Post by Takiyah on Apr 9, 2007 0:18:32 GMT -5
Taki's first meeting with the young white prince soon turns bad as one of Tyne Queens and a relative enter the scene.
Takiyah, lioness
Kale'Kizuka, white lion cub
Motosi, barbary lion
Ukomobasi, white Lioness Queen
There's a strange noise from the higher levels of the ramp leading to the pridal cavern. A combination of skittering, scraping, the occasional light 'thump'. Also intermingled with various somewhat sorry sounding mewls. The source of these sounds on further investigation (somewhat tricky investigation considering the cause is so small) would appear to be that of a lion cub. A VERY young lioncub, apparently only a few days past eye-opening stage. The boy actually seems even smaller than a normal child of that age would be- but is clad in brilliant white fur, the same as his parents. Still too young to be able to properly walk, the inquisitive little boy has belly-crawled and skittered his way away from his napping parents and now takes in the wide world outside of the cavern for the first time. Even his little mewls of complaint come to a halt fairly rapidly as the beauty of the world sinks in.
Takiyah lounges at the bottom of Tyne Rock with her head set upon the top of her crossed paws. Everyone is gone. Upon her return home this has been the most shocking news to her. Everyone .. well, not everyone, but a lot of them are gone! Mainly her concerns are pulled towards Msasi, and as she lays her eyes are set out towards the jungle as if expecting the tawny female to emerge from the foliage and explain to her what happened. But what she hears is not the soft footfalls of a lioness but instead .. soft .. scraping, tumbling noises from behind. An ear turns before she lifts her head to peer back towards the pridal cave, and her head lifts a little upon spying a white blob. Brow quirking, she eventually pushes herself onto her paws and slowly walks in the direction of the escaping cub. Now, who is this? Apparently unaware until this moment that Ukomobasi had her cubs already, she pauses a few feet away from the youngster and gazes at him with a blank expression. "Hrmph."
The noise from the lioness is met by another chirping mewl from the little boy, his attention being drawn to her. He's still not mastered the art of focusing, but from the blurriness he can still discern the shape of something like mommy! Okay, the colour is totally wrong, but maybe there's food in this lioness too! He begins to wriggle across towards Takiyah making very slow progress, all the while mewwing eagerly. Up close, the boy's undersizing is plainly evident- he looks almost like a toy rather than a living creature!
Takiyah folds her ears back as the young prince ... heads her way. Er. Her ears fold back and her ears gently rears back as well as her eyes dart from one side to the other, as if looking for some savior to take the itty thing away. Another noise is made through her nose, much like a snort, before her attention returns to the cub. "You must be Aitan's son," she says with a vague wrinkle of her nose. "Tiny thing you are. Unfortunate for you that you take after your parents," she says with a disapproving look to his pale coat. "It's only a cute thing when you are young. As you grow older, it's only a nuisance. Fortunate though that you are male. Like your mother, you would be of little use to us in the hunt." Her muzzle is lifted a little and she retracts a paw, inching back a little bit as if the poor thing is carrying a plague. "I have nothing for you, small young one.." She looks past him now and towards the cavern, as if expecting a horde of siblings to come tumbling after him.
Onwards and closer the crawling mewling death approaches.. Why is she backing away? Is it a game? A game's a totally new concept to him, but it seems to make sense. Mewling eagerly, his huge blue eyes locked on Takiyah, he begins to scrabble towards her a little quicker, little legs making the best purchase they can on the rock while his milk-filled belly lifts and flops on the ground between them. He LIKES this strange new not-mommy, she makes interesting sounds!
Oh no! It's .... not going away. "Uhm.." Gah. She's not good with cubs this age! They don't .. listen very well. "You should not be out of the cavern," Takiyah informs in a voice that is a very good imitation of a scolding mother. "Where are your siblings? Your mother?" A disdainful look is given to the cavern again, and she slightly snorts. But her scorn is put on hold as she realizes that this little white cub is very near her now, and if she leaves, that'd leave him out here defenseless. Eyes are just kept from being rolled, and she sucks in a soft breath. "Ok. It looks as if it is you and I. Luckily for you, I am not a foe. Do you know what "foe" is, young prince?" she asks while gingerly lifting up a forepaw and waving it lightly before his eyes.
From the boy's scent, now he's up close, it would suggest that he has no siblings; though his mother's scent is strong upon him, and his father's scent at least discernable, there is none of that combination of regurgitated milk, excretory fluids or random niffyness that would suggest the presence of other cubs than himself. It would seem that he really doesn't understand language yet- though he listens pretty attentively, he just makes excited squeaks as Takiyah finishes talking, then lifting a little leg to blearily bat at the waving paw.
"Yes, yes, I make a good plaything, don't I?" drawls the lioness as she lifts her paw high enough that it dangles out of the cub's reach. Such an evil auntie, isn't she? Or not. The vague smirk that now curves her muzzle doesn't exactly scream evil female, and she lowers her paw down to prod at the boy's side. "You're your father's son. Hopefully you'll be a bit better tempered than your uncle Elimnyama though, hm? Surely you'll meet him soon." Her ears cup and, very gently, does she press the back of her paw against his side in attempt to roll him over.
