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 Posted: Sat Dec 10, 2016 7:10 pm
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Ukulwa had unintentionally arrived late to the gathering. Nothing was more important, of course, though she'd gotten a touch distracted and decided that perhaps by now the crowd up to the Queen may have died down.
Boy was she wrong... upon arrival she sought out of the familiar coats in the crowd, particularly Jitu, but was having a little more trouble than anticipated. There was one thing she couldn't mistaken and that was the location of the Queen.
"Jitu?" Her voice beckoned, but calling out was unnecessary as she spotted him. "Ah, there you are. What's happened so far?" The question only arose when she over heard some shouts, though she couldn't quite catch the words.
Belial approached with a serious of mixed emotions about the outcome. He didn't deny that perhaps some of the choices were scandalous and made for plenty of damage to control, but Shangyue had made some promises. None of those promises had directly effected him.. yet, but they could have.
Since nothing had really changed in his life, beyond finding a home he'd rather not leave it was a simple decision when he was presented with the option of pledging allegiance to the snow white Queen or leaving. Waiting patiently for a turn to stand before the Queen he didn't make any changes to his choice.
"I swear fealty to you, Queen Kimondo." Sweet, simple - he desired to be straight to the point and wanted to be out of her face. The lion didn't harbor many emotions beyond the base survival, which meant changing loyalties for him, in this moment, if he wanted to keep his quality of life the way it was.
AstoriaFallen If you wanted to have your lioness meet him here? Or we can do a separate RP later and you can ignore this lol
Zuri had dutifully remained at Yueyens side throughout the very theatrical tantrum of Parisa. A thought occurred to her that if any of their children adopted even half of the attitude that their Grandmother had she'd be in for double duty in parenting. The cubs had been sheltered though, so perhaps there would be a small chance of that.
When the former Queen had stomped off Zuri was baffled, though not entirely surprised if she was going to be honest with herself. The whole scene seemed unnecessary and yet there it was and she was quite impressed with how the family had managed to keep it together, the scene had remained manageable.Quietly, so no one else could really hear - though she could care less - she spoke to Yueyen. "Are you alright?" A silly question, given the situation, but one she intended to ask whether she got a truthful answer or not. If need be they could always return to their cubs early, one of the greatest excuses known to lion. In a more light hearted scenario she would have likely laughed at her own thoughts.
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Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2016 11:40 am
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"Hm," Juno replied softly, leaning in a little closer to him - so close that they were almost touching. "Do you have any regrets?" she whispered.
"Many," he replied, "but not about this. Family or not...we could be of use here. Now and in the future."
"Even as low class?"
Tu-Bana frowned, meeting her gaze for the first time since they had started this conversation. "You could never be low class. You glow brighter than the moon. You could hardly be seen in bad favour."
She smiled just a little, taking the compliment without a word.
He cleared his throat, embarrassed, and looked away.
-----
"Well don't get any ideas," Yavin replied, "we've hardly been spending that time romancing," he wrinkled his snout and curled a lip just enough that the tip of a fang could be seen.
At his response, Endor burst into laughter, his sides shaking as he tried to get over what he had just heard. Sometimes he wondered why his parents had even partnered up in the first place. They seemed to spend more time apart than together and to think of them being romantic seemed utterly ridiculous.
Yavin, giving his son a death-glare, turned back to the midwife, "everything is much better now that we haven't got a murderer on the throne." Yavin had not been the most outspoken rebel - he'd not really spoken much at all. He'd preferred living to sticking out his neck and risking it getting bitten.
Endor, startled, turning to glance at his sister, "I do? No. This is just my face," he grinned, stupidly at her and danced around to face her. "But isn't it wonderful, sister? A fresh start! We don't have to live in fear of our lives any longer."
-----
"We can head back if you would prefer," Charon replied, glancing around to see if there was an even less-crowded spot.
The old female bristled and shook her head wearily, "what will you do when you don't have your old mother to take care of? You're not married. No kids. I've never seen any sniff of a girl around you."
