Oddity Pride [Valley of Kings Writings]

[ToxicShadow]

S21

What is your lion’s opinion on destiny? Do they believe fate always has a plan or do they write it off as silly? Do they think themselves in control of everything or accept things that are out of their paws?
250 word minimum, 1 Point


Lethality cannot be sure that something like destiny exists. The possibility that there is genuinely an outside force that controls her actions and the events in her life, down to what she does, to who she meets, who she loves, and who she hates, seems incredibly unlikely, if not impossible. What she does believe in, however, is the likelihood of a person behaving a certain way and taking certain actions based on what they have been predisposed to while growing up. If one is raised in an environment where the parents act like they are better than others, and attempt to raise their child with the same sort of thinking, then there is a good chance that the child will behave that way, too, when they are older. If a child is not shown to value others, then, most likely, they wont. And, of course, those that are raised to show kindness, oftentimes, will be kind. There are certainly exceptions to this rule, and Lethality likes to believe that she is one of them, in some regards, but it is commonly true.

For the most part, Lethality believes that her actions are her own, and she is the one that must take responsibility for her own actions. However, there are certainly times when things our entirely out of her hands and out of her control. After all, she can't prevent dire illnesses. No matter how much one tries to be healthy and take care of themselves, they can still become ill, and there was never anything that she or anyone else could actually do about that. But, even then, she does not believe that it was someone's destiny to be born into the world only to grow ill. It's just an unfortunate thing that happens in life.

[297]

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S24

What kind of sleeper is your lion? What position do they sleep in? How do they usually wake up? Are they a heavy or light sleeper? When do they usually sleep?
250 word minimum, 1 Point

When it comes down to it, Lethality is a natural night owl. She is the sort that would stay up until the early morning, just before the sun rises, before finally feeling tired enough to actually sleep. And, then, of course, she would sleep in until noon or so. This has been changed, by force, throughout the years, though. When she was younger, she had to uphold her family's sleeping schedule, which involved waking up at no later than seven or eight in the morning, meaning that she had to go to bed no later than midnight, but usually sooner. Then, there was a period of time where she had to be most active in the middle of the night throughout the morning, until noon, so she would do her best to sleep during the afternoon, wake for a meal, and then sleep again prior to having to rise. There have even been times where she must sleep only in hour long naps, several times a day, just to stay functioning.

Nowadays, she still is, ultimately, a night owl, but she has learned the ability to fall asleep nearly anywhere, at any time, even in uncomfortable positions, for quick naps. She has difficulty falling asleep most nights for genuine sleep unless she pushes herself to exhaustion, but once she is asleep, she sleeps fairly deeply. She is both a light and heavy sleeper. Certain sounds will, undoubtedly, wake her up no matter what, but she can sleep through many noises that she just drowns out.

While she does not always remember her dreams, she does remember them often enough, and some of them are quite strange.

[276]

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Nero is the type that is capable of sleeping deeply and can practically fall asleep anywhere, even in an uncomfortable or unorthodox position, such as when she is sitting at attention or even when she is standing without faltering or having any difficulty. However, in contrast to this, she is the type that can be woken up very easily, under the right circumstances. Even while sleeping soundly, she is acutely aware of and able to sense danger and negative energy and intentions, thus, she will wake in such moments without having to be roused from her sleep. When she wakes, she is most commonly very alert, and not frequently groggy or showing any signs of tiredness, no matter how little sleep she actually managed to get. Likewise, if someone calls out to her, she will awake instantly.

She moves very little while sleeping, not the type to roll or wiggle much, though she has the occasional paw, ear, or tail twitch, namely if she is dreaming.

Although she is not all too aware of it yet, Nero is also the type that, should she have a beloved in her life, would very much enjoy snuggling in her sleep. Over all, she is incredibly independent and is not always too fond of physical contact, at least not casually and not something that is intimate, but with a lover, that would be an entirely different matter. With accepting someone into her life as such, she would be the type that would very much desire that closeness with them, even while sleeping.

[259]

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As Makuvu is always accompanied by Death, the crow, out of sheer necessity, his sleeping habits and routines have been somewhat effected by his companion. If one of them should die, so would the other, so they cannot risk being apart. But Death, being a crow, adheres to a schedule of sleeping once the world goes dark. When he sun begins to set, he would naturally look for a safe place to rest for the night. While with Makuvu, the crow's schedule is not quite as strict, but he still desires sleep at a reasonable time, and, so, Makuvu has adjusted his schedule to it. Unless there are unavoidable circumstances or other responsibilities, the lion commonly goes to sleep no later than nine in the evening, on average.