Oh boy! This is nice! This is fun! The trusting infant begins to sound out a high-pitched buzzing purr a he feels himself pushed and prodded, rolling over eagerly with the assistance of the paw, and lying on his back with all four limbs splayed in the air and his belly drooping down to the sides. He giggles and wriggles his forelimbs up at the sky- it's so big and empty!
And apparently, this is as far as Takiyah's playfulness goes with this little pale cub, for soon after he's on his back is her paw retracted and set back on the stone. Hmph. An ear is flicked and she expectantly peers around for that .. parent of a savior that's supposed to be showing up and claiming their kid. But there's no white lion or lioness to be seen. "You truly should not be out here," she informs again while watching his tiny paws flail. "Dangers are outside. Danger. Can you say that word? Dan-ger.." she says slowly though with no real thought that the cub would be able to speak anything of the sort.
Indeed, her words are totally meaningless to her- and are only answered by more of those little chirruping squeaks. Kale seems to be enjoying his trip out so far though, no matter how dangerous it is. This lasts for some moments, but then he realizes something. This position isn't as fun as he thought it was. His legs are getting tired and his pure white, thinly furred belly is suddenly getting VERY hot under the searing African sun. He falls quiet, and begins to wriggle but lacks the dexterity or muscletone to flick himself over properly. He's stuck like a tortoise on its shell. And he's getting hotter, more sore. He begins to cry now- a loud, piercing distress call rather than normal cubbish griping.
... Uh oh. "Wait a second.." says the lioness with ears pressing against her skull as his cubbish cries begin. A look of guilt crosses Takiyah's face as she ducks her head down, looking as if she's just done something as wrong as beating the young boy. "Hey..hey now, that's going to help nothing," she says, looking a bit helpless. "Shhh....shhhh little one! Dear sweet cub.." Maybe sweet talking will help? Who knows! Swallowing, she stands up now and flicks her tail awkwardly behind her. "Are you hungry? Hurting? .. Tired? Do you miss your mother?" she questions, apparently too caught up in trying to get the child to hush that she hasn't realized that the poor thing was trying to roll over!
Hotter! Ach! Hotter! The boy's tummy is already beginning to look distinctly pink- flesh that was inside a lioness well under a moon ago and has never really experienced direct sunlight does NOT mix well with the hot, hot sun. And his right hindleg is cramping from being held up for too long! The honeyed words are lost on the boy as he begins to cry louder, more consistently. At the same time he twists his head from left to right, trying to get up the momentum to flip over. His somewhat saggy cub-belly however only frustrates him in these attempts.
What is it doing? Why is it making so much noise! "Ukomobasi! Come claim your son!" calls Takiyah to the mouth of the pridal cavern, but her efforts are fruitless. Gah. She doesn't remember any other of the Tyne cubs being so distempered! With brows furrowed, she watches the youngster while beginning to pace a small area in front of him. He's moving .. in a weird way. "Are you ill? Is that what's wrong? You pale ones are always more sickly than rightly colored cubs. Is it your stomach?" She says, speaking loudly in order to be heard above his wails. And speaking of stomachs.. Green eyes blink owlishly as she peers at the baby's sun-hot belly, seeing the pink flesh. "Oh my." A brow quirks before she lowers her head to use her muzzle to roll him over.
Motosi has arrived.
Well, as much as he was attempting to doze, the 'visitor' that has been so ominously present in the far reaches of the pridal caverns of late (much to the displeasure and wariness of the lionesses therein) has been roused by the level of noise and the insistent calling of Ukomobasi's name. Blearily stumbling out into the light, he's continually blinking one eye in effort to drive the weariness from it. The barbary sweeps his head about slowly to blearily take in the scene, yawning loudly as he arrives. "What's all this noise about?"
The noises from the little white cub currently stuck on his back like a turtle in the hot sun only grow louder as his uncle explodes from the cavern- That's a noise and smell he recognizes! Uncle Musty to the rescue! It's around that point that Takiyah rolls him back over once again, the boy's cries rising yet higher for a moment as his tired, cramping limbs relax and his hot, slightly sore and pink belly presses against the ground. Then the noises drop down from all out screams to just a maintenance level sobbing and whimpering.
Geeze. From one surprise to another. Not only has Takiyah has to worry about her young nephew .. or grandnephew wailing like she's killing him, now there's a huge lion lumbering out of the cavern! Needless to say, this does nothing to calm her, even though poor little What's His Name's cries has subdued a little. Ears lifting in alarm, as Motosi is a new face at least to /her/, she flattens her ears, bares teeth, and puts herself inbetween the lion and the tiny cub. See. She does love the little guy. Or at least, she has no intention of standing by idly while he's made a snack. "Who are you?" and more importantly, "How /dare/ you enter the pride's cave!" says the lioness who has been away long enough to not know the deal with this lion and Uko.
