"If you are going to stay here..."

[Mythri]

Cast:
Cael, adolescent male cougar
Mythri, adolescent female cougar
Kein, adult male cougar

---

Scene:
The air high in the mountain was still cool, crisp, and held on to the last little traces of winter among the rocks. The young male had spent most of his morning ascending the cliffs, scaling the rocks, and bounding over gaps in the stones. He was at peace up there, high above where creatures hardly ever ventured; even his own family. He could think. He could feel. Then the sun reached it's peak and began to fall, and Cael began to make his way back down to more level ground, his paws guiding him down swiftly, easily, with a practiced grace. He knew those steps well. Dusk was falling when he made his way through the forest and found himself here, and the strangely familiar circle of weathered stones, like a mini mountain, nestled amind the pines. As the dying red and orange sun painted the summer sky, Cael, with a grunt, scaled the fallen rocks with a very easy bounds, perching himself on the edge of the highest one, his eyes squinting at the blood red orb that fell away to the west. He stands still, tail outstretched, ears at attention, endlessly blue-black eyes swirled purple with the fiery reflection of the sun. Today. Today, he felt alive. Something stirred in his chest, but he didn't quite know why.

The same sunset is being watched by another adolescent cougar in the area, and her own amber-rimmed dark eyes seem to glitter with the solar brilliance. Here, now, very obviously trespassing in Amaranth, the young female known as Mythri rests on top of one of the lower-lying rocks, enjoying the warmth of the last of the sun's rays. In fact, it's already past the point of warmth, and it's most definitely time to leave the tribal lands for the night. No doubt her scent will send that one particular male into a rage for her apparent violation of his boundaries, yet she just simply couldn't help herself. The mountain she had been told about, with its beautiful forests and rocky slopes. And even the little bit of snow left on the highest reaches, begging for Mythri to come and discover the white and powdery fascination. But for now.. she must leave. No doubt to sleep here would be to wake up to fangs at her throat. With no desire to have her life ended in such a way, the female slowly rises to her paws; her tawny coat seems to blaze in the fading sunlight as she stretches, giving her pelt a few last grooming licks before going still, standing proudly and looking toward the sunset one last time. The view from up here is incredible, and though she must leave now, no doubt a longer look will provide for better dreams tonight.

The red splashes across his pelt, lighting up his pale coat and tinging him a darkk amber-orange, and the cougar is content to soak up the last few bursts of warmth that the sun has to offer before the cold stars begin to twinkle in the eastern horizon. While the sun is brilliant, hot, and unforgiving, the moon is cold, lonley, and empty. At least, to most. As the sun's strength begins to fade and waver, Cael slowly turns his head, eyes fluttering as they meet the cool dark of the evening sky and a smile curls his features. He knows what it is that stirs his heart so much this night; he has two baby sisters. The thought eases his features a bit, and his muscles begin to relax as he thinks about his growing family. He'll have a responsibility he's never had this summer, and Cael knows full well he will take to it with all his heart. Nothing is going to happen to his family. Not while he's around. Something stirs at the back of his neck, and Cael's fur bristles straight. Thick tail lashes behind him once, twice, as a fleeting scent passes across his nose and then escapes into the night. His stomach churns, souring. Something is familiar about that scent, familiarly... different, and it uneases him greatly. The male turns, jumping from his high perch to a lower, flatter rock below him, heavy paws hitting the surface with little noise, although he is not soundless. Bunched muscles lay low in wait, ears flattened, as Cael tries to piece together what it is that has happened...

Does Mythri have any baby sisters? Or any siblings at all, for that matter? If she does, they are unknown to her, and unless she somehow could get the chance to ask her father, will most likely always remain unknown. The only concern on her mind, though, is herself. She was taught to be self-reliant, and taught well. Her young age, lack of experience, and not-quite-fully-grown body are factors that work against her, but she is fully confident in being able to survive on her own. That would include surviving tonight, so with a wave of her tail, Mythri turns around to jump off the-- she freezes. That's another cougar over there, one that she didn't even realize was there. Careless of her! Stupid, stupid, careless! But as her father's voice mentally berates her for the lapse in peripheral attention, her mind is now at razor-sharp alert. Eyes that were just a moment ago glittering with the fading sun's rays are now keenly focused on the obviously-agitated.. male? Yes, it's a male. And roughly around her age too; the relief that it's not the fully-grown adult that she ran into before is immense. So what now? Mythri can try to remain motionless, hoping that despite her complete lack of cover, the other adolescent will not notice her and leave, or she can try to simply outrun him to the border--would he chase her past it? Or, if she is feeling really brave and confident, she can simply confront him as if nothing unusual is happening. But it's the cautious and wary demeanor that rules out the last option, and not knowing if the older male from earlier is between her and the border, Mythri decides running would probably not be the best idea. She'll just have to crouch down and hope that she's not seen in the last bits of light, anxiously waiting for the shadows to cloak her presence.

