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 Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 10:54 am
 Mat emerged from her den with a yawn. The sun was setting and it was time to find something to eat. The hunters had surely brought in a fresh kill by now, so it would only be a matter of heading to the communal feeding grounds to grab a bite. She strolled along after her meal to get a drink of water before heading out, ready to start her patrol. There hadn't been much activity lately which was a shame. She was itching for something to do, to fight, to talk, something! The Nergui threat had settled down as of late, which was both good and bad: good because they didn't have to worry about those bothersome pests, bad because who knew if they were planning something? Still, it was best not to dwell on thoughts like that. Mat headed for the border of the pride and began to walk slowly along a length of it, looking out into the rouge lands beyond. Perhaps she could catch someone wanting to join up. Sooner or later she knew she'd bump into another Firekin at the very least, and then perhaps she could get a few minutes of enjoyment out of them through conversation. When she had been little, Mat had daydreamed about the glory and prestige a soldier had. Now she knew that had been a cub's fantasy, as most of her work was walking around the pride to protect it from an unseen force.
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Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2014 2:41 pm
 "Thank you," Ro said to the older soldier he'd been talking to. There hadn't really been anything to thank the fellow for. He'd just been telling him a very long, somewhat self-contradictory story about some feat he'd accomplished in his youth. Ro hadn't really been paying all that much attention, which was part of why he said thank you. Usually those words ended conversations. Unfortunately, the older soldier wanted to know why he'd said it, since it didn't make sense to him in context.
"Thank you for telling me that. It was not only interesting, but inspiring. I find myself so filled with purpose - not to mention inspiration - that I must go train. Right now." Ro offered an insincere smile that bordered on sinister, as most of his smiles did, and walked away with a purposeful gait.
In point of fact, he was just headed toward the border. Ro had quickly learned that his father was not of this pride, but he had found that it suited him, aside from the scorching heat, which he was becoming accustomed to. The martial set-up and the basically orderly way of things appealed to him. Nevertheless, he still spent as much time on the borders as he could manage, just in case he should meet a lion who had met his father. It wasn't likely, since he didn't even know his father's name, but Ro was uncharacteristically hopeful for a lion who had been brought up as a vessel for a demon.
"Well, that was a narrow escape," he remarked to himself as he stared out over the sands. There was no one around to hear him, as far as he could tell. "Another minute and I could well have died. Boredom is absolutely a fatal affliction, and anyone who says otherwise ought to be made to listen to old soldiers brag about half-remembered glories."
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 7:45 am
Mat kicked a little stone along as she walked, occasionally glancing back towards the pride or out into the rouge lands. The desert was a formidable place, so she doubted she'd see anything too interesting out here, but she had a job to do. Patrolling the border was important, even if the only concern were the Nergui, who hadn't been heard from in some time. A sound caught her ear as she climbed a dune, ears flicking forward as she lifted her head from the stone. As she reached the top of the shifting pile of sand she paused to get her bearings. Down at the bottom of the dune, beating his own path through the sand, was a lion. He was the proper coloration for the pride, so she slipped and trotted her way down to talk to him. It seemed he was talking to himself, so perhaps he'd like a bit of company. "What about old soldiers?" she asked with a grin as she made it to the bottom of the sand pile.
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Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2014 8:25 am
If Ro was startled by the arrival of another lion, he didn't give much sign. It was one of the many subconscious power plays he had grown up taking part in, that refusal to let someone else know they had taken you by surprise. He had always been pretty good at that, and it served him pretty well now that he was one of the Firekin. It made him look a lot braver and more stoic than he really was.
"I was saying that when they get started on their storytelling, it can be fatally boring. Not all of them, maybe, but most of the ones I've met." He shrugged, tacitly implying that this was merely a fact of life, and not one that he really cared one way or the other about. Unless he was stuck listening to one such story, of course.
"Don't tell me you've never found yourself nodding and smiling and wishing a rampaging herd of rabid meerkats would attack, just to get you out of having to hear another word of some past glory that may or may not have happened," he said with that slightly sinister smile of his. "Honestly."
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Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2014 12:42 pm
Mat tilted her head as the lion spoke, clarifying what had been said. When he smiled at her a chill ran down her spine - something was off about that grin - but it lured her in closer. Mat was always the one to run towards danger, not away from it, and this male was rather captivating. "Heh, I usually don't bother to listen when they get boring or obviously made-up," she admitted with a grin of her own. "Better things to do than to listen to old-timers that can't tell their mane and tail apart." There were those older lions that were full of true stories of adventure and were quite enjoyable to listen to, but most of the time old lions that had lost their glory days to an injury or illness would ramble on and on about things that had never happened. Been there, done that. As a cub growing up here, she had let the true stories of guts and glory kindle the fire within her to be one of the best soldiers the pride had ever seen. "I'll be the ones with the stories that are true and epic when I'm older," she added confidently, flicking her tail to the side with a smirk on her muzzle. "Kicking Nergui butt, only letting the best rouges in, you know. Things like that."
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Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2014 1:48 pm
Ro's grin grew wider. It had occurred to him as he explained himself that he might actually give offense. This pride, like his former pride, valued strength and unity, and did not take kindly to disrespect toward its warriors. He might well have found himself facing a much different reaction. But he hadn't, and that was good.
