Dense [OPEN]

[Fahrenheit]

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[atrb=background,http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm141/Spottedbelly/lutheus-2copy_zps07937072.png] [OPEN] Lutheus could taste the humidity in the air like a cloth in his mouth, and the vapors soaked his fur. He felt weighted down, sticky, shaggy — yet the weather was balmy, although the sky was gray like dulled metal. It would rain soon, possibly; Lutheus hated the idea of it, but underneath the mangled canopies, he ventured to believe that he would be safe enough. Although once it started, it would only be a matter of time before it saturated the branches and gathered on the leaves, and then he would have tree rain to contend with. Lutheus had the desire to walk, though, so he took the opportunity before the deluge began. Yet, once he returned to his den, he would have a lot of washing to do. Small black bugs swarmed around his head. He blinked them off, flicked his ears, carried on. The ground was cool against his paw pads, but the leaf litter was oddly brittle and hazardous with shards of fallen branches and beaded cobwebs, laced into the grooves of roots and various decay. Lutheus slunk into ditches, picked his way down descending and ascending pathways, and padded around the broad trunks of black-barked trees. He didn't have a particular destination in mind; he was looking to get his fill of exercise and nature, although all he did — anyone did — was exist in nature. Lutheus was permeated with woodland, dagger-headed storms, warm and muggy winds. It was nice, and it was all he'd ever known, but his mind wandered abstractedly to the Capital, and he dumbly wondered what it would be like to live in an actual building instead of in caves and under the shelter of fallen trees. Thunder rumbled overhead. Lutheus didn't immediately recognize it as such, but it became undeniable when white lightning lit up the woods in a pale pooling flash. The storm was definitely coming. Lutheus stopped in his walk to look up into the stretches of branches above. They were trembling, and he could hear the whistle among them — and then the rattling, and he grimaced. He had better get back to his den. If only he hadn't wandered so far. For as the desire struck him, the rain began to pour. It was just a sizzling at first, but then it started slipping down to the the forest floor by the time Lutheus cut across to a slab of stone underneath the sloppy protection of a thick sapling. He watched the silver precipitation come down in translucent slants — reminding him of hard sleet, and he growled. Lutheus would rather stubbornly wait it out than keep going.

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[Mystic]

Thunder rumbled through the trees as well as the lone tigress’s sleek frame. She swallowed, moistening her dry throat. The humidity in the air was weighing her down and she padded along, putting forth little effort to pick up her feet. Much mulch was displaced. There was no need to rush just because of a little rain. Nara loved the feeling of rain droplets hitting her back; the way they dug deep down into her fur, quenching her hot skin. She hummed lightly, continuing on a well worn deer path. The striped beauty tore through the damp foliage. Her destination was as uncertain now as it had been when she’d left in the first place, but it didn’t particularly matter to her. Nara could clearly remember her mother before she left, sitting on her haunches with a look of sorrow masking her face.

Suddenly Nara’s throat tightened with anger and other emotions she couldn’t quite pinpoint. She halted and swallowed hard, relieving the tension and burning sensation. Before she could move again, the sky opened up, letting the rain drench everything in sight. She sat for a minute more, admiring the sound of the rain on the large leaves surrounding her. It was a soothing sound, like the echo of rain at the mouth of a stone den. Nara sighed, before picking up her pace. She trotted purposefully in her original direction, kicking up mud along the way.

Her fur was soaked now and it lay flat against her muscular body. She tried to keep from shaking her head, but the rain was relentless and it stung her eyes, blurring her vision if she didn’t rid herself of the water on her face. The rain had put a stop to the fierce humidity, making it cool enough to see her breath in the air when she panted. Her frolic was interrupted by an unforeseen growl. She jumped to her left, as it had come from her right, and her back arched, the wet hair on her back standing straight. It was a lone Tiger, seeking refuge from the precipitation. She noted that he was rather large; much larger than she. Actually, he was large for a tiger in general. This didn’t exactly intimidate her at the moment, for he had just given her a scare. Giving the male tiger another glance, she could see his clearly defined muscles even though he wasn’t moving. Nara relaxed her body, but flattened her ears to her head while letting a meaningless growl escape her throat. She shook her head and turned to the male under the trees canopy, and sat down with the rain cascading down her body and to the forest floor. The tigress curiously cocked her head, unable to find the right words to begin a conversation.

[Fahrenheit]

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[atrb=background,http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm141/Spottedbelly/lutheus-2copy_zps07937072.png] [OPEN: Nara] It was that vaguely overwhelming sense that something was approaching, or something was watching — but it enveloped his chest, constricted his rationality, and heightened an anxiety that rarely ever arose in Lutheus, yet a possible stranger encroaching on his space was always worthy of controlled fear. Yet he did not turn around, nor did he press himself to walk on. He couldn't make out anything for the rain, but he doubted that whatever was nearing him was of any threat, unless if it was some cocky tiger or tigress thinking they could catch him unawares. Lutheus tried listening, scenting, but the sharp tangy air and wind in the trees stifled everything. However, he heard a growl — it carried over the din of the rain in the leaves and the gentle thunder in the clouds, and Lutheus felt both put on edge yet vaguely indifferent. Who on Earth was walking around in the rain like he was? And out of any kind of shelter, for he was underneath the boughs of a sapling yet the downpour still dripped between the folds and darkened his striped fur in freezing little rivulets (when the rain wasn't clinging to his whiskers and over his good eye, making it nearly impossible to see). Ah, he hated it so much. He was even starting to feel cold, and that simply wouldn't do — not so late in spring, not so filled with nimbus and warmer fervor. Thunder rumbled again overhead before he squarely turned to his spontaneous visitor. "Nara," he nearly exclaimed. He hadn't expected her, yet he realized how blessed he was to be so suddenly graced with her presence. A tigress really was the best thing to unexpectedly have — yet, why — "You're wet," he noted dryly. "And apparently mute." He added the last part with partial humor. He was bemused and agitated all at the same time. Rain always put him in such a foul humor.

