Warm In a Cold Land

The great cat once again sauntered over the great summer expanse, pushing his way through the open lands, weaving his way thorough the well beaten game trails.  It gave him a lot of time to reflect, all this walking.  The Demon, or Suncat, or whatever he was; had been treated well here.  He had been meeting a lot of good souls in this barren land.  His first inclinations where usually negative, but despite this, others had time and time proven him wrong. 

His instinct and his heart where often at odds lately.  The once Demon, exhaled a brisk breath, taking a moment to enjoy the sun and the brisk northern air. Taking a rare moment, the cat enjoyed the worldly bliss as he continued to saunter through the thawed fields. He noticed things he would normally ignore, wildflowers, the insects, the beauty of the snow capped mountains. 

Standing proudly, he wandered gracefully back towards his home.  He would pay back what was owed to these lands.
the staff team luvs u

The afternoon was warm and Vera had traveled father than she normally did, all the way to the Frozen Ground for some hunting. She was a bit worried of the whole thing being a waste but her luck (and bot rolls), was good and she found herself nabbing a baby leopard seal from the previous May/July batch. Little fellow wasn't able to make it to their ice hole in time.

As she headed back to Shiroshika with the young seal hanging from her mouth, that was surprisingly heavy, she found herself looking at the world around her to an extent. Nothing but emptiness was felt at the moment. Just another world and another landscape where the strong survive and the weak die, like this seal. Did she truly belong here? A reaper was what she was for all species. And this malice, it never did truly go away. Even with Reiko and the others kindness, she often felt her claws digging into the ground, anticipating her next enemy, the one to throw this aggression at when it became too overwhelming. Убийца Mечты/Ubiytsa Mechty. One of the more prominent names she was dubbed. Translating to the Dream Killer. It was accurate, she killed others, their dreams, because they were taken from her. Perhaps this aggression would never fade...

An orange blur at the side of her good eye caused her to break the intense reflection. Turning her head, she spotted a huge tiger with a bit of a mane, the smell and overall look was masculine. The scared up female immediately dropped her seal, tensed. Reiko had mentioned a tiger...was it this one? If not she was either about to die or be known as the Убийца тигров/Ubiytsa Tigrov (Tiger Killer). She tried to be calm, fighting all of her instincts. "Are you the tiger that dwells and associates with Shiroshika?" Straight to the point, her voice showing no hint of emotion as she gauged her possible opponent.
the staff team luvs u

Not trying his hardest to stay unseen, the pair both came over a berm at the same time.  As she spotted him, he also looked back.  He hadn't yet met this one...  Taking in the scent, the cat observed the strong looking female and her kill.  Eyeing her from top to bottom, Kuhn thought about stealing her kill, but dismissed the thought on account of his pleasant mood, and new intentions. 

Licking his chops, he pressed his chest outward, not looking a bit intimidated by the brutish woman.  Swinging his tail back and forth he looked almost amused by her straightforward demeanor. 

Although Kuhn had met some of the wolves of Shiroshika, he didn't have clue what she was talking about. "No... I'm not..." he responded simply.  His voice was calm and full of gravel.  

Though he was calm, he wasn't overtly trusting of the stranger either.  This was apparent by the slight weight he kept on his powerful hind legs, ready to make a move if need be.
the staff team luvs u

Of course it had to a be a tiger that was not from their group. Fucking great. She was not surprised at his lack of concern, a tiger was usually the more powerful apex by far. Still, she would not waver from her bravado. The mega pack she had been born in had a sub pack that hunted tigers, but they were farther up north and she never learned their ways. The death rate there had kept her at bay from such logic. For her to win the big cat would have to make a mistake, she would have to be downright lucky if it came to a fight. Thus she wanted to avoid that, and yet some part of her said just to let herself run wild again. She found herself huffing, warm air blowing out from her permanently exposed gums as she centered herself. No, she had to resist such urges. That was how she died in the first place.

As she observed him she noted he seemed to be in the same boat as her, as in cautious, but mild enough with attitude. "Ah, my apologies. I mistook you for another...named...Rainer." She said, it took her a second to remember the other's name. Realizing he probably didn't give two flying fucks, she went on. "The name is Vera, pleasure." She introduced herself with the habitual bow of hers.

