|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 1:45 pm
"Daddaddaddaddaddaddaddad. Daaaaaaad!"
The little hyena's piping could be heard for miles around as she bounded across the dusty, open landscape towards an approaching figure. Her name was Lycoris, an energetic little pup and one of a litter of three. All of them were certainly an energetic bunch though the switching between hyperactive and sleep was sudden and often unexpected. Still, this little one had been waiting for her dad to get back for ages and at last, he was here!
"Did yah bring food? Did yah? Did yah?"
Marakl, with a lolling tongue, leant down to nuzzle the fur between her ears. "No vultures today, loud-mouth." He replied.
"Awwwwww, no fair. Maybe Aunt Kal-Kal should have gone with you, Dad."
"And then who would have stayed to take care of the scamps?" He gave her a playful shove with a paw and she rolled sideways into the dust, laughing in pure delight.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 1:53 pm
As Awendela got closer and closer to home, she began to realize how many creatures there really were around her, and she found it utterly strange that she spent so much time alone, un-stumbled upon in her oasis with so many nearby. Not that it was a complaint, merely a strange observation. She shrugged that thought off as her ears caught the faint sound of a creature calling out. Her dark-red ears perked in the direction of the sound, and she shook her head out of the daze she'd been in with her thoughts. There were others nearby, but why was there shouting? Now the red-furred female was curious.
She stood from where she'd been sitting for a length of time she was unsure of, for she hadn't been measuring, and with a little yawn and another half-hearted shake, the hyena headed in the direction she was sure the sound had come from. She wandered through the grass for a bit until she came to a larger, open area full of sand and dirt and dust, and her gaze came upon two dark yet brightly-marked creatures of her own species. She listened to them laugh and continued to approach slowly, watching as they played and for some reason not thinking that they might find it strange.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 2:00 pm
She rolled in the dirt, yipping with excitement before she found her paws and threw herself at her father. She collided into his chest with a distinct thud and he tipped backwards, giving a cry of mercy tha dissolved into laughter -- and then coughing -- the dust was clouding everywhere, forcing them to temporarily abandon their game.
Lycoris was the first to notice the approaching stranger.
"Look, Daddy! It's a yeenur! Do we know her?"
Marakl, shaking the dust from his fur, turned lazily to look where his daughter was indicating. He might have been a single father but he was not without help. Even still, sometimes he wondered if their mother might return and demand he return them. He wasn't sure what he would do if that happened. She was the one who had abandoned them, after all.
"No." He concluded after a moment. "But let's go and say hello!" And tail wagging, he puffed across to the female hyena, his eyes bright and inquisitive. "Hello!"
"Hello!" His daughter mimicked, bounding behind him.
"Who're you? What are you doing? Are you all by yourself?" The father, apparently, had just as much energy as his pup.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 2:07 pm
Dela wasn't entirely surprised by being approached with friendliness, even though it was in actuality rare that she herself would approach with such nicety. She had been curious about the shouting, initially of course, and then once she had discovered what appeared to be a father and his pup playing, she had become interested in their game. Awendela could not remember any games...she hadn't been a pup for a while now. With a little grin at that though, Dela shook herself, puffed out her fur a little and carefully examined the strangers as they approached. She nodded at the male and the pup as they approached, smiling and poking her tongue out at the tiny female.
"Hi there." She said, lifting her muzzle to catch the male's scent better. Her golden eyes glanced over him and she gave a quick look around to see if there were any others with him. "I'm Dela." the red-furred female started, reclining to her haunches before her kin. "I'm just passing through on my way home, and yes I am on my own."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 2:18 pm
This stranger was apparently good natured and Marakl's tail beat a little harder at that. His daughter - who gave him a quick glance - seemed to copy his every motion. Always learning and copying. Possibly not always a good thing.
"Hi Dela! I'm Marakl and this little firecracker is my daughter, Lycoris."
"Hi!" The pup peeped again.
"You have a home? A...a pack?" Marakl seemed interested in that.
"We have a pack too." The pup chirped.
"We do." Father agreed.
"You have very bright fur." Lycoris continued. "You look like a flower."
Marakl laughed good-naturedly. "We're all very dark hyenas." He explained.
"And some of us aren't hyenas at all." Lycoris added, puffing up her chest all proud.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 2:37 pm
Dela was almost overwhelmed by the amount of energy that this pair seemed to have, maybe it was that she was used to being on her own, and the only talking that went on was when that little voice in her head crept up on her if she spent too much time sitting at home. But she had been feeling better since she'd spent the last few days out here, and she was back to feeling friendly and happy now that she had had some encounters with others that had gone pleasantly. She watched as the pup mimicked her father, and wagged her own tail in response to the happy greeting she was receiving.
"Well it's good to meet you both. I have a home, yes, but I'm not in a pack. Never have been..." She trailed off, grinning at the tiny female as she commented on her red fur.