There, that scent again. Brief, ghosting, but so /realy/ in his mind but he just doesn't understand why. It's this confusion that keeps Cael stationary, unwilling to move until he has figured out why that presence is hauntingly familiar. Yet, there is something different about it... Graa! The male's tail arches and lashes out at the rocks behind him in his frustration and inability to understand. Cael freezes, his eyes darting straight ahead, focusing on a flickering shadow and the instant motion of a siezed muscle. Someone is there. The fast approaching dark has him squinting, and very slowly he rises from his crouch, neck arching as he lifts his head to bridge the distance between himself and the stranger in the dark. His maw drops open, slowly sucking in a breath to his empty, aching chest; he didn't know he stopped breathing altogether. Kein and Nayeli would not be this far out; they'd have no reason to. Amaranth hasn't seen hide or tail of the cougar brothers, but... Cael's heart begins to pound, the rage from his youth roiling in his teenager heart. Damn them. Another breath, and a steady, warning growl begins to roil up from his chest. "Who's there?" he calls to the creature, watching the motionless shadow; it could be just a hare, or a game bird, or nothing at all but the wind playing tricks with his mind.

So much for remaining undetected. Or is the other young cougar just suspicious of what he /thought/ he detected? Mythri can hope that there's still a chance that he'll not spot her, though from his question, it would seem that chance is now gone. What now? Answer, and reveal herself? Maybe she could sneak off before he gets close enough to really see her. Or maybe she should preemptively attack, and try and scare him off? Didn't seem to work too well on the last cougar, but that was a fully-grown adult. This one is her size, and Mythri is /quite/ confident that she'd be able to defeat him should the need arise. But once more, the question of /why/ comes to mind. He's done nothing except be afraid of the dark. And until she's actually threatened, there doesn't seem to be the need for violence. Trying to maintain absolute silence, she slowly backs away from the edge of the rock, then lets herself drop down to the ground, absorbing as much of the fall as possible with a smooth crouch. Her muscles are quivering and ears perked as she listens for any sign of the male's approach. If her escape is undetected, she'll slip away. But if he approaches... she might have to resort to actions a little more... extreme.

His eyes are still burning brightly from the sun, and though its final rays are all but vanished from the rock face, Cael cannot yet see clearly in the inky dark. At first, he remains stationary, paws wide and the muscles in his limbs bunched; ready to spring either forward, or backward, whichever is deemed most sensible. But nothing causes him to do so, and he relaxes that tenseness ever so slightly. And then, his dark shadow moves, and this time the outline of a feline muzzle hangs on the edge of his vision for a moment before it vanishes. The male's ears prick up and forward, then away and to the sides; wary. Normal, good intentioned creatures don't act like this. Instead of shouting, his paws are moving. But he is not moving forward. Cael's pace is light, swift, but agitated, moving in a wide circle around his boogie-cougar's last position, figuring his quarry to be just under the lip on the lee-side. He decends swiftly, his breath puffing rhymically from his maw. Shuold he call out? Should he try and stop them? Should he run them off? Cael has not 'dealt' with another creatures since... well, since Ashen. The thought sours the male's stomach, but he keeps his motion around the scattering of stones in an artful game of hide'n'seek.

The deepening shadows are causing havoc for Mythri's vision as well; her senses of smell and hearing remain strained to the limit, trying to pinpoint the male cougar's position even as he closes in on her. It is indeed a game of hide-and-seek, or perhaps more accurately, a game of cat-and-mouse. Except that Mythri does not intend on being a mouse, or any kind of prey for that matter. One of her father's oft-repeated lessons comes to mind, and with the briefest of hesitations, she decides to level the odds. Moving her paw down to a loose rock, barely larger than a pebble, she flings it off into the darkness away from her, and the instant she hears it clatter several feet away, Mythri is silently launching herself back up into the air, back on top of the rock she just left several moments ago. Now cloaked in shadow, it offers the perfect vantage point to see her pursuer approach, provided he doesn't look up and notice her head peering just over the edge of the rock.

