Out of the Ashes We Rise ;; open for anyone!

[Zoketi]

ooc;; jump right in. I only ask that these characters are realistic. ^^ the setting is some savannah, could be near the Pridelands, but it doesn't really matter.
my character: Kahawia

ic;; A young brown-furred lioness halted, lifting her pale gaze to scan the expanse of grass around her. Unfamiliar terrain, but open to a world of exploration. Kahawia shifted her paws, her nostrils flaring at the gentle, cool breeze that rushed from the east, the direction in which she was moving in. Her tail fluttered behind her as she padded forwards again, barely able to see over some of the tall stalks of grass. She was young to be on her own, but past circumstances had ruined an easy childhood life. She found herself easy enough to take care of, though finding meals was a bit tricky--she'd never been taught to hunt--and avoiding enemies was often a challenge. Still, she had survived, living off carcasses and the occasional small rodent or something that she managed to catch. The preteen had no particular destination, but was simply meandering and seeing where life took her and who she would come across.

[Jetstar]

Lying on his back in the tall grass, Tyne starred at the passing clouds. Blowing his jet black hair our of his left eye, he swatted at a flying butterfly, laughing gently to himself then remembering things he'd rather forget. Cruch of soft ground underfoot, Tyne sat up and turned while staying below the grass level. The young teenager watched as she walked...

[Zoketi]

Kahawia felt a presence nearby and immediately lifted her head, drawing in the scents of the land. It was another lion, a male, young and unfamiliar. The female pulled up her guard, tensing slightly, scouring the surroundings. She could see nothing, though. He was hidden somewhere, presumably. Kahawia didn't like feeling so exposed, and so she bunched her hindquarters and headed towards the nearest rocky outcrop, just a couple of boulders above the grassy plain. It was a few meters away, so she bounded quickly to it. With a few more leaps she was perched upon the smooth grey stones, her pale blue eyes searching the savannah. 

[Jetstar]

Tyne was startled, but still he watched as the lioness bolted for the rocks. Eyes, blue like the mid morning sky, put him off. He didnt know why, but those eyes told him she wasn't his enemy. Sitting up straight, letting his head above the grass, he saw her, maybe as scared as he was.

[Zoketi]

She twitched her tail, pale gaze pinpointing whom she was seeking--a young male in the grass, facing her. Kahawia stared back at him for a moment, then pricked her ears and slid her paws forwards on the stone. She didn't think he was going to do anything to her, he wasn't threatening in any way in his position. She took the chance and dropped down off the rock, then made her way through the tall stalks in his direction. Her tail lifted, kinking above her back, and her icy eyes were bright and curious.

[Jetstar]

The young lioness jumped down from the rock, disappearing for a moment from sight. No sound, Tyne's breathing was the only thing. Had she gone? Tyne's ears sagged in disappointment at the thought until he saw her amazing pale-blue eyes once again through the wild grass, looking straight into his own. Uncontrollably, Tyne's ears perked back up and a smile appeared. It had been so long since he last smiled, seemed like forever now. The pale-eyed lioness continued forward, emerging from the stalks into the small opening. For a brief second, their noses touched and every word from Tyne's mind was taken. Pulling away, he wanted to say something, anything he could think of, anything at all...
"You're beautiful" he said, then cringed upon realising what he had told her. Ok, maybe not anything...

[Zoketi]

Kahawia hadn't meant to bump into him, and she jerked back with a flick of her ears, feeling slightly embarrassed. However, his reaction startled her more. A feeling of pleasure crept through her and she allowed a faint smile to appear on her creamy muzzle. "Why thank you." she purred, blinking rapidly. Kahawia was quite sure this would be a friendly meeting, and she relaxed herself fully, though it wasn't a visible release of tension. She gazed curiously at the young lion, and then after a moment asked, "What's your name?

[Jetstar]

He stared into her pale eyes. "T..Tyne" he stumbled. "My name's Tyne" the slate Gray lion said. "I've never seen you around here before" he told her, smiling at her smile.

[Zoketi]

Kahawia continued to smile pleasantly at him. Tyne. She filed away the name in her mind to remember it later. "I'm Kahawia." she dipped her head quickly, curling her tail around in the air behind her. She shook her head as he spoke again. "Nope, I'm new to this area. I'm a wanderer, really." she explained with a shift of her front paws as she gazed at him. "You live here, then?" she added, casting a glance around at the open grassy area.

