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 Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2011 5:10 pm
In the end, An had shown up first. Her mouth had been full of various new plants that she'd rooted up from the 'farthest anyone had ever been out in the desert'. How she could know that was surely going to be up to debate. Also up for debate was why she'd carry so many of the plants in her mouth after the last few had nearly poisoned Veru. In either case, the medical ward was in capable hands with the young huria. He had a feeling perhaps too capable, but that was for Ea to worry about.
So Vlam struck out into the heart of the pride, heading towards his brother's usual roost. As he approached, it did occur to him that putting himself in Kidondo's sights was not the wisest of plans. He did, after all, spend a rather unhealthy amount of time around his daughter. And although Vlam was much changed from the young male he'd once been, he still had the reputation for being somewhat sketchy. Not that he would have minded enforcing that reputation a bit... but he supposed that was just wishful thinking.
It wasn't a far walk, but he'd chosen the rocky path. He had fleeting hopes that he could train his strength back up, and perhaps gain better use of his front legs... but the walk left him winded and sore. Hopefully Azar would chose to take the lighter path back to the regents. The last thing he needed was more people seeing how weak he'd become.
With no way to signify his arrival, he simply sat outside. He'd grown accustomed to waiting, and he was in no hurry.
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 9:25 am
Luckily Azar was more than ready to get going. He was fidgety and nervous - though he'd never admit it - and was wondering whether this was a good idea or not. After all, the last thing he wanted to do was piss of the leaders and end up getting a demotion! His ego would not stand for it. Even still, Azar'bijan had his pride to think about and after all the fuss he had made he was certainly not going to take it back and pretend it hadn't happened. He didn't want his brother thinking him a coward!
But...if they didn't get going soon, he was almost certain he wouldn't be able to gather to courage needed to face them.
So, when he peered out from the den and saw the large white shape of his brother, Vlam, waiting patiently for him to appear, he scoffed and charged across to him, giving him a shove. "There you are. Thought you weren't going to make it." With a huff, the red lion moved past his brother and strode off towards the domain of their Regents. Luckily for Vlam, Azar was too lazy to even consider taking the longer and more tiring path, cutting straight across in the most direct route possible.
"We better at least find one of them at home else I'm going to be real mad." Azar was saying. "Damn time wasters..."
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 9:43 am
Vlam dipped his head as his brother approached. It seemed time had not eased Azar's mood for the better. Even more irritated, he noted, as the other male knocked into his side. All the more proof that this ordeal be handled quickly. It was wrong of the regents to slight his family's honor this way. Whether or not they'd care, however... Vlam wasn't certain. What he knew of the regents was so jumbled with the impressions of others that it was often hard to discern what was true and what wasn't.
But they were Ea's parents. Better to take this with some caution. It wouldn't do to have Azar blasting them both into exile. As they took the lighter path, Vlam stretched out his paw to stop Azar's hasty approach. With no words to warn his brother with, he simply gave a quiet shake of his head. Go easy. They were the ones wronged.
Whether or not Azar understood was up to luck. But it seemed they'd be upon the regents den within moments, and any chance to plan the encounter out strategically was evaporating. By the time they had rounded one of the rocky alcoves, it seemed time had already run out.
"What are you doing here?" Came a flat voice from ontop of one of the rocks. Vlam lifted his head, and noticed a small black cub resting in the sun. He had a sour face, the kind of face that was always unsettling on a child. One of Ea's new brothers, no doubt.
Vlam leaned towards Azar. Hraga squinted his eyes appraisingly.
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 9:56 am
He drew up short as his brother made an attempt at calming (or quieting him) before they reached the dens of the Regents and gave a short nod of understanding. "You've gotten good at this talking without talking thing." For Azar, that was pretty much as good as it got where compliments were concerned.
He continued again at much the same pace as he had before, rounding onto Regent territory a short moment later.
To say that Azar'bijan was not happy to see that moody-faced cub would have been putting it lightly. The fur on his shoulders bristled with contempt and he gave a low, warning growl. Cubs had never really been high on the lion's 'like' list. He had even treated his own children more as students or apprentices than his kids. "I don't think that is any of your business, you little brat. Now, get out of here before I--" Oh, wait, he recognised this one. Oh please, no, not another regent-spawn to plague his life!! He stilled his tongue and attempted to navigate around the child before he made things worse.