The male stops, one paw hovering in midair halfway through his descent as a rock goes tumbling down, echoing and cracking across other stones. The noise bounces across the shadow filled formation, and Cael's hesitation is long. Either he has a very clumsy, or a very clever creature with him, and at first he's not too sure which one it could be. A moment's pause longer, and he is picking up his paws and on the move. But not forward. Cael turns and lights up two or three 'steps' back the way he came, recovering his high ground to see if where the rock fell is where his shadow is going. And... it's not. In fact, he can't see anything anymore, no movement, no other quasi-feline shape lingering in the darkness. He draws in another slow breath, puffing lightly through his teeth; did he really just play a game of tag with himself? Cael slowly eases himself onto his haunches, sitting tall, trying to stretch away the fear and tense anxiety he worked himself into. As he opens his eyes again, a close, bright light begins to quiver at the very tips of the stone formations, bathing them in a soft, eerie glow. The young cougar blinks, whiskers quivering as that light gradually seeps across the rocks, arcing gracefully over the crouched form of... his quarry. Or, was he the prey? Cael sucks in a breath, something stabs his chest; that familiar feeling from... /somewhere/. But that cougar. Peer. Cougar/ess/. She's definately not one of his sisters. Words leave him, and he doesn't call out against this stranger, and he doesn't move. He simply looks at her, mind reeling, whirling. What happened?

Was her diversion successful? Mythri is as quiet and still as the stone on which she's crouched, save for the faintest of breathing. Watching. Waiting. But.. there's no sign of her opponent in this game of visual tag. It would seem that she's been outsmarted... or perhaps just unlucky, as the moonlight reveals her ghostly form, once more in the absence of any concealment or cover. Her tail lashes behind her at the realization that she's no doubt being observed right now. Either that, or the male decided to leave. Not nearly as likely a possibility, not with the way he was intently trying to discover her location. Mythri feels a shiver run through her as it would seem that any moment she'll feel the claws of a pouncing cougar leaping from the ground around her. Slowly, quietly, she begins to turn around in a circle, trying to pinpoint the male's location, assuming he's even-- There he is! Amber-rimmed eyes blink in surprise, tail twitching and curling behind her as if possessed by life of its own. Why... is he just sitting there, watching her? It's eerie, being spotlighted by the moon with a silent observer who was just a few moments ago trying to track her down. Mythri is silent, staring back, completely at a loss for what to do or say.

He is... a little dumbstruck as the female turns around, and cat and mouse (or mouse and cat) finally get a good look at one another face to face. So, she is what he was trying to find, she is what was so familiar. But as he looks at her, he knows full well that he has never seen her before. Not on Amaranth soil, certainly. In the moonlight... she is quite beautiful. Cael fidgets. It's rude to keep staring, but it's hard not to; and there is still that inkling of something very strange going on. He thinks he should know her, but logic tells him he shouldn't. Eventually, Cael's eyes look a little less moonstruck (so to speak), and he manages to force from his maw, "Who're you?" The question is just that, a question, his tone lacking an accusative and instead purely... inquisitive, cub-like. It's accompanied by a brief flick of his ear, a gesture for lack of anything else to do. Fidget.

Mythri's scent is not unknown to a much older male... And having found it fully within Amaranth displeases Kein, to say the least. She attacked him, asked him, specifically, which territory was his and which wasn't, then ran away... Only to return? Displeased really isn't a strong enough word. Despite the late hour, Kein is stalking toward the adolescent female, following the trail she left. Luckily for her, her route took her no where near his newest cubs... But rather unluckily for her, she is in Amaranth to begin with, after he told her in no uncertain terms that she wasn't welcome.