Well, he can't help but draw his focus to the unfortunate star of this extremely loud scene - Kale'Kizuka is regarded with a worried look. Motosi, whiskers-atwitch, takes several pawstep forward, frowning at the sound of the continually wailing young cub, tail lashing ever so slightly. Though he cannot deny the sound is annoying, the cries of the cub aren't something he can take lightly, not after that frantic trip to Kivuli in which they so fervently believed him to be on death's door. Wouldn't be a good thing if he was starting to relapse, now would it? He instantly halts his approach under the fierce scorn - it's not the first angry lioness he's encountered here, but it's certainly the first to outright snap at him. He settles his paw down midstep, slowly easing down to his haunches. He's a big lion, lengthwise, but he's thin as a rail, ribs exposed in places. Not a comfort, given the instinctual fear of a rogue raiding to feast on the young males. That will likely make scooping poor Kale up by the scruff to take back to his mother. "Easy, easy," He murmurs, lifting a neutral paw, "I am Moto'Sitirika. A guest of Ukomobasi's." Interesting claim; Aitan doesn't seem the type to allow his mate a consort.
On the floor behind Takiyah, the whimpering prince begins to try and flounder back across towards his uncle's familiar voice. It's the same uncoordinated scramble he first demonstrated for his father, though it seems he has a little more stamina now. He squeak-yelps each time he plops on his tummy, the skin below his very thin bellyfur slightly sunburned- nothing for anyone to worry about but sore enough for him to whine about. He fixes his watering blue eyes on Motosi and redoubles his efforts, despite the tiredness lingering in his stumpy legs.
Apparently, this stranger's words aren't enough to console the lioness. It is, after all, his word against her instinct, and Takiyah's instincts are more trust-worthy. Narrowed eyes take in his frame, roaming from face to mane to his stockiness, or lack thereof. Ears remain slick against her skull with body rigid with tensed muscles. But then .. there's the cub who is beginning to move again, making himself around her. With a snort, she lowers her head towards him and washes her tongue across his back before eyes flit up to the male again. "Guest of the Queen? I apologize as that fails to move me. Are you, lion, a guest of the King? Heir of Tyne? These lands are his, and if you have not his blessing to rest so peacefully as I assume you were in the heart of our lands, then you have nothing at all." Pausing there, she reaches to take the scruff of the cub's neck gently between her jaws, aiming to lift him.
Ukomobasi has arrived.
Things can't ever be easy in this land, now can they? With a brief grunt and a shrug of his shoulders, the male offers a slow shake of his head. "No, I admit," He states honestly, murmuring, "The offer of your king was to allow me free roam of Tyne with the exception of these caverns. Whether you shall take my word for it or not, Queen Ukomobasi has allowed me to stay within the caverns for the time being." He murmurs steadily, green gaze unblinkingly piercing into the other's similar shade. Motosi lifts a paw in allowance, "So, no. No king has given me permission. Nor have I been expelled."
Nearly there! Just a few more bodylengths! And then suddenly the scrabbling sunburned cubby is halted in his progress towards his uncle, Takiyah's jaws taking him and lifting him off his feet to reveal his pinkened tummy to the world. Little paws stretch out towards the familiar shape of the barbary- of all the pride, Kale finds him perhaps the least fearful-as if trying to grab hold of him. He whimpers in a frustrated tone as he dangles from Takiyah's jaws- and it's suddenly evident to her just how small and light he IS. Precocious little runt though, that's for sure.
"Nor has his presence been contested by Aitan, Takiyah." Comes another voice - decidedly more female than Motosi's, but equally as perturbed. Uko stretches her paws over the ledge of rock she stands upon, shelling sleep from her form stiffly. Muscles still scream in protest. "This lion is owed your gratitude for aiding me in a difficult journey to assure Kale'Kizuka's safety and survival. I would appreciate if you acted accordingly toward him. I understand your hesitations, but I assure you. I do not invite doom into the pride caverns. And I'd appreciate if you released my son to continue his exploring. Good for a cub, after all." Her ears pin forward, pale bombardier's gaze shifted to the lioness.
Mmmm. Talking is going to prove rather difficult with a cub in her mouth, light as he is, and so the only reply that Takiyah can give Motosi for the moment is a lingering glare. And now she's faced with a dilemma! Many words flood to her mind, none of which could be very kind mind you, but every one of them is a word that she's dying to say to this male. But then there's What's His Name in her mouth, who is proving to be a rather large speech impediment. Ironic, considering his size. But luckily, or perhaps unluckily, arrives the Queen and mother of this little mouthful, and surprisingly enough, her glare fails to soften as the lioness speaks. With a rumble in her throat, most likely a mutter stifled, she lowers her head and releases the cub with eyes lingering on the white Queen. "Perhaps next time you'll be the one to follow your son during his next venture out of the cavern. Or perhaps next time, I should take the word of any strange male I meet and allow your son to take matter in his own rather small paws?"
