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Post by Kai on Sept 12, 2010 20:32:50 GMT -5
"Yay!"
"Tunza! Tunza's here!"
"Get 'im!"
Several furry little bodies clumsily leapt upon an adolescent male lion, letting out squeaky growls and snarls.
"Oh no! I've been ambushed!" Tunza said, falling over dramatically with all four paws in the air and trying to hide his smile. The cubs, of varying ages and sizes, crawled all over him chewing on his ears and his tail, tugging on his mane fur which seemed to be in a permanent state of chaos even without their help. The smallest of the group sat directly on top of his broad chest and smiled proudly.
"We gotcha Tunza!" she said.
"You certainly did you vicious lot!" he laughed, eyes sparkling. "You're all way too strong for me."
The cubsitters only smiled and looked on. Although it seemed unorthodox to them that a male would want to look after the cubs, they enjoyed Tunza's visits. The cubs adored him and it gave them a break. But they wondered how long this play session would last. Even though this was the one place in the whole world where Tunza was happiest, it was usually promptly interrupted. Tunza was an assassin, he was supposed to be training and he knew it. When Zengea came to find him, she was always furious, but nothing could keep him away from what little time he had.
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Post by Narifia on Sept 12, 2010 21:13:34 GMT -5
'Impudent little whelp,' Byron thought with a heavy sigh as he stalked to the place where he knew his troublesome little brother would be. 'Gender-confused little rat, off playing with the damn cubs all of the time. And then who's the one who has to go fetch him? Me. What a freaking burden.'
Byron stopped as Tunza came into his sight. He let out a scoff--just as he'd predicted, the little whelp was rolling on the ground with the freaking cubs. He flipped his head a bit to get his neatly-groomed dark brown mane out of his eyes.
"Hmm. Do you have any idea what a bother it is for me to have to track you down all the damn time? I'm the one who has to hear mother's mouth while you're off playing with the brats, you know. You could give me a little slack and show up to training on time, instead of prancing around here with the females and the cubs," Byron said in an irritated, deadpan tone. That was another thing; It was one thing to want to hang out around here because of the females. That was normal behavior for a male. But Tunza was here because of the brats. What the hell kind of a male wanted to play around with the cubs all day long? That was the females' jobs.
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Post by Kai on Sept 12, 2010 21:55:01 GMT -5
Tunza looked up at his brother, giving him a slightly sheepish smiled from his somewhat "undignified" upside down position. The cubs looked displeased at the appearance of Tunza's brother, because they knew when he came Tunza always had to leave. The little female cub on Tunza's chest stuck out her tongue at him. Tunza turned over and let her slide off down his side, and was about to respond when he heard one of the other cubs crying. He immediately gave the cub his attention.
"What's wrong little one?"
He talked in between sobs. "I...I...I gots a thorn in my paw!"
"Oh, let me see. Shhh, now. Let me see. That's a pretty big thorn. Hold still." he gently pulled the thorn out with his teeth and licked the cub's tears away. "All right now, it's all better. Go play with your brother, okay? I have to talk to Byron."
The little cub nuzzled against his leg before scampering off. Tunza was still smiling until he saw his brother's expression.
"Ah... ummm...." he sighed, trying unsuccessfully to smooth down his wild partly-grown mane. It continued to stick out stubbornly and get in his eyes. "I'm sorry Byron. I don't mean to make you have to deal with all that. It's just that training... well, sucks. I get so tired of it. What do I care about this grudge that mother has? We never even knew these banished siblings of ours. It's stupid."
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Post by Narifia on Sept 12, 2010 22:22:59 GMT -5
"Yeah, well life sucks. Deal with it. It's the duty that has been placed on our heads by the pride elders, and we have a responsibility to--erhm. Excuse us..."
Byron had noticed that they had been talking in front of the cubsitters still, so he excused himself and Tunza from their presence. No need to go into depth in front of them about a subject that was over their heads, after all. They had better things to worry about anyway. He and Tunza should at least be polite and let the ladies get back to tending to the cubs while they discussed more important matters. With an "ahem" and a shake of his head, he turned and motioned for Tunza to follow him.
"Look, you've gotta stop all this, Tunza. Mother is serious about this, and you should be too. Do you realize that you're staring to fall behind Mahiri? How the hell can you live with yourself knowing that a female, who has no business being an assassin anyway, is outdoing you as a warrior? I'd be ashamed as hell. Besides, we have a duty to avenge our siblings. They're our blood, after all. It shouldn't matter that we've never met them. At the very least, you should be doing this for mother's sake."
Byron glanced at his brother as he awaited a response. An eye twitched in annoyance as his younger brother's terribly unkempt mane stared him back in the face. He couldn't take it any more--he leaned over and started to try to groom that mess into something at least presentable.