Who is she? For some unexplainable reason, Mythri finds the question... humorous. It's as though the male suddenly realized that all the staring in the world isn't going to satisfy his curiosity about her. Now he wants her /name/. Dare she give it to him? Dare she reveal who she is and where she came from? What else does he want to know? Staring back at him, Mythri can't help but find his seeming awe at her presence... what? She's not sure how to describe what she thinks. Amused, perhaps, but.. what else? It's a little unsettling, for sure. But she can think about this later. It's already far past time for her to be gone and away from Amaranth, lest that older male catch her still here. Trespassing. But how to answer this boy's question? The answer given is a smile, not quite warm or bright or cheerful. Just the tiniest bit shy. And then she's gone, smoothly and gracefully turning to jump down to the far side of the rock, opposite from her observer, and Mythri takes her first steps toward the border. Toward safety.

The young male is wholly unaware of his father's approach, seemingly enraptured by the trespasser in Amaranth. Cael doesn't know that Kein has crossed paths with her already, but it is likely that he will learn about this mysterious female shortly. Her reply, the upturn of her muzzle, causes the boy's brow to wrinkle together in confusion, at first, then it melts away into... a /strange/ feeling that he really doesn't understand. He feels a bit goofy (or drunk). She turns, and seems to vanish as she jumps over the edge and slinks out of the moonlight, and Cael sucks in a breath. "H- hey, wait!" he calls after her, voice no where near aggressive or dangerous. It's like he's a cub again, chasing that elusive adventure just past Amaranth's saftey... The male is up in a bit of a stumbling flash, and he covers the distance from his position to the female's last, finding himself now pinpointed in the moonlight on the rocky perch. He watches as she moves across the stones, muscles arguing with his brain to stay put or to chase after her.

Around a week ago, Mythri managed to get the element of surprise. Today, though, Kein may well have the advantage. Deep within Amaranth territory, at night, and with the sudden, if quiet, sound of someone heading almost directly toward him... Kein ducks back and holds still, just listening. Wait. Wait. Wait. Then, those sounds reach their loudest, and even begin to grow just barely fainter, and Kein leaps towards them. His mouth is not open. He has no intention of biting at the cougaress he thinks is near to him. His claws are fully extended, though, and prepared to dig in and hold onto whatever flesh they find. Just before he leaps, he hears his oldest son's voice, but it is not enough to cause /him/ to wait, especially since it is coming from a bit further away than the nearby movement.

It is, perhaps, the voice that saves Mythri's pelt, if not her life. For whatever reason, the pleading voice of that other adolescent causes Mythri to pause, half turning around to look behind her, when suddenly there's a rush of air immediately next to her, as she's just barely missed by what she recognizes too late as a pounce. She may have gotten lucky with her sudden stopping, but there is, unfortunately, no stopping the momentum of said pouncer. There's just no comparison in weight class, and Mythri is knocked easily off of her paws, awkwardly tumbling to the ground and quite defenseless. Dazed, she barely notices the younger male charging toward her even as her attention is arrested by the much /larger/ male, the one from earlier, the one who just easily overpowered her. Much like her father always did.

Cael's decent from the higher stones is much less artful than his previous dance in the dark, and when he catches sight of no other cougar but his father rushing toward he issues a strangeld cry. Another few quick bounds down the rock face, and the son is close enough to see both his father and the still nameless cougaress; one obviously upset, to put it lightly, the latter coming up with the short end of the stick and out of sorts. Cael has no idea why Kein would do this, but he stops a long and respectful distance away, but he doesn't manage to squeak out a greeting, or a question. If he has learned one valuable skill when his father is anger, it's to keep his trap shut.

As far as Kein is concerned, he is exercising considerable restraint just by not trying to kill, or even seriously harm, this young cougaress immediately. What he /does/ do is make every attempt to restrain her, pinning her with well-placed paws, his claws still unsheathed, and the whole of his body weight. He may not be the heaviest male cougar, but neither is he a lightweight. Anger? Yeah, that describes Cael's father well. With bared teeth, he growls, "I told you, you are /not/ welcome here." That could have changed. It still could. But until it does, she has no right to be here. Cael is ignored for now. At least with Cael, unlike with some of Kein's children, Kein can be certain that the boy will not interfere physically, will not attack him.

