[PRP] Panic Attacks (Miniya & Kuvimbika)

[MangoMeow]

Miniya was currently regretting her decision to take a nap off in the corner. Her family had gone to the main area of the pride to get some food, and Mini, not hungry in the least due to her anxiety over being around so many people, had chosen to find a small dark area with no one there. She'd fallen asleep as she waited for her family to finish....

And now they were gone. Or well, they'd wandered off among the crowd, at least. Either way, she couldn't see them anywhere and the little black cub was having a panic attack.

Whining, she curled her paws underneath her. The situation was made worse by the terrible dream she'd just had. Young as she was, she had no way of knowing that seeing people die in her dreams was not exactly normal, but she did know that she wanted the comfort of her mother and father. As crazy and standoffish as they were, she'd always felt safe around them.

If she wanted them this time though, she'd need to venture out of her safe spot to find them.

Vashtya

 

[Vashtya]

Kuvimbika had eaten alongside her family, and then, after some affectionate nudging (on her part) to nearby family members, she had made her way out of the main gathering area, knowing she could catch up with them later - the main denning and gathering areas weren't that large, after all!

Besides, she and her siblings had only recently emerged from their den with their mother, so there were all sorts of nooks and crannies to explore - and she intended to learn them all (well, the allowed ones, anyway...she had no intention of ever disrespecting their ancestors by exploring certain areas).

It was in this frame of mind that she heard a soft...whining? Was someone hurt, or upset? Kuvimbika stopped, indecisive. Should she go get help? No, not yet...she should see what was wrong, first.

Taking a couple of steps toward the sound, she called out softly: "Is everything okay?" Her voice was slightly hesitant (unusual, for this cub), but then, she wasn't sure who, or even what, she was talking to. She thought she saw the small, huddled shape of another cub in the shadows, but it was dark enough that it was hard to tell for sure.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" She continued, tail lashing to and fro.

MangoMeow

 

[MangoMeow]

The cub froze up at the soft, unfamiliar voice, head swiveling to look at the dark girl staring at her. Someone around her age, it looked like, so at least she didn't have to deal with any of the adults. They all liked to coo and crowd in on her, and it just freaked her out.

There was silence for a minute as Mini tried to decide what to do. Someone had finally noticed her, and she was starting to hyperventilate.

Finally, the black cub muttered out, "I-I just... I don't know where my parents went, a-and..." It was said so quietly that it was almost a whisper. Miniya had never been good with stressful situations.

Vashtya

 

[Vashtya]

Kuvimbika stopped, tilting her head to the side as she tried to understand why this was so upsetting - but perhaps this cub was younger than she was, and hadn't ever been separated from her family before? She was hardly an expert on where all the families lived, but surely they couldn't be too far away - and someone would know where they were.

"Don't be scared - I'm sure they haven't gone too far! And if you want, I can help you find them, so you don't have to go alone - what family are you from?"

She then blinked, laying down on her belly, with her feet tucked close to her sides, although a friendly smile never left her face. "My name's Kuvimbika...I'm from the Aguu family." She offered, hoping to put the other cub at ease.

MangoMeow

 

[MangoMeow]

Miniya bit at the corner of her mouth as she stared back. She wasn't used to someone so... calm and well, tame, as this girl was being. To be fair though, her siblings were all pretty wild and loud. She was by far the quietest of them all, and usually balked when next to her brothers and sisters.

Clearing her throat, Mini shuffled just a bit further out of her hiding spot, white-maned head finally emerging into the light, "I.... I'm Miniya, but- but people usually call me Mini." Her voice was progressively getting quieter and quieter as she spoke, ".. and I'm from the Nganga family."

Vashtya

 

[Vashtya]

Kuvimbika smiled broadly. "Nice to meet you, Mini!" Her voice stayed on the soft side, but her tone was unflinchingly cheerful. "You can shorten my name if you like, as well." She had yet to decide, herself, what shortened version of her own name she preferred, so, as of yet at least, had no preference.

"I don't think I've met anyone from the Nganga family before - although maybe I did, and just didn't know it" she continued, remembering times that she'd been scared, and how being distracted sometimes helped. "Do you have a lot of brothers and sisters, or is your family pretty small?" She kept talking, hoping that she wasn't completely off-base, and so making things worse.

