[SRP] Cultural Differences (Uriah, Asyria, Paschar)

[Epine de Rose]

 

[Epine de Rose]

"Have you noticed that there's a weird sort of divide here sometimes?" Paschar was reclining on a rock in the shade, having quickly retreated there on a day which had arguably become the hottest she had ever endured since arriving. It was sweltering and she certainly wasn't comfortable, but she had to acknowledge that these moments demonstrated why this pride was so strong. Suffice to say that every member she had observed so far might not have been enjoying the weather, but they were certainly capable of getting on with their duties. She was fortunate that they had permitted her to take her place as a teacher and scholar, rather than a guard or soldier.

...If she'd been either of the latter there would have been a high chance that she would be a puddle by now (or a charred crisp).

"You're going to need to be more specific," Asyria replied from her own place in the shade. She, like many of the other Firekin, was capable of simply getting on with her life in the heat but her duties didn't extend too far from the middle of the pride today, so she didn't need to exhaust herself in the heat. She'd count her blessing on this one, it was a small amount of luck, but it was enough luck to ensure that she wouldn't be disgruntled or miserable for the remainder of the day. "Are we referring to their traditions, their education requirements, their view on the current expedition, their view on new blood... I mean there is an extensive list of possibilities surrounding the pride, you'd need to pick one."

"Well, from a general point of view there's a divide," Paschar murmured and drew a line in the sand before making several circles on either side. "There seems to be the old blood, it remembers what things were like way back when, before any of us got here," she began and pursed her lips. "Then you have the newer blood, it doesn't remember what it was like and honestly, it can only remember some of the history that its been told," she pointed out. "If you listen to the way some of them talk, it's like they want to preserve the old ways and they're afraid of any progress."

"A lot of folks are afraid of change," Asyria pointed out with a raised eyebrow. "And you do have to consider that the leadership are asking some very traditional individuals to consider something that they completely stood against not so long ago."

"I know, it's just..." Paschar grimaced. "How are we supposed to survive if we don't change and adapt? New blood is important, so are new ideas..."

"And that is precisely why one of the Regents and her advisors took this decision," Uriah had finally joined them now that her duties had been completed. She took up a position in the shade beside Paschar and tilted her head to the side as she regarded both of the lionesses. Both Asyria and Paschar were very new to the Firekin and as a consequence, they didn't weren't aware of some of the more nuanced politics and the undercurrents that ran through the pride. As a warden it seemed that Asyria was slowly learning (it was imperative to do so) and from an objective point of view, Paschar was learning in order to preserve and teach history.

"That being said it's still difficult for some of the elders of the pride to accept that the times have changed and while the old ways protected them, we do need to embrace some new ideas," Uriah added. "We're in a temporary peace, one that came about after what was arguably a violent war with another pride," she shrugged her shoulders. "To this day we're still not sure of where that pride went and consequently, we have no idea if they'll come back," she pointed out softly.

"Who?" Asyria asked with a raised brow.

"They're called the Nergui, they're god slayers and in some respects, slavers. They have no mercy," the red lioness replied. "We fought them and we won, in a manner of speaking, but we didn't exterminate them."

"Well that would be a little unkind," Paschar remarked, though she could also see the necessity to exterminate if there was truly no possibility of redemption. Unfortunately, Paschar had always been the optimistic sort and the prospect of destroying an entire pride simply didn't sit well with her.

"Perhaps; but you have to keep in mind that it was our old ways that ensured we survived," Uriah pointed out.

"Fair point," Asyria agreed. "Favouring power and military strength over diplomacy in those circumstances would generally ensure your security," she mused. "And keeping yourself in isolation would keep your borders secure, it would be more difficult to infiltrate the pride."

"...Or betray it," Uriah agreed.

"Why would you betray it though?" Paschar asked curiously.

"Well," Asyria could answer this one, not because she had experienced it first hand, but because her father had once told her a story when she was much younger. "Sometimes when you don't have your place in the world, when you feel that where you were born was not your home, and those in your pride are not your kind... You look for somewhere else that calls to you, and that agrees with you. While those at home may not necessarily understand it, there's every possibility that the one who chooses to betray his homeland has done so because the one he has defected to speaks more to his core beliefs than they did."

"But your family..."

"Irrelevant for some, unfortunately," Uriah shook her head a little. "Regardless, we now live in a time of peace but there are some of us who simply can't let go of that wariness. They are right to remain vigilante to a degree, but they are not ready to move on just yet," she pointed out.

"Eventually when they see the benefits they'll come round," Asyria agreed with a smile.

"Oh I imagine they'll see the benefits very quickly when they realise that their own children no longer to find a happy ending," Paschar murmured. It had been no secret that her rogue blood was rather prized in a pride where every individual was so closely related; to have more of that would be a blessing. "Rather than remaining lonely, it would be nice to see others find their soulmate," she cooed.

"Ever the romantic," Asyria observed.

"Really I just prefer a happy ending to a story rather than a cliff hanger," Paschar confessed and gave a wave of her paw. "I just hope it doesn't take an eternity or a passing of a generation for it to happen."

"Stubborn as the Firekin can be, they're not stupid. The elders love their families dearly and they'll come round when they see that they're so happy," Uriah was confident of this, if anything, she would be one of the first to debate with them on the subject if she had to be... but it seemed that times were changing and a fair few would step forward to challenge the old views if they had to...

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