If this male was going to kill her, he wouldn't waste time with words, yes? He would have killed her already? He's just now testing her, trying to see if she'll beg for mercy? Her father didn't have all that much to say about Amaranth, but he did note that his limited contact with one of their cougaresses left him both disgusted and impressed. How does that help her here and now? It doesn't much, and the girl, despite trying to put on a brave face, is shaking slightly in fear. All the reasoning in the world doesn't help much when a very hostile and very overpowering enemy has you at his mercy, claws keeping you painfully immobilized and helpless. What can she say? She /was/ on her way to leave, after all. Mythri stares upward into the furious eyes of the older male, her own gaze timid, worried, and yet.. curious. What exactly is it about these mountain cougars that her father hated so much? Something about their rejection of his beliefs.. similar to the way she did the same. But perhaps it was a foolish assumption to think that she would be welcome here, based solely on their common ideological grounds. The enemy of one's enemy is a friend... right? Apparently not, as this 'friend' seems ready to slash out her throat without a moment's hesitation.

Amaranth. Amaranth... has been through much, and Kein had taken the brunt of most of it. Even as he stands here, watching his father taken down and quickly pin the cougaress under his paws... Cael doesn't cry out in protest. A part of him knows that even while his father is angry, he won't kill her. That is, not unless she tries to kill him, first. His mouth is dry. Cael's maw parts as he tries to say something, decides against it, and nervously licks his maw, instead. He shifts his weight to the front, rocking from left to right in his inability to figure out what to do. His father's words make him think that he has encountered the young female before, but just what she did to earn his ire isn't clear. The adolescent takes a few uneasy steps forward, but cannot bring himself to call out; Dad. He respects him too much, but wide eyes flit to the female's face, and... his knees almost buckle. Cael shakes his head, regaining some composure. Some. A little.

Is it better that Kein doesn't know who her father is? That he doesn't know that she is at all associated with Revan? Without that information, how can he possibly know that she is here because they share a common enemy? Her silence certainly doesn't help him along in that regard, and with new cubs and this female displaying a complete disregard for his commands... What incentive does he have to let her stay? "I'm giving you a chance to explain yourself, stranger." The growling never leaves his tone, but he does not bring his teeth any closer the the female below him. "You might keep in mind that this is the last one you'll get." If she leaves before they reach an understanding, and he catches her in Amaranth again... He will not show such restraint.

Or what? Or he'll kill her? Rip her throat out, here, in front of this younger male? Does she really want to take that chance? But.. what explanation does she have? Mythri has already told him once why she came here to the mountain; his hostile and rather unexpected refusal has had her not only frustrated, but rather uncertain as to how to proceed. Should she ask again, hoping that maybe he's changed his mind? His current demeanor and tone certainly don't suggest such a thing. "I.. just wanted a chance to see my.. new home." Rather bold of a suggestion, perhaps, but why not? Is this male seriously going to kill her simply for wanting to live here?

Kein's son is horribly confused. His ears twist back against his skull and he knits his brown in concern, but also because he is at a loss for what to do. Obviously, his father has met Mythri before and apparently their first meeting wasn't so pleasant. Cael swallows hard, eyes flitting from Kein, to the female as he fidgets nervously. Eventually, he lifts his head and takes a few cautious steps forward, addressing the older male, "Dad," he offers gently, voice low, an attempt to sound... soothing? Well, it's.. an attempt. Mythri's words stop him, though. /Her/ home? His head tilts. He's definately sure he's /never/ seen her before. Tail twitches. "Dad... she.. she wasn't doing anything." Cael's voice trails off, not wanting to antagonize the situation.

Kein turns his head to face his son when the boy speaks. She wasn't doing anything? "She was here after she was expressly forbidden permission to be here, Cael. That's something." It would have been different if this were her visit. It isn't, though. All the same... Looking back to the female, he says, "If I release you, and you run or attack, you will never be permitted to live here. Do you understand?" It is likely good for the female that Cael spoke up. Otherwise, he might have allowed anger at her arrogance to guide him.

/Dad/? This older male is the younger's father? The only cougar in Amaranth who's allowed to have cubs, per what she was taught, is their leader! Whether or not that's entirely accurate doesn't matter; it fits in with what the adult has said about these lands being his, and it most definitely causes her amber-rimmed eyes to widen. Mythri had been hoping to speak with the tribe's leader on better terms than this, for sure! There's the temptation to feel a bit of irritation at the younger male for interfering. Why bother trying to speak up for her when just several moments ago he was trying to catch her? Regardless, it at least has seemingly opened up a tentative invitation to her, and with a short, clipped nod, Mythri agrees to the older's terms. Why would she need to run or attack, anyway? Unless, of course, her father showed up.