"For Aiheu's sake, Tunza! Would ya take even a little pride in your mane for once? Aiheu abamami..." Byron spat, using the popular religious blessing as a curse word in this instance.
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Post by Kai on Sept 12, 2010 23:01:01 GMT -5
As Tunza walked away there was a chorus of pleading from the cubs.
"No, Tunza!"
"Come back!"
"Don't leave us!"
He turned from his brother once more to quiet them. "Shush now, if you behave I promise I'll come to play again. But only if you're really really good! Understand?"
They all nodded and spoke at the same time.
"We will!"
"We promise we'll be extra good Tunza!"
"You'd better, I'll ask the cubsitters and make sure." He warned them before he finally managed to get away. He then returned his attention to Byron.
He only rolled his eyes through his comments about how Mahiri shouldn't be an assassin. He'd heard the same zebra dung from his brother for so long, he didn't even want to get into it. He struggled as Byron began to try and groom him.
"Get off, Byron!" He protested, trying to shove him away, " You know that's not going to help, it's like that no matter what I do." He sighed again, beginning to feel frustrated.
"But why does it have to be our duty? Because we were born into a family with siblings that were lead astray by some cursed creature? Why should we bother to hunt to hunt down this spectre? Do you think this Nuru or Ukali will care? What are we gaining? What is it for?"
He stopped himself, and inhaled deeply to try and calm himself. He was normally very easygoing, but the training day after day after day for a cause he didn't believe in was wearing him down.
"I'd just be more willing to go along with what Mother wanted if it made sense to me. If I just understood why."
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Post by Narifia on Sept 26, 2010 22:52:51 GMT -5
Byron growled a bit as he was shoved away; partly because that mane of Tunza's was just so horrendous that it was irritating beyond belief, and partly because he didn't like being shoved by his little brother. Nevertheless, he patiently listened as his brother continued to whine about his usual bullcrap. He rolled his eyes; Tunza just didn't get it.
"You haven't learned anything about discipline or honor, have you Tunz? We're not supposed to question things. Our fates are already decided, and we're supposed to accept that. If it's our duty to avenge Nuru and Ukali, then that's all there is to it. It's also not about what we're supposed to gain, but rather what we can contribute to the good of the Pride and to the King himself. Of course, there are benefits..."
Byron's eyes started to wander as they passed by a couple of dark-furred beauties. As he caught their gazes, he flashed a charming grin and puffed himself up, showing off his warrior's physique. He flipped his lustrous mane out of his eyes, prompting the lionesses to giggle a bit and cast flirtatious winks at him.
"... Heh. See Tunz? We're assassins; warriors. We're practically the heroes of the pride, or at least we will be once we snag that despicable Ghost. If we just stay the course and do as we're told, it'll all end up being its own reward."
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Post by Kai on Sept 26, 2010 23:39:04 GMT -5
It was Tunza's turn to roll his eyes, as he watched Byron strut in front of the lionesses.
"Somehow, I suspect our ideas of what constitutes a reward are not the same..." he said dryly, then sighed. There was really no point in continuing this argument. It wasn't going to get him anywhere.
"Tunza." A lioness stood behind them, eyes glaring. Zengea spoke flatly, and with little emotion. There was no hint of rage, no raised voice, just an eerie quiet.
Tunza looked a little worried. Despite her outward appearance, he knew his mother was unhappy with him for blowing off his training again. This was Zengea's way. When she confronted someone, she didn't get worked up. But her steely exterior didn't mean she was any less dangerous when she was angry, nor any less frightening.
"Where were you?"
"With...the cubs...." He flashed a disarming, goofy smile, half our of nervousness. From an outsider's point of view this would look almost comical, seeing as the nervous Tunza was quite significantly larger and visibly stronger than the mother he was trying to appease. Her glare, if it was possible, only itensified. Tunza's smile dissapeared quickly.
Zengea sook her head a little as she looked at her younger son. So much wasted potential. A body built for strength, but not so much as to entirely hinder his speed, Bashiri had once said it was a sign from the gods. Tunza was built for the role he was born for. Instead of making use of it, he wasted his time trying to sneak away. Of all things for a male to be doing, playing with cubs!
"Who takes care of cubs in the pride, Tunza?"
They had this discussion before, and he knew the expected answer, "The lionesses."
"Are you a lioness?"
"No, mother."
"What are you Tunza?"
"I'm an asassin. I train to protect the pride, and kill the Ghost Lion to avenge my brother and sister."
"Good. Maybe a whole moon of double border patrol duty will help you remember your place."
