Miro gave a grunt and a nod of his massive head, then started grooming his face to get the rest of the damn blood off.
"It's nice to meet you," said Etta, "have you seen my daughter? She's very small--VERY small, smaller than a smallcat."
ooc: welcome to the RP :)
"My veins," said Miro, looking at Koda. "Got a whole bunch of it in me and once in a while when some other tom gets annoying enough, gets on my face."
"I'm going to help look for Clara!" cried Frodo.
Miro snorted. "Yes...too many." He was just not the gregarious type.
"It's all right," purred Etta. "As long as you don't do it--ever again. Stay right with me. You can go wandering around when you get bigger."
Claralka sighed. The fresh memories of her trip and her fascination with the small and colourful cats she had met hung at the front of her thoughts. "What if I never GET bigger?"
ooc: Miro won. He however didn't win ultimately as they sort of called off the fighting soon thereafter. The fight was interesting; they were physically well matched but it came down to Miro being willing to put more into it, as he has a lot more to lose.
Miro glanced at her. "You okay?" Bet she wonders what she blundered into. This is some crazy shit.
Miro quickly did the same. Rain didn't bother him that much, but neither did he want to stand around in it. He was soon gone out of sight, to let his wounds heal up as well. That would take a good few days. Nemo had inflicted more damage than Miro cared to reveal to the public. He chose his den near where Jezebel and the cubs were--he'd come back to help protect them, after all. But he did like that Beauty. There was just something about her.
Miro wasn't prepared for the happy feeling he got from her joining him for company. "Yeah, they look worse than they are. You and the cubs all right?"
Miro grunted in reply. "Sounds like my response to today. Today has been crazy."
Miro arose in the early morning. The big cougar tom felt the pains from the wounds of yesterday--they were sore now, though healing. He would toughen up to it in a little while. How now, he wanted to hunt.
"I"m going hunting."
"You could say I like my space." Miro spoke in a sound between a growl and a purr. Beauty was a good cougar. How'd she wound up in this mess?
Miro had brought down a big bull elk, one of his best kills in recent times. The animal would feed not only him, but Jezebel and many others. He ate his fill, just in case it would be gone by the time he got back, then covered it up and returned to camp.
"Jezebel? Beauty? Anyone else? I made a big kill, there's a lot left over."
"Yeah, it's back up the slope past the woods over there, I covered it up, should be good though if we get back to it soon," said Miro. "It's an elk, a pretty big one."
"Careful," said Miro. "You might get more adventure than you're up to."
"Everyone's up for adventure when they start on it." For Miro, adventure came to him. He never had to seek it out. That was the problem.
Miro thought on what he had said. "But if you don't go for it you'll die wondering what you missed."
"I'm staying here," said Miro. "I'm here to protect the cubs."
Etta agreed, "I'd rather remain here unless there's a clear reason to go somewhere else to get answers. For all I know, the problems might never come."
Miro waited until the cub drama was over before padding over to Jezebel. "You okay?". The stress had clearly taken its toll on her.
And the evil would haunt her forever. Etta awoke again in the rain-soaked early morning. Frodo was already awake and emerging from the den.
The she-cat lay back, watching Frodo, hoping that her wandering daughter had found shelter nearby. The she-kit had always returned safely in the past...no reason to think she wouldn't now.
It wouldn't ever go away. Etta knew that she had brought wrongness down on herself and her family. Was there a way out, now? The demon lord had offered her a dance and she had taken it. You couldn't undance a dance. But she could erase the aftermath...or try.
She fought to keep from crying. She already knew what she had to do and that there was no going back.
Frodo turned around at the mouth of the den, "Mom, I'm going out hunting....Mom? What's wrong?"
In the misty morning, they were then both racing away from the den and from the blackened stump of the totem pole. One knowing what she had to do, and the other living a nightmare beyond what he had ever conceived of in his life.
***
Miro padded into the area, having picked up Jezebel's tracks and those of her growing litter. Instead, what he found was Cri-cri, sitting in a half-starved stupour. He recognised him, but he didn't know him or anything...better than Cri-cri himself he knew what that mad, vegetative look could signify. His mind had gone in the way of Ferdinand and several others.
"Damn..." He looked around, doubly scared now. Why had he left? "Jezebel!"
Miro had arrived at Jezebel's side. The queen looked the worse for wear, but he'd seen her through other times. He'd help her again. "I'm here." He looked down at Cri-cri. "He looks bad." to Miro the tom seemed unlikely to live, but he'd give it a shot trying to help him, if she wanted him to.
"He's starving..maybe he's sick." Miro shook his head. This was like Ferdinand had been--too much like he had been. "Hello?"
Cri-cri twitched and looked up at Miro. He startled, fear in his eyes. "Ah--Ar....ah." Then he passed out again.
"Well he's got life in him." Miro shook his head. "I have to go hunting anyway. I'll bring something back for him. Jez...you want to come with me? Beauty?"
