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 Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 4:38 am
Maua spent a good bit of time poking around in the clearing but from the pawprints and trampled grass he suspected someone else had already been here and she gave Aurora a dark look for directing her to an already searched place.
Still...she would be remiss not to take extra care and search anyways, cubs after all had a tendency to wander and just because there hadn't been a cub here when others looked didn't mean there wasn't one here now. Gently she parted the low slung brush beneath a tree and peered into the dappled darkness within. "Little cub? Come out if you are frightened..I will take you to safety and warmth" She coaxed gently...just in case. She knew Kivuli was likely waiting for ..but he could wait until she'd searched the meadow.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 6:21 am
"Do you smell that, Pan?" Raziela raised her head and smiled, scenting the air. "Mother and Father have been nearby." Her expression was almost proud as she imagined her parents hard at work searching the area for lost cubs. They were a caring family, they were, and the fact that they had turned out to aid in the recovery of the cubs was one that Raziela took to mean that she had been raised properly, and that her parents had very much succeeded in fulfilling their responsibilities as parents.
Beside her, the maned wolf nodded. "Yes, Miss Ela," He said, bobbing his head.
"I believe I shall find Mother first," she mused, half to herself. "I should at least greet her." There was more to this excursion than a mother-daughter reunion, but manners mattered, as Maua had spent so much energy trying to teach her, and somehow, she felt as though she ought to at least acknowledge her parents' presence in the same area.
"Yes, Miss Ela," Pan responded. But she could hear the hesitancy in his voice, the urgency, and as she glanced down at the maned wolf, she imagined all the frantic thoughts that were running unchained through his head. He was a worrier, that Pan, and no doubt his mind had managed to focus on the most horrific possible consequences of the cubs scattering in the forest.
"Don't worry, Pan, I won't be very long at all," Raziela reassured him, though Pan looked less than convinced. "Come along." She turned, following her mother's scent until it mingled with some others' and she could see her Maua's familiar form. "Mother!" She said, raising her voice to address her, but refraining from what might have been considered shouting. Manners mattered.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 6:29 am
Maua's ears swiveled as she tried to listen for any answer from a frightened cub..but nothing reached her ears..and then a familiar voice called out to her. Pulling her head from the buh she turned about to regard her daughter with a warm look on her face - so nice to see one of her children who had proper manners and saw the good fortune this event gave them. Gali was also searching she knew..but probably or all the wrong reasons.
"Raziela" Maua greeted her grown daughter, eyes skipping over the maned wolf beside her without notice. "Have you had any luck in the search dear?" she questioned. of course the lack of a cub with her daughter said she hadn't found one but perhaps she had found a clue.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 7:09 am
Her intentions hadn't been quite as noble as Maua might have thought - really, she had just listened to Pan, and she expected that her mother might have frowned upon that if she found out - but it warmed her to see the look on Maua's face. This must have been a sign, a good sign.
And of course, Raziela hadn't quite... considered the logistics of taking care of a cub if she found one, but without quite realizing it, she almost expected Pan would do much of the raising of the child. It had been his idea, after all, and Pan was by nature a mothering sort. He had played a large part in her childhood, and no doubt would in another's if he was given the chance.
"I wish I was the bringer of better news," Raziela replied, shaking her head. "I haven't been searching long, but I expect I will make more progress soon." She considered adding that Pan would be lending a hand - probably doing most of the seaching too - but she held her tongue. She understood too well her mother's views of creatures like him. "How long have you been searching?"
Beside her, Pan had begun to wander slightly further away, nose to the ground, sniffing at the old pawprints and poking his nose into any shadows that seemed to have been left unturned. He never knew, after all. Perhaps all the ruckus had simply scared the children into going deeper into hiding.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 7:22 am
Well that was much the answer Maua had expected - though certainly the King would have noticed just how much of her family was out and searching, Raziela was serving a purpose weather she knew so or not and Maua was pleased by that thought. "It is early in the search yet" Maua consoled her daughter "And surely with the dog aiding you it will be easier, I myself made Aurora come along to help, more eyes surely can't hurt" Even a slaves eyes was the unsaid portion of that statement.
"I came along with the King's entourage" She told her daughter "I was one of the first into the forest but I have yet to come across any hint of a cub"
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 7:58 am
While Kivuli could stand around and wait for Maua all day he knew that the cub would likely want to leave the forest as soon as possible. So when after a few moments of waiting Maua did not make her way over to him he decided to seek her out and then he would take the cub to safety. "Let's go then." He said to her and then picked her up by the scruff of her neck. Oh he could have let her walk, but she still looked relatively frightened and he would hate it if she were to become separated from him in the dense forest. Soon enough the voices of Maua and another lioness he knew very well reached his ears. Another one of his daughters, Raziela, had joined in the search.
