[PRP] Bird Talk (Dahfika, Dar'fuku and Osmunda)

[Mogami]

Dahfika was sitting outside the den, watching as lions all around her moved along with a purpose, always followed by a winged companion. She was fascinated by all the birds and her bright blue eyes followed the creatures with a strange intensity as they flew around her and above her head or moved closer to look back right back at the cub.

She couldn’t wait to have a companion of her own. Actually she was making it one of her goal to find one as soon as possible and to be the first one of her siblings to bond with a bird. An awesome bird! Like Fai and Pisha, her parents' companions.  

[Epine de Rose]

Mogami

They'd grown up thinking that it was completely normal to be in the company of the birds. Unbeknownst to Dar'fuku, there were creatures beyond the border that dined on them without a second thought! Suffice to say that if he'd known he would have been positively horrified, but as they said, ignorance was bliss and as a cub he really didn't need to know that sort of thing. In time he would probably be exposed to it, but for now he could live a life of naivity and enjoy the pride that he lived in.

Alas, one thing he couldn't enjoy was a lie-in.

The sun had risen and with it, he had been nudged unceremoniously out of his slumber. It was better to be busy and active than turn into a sloth and as such, he had soon stumbled out of the den to flop down beside his sibling. Bleary eyes gazed towards her and it was only when he saw her pricked ears and considerable interest in the other pride members that he followed her gaze.

"Whatcha doin'?" he asked curiously.  

[Mogami]

Dahfika recognized the voice of her brother and she turned her head quickly to look back at him, her bright blue eyes lingering on the little heart on his hip. She grinned, silently enjoying the little similarities that betrayed the family bond between the two of them.

“I’m watching the birds!” the little cub said excitedly and her eyes returned to the pride members and their winged companions. “What kind of birds do you think we’ll have? Do you think we’ll find them soon? How do we convince them to stay with us?” she asked in one breath, doing her best to keep many other questions to herself.  

[Epine de Rose]

Mogami

There was something to be said for family ties and the little heart upon both their rears really did give them away. At a distance someone might be able to feign ignorance, but up close, it was blindingly obvious that they were of the same blood and potentially just as mischievous! Admittedly, Dar'fuku had been very well behaved in recent months but this didn't necessarily mean that he couldn't be a hellion when he desired to be. Fortunately for the general populace, he was channelling his inner 'good boy' today.

"Oh," he replied after a few moments and then shook his head, truth be told, he hadn't given the subject much thought even though father had explained that one day he would need to find a companion. "I don't know, maybe a small one?" he said finally, pursing his lips in thought as he considered his sister's question. "I always get stuff stuck in my teeth so a tiny one could pick the stuff out way quicker than I can, you know?"

...Evidently, he hadn't considered how terrifying that might be for the bird!

"What about you?" he asked curiously and offered a smile, "You figured out who you want yet?" he continued. He didn't answer all of her questions and for good reason, he didn't know the answer to them and they needed some serious consideration. They were valid though because he really didn't know how you were meant to persuade them to stay...

Ask?

Bribe?

Who knew...  

[Mogami]

Epine de Rose

“Small…? I think I want a really big one... like a giant eagle or something.” The blue-eyed cub grinned, opening her front paws and hitting the air with wide movements as if she were flapping a pair of imaginary wings.

“Ugh! That’s so gross!” Dahfika exclaimed with a strange expression that flickered between disgust and amusement. Honestly, that as such a boy thing to say! What animal on his right mind would want to get his head full of lion slobber? “Yeah… I want a big bird. Maybe one that looks a little like me..? That would be awesome, right?”

With a dreamy expression, the young cub stood up and eyed the cloudy sky.

“You’ll see! I’m gonna find one soon. I can feel it!” she looked back at her brother and giggled. He was probably going to be the last one to find a winged companion because girls were better than boys at… well, everything. And she was definitely going tobe the first one to get the (perfect) avian. Or so she believed.
 

[Epine de Rose]

Mogami

His sister was a touch crazy, at least that was his opinion and he was sticking to it. She was so energetic and so very determined that even he was starting to believe that she was right. They'd walk around a corner and BAM there would be her eagle, chilling out, on some branch all 'Sup?' to them. She would single handedly put her siblings to shame by finding such an epic companion and leave them gawking in her wake.

"Not gross, practical," he corrected her with an impish grin and batted a paw out towards her nose. "Gotta keep my teeth clean some how, you know?" he pointed out and shook his head. She may be appalled by the idea but there were bids out there that did it and they seemed happy with their job too! "Besides, if I didn't then I'd have horrible breath and you would hate it if I breathed on you," he pointed out, his grin transforming into something slightly more devillish.

"That and smaller birds are more useful, they can fit into tinier areas and get cooler treasures," he mused and motioned to one of the trees nearby. "Like up there in one of those little holes. Betcha an eagle couldn't get in there."  

[Mogami]

Dahfika’s expression continued to show disgust and it was clear she was still not convinced. But she let his reasoning pass without a comment because he clearly believed in what he’d just said… and yes, she had to agree that having someone with bad breath breathing down on her did not sound particularly good, not really.

