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 Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2007 1:08 am
She was lying by the stream, flicking pebbles sadly across its surface. If she was lucky some of them jumped across for a moment but in the end they always sank. Always 'died'.
She had seen the look of death and it had touched something painful deep in her heart. The faces of those little ones too, as their mother had left them. It was heart-crushing.
She whimpered and curled in on herself, licking at a paw that had somehow managed to get dirty.
Life wasn't fair.
She didn't want to die! And she didn't want her twin to die either!
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Posted: Wed Mar 14, 2007 4:37 pm
The previous day had been a long one for Damu, full of annoying females and scolding. Miffed, and thoroughly frightened out of sleep, it had taken forever for the young lion to fall into dreamland. As the sun rose this morning, and Damu had awoken from a restless night, he'd found himself just as tired as if he hadn't slept a single wink. So, today, he had in mind a place that he rarely saw another soul.
Strolling lazily through the tall golden grass, a rare flit of a smile came over him as he heard the bubbling of the stream. Perfect, he said to himself, eagerly strolling forward. Yet, just as he emerged on the banks, he was greeted by his very own reflection. Mocha eyes widening, he spoke softly, "Haba?"
What was wrong with his twin? Concern and worry took a violent grip on his heart, constricting his lungs. A moment of panic consumed him as he loped towards his sister. As he drew close to his sister, his nosed her back gently, a comforting purr in the back of his throat. "Haba...What's wrong?"
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 1:11 am
And as if her thoughts had summoned him, her brother appeared, and the pain in her heart eased.
Again their togetherness brought a complete feeling to her heart and she rubbed her face into his nuzzle, purring herself. "Oh Damu..." She looked up at him, into that face that looked so much like her own. "Something terrible happened!" She glanced down at her paws again, glad that the dirt from her paw was gone.
She might have been upset but she didn't want to look terrible either.
"My...my friend died. She was a mummy, she had little babies." She blinked, "but she died, just like that." And then she gazed up to him with tear-filled eyes, "what does it mean Damu? To...die?"
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Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 12:34 pm
Damu felt much less cranky at the sight of his sister, though his worry was causing his nerves a tad bit of damage. He sat down beside his twin, curling his tail over his paws. His eyes widened in confusion as he sought out her gaze. Something terrible? "Haba..." he whispered, repeating her name again.
He lowered his head, nestling his nose against her back. Death? Damu didn't really know much about death...not at this age. He'd only encountered a few dead things, such as bird and insects, and the prey their parents brought to them. "I...I don't know Haba," he said calmly. The young male shifted to his belly, placing his head along Haba's back, along with one of his already large paws. "It means...It means you stop...existing. It's like you go to sleep...and never wake up."
Even his own explanation confused him. But it was the best he could do. "I'm sorry your friend died, Haba. Who's taking care of her children?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 17, 2007 1:36 pm
She was very grateful for his affection and with a small sigh, let herself relax. She was complete now, nothing could upset her when her brother was around.
"I don't want to stop existing Damu." She replied, turning her eyes to gaze at him, "and I don't want you to stop existing either." She buffeted her face against his and curled her tail tightly around his, as if to keep him with her forever.
"What would I do if half of me died in you?" She whispered. "I'm afraid." She sniffed, "I won't let you die, Damu. Never." And she said this as if she was prepared to spit in the face of death himself.
"I guess...I guess daddy might. He knew my friend as a cub...I think. Though I will too, especially once I'm bigger and able to hunt."
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Posted: Mon Mar 19, 2007 6:01 pm
Damu's eyes softened as he gazed at his sister. He snuggled close to her, his twin, his reflection. If anything ever happened to her...Damu wouldn't know what to do. "Don't worry about me, love," he crooned softly, lapping at the side of her face with his rough tongue. "I can take care of myself." And how true that was. At even such a young age, Damu's size was overwhelming.
Purring deep in his throat, Damu, for once, tried to be a voice of reason. "Don't be afraid. Nothing will ever happen to me or you," he smiled softly. It was a shame that Damu's sensitive, loving side only came out in the presence of Haba. "I'll protect you until my last breath, Haba. Nothing and no one will ever cause you any pain."
If Haba knew just how strongly Damu took that to heart...Only time would tell if it would cause trouble for their futures.
The young lion stood up. "Now," he said cheerfully. "We need to do something to get your mind off things. What would you like?"
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2007 1:10 am
Right now, those words only meant comfort and joy to Hababuu. She thought nothing of perhaps when she grew up, wishing to extend her friendship cycle, or even having cubs someday. all she thought of was now, now when she had her brother by her side.
"Thank you Damu." She replied, sitting up and flicking her tailtuft to pat him on the nose. Her smile glinted with tiny little teeth and as she found her paws she moved to pounce on him.
"Play!" She replied mid-leap.
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Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2007 3:52 pm
The thought of Haba having friends beyond him didn't bother the young cub. In fact, his twin branching out to discover things seemed perfectly natural to his current state of mind. When his conscience was altered, however, then the problems would arise for the set of twins and all those connected to them.
