Trapping to Tame

[Anonymous]

The young jaguar stared at its captor; fear blatant in its sclera-rimmed yellow eyes. Its two front feet were snagged together with a leather thong, the tempting cut of meat lying a throw's distance away from her trap. Lakori's magic worked enough on the jaguar to keep it silent, and therefore, prevent any other creatures from being disturbed. An unavoidable calm lay thick over the jungle cat whose eyes slowly dimmed and blinked as the effects spread through the beast.

"There," cooed Lakori, smiling brightly at her trapped creature. The young 14 year old was dressed in a ruddy brown sarong wrapped around her body under her arms and tied at her chubby waist with several leather thongs - for trapping. Lakori loved dressing in bright colors, but those were only good for trapping birds and mythical creatures, not these simple jungle cats. No, the ruddy brown helped her to blend in better with the mud and tree bark around her. Her dark black hair sported several braids with feathers from various different bird species, and a few stray leaves from her current escapade.

Not allowing her honey-eyed gaze to waver from the jaguar, Lakori reached behind her waist and pulled another leather thong out, holding it ready in her right hand as she approached the cat. "Dahan-dahan," she whispered as the feline moved to show alarm, and it settled once again -- dosed up once more by Lakori's hypnotic potion. And she reached out with the leather thong towards the creature's neck....

[miss_sanguine]

Finding Lakori always proved difficult. She never sat still, always wandered the forests in search of animals to trap and tame. Often times he would wait for her in the village after his duties were complete, but today he had time to himself, the hunting party not leaving for another few hours. So he soared over the trees, bow swung over his shoulder and his holster of arrows as well.

It was a big jungle, impossible to find one's way without getting lost if one were not raised on its hidden paths, known only to the Yoreiqi. By remembering Lakori's familiar haunting grounds, it wasn't long before he found her, her form--though well hidden in her earth-colored clothes--standing out to his trained eyes.

He dropped through the canopy, wings folding in at his sides as he tried to avoid buffeting them against tree branches. A near impossible feat, not mastered even by him, and several colorful feathers floated down after him when he hit the ground. The moist soil cushioned his feet upon landing and cooled their soles.

"Lakori!" he said happily. "I've been searching high and low for you, and I find you here, coddling fierce forest cats?" He shook his head, a smile on his face, and stepped forward. "What say you we leave the animal be and go surfing? The waves are fine today. Maloali is already out there."

[Anonymous]

Snap. Lakori jerked her head up and around, to find her best friend smiling expectantly at her. She couldn't help but smile back, despite the flash of annoyance she felt at being distracted from her current occupation. "You would!" she snapped playfully, but reluctantly turned back to the cat and slipped off his other lacings, keeping her eyes steadily on his. Luckily, the cat was more scared than angry, and slowly then quickly retreated from the duet, deep into the jungle.

"I suppose he won't do anyways," she muttered, frowning at the ground and kicking a stray stone. Her one goal in life was still unsatisfied. She was still happy in her life, but there was that burning desire to move, to get out. A dream from her childhood haunted her, tempting her to keep looking for the one creature that would aid her in leaving this place, but she still had yet to find it.

Looking back up at Anuenue, she snarled playfully at him and stuck out her tongue. "Great timing as always, you platypus! I might've considered surfing with you if you hadn't bothered me and my new cat!" She strode past him, pulling leaves out of her hair and flicking them his direction. "But if you're going to surf, I guess I need to come along and prevent you from drowning."

[miss_sanguine]

Smiling in amusement, he watched the large forest cat slink off into the trees. Of course Lakori would choose to trap one of the more dangerous creatures, and of course she would be the one to get out of it with not even a scratch. She had such a way with animals that not even he could compete with.

She muttered something when it was gone and kicked at a stone, but he'd not heard her words, lost in his own thoughts as he had been.

"Ha! Drowning! You wish," he said, his chest puffing a little as he put his hands on his hips. "The only things that are going to drown are your words. I rode the waves even before you were born, remember that, little one."

His wings were bulky and burdensome when in the middle of the tropical fauna, plants and trees chaffing against them as he walked and making it near impossible to squeeze through the tight spaces that his friend could. But he managed, following Lakori at a rough pace. "What were you doing with that cat, anyway?" he asked.

[Anonymous]

"I'm not ALL that younger than YOU, you know!" Lakori snarled, frowning at him over her shoulder as she continued to ford through the rainforest brush. "Besides, you taught me how to surf, if you remember, so if you're so great, I could be greater!" she smiled as she said these words, reminiscing on the years of their memories. A few leaves snapped off a branch and cascaded onto Lakori's face, stopping her reminiscing and reminding her to be considerate... she moved to a wider path so Anu wouldn't lose some of those precious feathers she loved so much.

"Here we are!" she proclaimed, taking the next path that would lead them to the ocean where what's-his-face was no doubt waiting. But Anuenue's question made her slow, her smile falling and her eyes dropping slowly to the ground. "The cat?" she asked, swallowing as her mind raced with confusion. The vivid dream still haunted her, and at that moment the vision taunted her again - the strange creature that would lead her to her future, away from these isles.

She spun around to face Anuenue, looking up cautiously into his eyes. Could she trust him? He, to whom she told almost everything, had not yet heard of this dream of hers. But he was privy to her daily romps in the forest and trapping, so why would he ask just now? "I'm always catching things," she began, "But they're not..."

[miss_sanguine]

"Oh, I remember," Anuenue mused, eyes going to the branches overhead as he thought back on it. "And I remember you floundering like a fish out of water. Took forever for you to learn to just balance on your board." Those had been fun times, especially for him. Albeit, his memory tended to exaggerate itself over time, so he didn't know if the recollection of her falling off her board into the water and causing a splash the size of a giant boat, knocking everyone else around them off of their boards as well, was real or not. He liked to believe it was, for laughter's sake.

Stepping from the dense foliage into the clear day was like a breath of fresh air for Anuenue, and he spread his arms and inhaled deeply at the salty air when they did. The sun beat down on his dark skin with caressing fingers, as if to say, What took you so long?

His smile turned to a half-frown when he saw his friend slow and then altogether stop. Did she not want to go surfing with him?

Ah. She was still on his question, which he'd forgotten about the moment they'd stepped out from the trees. It had been a simple question, yet it looked like it troubled her far more than it should have.

Then she was spinning around to look at him, looking much like the wary jungle cat she had just set free. "Not what?" he asked, head tilting a little in confusion. "Not cute enough? Not ferocious enough? The cat looked pretty ferocious to me, what with its long, sharp claws and menacing fangs. And if you're looking for cute, I'd recommend something smaller. Like a bird."

[Anonymous]

Lakori snarled at Anu's sarcasm. "You WOULD say that, you feather-brain!" she snapped, swiping her hand across his feathery wings but gently, despite her irritation. But, it seemed as soon as the anger had come, it vanished, her shoulders sagging and her brows furrowing in confusion. "Have you ever left our islands?" she asked quietly, looking out at see through the threads of hair that reached over her face to grasp the salty breeze.

The water seemed endless, stretching out to yonder horizons... but Lakori knew that it wasn't endless, that there was something beyond. Why was she so driven to reach it?