[SRP] Mother Talk (Mama La, Tifu, Tath)

[Reeshie Hack]

The air was cool as an older lioness sat on her own, a paw slowly waving over a bundle of herbs and other plant life. There were new comers to the pridelands and while it in part amused Mama La that her old friend was so flustered over it, she too was somewhat wary. The Neled had come from ancient traditions and secrecy, isolated from the rest of the world for so long that... she wold probably be forever wary of new comers. Not that she would ever treat them poorly, she'd just...
Well, she'd run a background check.

It was difficult for the Mother Oracle to pinpoint her visions so narrow as she was trying to do, and often times failed, but there was never any harm in trying. Smoke from the tiny fire that she had managed to start in her herbs wafted up towards her. She smiled over that. Though she'd never known her father, she knew who he was and treasured this connection to him. Every time she felt the smoke, it was like being wrapped in his godly embrace.
Even at her age, a girl couldn't help but crave daddy's attention.

Her sea-colored eyes fluttered closed for a moment, colors starting to dance behind her eyelids, and then-
And then there was a flutter of movement in a nearby bush, breaking her concentration. Mama La's eyes snapped open, her look a little hooded as she tilted her head. She gently blew smoke out of her face for a second before smiling and stamping down on her herbs.
"Now, now, no reason to sneak up on me. Who's come to visit?" she asked, her voice as pleasant as it always was, even if she was a little put off by being interrupted.  

[Reeshie Hack]

What little bit of annoyance Mama La had over being interrupted vanished just as quickly as her smoke had when a cub came wandering out of the brush. Now that was certainly something she just couldn't say no to, big softie that she was. And the cub looked a little contrite for sneaking up on her, too, making her melt all the more. She had been Mother Oracle for so long, she absolutely adored cubs. She didn't have any of her own, but then all the oracles were her children.

Her face broke into the most loving and open expression imaginable and she held out one paw, inviting the little tyke into a hug.
"Come here now and tell me what you're doing wandering around on your lonesome. Your dear mother's probably wondering where you've gone off to," she said with a tilt of her head. The cub, one of the Arch Magi's sons made a small face at first, hesitating for a moment before finally moving forward into her embrace. Oh, what a cute little thing, he was trying to be a big boy, not needing hugs. Mama La tried to remember the situation... The Arch Magi didn't have a mate, his friend Takatifu'moja, she was acting as the cubs' mother.

"Tath?" Ah, speaking of which.
Tifu stepped into the clearing and stopped with a relieved sigh at seeing Tathar with Mama La. Even though she was an oracle under Mama La, she hadn't gotten a whole lot of interaction with the older lioness yet. She was still getting used to the pride, and to being a sort of mother. There had been no way in all of the world that she could have denied Maji her help in raising his cubs. It was just a sudden thing and she was still so very worried about having her visions. There had been a couple of times where she thought she'd might have gotten a glimpse but maybe it was because they were so small. Her "sons" weren't big enough yet to give her full visions, something she was definitely grateful for.

"Oh, thank goodness. Thank you for finding Tathar, Mother Oracle. I've been looking everywhere for him," Tifu said with a sigh.  

[Reeshie Hack]

Tath leaned against the older lioness while Mama Tifu caught her breath. She didn't look happy with him, not that he had meant to do that. He'd just wanted to walk around for a bit and seem more of their home and... And he hadn't really thought about how she'd react to him wandering off.
Of course, when did any cub think about things like that?

Mama La smiled and shook her head.
"Oh, dear, no need to be calling me that. Mama La works just fine," Mama La said with a smile and a small wave of her paw. She looked down at the cub and patted his head. Poor Tifu seemed rather out of sorts, she wondered if it was the stress of having her cub wander off or if perhaps it was something else. Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly, her head tilting.

"Is everything well, dear?" she asked after a moment's pause. The emotions she saw play on the younger female's face was enough to confirm that she was indeed at least partly bothered by something.

Tifu sighed and looked away with a small smile.
"No, no, everything's fine, I'm just a little tired, I think," she replied, sitting down so that she could rest for a moment. The look on the Mother Oracle's face... she didn't believe her. Tifu knew Mama La was a powerful seer, but she didn't know the older lioness was flat out observant. Then again, didn't age bring wisdom? Good to note that trying to keep something from the Mother Oracle would be utterly useless.

The smile remained on Tifu's face as she shook her head.
"Mother- Mama La, have you ever had troubling visions?" She wasn't sure if she should have asked that, but it really came out before she could stop herself.  

[Reeshie Hack]

Tath looked up at his mama and his ears flicked back a bit. He'd seen her tense up sometimes when they touched her. Was that to do with her visions? Did they trouble her? He wanted to take them away if they did, he, and his brothers of course, were the only ones allowed to worry their mother. But then, he didn't know how visions worked, so there wasn't much he could do about it. Maybe Uncle Suli could do something. Maybe he'd ask when they got back to their den.

Mama La's ears drooped slightly as a small frown played across her features. As an oracle, she knew Tifu was a seer, and she knew just now Tifu got her visions. If the poor thing was getting troubling visions...
"We all do, dear. Some more than others, I'm afraid, but that is just the lot we're given," she replied with a bit of a sigh in her voice. What more could she say to that?

Tifu glanced away, unsure of how to respond. A part of her wanted to lash out. Why did this have to be the lot she was given? She didn't want to be a seer, she didn't want to know the things she did, not anymore. Why couldn't she just be a normal lioness, just a huntress who could live out each day in normalcy? She wanted to be able to rush to Suli and never leave his side, but how could she when every moment that passed brought her closer to another vision of his past, present, or gods forbid his future?

Her silence must have been too much for the mother oracle, for Mama La suddenly spoke again.
"What we have, it can be a curse just as much as a gift, daughter. But it can be many times worse than it can be, if you allow it to infect and rule your life." Tifu's head rose so that she could study the older lioness' face. "Remember, our visions of the past as simply that. We cannot change what has happened, but we can learn from it. The present, it helps us to better see the world around us."
"And what of the future?" She couldn't help the tremor in her voice.
"The future... it is as changing as the smoke. If there is one thing I've learned in all my moons, it is that what we See of the future is never set in stone. It can be changed, if we try. But sometimes we are faced with the choice, should it be changed? Remember, we can only learn from our mistakes by making them." And with that, Mama La looked down at Tathar, giving him a small nudge. Taking the hint, he ran to his mother. Tifu stared at Mama La for a few moments before slowly dipping her head in farewell and turning around for home, her son at her paws. Mama La watched them go, her heart aching just a little.
"May the gods bless you, child. Seems to me like you could use a bit more happy..."

(WC: 1,491)