|
Broken Sky came to the Snowy Mountain Pride as an adolescent. Aurelia had been to the trading center and bought a large bundle of goods for an incredibly low price from another seller.
The clouded lioness had bundled the goods in her bags and been ready to take off when the empress called her back. "Wait, you forgot this one!" Her voice was casual and inattentive.
Aurelia turned, an apology on her tongue for forgetting whatever dye she had left behind, but the words never left her mouth. Her eyes widened in shock to see the empress push forward a slender, young lioness, whose face was scarred terribly and one eye blinded. She was silent in response to the rough handling and lack of respect. Immediately, any impulse to apologize left Aurelia's mind, and her eyes hardened. "Thank you." She said in a politely-flat tone, padding forward to put a little space between the other ruler and her new pridemate. "What's your name?" She asked kindly, turning to the adolescent.
Seeming to be slightly put off by Aurelia's lack of acknowledgement, the empress stepped forward. "Her name is Broken Face. She's an unfortunate temper, I will warn you."
Aurelia contained a snarl. "Thank you, that will be all." She said with a cold flick of her tail, not turning to dignify her with a proper address.
The empress let out an indignant huff. "What is your name?" She demanded in the haughty tone of someone used to stepping on others.
Aurelia didn't respond. She was looking at the young lioness in front of her, who, at the mere sound of that huff, had ducked down defensively, eyes darting away from Aurelia to turn and look over her shoulder, away from the empress. Following her gaze, the winged queen quickly realized the source of her fear, her attention settling on the small group of burly, angry-looking submales who had stood and were watching them intently, claws glinting in the afternoon sun. Aurelia's face hardened. "What do you intend to do?"
"I intend to teach you your place! What is your name?" Her voice was shrill and piercing, and the males began their approach.
While they stalked slowly, keeping a low profile, their eyes glinted with the entitled pleasure of power sourced from corruption. Aurelia returned her calm, soothing gaze to the adolescent, but the lioness was frozen with terror, her eyes darting about as though searching for an escape. "Are you trying to challenge me?" Aurelia murmured, turning to face the other ruler with her chin raised. The empress was a lithe little thing while Aurelia was muscular and tall, standing a good head above her.
The empress let out a squawk. "Pardon?" She exclaimed, voice growing louder and pitchier as though volume could compensate for the cowardice she displayed in stepping backwards.
Aurelia's lip curled as she heard one of the males behind her sink his claws into the ground. "I wasn't talking to you." She whirled around. "I said, are you trying to challenge me?" Her voice rumbled into a bellowing growl as she brandished her pristine white wings and equally white fangs, leaping over the flinching adolescent's back to collide with the male who had just surged into the air. Aurelia rivaled him in size, but outdid him easily in skill and power. She had his face pressed into the ground in a heartbeat. One male attempted to dart forward to aid his companion, but her wing shot out and bowled him over easily. The rest hovered hesitantly to the side, confidence effectively destroyed. Aurelia narrowed her eyes at all of them, and then focused on the one beneath her paws. "I don't care what your airhead empress tells you— you keep it up, and I will find you. And my war advisor is not quite so forgiving." She growled, disgust in her gaze as she backed off of him gracefully. She swung her head around to fix on the empress, whose eyes were wide and terrified. "I am Aurelia." She said, her head high and her wings held above her back. "You are dismissed."
- - -
When the other ruler's pawsteps had faded into the dull noise of the bustling center around them and the tension had faded from the air, Aurelia refocused her attention on the newcomer. "Hello, Broken Face." The name felt cruel on her tongue.
Broken Face seemed to have taken the time to collect herself and was looking even more closed-off than she had initially. She glared at the ruler sullenly, and said nothing.
Aurelia sighed and began walking. It wasn't exactly a surprise, given the behavior she had just witnessed, but it was always difficult to incorporate a reluctant new personality into the pride, regardless of the reason. At least, she found quickly, the adolescent followed her without resistance. "My name is Aurelia, and I am the Queen of the Snowy Mountain Pride."
No response.
"We live in the cold cliffs of the mountains. I understand you're from a forest?" Aurelia questioned, turning to read the reaction of the lioness.
At the word, 'mountains', the queen saw a flicker of life in her bitter gaze. It vanished the second she caught her looking.
"I would imagine living in the forest isn't easy. All those trees... it's nice up where we live— well, I think it's the most beautiful place in the world. Open skies and strong winds and rocky ledges to look over the plains below. Our pride sleeps in the caverns within the mountain. Our lionesses hunt down on the grasslands, and then as a pride, we help them bring the prey back up to the dens." The queen continued to gauge the other's face, but far more subtly now.
While the teen still maintained her silence, her face was a bit more open, and her ears twitched at "hunters".
Aurelia contained a smile. "The hunters are the lifeblood of our pride. I know most prides will say that, but it's the vital truth of our way of life. Our huntresses are incredibly skilled... Have you ever hunted?"
The young lioness looked at her, eyes suddenly narrowed and cold once again. "No." Her voice was quiet and cold and smooth and flowed over the ear like ice creeping through your veins.
Aurelia was unfazed, and a small smile lifted her face. "You will."
To her surprise, the lioness' ears pricked forward, and her eyes were questioning.
Aurelia said nothing, but her brow furrowed slightly at the rather dramatic response, relative to the adolescent's other behaviors thus far.
Finally, once they were far beyond the edges of the trading center and out of ear-shot, she voiced her question. "I'm allowed?"
Aurelia's confusion only increased, but she kept padding along, not wanting to dissuade her from speaking with too much attention. "Of course."
A long silence followed, in which they crossed much of the torrid plains and the sun fell behind the horizon, leaving the sky a pale grey with a dusty brown around the edges as night encroached.
"My old pride did not allow any to hunt except the high-borns who proved themselves." Her voice was almost emotionless, but here was a hint of bitterness to her tone.
Aurelia welcomed the bitterness. Any sort of expression seemed like growth. "In our pride, hunters are limited only by their motivation and determination."
The smallest of wry smiles pulled at Broken Face's muzzle. "I have those."
Aurelia's smile was bigger. "Then you will do very well... Broken Face."
"I don't like that name." The words came out of the youngster's mouth seemingly faster than she could stop them, and she froze, watching Aurelia with fear flickering in her eyes even as she attempted to subdue her emotions.
Aurelia paused, watching her carefully. After a moment, she tilted her head ever-so-slightly. "Neither do I." She admitted, flicking one ear sheepishly. "No offense."
Broken Face lifted her head, seemingly surprised by the queen's casual, conversational tone, and watched her back, her eyes scouring every inch of her as though searching for a trap. Finally, she spoke. "Can I change it?"
Aurelia breathed a soft sigh of relief. "Yes."
The adolescent gave a sharp nod, eyes softening gratefully, and turned to continue forward.
Aurelia didn't move yet, her eyes bright and vivacious. "Your pelt looks like the sky breaking." She pointed out in a deceptively light tone, a clever shine in her gaze.
The adolescent paused again, turning to fix Aurelia in an investigative stare. After a moment, she dipped her head, almost as though to agree with a suggestion that hadn't been spoken. "Broken Sky." She murmured, almost to herself, before lifting her head to meet Aurelia's gaze. "My name is Broken Sky."
|