A smug expression works its way onto Motosi's features as the queen herself arises from her slumber in order to speak on his behalf. He slowly rocks up onto his paws, stretching away his own wakeful aches - an eye remains open, affixed firmly upon Takiyah. Given the reception to Ukomobasi's words seem to have been lukewarm at best, he isn't about to relax. Size advantage or not, he's all but a twig, and isn't so prideful as to presume he'd come out the victor if a skirmish were to occur. No, he's not ready to fight. He's ready to run, though. Truth be told, until such a time as Aitan and Ukomobasi speak, he will be on edge in this place. His brows lift slowly at the lioness' words, but he doesn't appear particularly offended. To make the matter all the more complicated, he chooses his words poorly, "The cub's just as much my responsibility as hers."
And he's placed down AGAIN! Honestly, what started as a fascinating adventure has now turned both uncomfortable and tedious for the little boy. But at least mommy's here to make the bad feelings go away. He begins at once to do his crawling shuffle back across towards her, mewling and sniffling. It's around this point that he has something of an epiphany; his tummy-tum is tender from the sun and so he tries his best to avoid putting it down on the ground TOO much. This leads him to try straightening his legs a little with the end result that even as the adults tensely glare at each other, Kale takes his first few tottering 'real' steps and promptly flops down against Ukomo's right forepaw, immediately rolling onto his side.
"Natural selection is always a factor when living among lions, Takiyah. If Kale is to survive, then it will be by Nature's decree. He's done well enough this far. Your interference is not necessary." Her tone isn't admonishing, merely factual. "And as strange as this male may seem to you, I know him well. And if he's watching Kale, then my son is safer in his paws than any others." Uko states, unwavering stare fixed neutrally upon the lioness' face. "I'm sure you can appreciate the importance of family. In the future, /I/ would appreciate it if you showed my brother, Moto'Sitirika, a little respect. He has certainly earned mine." As Motosi speaks, a small smirk rolls up on her maw. "Kale's Uncle is capable of overseeing his discovery of the ground around the caverns. And you may tell any others so, as well, in case this little mix up happens again. Which I'm sure it won't. Am I wrong?" Kale's progress is seen, and smiled upon heartily. Down on her stomach she goes, pulling the cub in and giving him a fine slobbery lick over the top of his head. "Mo's not a scary guy, is he? No he's not."
The little cub is furthest from Takyiah's mind now, though it doesn't seem as if he needs to be on her mind at all. Eyes dart to the male first as he speaks, and her reply to him is a soft, yet icy, "I wasn't speaking to you." And things seem to go bad to worse as her mood takes a low dive to hellish pits once Ukomobasi speaks again. Though the Queen's gaze may be neutral, Takiyah's eyes are aflame with spite. "Perhaps in the future, if you've a pride left to claim, /you'd/ not keep such things secret to those who are bound to you. Brother, fft. " Eyes flit to the lion, but they don't linger on him for long. "Respect is earned, not freely given, and Queen or not you've done and shown little to earn mine. You trust this male above the females of your pride? The pride who must look to you for guidance? The pride who must trust you above all? So be it. You're not wrong. Such a mix up will not happen again, as I'll assure it to keep myself as far from you as I can. What has befallen this pride of my father?” And with a snort, she backs away from the three with all intention of turning and departing.
There's a hint of a frown that edges across his gaunt features as the white lioness openly announces their affiliation. They've had this discussion before, but the two appear to agree to disagree - and unfortunately, with Ukomobasi being in the position of power, he certainly can't force her not to go around telling the pride about him. Honestly, it's better than some of the rumors going around about what the relationship is presumed to be. Most tread down that familiar line of 'Rogue enters land, 'corrupts' locals.' He certainly won't fault her for wanting to squash such untruths. What surprises him the most, in fact, is the fact that his sister's words are not believed. Suppressing a private laugh to himself at Takiyah's suspicious gaze, he gives a sweeping shake of his head and glances sidelong to the white lioness. "Already, I bring trouble to your doorstep. For all it helps matters," He comments ruefully, "There isn't much of a resemblence, is there?" His eyes slowly stray towards Takiyah, and he rises slowly to his paws, lifting himself straight and tall. "...I'm certain only my insistence of gaining this Pride's trust without needing to be tied to it by blood and the state of exhaustion my sister has been in is all that prevented her from speaking on my behalf." For a rogue, his tone is unexpectedly diplomatic and regal. He doesn't want to be the source of fighting. No, that would accomplish nothing, even if it amuses him at the moment. "If the blame must fall, I shall gladly accept it." He slowly bows his head low, chin resting on the dirt. "Accept my apologies."
Unaware now of all the chaos and negative emotion around him, doubly so that he is a partial cause of it, Kale is now more concerned with seeking comfort from his mommy. He grabs hold of her paw with his forelimbs and buries his face in her fur, tucking his body around behind it to 'hide' from the rest of the world. He remains like that shivering lightly from the soreness on his tummy and the angry tone of the voices as the situation begins to filter through to him, making him QUITE certain he's chosen the best place to be at this point in time.
