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 Posted: Sun Dec 25, 2011 1:45 pm
((backdated to juve)) N'Seka had managed to fight the odds and actually seemed to grow healthier as he grew older. The healers had tried various treatments to make him feel better, and it seemed they had finally managed to find one that helped his body fight back the disease. Some of his healers had started to talk about remission, and that he might just be a carrier after all. He could finally understand part of why his friend Mlinzi was so fascinated by the healers and the herbs they used. Well, sort of, because he could never work up quite the same enthusiasm as the pale boy. The important part was that he felt better, and was able to play more without getting tired and cough-y. As a cub he had been content to just watch his siblings when he ran out of energy, but participating was even better he decided. He could wrestle with his brothers and even win sometimes (but when he won against his older brothers he suspected they just let him win)
He didn't reflect much on why his paws hurt less and why his cough only bothered him sometimes. He just kept taking his medicine (somewhat reluctantly) and enjoyed life in the pride. One of his favourite pastimes these days was to find a big gathering of cubs and youngsters and play until he grew tired or his mother called. These days he usually stopped playing because of the latter and he really enjoyed it.
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Posted: Sun Dec 25, 2011 1:51 pm
 Jabez had never had any health problems, and as a result he was usually among the stronger and fitter youngsters in the group. The sickly lions couldn't keep up with him and he had grown used to the fact that he was stronger than other lions his size. He liked winning so he quite enjoyed his healthy status. Someday he'd be a warrior and protect the pride from intruders, but until that happened he just practiced any chance he got. His idea of playing was to wrestle, race or to just troll around for any mischief he could get into before Auntie Bird found out and nipped his tail for being a bad boy.
Today he was hanging out with a small group of other older cubs and juveniles. It was usually more fun to play with a group after all, and he'd have more of an audience to show off to if he got the chance.
"Anyone want to race," he asked, confident that he would win, "Or wrestle?"
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2011 6:05 am
The leopard cub wasn't one of N'Sekas usual playmates, and he wasn't aware of his reputation even if he knew him by name. Jabez wasn't a very complicated name to remember, and there weren't too many youngsters his age to keep track off. He thought the leopard boy was a little bit older than him, and he seemed to be full of energy.
"I've wrestled with my brothers," N'Seka offered, ignoring the suggestion to race. He wasn't very fast, and he knew it. Another fact to consider was that he still tended to start coughing if he ran as fast as he could for too long. And since coughing reminded him of unpleasant things he usually tried to pace himself when running.
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2011 11:20 am
The young lion that had spoken didn't look very strong, and Jabez grinned at the prospect of an easy match. He knew him to be one among a large number of cubs belonging to the healer Yejide, but this black one wasn't one of the stronger looking cubs. Without wasting any time Jabez pounced, and with the element of surprise he managed to send them both rolling. This move was one of Jabez favourite ones, and he was trying to perfect it in order to be able to land on top when they stopped tumbling around. This time he was lucky, or skilled, and he ended up with both front paws on the other boy's chest.
"Gotcha!" he said and grinned.
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2011 11:27 am
If N'Seka had known that his simple statement would be taken as an invite to attack he would have braced himself, but as it was he was caught completely off guard. The larger boy knocked the wind out of him and made them both fall over. When they finally came to a stop he was lying on his back on the dusty ground, with the leopard sitting at his chest looking very pleased.
"Not fair," he said when he managed to catch his breath again, "You could have warned me before, you know."
Fair or not, he had lost this first round. But if Jabez thought he'd give up he was sorely mistaken. N'Seka had grown up surrounded by brothers in all sizes, and there was always an element of sibling rivalry when they played. N'Seka knew about fighting, at least in theory. He relaxed as much as he could, trying to fool the leopard into thinking he was giving up.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2012 2:56 pm
That had been easy! This was only the second time the leopard had tried out this particular move successfully. The first few times he hadn't managed to land on top and that kind of defeated the purpose of a surprise attack. He could still win as long as the lion on top wasn't too heavy, but this was much, much better. Why the other boy seemed to have given up already. Almost too easy...
"You need to be vigilant," Jabez said and puffed out his chest. He'd learned the word the other day and was pleased to be able to use it so soon. "Or else they'll get you. Do you think they'll warn you first?"
He wasn't sure who would get them, but probably pride enemies or whatever the guards watched for. There had to be danger and excitement out there, right? He couldn't wait to grow a bit bigger so he could go see for himself. All the playmates he practiced beating up now would give him valuable experience for later.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 1:45 pm
N'Seka made a face, but at the same time wiggled around a little to try to position himself better under the leopard. It seemed to work and he was pretty sure that Jabez hadn't noticed what he was trying to do.
"Or else who will get me," he asked and squirmed some more. "The boogieman? Or the headless lion? Or an angry God?"
