All we need is a little push [Zen]

[Hunter]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] Sota walks, ”Sota talks” The remains of the Huntington hospital were an excellent reminder of how dangerous dogs could be. Many felines saw them as stupid cowards but Sota had learned that they were more than just that. The scattered rubble which once had been a tall hospital building covered rotting bodies of felines that had been killed by the weight of stones falling from the sky. If they had been inside the hospital when the bomb had went off, they would have been killed even more instantly – if that was even possible. The slender female cheetah walked among the scattered stones and from time to time she came by a corpse which had been eaten by crows. Not everyone had been lucky enough to be buried by mourning pride members… The sunrays of a hot midday in May beamed down on her short, spotted coat. She was glad that it wasn’t raining anymore and that winter was over, but the warmth could be dangerous if it continued. Last year there had been a drought in Hexasol, and she wasn’t sure if all the animals would come back if one more would come. They would seek for other places if it became too dry, and so early in the year would only be bad omen. But she might be wrong. Maybe the weather would become cooler in a week or two and everything would be fine. She just had to be prepared if the pride was walking toward hard times. After all, she wasn’t just a spy anymore. She’d gotten the rank she’d wanted ever since she joined the pride, and she was determined to keep it by proving she was worthy of the title. And as for now, she thought she was doing a fine job. It’d been hard with Panja away, but she liked to be occupied with her work. And now when Panja was coming back, she’d chosen to finally have a little time on her own. It wasn’t for nothing that she was here. She’d been following the scent of another white lion than Panja. It wasn’t Nebula either, but it was one of Panja’s cubs. How convenient that this was the place where she would meet the second cub of Panja and Florence. It was here she had met Nebula as well, but it was before the Hospital had been blown up. Bfore she’d been abducted. Poor girl, she hadn’t had the time to talk to the white lioness after she’d been captured by the Scavengers and been brought to the Tempest Pack. It had actually been a long time since she’d seen her white friend, but someone else was craving her attention now. It was Alexander, the heir of the throne. If you could even call it that anymore… the pride wasn’t as glorious as it once had been, but she was Duchess now, and she would help Panja and his family to restore the Iris Pride to its former glory. And for during that, she needed to know who she was working with. She lowered her head and sniffed, only to be confirmed in her assumption. Alexander was nearby. ((OOC: I have no idea what Alexander should be doing here, neither really why I gave this thread that title... But here you go! ^^))

[Zen]

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[atrb=background,http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa446/jadedog08/Alextable2.png] The pile of ruins stretched at least half a mile, an enormous black scar in the middle of the Iris lands. Nobody else in the pride really liked to hang around this section, and for good reason. The smell of ash and decayed bodies was still hanging thick in the air, even this long after the battle. Alex liked the solitude of the place though, since it was really only here that he was able to get away from the rest of the cats. He had a room in the slaughterhouse all to himself, but the constant noise of the crying prisoners made it hard to think there. At least here it was quiet. Silent as the dead. It also reminded him of what he was fighting for, who he was fighting against. He would never allow himself to become like his father, a completely unmotivated leader content to let other cats do the work of the pride for him. How Panja could look upon the razed hospital and not feel a lust for revenge, Alex didn’t know. His father may be strong and mighty, but emotionally, he was weak and pathetic. He didn’t know how to handle loss. Alex had lost his mother and a brother as well, but he had learned to move on and had ultimately become stronger from it. Why couldn’t Panja do the same? At least the old man was starting to come back around now. He had been making steady progress toward recovery since winter. Maybe one day soon he would be back to his old self. It only took him about a year, Alex thought, rolling his eyes. Suddenly, there was a sound nearby of paws hitting rubble, and he turned around in surprise. So it seemed he wasn’t as alone as he’d first thought. Though he wasn’t really in the mood for conversation at the moment, when the approaching cat showed her face, Alex’s interest was piqued. He knew his father had gotten close to a cheetah over the past few months, and recently had finally made the decision to appoint her as Duchess, the second-in-command of Iris. Alex looked her up and down. She was tall and lean-muscled, obviously in good shape, and just by looking at her he could tell she was intelligent. He didn’t even know her and already he saw she would make a good assistant for his father. She was a good deal taller than him actually, and Alex could only hope he would be able to one day reach that height. Despite being the oldest out of the three of them, both Nebula and Denim were now slightly larger than him. He didn't know whether it was because he had just been born small, or if the weeks he had spent as a prisoner of the Tempest Pack had stunted his growth. He cocked his head to the side, squinting at the spotty feline. “Sota…right?” he asked, stepping forward and looking up into the cheetah’s eyes. “You must be the new Duchess everyone’s been gossiping about.” A warm grin spread across his muzzle, the sunlight glinting off his white teeth.

