[PRP] Guards and Soldiers [Wook x Alamea]

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Purple eyes scanned the horizon for shapes. Wook was up and out of his den early. He'd be traveling to the Southern Outpost to relieve the currents individuals monitoring it's border and with an entire days travel ahead of him he wanted to begin as soon as he could. He never did get very far before being stopped by this or that. This time it was the grumble in his gut that called his attention. He'd quench his hunger and thirst before travelling, it'd be silly not too.

Fortunately before he had left the den he'd grabbed a small bag to use for carrying food and a small water sack. He began the quick journey to collect some food first.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

It still felt strange to Alamea, to not be expected to do soul-crushing nonsense work meant to break the spirit. After spending her entire youth simply pushing stones, she proved a spirit hard to break. The action had done her some good, giving her strong and lean muscles, filled with power and strength. They came in handy bringing down the surprisingly strong desert prey, and much handier in dragging one back alone, much like the antelope she dragged by its neck. It was almost as if she was more giant leopard than lion, creating a track in the sand. Her eyes remained fierce as ever, never seeming to relax even when she spied Wook, tilting her head just slightly.

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Wook was lost in his world while it was safe to do so - when he reached the borders that were to be patrolled he'd be on full alert. For now he was thinking about his life as it were and things that could change in the future. It was during these thoughts that he spied a pair of fierce eyes. They were the first thing to grab his attention, even before the great prey beast she had in her jaws. Once his eyes settled upon that an impressed look lit up his face and a small smile broke his almost thoughtful expression.

"Successful hunt." He stated plainly as he came within ear shot of the lioness and paused his step. As he got closer and the closing gap revealed more he finally got a good look at her muscled form - also impressive. She wouldn't need a helping paw bringing back her kill, not like some might, so he didn't bother to offer. "Water?" Was what he offered instead.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

The lioness only gave a slight nod, heading for the water. When she got close, she finally let the kill go and went to take a good gulp. It wasn't the same as what she could drink, plentiful and until she was full, out in the grasslands, but it was still enough to quench her parched throat. Only once she had had her fill did she look at Wook, taking him in. "You seem familiar... You look a bit like the one lioness with the heavy limp on her front paw. And a bit like the one loud-mouth nobody seems to like much." Her accent was evident, the mixture of speaking two other dialects evident. Some sounds were more guttural, more Nergui in nature, while others had the smoother sound of the northern dialect the Hongshan used. To her own ears, it was nothing unusual, though she'd had one lion comment on it already.

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She certainly was parched and he made a mental note to grab a little bit more the next time he took this trek - just in case. Live and learn. Were his thoughts as he watched the kill drop and the lioness finish her drink.

The accent almost stole away his attention from her actual question. A lioness with a limo and a loud mouth? That could only mean she knew of two individuals fairly close to him. "My parents." He exhaled in his response to her at the mention of a 'loud-mouth'. Often times he was able to chuckle at the comments, but he was worried that the 'loud-mouth' bit would eventually do his Father or family some harm. "Yeah, has to be my parents." He very nearly asked how she knew them, but bit his tongue briefly.

"The name is Wook." He offered her while he reset the water sack in its place. "What's your name?" He queried as his gaze returned to her.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

She let out a little huff of amusement, "You poor child." Not that he was younger than her, he was probably older for all she knew. "I will say this much, your father holds strong to his convictions. As wrong as some of them may be." She looked away for a moment, going over to her kill. "Belief is what called the Nergui down upon the Hongshan and lost me my brothers and sisters, so he should be careful before somebody kills him for it."

Placing a paw on the antelope's shoulder, she paused, listening to his name. When she looked at him, one brow quirked for a moment. It didn't last long, though, and no indication was given as to why it had even risen. "I am Alamea. You have probably seen my parents around, they're quite hard to miss. My father has distinct black, red, and white striping, my mother looks as though she possesses glowing scales upon her belly. They are Hongshan, born and raised." Alamea would have been, too, if not for the Nergui. Now she occupied a strange little pocket of existence, distrusted by some lions for her multiple tongues of language. Only the medics seemed to not distrust her, or... Some of the medics, at least.  

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Though she wasn't entirely wrong in what she had to say his nose still wrinkled slightly. That was his father she spoke of, afterall, and he would defend him when and where he could. He didn't have to though - her amused huff was followed by a partial compliment and then stating the obvious. She wasn't wrong, again, and that didn't sit well with him.

"They certainly sound familiar, Alamea. I've likely seen them around before." He made a mental note to learn more about the Hongshan culture. The group had been a significant part of the pride for such a long time and now the freedom to practice their beliefs had been ripped from them. Wook wasn't sure how he felt about the belief, but he knew it wasn't morally sound to take that right from someone else. "I probably couldn't miss a set of glowing scales upon the pelt of lion or lioness even if I tried. I've seen your mother about." He tried for a chuckle that almost came out dry.

"Did you want a paw with that?" He offered help, but not before gazing towards the sun to check on what time he had left before he had to absolutely be at the prides borders. The lions patrolling them wouldn't be expecting him just yet. Even with an almost full days travel left he would still be there when expected.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

Alamea looked at her kill, then at Wook, tilting her head just so. "Help would be nice, yes, thank you." She motioned with a paw off to where the meat tended to be gathered. "I'm taking it that way. You may have some, if you are hungry, when we get there." She bent down, taking ahold of the carcass. Now that she'd stopped, her muscles protested at her, not quite ready to move again. It had to be done, though, and she could rest plenty after she was done. It was her off day, after all, where she could be as fiercely independent as she liked. And ask for help if she so desired or felt she needed it, as it happened.  

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The glance she made towards her kill had him doubting his offer, but only for a moment, then the moment was gone as she accepted his assistance. “Happy too.” His smile was unwavering as he followed the direction of her paw with his eyes. This would certainly be the faster way to transport the food to its destination – a part of the pride he wasn’t nearly as familiar with.

“That would be lovely.” He admitted, though a growl of his gut had answered him moments sooner. “Apparently I’m hungrier than I thought.” He chuckled softly at the unnecessary admittance and took up the other side of the carcass. This would definitely be easier with the two of them as he took on the weight.

“After a kill like this and the travel time.. you deserve a day of rest.” He remarked in admiration.

Andranis

 

[Andranis]

Alamea let out an amused sound, "It IS my rest day, actually. But I didn't want to blindly take when the pride's been hospitable. I thought it best to help provide, too." She wasn't a hunter, preferring the idea of sinking her claws into an enemy, especially if they were Nergui. But she wasn't greedy. The Motoujami didn't have to take them in, any of the Hongshan, and especially not her, her mother, and the siblings that had come with them. She wasn't about to squander the gift they'd been given.

As she began the task of dragging the carcass with Wook, she could only think that, perhaps, things would look up and they could take on the Nergui, and Alamea could kill six Nergui for each sibling she lost.

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Fin!