Post by Therdde on Jan 1, 2009 10:21:38 GMT -5
Characters:
Yuma - Male Adolescent Cougar
Kein - Male Adolescent Cougar
- Fallen Log -
Since his rather careless slip-up, Yuma has stayed close to the cubs, only leaving to hunt, and only then if both Kein and Nayeli are present to watch the young ones. His renewed diligence may not be enough to regain the trust of his packmates, but the brawny male is determined not to make another mistake. As soon as he wakes up, Yuma lifts his head and glances upward, trying to judge how long he has been asleep. It's late afternoon -- good, he's only been napping for an hour or two. Yawning widely, the cougar sits up and looks around blearily to see who's keeping watch.
Kein is lying down not far from his sleeping cubs. As the sound of Yuma waking up reaches his ears, Kein shifts his gaze to the other male, then greets Yuma with, "Did you rest well?" Whether he trusts Yuma with the well-being of his cubs or not, he has not changed how he has treated Yuma in anyway other than that, like Yuma, he does not leave or sleep unless Nayeli is here and pretty fully awake.
Yuma spots Kein, but not his sister. He does not bother to ask where she's gone, figuring she must have gone out to hunt. "Not too bad," he answers, extending his body in a drawn-out, muscle-rippling stretch. Now that he's near his full adult size, the male has really gotten large, almost as big as his grandsire. Straightening back up, Yuma glances thoughtfully at the sleeping cubs. "They're growing so quickly," he remarks, keeping his voice low to avoid waking them.
"They are." Just earlier this morning, Kein was thinking much the same thing. Like Yuma, he keeps his voice reasonably quiet. His cubs are usually hungry upon waking, and he would hate for them to be hungry with Nayeli no where in sight. Though, thinking of that... "I don't suppose you remember how old you were when you started eating meat, do you?" Kein definitely doesn't, and he is mostly joking, but... It would be nice to give Nayeli more of a break than just a few hours, sometime.
When Yuma first saw these cubs, he could not tell them apart. That's no longer the case. While he has not been within paw's reach of the cubs since his arrival, he can now see the subtle shades of coloration that set them apart. Even their cub-spots are arranged differently enough to be distinct. Frowning slightly, he thinks for a moment or two before answering, "No, I don't really remember... I don't think they're old enough yet." The male grins crookedly. "But with the way they're growing, it won't be long before we're hoping they leave /us/ something to eat."
Kein chuckles lightly. Yuma has a very good point. Hunting to feed all of these cubs will probably prove to be quite a chore, but then, Kein intends to take them on short hunting trips very soon after they start eating meat. "Sure, but then, once they're a little older, we just get them to bring us food, and then we get to rest. There are certainly enough of them." Kein would like to believe that Yuma's use of the word 'us' means he intends on returning to Amaranth with them, but... He probably shouldn't just assume that.
Yuma has also realized how much work it could take to feed five cubs. Before now, he has never really considered how much it must have taken to feed himself and his sisters, only one cub less than Kein and Nayeli's litter. Of course, they had the advantage of being in Amaranth... but Yuma hopes that the cubs will make it back to their homelands before then. He returns his attention to Kein, grinning at the other male's retort. "Ohh... so /that's/ why cougars have cubs, huh? I get it now."
Kein definitely shared with his family whenever he could, but his mother never suggested that he /should/. She never had to. But it seems fair, right? Kein grins lightly for a while, but it fades before he speaks again. "I hope you'll return with us when the flood ends, Yuma. We could use the help... And I think Paoro and Chandani would like to see you again." Misae? Kein has still not seen her, like he has not seen Yuma. It is possible that, like Kein suspects Yuma has, Misae has left in mourning. And, for her family's sake, he hopes she will return someday, even if only to let them know she is well.
When the conversation takes a more serious turn, the joking grin disappears from Yuma's muzzle as well, and his ears perk up slightly. "Actually," he says, "I was already planning to... to go back to Amaranth, I mean." If he had not run into Kein and Nayeli, it may have taken a few more weeks or months, but he had been gone long enough to know that he missed being home. And now, with the cubs taken into consideration... "Of course I'll go with you."
