Post by avalikia on Aug 6, 2009 20:35:17 GMT -5
Characters:
Maul - Female Cougar Cub
Avalikia - Female Sparrow
Setting:
Sloping Gradient
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It's not much fun, waiting. Maul has been doing it all day, watching as the sun first slowly rose to its highest point, then began to advance towards the horizon. She made an effort at playing with her sister and mother, but her heart just isn't quite in it. She has listened to them playing in the den for the past couple hours, and she has nuzzled her mother lovingly everytime Nayeli came out here to check on her, but other than that, she has just been lying on the ground several feet from the den, and since the noises in the cave quieted down quite a bit ago, she imagines this is where she will remain, at least until Daddy comes by. If he ever does.
Flying from the lands to the northeast, Avalikia decides that it's high time she took a rest. Where, she doesn't really care. How about that rock on the slope? As she approaches, she looks around for danger but doesn't quite put the cub in that category. Young creatures are often silly enough to try and catch her, but as long as she keeps an eye on it, she'll be okay, right? Besides, she often goes totally unnoticed. She lands and immediately takes a better look around. No snakes hiding in a crack? No cats in the bushes? Good!
Maul is more observant than most animals her age, and she cannot miss the sight of the bird flying closer. Eager to latch onto the distraction, she lifts her head. After doing that, she tilts it as she watches the bird land. She hasn't seen very many birds, and most of them have been from a distance... but even her curiosity is a little fabricated. She does not intend to make any attempt to hunt the small sparrow. Though her intent gaze remains on Avalikia, she does not say anything immediately. She wants to see if the bird will try to strike up a conversation first.
After making sure that the area is more or less secure, Avalikia relaxes slightly and shakes out her feathers, making herself more comfortable. She starts to preen her wing a bit, but she pauses every few seconds to look around and make sure that nothing has changed. Having already decided that the cub isn't all that dangerous she mostly ignores it, but after it's been looking at her for awhile she offers a "Hello". Not much of a start of a conversation, but being stared at makes her a little nervous.
One day, she may learn that staring at others is considered rude. That day, however, is not today. Sitting up after the bird greets her, Maul returns the simple greeting. "Hello." Shortly after, as she so often does when meeting new animals, she adds, "I'm Maul. Who're you?" She's not supposed to talk to strangers, but surely talking to this bird couldn't be something that would get her in trouble, could it?
Staring just so happens to be step number one for a hunter, but Avalikia has also noticed that Maul is /not/ crouching down and slinking forward. That's always a good sign! "I'm Avalikia," she says with a curious tilt of the head, now a bit more interested in the cub who seems more interested in talking than 'playing'. About to leave it at that, she reconsiders and adds, "You can call me Ava." Though she'd really rather not have a nickname, it seems that not even adults around here can manage to pronounce it properly. She'll give the cub a break.
"Ava?" Maul remains sitting where she is as the casual conversation continues. "Do you always go by that?" Maul just barely remembers another name. A name that Maul came from, just as Ava came from Avalikia. That is the source of her interest, rather than any thought, on her part, that Avalikia might not like the thought of going by Ava.
"Seems like it," Avalikia grumbles quietly to herself before giving a better answer at normal volume, "I'd rather go by Avalikia, but everyone calls me Ava anyway." Probably because a five-syllable name is bigger than a bird her size. And because most creatures aren't afraid of what would happen if they bothered a sparrow. "My parents named me after a seabird they made friends with while they were down south one winter," she explains with pride, "That's why its so exotic."
"Avalikia." It's not *too* hard to say. It may be a bit much to remember, especially should Maul not see Avalikia again for a long time, if ever, but the saying it part isn't really difficult. "It fits you better. Avalikia." Is it the obvious pride in the bird's voice at the explanation of the name that has Maul saying that, or is she just doing what so many children do, echoing statements that sound very impressive and seem to fit in the conversation?
The little sparrow blinks in surprise when Maul manages her name so easily. Why, the last time she talked to cougar cubs they were much bigger than this one, and even between the two of them they couldn't get it! The level of pride visibly increases in Avalikia at Maul's words, "Well, thank you! Maul's a good name too, it sounds very... strong." She was going to say 'dangerous', which would be a compliment to a predator, but she isn't sure whether or not Maul would see it that way.
