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 Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:15 am
 Faeqa was off on her own again. It was something that she didn't do often, but had been, more recently. Not because she wanted to be alone, or that she was up to something bad. But because all the cubs in the pride were making her feel...odd. She loved cubs and seeing them all around made her happy. They truly did. But through that happiness, came another feeling, a feeling that left her feeling somewhat sad.
For whilst the pride flourished and children played, she herself was childless.
Her heart had started aching with the want and yet the fear, too. Fear because she did not know how to go about asking to bear cubs for another. It wasn't just something you dropped into conversation, now, was it? Besides that, her crush on Faiz was clearly not a crush. She adored him. Worshipped him. Yes, she had fallen completely in love with him and that very fact made her nervous and shy in front of him.
A sigh broke through her maw as she came close to the edge of the meadow. A short lope away, the herd cropped the grass and the sound calmed her a little as she flopped down onto the dusty ground, her tail flicking slowly back and forth. The herd paused to look at her, but when it was clear that the female was not on the hunt, they returned to their grazing, leaving her with her troubled thoughts.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:27 am
Atefeh hummed as she crept through the grass, following a shiny little bug she'd spotted a while ago. It was such an odd creature...Small and quick, and covered all over in armor! And it had so many legs! She and her sibs and her Mamas and Papa had only four, while the creature had six! Determined to catch it and take it home to show off, she'd had no luck so far. It was so quick in dodging her paws and teeth!
Eventually, the sound of chewing caught her attention and she looked up. Oh! She smiled brightly. New creatures! And...a lioness? Atefeh sat and tilted her head to one side, curious. She wasn't hunting (she didn't think), and she looked so sad...Standing again, the little girl trotted over to the golden and white lioness, smile on her face. Maybe she could cheer her up! "Good day, ma'am!"
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:34 am
She blinked and her head snapped around at the sound of the little voice - clearly belonging to a cub. And there she was. A pretty little thing of purple and white and beautiful markings that made Faeqa feel quite drab. This must have been a daughter of the Sultan, judging by her pelt colour. Purple was a good, strong colour indeed.
And yet, the cub was a physical reminder of Faeqa's longing for motherhood and her broodiness returned tenfold. Even still, she wasn't about to be rude, especially to the daughter of the Sultan.
"Good day to you, too, little one. Should you be out here all alone, dear?" Her eyes lifted, perhaps to see if one of the girl's parents were nearby. They didn't seem to be. "Or are you lost? I can take you back to your parents, if you wish?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:45 am
The little cub blinked and looked around. "Oh! I have come quite a ways!" She smiled at the adult Banu. "I'm not sure if I'm lost...I didn't mean to come out so far, but I couldn't catch the odd, pretty little creature." A creature that seemed to have made its full escape while she wasn't looking. Oh dear...
"Why do you look so sad though?" Maybe she lost a gift from her Pad? Or maybe she'd gotten teased. Atefeh knew that happened, though she hadn't experienced it herself. "Papa says ladies look prettier when they smile." And the lady before her was already very pretty!
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 11:52 am
"Nevermind, you're still within the pridelands so you should be safe enough. We don't get many trespassers around here." Though just because it wasn't common didn't mean it couldn't happen. Even still, she wasn't about to let the cub wander off all alone, whether it was likely or not.
She was just about to question about the creature the cub had been chasing when the cub spoke again. She certainly was a talker, this one! And, despite herself, she smiled.
"Don't worry yourself over me, dear. It's nothing really, nothing except me being a silly fool of a lioness." She smiled a little more. "And your Papa is right. Smiling is a lot nicer than frowning." She blinked. "I am Faeqa, a banu of Vizier Faiz's harem." Realising she was talking to a cub, she corrected her more formal introduction. "But, don't worry about that. I'm Faeqa. Some call me Fae. What's your name, little one? Your one of the Sultan's children, are you not?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:00 pm
Well...if the lady said so...She seemed a little happier now. So...Atefeh had succeeded! "It is very nice to meet you!" She stumbled over the phrase a little, having learned it not too long ago, but she did her best! "I'm Atefeh! And I am." And she had LOTS of brothers and sisters. Lots of them purple like her. "Which means..." OH! "You're one of my aunties!" Faiz was her uncle right? There was only one Faiz she knew of in the pride...Not that she knew many in the pride. She was still small.