She wanted to stare, to witness such an exotic creature in more detail, but the situation was obviously still somewhat tense. Her courage allowed her next words and actions to be possible. "Don't suppose you'd find this seal tastier than myself, ey? As you can see the tissue on me is a little tough." Jokes, self-deprecation, a smile danced on her lips to the best of her abilities, good eye never leaving him. The scar tissue covering her maw often made her smiles shorter, look more forced because of the extra muscle needed to smile.
the staff team luvs u

He took some tension off his hind legs, after all, she was talking to him now. Not changing much else about his posture, he took in what this hardened woman had to say. So that was the other tiger's name, Rainer, and this woman before him was Vera. For the moments she spoke, he had time to take her in.

She was heavy for a wolf, and extremely battle scarred. It all lead to an impression of toughness. Yet there was something elegant to this one nonetheless, as evidenced by a sort of formal bow.

"...Vera" he said with a pause, seeming to let the name come slowly off his tongue, as if to take it in along with her scent.

As she continued, making an attempt at a joke, her smile betrayed the true damage done to her face, sections of missing lip and deep scaring. The steam of her breath seemed to flow from those areas, not unlike that of a natural hotspring. It took the tiger a moment to sate his curious gaze before he could himself reply to her attempt to break the ice.

"The seal or a wolf? The only way to find out is to try both." he answered, really it was the first thing that came to mind.

"I am Kuhn" He added awkwardly, following his last comment.
the staff team luvs u

Vera nodded as he said her name and observed her, she didn't mind the looks, to be honest it beat the surprised or startled reactions she could get at times. The sudden movements resulting from such usually made her anxious. Instead this tiger was curious, a sign to her that he was smarter than just a beast. Perhaps odd to some, but this allowed her to feel more respect and admiration for the other.

He reacted to her joke in a surprisingly blunt way. Someone who did not possess a sick sense of humor like herself might have felt dread or unease. But if anything, it was downright fucking hilarious to her. She could not help but to let out a few hardy laughs, her upper body seeming to move with the motion. She almost missed his name while expressing the humorous fit. Kuhn. His name was closer to her tongue than most of her packmates.  "I suppose that's true! How unfortunate for me..." Hey you laugh or you cry.

Attention sharpened again, she decided to take this moment of her own to learn. He seemed a little unsure of how to handle the situation, but to be fair she was in the same boat, the only difference was she was quite socially adept. Her family was gifted with different types of awareness, hers was just socially. "Kuhn, huh?" The name slipped out easily, her accent peeking out in a way she sometimes missed.

Her first reaction was to ask him what he was doing here, but if that answer were to be to hunt, well, then she might truly be dinner. Thus she focused on her second question; if he was alone. Yet she inwardly knew that was a bit of a stupid one since tigers did usually enjoy the life of solitude anyways, so she reshaped the question, adapted. "Is it hard to live a life of solitude, does loneliness never claw at you?" She looked up at the sky momentarily. "Sometimes I wish I could do that."
the staff team luvs u

The hardy woman's laugh confirmed the striped beast's suspicions that it was a joke.  Kuhn figured that it was a bit entertaining evidenced by a slight toothy smirk, that could be misunderstood as malevolent. After all there was a slight communication gap in the body language of the cat, as compared to a wolf.  But could he really have some of the seal though? 

He hung his head below his shoulder's as he sat back on his haunches.  Eyeing her intently, the feline twitched his tail rhythmically.  She was right, he was hunting. Well... he always was, it was just something he seemed to do passively, instinctually. 

Even Kuhn knew that her question about his loneliness was a bit out of propriety. Even for a beast as unsocialized as himself, he knew that it was a bit of a personal question to ask someone you just met, or someone who might eat you.  But, it would be far from him to miss out on a conversation like this, it wasn't every day that one could meet someone so straightforward and thoughtful.  "Its hard to live around others and its hard to live without them."  Taking a moment to pause and observe Vera look to the sky, he continued "But I would be lying if I didn't say that, I at least sometimes, get lonely." 

It was hard for him to admit, but she had been straightforward with him, so he supposed he paid it back.  "Well... why don't you try to be lonely sometime"
the staff team luvs u

Vera noted the way his eyes kept going back to the seal. Thus as he spoke, she put her paw upon the flubber of the dead animal and pushed it, causing the rotund figure to roll over to the tiger as he spoke. She rather just play it safe at this point. She hadn't been expecting such a serious answer. Perhaps it was more of a cultural or species gap. She looked at him thoughtfully, surprise clearly written on her face as she listened carefully to him. He was so honest. She almost took it personally, related it too much to herself as if she were being slandered by the gods themselves. He was hitting close to home and she did not like that.