Maul listens closely to Avalikia, then looks away after the bird finishes. What if she doesn't want a strong name? What if she wants a gentle, happy name? What if she wants to chose her name this time, like her sister will get to? Maul fights off a frown before she looks back to Avalikia. Regardless of what she *wants*, if a strong name is what she has, she'll have to live up to it. "Thank you too. That's... kind of you." See? She isn't rude, and she's quite stoic in her acceptance of the praise she didn't really want. That's strong, right?
While she may be too distracted by her continual observation of her surroundings to catch the hint of a frown, between the fact that she was trying to avoid choosing a word the cub wouldn't like and the slight hesitation in Maul's voice, Avalikia notices something amiss. "Is something wrong?" she asks with the barest amount of concern in her tone. She sure hopes that she didn't say anything wrong!
"No." Maul does not hesitate to answer, and after the initial word, the cub adds, "I can be strong." If Maul is upset, it is not Avalikia's fault. If anyone is at fault... well, Maul is. After all, she had accepted her name, right up until today. She even went beyond her name and demanded that her marking shouldn't be changed. Of course she'll still have to be strong.
"Can be..." Avalikia echos to herself thoughtfully, guessing by that wording that Maul doesn't necessarily want to be strong. "Well, it's a tough world out there," she comments, "And I don't think it's possible to be /too/ strong, as long as you're also gentle sometimes. You've gotta have both." She glances at Maul, hoping that her words are at least a little helpful. If Maul's upset, Avalikia's going to blame herself; the cub didn't /look/ upset when she first came here, so obviously it would have been something that she'd done.
Maul listens to Avalikia, but she doesn't respond immediately. Instead, she thinks about it. She really doesn't want to have to be strong, even if she knows she can. But, maybe not being strong is okay, as long as she's in Amaranth. She'll still have to be strong "out there", but "in here"... Is that what the bird is saying? That sounds much better. With a smile, the girl finally nods her head and says, "I think I can do that." Be gentle sometimes, but strong the rest of the time.
Nodding her head happily, Avalikia figures that solves whatever was upsetting Maul. "Of course," she adds after another moment, "The tricky part is knowing when to be strong and when to be gentle. But that's one of those things you get better at with experience, though everyone makes mistakes with it sometimes." She certainly has! The tiny bird has no idea how Maul may be interpreting all this, but general words that sound wise are always good, aren't they?
Maul has already figured out when to be strong and when to be gentle, hasn't she? So, that shouldn't be hard at all. All the same, Maul nods her head. This time, it is without any hesitation, the blind obedience and agreeing that is common to cubs. What else is there to speak about? This has been a pleasant conversation, a pleasant distraction from the task that lies ahead of her, but she can't think of anything else to speak about with Avalikia right now.
The cub's silent nod makes Avalikia chuckle within herself. Maul seems so serious for a youngling! Of course, that's probably to her advantage since a non-serious cub would've probably decided that chasing birds is a fun thing to do by now. Maul may not have any ideas of what to talk about, but Avalikia has a few. "So what were you up to when I came?" she asks with a curious tilt of her head. Because it appeared that she was simply sitting there all by herself not doing anything - is that another trait of a serious cub?
If only Avalikia had come on a more "normal" day. Maul's conversation with her father yesterday precludes normality, though. "I was just thinking." She answers quite happily, thankful that Avalikia has kept the conversation going. She doesn't appear terribly eager to go back to said thinking, as she keeps her attention focused on Avalikia. It doesn't seem like she is at risk of getting bored with just talking anytime soon. Of course, if she spends hours just thinking, talking is probably quite exciting.
And the logical question to follow that answer is, "Oh? What were you thinking about?" And though it comes almost automatically, Avalikia is the inquisitive sort and really is curious about the answer, if only because she doesn't often go around asking cougar cubs what's on their minds. "I mean, if you don't mind telling me," she adds after another half a moment.
This answer does not come as quickly. For a while, Maul takes up staring at Avalikia again as she decides what to say, and even if she is going to say anything. Her period of staring destroys her attempt at what she has a mind to do, which is actually to keep the conversation from growing too serious. By the time she answers, it's probably quite obvious that her answer cannot simply be taken at face value. "My... grandmother. I'm going to meet her soon." It's not a lie, but it's far from being Maul's life story either.
