the amu-het - - - - - - valley of kings

[zoocyte]

prompt B1

with a near unmatched talent at storytelling, lhan is able to stir even the most rigid of hearts and the most hardened of souls. though he musters up plenty of bravado and fire when furrowed deeply into his tellings, outside of them he is a quiet and reserved creature. in conversation, expect him to occasionally fall into long, thoughtful pauses as he thinks of just the right words to express his ideas as accurately as possible. no matter the topic and no matter the lion, he always aims to make his responses meaningful and sincere, and he has a way of making one feel that what they have to share is something with value.

lhan has an eye for beauty and finds it in the smallest of things. he enjoys taking time to himself to absorb the sights and sounds and smells all around him. in his state of fathoming, he does not realize the detached appearance that follows him. breaking him off from it abruptly is one of the few things that sets him in a bad mood and clouds his focus, however he tries not to make his vexation too obvious.

lhan is an idealist. he tries to think the best of a situation and come up with the most ideal solution or outcome possible, without taking enough consideration for constraints or practicality. he’s aware that though his ideas sound great in theory, actually fulfilling them is either unnecessarily difficult, complicated or just not possible with the resources at hand. he works well with a more pragmatic individual who can take the most useful aspects of his suggestions and adapt them to the current reality.

he likes meeting new people of different walks of life to expand his views and see different perspectives that he himself never considered. lhan is an avid listener and can listen to someone talk about themselves for hours without growing bored. it is exhausting for him however when others take this as an opportunity to load off all their woes on him. he has a hard time resisting because he feels bad turning them down, and also worries about what might happen if he doesn’t comfort them.

for all his capacity to listen to others’ most private thoughts, feelings and experiences, lhan does not go around spilling truths about himself. he doesn’t think of himself to be interesting enough a subject to talk about, and is surprised when people ask him personal questions. he very rarely shares his innermost self openly and directly - he’ll usually wave you off with some vague details that loop around and answer nothing. that’s not to say it’s impossible to tell what’s going on beneath the surface. snatches of his innermost self snake their way into the stories he tells. dialogue, story arcs, conflicts, themes, and symbolism are a wealth of his personal musings and are media for him to vent out his turmoil without actually addressing it directly for all to ogle at. it only takes a keen eye to pick up on what parts of himself integrate into his tales, and it only takes an innocent clarification of a particular scene or aspect for lhan to unravel and reveal what it means to him.

[zoocyte]

prompt P1 - - - ithca

there's nothing that ithca loves more than the thrill of the hunt and the rush of wind on her pelt. what she lacks in size she makes up for with quick thinking and quick paws. she's a handy lion to have around in fast-acting situations.

however, her knack for immediate responses makes her impatient when it comes to the longterm, and often she opts for the faster solution rather than the more practical one. lhan has helped smooth out her more reckless edges, and at present she has done well to reign in the impulsivity of her younger years.

ithca can get very emotional at times. she feels things very deeply, and though she has fairly thick skin, anything that pierces past it lodges right by her heart and hits hard. she takes those particularly hurtful actions or words personally and will bluster about her day, being a general terror for any poor soul unlucky enough to tick her off just the right way, until either she calms down or a resolution is reached.

she’s wary of strangers, so the process of truly befriending her is a long and gradual one. to those that earn her trust and affection, ithca is a loyal friend and a reliable ally to have by one’s side.

[zoocyte]

prompt A31

the world the pride lives in operates more or less under the same restrictions as our own. the main exception is that animals are capable of complex thought and personality, which leads to the building up of cultures, societies, religions, and other sociological phenomena that we know to be unique to humans. there's a particular magic to that in itself. it requires suspension of belief to be truly embraced and accepted as fact for this universe to exist at all. the lions of this world are physically identical to real-world lions, but the activity going on in the brain department nearly puts them mentally and intellectually at the level of human beings.

that's not to say magic is not a common theme in the stories they tell. fantastical stories of gods and goddesses, magical creatures and supernatural beings are a staple of pride culture, enchanting listeners with unnatural feats they would never experience themselves, beyond the realm of the tales that contain them. oftentimes the origins and workings of natural phenomena, such as the change of seasons and the changes in the weather, are explained through the acts of the gods or other magical occurence, and this knowledge is maintained among the prides by being passed down from one generation to the next.

the closest thing to what the lions consider magic are the subtle, uncanny abilities that very uncommonly individuals are gifted (or cursed) with. some of those abilities include incredibly clear foresight, prophetic dreams or visions, the accurate prediction of incoming natural calamities, an instinct for detecting changes in the weather, a knack for reading other people's thoughts and intentions, consistent incidents of very good or very bad luck, and nearly unmatched talent in a certain skill. being born with or developing a particularly unusual appearance can also be attributed to magical origin.

[zoocyte]

prompt A21 [wip]

the flora present in the world of the Heart-tongues are native to South Sudan and other parts of East Africa.

