{PRP}A tisket, A basket {Ali'dido x Meltem}

[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

Meltem could barely get a moment's peace since she and Mahina had encountered a green, butterfly winged marked lion by one of the watering holes. The young serval was pleased as peach about her soon to be baskets. In fact, Meltem would have been dragged back out there the next day if she hadn't put a firm paw down, and told Mahina that there was no way he could be back yet. She could understand the youngling's enthusiasm.

"Never fear Mahina. We will go back and get your bag. We must give him time though for we have no idea how long he was traveling." She gave the young serval a calming lick and hoped she could be patient.




The moon marked flank had followed anything but a calm and smooth path over these last several days. Mahina was beside herself with excitement. A nice lion was to get her a bag that she could help Meltem carry things around in. For she'd been bitten by the bug similar to the apothecary's. At least once a day she'd ask, "do you think he'll have left it there now?" Which was always answered by, "no it's not been long enough."

Time seemed to crawl for the young serval. Finally several days had passed. When she'd come to ask the question, the lioness smiled. Mahina knew what that meant! They were going to look! She made sure she was well groomed before they set off.


As she knew it would happen, the kit was full of bounding energy at first. Then the lioness had to let her rest and carry her part of the way. Soon enough for her, she set the kit down again. "We'll be there soon Mahina. I'm sure you'll want to walk. Do you remember which tree we are looking for?"
 

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Just when he thought he was going to pass out due to exhaustion he spied the watering hole that he'd met a lioness and her young companion not even a complete week ago.. The bag he'd had swung over his shoulder now had additional product inside and he had decided upon an additional surprise - bags, 3 of them to be precisely. The surprise being that he'd chosen to get one done up for Meltem as well. Now he attempted to recall just which branch and if the branches would hold up the product.

As he reached the pool he dropped his bag and himself to the ground. The green lion had been at this for a number of days, barely taking a break and even skipped a meal here and there, not that that was a choice sometimes. "Oh goodness." He huffed to himself. Though he didn't look it he was excited to see the excitement and had to remind himself that he wouldn't actually be seeing the individuals he had met, instead this would simply be a drop and go.

"To bad I won't see them." He admitted to himself out loud. Ali picked himself up from the ground and approached the waters, lowering his head and taking a long drink as he had done the first time he'd come here. The waters were cool and enjoyable. "Now which branch was it?" He mumbled and began pulling free the bags. Two were small, though one larger than the other. He had figured that in time Mahina would grow out of the youthful basket and be in need of something else, something larger. Both bags were a deep green, given the plant life that was used to create them, and had on them some clear gems which were smooth and sparkled in the sun. As for Meltems bag he'd chosen something a little different, much larger and decorated with small bones as well as a gem which reminded him of the pale blue on her pelt, as well as the ocean.

After a few moments he finally found the branch and clumsily hoisted himself up it to hang the bags. Seeing them dangle there warmed his heart.

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[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

Meltem paced forward, but remained behind her friend. This really was for her in the end. Privately, she doubted the lion could have gotten there, had the basket made and gotten back so fast. This was mainly to sooth Mahina. The lioness hoped that she wouldn't be too disappointed in the end if the basket wasn't there. If not, they would wait another day or two and then return. She had to go out anyhow, so a small detour wouldn't hurt them.


Mahina couldn't help herself and raced forward in her excitement. As she burst through the bushes, she spotted a familiar butterfly marked lion. "Ali'dido!" The kit squealed shrilly and flung herself at him. She grabbed onto his back leg affectionately. "You came back you came back!" Seeing him again made her happy, but then seeing the baskets dangling in approximately the appropriate spot delighted her. "Oooo you brought the baskets! They are so big!" She giggled. Clearly he'd mistaken how big she was and gotten the basket sizes all wrong. What a silly lion!


Meltem strolled into the clearing. She'd heard the squeal and knew the lion was there. It surprised her that he'd returned so quickly. "Well well. How do you do Ali'dido? Did everything go well?" She smiled. Perhaps something had gone wrong or he wasn't able to get the baskets. Except when she glanced up, there were baskets hanging in the tree. It couldn't be coincidence.

The lioness wanted to frown at the size of a couple of them. First there was more than she'd thought there'd be. Meltem had expected him only to get one for Mahina. She wondered what he was up to. Although she wanted to laugh at the sight of the serval attached to his rear leg. "Dear me it seems you've developed a stange growth. You might want to get that looked at.  

