Moods of Blue I

Taking over this place was taking her longer than she thought. Rather, she found herself still following the periphery of the scent-marks and making her opposing marks long into the day. The sun was beginning to get sleepy as far as she could see, sinking lower in the sky as the day went on.

She had rested at the old man's shack near the amaranth garden, and the bush had seemed peculiar to her in a way. It had appeared with fireflies instead of the usual bees, rising like spirit particles into the air at her awakening. There was a note attached, but she simply bore this trinket with her. It was impossible for her to figure out what the characters said. She was completely illiterate, having been raised in the wilds.

Perhaps she could find someone who might read it to her. Jack was a smart demon. He could probably read. She wasn't sure if Lethe could read, but she didn't really want to show him the note. It might have spoke of her weakness, and she wanted him to still respect her.

[ EXP: 200 ]

Another thing that she'd seen fit to take with her were a few of the "Love Lies Bleeding" blossoms. They intrigued her, but this particular bush's foliage was special. She'd escaped some very great hurt this day, and she wanted to commemorate it.

There was the issue, however, of finding food. She'd vomited while fighting the abomination, Belphegor, and it had emptied her stomach, filling it instead with a powerful hunger that drove her to seek out something tasty and meaty. Something fresh, especially. It was amazing when something was sufficiently nasty to remove the desire to eat rot from a hyena. It might be compared to a human who, ordinarily accustomed to eating burgers and liking the taste, biting into a wet, greasy burger and subsequently not being in the mood for burgers. She wanted something fresh and alive without the slightest sign of rot.

So she took off for the eastern forests. There was a light at the end of the tunnel, it seemed. The scent curved around and soon would go south.

[ EXP: 200 ]

There were many interesting sights and smells in the forest, but she found herself somewhat remiss at the lack of company to hunt things with. Indeed, she was out here in the forests all alone at this point, and the freshest prey came when one had a clan to chase it down with.

Perhaps there might be someone in the area interested in joining up for awhile and chasing down a deer? She cackled out into the night on the off chance that someone worthwhile would be nearby to hear her.

Nobody answered.

She sighed, figuring that it was unreasonable to expect an answer. It was distinctly a hyena's call, and she didn't really know of any extant hyena populations in the area since her clan had become extinct. And even then, why would they accept her? The head female would assume that this young ursurper was coming in from the outside or was from somewhere bad. AFter all, if something bad had happened to Iskra's clan, how would she know she wasn't bringing disaster upon another?

[ EXP: 200 ]

It was fairly useless to think about it, but she didn't really care to stay out here alone much longer. The hyena did get lonely at times like this fairly often. Usually scent marking was something an entire clan participated in. Her rear end felt empty, the scent glands exhausted. Creatures such as her weren't meant to mark such a large territory alone.

So she focused for a minute on something else. She crept through the brush, her nose to the ground and her ears perked up. Usually hyenas only liked to eat fairly large things... things that were deer-sized. She found a deer, albeit a small one.

She found such a creature, but it was underneath the paw of a very, very large bear.

The bruin was taller than she was in her hyena form. She'd never seen such a large animal.

She barked at it once, curiously. It turned its great, grizzled maw to her.

It snorted, and somehow they connected.

Iskra couldn't explain the sudden bond she felt with the beast, except that it was reciprocal.

[ EXP: 204 ]

The background seemed to change to shojo bubbles. The hyena rushed and leaped playfully on the bear. It roared and they rolled over and over on the grass. An odd bard with star-shaped glasses and a gap in his teeth played on the ancient analogue of a keyboard and sang.

Sooooomeday, out of the blue

In a crowded street

Or a deserted square

I'll turn and I'll see you

As if our love were new

Someday we can start again someday soon.

They pranced and chased each other throughout the woods, and after a vigorous lovemaking session, Iskra prepared to leave for Lethe.

She left one final sunmark on the tree before she realized...

...she couldn't just leave her new friend here.

He would be so lonely.

And thus, the woman and the bear took off into the afternoon sunlight. Back through the trees and the woods and over creeks and any other obstacles that presented themselves. They ran far and away, back to Lethe and his company. They could claim the areas between later.

[ EXP: 200 ]

Land grabbed!