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 Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 12:35 pm
Having brought down a small, sickly antelope, Juji couldn't help but feel relieved. She knew she was flirting with danger by hunting so close to the Imara clan's territory, but the need for food was far more bothersome and pressing.
It was by pure luck that she'd been able to bring down the antelope; she wasn't a strong hunter and actually preferred not to do it. But the taste of the stringy meat was well worth the effort. Delightedly Juji dug into the still-warm hide of the unfortunate creature, watchful eyes always on her surroundings.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 1:03 pm
Mwezi could smell blood in the air. Something had been killed near here, and recently. Her small stomach growled as she cautiously tried to figure out the source of the scent. The cub was desperate for food. Her last meal, if you could call it that, had been a few bones that even the vultures had left. Maybe, if she was lucky, she'd be able to snag some fresher leftovers from this kill before the vultures stripped it clean.
As she moved, the scent grew stronger. She must be getting closer. The entire time, she kept looking around herself warily. She wasn't sure of this place at all. If there was fresh meat here, then there were bound to be others with the same idea as her, as well as the original owner. Mwezi didn't want to run into a predator bigger than her. She'd end up as food herself.
Eventually, she came within visual range of the kill. The cub could see now that it was another hyena at the carcass. There wasn't a chance that she could win over the kill from the other, bigger hyena. Not knowing the stranger, she didn't want to approach her. She wasn't clan, and Mwezi had no idea how friendly she was. It wasn't worth chancing her life over. As long as the cub kept a safe distance, she should hopefully be fine. The stranger already had a kill afterall.
Keeping an eye out for any other movements nearby, Mwezi waited a short distance away. It didn't look like the kill had been very large, but maybe there would be a little leftover once the larger hyena was done. It was better than nothing, at least.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 4:09 pm
Juji ripped off a largish chunk of flesh, her strong jaws working furiously to chew the tough meat. Her sense of smell was tainted by the blood of her prey, but her wary eyes caught the stray cub. Instantly Juji jerked upright, her stance becoming more wary. If the cub belonged to part of a clan, Juji knew they wouldn't be far away.
Seeing no other hyenas within range, Juji yipped at the other cub. "You alone?" Her voice was wary, defiant. Juji wasn't one to back down easily, but she'd have to test this situation out. Perhaps the cub was like her; hungry and tired, vulnerable to the larger hyenas that were either lone, rogue, or just plain bigger and stronger than she herself.
Juji was feeling a little generous, and since the cub seemed to be showing some sort of respect, she yipped out again, softer, "If you're alone, we can share."
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 4:24 pm
Realising that the other hyena had caught sight of her, Mwezi took a step back, her posture wary and defensive. If the other hyena looked to be aggressive, she was ready to back off and leave. Then she heard the older hyena.
Mwezi didn't reply immediately, unsure whether she was being led into a trap or not. Much as she knew she probably shouldn't, the smell of the fresh carcass was almost more than she could bear. Cautiously, she inched forward. She could see now that the other hyena was indeed older, but she didn't look like she was fully grown yet. Was she on her own too?
"I'm on my own.." The older one did not seem aggressive at least - maybe she was one of the friendler ones. Warily, Mwezi approached Juji and the remains of the antelope.
"Thank you."
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 4:35 pm
Juji didn't speak for a moment, instead tearing off another piece of flesh. Chewing almost thoughtfully, she swallowed before giving the younger cub some advice, "We're in the Imara clan boundaries, now. If you see another hyena approach, run as fast as you can." It's how Juji had been living since her own mother was fatally wounded. Dodge and evade. Juji wasn't a fighter.
"Usually they hunt in packs. Imara is a very large clan, Windana is very small. Hyenas respect Zhenga. Most of them, anyways." It was obvious that Juji was a bubbly, outgoing female, and now that she had someone to communicate with it would be hard to shut her up.
Finally falling silent, Juji ripped off a final biteful before stepping back to rest on her haunches, chewing as she waited for the other hyena to feed.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 5:00 pm
Looking up at the other hyena, the cub nodded before ravenously tearing a bloody strip from the remains of the antelope. After her meagre meals of bones and hide scraps, the fresh meat here was a feast. Even if it was only a little antelope. Swallowing her mouthful, she paused and looked up at the older hyena. She wasn't sure if this was just a friendlier member of this "Imara" clan, or if she too was on her own.
