O-Silent Stars, [Tandra, OPEN]

[Kita]

Even in the company of all the great kings, Jasiri had never felt so alone.

Inky black had overtaken the sky a long time ago, yet the young lion still found himself awake. The only light guiding his path was the faint, barely-there glow of the stars. A sliver of a silver moon peeked out from behind a spot of cloud cover, but for the most part, the lion was utterly alone.

He couldn't sleep. Inside of the caves suffocated him; being in a tight place for that long reminded him too much of home. Caves, he was used to. Openness, he wasn't. THe lion figured he would've been used to it by now. He'd been living in the outlands for months--maybe even a year now, he thought. He should be able to fall asleep every night without problems.

Yet here he was, out in the middle of the badlands with no one but spots of light for company. The lion rested his blonde mane on his paws with a heavy sigh. The cave reeked of memories of home. The stars radiated images of his father--of kings--of the star he knew he'd never have.

That's what his father had told him so long ago. Every king got their own star, but everyone else--they formed the spaces between the light. They were what made up the kings, after all. There could be no stars without the blackness in between.

And now, Jasiri was part of the blackness.

Every night, he looked up at the silent stars. Every night, the pain of it all would come rushing back--so much so that he couldn't sleep even if he tried. THis was another one of those nights. Jasiri lifted his head once more to the sky before pulling himself onto all fours. He'd had enough mocking from the great kings. It was time to go on a walk.

[Quail]

Tau sat atop the large termite mound as he looked silently at the stars, the horizon, and the land. As all cats do, Tau tended to enjoy the night more than the day. While in the day he usually slept or rested, at night he could do anything. The cool air, the cover of dark, the enhanced vision of his feline eyes... it all beckoned him to be out and about during the twilight hours. The night was his to do what he wished with. The night was his canvas, and he the artist that made it come alive.

Termites walked along in a line near his feet, the blind and brainless creatures unaware of the difference between night and day. He wondered if they ever slept, or if they did for how long. The moonlight cast a white light upon the crackled ground of the outlands which gave the crevices a deeper look then they had in the day. Rich brown hairs of his mane, darkened and dulled by the light of the night, danced about his face as a slow breeze rolled by. In it he caught a scent, and turned in down wind to see what it might be.

It didn't take him long to spot him. Jasiri was walking along the dried earth looking rather out of sorts. Tau knew the male, he was the only other male in the pride at the moment, and only slightly younger than Tau. He liked how quiet Jasiri was, it gave him time to talk. Tau knew the male could be a good ally to have, although he didn't know him enough to call him one now.

For a moment he contemplated going up and saying hello, but thought better of it. What he really wanted to do was just watch. So that is what he did. Atop his mound he lowered into a more comfortable position, white light giving his eyes a yellow shine as he bore down on the other lion. For now he would observe, and perhaps Jasiri would wander his way. If not, he might go down and have a chat if he got bored.

[Kita]

The land was silent, but even then, there was a certain rhythm to it.

The thrum of bugs always echoed through the air, with some places stronger than others. As soon as he approached the termite mounds, the little buzzing and walking of them would start to get to him. They could be annoying, Jasiri thought. Always there, but almost always out of his sight--just there enough to endlessly torment the young lion.

Still, Jasiri found himself wandering towards the termite mounds. These weren't the ones he came from, he noted. Instead, he headed towards a small stack a ways off from the main clump of tunnels. He wasn't quite sure why, but he still walked. He was never one to be completely sure about anything that he did.

The moon slipped from behind the clouds, and a sliver of moonlight illuminated his path. Something stirred inside of the lion; the lighting almost felt unreal. He continued to lumber along the dried ground, walking more like an old lion than the young thing he was. Even then, he wasn't certain where he was going. Jasiri felt lost, and even something as simple as walking reflected that.

Up ahead, the figure of another lion was outlined against the dark sky. Jasiri's head perked up a little as he eased his way onto the top of the termite pile. He settled down a ways down from the other lion--not enough to be out of conversation range, but far enough away to let a comfortable silence settle over the two.

He'd never been one to go out of his way to start a conversation. Sometimes, just sharing a moment of quiet was all he could ask for.

[Quail]

Tau was clearly upwind still, because Jasiri came towards him as if he hadn't realized Tau was there. The golden lion turned his head to the side slightly as he watched the other male climb up the termite mound, and only after a while did Tau see Jasiri understand that he was there. As the younger male looked at him with perked ears, Tau gave him a single nod, confirmation of their kinship and brotherhood that was their pride.

Jasiri took a place lower down on the termite mound than Tau, and his ego couldn't help but wonder if that might be how it always was with the two; Tau slightly above Jasiri, literally or figuratively. While he was young and more of a pawn than anything else in the pride, Tau's arrogance always liked to think that as the oldest male, he might technically be a king of the outlands. Then again, perhaps that wasn't the best job to have. It came with a lot more work than he would have liked to think, anyway.

