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 Posted: Mon Jun 04, 2007 5:50 am
(This takes place on the outskirts of the Pridelands.)They'd been sitting out here for days. Weeks. Months! Stalking, scheming, calculating. Monifa'nkiruka had had enough! She was going to head off on her little vacation. Get away from her cold, darker half for awhile. Enjoy herself! Anything would be a welcome retreat from Umasikini'mzaliwa.
She could hear Uma growling and snarling as she started to close her up tight in her mind, trying to shut her out. This would indeed be battle of the wits, but strangely enough, Monifa won! She was free! Free from the cold and constant calculating. Or that was what Uma was allowing her to believe.
Now what to do with this new found freedom? A vacation away from here. Some place nice. But where? And it would be so lonely on the journey with no one to talk to. She flopped on the ground, rolling onto her back, behaving very much like a kitten. "Pooh." To anyone passing by, it would appear as though she was gazing up into the sky, sunbathing.
(( Sorry about my crummy start. ))
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Posted: Tue Jun 05, 2007 12:15 am
 He was heading back to his daughter at a quickened pace, loping with paws outstretched so that each stride had him bouncing along. But there was no sign on his face thathe was a happy lion. In fact there was no expression in it at all. His dark face held bland eyes that usually glistened like melting ice and his mouth was fixed in a stern line. There was no joy about his being, no nothing.
His charcoal pelt rippled with well developed muscles, his strong legs powering him on almost effortlessly. In fact he was so driven on getting where he was going that he probably wouldn't have noticed the shape in the grass if his nose hadn't picked up the scent.
He was guessing it a Pridelander and only hesitated briefly to check, seeing a pale stomach and fur a blue that was not unlike Mrost'sown pelt, though it lacked the depth his master's had.
"What's wrong with you?" He muttered, coming to a quick halt. "Sun stroke?" He had seen it happen before. Hell it had happened to him before!
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Posted: Wed Jun 06, 2007 2:04 pm
She rolled back over and pushed herself up on her paws once more. Well, maybe this wouldn't be all that boring. She sniffed the air to figure out his location, listening to his soft breathing from the run. He had that sickeningly sweet smell on him, but it was faint, like he was close to it, but it wasn't part of his skin.
"No. Not sun stroke. I just now got some time alone from a close friend, but finding myself to be quite lonely." Her sightless eyes looked straight through him, a pretty color, but useless all together. "You seemed in quite the hurry, am I delaying you, Mister," she trailed off, unsure of what to call him since she'd never met him before.
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Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 12:02 am
He snorted and raised his head, quite intent on making himself look formidible. With irritating lions he usually just made himself scary and they left. Not knowing about the problem with this one's eyes - since he'd never seen a blind lioness before - he strutted a little clsoer, deeping in to swell his barrel chest.
It was the way in which she spoke to him that finally convinced him not to snap. Atleast she was aware that she might be causing a problem. Most probably would have held him up without another thought.
"I'm supposed to be meeting someone around here. Well not here, here. I'm no Pridelander." He huffed. "Stupid bunch of lions." He mumbled, mostly to himself. "I'm a rogue, a warrior. Who are you? You don't look much like one of those puffy gold things that live in the Pridelands." So his tone wasn't kind but it wasn't cruel either. He just sounded impatient.
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Posted: Thu Jun 07, 2007 5:34 am
She couldn't really back down when he stepped closer in an intimidating manner, so she came off as though she was standing her ground even though she was completely blind to all of it. "I could use the company, mind if I walk with you," she asked, waiting for him to say yea or nay.
What she hadn't expect were further questions. "I'm a rouge, exiled from the Mist Weaver pride," she answered honestly. She had to brace her mind at that moment because Uma heard mention of the Pridelanders and was snarling something fierce in her head. "My friend and I can't stand their ways and their reign."
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Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2007 12:11 am
He smiled to hear her words and the link was made. If this lioness did not like the Pridelanders then that was atleast something they had in common. His ears twitched at the name of her own pride; Mistweavers? He had not heard of them before, though it wasn't surprising. Not many lions had.
"Mistweavers?" It interested him greatly in the fact that she had been exiled. What had she done to deserve such a punishment? Was this female truly a savage killer?
