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Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 12:54 pm
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Beara paced along in the sunshine in a fine mood. He was headed nowhere, but that didn't much matter today. Occasionally it bothered him, no longer having a home. He had parted ways with the mother of his daughters when other interests had arisen. It had been a friendly parting, but it did sometimes fill him with a mild sorrow at his lack of roots. Roots were good for a body. They bestowed strength, stability, and contentment. Today that was not one of his worries, though.
The air was sweet and mild, the rising sun pleasantly warm, and although he had yet to have his breakfast, the world seemed a wonderful place. He strode along, his large paws striking the ground with surprising lightness for his large frame. A merry tune vibrated his throat, coming out in a basso rumble that was pleasant to hear. He swung his tail behind him in counterpoint to the rhythm of his song, which sounded like one meant to make long journeys shorter.
He had paused to inhale the scent of a flowering bush when he heard an odd shuffling, then a soft click of one rock falling against its brothers, then more shuffling. Intrigued and curious, he turned aside from his path to discover what exactly would put the two sounds together. It was much to his pleasure, he soon realized that the source of the sounds was a lovely red-brown lioness. With a rumbling chuckle, he spoke up. "Greetings, ma'am. It is good to see someone else out enjoying this beautiful weather!" His voice, while deep, was soft and welcoming, lacking the edge of anger or unease. Sincerity and genuine delight rolled off of him like the perfume of the flowers he'd just waded through to find her.
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Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 1:38 pm
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Lien-hua was started, but she didn't jump. Instead, she did her best to raise her head smoothly, dropping what she was doing to let her dark eyes greet the stranger. It was only then that she realized how large he was. A slight shiver ran up her spine as she contemplated the strength it took to move a form that large, cursing the fact that she didn't bring a guard with her, but she didn't show any fear. Perhaps a touch of anxiety, but nothing too unsettling.
"Hello," she replied, her head nodding softly as she gave him another look over. "It is a beautiful day, perfect to gather things." She was careful with her words, but figured it couldn't be harmful to admit that she was rooting around for interesting objects.
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Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 1:51 pm
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Beara might be a large, dumb-looking lion, but he was highly sensitive to emotions of those around him. He didn't sense her fear, but he picked up on her anxiety immediately. It wasn't an unusual reaction, in fact, being one of the more likely emotions to arise when he introduced himself to a stranger. It was, of course, mostly due to his size. Generally he ignored the reaction, just being himself in order to put them at ease. Sometimes, like now, he did prefer to put the other at ease sooner rather than later. A lioness on her own, clearly disturbed to find a huge male near her, had good reason to be anxious.
In response, he stepped back three or four steps, which ended up putting his body half in the bank of flowering bushes. A bee buzzed lazily past his ear, which he twitched to discourage it from landing. "Pardon if I interrupted, ma'am," he lowered his head apologetically. "I was merely curious about the sounds you were making." He pricked his ears forward to indicate interest. "You are gathering... rocks?" That was his best guess, from the sound, but there was no telling if it was correct, or even if she'd tell him anything. "By the way, my name is Bara'bhera, though I generally just call myself Beara." Surprisingly, his own phrasing brought a sharp twist to his heart. Yes, he called himself that. There was noone else to call him that or anything else. Just... himself.
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Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 2:25 pm
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She did her best to reserve judgement on him, seeing as she'd never come across an aggressive stranger. With a bit of soothing breathing, she let herself focus on his words, and let herself slowly relax. "Yes. I craft things in my home, to trade for food and protection. I'm usually out here gathering things to take back home."
"I am....Jyotika," she said after a slight pause, using the now-unfamiliar name on her tongue. It would be a safe name to use, before she revealed too much about her home and herself. "It is nice you meet you, Beara." Her tail swished a few times behind her, a little nervous, but also a touch excited about this. He seemed nice enough, and curious.
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Posted: Thu May 09, 2013 2:19 pm
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Posted: Mon May 20, 2013 7:31 pm
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"Um, sure," she answered quietly, digging around in her pouch to see if she had anything half-finished in there. The only thing she found was a necklace, a small blue-ish stone wrapped with dried vines. It looked a little sad.
"Well, this is the best thing I have with me right now," she said, her ears a little flattened as she was embarrassed at the quality of the vines. "Its a little...crumbled, but it can re-stretch out with a bit of water and then drying out in the sun. I have a couple bracelets on, too," she said as she shook her paws a bit.
"But the little cowl of fur was done by another artist." She was starting to see that maybe he wasn't a threat, and her tone brightened up considerably.