"Thank you." She said softly to the pup, lowering her head a little toward her. Dela looked back at Marakl. "I've never seen a pack of our kind before anyways, is it close by here?" She inquired, curious now about something else. It was interesting how she was finding out so much more about the area around her home lately.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 2:52 pm
A home without a pack didn't sound like much of a home, though Marakl wasn't the type to say so. Pointing that out might make her sad and that would be pretty awful for a first meeting. "Well, our pack isn't a typical attack really." He began. "There's me--"
"--And me!" Lycoris piped up. "And my brother. And my sister. And then there's Aunt Kalpana. She's a wild dog. And then there's her sister, Aunt Marzi. And last but not least there is Atreyu! He's our lion uncle." The group of theirs was certainly diverse but since it was mainly canines, they referred to it as a 'pack' and a strange little pack it was.
"Marzi and Atreyu took me in when I was a pup." Marakl explained. "Been with them ever since, though I did go wandering for a bit. We were searching for rainbows so that we could see what was at its end, you see. For the longest, longest time we looked. And then I got pups and we gave up the search and came back." He nodded sagely as if their journey made complete and utter sense.
"Have you ever seen a rainbow?" Lycoris piped up again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 3:04 pm
The red-furred female listened intently as the little pup explained her family and tried not to make faces as she was having a bit of trouble understanding the basic set up of the whole thing. How he ended up with hyena pups from an equation without another hyena was what Dela was stuck on for a moment, but she supposed it could make sense for a relationship to not have worked out...but usually it was the mother that ended up with pups, at least in Dela's experience it was. She shrugged it off and tilted her head at the pup and her father. "Well that's certainly interesting." She thought about it all, and decided she wouldn't tell them she found it strange. It's not like her own family life had been terribly normal anyways.
"That seems like an interesting thing to look for. I've seen them in the sky, but I've never found the end of one." Dela said, and was about to continue to state that she didn't think the end of the rainbow really existed cause rainbows moved and stuff, but she deemed it unnecessary, especially considering it was just a baby asking her this question.
"I hope you find one sweetie, I bet there's something really cool just for you waiting for you to come find it." the red-furred female grinned, wagging her tail. She eyed Marakl again and tried to look him over in her peripherals. He was lucky to have such a lovely little pup. Dela had been troubled by a lust for pups lately.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 3:22 pm
Interesting was certainly one word to describe their strange little family.
"Dad says that one day, when I'm bigger, we can all go searching again. But until then we have to stay put. Otherwise we'll get tired and stuff and then bad things might happen."
Marakl whined. "No. Not bad things. But it's not nice to be tired."
"Okay." The pup agreed dutifully. "I bet Dela is right. There'll be something really good and then we can tell everyone all about it." Then the pup had an idea. "Hey, I know! Me and Dad were going to go scavenging. You could come with us!"
"There weren't any vultures." Marakl interjected, not wanting the pup to get her hopes up.
The pup frowned. "Weeeeell, if we all looked then maybe we would see some? I'm hungry, Dad."
Marakl's tail gave a hesitant wag. "Well, okay. Maybe. What do you say, Dela? Are you up for a scavenenging trip? We'll share anything we find, of course. We're friends now, after all."
"Friends." Lycoris agreed. "Please, Dela. Pleeeeease." She gave the adult female her best puppy-eyed look. "It'll be so much fun."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 3:32 pm
How was she supposed to be able to resist such a sweet little thing? Dela felt her heart melt a little as Lycoris got excited about the possibility of having her company, and although she was excited herself to get back to her home, she thought that it would be not nice also to deny the pup this simple request. The red-furred female nodded to the pup- she could use a bite to eat anyways, and maybe if they didn't find anything to scavenge then Marakl and her could pair up if they came across something that they could take down. It was worth a shot, and Dela was thankful for the extra distraction from those strange thoughts that continued to creep through her mind. She blinked for a moment at her two new 'friends' and then smiled and wagged her tail.
"Yes, yes of course." She smiled, looking to Marakl and shrugging in a 'why not' type of fashion. Dela got to her feet and nodded at Lycoris. "Why don't you lead the way then if that's okay with your father?" She grinned again, perking her ears toward Marakl. It would be nice to be in company for a while, and she was ready to follow when they were ready.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Oct 07, 2012 3:43 pm
Marakl was clearly just as much of a pushover and, returning the shrug - and the grin - watched as his daughter did a joyous little dance and tear off ahead. Her laugh of delight could be heard ringing sometime after. Possibly not a great idea if they were going to try their paws at hunting something instead of scavenging. But perhaps the herds wouldn't pay much heed to a little pup scampering about - so long as they didn't spot the adults trailing behind.
"She takes after me." The father said proudly. He had never planned for pups but life sometimes takes strange turns. And, when the female hyena turned up at his doorstep (as it were) with three little pups, there was no way he was going to say no. He'd been abandoned as a pup and though he rarely thought about his parents deep down he would have liked to have known them. His pups might not ever meet their mother but they would certainly know him. Marakl wouldn't be without them now. He loved them all so much.
"Who knows." He continued. "Perhaps we'll be lucky." And he picked up speed to close the gap between them and his daughter. "Be quick, Dela, or she'll find food before we do!" He laughed. His life was always adventurous but never had it been as excited as when he had become a parent.
/fin
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