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[Mystic]

The tigress pricked her ears at the voice and squinted away the water droplets in her eyes until she could clearly make out the figure. It was Lutheus, the minister of the Military caste. He had practically roared her name, and she had been slightly caught off guard. “Lutheus,” she reciprocated using almost the same tone with him as he had with her. Unintentionally of course, and she hoped that he didn’t think of it as an insult. She had a way of giving off the wrong impression, but she didn’t mean to and she didn’t want to insult the minister. She glanced at the tiger seeking refuge from the drizzle.

She should have known it was him. She’d only ever seen one tiger so large, especially in the area. Not only was his frame colossal, it was exceptionally well muscled to boot. The first thing you noticed when you saw him was his seemingly faultless build. At first she thought it quite intimidating if he ever approached her. In no time Nara overcame that feeling however, because she eventually realized the she had a power that she still couldn’t quite put her claws on. Regardless it had made her more confident than she already was with the help of earning the position of General. One goal had been attained, now to take down the Parliamentary caste… She shook her head slightly, chasing away the thought for now and exchanging it for the situation at hand.

She had caught Lutheus off guard. An odd feeling brewed inside of her. She couldn’t quite place it. He had noted that she was wet and indeed she was. The rain wasn’t letting up very much and now it was starting to burrow its way into her bones. She hadn’t noticed the chill until now. The tigress loved the rain, but you had to run and jump and play in it to enjoy it. Sitting still allowed no joy. She eyed a place slightly to her left that was damp, but not soaked thanks to the canopy above. She shook herself lightly, paying careful attention to ensure she didn’t spray Lutheus, and moved over to the spot, while replying to the tiger. “Yes, well, I could make a wonderful mime.” She chuckled lowly and sat down. She suddenly felt like an intruder, invading Lutheus’s privacy. Nara argued back and forth with herself until one of the sides won. “I apologize for bothering you.” Her feminine face crinkled and her eyes squinted, looking upward as she tried to think if that was the right thing to say. She shrugged it off though and flicked her tail a couple times, her majestic emerald eyes darting from one thing to another.

[Fahrenheit]

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[atrb=background,http://i295.photobucket.com/albums/mm141/Spottedbelly/lutheus-2copy_zps07937072.png] [OPEN: Nara] Lutheus regarded Nara, unperturbed yet watchful as she addressed him, repositioned herself, and settled in a particular spot that Lutheus could only hope was dry enough for her to be comfortable. He knew that she was already irreversibly wet — with the gross weather that day — and that taking shelter would mean little to nothing where they were, but Lutheus had half a mind to pry into why she allowed herself to get so soaked. He himself was wet, but he was the Minister, and he was strong enough to handle it — while he was graced with the presence of his General, he still looked upon her and saw a tigress. She was too tender for storms. And by tender, he meant too pretty to have to became muddied and stained. However; as he chuckled at her joke and processed her apology, he analyzed her form and the steady twitch of her tail. Nara was so far from delicate, it seemed. He liked that, yet it put him on edge. He was about to respond, but a raucous clap of thunder interrupted him before he could growl a single syllable. He waited patiently for the fissure of sound to drown under the sizzle of the rain, and once it did, he pressed his weight into the slab of stone beneath him and lazily replied: “You're not bothering me.” Twitching his whiskers and blinking the water off of his eyelids, he continued to study her. After a moment, he carried on, “Never apologize when you don't have to, but I... appreciate the courtesy.” Lutheus would go so far as to tell her that he could never not enjoy the sudden company of a she-cat, especially a noble and dependable one such as Nara — yet he didn't wish to speak but so much, and he found that his reservoir of words and the willingness to speak them was dried up by the time his tongue might have desired to say anything more. He really did not like superfluous conversation... and damned he'd be if he was the one being so obnoxiously talkative. And then he didn't want to laden the shoulders of his company. Another pallid flash of lightning illuminated the sable-brown and jade-leafed trees, and that's when he felt queued to say one more thing, and merely because it was obligatory that he ask it. For, it was a little pressing. “Anything to report, Nara?” He became serious, yet toneless. “Or is this chance.” And he referred to their spontaneous meeting — or, at least spontaneous to him. Lutheus was curious as to whether she had anything to tell him; he hadn't seen another tiger since earlier that morning, and he'd yet to hear anything of particular interest. Although, honestly, he hoped that there was nothing to say. He didn't feel like acting on anything in such wretched weather.

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