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 10:05 am
It might not have been much, but Vlam appreciated it. Not too many compliments were tossed his way these days, not even from those he was on friendlier terms with. Sometimes just being able to successfully communicate his feelings over was an accomplishment in and of itself. With victories so few and far between, even the very small ones had come to have meaning for the white lion.
...unfortunately, the victory was short lived when Azar started to slander one of the regents cubs. This wasn't going to end well. He just had a feeling. Vlam tensed and his bright eyes went wide, nudging Azar in the shoulder to stop. talking. He was beginning to regret not paying attention Ea when she had mentioned her new little siblings.
Hraga was not so amused. His whiskers puffed out, and he glowered down at the red lion. "Get out of here?" He huffed. "This is my home. Why don't you get out?"
This was a 'call mommy' situation, but Hraga was not one to cry for assistance. Instead, the black cub hopped down from the rock he had been resting on, and puffed up his fur as best he could. It looked a bit comical, but Hraga clearly did not think so. "Go away! Or I will bite you."
Vlam frowned, his ears flattening against his skull. He glanced over at Azar. Any bright ideas?
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 10:14 am
What?! No. Please, please tell him this cub was not answering back!! No smart-mouthed little brat was going to order him about! After all, he was a guard and this little pipsqueak was superior only to those blasted Huria brats. Why did no one respect him in this place? Was he not one of the best guards in this pride? He damn well though he was!
Exhaling noisily, he took a step forwards as if to taunt the youngster into 'biting' him, fully expecting to meet no more resistance.
In the same motion, his eyes slipped sideways to meet with Vlam's, but all the white lion would get in response would be another snort of displeasure. "You hear that, brother? This little pipsqueak says he's going to bite me. How much damage do you reckon his little, baby milk teeth could do?" He gave a small pause as if waiting for Vlam's answer and then continued as if he had gotten it. "That's right. Just what I thought: None." And, with a growl, he reached out a fore-paw, intending to shove the cub aside.
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 10:35 am
Vlam opened his mouth in a sad attempt to stop him. But even if he had had a voice, it didn't seem likely anything would have come out. Oh no, his mind flashed. But it was too late, Azar was moving, and the little black kitten didn't seem to be budging. He had a wild look in his green eyes. And Vlam recognized that eye.
One of them, anyways.
As soon as Azar moved to push him aside, Hraga pounced forward and clamped down as hard as he could on the other lion's paw. His teeth were small, but he didn't seem to be holding back. He got his grip once and lock jawed down upon the lion's paw, lifting up his own tiny paws to pinprick with his paws. Through clenched teeth he started to hiss. "I warned you!" he said boldly.
Vlam gaped and sidestepped around the pair, trying to look for a safe way to dislodge him. This was exactly what they needed...! One of the regents coming by to see them attacking their cub. Glancing over his shoulder, Vlam grabbed the cub's tail and gave it a few short tugs. Get off, get off!
But Hraga wasn't budging. In fact, he took the moment to hop up and kick with his back feet.
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 10:42 am
Okay. Not what he expected to happen.
It took a moment for the surprise and the pain to hit, but when it did, it showed there on Azar's face. With a yelp of surprise, the big cat waved his paw fiercely, trying to dislodge the cub and - perhaps - send him flying to his doom. (It'd serve him right!!) He did, however, manage to cease the waving when Vlam came to his air, tugging fruitlessly at the cub's tail in an attempt to dislodge teeth and claws.
"Get him off, Vlam! Get him off!"
But...that didn't seem to be helping, either.
Okay, so the teeth wouldn't do much - if any - damage. But it wasn't physical damage that bothered Azar. It was his reputation he was thinking about! What would people say if they knew he'd been disobeyed by a snot-nosed kid who was only just learning how to walk!? It would not look good. Not look good at all.
With an annoyed chuff, Azar began waving his paw again. Unlike Vlam, he didn't seem to care about the ruckus or the fact that a very angry mother and father might be lurking just around the corner. All he cared about was teaching the kid some respect! (In which he was also failing).
