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 Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 12:33 pm
Stars were beginning to dot the sky, but the sun hadn't sunk beneath the horizon completely yet.
Tariq'ra'd was near his own personal den site. O'tep had gone out to hunt, and Ukoo was tending to the cubs inside. Every time Tariq had to send someone on a hunt, he always realized how much easier things would be if he only had more banu. But then he'd also realize, more banu meant more cubs. And right now, the number of cubs were what was hindering the whole hunting process.
The male sighed and reclined in the grass, eyes half-lidded. Well, he supposed slow hunting was alright, considering he should be happy to have so many offspring.
And such good banu...
Tail coiling behind him, the male let out a grin and flicked his pink eyes around the area. O'tep was hunting, Ukoo was inside...
Where had Orah gone to?
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Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 12:40 pm
Hunting was... awkward lately. She was short of breath faster, felt more clumsy, and the way she seemed to be ravenous all the time made it hard to concentrate on stalking. Not that she was that great of a huntress to start with... but she could usually feed herself and sometimes had some left over to share. But the last few times she'd hunted, she'd come back empty handed and miserably tired... all of which added up to her avoiding Tariq and to a point the other banu as well. Truthfully, she was embarrassed... she couldn't even contribute to the 'family' that had housed her for so long, and the male that had taken her in and care for her.
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Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 12:51 pm
Just as Tariq'ra'd had been wondering where Orah had gone to, the answer came to him almost immediately. The smell of a fresh kill entered the male's black nose and he closed his eyes to concentrate on its location. Pink eyes flashing open once again, Tariq got to his feet with a smirk and headed off in the direction of the scent. He only had to round a corner to find the source.
Orah was hobbling back to the den, a gazelle in her mouth. Tariq's face spread into a grin and he gave Orah a searching look.
Sometimes both O'tep and Ukoo would hunt together, but only rarely, as Tariq didn't want to make Orah feel uncomfortable having to take care of a bunch of cubs. He'd been rather laid-back with his newest banu, letting her adjust to things, lest he scare her away with a sudden horde of duties and requests. Apparently his method had worked, because Orah was bringing food home on her own without being asked at all.
"Well, well, well," Tariq started lowly, teeth still flashing a grin as he approached the lioness. "what do we have here?"
Needless to say, Tariq was pleased.
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Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 1:01 pm
Orah started when the object of her musing suddenly appeared, dropping her kill at her feet as she jerked her head up. She'd have blushed if she could have, laying her ears back as she dropped her eyes to the ground.
"Oh! Hello, Tariq. I'm sorry, did I disturb you? I was just... going back to the den..." She trailed off as she shrugged her shoulders, finally sighing and relaxing. Well, so much for sneaking. She was found and not much she could do about it now.
"I'm sorry I've been so useless lately... You've done so much for me already and you've been so kind. I truly do want to be helpful." There, it was out in the open. Hopefully he'd be kind again and not too disappointed with her.
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Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 1:16 pm
Tariq's grin eased back into a smirk and his head moved just slightly, listening to Orah's words and comprehending them. She was a nice girl...a good one. Out of all the banu he had, Tariq felt more and more that she...wouldn't turn out bad. Maybe she would be the best banu. Maybe not his beybanu, but...a good banu. So far, he had had more than a few problems with the rest of his harem, especially when it came to Weyard...but she was long gone.
But Orah was different. And Tariq hoped that she'd stay different.
"You haven't been useless," Tariq said, seeming amused. He lowered his head to stare up at his banu through his black bangs, wondering about what was going on in her head. "you help me more than you know." he explained, walking closer. He bent his head down to examine the kill, then lifted his head to gaze back at Orah.
"I could push you to do more things, but what good would that do?" he asked, cutting a glance side-ways at her. He pawed at the gazelle, giving his paws something to do while the wheels of his mind turned. "Besides, you're still pretty new here...it's fine if you take time to get used to things...right?"
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Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2010 1:25 pm
The dark lioness couldn't help a small smile, rather pleased that he thought her useful, helpful. Its all she really wanted, anyway.
Sure, she could leave whenever she wanted, but it was harder to think about why she'd want to leave. Why not stay, after all? She had safety and friends here. Out there she had... what? Her missing memories? It was a hard choice, but till she remembered something, it was okay to stay. Besides, with all the cubs, there was always a need for a huntress and food... even if that brought her back to the problem of her failing skill at hunting.
"I suppose you're right... you've never asked me for anything, but I feel as though I should repay you some, and I know how much help you need, with all the cubs. Its why I feel bad, with how little hunting I've been doing lately. Its just... harder now, and I'm not sure why. Maybe I'm just over tired..." Though that was hard to believe, when she slept so much as well. Even she knew she slept more than the other banus did, and ate more besides.
She seemed to miss his hinting that eventually she wouldn't be new any more and wouldn't need to get used to anything anymore.
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