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 Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 11:25 am
Adolescence was fast approaching. Uddhava was in the limbo stage, no longer juvenile but not quite big enough to set out on his own. Give it a few more weeks and he'd be ready...or as ready as he could be.
He'd spent the morning with his brother, cherishing their time together and holding it close so that he'd never forget it. He knew that these times would help get him through the difficult times of being alone out there in the big world. But maybe he wouldn't be alone for long...maybe...maybe he'd find some friends out there...or the rest of his family for that matter.
He lowered his head to drink, his whiskers and nose brushing tenderly against the water. He watched his golden reflection ripple for a moment. Then he drank.
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 11:30 am
Ny had been told where the youngster hung about and had put off seeing him. There were several reasons why but the most important one was that she couldn't trust herself. However she knew he would grow fast and if she waited too long he would be gone.
She had gone to find his teacher but had no luck so was now heading towards Azarax's den. He lived with them so she could hope that would be where she would find him. So she could say farewell to another of Ripuka's children. Oh how she wished she could keep him here, keep him safe. She had left the pride once with Ra when they were young.... the world was so different out there and he was still so young.
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:01 pm
He would be hard to miss.
Yellow as the sun. That streak of his mother's red in his mane. The brilliant emerald eyes given to him by his father. He was a handsome lion indeed, just not up to Firekin standards.
He lifted his head, maw dripping with water, and turned to spy a figure. A white figure. He lifted both ears, shook the droplets from his face and turned slowly towards her.
Who was this, then?
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:06 pm
She noticed him easily enough and let a smile cross her maw. As he turned to look at her she felt her stomach tighten. She took a deep breath, reminded herself that she couldn't help him and started to walk towards him.
"Uddhava?"
She had heard his name mentioned a few times and it was one that she was hardly going to forget. She walked towards him, looking at him as she did so. He was growing up well. She looked at his paws and let out a sigh, they would find the ground outside the desert harsh.
"I am Nyeupe'Moto. I knew your mother well."
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:15 pm
He nodded as she called his name and stepped towards her, drawn towards her from curiosity. He tipped his head slightly, observing her expression. Something seemed to be bothering her, maybe?
"That's right." He replied finally, feeling he ought to confirm who he was in word, rather than a nod. "Nyeupe'Moto..." He blinked. She had known his mother? He felt his heart give a twinge of longing and he took another step forward, eyes watching her intently.
"Are you the one that the others nickname, Ny? Someone spoke of you to me. I'd been hoping to see you." He thought of that male and frowned a little. But nevermind, that wasn't important now, not compared to this. "I...I wish I knew her better."
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:29 pm
He had heard of her? Well that was unexpected!
"Yes, most call me Ny. How did you know?" She was curious, she really didn't have a clue how he could have found out. She flicked her tail and looked at him, he seemed so alone, the way he spoke.
"Your mother loved you very much." She smiled at the youngster. Granted she didn't see Ripuka in her last minutes but she new. He wouldn't be here unless she did and Ripuka... she was just one of those, she had a large heart.
"How are you doing? I hear it won't be long before you leave."
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Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2009 12:37 pm
"Someone told me. Don't know his name. He's roughly my age, a little bit younger...but I guess that doesn't help much." He smiled sheepishly.
He nodded then. "That's right. A few weeks left I think. A bit nervous. Sad to say goodbye to everyone too, I guess. But...maybe a little excited? I'm going to try and be brave and make everyone proud of me. I might get to find the rest of my family, too. My dad and my brothers and other sister. One of them is already here."
He smiled wider at that. He adored his sister.
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 2:03 am
Ny smiled though she would have to try and find out who told him about her. She was curious now.
"Only one of your siblings came with the Safi?" She looked at him curiously though happy he at least had his family to look forward to when he got out there in the strange world. That at least eased her mind. She still worried somewhat but if he had someone then it was better then no one and she felt at least a little relieved. He seemed happy about that too.
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Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2009 12:24 pm
"That's right. Zapaliti. You'll know her if you see her. She has some of Mother's markings." He smiled fondly. "She'd probably like to talk to you, too, since you knew Mother well."
He drew closer. "Was Mother your friend? What was she like? I knew she was kind and strong but...she never told me any stories of her past, not really." He paused. "Brother told me the reason why the Safi ended up outside of the lands, but that's pride history. Not Mother's."