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[Hunter]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] Sota walks, ”Sota talks” She found Alexander all by himself in the desolate area. He turned as he heard her approach and her brown eyes were met by his frosty blue. He looks like his mother, Sota noticed instantly even though the thought might have seemed silly. Alexander was white after his father, and also had bluish eyes like him, so most lions would say he looked like Panja. But Sota saw something different. His build was slender, even for a young adult’s, and he would maybe never get his father’s massive build of body. Alexander would need to use speed if he was going to win a fight against another male lion and Sota would gladly teach him if needed be. The leader position of the pride shouldn’t be taken by some mindless brute just because Alexander wasn’t strong enough. And yes, she had a male lion in mind whom could be a potential challenger. The intentions of Alexander’s older half-brother, Apollo, suddenly worried her. After all, she hadn’t heard from him lately. Seems like I have some serious business to check up on, she mused just as the white male lion spoke. ”Indeed I am,” she answered with a crooked smile, immediately hiding her worries. It was only a good thing that Alexander knew who she was – another thing was that he had heard the gossip, but it wasn’t really a surprise to her that he as well might have heard it. ”And about gossip, then I suppose that can’t be avoided; and believe me when I tell you that I know the tales spun in the corners. But I guess I cannot blame an envying soul. After all, I’m quite young with barely tree summers on my back – no wonder others think themselves more suited for the position than I.” She chuckled mildly, finding others’ jealousy funny. If others truly believed they were good enough, they would have to prove it first. ”And talking about positions, then I am getting very interested in yours; the heir of the Iris Pride,” she was more serious now, and a determined glint was found in her brown eyes. ”I suppose your father is teaching you a thing or two about being a leader? At least I hope so – just as well as I hope you have a little bit of insight in what is going on within the other prides. If you do, you will know who Course is, hm?” Course. The name made her want to vomit. He was the son of the long gone Streiter, the male lion who had been the leader of the Lexis Tribe before he died and Rabba took his place. Now Course was apparently old enough to take his place. Foolish animals. Letting a cub rule you won’t save you from the war. The worst of all was that Course’s mother was Icefang, a member of the pride. She definitely had an opinion about that although Icefang wasn’t the only one who had had her time with Streiter… And about the one year old Course now being the leader of the Lexis Tribe; it wasn’t but a rumour for now, but a rumour like that was worth taking note of. After all, it was important to know who your enemy’s leader was. And speaking about enemies… Brooke had been utterly silent lately and even though spies often were checking on the Tempest Pack’s whereabouts, then it wasn’t easy to tell what they were up to. ((OOC: Had to stop it here, otherwise there would be too much thinking in one post xD))

[Zen]