He snapped playfully at her tail tuft, pearly teeth clicking shut dangerously close. So distracted was he by her wavering tail, that the large lion cub didn't even see her pounce. "Oomf!" He said as the landed on him, his stocky frame rolling onto his side. One eye closed, along with one eyebrow arched in a disapproving and hurt manner, he spoke, "That was awfully underhanded, Haba. Unfair, really..." And as those words left his mouth, a sly grin spread over his maw.
Shifting underneath her weight, he lifted his paws to wrap around her neck lightly, pulling his own head up to latch lightly onto one of her ears. Take that!
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2007 1:08 am
"Eee!" Her deligthed squeal reverberated up from her throat as her brother joined in the 'wrestling' game and she threw her head from side to side to try and free her poor, nibbled ear. The fur on her neck bristled slightly and she was soon wiggling her bottom, trying to back up out of his grip.
Giving up with this, since her brother was steadily becoming larger than her - she tried to focus on tickling his belly with her forepaws. Still shaking her head, her laughter could easily be heard.
It was good to just forget all the worries and concentrate on fun things! This game also made her realise that one day her brother was going to be a very strong lion, much stronger than her in any case.
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Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 6:34 pm
As soon as Haba's paws touched his belly, Damu started giggling uncontrollably. His first few laughs were muted as he tried to desperately hang on to his sister's ear, but that soon failed miserably and the young male let out a loud guffaw. Still clutching her close, Damu began wiggling violently beneath her, trying to roll over on his belly. Short of breath and gasping horribly, he managed to squeak out a few words: "Alright, alright! I surrender!"
He slackened his grip around her, going completely limp. Pressing a paw to his brow in a dramatic manner, he tried desperately to hide his grin as he moaned pathetically.
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Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 12:10 am
"Yay!" She squeaked as he surrendered, leaping sideways in case he tried to construct a counter attack. Then she too erupted into a fit of laughing at his dramatics and swished her tail joyfully. "Girls are so much better than boys!" She continued in a sing-song fashion. "I bet you wish you were blessed with my strength and beauty, eh Damu?" She giggled, though it was obvious the male was going to be far stronger than she.
"Come on Damoo." She squeaked, "There's something I want to show you!" And with that she whirled around on herself, running along the edge of the stream. She and Pomoka had found the present for him a few days back and she had yet to give it to him.
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 4:22 pm
Damu rolled to his side as Haba bounced away from him. Claws still deep within his toes, he reached out a paw and swiped at her, still laughing fondly. His tail flicked behind him in the dirt, and his eyes rolled exaggeratedly. "If only I was as beautiful as you, dear sister. It isn't like we're twins or anything," he chuckled.
He rose to his paws as his sister sped away, following her at a slow lope. What in the world was she talking about? But any sort of adventure with Haba was worth taking, so the young lion didn't mind following one bit.
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Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2007 12:00 am
She felt content now, happy, it was as if she had never been sad in the first place. She breathed in the scents of the world around her and smiled fondly as Damu followed after her. "Do you think we'll always be here brother?" She asked dreamily. "Or do you think there's some other place out there for us?" In all honesty she didn't want to leave these lands, this was the home of her family and she loved them dearly. When she had heard Kiburi's story she knew now that family was the most important thing. next to being beautiful of course.
But of that family, her twin was the most important and she had vowed to go wherever he went.
"Or do you think we'll be here forever?" Or as long as forever lasted anyway...
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Posted: Thu Apr 05, 2007 12:48 pm
Damu slowed to a walk as his body aligned with his twin's. He flicked his black mane tuft away from his mocha eyes, head lowering to create a perfect line from his head, to his neck, all the way down to his spine. It was almost an offensive, aggressive looking posture, but it'd become more and more of a habit for the young male lion. His ears swiveled in Haba's direction as she spoke. Glancing up at the sky, he shrugged his sharp hackles. "I don't know...It'd be fun to see new places, but in the end, this is always home," he said quietly.
Damu never liked the thought of leaving his mother and father, nor the lands he'd become so familiar with. Most importantly, however, was that he never planned to leave Haba's side. It would take death to take him away from her (and maybe not even that could stop him). However, as a thought struck him, his head perked up and an excited expression overcame him. "Maybe Azima will leave when we all grow up?" Damu's anger towards his brother had only increased during that day with Uumi by the watering hole. It was lucky that the two brothers never seemed to be alone around each other.
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Posted: Fri Apr 06, 2007 5:28 am
"I agree." She nodded, glancing back at him fondly. She had always thought of her brother as tough and strong, able to protect her against anything, now as she watched him stalking along side her she knew that no harm would ever befall them. She felt suddenly proud to be twin to such a strong lion and tried to picture what he would look like as an adult.
"If you ever go travelling, you'll let me come with you, won't you Damu?" She wasn't sure whether she was the type for adventuring, but so long as it was no place dirty she was sure she could handle it.
"We're almost there." She sang cheerfully, bouncing just ahead to where the stream ook a turn to the right.
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