The length of time she has to wait for the answer to what seemed like a simple question causes Avalikia to pause too before responding. Obviously something else is going on here, but she's guessing whatever it is would require more than a few surface questions to figure out and Avalikia's hardly going to go beyond that with someone she just met. "Hmm, grandmothers are usually nice," she finally says generically, "That's what I've heard, anyway. Never got a chance to meet mine." Okay, that's a little depressing, um... "I'm sure you'll get along with her just fine."
Maul shakes her head. "I'm not going to meet her to get along with her." Maul jerks her head away after she says that. Her voice is far to harsh for a girl her age, to say nothing about the words themselves. See what happens when she doesn't think about what she says before she says them? Of course, it was going to come out eventually, but Maul had no intention of advertising it. What if Kein finds out and decides not to take her because of the possibility that she won't be nice while she's there? This worry in mind, Maul looks around for her father.
Woah, that's a little strange! But the way that Maul looks around after saying that convinces Avalikia that any follow-up questions about that are unlikely to be answered. Hmm, perhaps some more wise sounding words are in order? "You should try to get along with those that are old, because you don't know if there will be time to fix things if you change your mind about it later," she says quietly, though she keeps an eye on Maul while trying not to appear to be doing so to see how these words are taken.
Daddy is nowhere to be seen, and after listening to what Avalikia has to say, maul looks back to the bird. It might be good advice most of the time, but not now. Standing up, Maul says, "A mommy shouldn't let her children get hurt. Some animals don't deserve niceness." She does not start walking away yet, but she is prepared to, now. She doesn't like talking about this, but she doesn't want to back down.
Um... okay. Clearly Avalikia has no idea what they're talking about now. Even so, there's a few things she feels she can say about what Maul said, even though Maul's words seem out of context. But should she? Is it really any of her business to be dispensing advice to a cub she's barely met and who doesn't seem to want to hear it? Decisions, decisions! After a long pause to consider, "Can a mommy /always/ stop bad things from happening to her children?" Hopefully a question is less upsetting than something more direct.
The bird has a really good point. Unfortunately. Maul would like to hang on to her anger, since it's better than being sad, and it's really better than the guilt that comes as Avalikia points out how unfair, how hypocritical, Maul is being. The girl sits back down again. If she's not going there to tell her mother... that is, her grandmother... that what she did was wrong, then why *is* she going there? Maul can feel tears stinging at her eyes, and she looks away from Avalikia. "They should try. They should try really hard, and never stop trying." But who is to say that Amber didn't? Maul has no way of knowing, not for certain.
"You're right," Avalikia quickly agrees, "But mommies can't do everything. Not even cougar mommies. Sometimes there's nothing they can do." Now, if she only knew what, exactly they were talking about! But nevermind, Maul seems to see her point and she's quite sure she's influenced the cub in a positive direction. Throwing caution to the wind, the little sparrow hops of the rock she's perched on and lands on the ground in the direction that Maul is now facing. Granted, she keeps just out of easy pouncing range. Well, she hopes - how far can cougar cubs pounce anyway? "Please don't cry. I can tell that something bad has happened to you, and I'm sorry for talking about it. But being angry doesn't make everything all better," she says in her most comforting voice.
Maul does not do anything to cause Avalikia to regret her decision to fly to the ground. Neither does she look away again. "I'll be okay. I'll be strong. Just... go now, okay? Please?" That way, at least if she *isn't* strong, then it's in a place where no one else can see her.
Hesitating for just a moment, Avalikia nods and decides that she's finished. "Okay. Good luck meeting your grandmother then," she says by way of goodbye. She'd like to add something along the lines of seeing her again or something, but Avalikia travels widely and doesn't know when or where she'll be. She spreads her wings and is about to take off, but she adds, "And remember to be a little gentle." Okay, now she can leave! Jumping onto the air and flapping quickly, she turns toward the mountain, but she circles overhead twice before she turns toward the mountain. She finds herself a little reluctant to leave, but she's guessing that Maul would like to be left alone now.
Before Maul can exercise her own manners, the bird is in he air. Maul watches Avalikia for a while, but eventually lies back down without even attempting to say goodbye. She has much more to think about, now, not only about her grandmother, but also about herself.