Tyne - Tyne Rock Base
Takiyah, lioness
Kale'Kizuka, white lion cub
Motosi, barbary lion
Ukomobasi, white Lioness Queen
There's a strange noise from the higher levels of the ramp leading to the pridal cavern. A combination of skittering, scraping, the occasional light 'thump'. Also intermingled with various somewhat sorry sounding mewls. The source of these sounds on further investigation (somewhat tricky investigation considering the cause is so small) would appear to be that of a lion cub. A VERY young lioncub, apparently only a few days past eye-opening stage. The boy actually seems even smaller than a normal child of that age would be- but is clad in brilliant white fur, the same as his parents. Still too young to be able to properly walk, the inquisitive little boy has belly-crawled and skittered his way away from his napping parents and now takes in the wide world outside of the cavern for the first time. Even his little mewls of complaint come to a halt fairly rapidly as the beauty of the world sinks in.
Takiyah lounges at the bottom of Tyne Rock with her head set upon the top of her crossed paws. Everyone is gone. Upon her return home this has been the most shocking news to her. Everyone .. well, not everyone, but a lot of them are gone! Mainly her concerns are pulled towards Msasi, and as she lays her eyes are set out towards the jungle as if expecting the tawny female to emerge from the foliage and explain to her what happened. But what she hears is not the soft footfalls of a lioness but instead .. soft .. scraping, tumbling noises from behind. An ear turns before she lifts her head to peer back towards the pridal cave, and her head lifts a little upon spying a white blob. Brow quirking, she eventually pushes herself onto her paws and slowly walks in the direction of the escaping cub. Now, who is this? Apparently unaware until this moment that Ukomobasi had her cubs already, she pauses a few feet away from the youngster and gazes at him with a blank expression. "Hrmph."
The noise from the lioness is met by another chirping mewl from the little boy, his attention being drawn to her. He's still not mastered the art of focusing, but from the blurriness he can still discern the shape of something like mommy! Okay, the colour is totally wrong, but maybe there's food in this lioness too! He begins to wriggle across towards Takiyah making very slow progress, all the while mewwing eagerly. Up close, the boy's undersizing is plainly evident- he looks almost like a toy rather than a living creature!
Takiyah folds her ears back as the young prince ... heads her way. Er. Her ears fold back and her ears gently rears back as well as her eyes dart from one side to the other, as if looking for some savior to take the itty thing away. Another noise is made through her nose, much like a snort, before her attention returns to the cub. "You must be Aitan's son," she says with a vague wrinkle of her nose. "Tiny thing you are. Unfortunate for you that you take after your parents," she says with a disapproving look to his pale coat. "It's only a cute thing when you are young. As you grow older, it's only a nuisance. Fortunate though that you are male. Like your mother, you would be of little use to us in the hunt." Her muzzle is lifted a little and she retracts a paw, inching back a little bit as if the poor thing is carrying a plague. "I have nothing for you, small young one.." She looks past him now and towards the cavern, as if expecting a horde of siblings to come tumbling after him.
Onwards and closer the crawling mewling death approaches.. Why is she backing away? Is it a game? A game's a totally new concept to him, but it seems to make sense. Mewling eagerly, his huge blue eyes locked on Takiyah, he begins to scrabble towards her a little quicker, little legs making the best purchase they can on the rock while his milk-filled belly lifts and flops on the ground between them. He LIKES this strange new not-mommy, she makes interesting sounds!
Oh no! It's .... not going away. "Uhm.." Gah. She's not good with cubs this age! They don't .. listen very well. "You should not be out of the cavern," Takiyah informs in a voice that is a very good imitation of a scolding mother. "Where are your siblings? Your mother?" A disdainful look is given to the cavern again, and she slightly snorts. But her scorn is put on hold as she realizes that this little white cub is very near her now, and if she leaves, that'd leave him out here defenseless. Eyes are just kept from being rolled, and she sucks in a soft breath. "Ok. It looks as if it is you and I. Luckily for you, I am not a foe. Do you know what "foe" is, young prince?" she asks while gingerly lifting up a forepaw and waving it lightly before his eyes.
From the boy's scent, now he's up close, it would suggest that he has no siblings; though his mother's scent is strong upon him, and his father's scent at least discernable, there is none of that combination of regurgitated milk, excretory fluids or random niffyness that would suggest the presence of other cubs than himself. It would seem that he really doesn't understand language yet- though he listens pretty attentively, he just makes excited squeaks as Takiyah finishes talking, then lifting a little leg to blearily bat at the waving paw.
"Yes, yes, I make a good plaything, don't I?" drawls the lioness as she lifts her paw high enough that it dangles out of the cub's reach. Such an evil auntie, isn't she? Or not. The vague smirk that now curves her muzzle doesn't exactly scream evil female, and she lowers her paw down to prod at the boy's side. "You're your father's son. Hopefully you'll be a bit better tempered than your uncle Elimnyama though, hm? Surely you'll meet him soon." Her ears cup and, very gently, does she press the back of her paw against his side in attempt to roll him over.
