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 Posted: Sun Nov 05, 2006 6:30 pm
He had been praying again, praying that his god would help him through this challenge. Though he was at home on the sands, the dessert is far different from the beach. Kamin was beiginning to doubt he could grow used to his new home, but worst of all, he was beginning to think he might fail his god. This hurdle he had been dealt, this burden, perhaps it was too hard to bear. His normally calm nature was being morphed into that of an anxious fool. Shaking off the bitter thought, the Malu sent up another prayer for his god to send him something to ease his journey. Something that he could enjoy here, instead of loathe.
The grey creature turned from the shrine and moved to the front of the temple, sitting neatly next to a cracked and yellowed column. It must be an ancient place, he mused, even older than his birth pack. At the thought of his home, Kamin relaxed some, leaning heavily on his right shoulder against the column. His gaze covered half of the oasis, viewing the swaying palms and the grasses. Perhaps it wasn't such an awful place, but he could deffinatley use some cheering up.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 12:23 pm
Karma trotted slowly out of the temple, looking for someone she knew. She always hated walked back through the forest to the dunes alone, and today was no different. Seeing none of her, almost, family, however, she sat down grumpily on the steps that lead to the temple. She sighed heavily, where was everyone? Why had no one come by yet? Were they still praying or making offerings? She looked over her shoulder, barely able to see any of the entrance to the temple, and still saw none of her kin.
Tired of what little waiting she had done, she stood up and stretched silently, turning back towards the temple. There were a couple malu around, none she knew well, if at all. Maybe one of them was on their way through the forest... Or just not staying at the temple? She walked up a few stairs and then looked back towards the forest, and what a dark forest it was.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 2:37 pm
As he leaned, Kamin watched the few Malu around him. Either the Temple creatures were hardley religous, or they were all at various shrines. The two others on the steps besides him were almost opposties. One, a male, was laying down, seeming to be taking a nap. His head was burried with hsi front paws, and obviously did not want to be disturbed. The other. a black and purple female, was moving about restlessly, seemingly torn between leaving and staying. Kamin watched her with a cocked eyebrow, wondering if she was going to make herself comfortable or leave.
When she did neither, and instead flipped her head almost constantly between leaving and staying, the streamlined male decided to make her business his, something he rarely did, for he was a shy creature. He stood, shook off the dust from his grey and white furs, and walked smoothly towards her, his gait slow. "Looking for something?" It was all his shy mouth would let him ask, not even a full sentence. It almost annoyed him that he couldn't approach a new Malu and talk without issue, but he shrugged it off quickly.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 2:49 pm
As this foreign voice filled Karma's ears, she was looking at the forest once again, she immediately jumped. This voice wasn't familiar, and as she turned to see who was talking to her, she saw that the face wasn't familiar either. She paused and tilted her head momentarilly before answering. "Uh, yeah. Well.. No." She was nervous. Being around males wasn't the easiest thing for her, the only people she could easily communicate with who were males were those she'd known for long periods of time. But she felt she would be able to trust this male, he looked well enough and kind.
She switched her weight from one side of her body to the other uneasily. "No, no I'm not looking for something," her voice became slightly more relaxed with each word. "I was actually waiting.. err.. contemplating leaving without my friends and journeying alone, uh, back home or going back into the temple to see where they are..." She flicked her tail quickly, trying to seem more nonchalant. "I don't think I've met you before... have I?" She asked the grey male standing before her, a tone of interest filling her voice.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 3:19 pm
He watched her tense up and twitch, shifting weight nervously. The actions, strangley, made him feel slightly more comfortable. The idea that he wasn't the only one in the world who was a bit uneasy about talking to a new Malu was nice, and it relaxed him greatly. His muscled untensed and he fell into a rather laid back stance, much easier than standing stock still. "No, we haven't. I'm Kamin. Came here recently from the southeast; that's probablly why you don't know me." He offered the female a smile, trying to make the situation easier for both of them.
