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 Posted: Wed Nov 04, 2009 3:54 pm
Aziz'Din was practicing his stare. The sign of a good leader was being able to look regal but approachable, at least in his mind. Staring down at the cricket that he had chased down and which was now too scared to move, he narrowed his eyes. Immediately, the cricket bolted, scurrying under his paws and making him yowl. He leapt to his feet and set off after the cricket. Stupid thing, he thought as it disappeared into a collection of rocks. Leaping onto the highest rock, Din wiggled his paw into the crack between two rocks trying to find the cricket.
Conceding defeat after a few minutes of fighting with the rock, Din huffed and moved back to the ground, scowling. He'd have to find another create to practice his stare on now. He scanned the immediate area, trying to find a flicker of movement that may have come from a life form. His eyes lit up when he spotted another cricket and he snuck towards it. Not giving it time to realise he was there, he flopped to the ground and covered it with his paws. It leapt and wiggled at the pads of his paws as he held it down, not quite squishing it yet.
“Now, stay still and let me practice,” Din muttered, removing his paws from the cricket. As soon as it was free, it launched itself onto his head and into the tuff of fur that would one day grow into a mane. Yowling once more, he desperately rubbed his head on the ground to dispel the evil insect. Crickets just did not like Din.
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Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 12:56 pm
 The beautiful weather had drawn out a young cub. Even cheerful looking birds fluttered overhead in the cloud painted sky as she walked out of the den. It was such a pretty day!
Still she was sleepy, so unawares Lutfiya had fallen asleep in a patch of warm sunlight. Her nap might have lasted longer too had it not been for the sudden noise that startled her. "Eh?" Was that one of her siblings?
Surely nothing was wrong! Luti's eyes widened as several thoughts ran through her mind, "Oh no." Had she slept through something important? The whispered words and terror faded though as she found her brother.
A kind laughter curled up her lips into a smile, "Aziz-Din?" She questioned as she walked respectfully towards her brother, "What are you doing?"
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Posted: Fri Nov 06, 2009 3:47 pm
Aziz'Din glanced up when he heard Lutfiya, his elder sister, call out to him. Blinking, he tried to pretend there wasn't a cricket in his mane and that it wasn't wriggling ticklishly against his fur.
“Lutfiya,” he called back, perking up when he noticed her smile. It was nice to see someone in a good mood. He puffed out his chest proudly and padded towards her, ignoring the cricket desperate to get out of his hair.
“I'm practicing to be a Pad,” he announced. It was one of his favourite games. He had gotten the walk down, a carefree stride and a haughty look that looked silly on such a young cub. He was working on his disapproving stare that day, intent on getting it perfected. Unfortunately, none of the creatures he'd captured had stuck around long enough for him to practice.
“What are you doing? I thought you were napping,” he asked, sitting down when he'd gotten closer to her and curled his tail around him. His head tilted to the side in a cub-like look of curiousity.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 2:24 pm
Luti's mouth formed a small, perfect 'o' of surprise when she heard her brother's answer. "Practice?" She giggled softly, her eyes wide with delight. "That must be fun!" Her tail waved behind her like a banner caught in the wind. She always imagined herself acting out being a Banu, but she never had practiced.
"Me?" Luti sat down next to her brother and faced him, "Well-I was napping, but then I heard a noise. It made me worried, so I came over! I guess it was silly of me." She smiled sheepishly.
Suddenly a thought came to Luti and she quietly gasped, "Oh, Aziz'Din! I didn't interrupt you did I? If I'm in your way-" She paused as her gaze went to the ground, "I guess I could leave, brother."
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 3:35 pm
“It's not fun,” he replied, sounding faintly exasperated. “It's hard work. I want to be the best Pad in the pride.” He puffed his chest out again, eyes alight with eagerness. He paused, then added almost as an afterthought, “not better than Dad, of course.”
Tilting his head, Din rolled his eyes. “You can't worry over every little noise, Luti.” He brightened up abruptly as a thought crossed his mind, “thanks for worrying though.” It was nice having someone worry, even if it wasn't about him specifically. Luti would make a good Banu if she kept doing that, it would make her Pad feel important if he was anything like Aziz'Din.
