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 Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 8:04 pm
Itch. Itch itch itch. Itch itch. Moqui ignored the fleas as long as he possibly could, but it just wasn't possible to ignore them forever. He thumped down under the shade of a bush and set about chewing at the fur under his left hind knee. Undignified, for sure, but - fleas. One more thing to hold his father to account for. Then again, that was one of the reasons he'd followed Momma out and away from the place he'd been born. He'd go pick up the trail again in a minute. He could hear an odd low constant roaring, and it was in the direction Momma had gone. For the time being, however, his first priority was to ease that itch enough that he could ignore it again.
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Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 9:36 pm
Sewti was trudging along the treeline, her eyes alternating between studying the shore and the jungle, when she heard the sound of movement somewhere up ahead. Lucky for her the little bugger hadn't gone far at all!
Well, at least she assumed this was him. He was white enough to be Idril's cub after all.
"Hey you, boy!" She called out, none too classy or polite, but threatening at all. Nothing about her was particularly threatening, not from her flowery pelt to her pink eyes. She was just bold. "Are you Idril's cub?" She didn't get too close, lest she scare him. She knew cubs could be flighty around strangers and she really wasn't in the mood for a chase today.
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 9:46 am
Moqui jumped and sat up straight. He'd been so engrossed in catching his flea that he hadn't heard the lioness approach. Her address had been straightforward, but not threatening; he wasn't in trouble right now, as far as he could tell. "Yes, ma'am," he replied. "I'm looking for her. Do you know where she is?"
He kept his eyes politely down. This wasn't his territory, and she was bigger than he and an adult, and anyway, if he was asking a question of a stranger he had better behave himself. He might have gotten caught scratching, but he wasn't totally rude.
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 10:15 am
Her first thought was simply 'poor cub' - there was little room for polite, well-mannered cubs in the pride. She thought it was amusing, even bordering on a breath of fresh air, but she knew that the rowdy bunch of cubs the pride usually sported would run him over if he acted like that too much.
"Yeahp," she said with a playful grin, hoping that her own lighthearted attitude would bring him out of his shell of propriety, "I just took your mom to a watering hole a while ago so she could watch up. She said she'd lost you so myself and some other pride members are out here looking for you."
She leaned down so she could be more on eye level with him, her bright eyes staring directly at his smaller face. "Do you want to go find her now, then?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 10:41 am
At the lioness's friendly answer, Moqui relaxed a little. He glanced up with a shy smile. "Yes, please," he said. "I stopped to chase a bird, and then Momma was gone when I came back. I'd be grateful for the help," he added.
He got to his feet, giving himself a quick shake and biting at his shoulder. If they were going to a watering hole, he could get these little pests out of his fur. That sounded like an excellent idea. "My name is Moqui," he offered.
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 10:49 am
She smiled and rose back up to her full height as he stood, waiting patiently for him to fall in at her side before she began to walk. It was a good thing the watering hole wasn't too far, she had a real itch to get the cub back to his mother. Lost cubs were a sore subject with her.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Moqui, my name is Sewti. I'm the Kizingo'Zaa pride's Protector," she felt like she had said that already today. On top of that, she also knew she needed to go over the pride rule with him, even if he was so young. She supposed there was no harm in explaining a little - Idril would probably tell him everything else they had talked about if she wanted him to know.
"Before we get there, I just have one rule I need to explain to you, okay?" She was being patient and gentle with him, her eyes on him even as she walked over the sands along the line between the jungle and the sands with an expert's navigation.
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 12:26 pm
Moqui fell in obediently, following along and paying attention. Sewti, okay. He repeated the name to himself twice silently to make sure he'd remember. The sand was warm under his paws, and he kept track of where Sewti was leading him, adding the new terrain to the sketchy map inside his head.
"A rule?" He angled his ears towards her to show that he was listening. "Okay. What is it?"
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 12:45 pm
She paused once she was sure he was listening, after he had repeated the question back to her. She leaned down, looking very serious and watched him. "There can't be any violence inside our borders, okay? We take care of everyone here, so no one is allowed to hurt anyone else." Not that she really thought a cub would be a problem, but everyone had to be told.
With that she simply smiled and reached out to pat him once on the head, gently (and quickly, mindful of those fleas). Then she turned and started to merge into the jungle instead. "The watering hole is this way Moqui, keep up." She paused where she was, barely inside the jungle's obscurity, and turned to look back at him to make sure he was following.
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 12:59 pm
"No hunting?" Moqui asked curiously. No violence implied no hunting, but if there was no hunting, how did everyone eat? Or, well, the predators, anyway; he supposed that if that "everyone" included everyone, people who didn't hunt wouldn't have any sorts of problems getting their food.
He followed Sewti into the jungle, keeping his eyes on the bright white of her fur. He'd learned early to follow Momma's white fur. This wasn't much different.
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Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 1:09 pm
She smirked at his question, amused that he asked almost the same exact thing his mother had. If his fur hadn't given him away, his thoughts would have. "You're allowed to hunt, as long as it's not hunting anyone's personal muse. Your mother will explain that to you later, I'm sure."
She led him along the same trail she had taken Idril not too long before, listening for the sound of splashing from the watering hole. Not hearing anything, however, she had to assume that his mother had gone on to the pride. It made sense, she supposed, it had been a while after all.
They broke out into a small clearing where a watering hole presented itself to them. She motioned with a paw and nodded her head. "Why don't you go ahead and get cleaned up, okay? I'll wait here for you, then we'll go on to the pride so you can find your mother."
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Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 2:35 pm
Muse? Huh. Well, if she said Momma would explain, then Momma would explain. "Okay," Moqui said.
He could smell the wateringhole before he could see it; the distinctive scents of water and mud presented themselves to his nose, and his steps quickened slightly, eager to have a good drink and be clean again. He grinned hugely when Sewti told him to go ahead and get cleaned up. Remembering his manners, he bobbed his head and said "Thank you," before sprinting off at top speed for the water.
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