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 Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:06 am
 Orvar had left Skogund at a distance; he'd not seen his mother in quite some time, and so he thought it best that he approach the lioness by himself. He'd always felt like something of a failure; he wasn't keen on fighting, and really had no skills to speak of. He had a great fondness for his mother, though; Orvar held Kazul in the highest of regard, and he knew that things hadn't been easy for the lioness. Skogund hadn't taken long to find Kazul's home. The first place they'd checked had been Odd's den, and they'd spotted the lioness from a fair distance away. Gathering up his courage, Orvar approached his mother's den. "Mother," his voice cracked slightly, and he cleared his throat before trying again. "Mother, it's Orvar. Are you home?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:14 am
 Expecting company, thanks to Skjoldr's warning, Kazul was not entirely surprised to hear her son addressing her, though she wondered at his question. She had seen him take note of her before coming closer to the den and actually speaking. Who asked if a person was home afte seeing them there?
"Can't you tell?" she asked as she stood up and stretched, flexing her claws satisfyingly. Following a mighty yawn she greeted Orvar, "It is a good day to die."
Then she stood and waited for him to speak again, her expression expectant. She did not know Orvar felt like something of a failure. She had high standards, it was true, but whenever someone failed to meet them she tended to assume she had simply expected too much of them. Of course she was no easy taskmistress, but she knew the difference between failing due to laziness or lack of effort, and failing due to things beyond one's control.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:19 am
"Not today," Orvar replied obediently, though the words didn't flow from his mouth with easy. He immediately felt foolish, but he cleared his throat again and tried to smile. It came off as though he had a pain, and so Orvar cleared his throat again.
At this rate, he knew he was going to irritate his mother, and so he decided to simply state his reason for seeking her out.
"I come bearing news, Mother. From Uncle. Herryk," he added hastily, ears flicking to the side. It was probably obvious that he was nervous, but he was doing his very best to cover that fact up.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:26 am
Kazul stared hard at her son. Throat clearing was fine, but he was beginning to overdo it, and that made him seem awkward or nervous. There was no reason for him to be either one of those things. He was just speaking to his mother, after all.
"Orvar," she said softly. It was as much of a warning as she cared to utter about the way he was speaking. "Whatever it is you want to tell me, or Herryk wants you to tell me, as the case may be, please do it."
She didn't like his display of nerves, but not because it was irritating. It worried her. Kazul had never demonstrated a hint of a seer's abilities, and she laid claim to no sense of precognition, but sometimes a person just had a feeling. She had felt before that she would want Odd around, but she had not sought him out. So now she had to deal with whatever Herryk had sent her way alone, and from the way Orvar was behaving, she wouldn't like the news.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:30 am
"Uncle has heard word that Captain Ru has returned to the pride," Orvar blurted out, looking almost relieved to have said what he'd come to say. He had to admit that he was curious as to why his mother would have interest in this Ru; if he'd been told stories as a cub, it was obvious he did not remember.
"I do not know how long it has been since his return," he clarified, "only that he has been successful on his journey. What does it mean, Mother?"
Confusion was ripe on Orvar's features, and he took a few steps closer to Kazul.
"Is this a good thing?"
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:37 am
"Oh."
Had she been human the color would have drained from Kazul's face. She might even have felt light-headed. Even as a lion, Kazul felt a jolt through her chest and gut that forced her to dig into the ground with her claws, just in case she did something stupid like lose her balance. She certainly felt unbalanced. Well, that was really far too mild a term, but it would do. And because she had to present a certain front to her children, she couldn't give in to the flurry of emotions that assaulted her now, too fast for her to even separate them and figure out what, exactly, she was feeling.
"That is good news," she confirmed after a slow, grounding breath that accomplished very little. To counter her sudden mental turmoil she was holding very, very still. "It means that he will be able to resume his life in the pride as it was before your grandda sent him on his quest, and do so with honor. He will probably be very popular for a time, while he and his band are a novelty."
It meant other things, too. He would have lots of lionesses wanting to impress him with their favors, and for all she knew he would let them. She wasn't sure how she felt about that. The thought made her somewhat sick to her stomach, but there was none of the rage she had expected to feel when considering the possibility.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:43 am
Orvar's brows drew together in a frown, and he quickly moved forward. He did not reach out to support his mother, but concern was quite evident on his face. It was impossible to tell what was going through Kazul's mind, but Orvar was a very perceptive, attentive sort.