There was no way he'd have time to see the cubs with training and double border patrol. He had to bite back an angry response. He knew better than to protest, she would only extend his sentence, but his feelings were very evident in his eyes.
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Post by Narifia on Sept 27, 2010 0:24:20 GMT -5
When Byron heard his mother's voice behind them he turned to face her, immediately assuming a rigid and respectful stance. Brash as Byron was, it was evident that he took training and protocol very seriously. His heart was definitely in it; even though it was inherently for his own self-interest and for the stroke of his own ego, he really did accept the ideals that Zengea tried to teach them. He honestly felt as if it were his and his brother's destiny to defeat this Ghost Lion.
Byron, while in the presence of their mother--or any other outranking lion, for that matter--always kept quiet unless personally addressed. It was his job to accept orders, not give them. At least, for the time being. One day, he would climb up in rank and become great, like Zengea, or even Hadhi himself. But for now, he accepted his place and stood by quietly as Zengea spoke with Tunza.
Byron typically wasn't one to tease his younger brother, at least not maliciously. Rather, as an older brother should feel, he felt the need to teach and protect Tunza, and to help hone him into a great warrior like himself. So when Zengea issued upon Tunza his punishment, Byron was silently quite satisfied with it. It would definitely keep Tunza away from the brats, and he would be spending a lot of time with real males--experienced elders--which would definitely be a good thing. Perhaps they would rub off on him and he'd come to realize his place; which was definitely not prancing around with the cubs and the females.
He cast a curious glance on Tunza to see his reaction; typical, he was pissed and it was written all over his face. Shaking his head disdainfully, he turned back to Zengea and awaited her orders.
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Post by Kai on Sept 27, 2010 0:46:17 GMT -5
Zengea could read Tunza's expression just as easily as Byron, but she said nothing of it. Since she had started Mahiri on a solo training exercise in their absence, she wanted to get back to check on her progress and finish up.
"Training grounds, before sun-high." Zengea said shortly. "Do not be late." She then turned and left.
Tunza looked up at the sky. They didn't have too long before sun-high, they would have to leave very soon. When his mother was out of earshot, he growled to himself. "Double border patrol. Ugh. She's probably going to lengthen the training session too."
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Post by Narifia on Sept 27, 2010 0:56:23 GMT -5
"Probably," Byron said bluntly as he watched Zengea disappear from view. He turned to look at Tunza, a slight smirk on his face. "Hey, you should feel lucky. You'll have more time to spend with some real lions for once, instead of those brats and the cubsitters all the time."
Byron began to walk off towards the training grounds, and with a nod of his head he motioned for Tunza to follow. "Don't get me wrong, Tunz. Some of those cubsitters are very attractive; I don't blame you for wanting to be around there all the time. I mean, I love the ladies as much as the next lion, but come on! I wouldn't want to hang around a gang of brats all day just to get near a couple of 'em," Byron added with a condescending grin at his little brother.
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Post by Kai on Sept 27, 2010 1:15:31 GMT -5
The young lion was fighting with mixed feelings. He wanted to be angry with his brother for calling the cubs brats and for talking about the whole situation the way he was. But then, he didn't seem to be able to look at this from Tunza's point of view. He was kind of oblivious, and seemed quite unable to comprehend actually wanting to spend time around cubs or anything of the like. He really did care, he just didn't get it. And Tunza wasn't sure he'd be able to explain it to him.
Then it occured to him, maybe his brother and his mother were right. Maybe a male shouldn't be enjoying hanging around with cubs. Maybe he was supposed to be more like his big brother. And the elders had said that he was meant to be a warrior and avenge his siblings. The elders knew everything, didn't they? He didn't like the idea of not playing with the cubs, but if this was what everyone expected of him, maybe it would be better if he just tried to be what they wanted.
"You really think this might help me be more like a proper lion?"
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Post by Narifia on Sept 27, 2010 22:50:18 GMT -5
"Tunz, I think this punishment of yours is a blessing in disguise. I'm sure of it, we'll make a lion out of you yet," Byron said with confidence, a satisfied grin playing across his muzzle. Finally, his brother seemed to be coming around. There was hope for him yet.
~*~*~*~
Back at the training grounds, Mahiri was busy working on the solo training exercise that Zengea had instructed her to do. A thick, fresh log had been stuck vertically in the ground. It was rather tall; almost twice the height of Tunza, which was pretty big. It was nearly as thick in diameter as a lion's skull, and fairly solid. The objective that Mahiri had been given was to have the thing severed in half by the time Zengea returned.
Mahiri had puzzled over the task for several minutes. It certainly was too thick to simply bite through, and clawing at the thing would do her little good at all. Mahi had placed her paws on it and given it a good headbutt, just to see how strong it was; a bump on her head and a few curse words later she'd determined that it was far from brittle.
