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 Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 5:19 pm
Were there such things as scent illusions? It was possible, Kizuka considered, as she trailed along the cliffs on the back rim of the valley. She'd spent most of the morning hunting, leaving Kimaji to her own devices to further help the girl develop her hunting skills. Kizuka herself had another female to feed which needed her support more than her now-grown daughter did. The thought of the cubs growing in momo's stomach was at once hopeful and depressing. How would these children fair, here, in a dead or dying wasteland? Perhaps that fear was what inspired the taste of rain she held on her nose.
Kizuka shook her head, a shiver running through her bones despite the heat of the day. The light skin covering her form no longer masked the bones of her spine or ribs, and her eyes and cheeks had sunken in. The meat Ushaufu was helping her to provide now was keeping her from sheer starvation, but the added weight of a pregnant lioness kept it from fully refreshing her long tapped reserves. As it was, the once gorgeous lioness was now as much a terror as her dead-seeming mate had ever been. In that way there well matched to the eye as well as the heart.
Jumping up to the next ledge, the lioness gave a pause for a cloud passing over the valley. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of it, eyes raising hopefully. It was small.. but it was the first one she had seen in longer than she could remember. It was white, however, and the lioness felt her hopes crash once more. How she prayed the Storm King would bless them with the roll of thunder and growl of wind through the trees. Shaking her head, she continued back on her way. There had been a goat up here but a short time ago, or so her nose promised.
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Posted: Sun May 20, 2007 5:50 pm
Clouds or no clouds, the weather wasn't a great immediate concern for the lion that had just shaken himself awake and found himself... Where was he anyway?
Blue eyes blinked the last bit of sleepiness away as Kota took in his surroundings. He had been laying on a big ledge near the top of a valley. The air itself was dry, and that single cloud must have passed him over as he stared into an empty sky. He peeked down from the edge of the rocks. Everything is so... dead. Where am I anyway?
He couldn't quite finish contemplating that question, for slowly the ache in his body had set in. There was a dull pain in his head, and he felt as if he had been thrown off a cliff somewhere. But of course, he couldn't have. Afterall, he was on top of a cliff... That wouldn't make sense. He looked down at his paws to discover that his snow white fur had turned a fine dusty brown. On top of that, his throat was bone dry and he was starving.
He sighed. Lovely. Just the way to wake up to a perfect morning...
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Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 11:27 pm
She didn't find the antelope, and for the time being she wasn't going to. Up another ledge and turning to her side, the lioness caught sight of a strange shape at the corner of her vision. At first it seemed a boulder, though the color was out of place for the region, until she was downwind of it. A lion?
The female's eyes narrowed further and she stopped abruptly. A rogue lion close to her homelands--this was all they needed. About ready to tackle him, good sense struck the lioness between the ears. Hadn't she helped Momo weeks earlier? Momo was a rogue if ever there were one, and Kizuka had given her as much help as she was capable of--was still doing so, in fact. Besides, this male was small.. and somewhat juvenile, if she were any judge.
A moment of indecision later, Kizuka padded up to the unmoving form and leaned in to give him an inquisitive sniff. Well, he certainly wasn't dangerous like this, at least, and Kizuka was certain she'd notice if he did wake. Ironically, he shifted at that moment and the lioness danced a few steps away from his form as he began to climb to his feet. With the wind blowing against him, it wasn't as if he would easily be able to detect her.
As the male righted himself, Kizuka began to notice other tell tale signs of his body. Dirt, she realized, was responsible for the strange sort of colour. The true coat, she wagered from the amount of dust clouds that were flowing off of him that he was pale if not purely white; she herself had white splashes that dirt seemed to cling to in a similar manner. She wondered what he could have done to end up, passed out, and so dirty in such a strange place. A frown and glance upward at the height of cliffs still stretching above them made that answer seem more likely, but Kizuka soon turned her eyes back to the stranger. His body language spoke of discomfort, if not pain, and there was a tilt to his gestures that Kizuka thought might be confusion.
There was little other way to begin this than by saying something. "You there," Her voice rolled like gravel off her tongue, long since broken by the slack water supply and the heat of a tinder-forest. "... Are you hurt?"
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Posted: Tue May 22, 2007 11:49 pm
In his groggy confusion, Kota had not noticed the presence of the other lion at all. So when her voice pierced through the air, he could not help but jump, and thus, stumbling a few steps away, barely catching himself as he felt his back paws at the edge of the rocks.
Aware that he could have danger in front and behind, he took a small step forward, so he wouldn't fall off the ledge. He frowned slightly at the pain caused by all the motion. But with his paws firmly on the ground again, he looked up at the speaker. A lioness. Older. And by the looks of it, she was half starved.
He stared into her sunken eyes silently for a moment, before he remembered her question. "I-I'm fine," he replied hoarsely as his throat was caked with dust. In truth, he wasn't really fine at all. But, who was going to let a stranger know that they were hurt? Without knowing where he was and who she was, it was best to be careful.
((Sorry my posts always seem so short.... sweatdrop )
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Posted: Thu May 24, 2007 11:55 am
"Fine?" Kizuka couldn't help but be unsure. There were some minute gestures that indicated some pain--but it could be no more than a headache for all that she knew. Either way, it wasn't her business if the stranger chose not to tell her. And why should he? The sensible part of her argued. She was as much a stranger to him as he was to her. With that the female nodded, giving a step back so that he might feel a touch better about his position. After all, she had against a cliff's edge, not the other way around.
"As you say. What are you doing here?" Maji and Masika had both mentioned unknown rogues roaming in the territory, taking up the little meat available. Kizuka had thought for the longest time that it might actually just have been her and hers, but here finally was another being in these parts. It was somewhat relieving, as well as horrible news. Of course, strong members would one day be needed in the group....
It wasn't her business. Reminding herself of that again, a mantra whispered in the back of her meddling mind, Kizuka supplemented her question, "You look like you had a fall."
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Posted: Tue May 29, 2007 10:49 pm
As the female stepped back, Kota shook out his paws and took a small step forward. If anything were to happen, he'd rather not be so close to the edge. He could hear a hint of doubt that lingered in her words as she first spoke. But none the less, he wasn't going to let her know that he wasn't fine or that he had lied.
As she mentioned a fall, he glanced up at the cliffs, only to find that it was a much taller height than he had thought. With all that pain in his body, it was highly possible that he had fallen onto the ledge... But of course, he didn't know. In fact, what would he give to actually know something? The last thing he remembered... What was the last thing he remembered? Well, whatever it was, it wasn't this. He had remembered the smell of water and growing plants. Not this dust and heat and withering scenery.
"I'm..." He paused, unsure how to answer. To say that he didn't know would seem weak... But to be rude and retort would be unwise, for as thin as she was, she was probably still stronger than he was...
((Sorry I was out of town for the weekend! gonk ))
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