N'Seka had been a naive cub, and tended to believe in whatever stories he was told. Growing up with lots of older brothers had taught him to be a little less trusting however, and he wasn't aware of any lurking foe he needed to watch out for. The leopard did have a point, he mused. It was a good thing to pay attention in a fight. He kicked out with both back legs and simultaneously rolled to the side to get out from his submissive position.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:53 pm
"Shows what you know," Jabez said and tapped a claw against the younger boy's chest. "Why do you think we have warriors to protect the borders?"
It had never really occurred to the leopard that the guards weren't just there to protect against threats from outside. Since he was immune to the disease he had never really considered the importance of protecting the outside world from the plague. But instead of admitting that Jabez was right, the lion kicked him hard in the stomach and rolled away from him. A lesser creature might have been bummed about the development, but Jabez grinned and quickly got to his feet. This was starting to get interesting!
He didn't waste his breath talking more, and he didn't break eye contact with N'Seka as he circled around the other cub like he had seen the guards do when sparring. He attacked and batted at the face of his foe with both front paws. Claws in of course... Auntie bird would have his hide if she learned he'd clawed a playmate again.
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Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 4:19 pm
"How do you like that, huh?" he said, feeling very accompliced. But that brilliant move wasn't the end of the fight from the looks of it.
N'Seka had sort of hoped that Jabez would back down when the leopard realised that he couldn't just knock him over and win. However, the other boy liked it if he was to judge by that grin. Well, he'd just have to finish this fight then. Somehow. What did his brothers usually do at this point?
N'Seka didn't have time to ponder tactics for very long, because Jabez attacked him. One paw hit him square on the cheek before he had time to dodge it, but he managed to block the next paw swipe. His first instinct was to back away, but that never worked with his brothers so he moved closer instead, trying to get a hold of the leopard with his front paws. With a bit of luck he'd be able to bite his ear or something.
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Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 2:18 pm
Jabez grinned as the lion started to offer some real competition. He was still sure he'd win, of course, but it was no fun when his playmates gave up or started crying. He met N'Seka head on, wrapping his paws around his shoulders like the guards did when they went up against each other in close combat. He was having tons of fun, even when the lion somehow managed to get hold of his ear. Ow! He yelped in surprise.
Later on as N'Seka's mane started to grow in he would gain an advantage in close combat, but for now their necks and heads were equally exposed and no thick fur protected them from too hard nips. Jabez growled and bit down on the dark fur. He wasn't doing his absolute worst, but he was far from gentle.
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:34 am
The leopard's ferocity scared N'Seka and he let go of the other boy's ear. It was different with his brothers, even if they were bigger than the leopard. With Chizoba, Zeki and the others he always knew if they were kidding around or if they were serious, and he knew they would never try to harm him. Sure, sometimes he did get hurt when they played but it was never on purpose and they usually laughed about it later. But now he felt teeth and heard growling. Cold claws of fear gripped his inside and he trashed around to try to get away.
"Hey," the harsh voice of an adult called out behind him, and he could feel Jabez let go. One of the Nannies had noticed N'Sekas wide eyed panic, or possibly heard Yabez yelp, and was approaching them to break up the fight.
"'M fine," he mumbled, and looked away, "We were just playing..."
He was grateful to get away, but the embarrassment of being bailed out by a nanny overshadowed the relief. He wasn’t keen on continuing the wrestling and he was feeling a bit shaky. The fur on the side of his neck was damp, and he wondered if he was bleeding or if it was just leopard slobber. He decided not to check since he knew that blood usually made both nannies and mommies freak out big time.
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:42 am
"Yeah," Jabez agreed, much more loudly, "We were just playing. Seka accidentally bit me, that's all. I was just surprised and it didn't even hurt!"
He was annoyed that the fun was over, but the black cub hadn't started bawling at least. He could see that the nanny was suspicious, but she couldn't do more than give him the stink eye. Still, he knew she would keep a very close eye on him from now on so to continue wrestling was out of the question. He tried his most innocent grin on the nanny (without much effect) and then decided to cut his losses and find another game. He ran up to one of the other cubs and poked him in the back, before bolting away as quickly as he could.
"TAG!" he hollered as he started sprinting, "You're it!"
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 4:18 am
N'Seka didn't look at the nanny or at Jabez, but he could almost feel her staring at him. He forced himself not to fidget, and was relieved when the leopard's loud talking diverted the attention from him. When the leopard rushed off to start a game of tag he took that as his cue to leave and go find some of his siblings instead. This little "game" had been enough to make him a bit sore, but it still beat the kind of aches the disease had caused. When he spotted one of his brothers in the distance he had already started to shake off the embarrassment and was actually smiling again. He wouldn't play with Jabez the leopard again if he could avoid it, but right now he just felt happy and alive.
"What are you doing," he called, "Want to go play?"-fin- 
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