That wasn't exactly true, though it had been a long time. How could he tell his mother that his responsibility for her had hindered him? That he'd put his life on hold to be her carer and ensure that she was happy, even if he was sometimes terribly lonely.
He looked up at her and startled to see her hard eyes on him, calculating and judging.
"Maybe that will change now the pride is safer," he replied lamely.
-----
"Mother," Shesha started, giving the other dark female a nudge with her shoulder, "do you know who those two are?"
Nissa turned her hard face around to peer at the rogues through the crowd. From the distance they were sat it was hard to tell. The female was pale-gold, like a waxy moon. The male was black - not really anything much to note about him (they were too far to see his scars).
"No," she replied, at last. "Why do you ask?"
Shesha was on her paws again now, craning her neck to try and catch a better look at them as they settled down. "Oh, no reason. I...I might go introduce myself later."
"I wouldn't waste your energy," Nissa scoffed, "they look like a mated pair already. You'd best look elsewhere if you want a mate."
Shesha gave her mother a mock-horrified look, "please, mother. I didn't ask for advice on relationships."
Nissa shot her daughter a toothy grin.
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Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2016 11:23 pm
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Kimondo was pleased to see Hodari and Amabala made room for Manyara and Nko, and then turned her attention back to the lineup before her. She was surprised to see Fasrin was next to address her.. and even more surprised to see him offer such respect. When he spoke, she merely stared, trying to figure out how she was supposed to react. She didn't want anybody to beg or grovel, but she needed to know certain lions were interested in allowing the pride to find and maintain peace.
My mate and children.. his relationship with Nebesa had always been a curious one. She knew Liuhe was close to one of his sons, and had met one herself, but neither had offered much substance. Nebesa's decision to keep her silence as her husband faced exile was telling, but his reaction to the situation said a lot, too.
"Thank you, Fasrin," she said, "If you are being sincere, you are of course welcome to stay."
She spared a second for a glance around the crowd, wondering if Liuhe or Behram were watching.. and if Parisa was still fighting the inevitable. She sighed, spotting none of them in the immediate area, and turned back to the next lions to approach. She froze at the sight of Halili and Orion, immediately expecting that they would be among those to take her up on her offer.
Orion followed his mate closely, allowing her to do most of the speaking but smiling at the new queen the entire time. The pride seemed such a small place, he and his mate were both related to Kimondo and it wasn't hard to pick it out if you knew the families.
Kimondo's smile returned when Halili informed her that they would be staying. There were sure to be more slaves who chose to leave, Nina was not going to be alone in that.. but after everything Halili and Orion had been through, she felt most strongly about them. They equaled Unyezi and Nerit, as far as she was concerned, for who the pride owed deeply after all the suffering the Low Class endured.
"I'm glad," she said, smiling at Halili and Orion, "I promise, I will find a way to make things better."
Orion glanced from Kimondo to his mate and back again, offering a smile.
"Congratulations, your majesty," he said.
Unlike 'Varinen, Neema was pleased to wind up so close to Halili and Orion- she was preparing to cut ahead in the line and argue with them when she heard Halili say that they were going to stay. She was grinning when she looked back to see 'Varinen shrinking back, and raised a brow at him.
"Come on, we're up next."
An unfamiliar purple lion was after Halili and Orion- and before Neema. He made a simple statement, short and to the point.. and she realized who he was. She offered a gracious nod.
"Thank you, Belial."
Liuhe was so tired of fighting, it very nearly made him regret not taking the throne just to shut everybody up. But then there would be other fights, other reasons for a headache. His only hope was that soon, this would all be over. His mother and sister would have to accept reality and he could move on. He wanted to. He had plans to learn to hunt properly, in fact, but he just .. couldn't do it yet.
"Xiyang, it's better this way," he said, sounding tired.
Rahim sighed loudly, purposefully drawing the attention of his siblings to himself in hopes it might help cut through some of the hostility their mother had left behind and Xiyang was determined to maintain.
