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 Posted: Wed Jun 29, 2011 9:29 pm
 Soifra moved slowly through the pride lands, stopping often to rest her tired little paws. She moved with great caution, careful not to bump any one and trying to stick to the shadows where she would be unnoticed.
Soifra was going to see her big brother, one of Daddy's other cubs that was sick, and one of the few that was sicker then she was. Out of her litter, the plague hit Soifra hardest. She had had to wait until no one was about to make the fairly short trek from the den where her litter stayed with Daddy, to the area where the grown ones slept. The walk was not made easier by her abnormally small size; there was barely more to her now then there was when she was newborn.
Finally, she made it to see Ruko, waiting until she regained her breath before emerging from the shadows near him.
"Hello, brother."
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Posted: Wed Sep 21, 2011 1:37 pm
Ruko was not having a good day today. Something in his heart told him to savor the days, for they might be few. Fevers had raged more often, and several days had occurred where he was too weak to even eat or drink. Today wasn't quite that bad, but he was finding it hard to do more than recline in the cool of the den. Sounds from outside echoed to him distantly, just enough to remind him of the times he'd had playing outside, and yet soft enough to make a soft murmur that lulled him.
His eyes had drifted closed, and his body was leaning physically, ready to relax into slumber, when a voice came from much nearer than outside. He dragged his eyes open, and spotted one of his youngest siblings. He never thought of the others as half siblings, because even Haruma, N'dale, and Faraa were his siblings, despite their lack of shared blood. But this little one, Ruko knew, was following in his own pawsteps, and it worried him.
"Why hello there, Soira," he spoke as jovial and relaxed as he could. He wasn't in pain at the moment, which helped, but he tried his best to mask his own sufferings from those he loved. As much as was possible, he wanted to spare them the worry and anguish. It was better they not know what he did... that he was dying. Or at least, he would sometime in the near future. It certainly made life sweeter, and moments like this one matter more.
"How are you feeling today?" he inquired mildly, shifting so that he leaned against the wall, using its strength to mask his own weakness. "Does anyone know you came to see me?" Though it seemed naughty, it wasn't unusual for the sick ones to sneak about to go visit each other. He himself no longer needed to sneak, but he understood the desire that drove the younger sibs to do so.
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Posted: Wed Sep 28, 2011 9:25 pm
"No, I snuck out and no one saw me." Soifra admitted it readily - she was allowed to leave the den, as long as she didn't go far, but she was supposed to let a grown up know where she was. She enjoyed being hidden and quiet though. It was one of the things she was good at, and the sickness forced the cub into being careful when a healthy cub might not be. It made her good at being unseen.
"My tummy hurts today so I didn't eat breakfast, but I haven't had a coughing fit. How do you feel, today? Did you hear that Daddy might bring home more cubs?"
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Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2011 11:19 am
He let the question about how he was feeling slip right on past, addressing her other question instead. "Oh is he now? More playmates for you! I'm glad." He leaned to give her an affectionate lick, rather than tousling her headfur as he wished to. His paws felt rather heavy today, even to lift to the low head of a cub. It frustrated him a little, but he knew at least part of it was likely to pass, give him some time with energy again.
He did wonder how many more litters of cubs their father was going to bring back. He thought he'd overheard that he was growing tired of leaving his growing children and his heart's love. Would it be enough for their Queen? A twinge of soft sorrow wafted through him as he wondered if he would ever get his own chance at helping the pride with numbers by having his own cubs. Perhaps... perhaps there would still be time? He could only hope.
But these were grown-up matters, not something to discuss with such a young sibling. He gave her a mischeivious grin. "So, what color do you think the cubs will be?" It was a family joke, since very rarely were there cubs without blue or black on them, courtesy of their father. Oh sure, there were some here and there. They had an older sibling that was very notably green instead of blue, and little Soira had siblings that were brown and white. But between markings and colors, it was never hard to tell which of the pride's members were Sliabh's offspring.
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Posted: Thu Oct 13, 2011 11:53 am
"Maybe there will be an orange one again!" Soifra said excitedly, thinking of her sister. "She's so nice and bright, it cheers everything up. I'd like another orange sister. Or a brother. It wouldn't be as gloomy if we were bright all over. Not all dark and dusky."
Soifra knew having a different color coat wouldn't change anything, but it was nice to think it would. The bright yellow lion she had met had never even heard of the plague.
"I think this is going to be the last set of brothers and sisters for a while, at least. Until Daddy settles down for real. I wish he had found a cure out there when he was getting all of our siblings together."
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Posted: Mon Nov 07, 2011 10:35 am
It made his heart ache to hear her talk about colors as if they determined levels of happiness. He often tried to cheer his siblings with his stories, to take away the shadows of death and illness, but realistically he knew it was but a short reprieve, a distraction and nothing more. His stories could not take the hurt away, nor the grief or pain. He bit his tongue to keep his distress from his face, refusing to add to the little one's sorrows, however slightly.
He also whole heartedly agreed with her on wishing their father had discovered some sort of cure while he'd traveled. Granted, he wasn't a healer like Haruma, but they all longed for some sort of help to be found for those who suffered. But this was all so very morbid, reminding Ruko of his own troubles and the future they held for him. He determinedly shoved those worries away.
"How many cubs do you suppose there will be?" he inquired next. This wasn't exactly a joke like the last question, but it very nearly was a moot question. There were so many of them now, it hardly mattered how many more were added. "I think there will be... four." That seemed a decent number, pretty average. "What about you? And how many sisters do you think we'll get?" Better to keep her thinking on pleasant things, fun guesses about the growing family.
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