He smiled inwardly and dropped his defensive posture very slightly. Then with a small nod he turned, accepting her company, just for a while. He was a terribly curious lion and wanted to learn a little about this female. She was much more delicately built than other lions, smaller too, but far more graceful than even the Pridelanders.
He had to admit that he also found comfort in her blue pelt.
"You can join me for a while. It's been a long time since I've had any company. I'm always on duty and itnever leaves much time for a chat." He shook his mane. "I'm Hakan'mawasii, and you?" He smiled. "But if you want to join me for a walk, I'd like to know more about you and your kin. Mistweavers? I've never heard of them before." Maybe she didn't know anything about them, maybe not. Either way, he wouldn't be going there, not if they were all puny beasts.
(forgive me if your lioness isn't built like a typical mistie.. I've just assumed n.n; wink
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Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2007 6:13 am
She moved in beside him, but made sure she was at least a pace behind him, following his scent and listening carefully to his footsteps. "Well, their full name is Umade'mfuni. It's out there deep in the jungle. My mother traveled outside of the land and brought back with her a belly full of children and the plague. I was the only one to survive and was exiled because they didn't want it to spread. It was too late by then."
Her smile turned twisted and cruel at the thought of the suffering she had caused without even trying, knowing full well what it had done to that pride and many families. But Uma was quickly shoved back into her mind before she could completely take over. She just wanted a break. "I'm Monifa'nkiruka." It felt so odd to say her own name. It had been years since she had even been asked what her name was and neither would Uma let her give that information out. (( You got it right. She's built like them. ))
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Posted: Fri Jun 08, 2007 8:57 am
He wrinkled his nose at their name. "Jungle? A jungle is no place for a lion especially one built like me. I guess that's why you Mistweavers are all so puny." He didn't mean it to be a insult, not really, sometimes he could be insensitive.
He shrugged. "Only the tough survived the plague. My mother survived. Weaklings didn't stand a chance." He liked to think that if a similar occurance happened again that he would conquer it. "Then we both have long names." He laughed. "Listen, you can call me Hakan, nearly everyone does, and I'll call you..." He paused, trying to think of the best part of her name. "Kiru. If you don't mind."
"So now you wander the lands an exiled creature, bound by no Pride, no family, nothing. Just like me except I'm bound to my daughter." H smiled at the thought of little Kimondo. "She's the only one who has stuck by my side. Everyone else deserted me, but I guess that's the way of rogues. We're always travelling, never settling. I've had two mates in the past but that's what they are now. History. I guess it was never meant to be. Sometimes I think I'm cursed to never make friends. I have my daughter though, and she means everything to me."
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Posted: Tue Jun 19, 2007 9:28 pm
She puffed her chest out a bit when he mentioned her size. She didn't know exactly what the difference was since she had never seen her full growth with her own eyes, completely unaware at what the sleekness could do to a lion's heart (or loin) strings. "I survived it to the best of my ability. Mildly handicapped now, but still just as tough as an ol' lion can be."
She laughed with him, feeling that humor was infectious. "No, I don't mind, Hakan," she said with a sweet, child-like smile. She padded on beside him, listening as he explained her story from his view as well as a briefing of his own. "You have a daughter? You sound so proud as you talk about her. I can hear it in your voice."
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Posted: Wed Jun 20, 2007 12:12 am
He twisted his ears towards her and whilst he was large and full grown now his mind was still naive to some things. He had never met a blind lion before and was not aware that such a thing was possible. He looked over her sleek, blue form and gave a small sniffing sound. She certainly looked pretty enough to him. No limp, no scars, no problem with her speech. So what could be wrong with her? Was it something inside? Something he couldn't see?
"I am proud of her. She is everything a parent could ask for and more. Just sometimes I think my isolation isolates her too. Sometimes I think I should let her strike out on her own, find her own life. I don't like dragging her into mine. Mine is...complicated."
He thought of Mrost and felt guilty for even being here when he had a job to do. No. He needed some time off at some point. He needed to smile again. "Kiru...if yoiu don't mind me asking, how exactly are you handicapped?" He felt a little awkward asking but he was curious and he couldn't decipher it for himself.