"Guess I better go say something nice to the queen," he said. |
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Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2016 12:46 am
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A heavy feeling fell on Liuxing’s chest as she watched her mother storm off. She glanced around, hoping that not many saw her disrespectful display; she didn’t want anyone else to be encouraged to call for her mother’s exile. She gave a sympathetic look to her brothers, hoping that they would feel at least a little less stressed now that their mother had exited. She knew she did. Their sister, on the other hand...Liuxing worried that her anger would get herself in trouble. Sensing her aggression, she took a precautionary step toward her, putting a paw in front of her sister. She knew that she’d likely never act on her feelings - especially not today - but the guard in her couldn’t take any chances.
Her gaze was immediately caught by her uncle approaching the new Queen; he would really be the first in their group to go up? She supposed there was more on the line for him than for the rest of her family. Her ears perked up, trying desperately to hear what he was saying to her. Would she let him stay? Would she force him to go? What would their mother think of the decision? She tried to quell her racing mind, hoping that this display would be a positive one and it would continue on to the rest of their family that had yet to approach.
An uncommon smile spread across Liuxing’s face as she saw what she could only assume was a positive interaction between her uncle and the new Queen. She was glad that at least he was granted permission to stay - now they just had to see how their mother would be treated. Her happiness was briefly interrupted by one of her younger brothers as he announced his intentions to approach as well. She blinked a few times as she looked at Rahim, but gave him a smile and a nod of encouragement. “Go do us proud.” She wasn’t worried at all about what he’d say - he might be a little less well-worded than Liuhe, but who wasn’t? For that matter, what the heck was she going to say when she finally approached as well?
At her brothers’ comments, Laleh gave a stark roll of her eyes. They sounded so cynical, but it was hard for anyone in this family to not be at this moment. Still, she was a little relieved when her mother stormed off - at least she wouldn’t have to listen to the bickering anymore.
“Wait - what?” Laleh blinked in surprise as Rahim declared himself. She knew that they all needed to go talk to the Queen and give them their support, but it never really felt real. Part of her thought that maybe it would just be a skipped over technicality.
A small sense of panic began to set in, and Laleh realized that she didn’t think she could go up alone. What would she say? She’d probably mess something up, especially since she wasn’t really known for being the most eloquent, even though she was the oldest of her litter. “But Rahim, maybe…” She stared at him for a moment, eyes moving as she thought “maybe we should go up together!” Her ‘needy sister’ side was showing, but she really was nervous and thought that maybe having at least one of her siblings up there with her would help.
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Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2016 5:11 am
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Yuèhuá used the distraction of the queen to position himself behind her like a shadow. He nodded to her sister, not expecting to really be acknowledged by the female, but he figured that if he was going to serve the new queen he should stay close to her and those she considered important. He also had another reason for staying over here. He wanted no part of the drama he could see his mother causing. His siblings could fight with her as they wished, but he was done dealing with her 'birthright' crap. Their father had stolen the throne so even HE had no right to it.
Yuèhuá was glad to see his uncle come up to speak to the new queen and gave him a nod. It was not a lot, but he figured that ignoring one of the good ones in the family was stupid on his part. The white lion was certain that at least his uncle would not be supporting his mother's crap. He just wished that his uncle could get his mother to give it up. There was so much as stake for his younger siblings if their mother got exiled while they were still so young.
Anastahili approached the new queen with some hesitation. He was a guard and always did his job no matter who was in charge, but he had been eyeing Kimondo for some time as a possible lioness to woo. Now she was QUEEN talk about intimidating. He had even spoken to her a few times and told her how lovely she was. This was not something he would have ever dared to do to a high class lioness. He had no doubt about his place in the pride and the fact that he belonged in the middle class where he had been placed.
As he approached her now, Anastahili kept his eyes downcast away from Kimondo and gave the lowest bow he could. He was not sure he even should be approaching her, but others of his class had, so perhaps it was something he should do. He came from an old and rather reclusive line in the pride. They often just did their tasks and spoke little, so it kept them out of most of the drama in the pride. He had thought this white and silver lioness special enough to speak to in his off time, and now it seemed so silly of him to do. He had reached above his place in his hopes. Ignorance that she would be come queen was no excuse. He should have known that such a wonderful lioness would be blessed by the Moon far more than he.