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Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2009 10:23 am
Ny nodded.
"I will keep an eye out for her."
She then listened to the other question and nodded.
"Your mother was like a substitute mother for me. She was like my teacher, she stood by my decisions and taught me the history and beliefs of the pride." Ny smiled as she spoke. She had been talking about Ripuka a lot recently it seemed.
"Your mother was a teacher though I don't know if that was her actual status in the pride. She taught me, and Kidondo and others obviously." She let out a soft sigh. "She was around when I had my cubs, she always wanted some of her own... you could tell." Ny looked back at Udd. "She was so happy when she had her first litter, she was always a good mother it was only right she had her own children." Ny let out a soft sigh wondering if she was saying too much.
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Posted: Sat Apr 11, 2009 12:24 pm
He sat, ears alert, eyes bright. "She did?" He could imagine that, actually. His mother had spent a lot of time teaching and talking to him and the rest of the litter. She liked talking, especially telling stories. And oh, he loved the stories she had told!
"Always wanted children? Really? I guess when she found Dad, that was possible. She loved him very much. For a long time, I wasn't sure whether she loved me but...but she did. She had a big heart."
He smiled softly, sadly. "This place meant a lot to her. This desert, this land. I think she was happy to be able to die here, you know? The place where her parents and their parents died, too. Maybe...maybe when I'm old and it's my time, they'll let me come back here, too."
But he doubted it.
Besides, when he was that age, he probably wouldn't think of the desert as home. It'd be someplace out there, someplace green and surrunded by new friends.
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Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2009 7:48 am
"Well I can't remember if she told me she wanted children but it seemed so. She use to dote on us so much." She smiled at Udd and listened to what he said. She did love him or so she had been told. She had only ever seen Ripuka's mate and never spoken to him. She had always wondered about him too, he claimed to be a firekin but.... maybe Ny was just being to skeptical.
"Why would you want to come back to die? The lands outside of the desert are beautiful." She smiled. At one point she wasn't sure if she would have ever returned but her and Ra had decided that this was home. It wasn't for everyone.
"My son has settled in a pride near here, he found a beautiful lioness apparently, I haven't met her." She smiled hoping the story may reassure him a little as well. Some left the desert by choice, she had herself at one point!
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Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2009 10:03 am
He smiled. His mother certainly sounded like the 'motherly' type. It warmed his heart to realise just how much she had meant to others, even those not blood related to her in any way. He only hoped that he could have such an effect on his friends and family someday.
"Moja has been telling me about the outside world. She said it is very different from here. I didn't realise you had seen it, too, Ny." His tail waved behind him. "I have to say, I'm quite curious about what the world look like. I can't imagine a place filled with green and blue. It must be very odd." He blinked. So, Ny had a son outside the lands?
"Maybe I'll meet other Firekin who chose to live out in the world, too." He smiled, suddenly realising that he wasn't so alone.
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Posted: Sun Apr 12, 2009 3:01 pm
Ny smiled,
"Anyone younger then myself probably wouldn't know, I don't even think my children do!" She chuckled a little. "It is different, though the green and blue is beautiful, its breathtaking! Though one thing you may not have been told, be careful how you walk. Off the sand the land is harder and it takes a while for our paws to adjust, it might hurt for a little while. You will soon get use to it though!" She smiled, she wasn't sure if his teacher would have known as if Ny wasn't wrong she came here and so had to get use to the sand.
"I am sure you will meet some. Many have left, my mate's father is out there somewhere and my son, and my mother and brother.... Most of the late Kimeti's siblings in fact. There are probably a lot related to us out there as well." She smiled again, this conversation was a lot easier then she had expected it to be.
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Posted: Sun Apr 19, 2009 1:00 pm
He nodded, feeling better for hearing this. "I hope there aren't too many other Huria in the pride, but if there are, I hope they're told they aren't alone. That there are Firekin out there, too. That it's not just them in a world of strangers."
He paused and stepped forwards. "Thank you Ny. Truly. And I hope someday I'll be able to meet some of your other family out there and tell them that you are okay."
He lowered his eyes. "It'll be hard. Leaving this place. But it'll be a step in a better direction, I think. Will you come and see me again, before I have to leave?"
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