[PRP] unfamiliar territory (Ciro x Sagonige)

[KasaiLoki]

"Don't fail me this time, Ciro."

The words echoed in his head. Don't fail him. Yeah. It seemed like everything he was doing was failing his Captain. Something needed to change. Maybe he should bring the Captain a nice pelt or skull helmet or something. A trinket of some sort? Hell, Ciro did not know what to do. He knew he was not going to bring him the white lioness. He hadn't even come across the strange girl in a while. She had likely traveled far from their last meeting grounds. Good for her. The lion thought to himself, strolling through unfamiliar terrain. It was unusual for the lion to venture into a territory he did not know. He would need to stay on his toes just a bit more.

By the scents around, the ground was well traveled, but he could not tell if it was someone else's land or not. A small hum left his throat, golden eyes scanning around for any signs of life. His nose twitched as he sat, tail curling slightly around his front paws.

Meepfur

 

[Meepfur]

There was always something thrilling about it when the clan passed close to the southern borders of Ela'wadiyi lands, although 'border' was a loose term when compared to the mountainous terrain that sheltered them on other sides. It was scent only, nothing physical, an invisible band on one side of which was home, and on the other, the world. One side didn't look any different than the other, although she'd heard countless stories of exotic lands beyond the horizon she'd never seen past. In all honesty, she'd never had much desire to. Oh, it all sounded romantic and wonderful in tales, but she was quite content here at home, most days. 'Adventurous' was not a word anyone would use to describe Sagonige. Ever.

And so, when she had crossed the border today, it had been for a perfectly grounded reason: to go hunting with one of her brothers, Etawa. The birds had spotted a herd of gazelle nearby, over the border but not far, close enough that it would have been silly to ignore their proximity for prey that were technically within their lands but farther away. And since this was unclaimed territory, there was no harm in it at all! The hunt had gone reasonably well, in that...well, it hadn't gone poorly. It had gone, and Sagonige was currently trekking back to Ela'wadiyi lands with a newbown fawn dangling from her jaws.

Etawa was...somewhere. He'd seen something interesting, and rather than wait for her slowpoke brother to investigate and ruminate over whatever it was, she was headed home. He'd catch up when he caught up, like he always did. It mgiht be tomorrow morning, but he'd turn up.

KasaiLoki

 

[KasaiLoki]

Meepfur

It wasn't the movement of another that caught his attention, more so the smell of a fresh kill lingering nearby. While Ciro was a skilled hunted, something that he needed to be since he did not travel often with thralls, he was never one to join someone else for a free meal. Following his nose, the Reaver found himself near a darker lioness, with probably some of the most intricate markings he had ever seen in his life. His eyes followed her form. That's where the scent was coming from, the newborn prey beast swaying from the other's jowls.

He watched the female, looking around to see if there was anyone else about. Not seeing anyone, the lion approached. He'd be ready to defend himself if needed if others sprang out of nowhere, but he did not foresee that happening right now.

"Hello there!" he called out, keeping a small distance from the female. "I did not expect to see others in this particular terrain." He was use to the rocks, but the air felt different in the mountains. Thinner, perhaps?  

[Meepfur]

Outside of what was necessary for a hunt, Sagonige was not the most alert of lionesses, having led a peaceful and sheltered life completely free of anything even resembling strife. There were stories, of course, from years and years in the past, but they were very far away and very easily ignored. The blue-gray lioness was too adrift in her own thoughts to notice the stranger approaching, and remained unaware of him until he called out. It gave her a bit of a start, but poised as ever, she gave no indication of this, just turned to see who had spoken.

She gingerly set her burden down so that she could return the male's greeting, golden eyes studying him as she did so. He wasn't a clanmate, and almsot certainly not from another clan, either; they'd not passed close by any of the others since the Festival. "Nor did I," she replied with a pleasant smile, "Although I can't say I object to my expectations not being met, in this case. Good afternoon."

KasaiLoki

 

[KasaiLoki]

Meepfur

Ah, she seemed like a kind lioness. Sometimes those were the hardest to manipulate, but Ciro being Ciro, would definitely try.

"Are there many like you out here?" He asked. What brought most of his interest to the lioness was the intricacy of her markings. Were they markings after all? He wasn't so close to take in the details of them. Her answer would also tell him a little bit more about where he was. If there were others here, were they all like her? Not weary of strangers (or if they were, did they not express it).

The Reaver watched the female, taking small steps here and there to approach her. "What is your name?"  

[Meepfur]

Since he was watching her, looking her over - which she didn't find offensive at all, since even amongst fellow Ela'wadiyi, 'reading' another's tattoos was expected - she looked him over in turn. The stranger was a lovely dark shade, she noted, with a paler mane, mostly gray but with patches of white. There were enough outsiders among them that an unmarked hide on an adult lion wasn't a strange sight, but there was always something intriguing about it. There was a certain mystery to an individual with no tattoos.

"Yes and no. I suppose it depends on your definition of 'out here,'" she answered after a moment of consideration. To Sagonige, everything not Ela'wadiyi territory was 'out [t]here.' "But my brother is nearby, and our clan just as near in the other direction."

His next question called for a simpler response, which she gave. "Sagonige Atadiusti. And yours?"

KasaiLoki

 

[KasaiLoki]

Meepfur

Oh, she had someone with her nearby?

Ciro would not let that set him back. The reaver was always walking a fine line between peace and danger. And she mentioned a clan? Those were interesting terms to describe a pride.

"Call me Ciro, miss Sagonige." He let the name roll off his tongue in a purr. It was time for him to try working his magic. "Tell me, have you ever experienced life outside of here? Or is everything in here fulfilling?" Pride life for Ciro was rather boring, it was why he decided to go out on as many viking raids as possible. "Call me forward, but, what if I told you adventure awaits you beyond your mountain home, and all you need to do, is take a step past your comfort level?"