[PRP] Matchmaker, Matchma- ...wait (Kasoro x Isifo'intombi)

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro swatted at a leaf that blew by, bored out of his mind. His new pride was great, but he couldn't find any of his normal playmates. His sister was nowhere to be found and the few cousins he had met were probably off with her. She was the more outgoing of the two, so it made sense, but the little white lion felt awfully left out sometimes.

He knew his mother would tell him to simply go find them, but he didn't want to be a bother. He could find his own playmates! There were plenty of cubs in this odd pride for him to play with, and so far none of them had been intimidated by his size. He was quite larger than the average cub, thanks to his mother's goddess status, and he had been worried that the other younglings would be terrified of him.

Kas got up from his position on the ground and headed towards the area where the nannies kept watch over the cubs. Surely that would be as good a place as any to start the hunt for a friend.

Annchen

 

[Annchen]

Isifo'intombi was a small kitling, like many of the lion cubs born in Kitwana'antara, but she came from a large family and she didn't let her size slow her down any. Both her parents were alive, but she still spent a fair enough of time with the nannies. Her mother had a job to do, after all, and her father was doubly burdened. Or blessed, as he would se it. Being diseased was almost part of the job description for a priest. But the small white kitling didn't mind much. She enjoyed the company and the wide variety of playmates.

The arrival of a white boy with interesting red markings didn't escape her notice, and she marched up to him with a friendly but determined grin on her maw.

"You're new," she informed him. "I'm Isifo'intombi, that means I'm the daughter of disease. What's your name? Do you come from outside?"

Outside was good. That was were new blood came from. And new blood was good.

Quote:

Estrilde didn't know what she thought about this, really. She knew some cubs that stayed with the nannies today, but many were new to her. She was used to large groups of kitlings, so it wasn't that. Her big, big brother was a nanny, and he had kitlings who were a bit older than her. They usually spent time together in a large group and she was fine with that. But in this group she didn't know everyone, and she wasn't sure what to expect. The young leopon nearly went cross eyed trying to keep track of everything that seemed to be happening at once.

 

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro smiled at a few of the nannies he passed as he reached the edge of the are where they watched the cubs. He hadn't been here very long, but the older lions had seemed to pick up that his mother was related to the goddess that was staying with them for the time being, and they made sure he was shown the pride's lands and told what he could and could not do. He listened, of course: he only got in trouble with his sister was around. When she was here, he'd willingly go off and look for mischief.

But for now he was content to try to make new friends. Perhaps ones that liked staying within the rules of the pride. It seemed he didn't need to try too hard to attract anyone's attention, because a rather decorated cub marched up to him within a few minutes of him being there.

Kasoro nodded a bit at the question and was about to reply, but was cut off instead. He waited for the female - Isifo'intombi apparently - to stop talking before he jumped in. "I'm Kasoro," he informed her. "And yes, I'm new. My mother brought me here because her sister is in the pride and she couldn't watch over my sister and I. She's too busy," he added with a little nod. "So now we're here. I like your wings," he added, blue eyes focusing on her markings on her back.

He looked out over the nearby cubs, his eyes falling on one that didn't look...well. Normal. "Who is that?" he asked, frowning just a bit as he nodded to the brown and striped cub. "She looks different."

Annchen

 

[Annchen]

SilverLutz

"Kasoro," Isifo'intombi said under her breath, repeating the name to be able to remember it better. She liked knowing who was who and was rather good at remembering names and faces. "Oh, who's your mother?"

She hadn't heard about any mothers with kitlings joining recently. Word usually got around when there were new babies or new members with kitlings. Babies were important. She grinned and seemed very pleased about the wing comment. Many of her siblings had wing markings, and she'd been told they came from her grandmother. Her grandmother from outside.

"Oh," she said when she saw the cub Kasoro had indicated, "She's a leopon, that's when there's a leopard daddy and a lion mommy, or the other way around I guess. I don't know her name, we should ask her."

And with that Isifo padded away to greet the striped girl.

---

Estrilde's ear perked up when one of the lion cubs headed her way. She didn't know the girl, and she wrapped her tail around her paws as if to build a small protective wall. It wasn't that she was frightened, but the older girl was not familiar and she was a little shy.

"Hello," she said in a low voice, glancing up at the two white cubs heading her way. "Are you siblings?"

They might as well be... She had a fair number of siblings and relatives so she kind of assumed that creatures that looked a bit similar were related.  

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro flipped his tail up a bit and stood a bit taller. He knew his mother was a goddess and it made him proud to know that she helped people. Well...the way Uuni dealt with things might not be considered 'helping', but that's what he got out of it when she would disappear to go tend to someone that had summoned her.

"Uuni. She didn't stay, though. She had to go off and do things so she left my sister and I here. Our aunt is here for a little bit, and we have some cousins that we live with while mom is gone." Little did he know she was never coming back, but ignorance is bliss, as the saying goes.

The white lion trotted over to the smaller feline, following Isifo closely. He snorted at the question but offered a tiny smile. He was much bigger than she and didn't want to scare her. "Nope. I just have one sister and she's off getting into trouble, I bet."