When resting, he is talented, with his ability to sleep sitting, standing and, of course, lying down without a great preference for one over the other. When he sleeps, he even seems to hold some other bird like habits. While incapable of fully fluffing up all of his fur, he usually fluffs up the feathers of his wings and sleeps with them comfortably enveloping himself in their soft warmth. Unfortunately, he does not sleep all too soundly.

As one that grew up with a dangerous childhood, not knowing if he was truly ever safe, he has always had difficulty actually falling asleep and sleeping deeply. He is woken up easily, wakes several times a night, and might even be considered jumpy, but, strangely, he does not really show much grogginess even when woken up suddenly.

[263]

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Most comfortable within darkness, Vayde prefers to sleep deep within the caverns, in the pitch black darkness. When he was young, the dark used to frighten him and keep him up at night until his eyes just grew too heavy to remain open any longer. Now, however, after it was his long time companion, it brings him a get sense of comfort. It is practically impossible for him to sleep when the world around him his brightly lit up, so it's rare that he will accidentally fall asleep, even if completely exhausted, when not resting in the dark.

Most of the time, he is capable of sleeping through the night without much issue, but it is difficult to say if that sleep is always restful. Vayde is not the sort to move around a whole lot in his sleep, but he is the type that whimpers and whines in his sleep, as if he is constantly suffering with bad dreams. Fortunately, he only very rarely recalls whatever it was that he was dreaming about once he wakes. So, even if he does not sleep well from his bad dreams, at least they no longer haunt him once he is awake.

His sleeping routine is not all too consistent. He does not go to sleep at a certain time, or go through certain motions before going to sleep. He simply sleeps when he finally feels like he can no longer keep his eyes open and drags himself into the depths of the caverns, whenever that may be.

[256]

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S14

Your lion has broken or ruined something important to another member of their pride, how do they respond? Was it intentional, or accidental?
250 word minimum, 1 Point


The majority of the time, Lethality is a rather capable person. However, there is, without a doubt, times where she becomes incredibly clumsy, and these times tend to manifest seemingly out of nowhere. This usually comes in the form of tripping over her own self, slamming her foot in the door, some how scratching herself with her own nails, dropping her food, so on and so forth. Occasionally, this manifests in accidentally hurting someone else, bumping into them, stepping on their foot, knocking over something that belonged to them, and so on.

If she were to break something important to someone else, it would most certainly be an accident, and one that she would feel bad about. She would not try to hide the accident, though, and would be quick to admit her fault and apologize for it, all while feeling guilty. She would then try to make it up to the person, if at all possible. That is, assuming, that the person she was apologizing to didn't fly off the handle during her apology. Those that react very negatively and harshly while she is apologizing for an accident make her defensive, rather than apologetic. In which case, it's much more difficult to pry an apology out of her, until the situation has more or less already blown over.

When it comes down to it, she is not the sort that would maliciously go out of her way to hurt someone by ruining something important to them, because she isn't the type that would want to leave lasting damage over some sort of temporary argument or disagreement.

[267]

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S4

Write about one lion’s feelings towards parenthood. What do they want for their cubs? What are their fears and worries? How do they discipline their little ones when they misbehave? What would make them proud of them? Or disappointed?
500 word minimum, 2 Points


Growing up, Nero never really had the luxury to consider if she wanted to have children of her own or not. Given the harsh, abusive and neglectful way that she was raised, although she was determined to survive, it would have been difficult to say if she would even live long enough to have her own children. And, back then, even if she had managed to find the time to consider it, she would have adamantly refused to have and raise her own children within the confines of the Demon Clan.

Afterwards, once she had left her birth clan behind, it still wasn't something that she initially put a lot of thought into. Yet, when it came down to it, she became a mother, without even having the chance to consider it. When she rescued an orphaned cub, whom had barely managed to survive the destruction of her entire pride and was being hunted down, Nero took on the role of a mother, then and there. She didn't have time to prepare, but she did what she believed was right and necessary. She saved a child, so, therefore, she would raise that child.

She doesn't have a negative view of parenthood, it was just something she had not considered until it happened. In becoming a mother, she dearly wants to be the best parent that she can be and raise her children with the utmost care and respect. One thing she is certain of is that, even while young, cubs can have their own ideas of what they like and don't like, and should be respected as their own being with their own thoughts and feelings. Of course, so long as they are not harming themselves or others. And, as a parent, there are still certain rules that must be set and followed.