Anastahili did not rise from his bow, but stayed there as he spoke to her. "I wish to apologize for things I may have said before you became queen, Your Grace. I did not mean to overstep my place, but I also wish you to know I am forever loyal to my place as a guard of our pride." He could not help but admire her paws as he stared at them. They were as lovely as the rest of her, and he really needed to stop thinking that way. If he kept it up, he was going to get himself into trouble! She was going to end up attracting some High Class lazy fluff, and he needed to accept that. The thought made him want to growl.
Ecavi I thought a bit of a history between the two could be fun |
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Posted: Fri Dec 23, 2016 3:41 pm
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Kimondo started when she realized it was Anastahili who approached next, bowing perhaps the most dramatically of any of those who had approached her so far. Embarrassingly, he brought up past meetings- not among the most significant moments in her life to this point (considering all the drama she had been a part of and the sudden direction her life was going in now)... but he was no less memorable. It was easy enough to humour him with equal parts genuine friendliness and mild ignorance to his intentions, but she had caught up and in public was not exactly the ideal situation for dealing with him again.
"Thank you, Anastahili," she said, offering a small smile, "Your dedication and loyalty is very valuable to the pride, you don't give yourself enough credit."
There was no good way to argue about what his place was or wasn't. Class had never mattered so much to her, her place in the High Class had always been inconsequential until it put her in the running to become Shangyue's successor. She would be dealing a lot with class issues like this, she suspected. There were inherent differences due to the religiosity of the pride but that did not demand hostility.
More things to give her a headache later.
Rahim paused when Laleh stopped him, tilting his head at first and offering a reassuring smile when she suggested they go up together. He wasn't exactly enthusiastic to do this, his attitude could be described as begrudging at best.. but not because he wanted to be a king. Not at that very moment, anyway. He nodded over his shoulder to invite her along with him.
"Come on, then," he said, "Maybe if we work together, we'll figure out something to say that doesn't make us sound stupid."
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2016 4:09 am
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The two had been quiet for a time, both trying to acknowledge the possibility of being low-class and being unable to accept it.
"It makes no sense," Tu-Bana said at last.
"Hush, not so loud!" Juno warned through her teeth, moving closer so that their sides touched. She saw him shift awkwardly and smiled a little, enjoying that their closeness could make him uncomfortable. They'd never really properly established anything past friendship, even if their had been a kiss.
"We would be wasted in that rank. I won't waste my life."
She nodded matter-of-factly. "Perhaps we can speak more on it before we join fully."
Tu-Bana growled, "we already pledged our loyalty."
Again, they fell back into silence.
-----
The old female hurrumphed loudly and cast her son a long look through slightly clouded eyes. For a moment she was silent, allowing it to envelope them like an old friend; the cogs in her mind turning, seeming to realise how old she had become and, in turn, how her son had grown. He was a cub no longer. Not even a teen. Long into his adulthood.
"I have been a burden," she said at last. Not sad or angry. Just matter of fact.
"Mother...no." Charon began, stutterring over his own words, "I love you. You could never be--"
"--Enough. Let's talk of it no longer. You don't have to be a seer to know the truth."
Charon, sadly, hung his head.
-----
"I'd be happier," Nissa continued, looking away, "if you didn't engage in a relationship at all."
"What's this? No desperate need to become a grandmother any time soon?" Shesha joked, nudging up against her mother with a purr and a smile. "We need something to cheer us up, do we not?"
"Cubs...no...not until this place is more settled."
They lapsed into silence, both thinking of the family member who's future was unknown. "If my daughter leaves," Nissa whispered, letting the sentence hang.