Annchen

 

[Annchen]

SilverLutz

Isifo didn't know anyone named Uuni, and couldn't know that her new friend had a Goddess mother. She silently repeated 'Kasoro' and 'Uuni' to be able to remember them better. She'd bothered enough matchmakers to know that names and lineage was a big deal. And she really, really wanted to be a matchmaker when she grew up. It was the coolest job!

"Uh-huh," she said as Kasoro told her about his family in the pride. She'd bug him about their names later, or perhaps ask to go visit and meet them. It was always fun meeting new friends.

She giggled as the younger girl asked if she and Kasoro was siblings.

"Hullo," she said with a friendly grin, "I've got a bunch of brothers and sisters, but we're not related. This is Kasoro, he's never seen a leopon before. And I'm Isifo'intombi. What's your name?"

---

"I have brothers and a big sister," she offered, "One small brother like me and three really big ones."

Estrilde was a little bit uncomfortable with all the attention, but the two older kitlings were nice to her so she resisted her urge to hide.

"I'm Estrilde."

She shuffled her feet and wrapped her tail tighter around her toes, not sure what else to say. All her siblings were leopons, and her brother had a leopon mate so it was a bit funny to hear that Kasoro had never seen anyone like her before. She had learned that not everyone had a lion mommy and leopard daddy, but a leopon wasn't anything out of the ordinary to her. A kitling was a kitling, no matter what species or mix of species.  

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro tilted his head a bit as Isifo introduced them. The leopon was so tiny! Surely they all couldn't be that small. Then again, he was the son of a goddess. His size was much larger than that of a normal cub, so perhaps she really was supposed to be that small.

He grinned slightly as Estrilde shuffled her paws, curling around herself a bit more. She was so sweet! "That's a nice name," he said with a nod, trying to keep his voice soft. It was obvious she was a bit nervous around them and he didn't want to frighten her more. "So is your mom a leopard, or is your dad? I've seen leopards before but...not like you!"

He could see both felines in the young cub. There was no tuft on the end of her tail, but it was rather fluffy all the same. Her little legs looked very powerful, but somehow delicate at the same time. Maybe she'd be able to climb trees! Kasoro had always tried, but lions just really weren't meant to roam in the branches.

Annchen

 

[Annchen]

SilverLutz

She smiled shyly when she was complimented for her name. She liked it, because she'd got it from her daddy.

"My dad is a leopard," she said, "He sort of lives here now, but mom says that he comes and goes. Dad says that his mother was also called Estrilde, but I don't know where she lives."

Estrilde was vaguely aware that her dad had been mostly absent when her older siblings grew up, but it was hard for her to imagine since he had been present in her life so far. Mom said he didn't like living in a pride, but he visited all the time so he couldn't think it was all that bad. Estrilde had decided that he might be a little bit shy like she was.

---

"Estrilde is a pretty name," Isifo chirped, and then stayed uncharacteristically silent for quite some time. She watched with interest as the other two chatted. They looked really fun next to each other, one large kitling and one small.

"You two should get married," she suddenly blurted, earning a startled stare from the striped kitling.  

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro nodded just a bit. He knew who his mother was, but not his father. Considering he was a lion, though, he bet he had to be one, too. He never gave his father any real thought. His mother never brought him up, and he never had questions about him, so why bother? He figured he looked a bit like his sister, though, since he himself took after his mother.

"My mom will come and go, too," he said with a nod, thinking that the goddess would come back to check up on him from time to time. "My aunt is kind of keeping an eye on my sister and me, as well as the nannies. So maybe we'll see each other again," he added, grinning widely. Leopons were tiny, but very nice if all of them were like Estrilde here. He'd have to try to find more to see if that were the case.

The sudden blurt from Isifo made him jump slightly, and he turned his bright blue gaze to the little lioness in surprise, matching Estrilde's pose. "Married?" he repeated, tilting his head before starting to laugh. "Why would we do that?"

Annchen

 

[Annchen]

SilverLutz

Sorry! I didn't mean to leave this so long.

Isifo was not deterred by the initial lack of enthusiasm from her friends. The kitling liked spending time with the matchmakers, and had started to pick up some of the important factors to consider. Her hero was uncle Athair who had matched up Mom and Dad and made them happy.

"To make babies," she said with a wide grin, "When you're old enough of course. It would be perfect! Both of you have parents from outside and you're not related to Sliabh so that makes it even better!"

Not that it was bad to be related to grandpa Sliabh. It just made it more complicated to match people. There were a couple of other large family lines to consider too, but Athair liked to talk about Sliabh and about his mission to try to make happy matches for every single one of his many siblings.

---

Estrilde did not look reassured after Isifo's explanation. Babies? She looked over at Kasoro, not sure if the older girl was serious.

"No offense, but... Yuck!" she said, "My old brother made babies with Divvy, but they're both OLD. And their kitlings are older than me! That means I'm an aunty to them... But they're older than me..."

Estrilde rambled on. She kind of liked talking to Isifo and Kasoro, but she decided to sit a bit further away from the boy now. Just to make sure the wannabe matchmaker didn't get strange ideas.

