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 Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 4:09 pm
It was very early in the first day of the Sky Festival, the Cloud Ceremony hadn't even begun. Yinehi Kanati was far too excited to sleep in, it was so uncommon for the whole pride to be together and she didn't want to waste a minute of it. But nothing was ready to start so she was only up and around with the early risers.. and she found she was far less brave than she expected. That meant all she could do for now was sit and watch as the pride began to wake up.
She was sitting nearest her own clan, in fact not far from her family, a smile on her face and seemingly at full attention despite the sun still being so low on the horizon, quietly observing her surroundings. The strangest thing about her, though, was that it was obvious to look at her that she had been collecting feathers lately. They poked out from the pouch around her neck and her own favorite yellow feathers had been supplemented with a variety of colors.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 4:15 pm
 Tsi-Tsi was both nervous and excited as the annual Sky Festival began. He didn't remember much of last year's - mostly just the Cloud Ceremony and the strangers who'd come to the Moon Ceremony. This year he was an adult, and thus would be able to remember (and understand) things much better! The lion spotted a familiar pelt and strolled over to his sister with a grin. "Yinehi! What's with all the feathers?" he greeted her by noticing her...additional accoutrements.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 4:20 pm
"Ahh!"
Not facing the right way (and not paying nearly enough attention to her immediate surroundings) to notice Tsi-Tsi approach before he called out her. Her yelp was immediately followed by a sheepish grin and a quick glance around-- but she wasn't actually in any danger of waking anybody up unless she really yelled.
"Tsi-Tsi, you startled me," she said, giving him a glare but smiling and sticking her chest out when she realized he was asking after her feathers, "Surely you've noticed all the birds around, I've been busy making new friends. Now, if I need feathers, I'm ready."
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 4:23 pm
"But what could you possibly need that many feathers for?" Tsi-Tsi asked teasingly. He could easily thinking of a few reasons - gifts and trade items topped his immediate mental list - but that would mean giving up the fun of pestering his sister!
And no brother should ever let that kind of opportunity out of his paws.
"But you're right, there are a lot of birds around lately. I wonder why that is," the yellow lion mused aloud, considering that information. He hadn't really paid attention to the flocks before, but now that it had been pointed out, it was a bit unusual.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 4:31 pm
She made a face at Tsi-Tsi for implying her feathers didn't really have much use, but her expression changed when he wondered about all the birds. She shrugged but her face suggested she knew more than she let on, or at least thought she did.
The look was quickly replaced with a smile.
"I bet some of the new members would like some feathers, they'll look pretty bare with no tattoos and no feathers!" she said, "I can't help with the tattoos, but I can help with this."
The tattoos were more important, of course, but this could be a placeholder until they were sorted into clans and had an opportunity to earn their tattoos, right? She didn't recall thinking any of the new members looked weird and bare last year, but she wasn't sure she'd paid much attention to it either. And there were plenty of other things to do with her feathers.
"What about you?" she asked, "Care to replace your old feather with something a little more bright and eye-catching?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 5:56 pm
"Oh, that would be good!" he agreed with her suggestion of helping new members fit in until they received their first tattoos. It wasn't something he often thought about, considering how new members were truly welcomed only during the Tree Ceremony. Then again, he really didn't know most of the pride, given how they usually only travelled with their own clans.
Eh, whatever. Too much thought for a festival! He took Yinehi's light-hearted tease and ran with it.
"Me? Replace this?" he asked, gesturing at the simple brown feather. It was a vulture's primary and while the bird itself was a scavenger, the feather was long, glossy, and beautiful. Oh sure, it had suffered some wear and tear simply because Tsi-Tsi wore it day in and day out, but it still looked good!
"I don't know...I think it says a lot about me," the lion replied with a grin.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 6:04 pm
"You just match so much," she said cheerily, reaching out a paw and swatting at his characteristic brown feather, "Aren't you going to participate in the Sky Ceremony? Wouldn't something more distracting benefit you? Are there any rules against intentionally dressing yourself up oddly?"