Maul - Female Cougar Cub
Avalikia - Female Sparrow
Setting:
Sloping Gradient
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It's not much fun, waiting. Maul has been doing it all day, watching as the sun first slowly rose to its highest point, then began to advance towards the horizon. She made an effort at playing with her sister and mother, but her heart just isn't quite in it. She has listened to them playing in the den for the past couple hours, and she has nuzzled her mother lovingly everytime Nayeli came out here to check on her, but other than that, she has just been lying on the ground several feet from the den, and since the noises in the cave quieted down quite a bit ago, she imagines this is where she will remain, at least until Daddy comes by. If he ever does.
Flying from the lands to the northeast, Avalikia decides that it's high time she took a rest. Where, she doesn't really care. How about that rock on the slope? As she approaches, she looks around for danger but doesn't quite put the cub in that category. Young creatures are often silly enough to try and catch her, but as long as she keeps an eye on it, she'll be okay, right? Besides, she often goes totally unnoticed. She lands and immediately takes a better look around. No snakes hiding in a crack? No cats in the bushes? Good!
Maul is more observant than most animals her age, and she cannot miss the sight of the bird flying closer. Eager to latch onto the distraction, she lifts her head. After doing that, she tilts it as she watches the bird land. She hasn't seen very many birds, and most of them have been from a distance... but even her curiosity is a little fabricated. She does not intend to make any attempt to hunt the small sparrow. Though her intent gaze remains on Avalikia, she does not say anything immediately. She wants to see if the bird will try to strike up a conversation first.
After making sure that the area is more or less secure, Avalikia relaxes slightly and shakes out her feathers, making herself more comfortable. She starts to preen her wing a bit, but she pauses every few seconds to look around and make sure that nothing has changed. Having already decided that the cub isn't all that dangerous she mostly ignores it, but after it's been looking at her for awhile she offers a "Hello". Not much of a start of a conversation, but being stared at makes her a little nervous.
One day, she may learn that staring at others is considered rude. That day, however, is not today. Sitting up after the bird greets her, Maul returns the simple greeting. "Hello." Shortly after, as she so often does when meeting new animals, she adds, "I'm Maul. Who're you?" She's not supposed to talk to strangers, but surely talking to this bird couldn't be something that would get her in trouble, could it?
Staring just so happens to be step number one for a hunter, but Avalikia has also noticed that Maul is /not/ crouching down and slinking forward. That's always a good sign! "I'm Avalikia," she says with a curious tilt of the head, now a bit more interested in the cub who seems more interested in talking than 'playing'. About to leave it at that, she reconsiders and adds, "You can call me Ava." Though she'd really rather not have a nickname, it seems that not even adults around here can manage to pronounce it properly. She'll give the cub a break.
"Ava?" Maul remains sitting where she is as the casual conversation continues. "Do you always go by that?" Maul just barely remembers another name. A name that Maul came from, just as Ava came from Avalikia. That is the source of her interest, rather than any thought, on her part, that Avalikia might not like the thought of going by Ava.
"Seems like it," Avalikia grumbles quietly to herself before giving a better answer at normal volume, "I'd rather go by Avalikia, but everyone calls me Ava anyway." Probably because a five-syllable name is bigger than a bird her size. And because most creatures aren't afraid of what would happen if they bothered a sparrow. "My parents named me after a seabird they made friends with while they were down south one winter," she explains with pride, "That's why its so exotic."
"Avalikia." It's not *too* hard to say. It may be a bit much to remember, especially should Maul not see Avalikia again for a long time, if ever, but the saying it part isn't really difficult. "It fits you better. Avalikia." Is it the obvious pride in the bird's voice at the explanation of the name that has Maul saying that, or is she just doing what so many children do, echoing statements that sound very impressive and seem to fit in the conversation?
The little sparrow blinks in surprise when Maul manages her name so easily. Why, the last time she talked to cougar cubs they were much bigger than this one, and even between the two of them they couldn't get it! The level of pride visibly increases in Avalikia at Maul's words, "Well, thank you! Maul's a good name too, it sounds very... strong." She was going to say 'dangerous', which would be a compliment to a predator, but she isn't sure whether or not Maul would see it that way.