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Golden eyes widened in alarm as he heard the bushes begin to move at a quick pace, but very low the ground. The source wasn't long in showing herself and at the sudden squeal of his name he felt his ears automatically flip back, finally he peered to see who it was and didn't even get a chance to speak as a small feline flung herself on him, attaching herself at his hind leg. "Of course I came back, I wouldn't go back on my word." He smiled, of course they didn't know that. Ali suppressed the feeling of extreme joy upon seeing them and chose to rise up and drag down the prizes he'd brought for them.

"Everything went swimmingly, had to avoid a pesky lioness that didn't want me there in the first place, but the basket weaver was grateful for some company. If you ever have the chance to visit the mountains you ought to look for Laini. She's chosen to create her own small home and even the goods you see before you. The lioness is quite skilled with her paws." It was clear he appreciated those who did well with their trade and though he hadn't been scheming anything with Meltem at the moment he knew a good ally when he saw one. "Now, for you and my growth." He said smiling largely at the kit attached to him. "I've brought three bags."

Delicately as he could he pulled the larger bag aside and set the smaller set next to Mahina. "I've gotten you two Mahina - sorry if the sizes are a touch wonky I should have gotten something to measure you with, but I eye balled it as best I could. The gems I found while looking through caves in the mountains, I was fortunate enough to find enough for all of the bags." He explained slowly. Now he handed the larger bag to Meltem. "You didn't ask for one, but I wasn't about to let you leave with nothing. This one was made without the added gem or bones, but I asked Laini if she could add them. The gem reminded me of yourself and the ocean, both of which have wormed their way into my memory."

"Hopefully their to your both of your likings?"

He smiled, and if he had to be honest with someone he'd have admitted feeling a touch nervous. "The added part, that I had suggested to the weaver was to try and add a leather lining, which has now been added to all three of the bags I present to you today." He was a touch proud of that and it showed.

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[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

Meltem couldn't help but grin. The young had infectious ways, and no barriers like adults. She sat down, much more relaxed around him now than she'd been at their first meeting, but still somewhat wary. At least she wasn't worried he'd try to hurt them now. "I do believe she's taking a liking to you." She watched him bring down the baskets. Ah so he wasn't going to drop and run now. She couldn't blame him for wanting to show off what he'd gotten for Mahina. "I'll keep that in mind. Maybe someday." A mountain would probably have different herbs than what she was use to.

Mahina grinned up at him, and finally let go. "That must have been a great adventure!" Of course she saw him battling lions, and leaping fires to get the baskets. She danced eagerly as he brought them down. "They look nice and tight. She must be very good!" Finally they were too the presents! She could see the three baskets and was being eaten alive by the curiosity.

"Ooooooooo!" Her eyes went wide as she saw the smaller basket laid before her. "It's so pretty Ali'dido! I couldn't have asked for anything better." Delicately she brushed the trinkets attached with a paw. The way they shined and glittered delighted the young female. "Aawwww he got you one too Meltem!" She giggled at the grownups and danced around, "now we can be alike!" This was the best present ever!


Meltem blinked. Touched that the male had brought her a gift basket as well. She took it and turned it slowly to admire it. "Thank you Ali'dido. This was very thoughtful of you. I'm sure it will come in great use for us." The lioness hadn't brought anything with her as she hadn't expected to find him here. Now she felt that she needed to repay his kindness. Despite his markings and his nosy ways, he wasn't that bad after all.

She chuckled at his flattery. Wormed into his memory indeed! Silly male! Meltem stood up and walked a short distance into the woods. After several minutes she returned with a plant in her jaws and laid it before him. "No where near as fancy as your bags, but I know you'd asked about plants before. I bring you the whole plant so you can see it and memorize it. All you need is a leaf if you have a cut. It'll prevent it from being infected."

Looking inside she saw they had indeed been lined. "I see from these that she worked it out well. These will be sturdy for a long time to come." Really they were quite a worthy present. "If ever you need help, you can come here to find me." If he continued to his destination of the ocean, she doubted she'd see him again. Meltem couldn't promise to help, but she would if she could.
 

