for the pale lioness, her blue-and-purple mismatched eyes taking every new sight. She was going to have to keep going. This was so new! Where was the snow? Where was the cold? What WAS all of this! This was amazing! There was no dens to dig..no snow-hares to hunt...but...now she was hungry. Her stomach rumbled, and she raised her nose....what did Prey smell like here?
Traveling was something that Kichomo'damu had fallen into again quickly. Having done so most of his life, it was still ingrained in him, those old habits. Like carefully sniffing the air every half a day or so, when the terrain grew too new. And this sniff rewarded him with something more than just changes in prey and flora. There was the scent of a lioness in the air. One besides the one he was traveling with. Raising a brow, he looked over to Mikā'īl. "Company, it would seem."
Mikā had been growing more and more agitated the more they traveled. Not a sign of her 'mothers'. Not a sign of Kich's mother. It was...frustrating, since that was the main reason they'd chosen to join the outside forces. To find their families outside the pride. Mikā snorted in annoyance...and then blinked when Kich spoke up. Hm? "We do?" She carefully sniffed the air, to find he was right. There was the scent of another lioness! "So we do..."
Eira hadn't yet scented out the other two, still trying to search around for food. This entire expanse was huge! And it smelled of dirt...and...stuff..that she didn't really know the scent of. Her large paws didn't seem to help the same way they did in the snow....and her ears flicked back as she missed yet another small hare, "GODS!" Yowling...not helping her chances either, she was sure..."I just...want...to eat.."
Had Kich been anything but Firekin, he might have spooked at the yowling. But since he WAS Firekin...well, he didn't spook, instead lowering to the ground and sneaking forward to see what the reason for the raucous was. And...stared a bit at the female. He didn't recall ever seeing a lioness so...fluffy. He looked to Mikā, a distinct 'wth?' look on his face.
Mikā followed Kich in slinking forward, and...wow. That was a very fluffy lioness. Mind, she'd seen others with that much fur before, but mostly near the ocean. She just shrugged at Kich's face, then cleared her throat. "You won't catch anything that way, child." If the female was going to act like a cub, Mikā would treat her like one.
Those dual colored eyes turned to the others that came about her. True, she was recently turned adult, but even in her Pride, she was still big for her age....How had the female known? Whatever. Giving the other a sheepish smile, she tipped her head, "Everything smells different way down here on the ground. There's no scent of snow...and it's harder to see the prey that runs here. I'm used to my paws staying on top of the ground too." It was true. Her pale white paws were filthy, like she'd not even bathed in...however long she'd traveled.
Kich...stared at the female a bit funnily. What...what on earth? She sounded a little daft. "There is no snow near here. We're too low. And prey does tend to make itself hard to see." What had this girl's parents taught her? Nothing? It seemed like it. To send one so unprepared out into the world...it was idiocy.
Mikā frowned, her own thoughts echoing her friend's. "Your parents did not prepare you at all." And her old mothering instincts, the ones that had reared numerous litters not her own and cared for quite a few young Firekin, kicked in as she moved over to the other female. "First off, you're even standing wrong for the terrain you're on."
She laughed softly, flicking her tail towards the mountains that were...a very decent way in the distance, "...I came from there!" She purred, "I was taught to dig dens in ice, and hunt in the snow, and stand on rocks and slopes...This is all...so new." Eira looked dreamy, "This was supposed to all be dreams the Gods planted in our heads. They weren't real, but I came out here...and all my father's dreams were TRUE..." She sounde amazed, "How does one stand on this?"
She'd spent her life in the mountains. Kich turned blue eyes to the towering figures in the distance, then looked back to the lioness. She was...strange. Very strange. He sighed. "You stand on this like anything else. With your four paws. You just realize the ground is...more flat. Fewer inclines to contend with." Good thing the girl wasn't near the desert. She wouldn't survive in the sand. At all. He looked to Mikā as if to ask what they would do with her. They couldn't exactly leave her to fend for herself...but they certainly couldn't take her back to the Firekin. Her coloring was COMPLETELY wrong.