For long minutes, the two males shared the night peacefully. Crickets chirped and cicadas buzzed, giving the silence a musical quality that was carried in the breeze. As the wind shifted, so did Tau, laying his full length down on the large mound he rested upon. Green eyes flashed yellow as he moved about, and when he was finally comfortable he went back to looking at his partner.

But as Tau always was, he was too inquisitive to stay quiet. After a while the anticipation had become too much, and he spoke, "Long night?" He asked, rather tactlessly, as if the simple two word inquiry would get Jasiri to spill his guts on whatever he seemed to be sulking about as he had been walking around.

[Kita]

Jasiri dropped his head onto his front two paws. His yellow mane tumbled around his face, almost blocking out a bit of the moonlight that dared to peek from the skies. He gave a little sigh as he settled into a steady breathing pattern. In, out, repeat. His chest rose and fell steadily, almost in time with the sounds of the land.

He let his eyes flutter closed for a moment. He wasn't sleepy, though. In fact, he was far from it. He was just anxious, just trying to lull himself into a calm state of mind. And the less he could see of the stars, the better it would be. Hopefully, if he closed his eyes, he would at least appear to be slightly relaxed. And if he could at least fool Tau, then maybe he could eventually fool himself.

Even if that did work, it'd be gone before Jasiri knew it. Pathetic and faint illusions, like every other thing, must come to an end. Even the calm moments of silence came to an end, with a small comment from Tau.

Long night? the other lion asked, and Jasiri lifted his head. He turned and met his eyes with the other male; looking away in situations like these never seemed to end too well.

"No," said Jasiri after a pause. "Normal night to me."

[Quail]

Jasiri stared up at him as if daggers were coming out of his eyes and going straight into Tau's heart. Ouch! Tau knew that look too well, and it was never good. The old female who took him in only had two looks; that one, and skepticism. Well, three looks. Although silent and begrudging approval was so rare Tau didn't count the slight lifting of the corners of her mouth and raised brows to be more than a fleeting feeling of discomfort, like an itch.

But thoughtless in the way of other's feelings, "That sucks." was all he could think to say. While Tau was smart when it came to technical things, talking to others had always been a blundering point for him. He wasn't good at it, he never knew what to say and always ended up saying too much even if he hardly said anything at all.

"You must hate nights then." he observed. His lack of tact and seeming disregard for the other's feelings was immense. It was tragic. Really, he wanted to be nice. He just didn't know how. He was hoping that trying to sympathies or analyze would help get Jasiri to talk a bit, but he was well aware of the other's quiet nature.


(eek, I haven't quite got the feel for this char yet).

[Kita]

The other lion looked away far too quickly. Jasiri picked up on this almost instantly. It was, after all, one of the things he was supposed to know. If another male lion stared you in the eyes for too long, it could mean he thought of himself as the higher lion. In that case, Jasiri could always expect a challenge, a fight--something out of the ordinary. It all depended on the length of time, really. Tau hadn't stared for too long, but he'd at least made it into the normal range.

Strange, Jasiri thought. I would've though he's the more challenge-type. He couldn't pause to do a full analysis on the other male, though. He had already responded before Jasiri had hardly finished. This time, it was the yellow-maned lion's turn to briefly glance away. Was he right? Did these nights 'suck'?

He considered not responding to that. The answer seemed fairly obvious to him. Nights did suck; he couldn't lie about that. Tau's later observation seemed equally obvious as his first. If Jasiri had just agreed with him that nights were never good, then why did he bother following up with that second question?

"I don't hate nights," he said, giving one quick glance at the stars, "just what they remind me of." No use to go into detail, he added on in his brain. Even if Jasiri felt like going in-depth, he doubted that Tau would even listen to a word he said.

[Quail]

Jasiri stared at him with some sort of intent, although Tau didn't know what kind. It made him slightly uncomfortable, and he rolled on his side as if to act nonchalant about it all. The roll continued a bit as he caught the slope of the termite mound, and he ended up rolling down it always, landing on another flatter point closer to Jasiri. Tau played it off like that had been his plan all along, making sure to sprawl out comfortably in his new spot and keep his face looking cool.

"Well, what do they remind you of?" he asked, now more genuinely curious than just trying to break the silence with some sort of conversation. He had a feeling the answer would be sad, or bad, or somehow otherwise something that Jasiri didn't want to talk about and that he probably didn't want to hear. But he still wanted to know.

Tau placed his wide chin down on his paws, his face almost level with Jasiri's at that angle, even though Tau was still on a higher part of the termite mound. It was as if he was a child again, and this was story time, and he was waiting intently to hear his mother tell him something awesome that he didn't even knew existed yet.

He was particularly curious because for him, the night was his life. It was what he lived for and how he liked things. The stars were his companions and the blanket of night that they lay in was just another piece of his landscape. The moon was his light and sun, she was the woman that he would choose over any lioness at this point in his life. How could anybody dislike the night?