Cael's forward advance is completely stopped, as Kein gives him that withering stare. His eyes drop to Mythri's face, mainly to avoid Kein but, well, she is so pretty to look at ._.; Still, with all that has happened within Amaranth's land, his father's angry caution is justified, but, as far as Cael knows, the female cougar hasn't done a single thing. But the boy knows better than to speak up about it, or interfere anymore than he already has... He swallows a lump in his throat, tail twitching nervously behind him. Dad, just... let her up, okay? His conversation with Kein in his mind goes on, and he is thankful that none of it reaches his mouth.

It is with perhaps surprising care that Kein withdraws his claws from the female, to avoid having them tear through her flesh, before he releases her, stepping to the side to get his weight off of her before he backs up. At no point does he removes his eyes from Mythri or let his guard down. He may be exercising a little bit too much caution, but he has no intention of lessening the amount of caution he uses. He does not speak, for now, instead letting the female get her feet back under her first.

Very deliberately avoiding looking over in the other adolescent's direction, Mythri slowly and delicately gets up to her paws, keeping her head somewhat bowed. "Forgive me.. for earlier." Her ears flatten a little as she keeps her eyes focused on the ground immediately in front of the adult's forepaws. She hesitates, then closes her maw without any additional explanation or excuse. Does she have justification for her earlier defense of her meal? Absolutely. Does she have justification for the trespassing, however? Absolutely not. 'Earlier' doesn't have to refer to everything, of course.

The young male's held breath is slowly released through his teeth, and he's lucky he didn't pass out from holding it. He slowly, warily settles down on his haunches, eyes flitting once toward his father as he feels the male's anger just barely fade. Mythri's voice commands his full attention, though, ears pricking forward so he doesn't miss a single sound. Hey, kid, breathe. He'd like to ask her a question, or two, or three, or fourorfiveorsixor-- Cael smooths his whiskers, nervous, but he doesn't step on his father's toes and so his silence remains in effect. What he'd really like to know, though, is the answer to his first question, 'Who are you?' Sigh.

Is she forgiven, just because she asked? Not so much. Kein remains standing, even as his son sits. "/If/ you are going to stay here, you are going to need to convince me that you will not be a threat to any of the current members of this tribe. That you /won't/ attack first and ask questions later." Is he guilty of that? Sure... But never to anyone bearing Amaranth markings. He couldn't care less if Mythri wants to defend her food against outsiders, but he will not have another misunderstanding that could potentially result in bloodshed.

Attack /first/? Well, assuming that this does become her home, there would be no need to defend her food from others... right? Mythri can't imagine that other cougars or cougaress here would try stealing meals from others. "I will not fight another cougar unless it is to defend myself." Her chin raises a little, just shy of defiant, but there is only confidence in her voice. She will not agree to handicap herself, period. Tail twitches behind her, and almost too quick to notice, the girl takes the briefest of glances toward the side, toward the other adolescent who's been, no doubt, /gawking/ at this.. incident. She saw how he was looking at her earlier!

Gawking at her, sure. Who wouldn't? ._. He catches that glance, but only because he's still staring at her, a little slack jawed, too. But when he notices, Cael's back stiffens and he straightens considerably, lifting his head and rolling his ears forward at attention. It's not only Mythri's swift and subtle look, but the commanding tone in Kein's voice has trained his son over the years. Not that his father is militaristic in any means, but, the son is simply respectful of his father's presence and authority. But he blinks, surprised. This female /attacked/ his father?! Oh.. no ._.

"You will not fight another Amaranth cougar /at/ /all/. If there is discipline to be given out, /I/ will be the one to do it." At this, Kein delivers a pointed glance toward Cael. He has never lectured the boy over what happened to Ashen around others, but what happened there proves that such a rule is necessary. The glance is short, though, before he looks back to the female. "What /you/ will do is retreat, find me, and let me know what happened. If that is not agreeable to you, then I would suggest that you find yourself another home." Had Ashen only retreated instead of trying to push his way past Cael, what happened there probably never would have happened, and it all could have been dealt with in a much more peaceful manner.