His last words, the question, a reflection of words that she should have saw coming. She found herself letting out a small bark of laughter filled with disbelief, there was no humor to be found in the sound of her voice anymore, her good amber eye glistening with a spark, hinting at something buried within. "You're a smart tiger but it's not that easy for me. I am already lonely even with company. By myself in solitude is nothing but death." She couldn't stop talking, being blunt and honest in return. She had never dared to share this with anyone before, so why was she gushing to a stranger, a tiger of all fucking possible things?! "I cannot stand to be lonely, it is why I can only still hold on to love, surely someone out there wants and needs me for me." She said in a way that almost seemed like she was looking for confirmation from him. That she was right to hold onto her delusions to look for love again. She knew it was ludicrous and putting all her hopes on such a thing was irrational and showed that she had nothing left that mattered to her. That in a way it showed that she had given up on life in an ever-so passive manner. She wished she could just stop caring and live in solitude, to not be plagued with the need of societal norms and expectations.

She tried to loosen up again, letting out a sigh as she grabbed a hold of her emotions and tucked them backed away, trying to do damage control now. "Or who knows? Maybe I can and your way of life might be the best thing since cooked meat." She joked, trying to make her stance seem more abstract and flippant, less dark. She added a morbid chuckle. "As you can see, I'm not the best at being a wolf, my apologies." She added with sarcasm laced, wondering if the other would catch on to the sarcasm. She decided it was best to shut her trap at this point, she had rambled long enough like a mad woman and was now just trying to play it cool, as if he didn't get to her.
the staff team luvs u

The cat watched as the scarred woman rolled the seal one step closer to him, it looked to the beast that she was offering a tribute of sorts or hedging her bets with him.  His pride simply couldn't take it from her.  After all he was more than capable of taking it, but also perfectly capable of making his own kill once more.  Even still, she never really said he could have it. 

He paused for a moment, his eyes darting up from the seal and back to her listening attentively.  She spoke at length opening up to him of all people.  Most usually tremored in fear at his appearance, but she spoke earnestly.  After all it wasn't a surprise, her scarred exterior more than hinted that she was well versed at dancing with death.  There was a lot to take in from what she said. As she spoke he took it in, tail flitting, with all the focus befitting of a cat locked to its prey. 
She said a few things he sorted as less important than the rest, like cooked meat? What was a tiger?  He did his best to respond to what he thought her heart was sayin. 

"Sometimes, its a long crooked walk to a bad friend's home, even if they live nearby.  But, its an easy road to a good friend, no matter how long the journey"  He replied generally, taking a step diagonal to her.  "So... If you have a long journey ahead of you,  you might have to walk it alone."  The cat took a moment to pause exhaling a long breath from his nose into the brisk air, he was speaking form experience here. Many days alone were spend in a life like his. "But, you wont really be alone, you will have yourself..." 


the staff team luvs u

Vera listened to the other in heavy silence. All her emotions seemed to have faded visually from her face as she took in every word. She had never been told such a thing, never had the privileged to think of it either. He reminded her of an old wolf she had to kill once, the wisdom beyond his years had moved her then. And now his protege from several worlds away seemed to be doing the same here. These powerful words scared her greatly, because it was so raw and close to the most vulnerable part of her. Tragically she pushed most of what he said in the background of her mind. Perhaps if she hadn't and faced her problems with his guidance then her future problems would have not arrived. A fool she was until the end.

She gave the other another bow to show gratitude, albeit not as graceful as the first. Head full and adrenaline pumping once more. She finally found some words to emit from her lips. "Thank you for parting with those words. Truly you are wise and brave beyond most I have met. I can only hope to be like you someday." Although some may see it as boot-licking it was simple mere honesty once more. It was only with her next actions that she finally and truly closed off from the other, afraid of their clarity. She wore a half-smile. "Alas, the only problem with your words is I want to be with anyone but myself. I'm sick of my company by now, heh. If only I could be someone else." It was her last remark before she shook her fur and started to walk off, not waiting for a response from the other. Vera had basically turned tail and fled from the situation, wanting to get away from the help she had asked for.

The seal all-but-forgotten as the wind carried her last words to him. "Prashai...(farewell)"

---

Прощай = Prashai = A very heavy/powerful goodbye, used for long separations or if you will never seen the other again
the staff team luvs u

He wasn't even sure any of what he said made sense, though it seemed to strike a nerve on way or another as she began to turn and leave.

Many days spent alone in the tundra could do this. The cat knew that all to well, when walking alone, the most fearsome opponent was ones own thoughts, not wolves, bears, or tigers. The mind could gnaw at the very bones of the strongest of creatures.

Kuhn did nothing to stop her from leaving, there probably wasn't anything he could say. So, the cat only looked past the dead seal, that sat bleeding into the summer grass, as he silently watched her leave.
the staff team luvs u