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Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2017 11:47 pm
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Liuxing's eyes followed her youngest sister, giving her a brief moment of calm. She glanced at her brothers, showing a sheepish grin, "It would seem that our younger siblings are far more functional than we are." She sent a slightly sympathetic look towards her sister. "Perhaps we should cooperate, if only for the occasion?" She was, at the moment, not quite ready to step out and make any grand proclamation in front of such an audience; her younger siblings going up before her gave her more time to think about what her words should be eactly.
Bouncing slightly on her paws, Laleh showed the biggest grin the evening had produced from her so far. She was still nervous, but the company of Rahim would make her feel more at ease; plus, he seemed to always know what to say. Or maybe it was just confidence.
"Alright!" She followed after him, staying a step or two behind him as she walked up with him. "I wonder if the new queen feels odd about us coming up like this." She whispered softly to her brother, thinking aloud. There must be, at least, some awkward feeling needing to accept proclamations like this from the former royalty.
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Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2017 12:19 pm
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Quote:  The black lion's head lung low. Lately, he walked with a distinct limp and the painful grimace was beginning to make itself a permanent part of his countenance. He had tried to get revenge against Nyeusi for killing his sister, Mari, but he had nearly died for it. There had gone all of his plans against Orion for killing Tyfu, but... With the rebellion over and his wounds barring any rash decisions about fights and such, his blood had cooled. Maybe time away from Dwyllo did him some good, too. He had initially favored the rebellion, believing that Shangyue had been an unjust murderer-king, but the revelation that he was also Chunyue's father had sent him into a tailspin of doubt and uncertainty. All he could have been sure of in those times was his mother's fearsome wrath. He felt a great sense of shame for not opposing his mother, but being raised under her terrible and cruel paw left him terrified and fully knowing of what she was capable of. He felt it had been his life or Umepatwa's, and he'd chosen the former. But would the new rulers believe him? He lingered at the edge of the gathering. Maybe he could have a word with them in private, or at least not in front of the whole pride. He didn't really want anyone to rip his throat out for showing his face or approaching the queen... He wavered, hesitating. He would have to get it over with, though. He couldn't be banished to the pride lands now. It would mean certain death for the crippled lion. Though... Maybe he would deserve it...
Quote:  Lunik had stopped wearing his pendant of the royal guard the day Shangyue died. He didn't believe in the king the way some of his comrades did, not during the rebellion. He felt duped. All the former-slave had wanted was the Great Lion's protection, but in lieu of its absence, Shangyue was the next best thing. He had been quite young during Shangyue's coup, so he grew up with the idealized version of the lion. But as the rebellion progressed, Lunik had been noticeably absent from his royal guard duties, doing the bare minimum. Shangyue, he believed, was not just or worthy enough to be able to provide the protection he had allegedly sold to the slaves-turned-guards. It had been that, not the power, which he had desired. Now... He felt helpless again. Hopefully they wouldn't turn him out from the pride for wanting to feel safe. |
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2017 1:44 pm
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Mabichi chewed her lip as she glanced around the gathering. This was not the normally confident and unshakable lioness that the other royal guards knew. She spotted Lunik and went to his side, magnetically drawn by their parallel struggle. She, too, had cast off her pendant. Not that it made her unrecognizable as a former royal guard. Instead it was a display of her allegiance not remaining with the old king. The green lioness had reflected on the time of his reign and wondered how the pride had even let it happen. Well, besides the murders of his family and his frightening henchman Firaga. Mabichi never got her paws dirty like that. However, she did feel a crushing weight for having reported intelligence about rebels and potential rebels. Those were her pride members, how did she do that? But in the moment it had felt like an us-versus-them, and rose-colored glasses provided by Shangyue had obscured the fact that justice and the best interest of the pride were on the side of the rebels.
Her head hung low and her golden eyes glanced around as she awaited her fate. She grimaced when she saw Chunyue. Maybe the worst fates would be allotted to the more active transgressors (and, well, murderers...) |
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As she looked around her gaze fell upon a nice looking male that she hadn't really seen around much before. Looking at her brother she gave him a nudge on the shoulder, "I'll be back. I'm going to do a little mingling." She said with a wink and then padded over towards the male. 
