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 Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 5:07 am
Lately, it seemed as though something had happened in Raziela's mother's life - as if some catalyst had sprung her into taking action to secure the futures of her children. It didn't take a genius to figure out what - the birth of a non-noble cub had no doubt been a hefty blow to Maua's confidence - but it did take one to figure out how to stop her.
If Raziela had heard correctly, and she was quite sure she had because her source - Derasan - was notoriously adept at keeping up with pridal gossip, then her mother must have made some not-so-subtle suggestions not only to herself, but to her brother as well as to who she thought would make suitable partners for marriage. These potential candidates had been (what else) extremely purple individuals, no doubt in an attempt to minimize the chances of more non-noble children to taint their noble bloodline, and while Raziela was certain that her mother's efforts had been taken with nothing but good intentions, she was beginning to feel... pressured, for lack of a better word.
More than once, Maua had mentioned that purple guard she had met, Laertes, and had mentioned just how very purple he was. Raziela was pleased and grateful to know that she had a mother who was so very invested in her future, but sometimes, enough was enough.
Still, her mother was her mother, and lately, the dark lioness had been considering the prospect of taking the time to at least get herself acquainted with this Laertes, if for no other reason than to have something to keep Maua occupied for a while. It seemed like a fair enough plan, and a win-win situation. So she wandered along the path, very much lost in thought as she weighed the pros and cons of such an action.
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Posted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 6:31 pm
 Laertes' shift had just ended but the purple lion was far from tired. He was planning on making a quick stop at his den – maybe not so quick if he suddenly felt the need for a well-deserved nap – and he was considering spending a few hours with the lower class. Watching the Artisans at work, the Players practicing for the next show, getting news from the outside from a passing Merchant or talking to the occasional Groundling that visited the area. There was so much to do when the pride was always bubbling with activity! And Laertes loved to be a part of it. He might even get to see a few Ladies walking around with their noses held high... slowly walking up the path as made his way up the mountain, the Guard started to wonder if it wouldn't be best to skip the whole den visit altogether. And then he saw a dark lioness, one that greatly resembled the Lady he'd met a few days before... Maua, wasn't it?
Excuse me? The words formed in his mind but he couldn't bring himself to speak them. Wouldn't it be weird if he were to suddenly approach her just because he'd met her mother? And she was definitely a Noble and, as such, of higher rank... would she take offense if he started talking?
“Good day, miss.” he said at last as he drew closer. He bowed his head politely but showed no other signs of stopping, passing the choice to the lioness.
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 3:07 am
"Good day, kind sir," Raziela replied, with every intention of continuing to walk by the lion when she noticed his purple coat. A wonder, to say the least, that he had been the first to greet her in passing! Their pride was, after all, a rather patriarchal society and males were traditionally held in much higher esteem than any female, no matter how purple her coat may be. It wasn't as much a point of contention in Raziela's life as a simple fact that she had grown up accepting and would continue to live with, but mere acceptance didn't make incidents like this any less surprising.
There were always moments here and there when even the lower class males took advantage of their gender and disregarded her status as a Noble, but that, too, was simply the way things were and she had no intention to try and change it. Nor did she chafe against the disadvantages of her gender. There was nothing much that she might have gotten out of rebellion, for the life of a Noble involved little more than meetings and audiences with the king and other similarly purple members of the pride.
"Oh, excuse me, sir," Raziela added, more as an afterthought than anything. She had already passed the dark lion when it occurred to her to say something, and she doubled back quickly to catch him. "I do hope I am not being a bother. It's silly, really, but I would very much like to say thank you. It isn't too often that females are afforded as much respect as males, and pardon me if I'm being too presumptuous, but it did seem as though you would have addressed a lion the same way, so, thank you."
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 11:19 am
“Ah, that is one… ah, the one custom in this pride that I don’t really think I can ever assimilate. I’m relatively new to the Suka’Fumo, you see, and my mother taught me very differently.” Wow, they had barely exchanged words and he had already talked about his mother. Was that odd? If he wasn’t careful, he’d find himself labeled as a Momma’s Boy. “No need to thank me, really.”