As he let her digest what had been said, he looked over her slightly, quite impressed with her purple markings. Most of the Malu in his birth pack had greys, blues and tans, and very rarely there was a more vibrant color, such as red. Only when he had moved to the Temple did he see such dark shades, like this one right here. It was exotic to him, and held his attention for quite a while.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 3:32 pm
Karma perked up as she started to know Kamin better. "Ah, yes, that would explain it." She had never met anyone from the southeast, and the arrival and acquaintance of a new malu also made her quite excited. "Have you explored the area yet? You know, visited the area where your pack'll be living and such?" She felt much more comfortable now, but wasn't sure if he heard her since he was somewhat entranced by something. She looked over her shoulder and then back at Kamin, "Whatcha lookin' at, Kamin?" She tilted her head to one side before realizing a fatal error. "Oh my! I almost forgot. My name is Karma. It's a pleasure." She bowed her head slightly, and politely, to the male.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 3:45 pm
He had been listening to every word she said as he stared at her colors, though it may have seemed he was ignoring her. Realizing this, he shook his head and looked quite embarrased. "I.. uhm. Well, your fur, actually. It's beautiful." He smiled slightly, then went on to explain. "Don't take that the wrong way. There are no colors like where I'm form, you see, and it's just so nice looking..." He was practically choking himself now, unsure of how to word everything without sounding like a pervert. He sighed, exsasperated from the effort, closing his eyes shut tight. When he opened them again, he decided to completely forget the previous statement and move on. "Nope, haven't explored much. I've been here since I arrived, really. Praying and all." He tilted his head back towards the temple, realising that he really hadn't seen the area he had so loathed. Slightly illogical of him, really, to judge before he knew. "Well, I'm glad I've met you, Karma." He was becoming more comfortable by the minute, and even maganed to get out a request. "If you're leaving... Would you mind showing me where the Nature Pack resides?"
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 4:05 pm
She nodded quietly as he spoke of the land where he was originally from. She found it interesting how he had not seen many brightly colroed malu. Around here you see many brightly colored malu, her friends included.
"Yes, I'd be glad to show you where, atleast our, section of the nature pack resides. It's just past the edge of the forest and right near the outskirts of the desert." She turned and hopped off the steps she was on, and turned back to face Kamin. "They're north of here. It's not too far a walk from here. We'd definitely make it back with a hour or more before sundown. I'm srue there you'd also find several other malu to become friends with if you ahven't already." She took a couple of steps forward, hesitant, seeing if he would follow.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 4:14 pm
"I have to admit, I haven't met many Malu today." He nodded his head, actually pleased with the idea of meeting more. He wasn't normally a social creature; he much preferred to be the quiet one of the group, only speaking when spoken to. He followed Kamra's suit, ambling down the steps and onto the soft oasis ground. He made the move to follow her, and came round to her right side, slightly farther back than her, so as she could still lead the way, but they could talk easily and comfortabley. "At least it's not terribely deep into the desert; I don't know how long I could bear being all the way out there for very long. It's so dry and... alien." Though he was used to a hot climate, the tropics are humid heat, not dry. Humidity can make some uncomfortable, but for Kamin, it was much more preferable to dry.
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Posted: Mon Nov 06, 2006 5:44 pm
"Yes, I can agree with you about that. I find the desert scary, but if life leads me there, I will follow the path." She began walking north. "One of my friends loves the desert and will often spend numerous days there worshipping her god, the God of Aridity. I don't know how she does it." She giggled lightly, and then noticed how comfortable she actually was around this malu. She was as comfortable around him as she was around her closest friends. Was this fate telling her something?
"Luckily, where I live is very diverse. There is the forest on one side, including a cool brook just moments from me. While only minutes northeast is endless, I believe, desert. And northwest is a tiny, beautiful oasis..." She could have kept going, but she didn't want to bore ht enew malu. She looked ahead, as they were quickly approaching the beginning of the forest, to make sure she was not going to trip on a branch or a root and embarass herself beyond belief.