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Posted: Thu Jun 21, 2007 6:18 am
She nodded her head. Children were something she had never been able to enjoy. Uma made sure of it, finding them to be filthy, clinging creatures. Monifa didn't realize that is was pure jealousy that something to be closer than her other personality that spurred such a reaction.
"How old is she, if you don't mind me asking?" Perhaps it would help him allow his daughter time on her own if he saw her from whatever level she was. She didn't know if she was just a young cub or a full-grown adult. That and she really didn't mind hearing about children.
She tensed up a bit when he asked her point-blank what was wrong with her. Not many knew she was blind, most guessed it or Uma would use it as a trick to gain sympathy. She allowed her muscles to relax with her movement. "The plague took my eye sight," she said simply.
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Posted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 12:03 am
"She's a baby in my eyes, but really she's blossoming like a weed. She'll be an adolescent soon, no doubt about it. She's much like me, though sometimes I think that isn't a good thing. I've brought loneliness upon myself and I don't want that for her." He wondered grimly whether he should let her go but his clingy heart just couldn't let himself do that. He loved little Kimondo with all his heart. She ahd been the only cub to stay by his side.
Her response to his question knocked Hakan briefly into silence as he stared into those sightless eyes. For a moment he thought she was joking but then he realised that she was. "Oh...I'm...I'm sorry." He shifted uncomfortably and strands of his mane fell ito his face.
"I've never met a blind lion before...how do you survive with such...such a handicap?" He didn't mean to be insensitive but his curiosity seemed to get the better of him.
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Posted: Fri Jun 22, 2007 9:31 pm
She padded on beside him, seeming completely unaffected by her lack of sight. In truth, she kept her feet very close to the ground, lifting them not far off the ground, but enough not to scuff her paws on the dirt and rocks. Children was indeed something she wanted and his pride just made the want grow larger.
"Your other sense become heightened after losing one. I can smell the mix of your daughter, yourself, and something sickly sweet, though it's faint." She wasn't about to tell him that she commonly associated that scent with the Gods. "There's also a trace of blood that lingers with that sweet smell."
She continued on, finding this completely normal to explain. "Also, I can hear your breathing quiet clearly. I've been using that to know where I should follow." She had kept a small enough distance to allow him to lead and she to follow, but close enough to converse with him. It was something she had learned soon after being found lost and nearly starved to death.
She decided to swing the topic back to his daughter. "Hitting that handful time of adolescence. I'm sure she's not completely lonely since she has you most of the time."
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Posted: Tue Jul 03, 2007 4:07 am
"Sounds like you've learned to live with it better than most. I would have thought many would have died." He snuffled approvingly. "You're stronger than you look, you little Mistweavers." It was quite a surprise for him to offer a compliment so freely. Maybe he was just tired of scaring others away.
"But another scent? Maybe an antelope?" He shrugged. "Though they don't really smell that sweet to me." He gave a flick of his ear and laughed. "She has me, but what about friends. Wht about others her own age? Even when I was a cub I had socialisation. Most of the time I was a bully, but there were times when I found someone I connected with. I remember meeting Kizuka. She was an adult and I was a cub, our ages were so different yet we made a connection. I loved her...for a while." Maybe he still did, but Kizuka was probably dead. How long had it been since he had seen her? A year? Longer? He couldn't quite remember.
"But I've had heavy responsibilities since being a cub. They haven't left me, not even now. I envy you Kiru. For your freedom and your ability to overcome weaknesses that would kill others."
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Posted: Mon Sep 17, 2007 11:02 am
She took his statement as a compliment and smiled. It wasn't often that she gave away her true weakness, but it was nice to hear someone praise her on her ability to overcome it. Many years had passed since the plague but she was still learning how to move around like a normal lion. "Thank you," was all she said.
Her heart let out a small twinge. She hadn't been allowed to make friends or even have that much of a friendly conversation with others. She had been calculating and manipulated all her life by her other half. She mumbled softly to herself, "it's not much freedom."
The smile was back on her maw after she'd slipped. She turned the attention back on Hakan's daughter. "So you want her to have a normal life, is what you're saying. There isn't much normalcy when you're a rogue though. Prides tend to be more networked and close bonding. But she is almost at that age where she'll start to wander on her own. Are you worried you won't be able to find her if she does?"
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