Laertes had come in contact with many prides while he lived in the rogue lands so he could understand they all had their different ideas, customs and traditions. When the purple lion encountered something he just couldn’t accept, he simply left the place – extreme discrimination and slavery were at the top of his most-hated list. The Suka’Fumo rules, however, didn’t really bother the purple lion. Anyone who didn’t want to belong to the lower class was free to join the Groundlings in the forest or leave the pride altogether and not all males adhered to the open belittlement of females – though he had to admit most did. Still, the pride’s advantages far surpassed its flaws as far as Laertes was concerned.
“I was actually tempted to stop and have a word with you but I, too, did not wish to become a bother.” He smiled, thinking about his meeting with the noble Lady a few days before, wondering if she had mentioned him to her family members. This was one of his daughters, most likely, if the markings were to be trusted. “I believe I met your mother the other day… Lady Maua? I am Laertes.”
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 7:20 pm
"I suppose there would be some advantages to living outside the pride, then," she said with a smile. Her mother had always taught her that good manners to paramount to having a proper image, and she had little trouble appreciating them when she saw them. Still, it wasn't as though she had much to gripe about. As a part of the upper class, she was already afford much more respect than some of the ladies in the lower class, whom she pitied from time to time. Then again, those ladies married for love, whereas her chances of doing so... well she wasn't quite sure about those chances. She had never quite considered them in the first place.
Her ears pricked in surprise at the mention of her mother. Her eyes widened slightly as she put two and two together, almost at the very same moment that he offered his name. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh. So this was Laertes! Unbidden, a short laugh made its way up out of her muzzle, and she shook her head hastily. "Oh, I apologize. It's just, I've heard quite a lot about you from my mother - mostly about how purple you are - and, well, you aren't quite what I had expected." In all the best ways, of course. He was far more polite and respectful than she had expected him to be, from her mother's description. Not that Maua had had anything bad to say about Laertes. It was simply that purpleness meant power, and power tended to mean... arrogance, which certainly didn't seem to be the case with Laertes.
"I am Raziela Liron," she added. "So very pleased to make your acquaintance, Laertes."
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 7:55 pm
The male’s ears twitched and his smile widened without him realizing. He had a curious expression, of one who is eagerly waiting to be let in on a private joke.
“She did?” Laertes had to admit he was a little surprised. He’d expected a brief mention of his name – maybe a comment regarding his rank – but nothing more. But he had offered to escort Maua’s daughters should they ever require it and the Lady had told him he should socialize more. It made sense in a way that she would mention him but he still found the way Raziela put it somewhat suspicious. She was talking about him a lot? How odd… “Well, I certainly hope you are not disappointed. Raziela Liron… it’s such a lovely name. The pleasure is all mine, I assure you.”
He chuckled lightly, his mind going back to the conversation he’d had with the lioness’ mother just a few days before. At some point, he had thought Maua to be somewhat… intense? Focused? In many ways, she reminded him of his own mother and he had trouble thinking of her in any other way than with a respectful fondness.
“Speaking of your mother, congratulations on your new siblings. It must be nice have the little ones around. How many are there?”
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 8:37 pm
"Oh, not at all," she reassured him with a bright smile. He had been a very pleasant surprise, after what she had been expecting, and it wouldn't do to scare him off - not only because Maua would have been somewhat angry, but also because it simply didn't seem altogether fair to him. Of course, she imagined that he would have turned around and fled anyway if he had known what her mother had been getting up to.
"Thank you," she said, accepting the compliment with as much grace as she could muster. "Your name is no less lovely, although in a different way, I suppose. I quite like it, and I daresay it suits you." She hardly knew him at all, but that was beyond the point. It wasn't as though she was lying. His name did seem quite fitting for a noble guard like himself.
"Again, thank you," she said again, her smile widening at the thought of the little ones running about her parents' den. It made life quite a bit more interesting to have cubs about. "My parents couldn't be more pleased with them." That... wasn't entirely true. She knew Maua had but one regret with this second litter, and no doubt poor Damisi was feeling the consequences of not being purple, but Raziela suspected that her mother did love the cub all the same. She just... probably didn't show it as well. "It was quite a large litter. There are eight of them, plus the two little orphans that my parents adopted from the forest not long ago. It's quite busy there nowadays."