Ultimately, Nero doesn't want anything more than for her children to be safe and happy. In that respect, Nero could never be disappointed in them for their choice of lovers, hobbies or the likes, assuming they aren't bringing harm to anyone. Of course, her children cannot be exempt from the rules of the pride, though, so each and every one of them has and forever will be required to learn how to fight and defend themselves. Their pride has powerful enemies, so learning how to fight is a necessity of survival.

Nero still has her worries, though. In never having a good role model for parenthood, there are times when she is insecure. She worries about being a good parent. Not too harsh, but not too relaxed, either. Not too protective, but not too distanced, either. Finding the balance is difficult, indeed, and she has second guessed herself many times. One thing she must remember, though, is that as long as she is worrying if she is a good parent, she is already a decent parent, and certainly better than some. Aside from that, she is undoubtedly worried about the possibility of something ever happening to her children. If they get hurt, or even lose their lives, but that is something that all decent parents worry about, and there is nothing she can do to prevent some things from happening.

[533]

[ToxicShadow]

[Lions: Kandra, Lee Ah, Zuka]

The strange, colorful lioness, the one known as the Goddess of Magic, wandered through the many fruit trees that rose up from the ground only due to the God of Nature's touch. To say that the trees were Zuka's children would not be entirely inaccurate; he spent so much time and energy caring for all the various fruit bearing trees that he would be, undoubtedly, furious with anyone that dared to mistreat them. However, Kandra had no interest in the trees, even though they were all simultaneously in a state of blossoming but also producing fruit. She had a different interest in visiting Zuka's known territory.

As she passed through the orchard, it was not at all surprising that the pink eyed lion came out to find her, and she greeted him with what could be considered a faint smile. "Hello, Zuka. How are you this morning?"

"Everything is well," Zuka replied easily. The God of Nature had no qualms with the Goddess showing up in his territory, though, of course, he was curious as to why she was visiting this day. "What brings you here this morning?"

"That's good news," Kandra replied. "I was hoping that you would allow me to pick a few flowers from your garden." She got straight to the point, without any hesitation. "I wanted to present them to someone as a small gift." Zuka didn't just grow trees, of course, he also grew a lovely selection of flowers, as well. In fact, he could probably grow any flower imaginable, should he so desire.

"Ah, a few flowers? Of course you may. Just please take care when picking them." He didn't press, as it was none of his business whom Kandra wanted to gift flowers to. He was just more than happy he could provide such a lovely thing.

"Thank you. I appreciate it."

The male nodded. "Go on now, don't let me keep you. I doubt you'll want to keep them waiting."

As she had received permission from the one that had grown the flowers, Kandra carried on through the orchard until she made her way to the garden. Although she had seen it a few times, she never paid it much attention, so when she began to look in detail, she was, admittedly, surprised by the sheer variety of flowers. She couldn't say she was well versed in them, either.

In the end, the strange female ended up choosing flowers simply on what she thought was pretty, and pretty together, and arranged them as nicely as she could into a bouquet.

When the sun had rose up high into the sky, she ventured to the entrance of another lioness' home. "Lee Ah?" she called out from where she stood. "May I come in?"

There was no immediate response.

"Lee Ah?" she called again.

She was certain that they had agreed to meet today at this time, so it seemed unlikely that Lee Ah had forgotten and gone off elsewhere.

"U-Uh, I'm... here." She finally heard the other lioness' voice, but it was... weak and shaky.

Concerned, Kandra ventured inside, to find the other lioness wiping at her face with a paw; very obviously attempting to wipe away her tears. But she looked up at the colorful lioness and seemed to smile anyway. "Hey, Kandra. Sorry, I... I was thinking too much."

Lee Ah already knew that if she wasn't honest that Kandra would wonder what was wrong and worry about her, and she had no reason not to be honest.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," Kandra said, stepping closer. She was well aware of what Lee Ah was probably thinking about, if she was thinking too much and crying. "I... I don't know if it will cheer you up, but I brought you something."

With a motion of her head, the bouquet of flowers that she had left at the entrance came floating over, landing gingerly at Lee Ah's feet. "I picked them this morning, and fashioned them into a bouquet, but I wasn't sure what flowers you'd like, or... even if you like flowers that much."

This time, when Lee Ah's eyes began to tear up, it was for an entirely different reason.

[718]

[ToxicShadow]

[Lions: All of them?]