[Jetstar]

He chuckled a little to himself and his ears dipped "Yeah, you could say that. I didn't always though. I had this great family, small but amazing" he told her "It was so perfect, but then It changed. I won't bore you with my life story though" he smiled "Are you hungry? The local pride I hunt for have some spare meat if you want, I promise you, it's all fresh"

[Zoketi]

The young lioness smiled politely. "It's no problem." she flicked her dark-tipped tail. At the mention of food she shrugged. "I'm not that hungry. But I can hunt for myself, you know." she added with a hint of defensiveness. She shook her head slightly, berating herself, and blinked kindly at Tyne. "If you're willing to give it up, though, why not?" she mused to herself. She was a little bit hungry, more so than she had thought earlier. Despite the fact that she didn't want to seem like she needed to rely on anyone for food, she didn't see the point of turning down a friendly offer.

[Jetstar]

-"I can hunt for myself you know"

"I don't doubt that for a second" Tyne smiled. "C'mon then, I'm starving" he laughed and with a slight head tilt, led the way. It wasn't that far to the neighbouring pride, just up and over the far hill. Upon reaching the top, the sight was magnificent. Lions and lionesses for nearly a mile, a lot with families, cubs running around, play fighting with one another.
"It's nice here, everyone helps one another out but I just prefer to stay secluded"

[Zoketi]

She gazed with near wonder at the massive spread of felines. Her paws kneaded the soil and she felt almost anxious. It'd been a bit since she'd been in a pride--and with one this size, it was sure to be a bit daunting. Kahawia turned to Tyne, pale blue gaze lit. "It's like...half the population is here!" she mewed with some amusement. The pride she had grown up in hadn't even been twenty lions. She flicked her tail with awe. "So where's this food?"

[Jetstar]

(Can i add a npc for this bit? just to enrich the story more, you can too if you want at some point ) Tyne laughed at her response, "It sure feels like it" he looked at her "I knew you were hungry" he chucked "This way" he nodded, hopping down the slanted hill. Walking through the crowd, people nodded and greeted him once again, the responses were practically the same until he came across Juna, the queen of the pride.
"Welcome back Tyne, who's the new lass?" she asked smiling to Kahawia.

[Zoketi]

[sure. ]

Kahawia grinned at him and kinked her tail over her back. "It wasn't until I actually thought about food that I realized myself." she commented with humor. She followed the young lion down the hill, her gaze sweeping over the large group of lions; some sharing kills, some playing, some napping, some just talking. Kahawia could almost feel the friendly air that lingered through the group. She could feel some of the members gazes on her, but some didn't even seem to care--she wasn't surprised, with a pride like this, not everyone would know who all lived here. She came to a sudden halt as Tyne did, and fixed her gaze upon a regal-looking lioness. Her instincts told her this was a ruler of some sort. Dipping her head with respect, she mewed, "My name's Kahawia."

[Jetstar]

Juna bowed to the same extent as Kahawia did, which was unusual for a regal character such as herself. She never felt comfortable expressing herself as being above the rest of the lions and lionesses she met. To her, they were all her equals and being royal was a privilege, not a right. "Pleasure to meet you Kahawia, if you need anything at all while you're here, don't hesitate to ask" she winked and flicked her tan tail. "We'll see you later Juna, we're headed to get some food" Tyne smiled as they walked away.

[Zoketi]

"Thank you." Kahawia finished, blinking brightly at the queenly lioness. She licked her muzzle as she turned to follow Tyne again, trotting to match his pace. Her gaze flicked around the massive pride again, still awed by the number of lions. "No one ever gets lonely here, do they?" she mewed lightly, swishing her tail.

[Jetstar]

Tyne laughed and flicked his tail "Nope, they're like one massive family here. Everyone where we are now all know each other, however there are...Districts within the pride, and all the people of any other district will know each other, but don't know many from here. There's three in total, Juna's the queen of this district, Albret is king of the next and Juan of the next" he smiled at Kahawia. "But Juna's the high queen, so she's practically the queen of everyone"
Tyne noticed someone he knew would know the answer to his question "Hey May!" Tyne yelled as he trotted over to a tan lioness. "Is the hunting party back yet?"
"They are, they're in their usual spot"
"Nice thanks!" Tyne returned to Kahawia's side "Ok we're nearly there" he grinned.