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[atrb=background,http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa446/jadedog08/Alextable2.png] Alex didn’t want to add in what he knew about the mean-spirited side of the gossip concerning Sota’s new rank, but it seemed the cheetah was already well aware of the talk. Based on what he had gleaned from the alleycats, apparently some didn’t trust her with such an important title, or others assumed she had gotten the rank purely by being close friends with Panja. Alex didn’t believe any of that crap. His father didn’t go around handing out high ranks to anyone who asked – she had gotten the position because she had done something to deserve it. Anyone who said otherwise was simply jealous. It surprised him to hear that Sota was so young. He had up until then imagined her as being so much older than himself. “Really? That’s all? We’re only two years apart,” he mused. “Well, all those other cats should envy you. You’re smart, fast, cunning…everything they’re not and wish they could be. You got your rank on pure talent. Not like me…I’m the heir because I just happen to be the firstborn son of the leaders.” His blue eyes turned grey and smoky as she admitted her curiosity about his training as the future ruler of the pride. “No,” he growled lowly, turning away from Sota and viciously kicking a piece of broken concrete with his paw. He watched it roll and crumble to bits before he looked back up into the cheetah’s kind brown eyes. “He has barely taught me anything since the day I was born. Neither has my mother, although I can’t really blame her – I mean, I only knew her for a few months. But he was supposed to take her place, show me what it takes to be a great leader…well, I’m over a year old now, and I still don’t know the first thing about leadership." Alex snorted, and anger started to rise in the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want to lash out at Sota and have her think he was an immature brat like everyone else in the pride did. To keep his rage down, he started to walk among the scattered ruins, trying to work off the adrenaline bubbling up in his veins. He still kept close to his companion so that they could hear each other. “You seem to know a lot more about the city and the Iris Pride than I do, Sota. Maybe you should become leader after Panja, not me.” Alex came to a stop and glanced over at her, smiling weakly. He was both half-joking and half-serious. It disgusted him a little to think that he sounded like his cowardly moron of a brother, Denim, but Alex would gladly have given up his rank for someone who possessed the leadership qualities he didn’t. Though he wasn’t necessarily afraid to hold power over the pride, he lacked the knowledge and confidence that came with being a good ruler. Without either, he could very well lead Iris to its downfall.

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[Hunter]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] Sota walks, ”Sota talks” She couldn’t help but being flattered by the white male’s words. Others should really envy her, huh? Suppose they should – some definitely did. But she quickly became wary as the former glint in Alexander’s young eyes turned dim, and his next words didn’t make her grow any calmer. She could but nod at Alexander’s frustration. He’d been too young for Florence when she’d been around so what she could have taught her son was greatly limited. And Panja… Alexander snorted and turned away. She sensed his growing frustration and kept still, waiting for him to speak again. After all, she wasn’t his friend and she had no interest in insulting the heir. His title turned him into a feline who craved respect – no matter how young he was. But friend or not, as he started to walk out his rage, Sota followed him. She followed him silently as he went, listening to him when he started to speak and cracked a smile at his joke. ”The leader’s position is not mine to take unless the leader should fall ill and his heir cannot take over the position.” Her voice was soft but it still held determination to it. ”Your father has had a very hard time,” she concluded before continuing. ”But nevertheless it is wrong of him that he hasn’t seen to your training. If he couldn’t have done it himself, he should have brought you in the hands of someone else. I know many warriors well suited for teaching you how to fight and developing battle tactics as well as I know many spies who could teach you to become the most cunning feline of all.” Her tone was sly and a crooked smile played on her lips and she looked over the younger lion. He was smaller than her and maybe would always be it, but it might be within a year before he would become bulkier than her – no matter how lean a lion he would be as an adult he would still be stronger and more muscular than a cheetah. But still Apollo clung in the back of her thoughts and she had to strain herself to stop worrying too much about his older and more muscular half-brother. ”Done is done, so let’s not dwell at what training you have lost; let’s look at what you can get in the future. I’m sure your father soon will begin your training or at least find you a teacher or two. And when you do, you should be sure to hang on. You are a fine lion, Alexander. I’m sure we can make something great out of you.” Her voice was serious as she spoke. ”You have already heard how felines envy me, a simple Duchess. Imagine how some can envy the heir of the throne,” she said dimly, holding a short pause, liking the fact just as much as Alexander would. ”No one knows for how long they can keep their rank in the hierarchy, but as long as I’m here in the pride – Duchess or not – you can be sure you will always have my help.” She remembered how she had told Nebula almost the same thing and decided that she soon enough had to pay her young friend a visit. ((OOC: Oooh, the sentimentality talk! I guess I’m a little too fond of it xD))

[Zen]