She's not allowed to defend herself? What kind of stipulation is this, anyway? Retreat is an option in combat, yes, but what about the times when retreat is simply impossible, given the terrain, number of enemies, and so forth. Mythri blinks, taken a little aback by the intensity in the adult's voice. Her ears remain flattened, and she can't help but take a slight step backward. "And if retreat isn't possible?" she asks softly, still looking down at the ground. Somehow she can't imagine that this stipulation will make her, in essence, completely defenseless. Could she live with that kind of harsh regulation hanging above her?

The young male cringes visably, losing some of the starch in his spine when Kein gives him /that/ look again. While Cael has never really looked back on his... well, his /attack/ on Ashen, the guilt for his actions have certainly followed him. He doesn't know what became of the other, and it's unlikely that he ever will unless one day... Well. Cael shakes his head slightly, then squares his shoulders, averting his eyes from his father for a /very/ good reason. Mythri's response. Her words curl his ears, and inadvertantly he bobs his head. What.. what if it isn't an option? What if.. it never was an option? But Cael knows he was in control of that situation with Ashen. He could have stopped what happened, and he didn't. Another headshake. It's the past. The adolescent fidgets, smoothing down his whiskers with a quick tongue swipe.

Kein keeps his eyes on the female now. Of course, he is not going to ask this female to just let herself be killed, that he might avenge her death. "/Then/ you may defend yourself... But if I find you doing that when there is another option, it will not be pleasant for you." Never before has Kein stressed this so thoroughly to a newcomer. Is it because she attacked him, or because of his children? Likely, it is some combination of the too. He understands that she was just concerned for her food, but there are all sorts of misunderstandings that could, potentially, lead to violence between two cougars and a nightmarish headache for Kein.

She just had to confirm that she wasn't going to be living with an impossible rule to follow, nothing more. Mythri has no intention or reason to attack any other cougar, and if she's allowed to defend herself when needed, then everything should be just fine. "I understand." For the first time, she raises her head, slowly, until she can look into the older male's eyes. "What other rules do I need to follow while I live here?" Hopefully not too many; she really does not like restrictions on where and how to live her life. Their function in keeping order and security are understandable, but that doesn't mean she has to like them. Her tail curls very slowly behind her; otherwise, Mythri is quite relaxed now, even standing comfortably. Initial fear of the male is gone, though there is an evident and healthy amount of respect in her tone and gaze.

Slowly, Kein's son eases back on his haunches to help calm his nervous fidgeting, but the young female's response has him breathing a little easier. Good, she's not suicidal. Pretty, and smart. Good combo, that. Cael's ears round forward on top of his head, bright blue eyes flitting very briefly to the very faint stars over head, almost wiped from the slate of the sky by the brilliance full moon. An early summer night envelopes the strage, and slightly uneasy trio, and the male acts as though he would speak up in response to her question, that clacks his jaw shut. He's not going to dictate Kein's rules, but he really wants to know her name! ._.

What other rules are there? Not many. It'd be nice if Kein could just say, "Don't try to drive me to an early death." Is that not what every rule he has is intended to prevent, really? "Just don't invite or create trouble, and if you spot anything here that doesn't seem right... Especially any cougars without the red markings of Amaranth... Let me or the Matron, Nayeli, know." That pretty much summarizes everything. "Just do that, and you ought to do fine here." Is that an official welcome?

Indeed, those aren't so much 'rules' as just... common sense. Why would Mythri try to invite or create trouble? She's trying to get /away/ from it, to somewhere where she can finally relax and not have to worry about getting her throat ripped out while she sleeps! At the mention of Nayeli's name, the female adolescent looks a little uneasy, but nods. She has to remind herself that he can't possibly know. And as far as she can help it, she's going to keep it that way. What they don't know can't hurt them, right? Her father surely won't follow her /into/ Amaranth... or would he? And would that fall under the category of inviting trouble? No.. Mythri is fairly confident that her father wouldn't risk his own life just to come end hers. His own life and mission are too valuable to him for that. It's ironic that her father's zeal, the same characteristic that drove Mythri away from him, is the very characteristic that might just keep her alive. "I understand," she responds simply, letting out a deep breath. Well now, that wasn't so hard, was it? Official welcome or not, she's home now.