Din paused while he thought, not replying immediately to reassure his sister. “I suppose you can stay around,” he said after a little while. “Since you're already awake and out here. Plus, you could practice being a Banu and I can practice being a Pad.”
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 3:45 pm
"Oh." Luti nodded solemnly at her brother, "Of course it is." She flushed before softly adding, "But the practice is nice. I mean- don't you get excited about the thoughts of the future?" Her eyes glittered, their father was the best of course! He always would be. Luti sighed thoughtfully. If she had a Pad even slightly like her father, she would be happy.
"Ah." Still Luti smiled happily at the thanks from her brother. She hadn't made him angry after all! With Din's next words though came Luti's gasp of excitement. "I can? Really?"
"Being your Banu will be a great practice, Din!" She giggled and stretched before finally standing. She gave a small, respectful nod of her head towards her brother, "Will we start now?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 4:00 pm
Aziz'Din smiled slightly at his sister when she spoke of the future. “Of course, I can't wait until I'm older and can help out around the pride and make it an even better place.” He was also excited to see how his sister's lives went. There was so many of them but he hoped they all found a good Pad. It would kill Din to see them hurt by a cruel Pad. Which was why Din knew he had to teach Luti to be the best Banu, so she didn't get hurt.
He got to his feet as well, raising his head in what he thought was a haughty look, though it looked a little silly on him at the moment. “Of course,” he replied smoothly. Pausing, for a few moments he drew a blank as to what, exactly, Banu's were meant to be doing. He hadn't had much experience around them, other then his mothers and they mainly took care of the cubs at the moment.
“How are you at hunting?” He asked, out of curiousity. Din had been practicing with smaller creatures but hadn't succeeded in catching anything of real importance yet. Maybe Luti had better luck.
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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 4:50 pm
"Me too! If I can." Luti blushed silently remembering her hopes about her future Pad. She wanted to support him the best that she could after all. It was the same with her family, everyone was so important to her. The cub felt a small purr rising up within her before she focused back on Din.
Luti grinned. "Well-" She paused mischievously before getting into a pouncing position. "I-I've been practicing. And I've gotten close before!" Her voice rang out happily though Luti was reflecting on how many times she had lost the heart to take the finishing blow.
But she could and would push past that. Luti nodded, determination in her gaze. "Should I hunt for my Pad?" She sweetly asked before looking up at Din.
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Posted: Sun Nov 08, 2009 9:06 pm
Aziz'Din hid a laugh as Luti dropped down into a crouch position, sounding so happy. She really was a bright, perky cub, which always surprised Din. It probably shouldn't have, but somehow her happiness always came as a shock.
“Show me how close you can get,” Din encouraged, “try something small. Like, uhhh,” he glanced around, eyes narrowed as he tried to find something suitable for his sister to 'hunt'.
Nearby, a small cricket was resting. Similar to what he had hunted earlier and what was still probably in his mane, it was a reasonable feat for a young cub. They were harder to catch they one would think, since they were fast moving but if Luti had been practicing, she would at least get close, if not actually catch one.
Glancing back at his sister, he motioned for her to go get it. “Make your Pad proud,” he said, backing off a few steps so she would have the space if she needed. He sat down, curious over how she had been going with her hunting.
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Posted: Wed Nov 11, 2009 1:16 pm
It was a cricket! Surely she could catch something like that. Luti's confidence rose, she just had to catch it. She grinned at Din before she focused focused on the 'prey' that she was going to hunt. "I will~"
Luti's paws made nearly no noise as she crawled towards the cricket. The cricket twitched, she paused. Her lilac eyes were glued to the insect watching it, waiting. A long moment passed as her tail lowered to the ground. Then- Bam! The cub jumped into the air and cupped her paws around the cricket.
"Yes!" Luti giggled as she looked down. There in between her paws - was nothing. The cricket had fled from the space in between her paws before she could close them all the way.