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Posted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 8:56 pm
Laertes bowed his head a little when the lioness complimented his name in return. He found it a little easier to talk to Raziela so he had to keep reminding himself not to fall into an informal speech. He had no idea that one of the cubs had been born without purple – Maua certainly hadn’t mentioned that little tidbit. And while it was likely that the social lion would soon grown comfortable within the gossiping circles, at the moment Laertes was very much ignorant of all the rumors that afflicted the Suka’Fumo upper class. And that included little Damisi.
“Oh my, you mother must be quite busy then.” A big litter and two adopted cubs? Laertes liked cubs but even he had to admit that sounded rather… nightmare-ish. “Your parents are very kind. I wasn’t part of that search as I believed I’d just get myself lost as well in the unfamiliar territory. I did cover the shift of another Guard who knows the area a little better and he went to look for them. Luckily, all the cubs were found unharmed.”
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Posted: Thu Apr 14, 2011 5:09 am
"She certainly is," Raziela agreed. Though she had no experience raising children, she had no doubt that it was tiring business that extended beyond the cubs' childhoods. Her own mother was still busy searching for suitable mates for her grown children, after all. "But I suspect Lochan will be moving out soon. He's a little older than the others, so he will be capable of taking care of himself in no time."
She nodded, thinking back to the pride-wide cub hunt that had happened not long ago. That had been the first time she had wandered into the forest, and she had to admit, if it hadn't been for the urgent task of locating the missing children, she would never have considered going so close to the Groundlings. Raziela considered herself much more open and willing to accept creatures from across the classes than most Nobles, but even she remained wary of the frivolous creatures in the forest.
"It was definitely a relief," she said with a smile. "And a reassuring thought to know that so many of the pride are willing to sacrifice their time and energy to help creatures in need."
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Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 2:25 pm
“Aw, that is a shame. Having an older brother around would probably be very helpful.” It was so odd thinking about how a family could be separated because of something as simple as color. Sure, they were talking about an older cub that had been adopted and therefore hadn’t been with the noble couple for a very long time but it still felt strange to have a deadline on their shared time together. Of course, they could always visit the boy in the commoner areas even he couldn’t return to Elsinore but still... families shouldn’t be tore apart like that.
“Oh yes I thought so, too. It only served to confirm I made the right choice by staying here. There’s something special about this place.” The blue-eyed lion looked around with a soft grin. “By the way, I really don’t want to keep you from whatever you were doing. I was going to make a quick stop at my den but I’d be happy to escort you wherever you’re going.” Or... just leave her alone. She was probably fine on her own as well.
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Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 9:12 pm
Raziela nodded her agreement. Having Lochan around to help with the cubs would have made things much simpler, perhaps, but there was no denying the factors that would drive him out of her parents' den: he would be taking up some much-needed space, and he simply wasn't purple. Although the dark lioness had to admit that it was a shame, she couldn't imagine defying the traditions that she had taken for granted all her life. It was simply the way things were, and unfortunate as it was, there wasn't really anything to be done about it.
"Special indeed," she said with a smile. It seemed to mean even more that Laertes was saying it. He had seen other things, after all, other prides and other lions, and somehow, it was her pride that stood out as something special. It meant that everything she had thought growing up was true, that she didn't treasure her home simply because she had known nothing else and had nothing to compare it to.
"Oh, you needn't worry," she said quickly with a small shake of her head to assuage his fears. "The life of nobility lends very little to do and too much spare time to spend as I like. Truth be told, I was headed toward no real destination. Sometimes, I think I could make better use of my time, take up a real career like you have perhaps. Certainly, guarding the pride is more productive than... not."
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Posted: Mon Apr 18, 2011 10:39 pm
“Yes, I felt it quite clearly when I tried to settle in into the role of a Noble. It was a great change from the rogue life I’ve led and I’m afraid it really didn’t suit me. Strangely enough, I still find myself privileged amongst my peers… if you ever do join the working ranks, you might find some measure of resistance in your mother.” he spoke playfully but in his mind reconsidered what he’d just said carefully. They had just met and Raziela didn’t know the purple lion’s opinion of her mother – whose opinion he greatly respect even though he barely knew Maua. Laertes didn’t want to create any misunderstandings. “You see, I believe I was admonished – very gently! – by Lady Maua when we met because of that decision. I’d hate to think she’d consider me a bad influence on her daughters.” Hopefully she wouldn’t bring his name into an argument… especially when she had a much better example in her own family.