Despite the excitement of meeting one of her aunts in her voice, the volume was actually rather low...barely louder than a 'normal' speaking voice.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:05 pm
"Nice to meet you, too, Atefeh. It's a very pretty name, indeed." She blinked again, realising that what the girl had said was true. It warmed her a little to think of how much her family was growing all around her. "Well then, Atefeh, I guess that means I'm going to have to be extra vigilant and make sure you stay safe!" She stood and shook the dust from her fur. "You being family, and all."
She smiled and moved away a few paces. "Okay, let's head back...Oh, wait...did you say you were chasing something? Is someone else with you?"
She looked around again, not seeing anyone. Perhaps they were hiding in the grass? The herd didn't look all that bothered either.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:12 pm
The cub nodded. "Okay! I...oh!" She shook her head. "No...It wasn't someone else. It was a little creature that was all shiny, and had armor all over, and six little legs." She wrinkled her nose and held up one of her own legs. "Why would something need six? Four is a good, solid number."
One, two, and four were good, lucky numbers. One body, one nose, one mouth, two eyes, two nostrils, two ears, four legs, four paws! It was perfect number sense.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 12:21 pm
Faeqa chuckled. "Oh, you mean a beetle?" She remembered how she and her sister had spent hours on end chasing bugs up and down the meadows. It had kept them entertained throughout their youth. Somehow, chasing down herds had never been as much fun...
"I guess it helps it run faster, maybe?" She'd never really question 'why', before. She was a simple girl, just accepting the way things were and never really questioning.
Unlike her sister...
"Well, perhaps we'll come across it on the way back."
"No need~!" Chirped another, merry voice. "It found mee!" A moment later and a young, white female came skipping towards them. The herd spooked and edged away from them, further across the grassland where they could graze in peace, without fear for their lives.
Najiyya drew to a clumsy halt and lowered her head. A beetle hung precariously from the tresses of fur that hung between her ears.
"Is this what you were looking for?"
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Posted: Tue Nov 17, 2009 11:47 am
Atefeh blinked. "Oh! So that is what they are? A beetle?" She'd heard the term before, but had never linked it with the shiny bug she'd been following. "Maybe...I would think the extra legs trip 'em up though. I know they would me." The cub smiled brightly and nodded. "Okay!" Then she could show it to her Mamas!
The arrival of the other lioness made her blink again...then give a rather quiet squeal of happiness. "That's the beetle!" The exact one, still as shiny and pretty as when she'd lost it!
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Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 12:44 am
"I agree. Lions were made for four legs. Even still, the beetles seem to get on fine, so long as they don't get tipped on their back." She'd often watched them in a frenzied panic, legs waving in the air as they tried to tip themselves right way up. She'd always complied and helped them eventually, but watching the struggle had fascinated her as a little one.
She didn't really pay much attention to them anymore, though.
Faeqa startled as her sister arrived on the scene - in her normal loud and flouncy sort of way. However, a smile soon stretched across her maw as she realised what she had with her.
The lost beetle.
"Well, that's wonderful." Her eyes softened. "Thank you, Naji."
"No problem!" The white one chirped, lowering her head and shaking it a little so that the beetle dropped to the dusty ground. "He's a fast little critter! It's a good job he's so big, otherwise I might not even have noticed him!"
She smiled. "He'll probably be quick to dissapear again, so if that happens, the best place to look for them is in the wood of dead trees. I think they eat the wood...or something."
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Posted: Sun Mar 07, 2010 9:50 am
The purple and white cub nodded. "What happens when they get tipped on their backs?" She was immensely curious. Well...around girls, she was. It wasn't proper to ask lots of questions around the boys! No need to worry them or annoy them with needless questions.
Atefeh blinked at the little beetle, crouching down to look at it from the ground level. "It's a he? Oh dear! If I'd known that, I would have left him alone!" Her ears went back. "I'm sorry, Mister Beetle. I didn't know you were a boy."
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Posted: Thu Mar 11, 2010 2:18 pm
The sisters blinked in unison and then smiled, gently amused at the innocent questions of the child.
Najiyya bobbed her head. "They wave their legs in the air...and, get all upset, too, I would think. But at least they can't run away like that." She glanced between her sister and the cub, then continued. "Oh, oh, I'm not really sure if it's a boy or not...well...all the bugs kind of look the same."
"Don't worry, dear." Fae interjected. "Beetles don't have the same lifestyle as we do. Besides, you really can't tell which is which. My sister is right. They do look pretty much alike." She straightened her shoulders and glanced around briefly. "Well then, let's get you and your beetle friend back home, okay? Safe and sound?"
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