[PRP] Watching the situation (Ijara x Nahasi)

[Fairy Snails]

(Back Log)

Today Nahasi would be watched by Ijara, something he was not looking forward to. He couldn't stand Ijara, let alone be watched by him. He would rather watch himself than have that arrogant young council member watch him. Carefully he flopped on the floor. At least he would be able to see how Ijara handled pressure. Today they were going to be checking out the catchers dens and talking to them about a lack of fireflies. The tunnels were not nearly as bright as they normally are and many members of the pride came to him and complained. Juan would have came to him and comforted him. Ijara not so much.

He waited with slight irritation as he waited for the leopard. It was painful waiting for even a moment in Nahasi's case. It didn't help that his thought kept lingering to his father and Ijara. He wanted to know why his father cared to much for Ijara. Constantly he would be reminded about how amazing Ijara was over him and was compared to him all the time. It was something that drove him crazy and filled his hatred for the council member.

Even his mother, the one creature he hated more than Ijara, spoke kindly of Ijara despite the fact she had probably never even met him. If he hated him, she would adore him. That was the rule between him and his mother. Everyone saw her as a sweet angel while he could see her for what she really was, a monster.

He shook his head. That wasn't what was important now. Dealing with Ijara was. His mother was gone now and he wouldn't ever have to deal with her again. Now he would have to figure out how to get Ijara off the council with a decent excuse. It shouldn't be hard, though last time he did prove how valuable he was. "He can't be perfect. He must have his fault." He spoke aloud.  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

As Ijara walked down the tunnels that belonged to the royal family, he remembered the last time he was here. The King -the former king- had summoned him here to inform him that he would be passing down the crown to Nahasi. And that he would also be leaving the Brotherhood. He had made Ijara promise to help Nahasi to the best of his abilities. When he had agreed, the King had smiled and told him that was a good thing, seeing that as his last act as ruler would be to seat Ijara on to the vacant Tunneler's spot on the Council.

It had been such a mixed day. He had been honored to be appointed to the Council and to this day wondered at the idea of being able to serve the Brotherhood in this capacity. But he had also lost a... friend the day that Nahasi was ordained King. His life in the tunnels had ended and he truly missed all the time he used to spend with the other diggers in his group. But now? Now he was their voice to the Brotherhood. So that they and their concerns could be heard.

His musings ended as he stopped in front of the Royal Den. He was to accompany Lord Nahasi to talk to the Catchers about the firefly counts. They had recently taken a downturn and he knew that the diggers were getting anxious about the low-light levels in the newer tunnels. Ijara sat outside the entrance to the King's home. "My Lord, I am sorry if I have caused you to wait. Whenever you are ready, we may depart."  

[Fairy Snails]

Nahashi's eyes fixed themselves on the leopard council member. Mix feelings swelled inside of him. He wished that any of the other council members could have escorted him today. However he was grateful to not have to wait any longer. “Don't be sorry.” He said coolly. “I was lost in thought before you got here, I had almost forgotten that you were the one who was meant to watch me today.”

He walked out of his den and toward Ijara. “We can go now.” Nahasi said, stepping forward. He paused for a moment. “You had better lead the way, after all you are the one who has spent most of their time walking the tunnels. You must know them like the back of your paw.” He went to the side to allow Ijara to go first.

“The first thing we need to check on is what tunnels need the most light. Our catchers are working their hardest catching the fireflies, however there are not enough to go around to all the tunnels. For now, if we make sure the main tunnels have enough lights, we can divide the rest of the fireflies between the less used tunnels.”  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

"If that is what you wish your highness." Ijara bowed before stepping forward to take the lead. "Yes, I do have a fairly detailed map of the Brotherhood in my mind." It had always come easy to him, keeping track of where he was. It was a talent his co-workers and foremen always found useful and now hopefully it would prove the same to Nahasi.

"The most heavily trafficked tunnels are those leading to and from the Brother's dens. The Mother's Den also sees a fair bit of travel but not nearly as much. The tunnels around the food and water stores also highly visited. Also the main tunnel to the surface is usually kept fairly bright to help new members adjust."  

[Fairy Snails]

Nahasi nodded his head. He knew that this would not solve the light problem, but it would be better then darkness. As they walked, he kept a fair distance from Ijara, not wanting to crowd the leopard. His steps were soft and gentle, not wanting to disturb those around them. The brothers in the pride all had different schedules, the catchers would stay up all night and rest during the day and the diggers would rotate who was doing what. He knew it was difficult for most members to rest during the day, so he always tried to do his best to be quiet while in the tunnels.

“Our first step then will be to gather up a group of catchers to help up start lighting up the tunnels leading to the dens.” As he spoke a light caught his attention. “Oh a firefly must have gotten out of the net.” He said, not thinking much of it. “With their help it shouldn't take long to gather enough fireflies for that tunnel.”  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

Ijara led Nahasi down some of the less busy paths. Around now would be one of the shift changes for a few of the dig teams, so some of the main paths would be fairly dense. Though every so often he would catch sight of someone down one the connecting tunnels, recognizing one or two.

"If we are gathering catchers, may I suggest the one I mentioned to you before? Hikaru? He seemed fairly proficient in catching a good deal of fireflies when I had spoken to him." Ijara also spotted the light but he frowned "King Nahasi, correct me if I am wrong, but does that light seem much too bright for a single escaped firefly?"  

[Fairy Snails]

“I will keep him in mind when I am choosing catchers.” He said. The catchers that were chosen would have to work harder then normal. He only wanted those who were dedicated. Because of the lack of light, they needed to get the job done as soon as possible.