“I guess…” she started pensively, lifting her head to look at the top of the tall tree. “But… uhm... I think I still like bigger birds better. They can help us hunt and protect us from baddies.” Her voice quickly grew in excitement and the turned to face her brother with wide smile, as if she’d just remembered something. “And, and! If I find one quickly before I become too big, maybe I can get him to carry me up the tree and show me the sky!! Wouldn’t that be awesome?! I would love to be able to fly!”  

[Epine de Rose]

Mogami

His sister really wasn't sold on the idea of a tiny bird at all, he suspected that she would definitely end up with a massive bird that would probably put his to shame. If she wanted an eagle, she was going to get one, and he'd bet a lot on that fact...he sure as heck wasn't going to question her on that score. Even at this age the cub knew there were some things you didn't argue with females about and being 'right' was one of them!

...Ah, his father would be so proud of him.

"But we'll be big and strong soon so we'll be able to fight our own baddies - have you seen the size of dad? I'ma be a giant!" he announced with such conviction that the world probably should have believed him. "But..." he paused briefly to consider her dream and turned his own gaze skywards. If he was entirely honest with himself, the ability to fly would be pretty amazing. "You know, I think you're right, that would be really cool..." he murmured.

"Oooh but I know how we can pretend to fly!"  

[Mogami]

Epine de Rose

“Are you going to be a Guard then? When you grow up?” Dahfika asked with a pensive expression, suddenly realizing she had no idea what kind of tasks interested her. Her future had never once crossed the mind of the cub but it was something the adults might start asking her soon. “So what do you want to be when you grow up?”, she could hear it already. Honestly, the blue-eyed girl had no idea. Thankfully, such serious though were quickly disrupted by her brother’s last words.

“You do?! How?” she jumped closer to Dar’fuku, eyes shining brighter as she looked him over and then turned to the surrounding area. “What do you mean Dar? How?!”  

[Epine de Rose]

Mogami

"I don't know..." he replied honestly, hesitating briefly at the question. He hadn't really given his future much thought, then again, was it realistic to expect any cub to do so? It just seemed to be so far away that it had never been a concern and since their parents never brought it up, he'd never thought about it either! He seemed to consider her question for a few moments before shaking his head, he didn't know and that was that, he'd probably never know until it actually happened.

"Doesn't matter, can always work that out later," he said with a firm nod and flashed a smile to his sister. It was then that he promptly dropped the subject and his smile became more impish. Now they were talking! She wanted to know what it felt like to fly and he knew how! It was with this in mind that he gave a dramatic wave of his paw and bounded away, heading towards the small 'lake' that existed nearby. It wasn't extensive by any means, but it served a purpose, especially for cubs.

"Follow, follow!" he instructed.  

[Mogami]

Epine de Rose

“Yeah… later.” Dahfika grinned, happy to find that she wasn’t the only one who hadn’t seriously considered her future role in the pride. She followed after her brother with a curious and slightly confused expression. It made little sense to go to the lake considering the current direction of the conversation in her opinion.

“Ah… Dar? Why are you taking me to the water…?” He better not be pulling a trick on her or Dahfika would throw his big pink paws in the lake before he could say Oops! “I don’t get it, Dar… Why are we going to the lake…? Dar...?” Needless to say, Dahfika wasn’t a quiet girl. If she had a question, she would ask it as many times as it took until she got an answer.  

[Epine de Rose]

Mogami

Whoever Dahfika elected to mate with was going to be driven positively mad by her endless questions, but as a cub, Darfuku was impervious to them! He merely grinned impishly at her continued queries and without explanation, bounded off to the right and away from the lake. It seemed he had no intention of heading directly towards it and instead, he was heading upwards. Clambering higher and higher up the rocky slope towards the 'peak' that rested comfortably against the lake itself.

It was a diving board.

"Tada!" he announced with a flourish and cast his gaze downwards towards the lake below. Fortunately he had done this before and knew that it was deep enough for a cub. "We can fly from up here," he announced triumphantly to Dahfika and smiled.

"I much prefer the term 'suspended animation'," interjected a quiet voice from one of the trees nearby, a glance in that direction revealed a blue bird perched comfortably on one of the lower branches. "Given that you lack wings, it would be impossible for you to fly..." it pointed out.

"Bird!" Darfuku remarked, evidently one for stating the obvious.  

[Mogami]

Epine de Rose

“Where are you going, Dar?” Dahfika asked with a small frown as she chased after her brother. It didn’t take long for the cub to realize what he was trying to show her and she let out a good-natured laugh. “You mean… we can fall from up here. Do you really think that…?” her question was cut short as the blue bird spoke. Dahfika’s eyes widened and the cub froze when her blue eyes found the shape of the beautiful winged creature perched in a nearby tree.

“Hello!” she greeted the bird cheerfully, taking a couple of steps towards the tree before taking a quick look around. “Are you alone? Where is your companion?”