The King of Grass Walls [Private: ImaniFaith and Amadeus]

[ImaniFaith]

Plot: The territory of Grass Walls, located near the desert, is a vast stretch of arid plains unknown to most Pridelanders, save Rafiki. In this territory, a small pride of lions, known as the Grass Walls Pride, has fallen upon hard times. Food is becoming scarce, their king is dying, and rogues have been seen prowling about. With fear and tension gripping them, the tiny pride has become poisoned with bad feelings and talk of mutiny.

The lioness Imani has grown up almost untouched by this increasingly harsh atmosphere, but now that she is a young adult, she has begun to feel as helpless and trapped as the others. To get away from her fears, she often wanders off to explore the surrounding plains. However, unbeknownst to her, two rogue lions lie in wait, hidden in the shadows of the tall grass around her home. One of them might be dangerous, and the other most certainly is....

Main Characters:

Imani: [Played by ImaniFaith] (viewtopic.php?f=38&t=8428)

Tenga: [Played by Amadeus] (viewtopic.php?f=38&t=8451)

Bahari: [Played by ImaniFaith] (viewtopic.php?f=38&t=8449)

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The King of Grass Walls

Imani was alone, the sun high in the afternoon sky above her and the shrill, whining hum of hundreds of hidden insects ringing in her ears. Though the grass was tall-- for a lack of rain had deterred the usual grazers-- the horizon was just visible over the tips of the blades. She sighed. This was exactly what she loved... and hated.

For she certainly loved exploring the territory surrounding her homeland, but she hated that no one ever wanted to go exploring with her-- which rendered the whole point of exploring virtually moot. She couldn't even go back to the lionesses of the Grass Walls Pride and tell them of her adventures: Her mother would worry, her aunts would gossip, and the rest would politely feign interest until she finally fell into an embarrassed silence. Perhaps, if her father were still around, he would listen to her; but she never knew when she would next see him. After all, he had his own pride to worry about now, and her mother had made it quite clear that she and Imani would not be joining it anytime soon.

The problem was, Imani thought sadly, she wasn't sure how long she would have her mother. The thought of losing her remaining parent sent a sharp pain through her heart. Once her mother was gone, who was there left in the pride to love? Certianly, the cubs were sweet, but they were all too young to truly be her friends; and the adults were all much too... old. The only other young adult had been the king's own son, and Imani hadn't known him well. It wouldn't have mattered any longer, anyway, for he had died in a storm only a few weeks ago. A bolt of lightning had struck and ignited the dry grass in which he had been hunting, and the pride had helplessly watched him be consumed by the flames. His poor, elderly father, nearly blinded by age, had attempted to save him, but had in turn needed rescuing himself.

Now, the Grass Walls Pride was left without an heir to the throne, and Imani was left without the only possible companion she'd had.

As she walked along, a soft rustling ahead of her grabbed the young lioness' attention. She hadn't planned on hunting at the moment, but she grinned at the thought of an easy meal. Carefully, she crept closer to the noise, lowering herself to the dusty ground. Taking a quick, shallow breath, she sprang....

[Baya]

Tenga opened his teal eyes slowly as the morning sun shone on his face. His cream colored fur began to warm up with the sun's rays. He sighed, making the long grass in front of him waver. The young rogue let out a loud yawn and stretched his well rested muscles. He stood and shook his mane free of any insects or grass as well as dirt.

Tenga had stumbled upon this new land just a few days prior. It was a little desolate, with little food but plenty of water. Tenga knew from experience that this land would be better to prowl about on, however it would be more dangerous as other rogues must have realized the same. This was probably a beacon for the other rogues. He'd have to fight for everything here!

The young male began to push through some grass in search of a small breakfast or a source of water. His life had been a living hell walking through the hot sands of the desert. The soil beneath his paws now felt a bit cooler and more moist. Moist as the land was, it was not enough to help healthy grass grow. The fact that the land had some fertility meant that nearby there might be a source of water, or at least there used to be. Tenga figured he should try to find this source and see if it was available for drinking.