"Oh, Divvy's daddy is Sliabh," she said, trying to pick the safest topic of conversation. "And she's really nice, but I've never met Sliabh."
 

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro's white ears pressed back against his head and he grimaced at the thought. Babies? He was still a baby himself, when all was said and done! That was the last thing on his mind right now. Little did they know that hybrids were usually sterile, anyway, so even if some sort of romance did blossom between him and Estrilde, there would probably be no babies to show from it.

"Who is Sliabh?" he asked, deciding to stick with this topic. "I'm new here and I dunno everyone yet. Do they rule here?" He knew most prides had a king or queen, or some type of hierarchy that everyone fit into. He hoped this place would let him be something awesome, like a mighty fighter or a sneaky spy. He wasn't too sure what he wanted to do yet, but he did know he was going to be great at it.

"I might be related to him since I don't know who my dad is," he added, hoping that that might mess up Isifo's chances of trying to set them up. Because, like Estrilde, he really wasn't feeling this whole baby making thing.

[quote="Annchen]Quite all right!  

[Annchen]

SilverLutz

The cub giggled. Rule?

"No. Sliabh is one of the guards," Isifo explained, "He went outside and came back with tons of babies to help the pride. But those that are related to him can't mate with each other because that would be bad for the blood. You'd know if you was related to him."

She nodded, pleased with her explanation. This was things she'd heard from mom and from her uncle and the other matchmakers. She wasn't sure why it was bad for the blood, but it didn't matter. Some things just were, and she was very pleased to know something the other two didn't.

"That would make them my half cousins I think," Isifo said to Estrilde, "Sliabh is my grandfather but I don't know Divvy so she's not a full sister to mom."

Sliabh had been very prolific, so it wasn't strange that Isifo couldn't keep all her relatives straight. She tried, however. Remembering family ties was important, and she was determined to memorize as much as possible. She'd have to ask Estrilde more about Divvy and her half-cousins later.

---

"You don't look like Sliabh," Estrilde agreed, "He's more blue..."

She trailed off, amazed that the lion girl was sort of related to her family. It was confusing to think about, so she shrugged it off.

"The queen is Nawiri," she said, since it seemed polite to explain a bit about the real ruler of their pride. Since Kasoro had asked and all, "You must have met her because she likes to visit everywhere. There's no king right now, but she's sort of got kids. They're 'dopted."

It was obvious that the small hybrid had warmed up to the lion cubs, because she talked much more now.  

[SilverLutz]

"I see," Kasoro said with a nod. Kind of. It wasn't too easy to follow when you didn't know who the lions were, but he'd make a point to go meet them now that he knew they were well-known through the pride. He didn't want to be left in the dark. Kasoro enjoyed learning things, after all, and if Sliabh was important to know, then he was certainly going to fix this little problem of not knowing him.

Blue eyes turned back to the little hybrid and he tilted his head just a bit. Nawiri? "I think the only adults I've been has been Veri," he said after a while. "And a few of the nannies. Maybe I've met her and I didn't know." As much as he wanted to meet the adults, though, he wanted to meet more cubs his own age. Which was doing fairly well, considering he had met quite a pawful already.

"Well. It seems I've got some things to do now!" he said with a little grin. "I've got some very important lions to meet and to get to know. They might know about me but...I certainly dunno anything about them."

Annchen

 

[Annchen]

Estrilde wanted Kasoro to feel included. She might be younger than him, but he was newer to the pride. People in the pride she had always known or known of were all new to him. She tried to think of a way to make him feel more at home. Her frown was replaced with a smile when she came up with the perfect plan.

"We should go find Nawiri," Estrilde suggested, "Then you'll know her!"

It didn't occur to her that the nannies might have a problem with three cubs randomly wandering away to look for the queen.

---

"Is Veri your mom," Isifo asked, instantly curious about the name she didn't recognize. She was serious about trying to know everyone and their relations. Estrildes suggestion snapped her out of mini-matchmaker mode. It was brilliant1

"Ohh, that's a good idea," Isifo decided, "We could check where the healers are, I've seen her there before."

She even sort-of-knew how to get to the healers from here. She'd gone there with her dad at times, both for checkups and to accompany him when the healers did stuff to make him less sick. He liked being marked by the great lady, but some of the stuff the healers did seemed to be uncomfortable at best. She decided she'd rather be overlooked by the goddess for now.

"This way," she said and trotted confidently in the direction she thought was the right one.  

[SilverLutz]

Kasoro's ears perked up at the suggestion. Go see her? Well, that did make matters easier. Getting to know the important adults in the pride was...well...important! He nodded and got up, tail flicking in excitement.

"That sounds good," he said before shaking his head just a bit. "No...Veri is my mom's sister. So my aunt. I have some cousins here that I've met already. One of them is a boy...he's a bit older than I am. I forget his name though," he said with a little frown. Dang...he'd have to play with him more so he'd remember!

That being said, he turned to follow Isifo, the thought never crossing his mind that the queen might be busy and not have time for curious little cubs, nephew to the Goddess of Blood or otherwise.

Annchen

All right, last one from me!