"Are you Imara?" Mwezi's question was almost hesitant. She still wasn't quite sure of the larger hyena.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 5:09 pm
Juji's ears flickered, rough pink tongue lolling out of her mouth. "I am alone." It was that simple; she'd had nothing but bad luck with the other clans; it was harder for a female to be accepted into them. "Food is hard to find, good water dries up fast. If you're really sneaky, sometimes you can spend time near the good water." She growled softly, "But stay away from the dead water, if you drink that or get too close to it, bad things happen." Juji had seen horrible things come of the animals who had come to close to the dead water.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 5:26 pm
Mwezi had found out the hard way that food was hard to come by. Too young to be capable of bringing down something like an antelope, and not quite quick enough to catch the darting little rodents that she sometimes flushed out, Mwezi had been left with picking at others' leftovers. She would need to get better at catching little things. Maybe they'd keep her going. Although, something the other hyena said was confusing. Swallowing another chunk of meat, the cub looked up at Juji.
"What's dead water?"
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 5:31 pm
Juji yawned, her jaws clicking shut at the other hyena's question. "The dead water is bad. It's farther north and the water doesn't look like normal water. There are no plants around, everything there is sick." Sick was an understatement. Everthing there was ..deformed. "Plus the Rogues are there." She idly scratched at her neck with her hind paw, mumbling, "Most of them are bad.
What's your name? I'm Juji. How come you don't have a pack? Where's your mom?"
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 5:50 pm
"Oh.." Mwezi would need to look out for water that was a funny colour then. She wasn't quite sure what Juji meant by "rogues" either, but if she kept away from the north, then that wouldn't matter. Having eaten her fill of the carcass, the cub backed off from it, sitting down in the nearby dust.
At Juji's tirade of questions, the cub looked down at her paws. She was silent for a moment, before she replied. "I'm Mwezi... and I don't know. I got lost, and I can't find her.."
Mwezi had been so intent on finding food that she had pushed the search to the back of her mind. But now that she had filled her stomach, and that Juji had asked her, it had returned. The cub was pretty sure that she had gone in the wrong direction. And had been doing so for several days. Now, she was in unfamilar ground and with little hope of being able to find her way back, nevermind her mother.
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 5:59 pm
Juji whuffed softly, feeling bad for the other. "I woke up one morning and my mom was gone. Dunno what happened to her, and I never looked."
Flicking her ears, the young female watched her new companion thoughtfully, "I could help you look. I know the ins and outs of pretty much everywhere. I know where most of the good food is at, and the safe places and the not safe places. And it's better that we stick together. I'm tired of running around by myself, too."
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Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2006 6:14 pm
Mwezi looked up as the other hyena spoke about her own mum going missing. It must have been bad for her too. Maybe it would be good if they stuck together for a while. Neither of them would be on their own anymore, it would be easier to watch for enemies and Juji seemed to know a lot about this place. Nodding, Mwezi stood up again, her tail swaying gently from side to side.
"I'd like that. And, uhm, thanks.. for the food and the help."
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Posted: Sun Jan 08, 2006 10:42 am
Juji's maw split into the best hyena-smile she could muster, pink tongue lolling out, "Let me show you where I stay." With an excited yip, the oddly-colored female kicked up her heels and started trotting off. "There's a big pile of rocks on the horizon, there, do you see it? I live in an old den from a clan long-gone from this area."
"And we can go lizard hunting, too, and fishing!" The young hyena was so excited to have found someone, even a little starving cub. Her motherly instincts weren't sharp, but she was going to take it upon herself to watch after the straggling little cub.
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Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2006 9:23 am
Mwezi paused for a moment. Glancing upwards, she could see the vultures starting to wheel overhead. They never took long to close in on a kill. Mwezi didn't trust vultures. They were carrion eaters, but they were as big as she was. Turning, she scrambled to follow Juji.
As the older hyena pointed out the rock pile, Mwezi craned her neck to see. She could just make out a shape jutting up from the horizon. She nodded her head in reply to Juji.
"I think so. There?" She inclined her head in the direction of the pile. It would be great to have somewhere safer to stay. Even if it wasn't by her mother's side.
As Juji continued on, Mwezi followed after her, trying her best to keep up on her shorter legs. Lizard hunting sounded good. They were easier to catch than rodents, if you found them when they were slow and sluggish. But how did you go about catching fish?
"How do you go fishing?" she finally asked. Fish lived in the water, and they were even quicker than mice. Slippery too.
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Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2006 3:10 am
Juji yipped jubilantly, moving faster now, "Yes, there! It's safer there than out in the open, and cooler too. No dead water there, but you have to watch out for the others." Others being members of the nearby clan. Juji'd been there for a few months now with no issues, but she knew that Zhenga was a ruthless Queen and wouldn't take kindly to another female setting up shop nearby. Not even if the female had no intentions against her clan.
"Hurry, hurry!"
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