Oh boy! This is nice! This is fun! The trusting infant begins to sound out a high-pitched buzzing purr a he feels himself pushed and prodded, rolling over eagerly with the assistance of the paw, and lying on his back with all four limbs splayed in the air and his belly drooping down to the sides. He giggles and wriggles his forelimbs up at the sky- it's so big and empty!
And apparently, this is as far as Takiyah's playfulness goes with this little pale cub, for soon after he's on his back is her paw retracted and set back on the stone. Hmph. An ear is flicked and she expectantly peers around for that .. parent of a savior that's supposed to be showing up and claiming their kid. But there's no white lion or lioness to be seen. "You truly should not be out here," she informs again while watching his tiny paws flail. "Dangers are outside. Danger. Can you say that word? Dan-ger.." she says slowly though with no real thought that the cub would be able to speak anything of the sort.
Indeed, her words are totally meaningless to her- and are only answered by more of those little chirruping squeaks. Kale seems to be enjoying his trip out so far though, no matter how dangerous it is. This lasts for some moments, but then he realizes something. This position isn't as fun as he thought it was. His legs are getting tired and his pure white, thinly furred belly is suddenly getting VERY hot under the searing African sun. He falls quiet, and begins to wriggle but lacks the dexterity or muscletone to flick himself over properly. He's stuck like a tortoise on its shell. And he's getting hotter, more sore. He begins to cry now- a loud, piercing distress call rather than normal cubbish griping.
... Uh oh. "Wait a second.." says the lioness with ears pressing against her skull as his cubbish cries begin. A look of guilt crosses Takiyah's face as she ducks her head down, looking as if she's just done something as wrong as beating the young boy. "Hey..hey now, that's going to help nothing," she says, looking a bit helpless. "Shhh....shhhh little one! Dear sweet cub.." Maybe sweet talking will help? Who knows! Swallowing, she stands up now and flicks her tail awkwardly behind her. "Are you hungry? Hurting? .. Tired? Do you miss your mother?" she questions, apparently too caught up in trying to get the child to hush that she hasn't realized that the poor thing was trying to roll over!
Hotter! Ach! Hotter! The boy's tummy is already beginning to look distinctly pink- flesh that was inside a lioness well under a moon ago and has never really experienced direct sunlight does NOT mix well with the hot, hot sun. And his right hindleg is cramping from being held up for too long! The honeyed words are lost on the boy as he begins to cry louder, more consistently. At the same time he twists his head from left to right, trying to get up the momentum to flip over. His somewhat saggy cub-belly however only frustrates him in these attempts.
What is it doing? Why is it making so much noise! "Ukomobasi! Come claim your son!" calls Takiyah to the mouth of the pridal cavern, but her efforts are fruitless. Gah. She doesn't remember any other of the Tyne cubs being so distempered! With brows furrowed, she watches the youngster while beginning to pace a small area in front of him. He's moving .. in a weird way. "Are you ill? Is that what's wrong? You pale ones are always more sickly than rightly colored cubs. Is it your stomach?" She says, speaking loudly in order to be heard above his wails. And speaking of stomachs.. Green eyes blink owlishly as she peers at the baby's sun-hot belly, seeing the pink flesh. "Oh my." A brow quirks before she lowers her head to use her muzzle to roll him over.
Motosi has arrived.
Well, as much as he was attempting to doze, the 'visitor' that has been so ominously present in the far reaches of the pridal caverns of late (much to the displeasure and wariness of the lionesses therein) has been roused by the level of noise and the insistent calling of Ukomobasi's name. Blearily stumbling out into the light, he's continually blinking one eye in effort to drive the weariness from it. The barbary sweeps his head about slowly to blearily take in the scene, yawning loudly as he arrives. "What's all this noise about?"
The noises from the little white cub currently stuck on his back like a turtle in the hot sun only grow louder as his uncle explodes from the cavern- That's a noise and smell he recognizes! Uncle Musty to the rescue! It's around that point that Takiyah rolls him back over once again, the boy's cries rising yet higher for a moment as his tired, cramping limbs relax and his hot, slightly sore and pink belly presses against the ground. Then the noises drop down from all out screams to just a maintenance level sobbing and whimpering.
Geeze. From one surprise to another. Not only has Takiyah has to worry about her young nephew .. or grandnephew wailing like she's killing him, now there's a huge lion lumbering out of the cavern! Needless to say, this does nothing to calm her, even though poor little What's His Name's cries has subdued a little. Ears lifting in alarm, as Motosi is a new face at least to /her/, she flattens her ears, bares teeth, and puts herself inbetween the lion and the tiny cub. See. She does love the little guy. Or at least, she has no intention of standing by idly while he's made a snack. "Who are you?" and more importantly, "How /dare/ you enter the pride's cave!" says the lioness who has been away long enough to not know the deal with this lion and Uko.