Cordyla richardii
local lion-given name:

[zoocyte]

prompt C11

the territory of the pride is large and fruitful enough to sustain a large number of lions, so for the moment lions looking to join are welcome. the heart-tongues are a hospitable folk and play host to the odd visitor or two fairly often, so long as they bring no ill will and are willing to help out in the daily chores and livelihood of the pride. bigger groups of outsiders looking to stay awhile are treated with more caution, and the pride treats them politely but with added vigilance over their kindness being taken advantage of. they may be allowed to camp along the border until they are rested and strong enough to continue travelling to wherever it is they are headed to, accompanied by an entourage of heart-tongues as their guides, who both ensure they pass through safely and ensure they don't stir up any trouble.

lions looking to stay more permanently are allowed to, so long as they have a good track record and the pride accepts their presence. they do turn down requests to join if the pride picks up on something shifty about the outsider, if their behavior is any cause for alarm, if they have no respect for or capacity to understand the local culture and laws, if they seem to have immense difficulty adapting to their lifestyle, or if their motivations are self-centered rather than sincere. new members are put on probation and are kept under watchful eye by the higher-ups. they're still subject to being expelled from the pride if their presence brings more harm than good. so long as they adjust and integrate well, there shouldn't be any problems with them becoming a full member.

there are some particular traits that the heart-tongues appreciate in outsiders looking to join. those are a willingness to learn and work for the pride, an openness to new experiences, a respectful curiosity to learn more about their way of life and their beliefs, and, quite favorably, a creative soul. the heart-tongues live and breathe stories so any newcomer bearing a good one to tell will be happily entertained.

[zoocyte]

prompt xxx [wip]

lhan does not have the iron in him to rule with enough discipline and authority to truly rally his pride into an effective working unit - not when he first started out, at least. he makes sure to involve himself in the lives of his pridemates and make them feel welcome, respected and appreciated. no voice should feel lesser or unheard, so he opens himself to the advice and criticism his pridemates offer him. unwilling to turn down requests for aid from his fellows, he can be counted on to put his entire self into bettering their situation in the way he knows best.

overall a kind and humble leader with compassion for his pridemates.

[zoocyte]

prompt B16

lhan does not like seeing his pridemates as subordinates. he considers them his equals, and doesn't think of himself as any more special than any of them. lhan feels he is just another member of the crowd who happened to be selected with the task of bringing and keeping them together. he has said that power exists only in the minds of the people. it is something that has been given to him freely by those very people - not taken by force nor by manipulation. it is only right that power is used for their benefit and not his.

he refers to his pridemates as fellow creators of the arts, all on a journey to hone their respective crafts. lhan believes that one way or another, fate has brought all these lions to him, all gifted in their various fields and all striving to build a prosperous society. the pride is a community, all playing their part in contributing to mutual survival. in the future, once the pride lives through one generation to the next, it becomes also a family, both in blood and in bond.

[zoocyte]

prompt B30

lhan’s largest failing as a leader is his capacity to be pragmatic. when handling complex issues, he sometimes forgets some of the potential repercussions and fails to prepare for them. being an idealist, he often miscalculates just how far they can pursue a certain goal with the available resources. he sets the bar at the highest, most favorable result, even if it is one beyond what he and his pride can reach.

though he tries not to show it, lhan is terrified of having to solve interpersonal conflict between pride members. anger, scorn, spite and hatred are emotions he has difficulty dealing with, and getting aggravated lions to calm down is a huge task for him. dealing with unreasonable or rebellious members is also stressful for him, because it’s difficult for him to accept that some people may think negatively of him even if he has meant no harm. lhan doesn’t have the will power and adequate respect for himself and his position to be properly assertive without assistance.

[zoocyte]

prompt B23 [wip]

he needs to learn to create more roughly built and fast-paced plans that can be enacted swiftly so that problems aren’t left to stew and simmer while his head is consumed by heftier ideas.

[zoocyte]

prompt C9

The Heart-tongues, on very rare occasion, attain war prisoners. Though not technically members of the pride, they live and toil alongside them until the pride chooses to release them, sometimes back to their respective pride, other times into the unknown wilderness. It is costly to maintain prisoners, so the pride avoids taking them unless they absolutely have to, mainly as bargaining chips for negotiations with enemy prides. Prisoners require resources like food and water to sustain them. They also need round-the-clock surveillance from at least three guards, which takes away working hands from the pride for the duration of their shifts.

War prisoners are expected to perform daily pride chores, tasks and general maintenance. They do not have the power to say no to errand-running or requests for assistance from pride members, as long as the demands are reasonable. If enough trust and reliability is established in a prisoner, they are made to assist in group hunts provided they are strictly monitored by guards, who closely follow the hunt but do not participate in order to focus completely on the prisoner and their actions. In the eating order, prisoners always eat last (unless they are severely injured, ill or otherwise), taking whatever scraps are left behind after the whole pride has eaten. Prisoners are rewarded for obedience and for providing pertinent information about their home pride. Occasionally a prisoner may integrate so well into Heart-tongue life that they can rise through the ranks to become a full-fledged member of the pride, but this requires months of hard work as concrete evidence of their sincerity. It also necessitates a denouncement of their former allegiance with their original pride.