Tenga looked all over the place in search of the water he desperately needed. His throat was as dry as the desert he arrived from! His eyes tiredly gazed over the horizon, as he slumped his head slightly. His ear twitched when he heard paw steps against the terrain. Tenga could tell it was a female as the paw steps were quick but not hard. Also her scent was giving her away as well.

Tenga quickly hid beneath the grass to see if this female would be any threat. His paws shifted the grass slightly, and he watched as she slowly made her way towards him. Tenga could tell she was not a rogue. She was far too well fed and well groomed. Had he been interested, he'd even call her beautiful.

The young rogue's ears flattened against his head, debating whether he should attack or run. One thing Tenga hated doing was hurting the innocent. Though he wouldn't mind it if another rogue was the one attacking , he'd go all out on them. Tenga's eyes narrowed as it was too late to run. The female lioness had pounced on him. Tenga instinctively jumped back slightly, only to be pinned down by the lioness. His eyes widened at the phenomena. This was the first time he'd ever been taken down! His eyes then drooped again into a bored fashion. She was definitely a skilled hunter, but her grip was all wrong. He could easily break it if he wanted to.

"Could you please let go amateur?" Tenga asked with a frown. He really didn't want her to realize her mistake the hard way. Tenga knew his insult was going to hit him right back in the face as he wasn't doing so well regarding staying incognito.

[ImaniFaith]

Imani blinked in shock, feeling the blood slowly leak from her head, leaving a prickling dizziness in its wake. A rogue... she had jumped a rogue.

Quickly, she leapt off of him, barely registering his words. Had he called her... "amateur"? Certainly, she had only hunted a couple of times since her traditional First Hunt, but she'd thought she was doing alright. Or had he meant... ?

Did he think I was trying to fight him?! The thought struck her as utterly absurd. She had never fought with anyone before, especially not a male. ...Especially not a male like this.

As she tried to gather her thoughts, it seemed to her that his dull teal eyes were slowly sizing her up; taking an inventory of her, perhaps. If that were the case, then she was doing the same thing to him-- for she had never seen anyone like him before. The colors of the lions' coats in the Grass Walls Pride had always been shades of tan and dusky brown... never the creamy buff color of his fur, which flecked darker around his thick black mane. The silver hairs threading through said mane made her wonder at his age, although in form and feature he looked as young as herself. It was the signs of brutality on him, however, which frightened her. A torn right ear and a horrific scar that started on his forehead, curving down across his left eye and cheek, left no doubt about it: This rogue had definately seen his share of battles.

And he had thought she was trying to-- "Oh, no." She backed away, "I- I wasn't trying to fight you or anything! I was, well, I was exploring and I thought you were... " she realized how ridiculous it was going to sound, "food."

[Baya]

Tenga took a quick note of how frightened she had become gently pushed her off so that he could stand. He stood and shook his mane free of dirt and dried grass. He noticed how she was looking at him. Had she never seen a rogue before? Tenga held a blank face as he began to walk away without another word. She thought he was food! She obviously did not know the basics of hunting in a desolate wasteland! However, he had to admit her touch was soft so he knew that soon as she realized it was another lion she had pounced upon a lion. Had she been any worse of a hunting she would mauled the first thing her paws landed on.


Tenga stopped walking for a moment and looked to the female again. His brow furrowed slightly and he looked down for a moment. He really wanted to do as he always did. Just walk away. Though no pride lion had ever spoken to him. That was what Tenga noticed about many pride lions that lived in lush full landscapes. They were so full of themselves, they believed that they were actually better than rogues. They told their cubs stories of how evil and heartless rogues were. True as that might be for the majority of rogues, some are just being tested by the entity known as circumstance. Tenga was one of those rogues.

Tenga didn't know why he was doing it, but he quickly trotted back to the lioness and examined her more closely. Not close enough to invade her bubble of private space however. After he examined her a bit, he made the conclusion that she would definitely make a good hunter if she worked at it. That is, if she wanted to be. He now opened his mouth to speak.

"You thought I was food? Didn't your parents teach you to use your nose over your eyes?" Tenga pointed out with a frown. He didn't want to sound too harsh so he tilted his head and said "Do you want to learn how to hunt like a rogue?" while staring directly into her eyes.