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 10:57 am
As Azar started to wail, Vlam's panic level skyrocketed. He grabbed the cub with his forepaws and tried to leverage him off before the noise attracted any attention. But the little kitten held fast. In fact, in the process of trying to remove the kid from Azar's arm, Vlam had gotten a pretty good kick to the face that stung the bridge of his nose. Vlam might not have been the brightest lion in the Motoujamii, but he knew when something wasn't working.
He released the cub for a moment, taking a second to reorder his thoughts. He couldn't exactly talk the kid down. The best thing to do was grab him and pull him off like a thorn, and hope that Azar's shouting and cursing wasn't going to doom them. He lifted his paw in front of Azar's face as if to warn him, and then got a better grip on the cub's squirming hindquarters.
Vlam had just started to pull [Hraga growling all the while], when a very unamused snort sounded behind them. Vlam froze in dread.
"...and, what exactly is going on here?" It was No. To their benifit, the black lioness seemed unable to even comprehend what she was looking at... at least for the moment. One look from the regent was all it took for Vlam to drop Hraga, leaving Azar and the little cub still embattled with one another.
No narrowed her eyes at the white lion, before sidestepping around Azar and removing her cub from his grasp with a tug on the back of the neck.
"I defended the den," Hraga chimed proudly.
The black cat dropped him down and gave him a rough tap on the behind. It he was getting scolded beyond that however, it remained to be seen. While No starred the two down, the cub made a dramatic show of spitting out a few tufts of Azar's fur.
"Can I help you two, or is harassing my cubs the gist of it?" She remarked curiously.
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 11:11 am
This time, Vlam's signal for quiet didn't quite make it and Azar continued to flail helplessly, both angry and surprised that the cub had managed to stay on. He certainly was a determined little fur-ball, he'd give him that!
Thus, of course, he did not notice No's approach until she spoke, looking up to see a frozen Vlam and the narrow-eyed face of Mrs Regent herself. He, like his brother, stopped dead, his paw still raised so that the cub dangled from it. The heat seemed to drain away from him, leaving him with nothing more than the cold, horrible feeling that they were about to be thrown from the pride in shame, never again allowed to show their faces in the lands. Exiled and purposeless and--
He blinked in surprise as the cub's mother easily removed the cub from his 'wounded' paw and very gently set it down on the ground. Wiggling his toes experimentally, he was glad to see them all in place, though a few tufts of fur were missing...
...And being spat from the cub's mouth.
He narrowed his eyes and couldn't stop a low growl from rattling in the back of his throat. Tail lashing, he snapped his attention back to No and felt his anger die as quickly as it had birthed. Right. They'd been caught. They were in trouble.
Exile! Doom! Shame!
So, when he received nothing more than a sharp, curious question instead of fierce, merciless anger, the lion felt that he might just have to pass out. He didn't faint, but he did stagger sideways, casting a confused look back at his brother and wishing he could get some words across to him without actually having to say anything. Sadly he could not, and he reluctantly returned his gaze to the Regent and set his jaw stubbornly.
"We certainly hope you can help otherwise--" The words died in his mouth as he finally seemed to realise that some things were better left unsaid. "We're here about an issue with an apprenticeship." He seemed to feel safer using the word 'we' and not 'I'. After all...safety in numbers, right?
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 11:25 am
Vlam swallowed. No seemed placid, but she hadn't taken her eyes off them. He could practically feel the weight of the gaze. When Azar started talking, he nodded in approval. As though somehow the silence between them could fill in his own words of apology. Business. Focus on what they were here to do. And then get out of there fast. Before that little kid started to-
...he already was. From behind No's leg, the little black cub started to leer at Azar, his green eyes flashing in mischief. It seemed the cub believe the incident to be a victory in his favor. Once he noticed Vlam looking at him too, the cub stuck out his tongue.
Distracted, Vlam shook his head and returned his vision back to No's expressionless face. Hopefully Azar could handle this. If only brothers shared telepathy! If they did, Azar would have been fed a seemingly endless stream of 'dontlookatthekid'. The regent did not seem to notice her child's antics. Or if she did, she endorsed them.