[Ctrl F Greenie]

"Just a small amount." He said to her comment on Mahina taking a liking to him. In fact the enthusiasm from both parties told him that both had begun to like him and even trust him? The tension that was so high on their first meet was next to nothing in comparison. He seated himself as the pair admired the baskets a little more. "You're both very welcome." He said with a warm smile.

Then he watched at his ocean marked companion left their little group briefly, having enough trust to leave him with Mahina who still seemed to be fawning over her bag - he imagined that by the time they got home, wherever home turned out to be the bag would be full with whatever she could get her little paws on. Moments later he watched as Meltem returned grasping a plant that he'd seen before, but had no idea what the properties were.

"Thank you!" He said, eyes widening a small amount as she presented the plant to him as a token of her thanks. The plant was common enough, that he'd seen so far, and where he planned to be going would be incredibly useful. His curiosity kicked in as he took the time to really see the plant and reached out to get a feel for it's consistency. "Would I need to create a paste with it?" Ali thought of his bowl briefly and those tools he had packed away - if he needed to create a paste it wouldn't be difficult, just a task.

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[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

Meltem settled back beside her basket to try it on. She tried several different positions to find the one that worked best for her. If there had been any other apothecaries in the pride, she was sure they would be jealous. Finally she couldn't make any more excuses and took the basket off to rest it beside her. She would enjoy using it and probably think of him each time she did. The lioness returned his smile.

"That really is the best gift for her," she commented as she watched Mahina fuss with her basket possessively. Meltem bet she'd probably sleep with it, for awhile at least. "By the by, I'm curious what the third bag is for?" She pointed a paw. It was too small for her, but larger than the one for Mahina. He had gotten out of the other basket, so he'd meant to leave it for them.

Anyone could hurt, knowing what healed was always handy. This was knowledge that she didn't mind parting with. "Aye, you can use it as is if you're in a hurry. Just mash the leaf and smear the juice on the cut. Alternatively, make a salve with it. It'll last longer that way, and if you have a container it won't spill out of you can carry it with you."


Mahina hadn't been paying much attention to the adults, as the kit had to try on her basket and parade it around. Of course she had to practice picking a plant, it was only a weed but she pretended it was an important plant, and placing it in her basket. The kit eyed it to decide how much more she could fit within it. As Meltem started speaking about herbs, it caught her attention. She wandered over to the plant they were talking about and sniffed it, then licked it. "Ugh the leaf is fuzzy!" Mahina complained as she tried to get the fuzz off her tongue.
 

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Ali watched as Meltem found a comfortable place to seat herself and even pulled the bag towards her. "She really does love it." He said with a smile and letting his golden eyes move from Meltem to their smallest companion. "The third?" He asked, startled that he hadn't yet explained it. "Well I figured that Mahina would grow in due time, I'm not sure to how large and so I grabbed an additional basket for when the time came." It was clear the lion was proactive, he thought ahead in cases where others may not, but he expected to be laughed at a small amount.

"Good to know." He remarked as she explained how to use the plant. "Well fortunately I hoard the items I have and so I have a container or two that I can likely gather some of these items in." As he spoke he reached into his bag and grabbed out a small leather pouch which was decidedly going to be used to hold the plant she'd given him. Before he could collect the plant in question to be placed into the pouch the pair were intruded upon by the kit who suddenly became interested in what they were speaking about.

Soon as her tongue hit the leaf he watched her face, it appeared to wrinkle up in a fashion to show the distaste before he actually heard her speak. When her voice came through to him he was laughing even harder. Finally calming down he brought a paw to his chest a little and patted it thoughtfully as he tried to breath again. "Good to know Mahina, you saved me from doing it first." He mused, suggesting that he'd try the same thing to ease her. "Was it as gross as it looked?" He was still smiling largely and was obviously suppressing laughter.

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[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

The lioness nodded thoughtfully as he explained the purpose behind the third basket. "You're right. I hadn't thought about that. Her mother is bigger than she is now. We would surely have been baffled by that one until she grew up." Meltem laughed, thinking of all the wrong answers they might have come up with. "I'm glad you were here to explain. That's good. It should come in handily for you."

Kits were endlessly curious. They were learning about the world. She saw the kit coming and guessed what was about to happen. Thankfully she knew the leaf had no harmful properties or she would have had to stop Mahina before she licked. She laughed with the lion as the young serval dealt with her fuzzy tongue problem. "And now I must caution you both to never lick plants that you don't know. They could be poisonous." It would make the sting easier on them if she told them both together. Plants could be very dangerous if you didn't know what you were doing.