He laughed, thinking about the previous conversation. Maua had spoken about undisclosed things that he could’ve done with his time as a Noble had he been probably guided. Laertes had accepted it as truth though the way Raziela spoke had him wondering if the life of a Noble wasn’t really just as idle as he’d found it to be.
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Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 7:17 am
Raziela smiled, shaking her head lightly. "I can think of at least one reason why that would be so," she remarked, though whether she considered the source of that privilege his purple coat or apparently winning personality was anybody's guess. Most likely, it was a combination of both, for while any fellow with a coat as purple as Laertes' had enough to warrant respect, anyone with enough charm could win their peers over almost as easily.
"I imagine that would be her default reaction," the lioness agreed pensively, though her thoughts concluded with another small shake of her head. "I don't suppose I ever would join the working ranks... but perhaps only because I would have to fight for full support." It was a shame, she suspected, but another one of those aspects of her life that little would change.
"That would probably be the last thing she would think," she reassured him with a wry smile. He didn't know what it had been like with Maua's first litter - the teen pregnancies and rebel flings and falling in love with Players - so Raziela wasn't surprised he felt that way, but if he had known, she imagined he would have drastically reconsidered his words. It wasn't difficult to find a Noble whose life held less drama than theirs. "As it were, I happen to know that she thinks rather highly of you, Laertes, so you needn't worry too much."
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Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 9:45 am
“Ah well…I’d say the best things are the ones we have to fight for. But I believe that also counts as unwarranted encouragement…” he laughed, his expression permanently marked with a playful grin especially when he caught Raziela’s wry smile and tried to silently – and then not so silently - decipher it. “Mmm…? Well, I’m quite pleased with that. Your mother seemed like... a force to be reckoned with and earning her approval makes me rather happy, I admit.”
“A very respectful and proper lady, your mother. But strong! She reminds me of my own, really.” A comparison that Maua would probably resent as Laertes’ mother failed to show a hint of purple on her coat. Well, no one needed to know that.
“Before we start looking somewhat foolish by just standing here the whole afternoon, what do you say we take a short walk and see what the Players and Artisans are doing? We might even catch a passing Merchant or two.” Laertes gave the noble girl the invitation lightly, thinking that he could go to his den later. Right now, escorting a pretty girl on a walk was a much more appealing prospect. He turned on the spot but kept his eyes on Raziela, wondering if she’d accept. Lady Maua would probably approve, he supposed - and hopefully this idea wouldn’t backfire later.
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Posted: Mon Apr 25, 2011 9:16 pm
She was tempted to comment on his earning Maua's approval, but decided it would be smarter - and more proper - to refrain, at least for the while. If and when she got to know him better, perhaps, but burdening him with her family's idiosyncrasies at this point certainly did not reflect proper manners. In any case, she had been pleasantly surprised by Laertes' pleasant demeanor, and the last thing she wanted at this point was to accidentally chase off a potential friend. There was a certain openness to him that she rarely found in other Nobles, and it was a welcome change indeed.
"I'm glad you think that, as she will be, no doubt. She works harder to cultivate her image than anybody I know. I suppose it has paid off by now. I do hear good things about her from other Nobles." And of course, she was proud of Maua for that, though Raziela herself hadn't quite the same interest in social standings. She put in the effort simply because it was one of the few duties she had to fulfill as a lioness in the upper class, and not because she felt too strongly about it.
"The Players are-" Rehearsing for a major production in several weeks, was what she had meant to say before she had had the good sense to stop. The response had come without her having quite realized it, and now she couldn't help but think how close she had come to revealing her friendship with Derasan to another Noble. Laertes didn't seem anything like the Nobles she was used to, but that didn't mean she could go about telling him absolutely everything to do with her life. She had had enough trouble with Nobles telling her mother about the pale lion before, and she had learned to be rather careful. "... fascinating." She finished. "Their work, I mean. I do rather enjoy theater. It would certainly make for an interesting trip.
"You were talking about your mother," she added, hastily changing the subject as she began to walk. "Did she come here with you then?"
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