Disappointment filled Luti as she turned back towards Aziz'Din sheepishly. "It...was close?" But before she went back a flickering shape caught her attention...
Luti growled and pounced after the escaped cricket.
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Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 1:16 am
Aziz'Din snickered lightly as he watched his elder sister stalk the cricket, making sure to laugh quietly so it didn't disturb the cricket. He didn't have to worry though, because she missed it on her own.
“Very close,” he reassured quickly, hoping she wouldn't get discouraged by her near fail. He hid a grin when she continued on with her hunt.
“Be careful when you pounce,” Din suggested, staying where he say, tail curled around him. His voice was quiet and his eyes sharp as he watched her move. “Make sure you have a reason to pounce before you do it, else you'll just give your place away for nothing. When it comes to bigger prey, you won't get a second chance as easily as you would with a smaller one.”
Or at least, so he'd heard. Din had never hunted anything smaller then crickets but it was still good advice.
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Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 3:33 pm
Luti's smile gleamed as she looked at Din. "Kay!" Her voice rung out as she prepared one last pounce towards the grasshopper. She had her purpose, that bug would be hers. Or at least she hoped. 'Luck be with me~'
Tail lashed out as she moved. This time luck was with her. The grasshopper was trapped in between her paws. "Yes! Yes!" Luti nearly jumped for joy before remembering the 'prey' in her grasp.
"Din! I did it!" She giggled while trying to scoot over with the grasshopper. It tickled her the pads of her paws. The cub was so happy that she didn't notice the small head of the grasshopper was peering out from the space in between her paws.
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Posted: Sat Nov 14, 2009 9:16 pm
Din's eyes lit up, though he tried unsuccessfully to hide it. He was still young, when he grew older he would become more controlled but he was thrilled. Leaping forward, he scurried to his sister's side. Peering at her paws, he grinned.
“Well done, Luti!” He rarely used her nickname, it wasn't proper, but no one else was around and he didn't even seem to notice the slip. “You made your Pad proud!” He grinned, nudging her lightly but careful not to do it too hard. If he pushed her over, she'd loose the cricket.
“Ahh,” he said slowly, trying to think. What on earth were they going to do with the cricket? They couldn't eat it...well, they could but it wouldn't be that nice to eat. They could kill it, but that was a waste of a life, really.
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2009 3:56 pm
Luti's face glowed from her brother's praise. Even her tail obviously waved like a banner of pride as she looked at him. "Thanks! I mean-" She paused bashfully, "I'm glad that I'm able to make my Pad proud."
She giggled losing the 'Banu' look as she barely nudged him back. Laughter erupted from her though as she fought to keep still, "The 'hopper tickles!" Luti spoke quickly after she managed to breath between fidgets.
Her eyes, innocently blinked up at Din before she looked back down. "May...may I..." Luti trailed off before frowning. Would Din get angry if she asked to release it? Cause she really didn't want to kill it for nothing...Could she request that of her 'Pad'?
A small idea formed as the cub cried out again, "Oooh!" She wobbled to the side and watched with wide eyes as the grasshopper hopped away.
"I'm sorry, Din." Luti whispered with a sniffle, "Is it okay though? Since...the hopper wasn't that much of a prey?"
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Posted: Sat Nov 21, 2009 4:16 pm
Aziz'Din hid a grin at her attempt to stay 'Banu' like despite the fact she was practically glowing with joy. Laughing lightly to himself, not very loudly as she nudged him back, he peered down at her paws as she giggled.
“That's 'cause it's trying to get out and your paws are in the way,” he said, stating the obvious but trying to make it sound clever.
Tilting his head to the side as she started to say something but cut herself off, staring at the ground. He frowned a little, about to tell her to just say what she wanted to, when she wobbled. Eyes widening, he tried to stop her from wobbling too much but it was too late. The grasshopper got away and he watched it disappear into the surrounding area.
“It's okay, Luti,” Aziz'Din said quietly when she sniffled.
“We'd already done we could do with it, since it would be pretty horrible to eat it.” He crinkled his nose a little, before smoothing it out again. Crinkling ones nose didn't suit a Pad.
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