It takes most of Cael's restraint not to jump to all fours and cheer, and it's mostly Kein's still wary tone and thinly veiled threat of some more dangerous possibility that keeps him from making a fool of himself. Instead, the boy allows himself a very light smile, his tailtip lifting and dancing a little victory swagger behnid him, "Welcome to Amaranth," he offers, hoping that it's not /too/ much of an intrusion on Kein's authority. Well, at leasth he's not trying to rip her throat out and push her off the mountain, right? It's that tiny bit of relaxation on all their parts that causes the young male to stand and close the wide gap he left the two of them, eyes falling on the girl. "You... never introduced yourself... ?" he questions, leaving it in the air for Mythri to decide what to do with it.

Of all of that asocial cougars in Amaranth, Kein is likely the worst when it comes to strangers. Sometimes, even when it comes to cougars he knows. His family is and always has been the exception to that. As such, it does not bother him at all that Cael decides, suddenly, to deal with all the polite bits that Kein can do, but is not truly good at. Finally, the adult male relaxes a bit and takes a step back to look between his son and the newcomer, as of yet unaware what his son is feeling.

Mythri looks initially wary at the rather.. gleeful approach by the other adolescent. Somebody's happy that she's here to stay, apparently? As the older male, which she's entirely sure now would be the mate of Nayeli, the other leader of Amaranth, seems to not have anything more to say at present, she turns to face the boy, headtilting slightly as she sizes him up. "Thanks," she answers, favoring him with a slight smile. The smile threatens to turn.. mischievous? amused? teasing? "And yes, you're right," she adds, head rotating to keep him in view as she starts to walk right past him, back toward the stone formations. "I never did." The flash of a grin is the last thing given before her head turns back around to look at the moonlit rocks. A tailflick is given in the boy's direction before she trots off, no doubt to find a suitable resting place for the night. /In/ Amaranth territory, something that she certainly wasn't expecting for this night. But definitely thankful for!

Apparently Cael seems to have forgotten his father, his attention wholly on the newest 'inhabitant' to Amaranth, and his body turns to face her fully. He blinks once at the quick up and down he gets, and he looks... more than a little clueless after her quick repsonse and even quicker retreat back to the rocks where they began their merry dance at sunset. The male makes a noise in his throat, something like a confused squeak, before his jaw clicks shut and his ears twist back. His tail curls into a delicate question mark, and that lost little boy look is throw over his shoulder to Kein, furrowed brow speaking volumes, 'What... what was /that/?' Blinkblink.

It is /hard/ not to laugh at Cael's expression. Did he ever look like that? Does he still, sometimes? While he might have been upset at the female's rudeness, Cael's reaction somehow drives any thought of being upset from him. "Get used to it, son." Kein is quite certain Nayeli could spend an hour trying to tell him what is going through her mind at any given point in time, and he still wouldn't understand. Of course, largely, Kein is joking. He still has no idea that his son feels something unique for that female. Perhaps he ought to, since Cael is getting to be of that age and Mythri is the first unrelated female his own age that Cael has ever met... But then, the first unrelated female that Yuma ever met after puberty elicited an incredibly different response from the former Chieftain, and that was the last time Kein had to deal with any situation like that.

Did she hear the boy's baffled response and the dad's light jest? If her keen ears picked up on the brief question/answer, there's no indication as she finally selects a rock and gracefully leaps up on top of it. Interestingly.. coincidentally? .. it happens to be the very rock where she first saw Cael perched on, right before he started stalking her. Once up on top, no doubt silhouetted nicely against the full moon, she begins carefully grooming herself. Besides being a relaxing activity that'll no doubt help her become sleepy, she /does/ have /some/ ruffled fur, thanks to a certain /male/ who knocked her down earlier! Hmph!

Cael's still boggled face turns back to watch Mythri's figure scale the rocks, and that confounded... confusion melts away into a bit of a dumb stare. And then he blinks and shakes his head, doing everything in his power to tear his eyes from Mythri and he turns to Kein. The adolescent closes the short space between them and bumps the crown of his head against his father's shoulder before turning and heading deeper into Amaranth where Nayeli and his baby sisters last were. Maybe... maybe /mom/ knows what the heck is up with girls, anyway?! ._.; It takes all his effort not to glance over his shoulder as he meanders through the woods, but he doesn't get away with it completely as he steals one last look at Mythri's brightly outlined form in the distance. Sheepish sigh.