"No doubt you already have some pretty good stories, just about growing up in this pride," he said solicitously. Like any joining rogue, Ro had done his time being educated in the pride's ways, but that wasn't the same as being brought up in a place. He was perishingly curious about what it was like to be a cub in such a militaristic setting. He very much doubted it was like his own upbringing.
"One thing I haven't figured out yet," he mused, "is what people do for fun around here. I mean, training isn't unenjoyable, but I wouldn't call it fun exactly. Is there some secret spot a little ways into the desert where people go to cut loose and relax?" The idea that there might not be such a place was simply inconceivable to Ro.SilverLutz I think Ro's a little off his game today. XD
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Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 12:46 pm
"Oh yeah," Mat said with a laugh. She had lots of stories from her childhood, from wrestling with her siblings to helping dig water holes during the rainy season after a flood. She'd gone out with the pride on an expedition as well, much to the dislike of her parents, but hey! She was an adventurous spirit! "Lots of interesting things," she mused, her gaze turning to one of mild scrutiny. This male was certainly a rouge, and if she were being honest with herself, he was very interesting. He had that sort of bad boy air about him that drew her in, and he was handsome to boot. While she wasn't sure she'd be a good mother, she did know she wanted to have cubs with a strong male, and even though this one wasn't as large as some of the other Firekin, he certainly had a sharp mind and wit to him. She liked that. "I'm Mate'moto, by the way," she said, changing her tone to a bit more suggestive as she moved forward, golden eyes bright. "But you can call me Mat if you wish. I certainly wouldn't mind." Princess_Feylin That's okay XD It doesn't take much to impress Mat
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Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2014 7:39 pm
"Mate'moto," he repeated, lingering just a little over the Ms so that it sounded as though he was tasting her name and finding it to his liking. "Mat. I would offer to guess what it means, but it would not be as impressive around here, I think, if I guessed correctly."
His grin was back, but it was friendlier, as if he was gradually remembering how to make facial expressions that weren't dangerous-looking all the time and putting it into practice as he figured it out. "My name's Ro Vasuva. I usually go by Ro."
He couldn't help noticing that both of them possessed names which ended differently to how people tended to assume names for their gender ought to end, although he had the good sense not to remark upon it. His name ended in an A and hers in an O. It pleased him, even though it was a small and silly thing. Pleasure should really be taken wherever it is found, he believed, and it was no crime to find joy in small things.
"By the way," he said, echoing her turn of phrase, "I would love to hear any interesting things you might want to tell me. Especially if they're about you."
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Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2014 1:28 pm
"Ro it is," Mat said with a grin, liking that they both had nicknames. There were those she had met who insisted to be called by their full name, and some of them had really pompous, long ones. Super annoying. As the male seemed to return her unspoken thoughts, she let herself move even closer, brushing past him in the direction she had been heading in. She let her shoulder run down his side and her tail gently bump him under his chin, curling a tad to bring his head in her direction. She paused to look over her shoulder, a little smirk still on her face. "I'd be glad to tell you all about me. I'm a pretty interesting lioness if I do say so myself," she said with an amused hum. "But you'll have to come with me. I'd rather not share my stories out here in the open for all to hear." She knew there was a little oasis not far from here that would offer a bit of shade from the sun and water to drink in case they got a bit thirsty.
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 8:33 am
Ro had known a number of people who reacted badly to uninvited physical contact. He wasn't one of them. Seducing people into joining his pride was basically what he had been trained to do. That often involved touching others. In his opinion, this was much better though. He wasn't using the manipulations he'd learned. He was just being himself, and that actually seemed to be working for him.
"Anywhere you lead," he said, his tone playful, but with a hint of seriousness beneath it. "It sounds like you have secrets, and, I confess, I love secrets. I collect them."
Well, he would collect them if anyone ever told him any, but most people who knew him well enough that secret sharing was a possibility also knew him well enough to know that he talked constantly and there was a distinct likelihood that he would accidentally blab their secret. So his secret collection was pretty small. Mostly it was made up of his own secrets, or things that weren't really secrets, but were instead things he didn't think other people knew, which was sort of like a secret, but not quite.
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 3:54 pm
Mat smirked just a bit as Ro spoke. Secret keeper, hm? She flicked her tail before trotting off, knowing he'd follow now. She'd certainly tell him some secrets, and maybe show him a few others. A fire in her belly, she broke into a light run to reach the oasis faster. Time for her to show this joining male how feisty Firekin females could be. Princess_Feylin Last post from me! Would you like me to post them or shall I send Mat's info to you?
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Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 4:12 pm
Ro was glad the sun was setting as he followed Mat's quickened pace. He had still not quite adapted to the constant and exhausting heat of the Firekin homeland, and if he could avoid it, he did not move must faster than a brisk walk during the sunlit hours. Though for this, for this lioness, he would have been willing to break that habit even had the sun been burning at its zenith. He liked her. She didn't have a demon inside her, but she was still his sort of person. Definitely.SilverLutz If you'd like to post them, that'd be amazing. I'll PM you Ro's info asap.
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