It was often hard to tell with No. "Apprenticeship? Well, I can see you are quite capable with the little ones. What was your problem?"
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 11:38 am
Azar tried not to look at the kid. He really did. The thing is, when an annoying little brat is purposefully trying to get your attention, it's the most difficult thing in the world to pretend that he doesn't exist! Rrrgh, if the kid had been his, he would have given him a good cuff and sent him home. That would have taught him a lesson!
He tensed as the cub turned his attention on taunting his brother and drew in a deep breath to try and calm himself.
Again, his eyes snapped back to No, realising that he really ought to be on his best behaviour right now. "Capable?" It took him a moment to realise the statement was leaning towards the sarcastic side. He snapped his jaws closed, took another calming breath, and continued: "A few days ago, your mate told my son that he would be a good candidate for taking on new guard apprentices." It grated on him even as he said it. "He hasn't spoken to me about this and, if you remember, I was trained by the Captain Uuo, herself. AND it was I alone who trained my son. To be overlooked like this is nothing less than an insult, as I'm sure you can understand."
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 11:49 am
No's eyebrows raised. "Oh dear, such a grave insult!"
Vlam flinched, and quickly tried to think of something. This clearly was not a good time. Perhaps, if they made their apologies and returned at a later time to discuss Azar's predicament, then...! His heart raced. Nervously, he had the misfortune of looking back at the cub. Hraga was bulging one of his eyes, staring at him in mockery. This...wasn't making the situation any easier. Vlam cleared his throat, and looked towards Azar to gague his reaction.
But it didn't seem No was finished. The black cat leaned a bit to the side, gazing off towards things unknown. It almost looked as though she'd rolled her eyes. Almost. "So, your son is an up and coming teacher, is he not? Surely that speaks of your merit as well!" She preened. "But, I see that perhaps my mate misjudged the situation."
The black cat glanced down behind her, where Hraga was still making faces. Noticing his mother's gaze, the little black cub froze in horror. "My, Hraga. Were you not just telling me how you wanted very much to be a guard?"
The cub swallowed.
No lifted her neck. Her face was lined with mischief. Sometimes the black cat simply found herself too magnificant, and this was one of those moments. "I am sorry you were offended, Azar. You wish an apprentice? Very well."
She reached around, scooping up Hraga in one sweep. "My son is too young yet to apprentice, but he's growing quite quickly I think. Surely, a guard such as yourself is up to the task?"
Hraga turned his eyes upon Azar, giving him such a sour, sour look that Vlam almost backstepped.
"I think that is enough to restore your honor. In the meantime though, why don't you boys play nice." She half sang, and started back towards her den without even waiting to see if her proposition had been accepted.
Hraga narrowed his eyes, and stared Azar down. "I don't like you." He said simply. "I think your face is dumb."
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Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 12:02 pm
Okay. So the simple fact was this: Azar did not want to be outdone by his own son. What No spoke of was truth and, really, it was how most normal parents would feel when seeing their children grow. Pride. Accomplishment. And so on. But Azar felt threatened by his son's success and, yes, he may have taught Heti well, but he hadn't meant to teach him so well that Azar was now being overlooked. Azar did have a pride issue and he did have a typical male ego, though he, in truth, was a decent guard when he wasn't shooting his mouth off and causing dramas.
"He certainly did..." He mumbled under his breath, glad now that they were discussing this with No and not Kidondo. He wasn't sure he would have behaved as well in the presence of the male.
What happened next, however, had him quickly retract that statement.
He gabbled wordlessly for a moment, trying to form a sentence but failing before even a single word was uttered. After a few attempts, he gave up, watching in unmasked horror as No turned and moved away. She was really leaving them? Surely not!! Surely this was all some huge (and really unfunny) joke!!
But sure enough, she was gone, and after a dreadful moment, Azar's eyes lowered to the small cub sitting across from him. He met Hraga's eyes, refusing to look away.
And then came the insult and Azar, for the first time in his life, felt like sobbing.
What had he ever done to deserve this?!
/fin.
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