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Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2013 9:53 am
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Posted: Mon Jul 01, 2013 9:18 pm
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"Really?" she asked shyly. She was trying to be careful, as the silly girl had gotten herself into too many wrong situations in the past. She shouldn't be too thrilled, but she couldn't quite help herself. She loved compliments.
"There are some," she said with a nod. "A few are being trained as they grow up, but there aren't too terribly many of us. I guess that's a good thing, in some ways. It means less competition for those who want my trinkets."
She paused, thinking about what he was asking. "Well, some lions are like ravens; they want all the shiny things. So stones get me what I need most, food." She paused again, not certain where else to go with the conversation. She had answered his questions, but part of her wished for more to answer.
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Posted: Mon Jul 01, 2013 9:25 pm
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Ah, now that made more sense, and was also not out of the realm of his own ability. "So others hunt, and you feed yourself and your... family?... by trading your pretty things for their kills!" He looked enlightened, eyes brightening, letting his mild inquiry about her living situation glide by without too much emphasis. Time for a little more cautious probing for details about the pride! "Do you only trade with others from your pride? Are there those who hunt specifically for you?" He paused, shyly examining his toes, then. "I know it sounds silly," he rumbled sheepishly, "but if it's allowed, I would really like to trade for something you made."
If a lion could blush, he probably would have. His face felt flushed, as if he'd just asked her for a kiss. He felt a little ridiculous, being a grown male and all, being embarrassed by asking for her craftsmanship, but he couldn't help it. He cleared his throat and slid his eyes to hers to gauge how she felt about it. "Something without stones, though. I don't think such shiny things would look very good with my mud-and-cloud colors." He ducked his head in self-deprecation, but flashed her a sweet smile.
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Posted: Mon Jul 01, 2013 9:39 pm
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She wondered where he was getting at. Uncertainty twisted at her, and yet she chose to ignore it.
"There are some that I can depend trade on," she answer carefully. "Mainly it is because they prefer to have new things to wear, or gifts to give others. It is hard to trade outside of those I know at the moment. There are no clear, sanctioned trade routes quite yet."
Then she was a bit shocked. Flattered, but shocked. He wanted something? Well...this surprised her!
"I don't have much on me, but..you can return with me. Just pledge that you are a merchant, interested in possible trading with the West House. I'm sure no one will mind you passing through wither that guise. Then, you can see what else I have. Necklaces, earrings....lots of feathers that have been dropped around here. Not sure you'd like flowers," she laughed, a touch embarrassed. She was a bit more in her element, though, and was curious to see what it was he liked.
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 8:46 am
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He listened as she described the situations that faced her as a crafter. He wondered for a moment what kind of trade routes she was hoping for. Ones to the roguelands? Other prides? Or perhaps the other Houses, since apparently she beloned to the 'West House'. He tempered his rising curiosity about this strange pride with warmth at seeing her relax a little more with him. If he truly frightened her, she wouldn't be advocating that he declare himself a merchant and come back to her home with her, would she?
He was hesitant to declare himself a merchant, though. He certainly was a customer... a client. But did that qualify him as a merchant? He twitched his tail uncertainly, but felt drawn to find any way possible to follow her back, to learn more about her and her home. If they called a client a merchant, who was he to argue? With a decisive nod of his head, he rumbled with a smile, "Right, miss Jyotika. I shall follow you so I can see more of your wonderful jewelry work." He cast her a grin at the mention of flowers. "No, those don't really appeal to me. But feathers... those might work!"
He tipped his head at her, ears angling in an expression of fondness. "I shall put myself into your capable paws, as I believe you are likely to know better than I what will work for me." With an unwittingly charming smile, he stepped out of the bush cautiously, watching her reaction to be certain he wasn't frightening her all over again. "Lead on, and I shall follow."
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Posted: Tue Jul 02, 2013 10:27 am
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Jyokita nodded. "Hopefully no one really asks too many questions, but once in a while a guard decides to be annoying. Probably in hopes of working up to royal guard or something." She sighed, as part of her was so twisted up inside about royals. Her first litter was sired by a Prince in the central house...and ignored. Bastards. She hated it, but did her best to show them that they meant a lot to her. Her second litter didn't have the same limitations, and they flourished under the creative arm of the west.
"Just follow closely, and we'll be fine. As we walk, you can tell me what types of things you like...and I may be able to tweak an old piece into something that fits you." She was starting to feel that a few feathers braided into his mane would be perfect. Masculine, with a touch of mysticism, and a connection to the world around him. Yes, that seemed perfect.
Content, she guided him back to where she kept her things, a little thrilled that she was being helpful to someone besides her normal customers for once.
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