Maul listens closely to Avalikia, then looks away after the bird finishes. What if she doesn't want a strong name? What if she wants a gentle, happy name? What if she wants to chose her name this time, like her sister will get to? Maul fights off a frown before she looks back to Avalikia. Regardless of what she *wants*, if a strong name is what she has, she'll have to live up to it. "Thank you too. That's... kind of you." See? She isn't rude, and she's quite stoic in her acceptance of the praise she didn't really want. That's strong, right?
While she may be too distracted by her continual observation of her surroundings to catch the hint of a frown, between the fact that she was trying to avoid choosing a word the cub wouldn't like and the slight hesitation in Maul's voice, Avalikia notices something amiss. "Is something wrong?" she asks with the barest amount of concern in her tone. She sure hopes that she didn't say anything wrong!
"No." Maul does not hesitate to answer, and after the initial word, the cub adds, "I can be strong." If Maul is upset, it is not Avalikia's fault. If anyone is at fault... well, Maul is. After all, she had accepted her name, right up until today. She even went beyond her name and demanded that her marking shouldn't be changed. Of course she'll still have to be strong.
"Can be..." Avalikia echos to herself thoughtfully, guessing by that wording that Maul doesn't necessarily want to be strong. "Well, it's a tough world out there," she comments, "And I don't think it's possible to be /too/ strong, as long as you're also gentle sometimes. You've gotta have both." She glances at Maul, hoping that her words are at least a little helpful. If Maul's upset, Avalikia's going to blame herself; the cub didn't /look/ upset when she first came here, so obviously it would have been something that she'd done.
Maul listens to Avalikia, but she doesn't respond immediately. Instead, she thinks about it. She really doesn't want to have to be strong, even if she knows she can. But, maybe not being strong is okay, as long as she's in Amaranth. She'll still have to be strong "out there", but "in here"... Is that what the bird is saying? That sounds much better. With a smile, the girl finally nods her head and says, "I think I can do that." Be gentle sometimes, but strong the rest of the time.
Nodding her head happily, Avalikia figures that solves whatever was upsetting Maul. "Of course," she adds after another moment, "The tricky part is knowing when to be strong and when to be gentle. But that's one of those things you get better at with experience, though everyone makes mistakes with it sometimes." She certainly has! The tiny bird has no idea how Maul may be interpreting all this, but general words that sound wise are always good, aren't they?
Maul has already figured out when to be strong and when to be gentle, hasn't she? So, that shouldn't be hard at all. All the same, Maul nods her head. This time, it is without any hesitation, the blind obedience and agreeing that is common to cubs. What else is there to speak about? This has been a pleasant conversation, a pleasant distraction from the task that lies ahead of her, but she can't think of anything else to speak about with Avalikia right now.
The cub's silent nod makes Avalikia chuckle within herself. Maul seems so serious for a youngling! Of course, that's probably to her advantage since a non-serious cub would've probably decided that chasing birds is a fun thing to do by now. Maul may not have any ideas of what to talk about, but Avalikia has a few. "So what were you up to when I came?" she asks with a curious tilt of her head. Because it appeared that she was simply sitting there all by herself not doing anything - is that another trait of a serious cub?
If only Avalikia had come on a more "normal" day. Maul's conversation with her father yesterday precludes normality, though. "I was just thinking." She answers quite happily, thankful that Avalikia has kept the conversation going. She doesn't appear terribly eager to go back to said thinking, as she keeps her attention focused on Avalikia. It doesn't seem like she is at risk of getting bored with just talking anytime soon. Of course, if she spends hours just thinking, talking is probably quite exciting.
And the logical question to follow that answer is, "Oh? What were you thinking about?" And though it comes almost automatically, Avalikia is the inquisitive sort and really is curious about the answer, if only because she doesn't often go around asking cougar cubs what's on their minds. "I mean, if you don't mind telling me," she adds after another half a moment.
This answer does not come as quickly. For a while, Maul takes up staring at Avalikia again as she decides what to say, and even if she is going to say anything. Her period of staring destroys her attempt at what she has a mind to do, which is actually to keep the conversation from growing too serious. By the time she answers, it's probably quite obvious that her answer cannot simply be taken at face value. "My... grandmother. I'm going to meet her soon." It's not a lie, but it's far from being Maul's life story either.