The sun that once lit up the sky and the entire world around them was just beginning to set, lowering beyond the horizon. It bathed the outside in an orangish glow, and painted the skies many hues of purples, pinks, oranges and reds. And, on this particular day, it did even more than that. Seven days prior, it was announced that the entire clan would gather for a meeting within the main room of the shrine cavern on this day, at sun down. Although their primary territory was one that could be traversed by most with ease, there were some folks that did not strictly stay within their lands. Rather, they came and went, as they needed or saw fit. Thus, the entire span of seven days was given so that all members could be informed and make the time and effort to attend. Normally, even when the majority of the group gathered together, there were a few members that did not make it, for one reason or another, but Nero formally insisted that everyone make the time to attend this time around.

She, the Demon King and leader of the group, sat beneath the red, wooden arches that lead up to the shrine, itself, facing what would be the entrance from the outside. Beside her, to the right, stood the First Commander, Makuvu, whom also formerly hailed from the Demon Clan, just as she did. Directly to her left, was a younger female, Fallyn, whom was the adopted daughter of Nero, the Demon King, making her the Demon Princess. And, beside her, was where Aggoth, the one whom first wandered these lands and acted much as an advisor, took to sitting. Although, when he saw that his two daughters, Circe and Lark, had arrived, he glanced toward their leader. "Do you mind if I join them?" he inquired of her, motioning his head toward the two members of his family.

When addressed, Nero turned her gaze to Aggoth, then toward his daughters that he had motioned to, and then nodded her head. "Of course. You are not any less of an important figure for sitting somewhere else. Please, join your family." As it was, this meeting most probably did not require the advisor sitting beside her. Although the matters were important to Nero, and the others closest to her agreed, it was not something that was particularly... controversial. Hopefully.

[402]

Aggoth nodded his head in return, before stepping away and joining Lark and Circe. The three of them settled into a spot within the cavern that was still considerably close, while waiting for the rest of the members to come forth.

"My apologies," Vayde said in greeting toward Nero as he stepped forth from the shadows, his body entirely manifesting from within and out of the shadows. "I intended to be the very first arrival, but it seems I was a moment late."

Nero's features showed a bit of a smile toward the male that had greeted her with an apology. "No need to worry," she reassured him. "Thank you for coming in such a timely manner."

Vayde lowered his head in a respectful bow toward Nero before making his way out into the cavern, settling into a spot where he was currently alone. Not that he would remain that way for long.

Of the next two arrivals, one of them came bounding in with more enthusiasm than seemed necessary for the moment, but suited him just as well. It was Domino, a member of the First Unit, under Makuvu's command, and the God of Fire. Domino was the sort that always seemed to have boundless energy, and was incredibly friendly. So without any hesitation or second thoughts, when he spied Aggoth and his family, and then Vayde sitting all alone, he made his way toward the other male and sat down beside him. "Hey Vayde. Any idea what this meeting is supposed to be all about?" He wondered.

Vayde looked at the other male, whom he knew to be able to manipulate fire, and answered quietly, "I haven't any idea." And he didn't, as he didn't even bother to ask when Nero had directly informed him about the meeting.

"Ah. I was thinking that maybe, since you're a Yokai rather than a First, that boss would have ended up giving you more detail." Domino didn't mention it because he thought there was any favoritism or anything like that. It was just that he had heard about the meeting from the First Commander rather than the King, herself, who had called the meeting and figured that Vayde, a Yokai, whom worked even more closely with Nero on the regular, would have heard it from her and, thus, maybe heard the reason for it, too.

[401]

"I didn't ask," Vayde admitted, easily enough. Overall, he had been known not to talk all too much, but it wasn't because he disliked anyone, he had just grown up in an environment where he was unable to talk with anyone, and got used to not hearing his own voice. That, and also got all too used to everyone else not talking to him, too. So when Domino approached him and began talking out of nowhere, it had surely surprised him at first, but he had mostly gotten used to it by now. In actual fact, Vayde somewhat admired the other male for his ability to so easily be willing to exchange words with others and not offering any major unjust judgements.

The other member that had stepped into the shrine cavern at very nearly the same time as the chatty Domino was Zuka, a commonly gentle natured male whom had the ability to manipulate all sorts of plants and was known more formally as the God of Nature. Without any words, at first, he came and sat on the other side of Vayde and, only when Domino had seemed to take a moment from their exchange, did he greet the two of them. "Good evening, Vayde, Domino. Have your days been well?"

Vayde only nodded his head in acknowledgement of and as a response to Zuka, while the God of Fire replied, "Yes, good evening. Everything has been well. How about things for you?"

"Yes. The day was relaxing and splendid," Zuka answered.

The faces within the shrine cavern were some of the first that had joined together with Nero and made this wonderous place their own, but even this was far from everyone.