Well, he can't help but draw his focus to the unfortunate star of this extremely loud scene - Kale'Kizuka is regarded with a worried look. Motosi, whiskers-atwitch, takes several pawstep forward, frowning at the sound of the continually wailing young cub, tail lashing ever so slightly. Though he cannot deny the sound is annoying, the cries of the cub aren't something he can take lightly, not after that frantic trip to Kivuli in which they so fervently believed him to be on death's door. Wouldn't be a good thing if he was starting to relapse, now would it? He instantly halts his approach under the fierce scorn - it's not the first angry lioness he's encountered here, but it's certainly the first to outright snap at him. He settles his paw down midstep, slowly easing down to his haunches. He's a big lion, lengthwise, but he's thin as a rail, ribs exposed in places. Not a comfort, given the instinctual fear of a rogue raiding to feast on the young males. That will likely make scooping poor Kale up by the scruff to take back to his mother. "Easy, easy," He murmurs, lifting a neutral paw, "I am Moto'Sitirika. A guest of Ukomobasi's." Interesting claim; Aitan doesn't seem the type to allow his mate a consort.
On the floor behind Takiyah, the whimpering prince begins to try and flounder back across towards his uncle's familiar voice. It's the same uncoordinated scramble he first demonstrated for his father, though it seems he has a little more stamina now. He squeak-yelps each time he plops on his tummy, the skin below his very thin bellyfur slightly sunburned- nothing for anyone to worry about but sore enough for him to whine about. He fixes his watering blue eyes on Motosi and redoubles his efforts, despite the tiredness lingering in his stumpy legs.
Apparently, this stranger's words aren't enough to console the lioness. It is, after all, his word against her instinct, and Takiyah's instincts are more trust-worthy. Narrowed eyes take in his frame, roaming from face to mane to his stockiness, or lack thereof. Ears remain slick against her skull with body rigid with tensed muscles. But then .. there's the cub who is beginning to move again, making himself around her. With a snort, she lowers her head towards him and washes her tongue across his back before eyes flit up to the male again. "Guest of the Queen? I apologize as that fails to move me. Are you, lion, a guest of the King? Heir of Tyne? These lands are his, and if you have not his blessing to rest so peacefully as I assume you were in the heart of our lands, then you have nothing at all." Pausing there, she reaches to take the scruff of the cub's neck gently between her jaws, aiming to lift him.
Ukomobasi has arrived.
Things can't ever be easy in this land, now can they? With a brief grunt and a shrug of his shoulders, the male offers a slow shake of his head. "No, I admit," He states honestly, murmuring, "The offer of your king was to allow me free roam of Tyne with the exception of these caverns. Whether you shall take my word for it or not, Queen Ukomobasi has allowed me to stay within the caverns for the time being." He murmurs steadily, green gaze unblinkingly piercing into the other's similar shade. Motosi lifts a paw in allowance, "So, no. No king has given me permission. Nor have I been expelled."
Nearly there! Just a few more bodylengths! And then suddenly the scrabbling sunburned cubby is halted in his progress towards his uncle, Takiyah's jaws taking him and lifting him off his feet to reveal his pinkened tummy to the world. Little paws stretch out towards the familiar shape of the barbary- of all the pride, Kale finds him perhaps the least fearful-as if trying to grab hold of him. He whimpers in a frustrated tone as he dangles from Takiyah's jaws- and it's suddenly evident to her just how small and light he IS. Precocious little runt though, that's for sure.
"Nor has his presence been contested by Aitan, Takiyah." Comes another voice - decidedly more female than Motosi's, but equally as perturbed. Uko stretches her paws over the ledge of rock she stands upon, shelling sleep from her form stiffly. Muscles still scream in protest. "This lion is owed your gratitude for aiding me in a difficult journey to assure Kale'Kizuka's safety and survival. I would appreciate if you acted accordingly toward him. I understand your hesitations, but I assure you. I do not invite doom into the pride caverns. And I'd appreciate if you released my son to continue his exploring. Good for a cub, after all." Her ears pin forward, pale bombardier's gaze shifted to the lioness.
Mmmm. Talking is going to prove rather difficult with a cub in her mouth, light as he is, and so the only reply that Takiyah can give Motosi for the moment is a lingering glare. And now she's faced with a dilemma! Many words flood to her mind, none of which could be very kind mind you, but every one of them is a word that she's dying to say to this male. But then there's What's His Name in her mouth, who is proving to be a rather large speech impediment. Ironic, considering his size. But luckily, or perhaps unluckily, arrives the Queen and mother of this little mouthful, and surprisingly enough, her glare fails to soften as the lioness speaks. With a rumble in her throat, most likely a mutter stifled, she lowers her head and releases the cub with eyes lingering on the white Queen. "Perhaps next time you'll be the one to follow your son during his next venture out of the cavern. Or perhaps next time, I should take the word of any strange male I meet and allow your son to take matter in his own rather small paws?"