Despite Yuma's gender, Kein will not even try to pretend he is doing Yuma a favor by allowing him free reign in Amaranth. Yuma /was/ chieftain, even if only for a short while. He is easily large enough to deal Kein some serious damage if Kein tried to keep him from his home. And, further, Nayeli and Paoro would probably have his head if they thought he was even thinking of keeping Yuma from his rightful home.
Luckily, he has never thought any such thing, and that has not changed in the months since he told Yuma he would always be welcome in Amaranth. "Thank you, Yuma. I appreciate it, and I know Nayeli will too."
It's fortunate for Yuma that Kein knows him well enough to offer him such trust, even after all of the mistakes he has made. Yuma's aware of this, and though he does not say so outright, he appreciates it a great deal. "You don't have to thank me," he says. "I should be thanking you." The male grins slightly. It's true -- he's already learned a lot about caring for cubs. "Now if I ever have cubs of my own, I /might/ have a clue about what to do with them." If he ever gets over the anxiety he feels around unrelated females, that is.
Kein laughs lightly and gladly takes the opportunity to turn the conversation to a lighter topic again. "Well, do me a favor. If you think you might be having them in Amaranth, at least wait until mine are a little older." That female, Ohanzee, was pregnant when he and Nayeli left. Surely she must have given birth by now too. Amaranth will have plenty of cubs for some time, even if Ohanzee only gave birth to a couple cubs.
Yuma chuckles quietly. "I don't think you have to worry about that. Could be a while." Having been away so long, he has no idea that other cubs have been born in Amaranth. He assumes (correctly) that Nayeli is, so far, the only one of his sisters to have borne offspring, and he has not given much thought to the other females of the tribe since he left the territory. With a soft sigh he sinks onto his belly, stretching out with his chin in the grass. He's awake now. The cougar does not plan to sleep again for some hours, but for now he'll just relax and enjoy the warmth of summer, until Nayeli returns from her hunt.
Kein is content to rest in silence, now. It will be a few hours until Nayeli goes to sleep for the night, he knows, and the more rest he can get before he stays up all night to stand guard, the better. For now, he'll remain awake, but he does intend to nap once Nayeli returns.
Yuma - Male Adolescent Cougar
Kein - Male Adolescent Cougar
- Fallen Log -
Since his rather careless slip-up, Yuma has stayed close to the cubs, only leaving to hunt, and only then if both Kein and Nayeli are present to watch the young ones. His renewed diligence may not be enough to regain the trust of his packmates, but the brawny male is determined not to make another mistake. As soon as he wakes up, Yuma lifts his head and glances upward, trying to judge how long he has been asleep. It's late afternoon -- good, he's only been napping for an hour or two. Yawning widely, the cougar sits up and looks around blearily to see who's keeping watch.
Kein is lying down not far from his sleeping cubs. As the sound of Yuma waking up reaches his ears, Kein shifts his gaze to the other male, then greets Yuma with, "Did you rest well?" Whether he trusts Yuma with the well-being of his cubs or not, he has not changed how he has treated Yuma in anyway other than that, like Yuma, he does not leave or sleep unless Nayeli is here and pretty fully awake.
Yuma spots Kein, but not his sister. He does not bother to ask where she's gone, figuring she must have gone out to hunt. "Not too bad," he answers, extending his body in a drawn-out, muscle-rippling stretch. Now that he's near his full adult size, the male has really gotten large, almost as big as his grandsire. Straightening back up, Yuma glances thoughtfully at the sleeping cubs. "They're growing so quickly," he remarks, keeping his voice low to avoid waking them.
"They are." Just earlier this morning, Kein was thinking much the same thing. Like Yuma, he keeps his voice reasonably quiet. His cubs are usually hungry upon waking, and he would hate for them to be hungry with Nayeli no where in sight. Though, thinking of that... "I don't suppose you remember how old you were when you started eating meat, do you?" Kein definitely doesn't, and he is mostly joking, but... It would be nice to give Nayeli more of a break than just a few hours, sometime.