Padding up to them he set the cub down and smiled at the two. Neither had a cub in tow but it was still early in the search. "Look what I found." He said. "She was hiding in a tree. I need to take her to someplace safe. Will you two be okay out here alone?" Perhaps they could team up and look together as he hated the idea of any member of his family being out here, but there was an important job for them to do.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 8:00 am
"Certainly, he will make the search more fruitful. I do not suppose he will rest until all the children have been found." Raziela shook her head, a small, amused smile coloring her expression. Pan was a dearer friend to her than perhaps she would have felt comfortable admitting to her mother or the public, and though he didn't quite realize it, his antics never failed to make her smile.
Pan, it seemed, was more caught up in the social ordering of the Suka'Fumo than Raziela herself was. Unlike her sister Nyota, Ela was not known for her rebelliousness, but neither was she as embracing when it came to the social stratification as her mother was. She accepted it as a result of her destiny, but that was perhaps the extent of it. Pan, on the other hand, had managed to work himself so completely into the position of a servant that it seemed to have become second nature to him.
"I suppose the search will yield more results soon," she mused. "There are very many lions searching, and the sound must draw their attention." How they would react to the noise was another matter, of course, but at least they would have been alerted to the presence of others. "But where do you suppose they might have hidden?" She peered about her curiously. "Children certainly have more imagination than we adults." Except, perhaps, for players, but that, too, she kept to herself.
The dark lioness paused to seek out Pan. In the midst of their conversation, he had wandered off into the bushes themselves, valiantly pushing back branches and braving the dark shadows as he sought a missing child. He half expected to stumble upon a dead or dying youngster at any moment, and the thought horrified him but... They had to be found, dead or alive, and if it meant he had to suffer a little emotional trauma, then so be it.
Raziela turned at the sound of Kivuli's familiar voice, to see him approaching carrying a gray cub. "Father," she said with a bright smile, both at the sight of him and the child. Oh, the child! She was glad that the youngster had been found.
"Have no fear, little one," she said, smiling down warmly at the cub. "You will be safe now." Shifting her gaze back to Kivuli with the same bright smile that she couldn't quite keep off her face, she nodded. "I think we will be alright, will we not, Mother?" They were together, after all, and Raziela didn't imagine too much could happen when they had numbers on their side. However many two counted for, anyway.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 8:17 am
Maua nodded slightly as her daughter agreed that her companion would be helpful. What would be the point of keeping them around if they weren't really, of course it never really occurred to Maua that her daughter might actually have befriended the beast.
"More imagination perhaps but they are also likely frightened and frightened creatures tend to do less thinking then they typically would - I expect they ran until they were tired and then went to ground in some dark safe place" Or at least thats the scenario which seemed to make the most sense to her. She was about to say more when Kivuli appeared and wonders of wonders he had a little cub in his jaws. The little beast unfortunately had no purple on him - but Maua kept that thought to herself for hte moment, the woods had ears and it wouldn't due for some passer by to run off and tattle to the king about her unkind nature. The King seemed to treat the lower creatures kindly after all and even if Maua didn't exactly agree with that she was smart enough to keep that to herself.
"Ah your father as always returns the victorious hunter, a cute creature to be sure" She told Kivuli with a look of genuine warmth - she had known he would pull through for her of course. Finding a cub just like he was supposed to. "You had best take her back for a bite to eat love...I doubt she's had much to eat out here in the woods" Probably a bath too but Maua kept that to herself as well "Raziela and I shall be fine, I had thought to follow the steambed awhile, urely the cubs would be thirsty and settle somewhere close to water"
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 8:27 am
Green eyes peered into the darkness of the trunk, but after staring he could not see anything. He looked up as Gali spoke. Chances were if there were cubs nearby they could be hungry. Who knows when their last meal was. If they came across some type of small prey beast then he would certainly hunt it to provide nourishment for any of the cubs, but to stop the search for cubs just to hunt didn't make sense. He made a mental note to look for prey tracks while they continued their search.
"I do not see anyone inside." He said after another thorough inspection of the log. Better not dwell on a single spot for too long. "Shall we continue on then?" He asked Gali as his gaze fell upon her, he thought he caught a hint of smile on her maw but he couldn't say for certain. "Perhaps it would be best to go back into the forest. I haven't seen any indication of cubs during our walk along the stream." Open area's may not be the best place to look but they had to search out all possibilities. While he waited for Gali's answer he looped around the fallen tree, eyes scanning the ground for signs of cubs and sniffing the air as well. "If we see something that could prove to be a good snack for the cubs then we can bring it with us. They likely are hungry and a meal will be reassuring to them."