The length of time she has to wait for the answer to what seemed like a simple question causes Avalikia to pause too before responding. Obviously something else is going on here, but she's guessing whatever it is would require more than a few surface questions to figure out and Avalikia's hardly going to go beyond that with someone she just met. "Hmm, grandmothers are usually nice," she finally says generically, "That's what I've heard, anyway. Never got a chance to meet mine." Okay, that's a little depressing, um... "I'm sure you'll get along with her just fine."
Maul shakes her head. "I'm not going to meet her to get along with her." Maul jerks her head away after she says that. Her voice is far to harsh for a girl her age, to say nothing about the words themselves. See what happens when she doesn't think about what she says before she says them? Of course, it was going to come out eventually, but Maul had no intention of advertising it. What if Kein finds out and decides not to take her because of the possibility that she won't be nice while she's there? This worry in mind, Maul looks around for her father.
Woah, that's a little strange! But the way that Maul looks around after saying that convinces Avalikia that any follow-up questions about that are unlikely to be answered. Hmm, perhaps some more wise sounding words are in order? "You should try to get along with those that are old, because you don't know if there will be time to fix things if you change your mind about it later," she says quietly, though she keeps an eye on Maul while trying not to appear to be doing so to see how these words are taken.
Daddy is nowhere to be seen, and after listening to what Avalikia has to say, maul looks back to the bird. It might be good advice most of the time, but not now. Standing up, Maul says, "A mommy shouldn't let her children get hurt. Some animals don't deserve niceness." She does not start walking away yet, but she is prepared to, now. She doesn't like talking about this, but she doesn't want to back down.
Um... okay. Clearly Avalikia has no idea what they're talking about now. Even so, there's a few things she feels she can say about what Maul said, even though Maul's words seem out of context. But should she? Is it really any of her business to be dispensing advice to a cub she's barely met and who doesn't seem to want to hear it? Decisions, decisions! After a long pause to consider, "Can a mommy /always/ stop bad things from happening to her children?" Hopefully a question is less upsetting than something more direct.
The bird has a really good point. Unfortunately. Maul would like to hang on to her anger, since it's better than being sad, and it's really better than the guilt that comes as Avalikia points out how unfair, how hypocritical, Maul is being. The girl sits back down again. If she's not going there to tell her mother... that is, her grandmother... that what she did was wrong, then why *is* she going there? Maul can feel tears stinging at her eyes, and she looks away from Avalikia. "They should try. They should try really hard, and never stop trying." But who is to say that Amber didn't? Maul has no way of knowing, not for certain.
"You're right," Avalikia quickly agrees, "But mommies can't do everything. Not even cougar mommies. Sometimes there's nothing they can do." Now, if she only knew what, exactly they were talking about! But nevermind, Maul seems to see her point and she's quite sure she's influenced the cub in a positive direction. Throwing caution to the wind, the little sparrow hops of the rock she's perched on and lands on the ground in the direction that Maul is now facing. Granted, she keeps just out of easy pouncing range. Well, she hopes - how far can cougar cubs pounce anyway? "Please don't cry. I can tell that something bad has happened to you, and I'm sorry for talking about it. But being angry doesn't make everything all better," she says in her most comforting voice.
Maul does not do anything to cause Avalikia to regret her decision to fly to the ground. Neither does she look away again. "I'll be okay. I'll be strong. Just... go now, okay? Please?" That way, at least if she *isn't* strong, then it's in a place where no one else can see her.
Hesitating for just a moment, Avalikia nods and decides that she's finished. "Okay. Good luck meeting your grandmother then," she says by way of goodbye. She'd like to add something along the lines of seeing her again or something, but Avalikia travels widely and doesn't know when or where she'll be. She spreads her wings and is about to take off, but she adds, "And remember to be a little gentle." Okay, now she can leave! Jumping onto the air and flapping quickly, she turns toward the mountain, but she circles overhead twice before she turns toward the mountain. She finds herself a little reluctant to leave, but she's guessing that Maul would like to be left alone now.
Before Maul can exercise her own manners, the bird is in he air. Maul watches Avalikia for a while, but eventually lies back down without even attempting to say goodbye. She has much more to think about, now, not only about her grandmother, but also about herself.