As Mahina got older, Meltem could impart her wisdom. It was nice to have someone to share it all with finally. "Any more questions about your plant?" She asked him with amusement.


Mahina shook her head several times before she felt she finally had gotten it all off. She could they were laughing at her, but she couldn't be mad. It probably had looked really funny. She took the warning to heart though. "You're welcome Ali'dido. It absolutely was. Don't lick it if you don't have to." She was never going to do that again though.
 

[Ctrl F Greenie]

"I just wanted to be sure that when she grew up she could continue to try and work with you. She's plagued with the love that comes with finding a hobby that is your own. Which is even larger when it can become a career." He stated with smile while he admired the handiwork a little more. Laini really had done an amazing job with the baskets.

Ali couldn't help but laugh when Meltem laid out her warning. "It's certainly not something I'd have thought to do, but still an important warning to pass onto us newbies, right Mahina?" He nodded towards the kit. "I don't think I have any other questions - not yet anyhow." His statement suggested he'd come back, but he hadn't committed to it out loud, not yet. Ali didn't know what lay ahead of him, but he figured he saw no reason not to come back.

"What abut you Mahina, did you have anymore questions about the plant?" Since they were both new to the trade he didn't want her left out, it'd be super beneficial for her as well.

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[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

Meltem smiled, thinking of all the grand adventures they could now have together. "That she will, I'm sure." She hadn't minded doing her work alone, but having the young serval added a whole new dimension. The lioness had companionship, and someone who had enthusiasm to match her own. It was nice to share the feeling. She was thankful Ali had spiked the kit's interest. Meltem purred reassuringly. "It'll be alright Mahina. Everyone makes the same mistakes at the start. So did I."


Mahina tucked her ears back and drooped her head at the rebuke. There was so much she had to learn about this; about all plants. When she took a look around and realized just how many plants there was just around where they were sitting, the young kit felt much daunted. How was she ever going to learn?

She nodded when he included himself in being a newbie. The kit perked up a bit as Meltem admitted she'd done the same thing. "Really?" She furrowed her brow in thought. Obviously if she didn't think of anything now, she could always ask later, but Ali'dido couldn't. "Um.... Where do these plants typically grow?" She pawed the plant, slowly turning it over.


She waited to see if they had any further questions. It pleased her when Mahina came up with an important one. "Good question. They prefer areas with water and shade. So it's unlikely to find them in sparse scrub areas or deserts." The lioness nodded her approval to the kit for thinking of that.
 

[Ctrl F Greenie]

Ali made a mental note that perhaps having a companion such as Mahina wouldn't be so bad. He knew little of his family, the individuals he did know were so few and far between that he barely recognized names or faces - to have a companion would be a nice change. "Good question!" His ears perked forward as he thought about where the plant could be found and he concurred that from memory the areas that Meltem had mentioned came to mind.

"I hate to cut things short." He began, realizing that it was about mid day and could easily become dark much more quickly than they might think. "I'll need to get started on my way, I do hope to visit again - this can be our special meeting place." Even though he wasn't sure how often he could make it out, he would always find a way to leave trinkets later on, especially considering how fond Mahina was of them.

"Thank you so much for what you've taught me and enjoy the gifts. They suit you both so much. Take care of yourselves." He rose from his seated position and smiled to each of them fondly and took his leave - the second time doing so, a rare thing for him.

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[magnadearel]

Mysses Greenie

Fin!

She glanced up startled as he mentioned he needed to leave. "Ah I'm so sorry we kept you! I hope you have safe travels Ali'dido. You'd be welcomed to visit. Tie a green blade of grass to the branch where you hung the baskets and we'll meet you at dusk." Meltem smiled. Although she had been leery of this strange male at first, he'd grown into something of a friend these past few days. "Thank you again for the basket. It shall be put to good use."


Mahina was pleased that they thought her question a good one. However it ended too quickly as Ali said he had to go. "I'll miss you!" She jumped up and gave the lion a tearful hug. "I'll use my basket and learn everything I can! Yes do visit! We'll look for you!" She liked Meltem's suggested sign. Reluctantly the kit stepped back and watched the lion depart. Then she helped Meltem gather the baskets and head back home.