Welcome to Gaia! ::

✦ Step 1: Capture. ✦

Jijikko huffed, the snort of his breath stirring up dirt as he swished his tail behind him, trying to identify the newest scent he’d run across. Behind him, Ajarra made low whining noises in her throat, wary and disapproving of his plans already.

“Jiji…they said that we shouldn’t—I don’t think this is a good idea. It doesn’t smell right…”

Jiji gave a soft, rumbled purr, golden eyes narrowing with curiosity as he trotted — heedless of his sister’s warnings — farther up the ‘path’ of large paw prints impressed into the soft earth and broken branches all around. “It smells fun,” he retorted, unaffected. “But if you want to ibii out…”

Ajarra growled coupled with a quick, irritated snap of her jaw. “I’m not scared. I’m worried about you getting your stupid head bit off by some—”

Something shuffled in the brush off to their left, and Aja froze, snout and tail going rigid and body dropping to a crouch. Jiji swept around to the source of the noise, alert and wary at first, but then relaxed at the sight that waddled out. Fluffy and round, it had round eyes, large paws and stubby legs compared to its body, and a short, furred tail, similarly brown as the rest of it. Surely an infant, Jiji thought, though it was actually close to the size of himself and his sister.

He lowered his snout in cautious greeting. Maybe if he approached it slowly enough, he could catch it, and bring it home with him.

“Greetings, fellow furred—”

“Jiji…” Aja warned beneath her breath even as the small animal made a quiet, mewling growl sound in response to Jiji’s cooing.

“Relax, I’m just trying to—”

“Jiji,” Aja practically yipped at him, and Jiji’s attention jerked up at the sound — and accompanying gust of hot breath down the spikes of his spine — from above him.

Very slowly, Jiji looked up. And there, of course, looked the unhappy face of very defensive looking mother baowi. Jiji lowered his snout, tail curling in towards himself even as he started to try to take slow steps backwards.

“Oh,” he breathed. “I’m sorry — was that yours? I was just…protecting it for y—”

The mother baowi’s roar echoed throughout the mountains, loud enough Jiji wouldn’t be surprised if his sires had heard it, and he scrambled against the dirt, paws never seeming to get enough traction but wings speeding him along in his clumsy attempt to spin and flee. Aja joined him, and behind them, the mother baowi followed in fierce pursuit for several paces, immune to cracking branches and leaves in her path, but luckily — as they noticed in retrospect — she did not seem interested in leaving her cub far behind and let them have their escape after a blessedly short period.

In the aftermath, Jiji and Aja huddled together, hearts beating wild rhythms against the cages of their chests, Aja’s claws in particular digging into the earth beneath them.

“Well,” Jiji said. “That was…”

“You’re going to be dead one day.”

“As long as I die doing something interesting,” Jiji retorted.