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Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 2:25 pm
Kamin walked in silence, taking in everything his new walking buddy said. He found it quite enjoyable, really, walking and listening. He'd never been much of a storyteller himself, and had naturally fallen in to the habit of being a better listener. He wasn't the life of the party; he was the one who a friend talked to when they needed an ear. Though it wasn't it get him very popular with the other Malu, he had always been a believer in not changing yourself for others. As he pondered this, he realised how easy Karma was to listen to. She could say anything and he'd hang by every word. Perhaps his praying had brought an answer in the form of a dark female?
At the mention of a brook, Kamin's posture perked up excitedly. He waited for her to complete her description, and quickly pounced on the chance to repsond. "A brook? Are there fish? Is it deep enough to swimm in?" Brooks, he had heard, weren't the deepest things in the world, but even wading in water would satisfy the creature. And fish, oh fish! A delicacy in these parts, he imagined, but one he would be willing to work for. He'd learn to eat mostly fruit in time, but a fish every now and then would deffinatley make the month for him.
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Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 4:38 pm
Karma was somewhat surprised by his sudden perking up at the mention of the area they were headed towards. She thought for a minutes about the brook beofre answering his questions. She had never actually swam in the brook... but it seemed deep enough. "Well, there are fish, I believe. Little ones though. No large rainbow trout or anything. And there are tadpoles, if you like those. As for its depth... It is probably not deep enough to swim in. But you could probably step in far enough to get reasonable wet."
She looked up towards the sky for a moment. The trees around her blocked out most of the sky, but she could tell they would arrive soon, seeing as the sky was getting appropriately darker for their arrival time.
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Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 4:51 pm
Kamin was discovering something entirely new to him: he was actually comfortable TALKING with Karma, not just listening. He wasn't a talker normally, so this new level of security he had found himself in just let his mouth go and go. He hadn't ever truely had a good conversation with anyone ever, and now that he could he just couildn't stop himself. "As long as I can relax in it, I'm good. And when I do, you're coming with me." He smiled at her playfully. The prospect of spending more time with the female was quite a good one. "And I'll teach you how to fish. They don't have to be big, really. I can get used to the fruits here, and I think my god will understand the lack of ocean fish to sacrafice." Hopefully, he silently added. Kamin did truely believe that his god was not a vengeful god, and that he was a reasonable being, though an extravegant being. A change in enviroment would mean a change in sacrafice, and he was almost sure the god of oceans would understand.
The grey followed Karma's gaze towards the dwindling light. He now understood why she had not wanted to walk home alone; it got dark fast at the Temple. He filed that piece away for further reference, trying to remember to time his Temple visits earlier in the day, and to come home with enough time to get home in the light. With all the trees around, Kamin was absolutely positive he'd get lost in the dark around here.
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Posted: Tue Nov 07, 2006 7:08 pm
"Oh, you're going to being me swimming now?" She gave him a "you're crazy, man," look. But really, she wanted ot go swimming, she knew she'd enjoy it. She enjoyed their meeting and their walk through the forest. She knew they were approaching the edge of the forest, as the sky could be seen more clearly now, but it was not less dark out. She wished she could prolong their walk.
"We're approaching the edge of the forest. It won't be much longer until we can hear the brook. And then we'll most likely be able to hear the chattering of our, your new, neighbor malu." Karma looked at him and smiled, it was a nice walk, that was for sure. Her walks with her friends home are normally more silent after a day of prayer.
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Posted: Wed Nov 08, 2006 2:34 pm
Kamin chuckled a little at her response, smiling and turning his attention to ahead of them. The scents of Malu were on the breeze, though he could not see even a sillouhette of another. His gaze slowly turned to their surroundings, trying to map out the trail from the pack to the Temple in his mind. It wasn't working very well, he was man enough to admit, and he'd probablly have to walk with others (hopefully Karma more often than not) for some time before he knew the way well enough to walk alone. One thing Kamin was horrible at was direction, and it was really a miracle he had stumbled upon the oasis in the first place. He hadn't really meant to come here specifically; his destination was anywhere off the coast. When he had heard travellers speak of the temple and the oasis, he figured that would be a good place to at least try, and with the vague directions he had been given, it was amazing he had ever made it here.
"It'll be nice to meet them." He looked ahead again, squinting, trying to make out the figures of any of his new pack mates.
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