"It is good that it is good," Orvar spoke slowly, a curiosity deep in his eyes at his mother's sudden stillness. "But why does Uncle think that his return is something you might want to know about?"
It didn't really, truly make any sense to Orvar; there were so many questions bubbling up inside of him.
"Does it mean that we are in danger, Mother? Or will we be able to visit the stronghold? I have never been; Uncle says it is not wise for us to visit."
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 8:49 am
Stormlords' balls. Kazul hadn't done as thorough a job as she had hoped at concealing how Herryk's news had affected her. She had been right before. This was definitely a situation where Odd's presence would have made things easier. He would have known what to say, and how to bring it to a swift conclusion without making Orvar feel that she blamed him for the content of his message. As violent as the Stormborn could be, they did not blame messengers for the words they brought.
"The captain and I were close once," Kazul said, doing her absolute best to sound forbidding. She had never spoken of Ru to her cubs, and only rarely spoke of him with Odd. Perhaps they had been overheard, but even so, she would bear no further questioning along that line.
"Your uncle is correct. It is not safe for us to go back there. As I've told you before, we are like the dead to them, and it is better we stay that way for now. We are in no more or less danger than we ever were, though, so you needn't worry." The same tired refrain. Sometimes she ached to go home, but as time passed she feared it as well. Things would be different and she would no longer be the warlord's favorite daughter.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 9:03 am
Kazul's forbidding tone was not lost on Orvar. His mother was a formidable lioness, and there were times that she frightened him - and rightly so. However, his own curiosity had not been sated, and despite the tone that Kazul had taken, Orvar had questions.
"You were friends?"
His tail swished behind him.
"I do not mean to pry, Mother," he added as an afterthought, eyes keen on his mother's face. Orvar tried to sound as apologetic as he possibly could, but he was not fond of secrets or anything that he might perceive as being secretive.
"You are looking well," he continued, as if flattery would protect him from a thumping should Kazul deem it necessary.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 9:11 am
"You do mean to pry, or you wouldn't ask. I won't discuss him any further," she said firmly. There had been a momentary hesitation where she was tempted to talk more about her relationship with Ru, but there was no point to that. It was not likely that Ru's return would mean anything for her family, and she didn't want to get anyone's hopes up. She, herself, had once entertained hopes that someone would swoop in and challenge Njal and repeal the exile placed on her family, but she had been young and angry and very naive.
Kazul snorted at her son's flattery. Then she smirked and altered her entire demeanor altered. Suddenly he eyes were wide and her posture like that of a lioness preening in front of someone she wanted to impress. Possibly that would be lost on him, since almost everyone he knew was related to him in some way, but this wasn't really about him. This was about keeping herself calm until Odd returned.
"Oh, do you really think so?" she cooed. Probably she sounded more sarcastic than simpering, but either way worked. She could hide behind humor. It would keep everything together until she could have a proper breakdown, which now seemed like an inevitability.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 9:36 am
Orvar's mouth opened, then closed. He paused. Opened his mouth again, and then closed it. Maybe he should just leave. He couldn't tell if his mother was being sarcastic or what, and quite frankly it was a little terrifying. Orvar couldn't help but fret over whether or not he'd upset her, and that was the last thing he'd wanted to do by delivering the news his uncle had requested he bring.
"Yes?" The word came out as a question, and his voice wibbled just the slightest.
"I should go. Klona..." his voice tapered off, as if that one word should explain why, exactly, he needed to return to his uncle's den. "It was nice seeing you again, Mother."
He took a step back, then another, and another.
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Posted: Sat Mar 01, 2014 9:52 am
Kazul fluttered her eyelashes at poor Orvar. Maybe he'd think his mother had cracked. That would be unfortunate. And amusing. But mostly unfortunate. Where was Odd?
"Oh, don't worry, Orvar. I'm fine. Thank you for bringing me the news."
His retreat made her sigh, but she didn't take him to task for it. What would be the point? She was behaving unusually and he was clearly not equipped to deal with her in this mood. Absenting himself probably did seem like the most sensible option to him.
"Do not die in bed," she bid her son as he departed, giddiness coloring her tone. Stormlords, she really needed Odd before she actually did become unhinged. This was not the news she had expected to receive and she was not prepared for it. She had abandoned her fantasies about Ru returning long ago, and resigned herself to the fact he would not be coming back at all. She didn't know what to do or how to feel now that her expectations had proven wrong.
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