When Yuma first saw these cubs, he could not tell them apart. That's no longer the case. While he has not been within paw's reach of the cubs since his arrival, he can now see the subtle shades of coloration that set them apart. Even their cub-spots are arranged differently enough to be distinct. Frowning slightly, he thinks for a moment or two before answering, "No, I don't really remember... I don't think they're old enough yet." The male grins crookedly. "But with the way they're growing, it won't be long before we're hoping they leave /us/ something to eat."
Kein chuckles lightly. Yuma has a very good point. Hunting to feed all of these cubs will probably prove to be quite a chore, but then, Kein intends to take them on short hunting trips very soon after they start eating meat. "Sure, but then, once they're a little older, we just get them to bring us food, and then we get to rest. There are certainly enough of them." Kein would like to believe that Yuma's use of the word 'us' means he intends on returning to Amaranth with them, but... He probably shouldn't just assume that.
Yuma has also realized how much work it could take to feed five cubs. Before now, he has never really considered how much it must have taken to feed himself and his sisters, only one cub less than Kein and Nayeli's litter. Of course, they had the advantage of being in Amaranth... but Yuma hopes that the cubs will make it back to their homelands before then. He returns his attention to Kein, grinning at the other male's retort. "Ohh... so /that's/ why cougars have cubs, huh? I get it now."
Kein definitely shared with his family whenever he could, but his mother never suggested that he /should/. She never had to. But it seems fair, right? Kein grins lightly for a while, but it fades before he speaks again. "I hope you'll return with us when the flood ends, Yuma. We could use the help... And I think Paoro and Chandani would like to see you again." Misae? Kein has still not seen her, like he has not seen Yuma. It is possible that, like Kein suspects Yuma has, Misae has left in mourning. And, for her family's sake, he hopes she will return someday, even if only to let them know she is well.
When the conversation takes a more serious turn, the joking grin disappears from Yuma's muzzle as well, and his ears perk up slightly. "Actually," he says, "I was already planning to... to go back to Amaranth, I mean." If he had not run into Kein and Nayeli, it may have taken a few more weeks or months, but he had been gone long enough to know that he missed being home. And now, with the cubs taken into consideration... "Of course I'll go with you."
Despite Yuma's gender, Kein will not even try to pretend he is doing Yuma a favor by allowing him free reign in Amaranth. Yuma /was/ chieftain, even if only for a short while. He is easily large enough to deal Kein some serious damage if Kein tried to keep him from his home. And, further, Nayeli and Paoro would probably have his head if they thought he was even thinking of keeping Yuma from his rightful home.
Luckily, he has never thought any such thing, and that has not changed in the months since he told Yuma he would always be welcome in Amaranth. "Thank you, Yuma. I appreciate it, and I know Nayeli will too."
It's fortunate for Yuma that Kein knows him well enough to offer him such trust, even after all of the mistakes he has made. Yuma's aware of this, and though he does not say so outright, he appreciates it a great deal. "You don't have to thank me," he says. "I should be thanking you." The male grins slightly. It's true -- he's already learned a lot about caring for cubs. "Now if I ever have cubs of my own, I /might/ have a clue about what to do with them." If he ever gets over the anxiety he feels around unrelated females, that is.
Kein laughs lightly and gladly takes the opportunity to turn the conversation to a lighter topic again. "Well, do me a favor. If you think you might be having them in Amaranth, at least wait until mine are a little older." That female, Ohanzee, was pregnant when he and Nayeli left. Surely she must have given birth by now too. Amaranth will have plenty of cubs for some time, even if Ohanzee only gave birth to a couple cubs.
Yuma chuckles quietly. "I don't think you have to worry about that. Could be a while." Having been away so long, he has no idea that other cubs have been born in Amaranth. He assumes (correctly) that Nayeli is, so far, the only one of his sisters to have borne offspring, and he has not given much thought to the other females of the tribe since he left the territory. With a soft sigh he sinks onto his belly, stretching out with his chin in the grass. He's awake now. The cougar does not plan to sleep again for some hours, but for now he'll just relax and enjoy the warmth of summer, until Nayeli returns from her hunt.
Kein is content to rest in silence, now. It will be a few hours until Nayeli goes to sleep for the night, he knows, and the more rest he can get before he stays up all night to stand guard, the better. For now, he'll remain awake, but he does intend to nap once Nayeli returns.