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[atrb=background,http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa446/jadedog08/Alextable2.png] Alex’s smile faded somewhat and he dropped his gaze to the ground. He had expected her to say that, that she did not have the right to be leader, but it still pained him to know that he was essentially stuck with this rank that he had been born into. There was no way out. He could always abdicate the throne and leave Iris, but that would mean losing the respect of every feline in the pride, including that of Nebula and his father. He didn’t care so much what Panja thought anymore, but if Nebula turned her back on him, he didn’t think he’d be able to take it. She was all he had at this point. He picked his head back up when Sota mentioned something about having connections with cats who could help him. “Y-you do?” His voice cracked apart from sheer happiness. Maybe there was hope for him after all. Sota could introduce him to some older warriors who might be able to teach him a thing or two about the way this whole leadership thing worked. And he especially liked the idea that they could also show him how to fight so he wouldn’t be totally defenseless. He sighed, “I'm going to need a lot of help, Sota. I feel like I’m in trouble, like someone could use my inexperience to hurt me. There are probably a lot of cats out there who would like to get their paws on my rank.” He typically didn’t go out of his way to speak with anyone else besides his sister, but there were times when Alex couldn’t avoid the gossip and whispers that brewed in the alleys. It was how he had found out about Sota’s promotion, and about the cats that had been planning to overthrow Panja. It was probably in his best interest to start paying more attention to the gossip around the pride, though he was also sure that, if someone truly was plotting to harm him, Sota would be the first to let him know. Unlike him, she seemed aware of everything that happened both inside and outside their territory. Right then he felt like this cheetah was his savior. She continued to speak and he simply listened, stepping off a large slab of charred rock to come closer toward her. For awhile his expression was impassive. Then tears began to prick at the corner of his eyes. Without thinking, he suddenly ran towards Sota and pushed his forehead against her chest, sobbing gently as the tears freely fell down his cheeks. “Thank you,” he choked, burying his face into her short, spotted fur. “You’re the first person besides Nebula who has said anything like that to me, who actually believes in me.” Alex pulled back, sniffling, his eyelids red and puffy. He looked around quickly to be sure no one else other than Sota had seen his moment of weakness, but they were as alone as ever. He wasn't a little cub anymore. He was expected to be mature about these things now, and all this whimpering wasn't going to earn him any respect. Sota, however, seemed like she would understand what he was going through. She was different from many of the others in the pride - she was gentle, kind, compassionate. “My father might be a terrible parent, but he has good choice in friends,” he joked, trying to brush it all off by laughing. “There’s so much I need to know about…well, everything. Will…will you be one of my teachers? Please?” OOC: omg awwww! it's all so sweet <3

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[Hunter]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellspacing,0,true] Sota walks, ”Sota talks” The emotional change in Alexander’s expressions made her realize something important; Alexander wasn’t a figure made of stone but a feline like anyone else. He was young, a character full of emotions flowing through him as water through a stream, and he needed parents and teachers to guide him – just like anyone else. As he rubbed his head against her chest she could feel the small tears slightly wetting her short fur and for a second she was sure she could have licked him on his head like a mother trying to soothe her cub. But she didn’t do it, and even though she had felt her body calm as Alexander had shown her trust, she was somehow glad that he pulled back before she could do anything stupid. She sat down with a smile as Alexander looked at her, his eyelids red and puffy. She gave him time to recover so he could speak, but she didn’t comment on his joke about his father. Panja was… going through things these days, and just as much as she understood her leader’s need of recovering over the loss of a loved one, Sota couldn’t accept that Alexander had to pay for it. He needed training, not to mention the love of his father. The cheetah’s ears perked up at Alexander’s question and her smile became slightly wider as she spoke with a soft, yet reasoning voice. ”Of course I would like to be your teacher; it would be a great honor. But I have to council with your father – after all, it is he who has to make the decision and decide if I am good enough to see to the training of the future heir.” She paused shortly, reflecting about Alexander’s question before continuing. ”And as you know my friend, I have already got many things to do, but personally I can’t see why I shouldn’t get time for you two or three times per week. However, I won’t be able to stand for all your training, so even if I can become your teacher, you’ll definitely need a warrior by your side as well.” I’m sure Alexander is a lion who has his heart on the right place. With the beginning of his training, the whole pride will finally get an idea of who Alexander is. During these next months, many felines in the pride will already decide whether Alexander is worth following or not...