Floral Stripes [DragonSong]

[Juno]

Irah had snorted a short bark of laughter at the uncharacteristically gentle sound, shaking his head in amusement for only a moment before he was suddenly flattened onto his back. A pained grunt escaped him, eyes going wide for a moment in disbelief before narrowing to glare up at the tiger shifter. Gods, he was jumpy.

"Yeah, okay," Irah muttered, pulling at his wrists with a scowl and trying to ignore the heat blooming at his cheeks. "Get off me, then. Jumpy cat... You started it anyway," he grumbled petulantly.

[DragonSong]

Akio growled again, pressing his weight down on Irah fro a moment— then he was gone, on his feet and panting just slightly. “Just...go the fuck to sleep,” he snapped, turning to stalk off with a twitching tail and flattened ears.

What the hell was that about?! Being around this foreigner was slowly driving him crazy, it was official now. He didn’t even seem to have full control of himself half the time around the mage.

[Juno]

He sat up on his elbows to watch him go, frowning thoughtfully for the way his tail twitched about and his ears were flattened like a cornered animal ready to lash out. The mage just shook his head with a ragged sigh and sat up to collect his notebook and scoop up the battered stems that had been knocked from it. Irah was certainly a little shaken but...it wasn't by fear at all. Why was that?

Instead of sleeping as Akio commanded he squinted at his writings by what little moonlight filtered through the canopy, trying to place everything in his living journal back together again and pair the right plants with the right pages. As the moon shifted in the sky to shut him into a near total darkness he just tossed everything down beside himself with a grumble of frustration, cursing the tiger under his breath for never starting the damn fire.

Irah curled himself into a ball on his mat, huffing quietly and doing his best to relax even though he laid there wide awake just listening to the sounds of the forest night around him.

[DragonSong]

Akio didn't sleep much, though it wasn't obvious. He'd shifted back to his feline form and curled up at the edge of the clearing, eyes open just to the tiniest slits and ears perked as he listened to the jungle, wary of danger.

There didn't seem to be anything amiss, but still he couldn't sleep. He did his best to fake it though, sighed softly and burying his nose in his front paws as the moon crept her way across the sky above them.

[Juno]

It was late when he'd finally managed to get to sleep, the sun beginning to peek over the horizon only an hour or two after. The light of morning spilling through the trees didn't rouse him nor did the first calls of birds and monkeys in the branches above. His body was completely still save the gentle rise and fall of his chest, his head resting at an uncomfortable angle against his shoulder for a makeshift pillow.

[DragonSong]

The shifter had been up since sunrise, pacing the outskirts of their little camp, scent marking in an effort to keep any "problems" away from the area.

He waited almost an hour, but when the mage didn't seem to be stirring he huffed and padded over to him, jabbing a paw into his shoulder with a low growl in an effort to wake him.

[Juno]

It was the sound of his growl more than anything that woke him. Irah groaned moodily for being disturbed, it was far too early to be getting up with all his missed rest.

He tilted his head groggily to open his eyes to slits and glare up at the tiger standing over him. His whole body ached and his mind was painfully cloudy as he swatted lightly at Akio's paw. "Not yet," he grumbled in complaint.

[DragonSong]

Akio rolled his eyes, sat back, and swiped a massive paw at the scholar's head-- claws sheathed, of course, but it was still a rather stiff blow.

[Juno]

The dull thump against his head caused the mage to flinch, hissing softly as he curled further in on himself and raised a hand to probe at the spot gently even though it hadn't hurt at all. With a grumble Irah rolled to his back, pinching at the bridge of his nose for a moment before his eyes opened further and he scowled up at the shifter. "You ever heard of a slow morning? What's the hurry?"

[DragonSong]

Tiger shifted to man and Akio glared down at him, ears pinned back. "Welcome to the jungle. If you want a slow morning, you get eaten. Now get moving." He stood, tail twitching. "You wanted more time yesterday, right? Well then quit burning daylight."

[Juno]

Irah could only roll his eyes at that, not at all taking him seriously. He was there for his protection after all, wasn't he? At least by necessity.

"Not like you'd let us get eaten," he pointed out, sitting himself up with a yawn and taking note of the agitated twitching and tense pinning of his ears again. It was barely morning, what was he so upset about?

He quelled the urge to reach out and smooth his fur and instead bustled about collecting his supplies for the day again, most of which were impractical to his survival. "Is there a river nearby? Or a spring? I need water," he complained mildly, tapping at his empty waterskins with disappointment.

[DragonSong]

Akio bit down another growl of irritation and rubbed at his shoulder. "Yeah. It's this way, follow me." He started walking, then paused and glanced back at Irah with a glare. "And stay close."

[Juno]

His features softened with relief that he knew of something nearby, nodding eagerly in agreement as he grabbed the rest of his things and hurried to stand. Akio's sharp reminder only had him rolling his eyes once the shifter couldn't see him, though. "It would be easier to if you didn't walk so fast," Irah mumbled quietly. The mage did his best anyway to stay near him, though he lagged several paces behind as he struggled to navigate the still-unfamiliar jungle.

[DragonSong]

The shifted throttled the air in front of him, but managed to resist the urge to growl. "I swear, I am five seconds away from picking you up and hauling you around like a sack of rice if that'll stop your bitching," he grumbled.

Well. Almost resisted.

[Juno]

Irah lifted his eyes to burn an unamused glare into the back of Akio's head. Gods, this man was so impatient!

"I'm not bitching, I'm pointing out the impracticality of what you're asking for. It's all rush, rush, rush with you! Run, run, run! How am I to get anything done like that? I need to learn everything I can and you can't rush science, this may well be a matter of life or death for some poor soul one day! And I'll be damned if I can't help them because a grumpy tiger couldn't stand being a little patient while I try not to fall on my ass again!" he spewed passionately, his cheeks red and puffing out with an indignant huff.

[DragonSong]

Alright then.

With a huff, Akio stopped, then abruptly turned and grabbed Irah around the waist, tossing him over his shoulder. "Alright, now you can't wander off, and you don't fall on your ass. Everyone wins," he muttered as he started walking again.

[Juno]

Irah could do nothing but gape his mouth like a fish, completely stunned that the shifter would have the audacity to actually pick him up. He grunted his displeasure, scowling at Akio's shoulder and gently thumping a fist against him as if that alone might convince him as he struggled to find words.

"...This is completely unnecessary and undignified, I can walk just fine. I am not a child, put me down," he muttered, pouting as he twisted as best he could to look at him, though it still left him staring at his hair and ears. Which he very much wanted to tug on.

[DragonSong]

For the first time in what felt like days, Akio actually smiled. "Judging by your track record, I'd say just fine is being a bit generous, don't you think?" he commented blithely as he picked his way through the underbrush.

[Juno]

"Well I'm not incapable," he sighed defensively, getting the feeling that nothing he could say would really help his case anyway. "I'm just...slower. Can you really fault me for that? I'm not practiced like you."

He supposed his overall safety was a concern, but he also thought the shifter was a touch overreactive whenever things went against his expectations. "Would it actually kill you to be a little patient?" he muttered.

[DragonSong]

"It might," the shifted replied, apparently in all seriousness. "If I waited for you to finish stumbling your way through the jungle, we might get jumped by another boar or something.