MangoMeow

 

[MangoMeow]

The black cub looked uncertainly at the other girl for a moment, and then shuffled a little bit further out, most of the way out of her hiding spot now. "Um..." She'd never shortened someone's name before. Her siblings had all chosen their own nicknames.

She tilted her head to the side thoughtfully, "There's a lot..... Bika." She glanced down at her paws shyly, not sure if it was really okay to shorten her name for her.

"There's Ediya and Ngcono.... and Kabili, Nishati and Ingwenya -- and Femi can usually be found near Ingwenya. They like to play pranks on people. A-and then my other sister, Afya." Miniya shuffled her paws in front of her, "They're a lot louder than me. Mom and dad might've gotten distracted with them." At the very least, the nightmare she'd had before was beginning to fade from her memory as she talked.

Vashtya

 

[Vashtya]

Kuvimbika listened attentively, eyes widening slightly as Miniya started listing all of her siblings. "That is a lot! I have lots of brothers and sisters too - they can be a lot of fun, but also a huge pain, can't they?" This was said with a smile that clearly showed the affection she had for her own siblings.

"Even if they did, they'll probably be back soon to look for you...or we can try finding them, if you don't wanna wait."

Reaching out, she lightly tapped one of Mini's shuffling paws, expression playful. "I mean, someone probably noticed them, since there aren't that many other families with cubs."

MangoMeow

Ahh, I am so glad I double checked this, as I totally thought I had already replied! I'm so sorryyyy <3

 

[MangoMeow]

She gave a shaky smile at that, "Y-yeah, they drag me into things all the time." She shuddered as she remembered her recent jaunt through the pride with Femi to meet the new rogues - something her parents had not been pleased to find out later. Well, her father was mostly irate that they'd left to begin with, but her mother had been horrified over just who they'd sought out.

"T-that's true....." Her head lowered timidly, "I don't want to be around all these people though." She said it softly, almost a whisper, and then shuffled a bit closer to the other cub. "C-can you help me look for them? I don't.... I don't want to be alone...."

Miniya bit her lip and looked around, "I don't know what direction they would have gone.... but maybe back at our den?" She gestured with her nose to the left, "A-and I think it's that way...?"

Vashtya

<3

 

[Vashtya]

She made a sympathetic face - it would seem that siblings, no matter the family, had some core similarities. She then grinned "It's great when you can pay them back for things, though"

...All in good fun, of course - Kuvimbika wasn't one to carry grudges, for the most part, unless it was in a friendly sibling-rivalry sort of way...

At Mini's confession of discomfort (or at least, expression of not wanting to be around a large group of pride members, Bika nodded as she replied "Then we won't go in there."

And then she smiled. "Of course I will! I'll stay with you until we find them, in that case." Getting to her feet, she tilted her head in the direction Mini had indicated.

"That's a good idea, going back to your den - that would probably be the first place they'll look for you, too, I'll bet!"

And if the other cub was wrong about where her den was, they could just keep looking - something that would let her explore a bit at the same time.

MangoMeow

 

[MangoMeow]

Oh, she wouldn't dare try to get back at them for it. Mostly because she knew that her siblings were not above doing it right back to her out of spite, and then a couple would side with her solely so they could play pranks on the others, and.... it'd probably even turn into an all out war between them.

.... Her family kind of had issues, now that she thought about it.

As the other cub agreed to help her, Miniya shakily stood up straight and nodded. "I hope so...." She threw one last uncertain look around her, and then started half walking, half stumbling towards home. "T-thank you for helping me, Bika."

Vashtya

Want to end it off with them heading off towards the den?

 

[Vashtya]

Relaxing slightly at having a concrete course of action, Bika's inherent (and seemingly boundless) energy had her shifting slightly from paw to paw - Mini's more timid nature brought her protective instincts to the forefront, and so she hoped that they found Mini's family quickly, and with minimal fuss...

Trotting off after Mini, she smiled, bumping her shoulder lightly up against the other cub. "Anytime! We all need help sometimes, so I'm glad to," she replied easily as they made their way back to her new friend's den.

MangoMeow

Yep! I think we're at a good wrapping up point - thank you so muuuuch for the RP <33333