[ImaniFaith]

"Hunt like a rogue?" Her tone was more incredulous than she'd meant for it to be, and she hoped he wouldn't take offence. As it was, she was surprised that he hadn't ripped her throat out yet. Weren't rogues supposed to be ill-tempered and violent-- more likely to kill you than look at you? And now... was he offering to train her?

As for her parents teaching her, she felt compelled to reply that, no, an absent father and a weak mother did not make for good instuctors. Sure, her father had shown her a couple things when she was a cub, but she had relied mainly upon the other lionesses in the pride to show her how it was done since he'd gone... which hadn't worked out too well. She had practically had to teach herself....

Which was what made this lion's offer so tempting.

Still, this was a rogue. What would her pride think if they saw her being too friendly with him? They were deathly afraid of being overtaken by rogues as it was; they might believe she was conspiring with him to take them over.

Then again, her father had once been a rogue, and even though she knew she was his daughter-- and fathers treated their daughters with more care than they would most others, it seemed-- he had always been kind to her when he was around. Perhaps... perhaps she should give this lion a chance. After all, it wasn't as though an offer like the one he was making her would come by again anytime soon; and it certainly smacked of adventure... something she had always longed for.

Stealing herself, she met the scarred lion's gaze, "Are you saying... you'll teach me?"

[Baya]

"I'm only willing to teach, if you are willing to learn." Tenga said in a brief reply. He smirked grimly as he took her silence as a yes. "Very well then. Tell you what princess. I'll teach you to hunt, and you take me to water. Sound good?" Tenga asked with a bored gaze towards the female. It was no surprise she was reluctant to accept his help, considering the fact that rogue males had a reputation of not very PG things. Though, she seemed to have understood that he was not like alot of other male rogues considering he hadn't torn her throat out already.

Figuring she would hold up on her side of the bargain he began to lead her to where he believed the scent of a wild boar was coming from. Tenga figured he should tell the female his name before continuing, only for the instructional purposes. "By the way, my name is Tenga." The young rogue muttered as they walked towards where there might be food. Tenga was mainly following his instincts and basic signs that a prey might be in the area. There was a heavy scent of warthog in the area, and some tracks.

"Now. When you are hunting you should always look for signs in your environment to kind of predict what you are actually hunting. In this case its a warthog because there is quite the smell in the air and some tiny but deep tracks. You will learn to know what signs mean what kind of prey you are hunting." Tenga whispered quietly as his eyes scanned the long grass patches in front of him. "Now, look at each of these patches and based on the environment tell me which patch you think the pig will be in." Tenga asked as he looked over to her briefly, then back in front of him at the long grass patches.

Tenga knew which patch of grass the warthog was in already because of the irregular grass shape in one of the patches, and he really hoped this lioness was observant enough to spot the same thing.

[ImaniFaith]

Imani felt her heart pound in her chest. Along with excitement and fear, she felt a deep desire not to fail in front of this mysterious lion who had, in a sense, taken her under his wing. Carefully, she surveyed each patch of grass, and as she did, her eyes landed on a rather irregular shape.... "That patch-- there!"

As though he had heard her whisper, the warthog poked its nose through the blades, grunting. Relief flooded Imani's chest-- she had been right! Beaming, she turned to the rogue... Tenga.

The lion had remained silent thus far, and his face was so impassive that she was unable to get even the slightest hint of what he was thinking. Was he pleased? Impressed? And what would he want to do next? She had found the warthog... was he going to teach her how to take it down in a 'rogue' fashion? Or, now that she had proven she could locate the beast, did he want her to fulfill her end of the bargain and take him to water before they continued their lessons? She briefly wished that she were better at reading other creatures' emotions, like her aunts; but then the thought of being anything like either one of them sent a shudder of disgust down her spine.

At least, she thought, she could tell him her name. After all, he had been kind enough to tell her his. "My name's Imani, just so you know... and I'm not a princess. At least, " she remembered her father's pride. Would she be considered a princess there? "I don't think so."