Nahasi glanced over at the light and saw that there were in fact more then just one firefly. He stopped and looked over his shoulder. Behind them was brighter then normal. In the distance he could see a brightly colored cheetah running toward them.

“The fireflies! The fireflies have escaped!” The cheetah yelled down the tunnels as he began to run toward them. A hint of annoyance filled Nahasi. Escaped? They needed those fireflies to light the tunnels.

“We need to hurry and catch them. It would be no good to just let them fly loose in the tunnels. It's a waste of light.” He tried to say calmly, though there was a hint of annoyance in his voice. He wanted this pridal issue to be handled quickly and quietly. It didn't seem like that was going to happen now.  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

'Hmm' was all that Ijara could think as he noticed where that particular tunnel led too. The cavern was used as a general gathering place for events or ceremonies and also acted as a park. It was also large, very large. The last time he had been here was for Nahasi's crowning ceremony. His own induction to the council would have normally taken place here as well, but King Adia was aware of his... not so normal circumstances and held a smaller ceremony instead.
He really had hoped he didn't have to come back here in a long while. Ignoring the bubbling shadow in the back of his mind, he looked to the situation.

He was mildly surprised to see Hikaru here. The brotherhood was large and he did not regularly interact with the catchers so he did not expect to see him so soon. "Greetings Hikaru. Would it be safe to assume that the fireflies have gotten loose in the park chamber?"  

[Fairy Snails]

Hikaru sheepishly smiled. “Afternoon councilman Ijara.” He said with a quick bow. His eyes widened when he saw Nahashi. “Oh and afternoon king Nahashi. What a surprise and shocking yet slightly bad time for me to meet you. I have been dreaming about the day I could meet you, so I could tell you all my ideas about how we could restructure how we do the catching. I mean, the way you have it done is-”

He stopped realizing that he was getting distracted. After taking a breath in and out, he continued. “You are correct councilman Ijara. I dropped a couple nets of fireflies while I was helping light up some tunnels. There were some brothers who needed some light to craft and I wanted to help them out so much.” His ears dropped. “I know we need all the fireflies we can get. I'm sorry. I don't deserve to be head firefly catcher.”

Nahashi listened, though it was hard to follow the cheetah. He frowned upon hearing about the fireflies getting loose. There was no point in blaming anyone. “You don't need to be sorry. Just help us re-catch the fireflies okay?” Nahashi said.

He headed into the park chamber and looked around. Fireflies were flying all over the place. He just watched. In his life he had seen maybe one or two fireflies loose and saw them flutter away. However this was something else. He wondered if this was what the catchers got to see every night when they went catching.

“Ijara come in here, you have to see this.” He said. Even if he didn't like Ijara that much, he wouldn't want anyone to miss seeing such a sight.  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

"Well, I fear if they have gotten loose in there there may be little hope in retrieving them your Highness. You know how... large the roof is there." He watched as Nahasi entered the park chamber. From this angle, the overhang blocked out the sheer scale of the room. He was fine with that.

His stomach dropped at his King's summons. He did not want to enter that room. There were reasons he has worked in the tunnels. The enclosed tunnels. And illogical as this gripping... fear was, it still conquered his mind. But, an order... was an order. He practically dragged himself over the threshold and fought down the rising panic as he felt the open space around him. Finally after a few moments he gathered the stability to look up.

It was... true that he had never seen this many fireflies free before. Their glittering dancing lights seemed... to help with the crushing feeling of space.
"It... is very lovely your Highness."  

[Fairy Snails]

Hikaru was third to walk in. He moved his head one way to another. “At least there is plenty of light in here.” he said, though he was still a bit down about losing the fireflies in the first place. “They do look awfully happy in there don't they.” He watched them fly around.

Nahashi nodded his head. This was the cause of a mistake, a mistake that would cost lack of lighting in the tunnels. However sometimes mistakes couldn't be fixed. “Catcher, do you know where the other councilman’s dens are?” Nahashi asked. Hikaru nodded his head. “I would like you to go to them and tell them that I would like them to come over here.”

“I won't fail you, your kingship!” Hikaru said before running off.


“Ijara, I say we don't waste this light. Why don't we have a celebration instead?” He said with a smile.  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

He listened to Nahasi address Hikaru and when his king spoke to him, he focused on him. He tried not to pay attention to the peripherals of his vision.

A celebration? "There hasn't been a new celebration introduced to the brotherhood in quite some time. It could prove to boost the spirits of the pride and perhaps give us time to gather more fireflies. It is a excellent idea King Nahasi." He bowed, eyeing the entrance before straightening back up. "Since the others are on the way, if you wished, I could go and begin getting the preparations started?"  

[Fairy Snails]

“That's a good idea.” Nahashi said to Ijara. He glanced at Ijara and thought that something was different about him, that he didn't have the same vibe as he usually did. “Though if you are not feeling well, you might just want to take a break. It will do no one any good to have you working tirelessly and have you collapse on us.”

He couldn't help but wonder if his father had over worked Ijara when he was king. The previous king had been in pursuit of perfection for the pride, so it would make sense. Nahashi wanted to have the pride running smooth, but he didn't want to overwork anyone.  

[Innocent_Hybrid]

"By your leave your Highness." Ijara bowed again and turned to leave but stopped at Nahasi's comment. He had hoped that his... reluctance to enter the cavern had not been noticeable. He would have to do better if this was too happen again. "Thank you my King but I assure you that I am feeling well." He managed to give a quick smile "I quite enjoy my work and rarely tire of it. Good day, Lord Nahasi."

He made sure he didn't look like was trying to get out as quickly as possible.