It wasn't an impossible task; otherwise Zengea wouldn't have assigned it. Mahi bit down on the log in several places to see if there was a weak point anywhere, and about a third of the way up, her efforts proved fruitful as she hit a soft spot in the wood. There was her starting point. Mahiri let go of the log and ran quite a distance away from it before stopping and turning to face it. With a powerful thrust of her legs she raced towards it and leaped, seizing that soft spot in her teeth. Her jaws clamped down powerfully on the log; the force of her running speed made her swing around, grinding her teeth along the log's surface as she did so. She let go and landed, then placed her forepaws up on the log and inspected the damage she'd done.
Mahiri smirked; she'd made a considerable cut on the log, about half a claw-length's depth, and it nearly wrapped around the entire log. Mahiri proceeded to do the same thing again; she repeated this process several times until she'd whittled away a little more than halfway through the log. Now she changed strategies. She ran a further distance away, and running she gained a considerably powerful speed. She leaped higher than she had when she was "cutting" away at the log; she hit full-force near the top of the log, grabbed onto it, and swung, using the force of her swing to pull the log with her. It cracked at the weak point and broke. She and the log fell backwards; Mahiri turned mid-air and landed on her feet just in time to see the top of the log clatter on the ground before her.
Panting, Mahiri growled triumphantly. Her teeth, strong as they were, were sore. She tasted blood in her mouth; one tooth had been loosened, and she suffered a splinter in her gum from the effort. She took a claw and picked at the medium-sized splinter until she managed to work it out, making her gum bleed even more. Still, painful experience or not, Mahiri was proud. Although, she didn't quite understand at the moment what the point was of severing the log in half was. 'No matter,' she thought to herself, 'I'm sure she'll tell me when she gets here.'
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Post by Kai on Sept 27, 2010 23:16:28 GMT -5
"Good work." Zengea said shortly, appearing suddenly from the right. Zengea hadn't expected her to actually succeed within the time constraints, and she was impressed. Although, one might not know that from looking at her, those who knew her well knew that those two words were high praise from this lioness. She didn't give compliments lightly, or many words at all for that matter. "If you can tear through that, the Ghost Lion's flesh should be easy. Wood has much less give," she paused, she could smell the blood in Mahiri's mouth "and sometimes has it's own bite."
She glanced at the sky. Almost sun-high, if Tunza wasn't here on time she would see to it that he would have the most gruelling training session he'd ever encountered in his life.
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Post by Narifia on Sept 27, 2010 23:33:45 GMT -5
Mahiri straightened up into a more dignified stance and composed herself. With a smile she looked at Zengea and issued a single nod in acknowledgment of her rare--and much appreciated--praise. Mahiri, in her lifetime of training, had gained much of Zengea's militant and calm exterior. Mahiri wasn't like Byron, who--quite sickeningly--fawned over every complimentary word that Zengea ever offered him. In contrast, she accepted the compliment with cool, calm dignity--although her eyes danced with pride and a sense of accomplishment at having received Zengea's praise. Blood still trickled down the side of her mouth, though it was starting to slow. Mahiri dutifully ignored it; it wasn't much to worry about.
She took in Zengea's lesson with satisfaction; indeed, now that the point of the exercise had been explained, it all made perfect sense. Mahiri made a mental note to introduce this same exercise into her own training sessions with Hamali and Nyota. It was an excellent lesson indeed.~*~*~*~ "Come on Tunza, it's almost sun-high! We need to hurry," Byron said, as he realized that as the two had been talking they'd nearly lost track of time. Tunza would undoubtedly face more punishment if they were late, and Byron might well receive a little as well for not making sure that Tunza got there on time.
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Post by Kai on Sept 27, 2010 23:58:51 GMT -5
Tunza looked up. "Oh zebra dung!" A little note of panic could be heard in his voice. He'd been in enough trouble already today. He could only imagine how this training session would go if he didn't make it on time now. Tunza decided it was best to run, and sprinted full-speed for the training grounds.
Zengea's ears swiveled in the direction of Tunza's exhausted panting as he arrived, but she did not look back. He had made it in time, barely.
"Whoa, Mahiri." Tunza commented in between trying to regain his breath, "You made quick work out of that."
Tunza, unlike his mother, was usually fairly encouraging. Especially to family members, and having grown up with Mahiri and training with her, he liked to think of her as such. He talked a little too much for Zengea's liking, in contrast to Mahiri's down-to-business style and Byron's prompt obedience.
"Are we quite ready?"
Tunza made an effort to sit up straight and look attentive. "Yes!"
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