She wrinkled her nose thoughtfully and then laughed.
"Maybe not."
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 6:13 pm
"I know, don't I?" Tsi-Tsi posed in order to show off his feather to its tattered best advantage. He did love playing around with his sisters so.
But her next words surprised him and widened those brown eyes. Sky Ceremony? Him? What was she talking about? That was for fighting and...stuff! The yellow lion was a number of things, but a warrior wasn't one of them.
"What are you talking about? Why would I participate in the Sky Ceremony?" Tsi-Tsi was genuinely confused.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 6:22 pm
Yinehi blinked when he questioned her casual mention of the Sky Ceremony. She'd been trying to convince her brothers to join in, had she missed Tsi-Tsi? She had definitely mentioned it knowing she was assuming a lot to talk like they were already definitely sold on the idea, but completely oblivious was a surprise to her.
"Oh, um," she stammered, tilting her head, "Why wouldn't you? I think we need a Sky Champion in the Bird Clan, I must have forgot to tell you. I bet you'd do well! Look at you."
She stood up and wandered a circle around her brother, looking at him critically. She came to a stop in front of him and nodded.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 6:28 pm
The yellow male stared at his sister as she circled around him. All in all, he decided he preferred it when she was denigrating him, instead of deciding that he'd make a good Sky Champion. Had she completely lost her mind and mistaken him for someone else? Tsi-Tsi, the one who didn't even like stepping on insects?
"You are crazy," he finally told Yinehi. "Why on earth would you think I would want to fight anybody?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 6:36 pm
"Oh, come on, Tsi-Tsi!" she said with a laugh, "It's not like it's a real fight, it's all for fun! And bragging rights. Is there nobody around here you'd really like to impress?"
It was a risk going off on this kind of teasing with her brother, Dohi had been fun about it but it was different when it was a brother. Especially since there was a better than fair chance if he married that he would be leaving. Of course, so far, she hadn't necessarily implied it was about impressing a girl.
"How else are you going to get involved?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 7:18 pm
The lion made a face. "Impress? Impress who? Dad? Like that'll ever happen." Actually, Skan would probably be quite proud if one of his children became the next Sky Champion. Tsi-Tsi just didn't see himself as a fighter. Sure he hunted, but so did everyone else. It wasn't the same by a long shot.
"Anyway, I'm plenty involved! I hunt, I talk to people, even from other Clans..." the yellow male trailed off, trying to think of more ways that he was involved. He couldn't really say being their parents' son, since, as evidenced by Yinehi, he was far from the only child of that pairing. Anyway, it wasn't important. Right?
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 7:24 pm
"Oh, everybody hunts," she said, shrugging off his unimpressive list of areas he participated in, "What's more impressive, hunting like everybody else or being the only Champion for a whole year?"
Yinehi didn't remember a great deal about last year's Sky Ceremony, she had been too involved in trying to befriend everybody she stumbled into. She did remember seeing the winner, though, and remembered being impressed by the fancy cape she got to wear.
"Besides, it's a festival," she added, "You should join in the festivities."
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 8:03 pm
Hmmm...he supposed that she did have a point. Or two. Still, it wasn't his thing! Who would see a fighter in the laidback yellow lion? Tsi-Tsi certainly didn't.
But at least there was one thing he could refute that Yinehi had said! So he would.
"Well of course it's a festival...I'm here, aren't I?" the male retorted with a grin. He knew that his sister was far more likely to be the life of the party, but it made for an excellent joke.
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Posted: Wed Nov 20, 2013 8:12 pm
"If this is as exciting as you get, I'm outta here," she said, stomping a foot down for emphasis and sticking her tongue out at her brother, "Think about it, Tsi-Tsi! And here--"
With a shuffle, she got her teeth on a few of the feathers from the pouch and awkwardly shoved them into her brother's mane- where they would hopefully stay long enough for him to sort out. But now she was feeling more awake and energetic (and more importantly, she had a point to make) .. so she really wasn't going to stick around.
"See if you can find something fun to do with those."
And she skipped away.
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