Mikā facepawed at the girl. Dear...she wanted to strangle the idiots from the girl's old pride. Sighing, she caught Kich's look, then looked to the girl. They could deal with her a little longer. It wouldn't do for them to leave her there to die when they had the strength to aid her. "First, stand up. You won't learn how to stand on flat ground if you're laying on the dirt." They could keep her with them while they traveled, until it was time to check in again.
Eira'ffres stretched out languidly, her paws digging gently into the earth as she pulled herself to stand. The rather fluffy lioness pulled herself to standing, letting her claws find purchase in this new terrain as they studied her, "This should be easy enough. It's like learning how to hunt in snow as a cub, or at least...I'm assuming it is." Her chest heaved in a soft sigh, and she shook out her pelt, mane flopping in her eyes as she did so.
Kich got what Mikā was doing. Ah...well, it could be worse. At least the girl seemed willing to learn. He moved to stand beside Eira, hoping he wouldn't drawf her. He...wasn't exactly small. "Observe how I'm standing, and imitate it." He had a solid stance, but he didn't let the warrior in him leak out. The girl they were teaching was not a warrior. "You need not be as aware of shifting ground, as the ground down here is generally much sturdier."
Mikā nodded at what Kich said. "The ground down here is firm, and mostly flat. You do have to be careful of some irregularities...and rocks and meerkat and hare holes...but overall, it's very easy to stand and move around on." She gave the girl a slight smile, suddenly reminded of all the cubs she'd raised. "You'll get it."
She watched him, watched the way he stood, and found herself slowly shifting into the same stance. Her claws retracted slightly, and she allowed herself to feel just how solid the ground was. She nodded at the things these two were telling her, but kept the solid stance, "Like the crags in the rocks up in the mountain." This she understood well. The mountain had been filled with irregularities. The lioness was better suited to uneven footing as it was.
Kich nodded. "A bit. But they're less likely to get you killed. Just sore paws and annoyed prey." He'd had a few cases of that in his adolesence. She seemed to be getting it, though. That was good. "So...what is your name? Mine is Kichomo'damu." He motioned to his friend. "And she is Mikā'īl. We are of the Motoujamii-simo." Hopefully, that wouldn't scare her off. The Firekin did have a bit of a reputation in other places...
Mikā nodded at her introduction, keeping the slight smile. "If you've heard of where we come from, do not be alarmed. The pride has changed since older times." She tilted her head at the girl's stance, and moved to nudge her paws just a little with her own. She was just a little off...there.
The female nodded, her head tipping slightly to the side as she listened to where they were from, and who they were, "A pleasure, Kichomo'damu and Mikā'īl. I have never heard of your Pride, but the Theluji-mkazi was a very....secluded place. Our ancestors taught us only of the snow, and that anything beyond did not exist. There was little we heard of the outside world. My name is Eira'ffres. I am glad to have met you." Allowing Mikā to adjust her, the female allowed her muscles to shift, to get her used to the idea of how this worked...of how she was supposed to stand. This felt...sturdy enough.
Kich snorted. "A foolish notion, if you ask me. To know nothing of the outside world is to invite trouble." Even in the Firekin, the cubs were taught a little about the outside, especially in recent days, with all the once-rogue blood. "Good to meet you, Eira'ffres. Now..." He looked to Mikā, raising a brow. Would she care to make the offer? It wouldn't do to just assume.
Mikā caught Kich's look, and nodded. Then looked to Eira. "Would you care to travel with us, as you adjust to the lowlands? It wouldn't be for too long, as we have to go back home at some point, but it would get you on your feet proper, and get you some practice hunting without having to worry about starving yourself because you failed the first few times." It might be...interesting to have some company beyond Kich. Even for a small bit.
Her ear twitched, and the pale lioness seemed to be considering the offer the two had made. Travelling companions would likely be wise, so long as she had a chance to have them. After all. Earth was an unfamiliar terrain, and being alone on unfamiliar terrain was....not fun, "Yes! That sounds like it would be quite nice!"