A smug expression works its way onto Motosi's features as the queen herself arises from her slumber in order to speak on his behalf. He slowly rocks up onto his paws, stretching away his own wakeful aches - an eye remains open, affixed firmly upon Takiyah. Given the reception to Ukomobasi's words seem to have been lukewarm at best, he isn't about to relax. Size advantage or not, he's all but a twig, and isn't so prideful as to presume he'd come out the victor if a skirmish were to occur. No, he's not ready to fight. He's ready to run, though. Truth be told, until such a time as Aitan and Ukomobasi speak, he will be on edge in this place. His brows lift slowly at the lioness' words, but he doesn't appear particularly offended. To make the matter all the more complicated, he chooses his words poorly, "The cub's just as much my responsibility as hers."
And he's placed down AGAIN! Honestly, what started as a fascinating adventure has now turned both uncomfortable and tedious for the little boy. But at least mommy's here to make the bad feelings go away. He begins at once to do his crawling shuffle back across towards her, mewling and sniffling. It's around this point that he has something of an epiphany; his tummy-tum is tender from the sun and so he tries his best to avoid putting it down on the ground TOO much. This leads him to try straightening his legs a little with the end result that even as the adults tensely glare at each other, Kale takes his first few tottering 'real' steps and promptly flops down against Ukomo's right forepaw, immediately rolling onto his side.
"Natural selection is always a factor when living among lions, Takiyah. If Kale is to survive, then it will be by Nature's decree. He's done well enough this far. Your interference is not necessary." Her tone isn't admonishing, merely factual. "And as strange as this male may seem to you, I know him well. And if he's watching Kale, then my son is safer in his paws than any others." Uko states, unwavering stare fixed neutrally upon the lioness' face. "I'm sure you can appreciate the importance of family. In the future, /I/ would appreciate it if you showed my brother, Moto'Sitirika, a little respect. He has certainly earned mine." As Motosi speaks, a small smirk rolls up on her maw. "Kale's Uncle is capable of overseeing his discovery of the ground around the caverns. And you may tell any others so, as well, in case this little mix up happens again. Which I'm sure it won't. Am I wrong?" Kale's progress is seen, and smiled upon heartily. Down on her stomach she goes, pulling the cub in and giving him a fine slobbery lick over the top of his head. "Mo's not a scary guy, is he? No he's not."
The little cub is furthest from Takyiah's mind now, though it doesn't seem as if he needs to be on her mind at all. Eyes dart to the male first as he speaks, and her reply to him is a soft, yet icy, "I wasn't speaking to you." And things seem to go bad to worse as her mood takes a low dive to hellish pits once Ukomobasi speaks again. Though the Queen's gaze may be neutral, Takiyah's eyes are aflame with spite. "Perhaps in the future, if you've a pride left to claim, /you'd/ not keep such things secret to those who are bound to you. Brother, fft. " Eyes flit to the lion, but they don't linger on him for long. "Respect is earned, not freely given, and Queen or not you've done and shown little to earn mine. You trust this male above the females of your pride? The pride who must look to you for guidance? The pride who must trust you above all? So be it. You're not wrong. Such a mix up will not happen again, as I'll assure it to keep myself as far from you as I can. What has befallen this pride of my father?” And with a snort, she backs away from the three with all intention of turning and departing.
There's a hint of a frown that edges across his gaunt features as the white lioness openly announces their affiliation. They've had this discussion before, but the two appear to agree to disagree - and unfortunately, with Ukomobasi being in the position of power, he certainly can't force her not to go around telling the pride about him. Honestly, it's better than some of the rumors going around about what the relationship is presumed to be. Most tread down that familiar line of 'Rogue enters land, 'corrupts' locals.' He certainly won't fault her for wanting to squash such untruths. What surprises him the most, in fact, is the fact that his sister's words are not believed. Suppressing a private laugh to himself at Takiyah's suspicious gaze, he gives a sweeping shake of his head and glances sidelong to the white lioness. "Already, I bring trouble to your doorstep. For all it helps matters," He comments ruefully, "There isn't much of a resemblence, is there?" His eyes slowly stray towards Takiyah, and he rises slowly to his paws, lifting himself straight and tall. "...I'm certain only my insistence of gaining this Pride's trust without needing to be tied to it by blood and the state of exhaustion my sister has been in is all that prevented her from speaking on my behalf." For a rogue, his tone is unexpectedly diplomatic and regal. He doesn't want to be the source of fighting. No, that would accomplish nothing, even if it amuses him at the moment. "If the blame must fall, I shall gladly accept it." He slowly bows his head low, chin resting on the dirt. "Accept my apologies."
Unaware now of all the chaos and negative emotion around him, doubly so that he is a partial cause of it, Kale is now more concerned with seeking comfort from his mommy. He grabs hold of her paw with his forelimbs and buries his face in her fur, tucking his body around behind it to 'hide' from the rest of the world. He remains like that shivering lightly from the soreness on his tummy and the angry tone of the voices as the situation begins to filter through to him, making him QUITE certain he's chosen the best place to be at this point in time.