[Zoketi]

The young lioness listened as he explained. She nodded brightly. "Sounds well organized." she commented, pricking her ears. She watched a pair of cubs chase each other around and an older lion snap at them as they stepped on his tail. Amused, she lifted her chin and returned her gaze to Tyne. Kahawia watched the tan lioness, May, as her companion called to her, and then swished her tail with anticipation. "Great!" she mewed to the male as he returned to her.

[Deleted]

They had found her.
For three days they had followed her scent, but she had used the rolling hills to confuse them. She walked in a line and then doubled back, walked on stones where the scent would not be so strong, even managed to talk a rhino into giving her a lift. But now that they had laid eyes on her they were moving with haste across the landscape.
Walla couldn't run. She wasn't built for speed. She was a princess and in her pride, princesses were pampered. Nevertheless she pushed her useless body as fast as it would go, waddling on her short chubby legs and trying not to overbalance as her huge belly bounced to and fro. Her ankles ached terribly. Nevertheless, as her pursuers crested the last hill she made a pitiful excuse of a dash in amongst the lions of the massive pride. There, her pursuers would not be able to follow her so easily. She allowed herself to slow down a little, to breathe, to limp, hanging her head in exhaustion.
All the lions and lionesses around her stared at her. And why not? She was not one of them and looked very different. They were all thin by her standards. She had a belly so large that it nearly reached the floor. She was pretty, yes, but unkempt - being on the run for several months and living by yourself will do that to you. She needed to find the queen and ask for protection, but no sooner had she started limping to where she might find her than a voice said behind her,
"Walla, stop."
Walla did stop, but only for a moment. Ragi soon pulled up beside her. He was fiercely big, with a huge black mane and paws as big as Walla's face. "You can't stop me now," she said. "I am not coming home, and if you try and take me from here, you will start a war with the biggest pride it he world. Father would be furious." His other men had to be following close behind, but Walla wasn't about to stop and look.
"King Frei gave me orders to retrieve you. I will not disobey his orders. Come with me or I WILL have you carried out here in humility."
"Do your best. You couldn't carry me," Walla said, raising her head with renewed determination. She thought he wouldn't be brave enough to try anything surrounded by so many, so when he dropped back she smiled, only then she felt him swipe out her rear legs. She collapsed in a heap. "No, stop!" She yelled, and clawed at the dirt but Ragi had her by the tail and was pulling backwards. Her tail ached so bad that tears came to her eyes: he had to be using his teeth. She grabbed for something and ended up holding the leg of a lioness. The lioness had a brown stripe down her back. A male beside her had jet black hair. She looked them both in the eye and screamed with terror, "Heelp! Please don't let him take me..."

[Jetstar]

Tyne was very startled "We were nearly there" he muttered, then noticed a large male behind her.
"Hey man, What gives?" he asked the huge male, much taller than Tyne himself and had at least double, if not triple the muscle mass because Tyne was a bit lanky after all. "That's no way to capture someone" Tyne said as he trotted over to the lion, probably a bit to happily for the scenario. "If you want to capture someone, you need to be more aggressive, more domminating, show 'em who's boss...Like this" He finished then slapped the collosal lion in the maw making him release the stranger, Tyne leaped back to avoid the huge swing coming his way and laughed like a child. "You get my point? You have to hit them" he said, twisting around him and slapping him on the back. Tyne laughed again "Sorry m'dear, it appears food will have to wait" he said to Kahawia

[Zoketi]

The slim young lioness had lowered her tail and flattened her ears at the commotion behind her. Skittering around and narrowing her eyes with puzzlement and curiosity, she had watched the unfamiliar lioness and lion for a moment. It seemed a day full of events for her. At first she had guessed it was something going on within the huge pride, but even the members of the massive group looked startled and confused. Kahawia was almost hoping to stay out of it when the lioness grabbed at her, making contact with her hind leg. She jerked it away, more out of bewilderment than anything, and stared as Tyne approached the two. She frowned, squaring her paws as her companion jumped at the huge lion. Her recent loner life had taught her to steer away from dangerous-looking creatures, and so she didn't make any move to head towards the two newcomers. Part of her wanted to back away, but the old, confident her kept her in place. Kahawia lashed her tail and moved a bit closer. She shook her head to Tyne, as food was no longer on her mind now.