[Embyr_Somm]

"The stars reminds him of the Outlands...," the voice of another pride member interrupted the two males. Tandra hadn't been eavesdropping; she was returning from another extensive stroll and happened to be in the same place as them tonight.
"How he isn't living up to our standards, won't earn his place here, and blah dee blah dee blah..."

Sniffing the air and earth casually, the female caught the scent of a fennec, discovering the fox's hideaway soon after. The canine itself wasn't home, but there was food in there, probably something that was supposed to be saved for later.
"Are you really whining to someone else about that now?" she went on, proceeding to dig into the hidden storage den, "Jeeze...get over it already." Staying alert, but occupied by her search for a meal, Tandra expected to hear quite the response from Jasiri. Whether or not there would be physical consequences, alongside the verbal, she didn't know yet.

[Kita]

Jasiri kept his eyes trained on the other lion as he struggled to break from his gaze. Why did he seem so concerned about looking away, about getting out of his sight? The young lion didn't quite understand what Tau hoped to accomplish with it, and stared at him with a vague curiosity. He noted when the lion rolled over and flopped onto a closer rock, which was never a good sign. Whenever someone came closer, it generally meant they wanted to actually have a conversation.

Sure enough, Tau blurted out another question as soon as he got himself settled on the rock. "Well, what do they remind you of?" he asked. A simple enough question. The young lion's gaze faltered for a brief moment when he gave one more quick look to the stars.

The lion considered it. Jasiri could honestly say that he didn't feel like speaking, much less explaining all of the things something as simple as a dark sky reminded him of. He toyed with the idea of just letting the question sink into silence, letting it just remain unanswered. At this point, it seemed a fairly attractive idea.

For a brief moment, the silence of the land returned. Almost instantly, though, another all-too-familiar voice soaked through his solitude. It had to be Tandra, judging by the way the voice just came out of nowhere. She was always so direct; she never wasted time with the pleasantries. As if by instinct, the lion rose to a sitting position, ready to spring to his feet on a moment's notice. With her, it was better to be prepared than caught off-guard.

His gaze switched to the lioness, locking onto her as she nosed her way around the termite mound. " "The stars reminds him of the Outlands," she said, a visibe sneer in her voice. His stare didn't waver, but his eyebrows furrowed ever so slightly. Where was she going with this? The stars didn't remind him of the Outlands at all. If he needed that, he would just look around at the dried ground, not look up. "How he isn't living up to our standards, won't earn his place here, and blah dee blah dee blah..."she continued, and his nose curled slightly. Now, she was a little too close to the truth for comfort. The lion rose to his feet, locking eyes with the lioness.

"At least I'm an actual Outlander," he said flatly. He may have joined the pride later on in his life, but he wasn't some rogue that just happened to cling onto this pride living in the wasteland.

"Jeeze...get over it already," she mocked, and Jasiri's gaze went colder. How could he get over something that he was constantly reminded of every day? How could he 'get over it' when his entire life went to ruins? Not even night gave him relief from the continuous reminders.

He didn't bother denying any of it. Oh, no, it was all true. He stood on the top of the termite mound, still staring right at Tandra. He gave a irritated flick of the tail, just daring her to go on. He was all ears.

[Quail]

The sudden appearance of another lion startled Tau, but visibly he stayed stoic. The only indication of his surprise was his quick head movement in her direction, but once he saw that it was a female he relaxed. Tau did not have the respect for females that he should have. He saw them as weak, as tools to be used by the males of the pride. They were his servants, his mothers and his cooks. He knew enough not to say anything like that out loud of course, eve if he did think it.

Jasiri rose into a sitting position, but Tau stayed relaxed as the two had a few words with one another. Tau stayed quiet, watching their interactions. It was clear that the two knew each other, and it was clear that they didn't like each other. Or maybe it was the opposite, maybe they really did like each other. Maybe they got on each others nerves because they didn't want to admit it. He'd seen that happen before.


(sorry for shortness guys, idk what else to write)

[Embyr_Somm]

Her brows rose then lowered, intrigued by Jasiri's expression and pose, but unnerved by the comment.
"And what does that mean precisely?" she quickly returned at him, the pair now staring each other down, "Do you even know? Have you had some wondrous revelation recently that I was not present for?"

He was right. By birthing standards, she wasn't an Outlander, even with her having been very young, a trifle more than an infant, when she was brought here. Sanura, her older sister, and her had moved to this territory, after their family had suffered a night raid from some other pride.

They had stayed here ever since. However, at least, and unlike the younger male who had called her out, Tandra had most of the attitude their kind usually possessed. It may not have been on the inside too, but the outside is really what others saw and tended to care about.
"Do you know?" she asked Tau, attempting to drag him into it for her own curiousity's sake. They barely acknowledged each other, their genders and ages most likely being the main culprits for their mutual indifference.