Kivuli smiled widely at his daughter as she greeted the cub and then Maua as well seemed happy to see her safe. Very untypical of his mate but he figured she was worried about being overheard should she spout any negative comments. When they both confirmed they would be alright on their own, he felt a bit more at ease to leave them in order to tend to the cubs. He stepped forward, the small cub moved with him, clearly not wanting to lose sight of her new protector. He gave Raziela and nuzzle and then moved to Maua giving her a deep nuzzle and a lick on the cheek. "Be safe, the forest is not to be taken lightly." He took a step back, looking at them both, glanced at the cub who he found to be looking up anxiously at him, then returned his gaze to Maua. "I will be waiting for you, both of you, at the edge of the forest."
For now though he needed to get the cute to a safe place. "Come along little one, let's get you a meal and a rest." He gave his mate and daughter one last smile before picking up the cub gently and carrying her off. He wondered how many others had been found and how many were yet to be found. Really all that mattered was that they would get found and could be provided for by the pride. With those thoughts in mind he set out towards the edge of the forest where he knew some of the pride members were awaiting to see those who had been successful in finding cub. He would make sure she was fed, looking at by a nurse to make sure she was in good health and completely injury free and then he would let her take a rest in the den if time allowed.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 8:41 am
"Vigilant as always, Father," Raziela assured him, returning the affectionate gesture before stepping back to study the frightened cub more closely. She wouldn't grow up to be a noble, but she was a pretty little creature all the same, and the dark lioness suspected that she would look all the better once she had been fed and cleaned up and that look of panic had left her eyes.
"Shall we search the streambed, then, Mother?" Raziela said as Kivuli left with the child. There was irrefutable logic behind Maua's words - it would only make sense for the cubs to seek out some source of water. Frightened they may have been, but entirely senseless, Raziela doubted. A lion could only survive for so many days without water, after all.
"Pan, come along, now!" She called out to the maned wolf, whose courageous efforts within the dark bushes seemed to have been to no avail. At the very least, she hadn't heard the sound of any cubs rushing through the undergrowth.
From the darkness, the maned wolf whined, clearly reluctant to abandon his search. But without proper light and the thick tangle of branches, there was little to be done, and he backed out of the brush the way he had come, pausing in the light to shake the leaves out of his fur before following Raziela.
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Questionable Conversationalist
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 10:00 am
Parisette, and perhaps her little brother as well, may have remained oblivious, but as the silver lioness approached Moilik looked in her direction. Their being in a pride had not yet settled the female into a state of trust, though her strength had given her a state of comfortable security. She was confident that she could deal with most anything that came their way. And so she only looked as the stranger approached, and then left. An adult was not what they were searching for, and so long as the stranger was no threat to her little brother, then Moilik had very little interest in her at this moment.
Rather, she let her attention wander back towards the sound of the blue lioness' lullaby, harmonized by her sibling, and resumed following Kunstig about. He looked to be searching more than she was, but someone had to keep a look out, right?
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 10:06 am
Maua returned her mates loving nuzzle with one of her own and a deep purr...she really did love her mate, even if he didn't have quite a much purple on him as she would have liked. He made up for that with his personality and temperament of course and truly she couldn't have found anyone better. Heres hoping her daughters did even half as well as she had in that department she thought to herself as Kivuli walked off with the mongrel cub and her attention focused once more on Raziela who was calling to her slave.
"Persistent little beast isn't he" She remarked as the creature fussed about being pulled off his search while Maua padded off towards the woods beside the stream - she didn't think the cubs would lay out in the open right beside the water...but certainly they might hide somewhere nearby. Before too long they came across a pile of driftwood "That could be a hiding place" She pointed out to Raziela "Shall we check it out ?"
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 10:51 am
Kijembe walked through the forest slowly, though it didn't seem like he was looking for cubs. In fact, it seemed he was watching everyone else. He kept his expression unreadable, impossibly calm, and he never looked away if someone saw him watching them.
Kalenda had returned to her cubs, ordering him to keep an eye on things. And so he was, in his intimidating, less than friendly way. Silent, dangerous, and making an already stressful situation a bit worse by being the large, looming shadow that didn't stop staring.
He stood off on his own, walking slowly, keeping track of everyone nearby him, and where the others had gone.
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Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2011 11:23 am
 A small red cub is darting in and out of the bushes, more or less running all over the forest to keep from getting caught. While he seems disinclined to let anyone catch him, attempting to call to him might do the trick. If he hears a voice he likes, maybe he'll come out of hiding and make his way over to someone.
((You have 2 hours to make a post calling to this cub. Along with that, all you need to do is generate a number between 1 and 100. The closest to 100 while win him! He's running about everywhere, so character in different areas may spot sight of him.
Only roll once per character, please!
Edit: I might be out when this ends, but don't declare a winner without me making it official. XD Not every roll is going to count, due to rule violations. ))
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