[Deleted]

"Stop it, STOP IT!" Walla screamed, for whenever her helper laid a hand on Ragi the big lion flinched, biting into her tail more. Walla groaned with pain, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth.
Ragi let the little lion hit him a few times, then said around Walla's tail, "You call that a hit?" He then jerked his head: several other males stepped out of the crowd. Their darker coats made them different from the lions of the pride.
"Ragi, stop," Walla said, trying to be reasonable. "You're outnumbered. Let me go, because if you don't you'll be mobbed."
She turned to her helper. "I need to see the queen. I want to ask her for protection, officially. Please, will you take me to her?"
As she said this, she felt the pain let up in her tail slightly. Ragi had let her go.

[Jetstar]

Tyne laughed at the male "What's wrong pussycat, huh? Tired? And she's right, you're outnumbered, by a lot" it looked as though Ragi was about to strike Tyne until a loud roar that would shatter eardrums thundered through the air.
"You kids alright? We'd hate to make a bad first impression" Juna smiles at Kahawia. "What's going on here?" Juna asked "Who are you people?" Aiming the question towards Ragi and his group.

[Zoketi]

The brown lioness stood off to the side, still frowning, her tail flicking. She was relieved when the queen, Juna, arrived, and felt certain that the violence would end. Although she was quite for fighting if needed, this looked like a situation where that should be best avoided. The stranger was of course outnumbered, as Tyne had said, and there was no way he'd be able to take away the lioness. Kahawia slipped forwards, moving towards the unfamiliar lioness's head so that she wouldn't be near the big male. Her eyes flicked over the scene, and she kept a distance of a few steps to let Juna take care of it.

[Deleted]

Walla saw her chance. She tried to stand and go to the queen but couldn't: she was too tired, her legs too sore, her body too fat and heavy. "Your majesty," she said, dipping her head, "I am princess Walla, of the Frei pride. I seek your protection from those that would harm me."
"Majesty," Ragi said, inclining his head, "I represent King Frei. He has asked me to retrieve his daughter and I have come to do so. It would help the relationship between our peoples if you would allow me to take her home, where she belongs and where she will be safe."
Walla looked up at the queen, pleading with her eyes.

[Jetstar]

Juna studied the muscular lion. "If your king wants this girl back, tell him to come himself and collect her. As for now, get out of my lands" she stood proudly and unafraid as about five lions and lioness approached Ragi. "You're welcome to stay here as long as you need" Juna aimed at Walla. "As for you two" she looked at Kahawia and Tyne "You should get out of here, thanks for helping" she smiled. Tyne just began to walk away, but with a flick of his tail remembered someone. He walked towards Walla "We're going to get some food, you're free to join us when you get all this sorted out" He said, then told her the directions. Looking towards Kahawia he said "Thats if you still want to get some" he chucked nervously.

[Deleted]

Ragi licked his chops. "You'll hear from my king soon," he said, then gave a last, cold look at Walla before striding away.

Walla let herself relax for the first time in days. At the mention of food she perked up, and said back to Tyne, "I would love to come with you, but I have not rested for days, and my legs are monstrously sore. I don't suppose you could bring some food for me?" Turning to the queen she said, "You saved me from a fate worse than death. Thank you. I am not much of a huntress as you can see, but if you would allow me a few days rest, I will gladly fulfill any role within your pride as I can."

[Zoketi]

Kahawia nodded, she reckoned she would be hungry once she laid eyes on some meat. Glad to have the sudden event sorted out--a relief that there was a queen here to handle everything--she flicked her tail and smiled at Tyne. When the other lioness spoke she turned readily to her, blinking politely. "We can bring food." she replied brightly, with a glance to Tyne to make sure she was correct in speaking. Her ears twitched and her chin lifted slightly as she felt a breeze on her fur, and she let herself relax fully.

[AtiyaTheSeeker]

(Hey folks. Anyone mind if I join with my non-fantasy version of Atiya? If so, when would be good for me to hop on in?)