"Mother, do you think that everyone will make it today?" Fallyn asked, shifting her gaze to the one beside her, whom had not only had taken her in when she had no where else to go, but had saved her life even before that.

"I do believe that everyone will," Nero, the Demon King, answered her daughter. "I truly believe in everyone, as I asked everyone to arrive." She had faith in everyone coming when they were all called upon.

Makuvu listened to their exchange without saying much, but the thought crossed his mind that he felt fortunate to live this life now, beside one such as Nero, even though he had originally very much doubted her at first.

[411]

Within moments, they were all joined by another four. Stepping across the threshold at the very same moment, their steps perfectly matched up, was Jabari and Chione, the pair that had come together from a foreign land, having once been members of royalty. They were in the lead, while their two daughters, Raziya and Safiya, followed closely behind them as they exchanged words in hushed voices amongst themselves. The similar markings of all the family members was a trademark that hailed from their previous homeland, when they were still mortal. Everyone from their homeland had similar markings and appearances, without much variation.

The four them settled into a spot between both groups that had gathered thus far, the parents sitting side by side, and their daughters sitting side by side, as well, beside Chione.

An additional family was quick to follow in behind them, though they each came in one by one. The first inside was Vaal, whom had come to be known as the Weather Meister, with her ability to control rain and storms with her voice. Behind her was the love of her life, Zralok, the one known for his dangerous, shark-like appearance and ability to not only breathe under water, but to control and manipulate water, too. More formally, he was known as the God of Water. The two had met when Vaal was tangled up and thrown into the river, left to drown by her former clanmates, and Zralok, whom just so happened to have been hunting fish in the area, came to her aid. Behind them, came Ceres, their daughter, and then in came Mercury, their son. Both children had abilities similar to their parents, but it had yet to be determined if they were even more powerful than each of them or not.

The entire family had the ability to breathe underwater, and were often more out of touch than other members of the group because of it. The children, of course, inherited their ability directly from their father, while Vaal gained the ability from Zralok, after the two exchanged fragments of their souls in a ceremony unique to life mates formed within their group. They were the first larger group that were considered a possibility of not always showing up to meetings, given that they were so often out of touch.

So, it was relief to see them, for those that had quietly been worried about it.

[404]

[ToxicShadow]

[Lions: Makuvu and Nero]

"The Demon Prince," Makuvu growled the words. His entire posture was one that showed he was ready to attack or defend himself against the one that had approached him. "Why have you come?"

"Correction: The Demon King," Nero said these words in full confidence. "But I was never a prince. Do not be mistaken." Unlike Makuvu, Nero carried herself without any intent to fight, although she stood in such a way that she commanded respect and showed that she had much confidence in herself.

Although it was subtle, Makuvu's eyes narrowed, becoming even more of a glare, but he did not outright admit that the last words had confused him. The first words spoken by Nero made perfect sense. No longer being the Prince but, rather, being the King, meant that Nero had fought and taken the life of the former king that he had known, thus, proving himself stronger and taking the title and power, too. Never being the prince, though, was not a possibility. It had always been a fact.

Though, the reality of her words dawned on him after his mind began to work through it in such a way. "If not a prince, than a princess," he stated.

Nero managed to laugh, as he voiced his realization. "You caught on quickly enough. I don't know if I should even be surprised."

It was strange, to hear her laugh. This situation was never something that he could imagine happening within his entire lifetime, and that was not even including the newfound information that Nero had been intentionally misgendered and had only been raised as a prince. That was not shocking, compared to witnessing the new Demon King laughing so easily.

He didn't show any real outward signs of his surprise. Instead, he asked the same question again, "Why have you come?" Even knowing that the one before him was no longer the heir, but the established King brought an even greater possibility of danger to the encounter.

"You were the first, and only other, in my lifetime to stand up against the will of my father and the rules of the Clan that had been set," Nero answered. "That is why I came to find you, after discovering that your grave had been unearthed and your remains were nowhere to be seen."

"You visited my grave?" Makuvu asked in disbelief, before he managed to stop himself. Though, he immediately regretted showing any curiosity in this situation. He was very much still in fight or flight mode, and more so ready to fight for his life.

Nero nodded her head. "Although it had been a royal command to leave your body where it fell, less one want to lose their life, too, I had carried it away in secret to give you as much of a proper burial as I could. So, of course, I would visit your gravesite, given the opportunity." Her answers were nothing but honest.

And, though Makuvu held his suspicions that she was only luring him in, there was a small part of him, deep within his heart, that believed Nero actually was being honest.

[534]