She waited for a reply, but there was none. It was then that Imani realized that she had forgotten to say the most important thing of all, "Oh, and... thank you."

[Baya]

Tenga's whole left ear twitched slightly at the sound of thanks from the lioness. That was something he had not heard almost all his life. He would hear cries of mercy, pleading, even screaming but never thanks. He didn't know how to reply so he just nodded. He took note of her name, Imani. It really didn't beat calling her princess though. Tenga looked to the warthog's snout and then to Imani.

"The rest of the lesson will be focused around taking down the beast without sustaining any injuries to yourself. Instead of attacking head on, we will be attacking from behind." Tenga whispered as he looked to Imani. He lead her around the patch of grass the warthog was in and pushed her against the ground gently so that they were both crawling on their stomachs. "If you stay low, the wind won't carry your scent to the warthog's nostrils. He'll think you are farther then you actually are, and put his defenses down." Tenga murmured as he looked to Imani for a moment.

"When the time is right, and you feel that you will have the upperhand pounce on your prey...and snap it's neck." Tenga said with a slight growl. No matter how nice of a rogue he was, he carried some stereotypical aspects of a traditional rogue.

[OOC: Just out of curiosity, does the antagonist need a side kick? ]

[ImaniFaith]

The warthog was still snuffling about with its nose in the air. With that kind of give-away, Imani knew she the upperhand Tenga was speaking of. Still, that knowledge didn't help her nerves in the least.

She had taken down a warthog before, of course; but never alone-- the other lionesses had been there to help. True, Tenga was here, but she was his impromptu student, not his relative or even his friend.... She couldn't count on him to step in if the hog tried to gore her.

'Snap its neck.' was what the rogue had said. That was the smartest way to go about the whole thing, she realized. When the lionesses in her pride took down pigs, they struggled with them as they tried to tear out their throats. Because of this, they had often come away with wounds from the frightened creatures' sharp tusks. Breaking this one's neck would render it instantly immobile-- and instantly dead.

Taking a deep breath, she crept closer, until she could see the hog's tiny back legs through the grass blades. It was time.

Springing, she caught the animal in her grasp, bringing her paw down heavily upon its neck-- but something went wrong. She had miscalculated her aim, and the blow only stunned it. The warthog squealed loudly, twisting itself in her grasp. Desperately, Imani clung on. To let go would be to either lose the pig or face it head-on... and get gored.

The warthog was squealing wildly now, and Imani felt anger ripple through her chest. This thing had made a fool out of her already, in front of the rogue, no less; she wasn't going to allow it to continue. Using all her adrenaline-induced strength, she brought herself down upon its neck in a crushing slam. To her immense relief, she heard a satisfying 'snap'.

She had done it. Not quite the way she'd wanted to, perhaps, but she'd killed the thing.

Still... she hadn't done it perfectly, the way Tenga himself undoubtably would have. She had fumbled and struggled with the beast, earning herself a few scratches on her front legs in the process. The rogue would surely be disappointed with her... if not angry.

Cringing, she turned to find out.

[Baya]

Tenga watched as the lioness struggled with the warthog. Again, he didn't show her any expression what so ever to let her now how she was doing. However, Tenga really liked the fact that she was a quick learner. Tenga waited for a short while before the struggle came to an end with the sound of crackling neck vertebrae. Tenga began to step towards Imani once more with no expression. He prodded her kill to make sure it was dead, then he noticed the scratches on her front paws.

"You did very well. You'll be perfect with practice." Tenga said with a small grin. This was the first time he showed any sign of content since he was a cub. He just couldn't help but smile out how impressive she was regarding learning. Tenga looked to the warthog again then to Imani.

"You can eat your kill before taking me to the water. I don't want you carrying it around because the other rogues aren't as friendly as I am. If they spot your food, they'll hunt you just like you did that warthog." Tenga murmured as laid down on his side and stared at the dry grass.

Tenga waited as the lioness ate, but after a short time had passed he looked to her. "Can you tell me if there used to be a bigger source of water here? This grass is dying, but it would've never grown without a steady water supply." Tenga asked. He was thinking there might've been a drought or possibly that his land was just horrible to begin with.