Cancer sat atop his throne and looked upon his lay of land. Every corner he knew off heart, every inch of stone and water. This place was his, but now that he'd gotten a taste of adventure, was it enough? A leader shouldn't abandon his post... he knew that. And yet, still, he wondered what more was out there? Soon the yearning had become too much, and the cub called out into the cave.

"Pisces hear me! Magi attend!" He'd wait for at least SOMEONE to come before announcing his intentions. As soon as someone was in attendance though, he'd explain.

"I'm heading out to do some cave mapping. Someone stay put here, and watch the cave. I know as leader, I'm supposed to hold down the fort, but with so few of us, someone with some writing skills needs to start mapping this place." He'd turn to his ledge wall, and with a careful paw, carve into the stone a shape similiar to Pisces Cave's walls. At each point where a tunnel would be, he marked an "X" across the first line. In the center, he lackadaisically scratched lighter points into the wall in clusters to show the water ways, and in turn, marked the submerged tunnels - based on Eeya's reports of course - with "O". "This is what we have so far..."

He marked along one tunnel and started a new cave at its end- Polaris. His first destination.

"I'm taking a stone with me to mark out a smaller scaled map on it. Don't add to this until we can confirm locations and distance. This is, so far, fairly to scale with what we know so far." He'd lurch his way up to his ledge, then with a loud scrape, drag out a thin slice of shale. He'd place it on one paw from his mouth, then carefully hoist it, so the slightly rounded flat stone sat securely slightly tilted back between his horns- it looked a little silly, but with the curve of those stone horns, he could carry it easily from cave to cave, to mark his way. "Alright. Any concerns before I go? Any one person wanna come with?" His mind said Bevy, for her flight, but his heart demanded Makyna, for other reasons. Either way, he hoped no one would take him up on it- he'd like to explore alone for a change... if they'd let him go.

Makyna had been staring at the ponds, trying to come up with an idea to keep them well fed. Eeya had suggested the idea of throwing them fish to keep them stocked up but they couldn't depend on Eeya to feed all of them forever. No. They had to find a different way. An idea was slowly coming to her, one that would enlarge the ponds and allow for the bigger fish to stay comfortable and reproduce to make other fish so the stock wouldn't deplete. Sure, they'd need to keep a supply of smaller fish because you could only have so many larger but that could work right? Eeya had also mentioned crawly things to eat... Makyna knew not what those were but perhaps they could do as a source of snack if they had enough.

As she pondered this she heard the call from Cancer. Immediately all thoughts of the problem vanished in a fit of butterflies in her belly. Her cheeks blushed underneath her golden fur and she smiled. Cancer... How wonderful was he? The leopard was a sweet guy once you got to know him and Makyna absolutely loved to be around him. They got to exchange all sorts of sweet words to each other and talk about nice things. It was wonderful.

The lioness got to her paws and went to go sit before Cancer, listening to his words while she stared raptly at his lovely fur. He was talking about mounting an expedition to all of the caverns. Alone? She didn't want him to be alone! What if something happened? However, she couldn't go with him... Who would keep an eye on the cave? Well, Leon could but then... she'd be gone for who knew how long without getting to see him. That that caused an uncomfortable feeling in her gut. Sure she couldn't be with him every moment of the day now but he always returned to his den... If she left for this long period of time... She didn't want to think about it.

"I don't think you should go alone..." She said, voicing her concerns. If she couldn't go though, then who could? Bevy! The little bird could sit right on his horn and keep him out of harms way. Though she was quiet Makyna was certain that the bird could diffuse any situation and if Cancer was hurt she was an amazing healer. "Have you thought about taking Bevy with you? And what about Pisces? Who will look over it while you're away?" She expected him to say Leon just as she was thinking but with their enmity she wasn't entirely sure.

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words: 442
tagged: Maji Walezi
ooc: ---
muse: 5/10

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Enna had heard most of it, though primarily she caught only the tailbit of Cancer's speech and Ky's reply, as she swooped down to join them. A nervousness filled her chest as she settled down just bellow Cancer's ledge and peered at the map. It would be good to get everything all charted, yes... But as Ky expressed concern for Cancer going alone, she couldn't shake a large feeling of guilt. Some part of her had been constantly leaving Pisces, and it seemed like the world was always dragging her away, off on her own. It was dangerous. No one had called her on it yet, but one day they might. If she didn't get hurt first.

She looked up at her dark furred leopard friend and considered. He wasn't much of a cub anymore. He would know to watch for the golems, and to avoid trouble. The caves were dangerous, but only if you pressed your luck. Most stuff was easy to run from and Cancer was brave but he wasn't stupid.

Ky had suggested she go with him, but... She could tell Cancer was only asking to be polite. Enna knew the caves were something every gembound should learn on their own when they could. The lessons it could teach were invaluable. Moreso, she didn't want her friend to be distracted and worry about her safety. She wriggled her wings and she tried to come up with some way to make this work without upsetting anyone.

"I'm.. Um.. Kind of tired, actually," she peeped softly, glancing between the two felines, weighing how her words affected them. "As long as you're careful I'm sure you'll be fine, Cancer." She wanted to go, but she also quietly understood. Everyone else had gone off on their own before... Besides, it would be fun to hear his long-winded story of his adventures afterwards!

The bear had only just returned to Pisces when he heard Cancer's call. As of late, he'd been dreading encountering the cub again. He had noticed the way Makyna and Cancer acted around each other - he identified it earlier, jealousy, and there was nothing he could do about it. And after his outburst during their investigation of the golems, Leon had wondered if there was even a place for him around Cancer. More than likely, his feelings of doubt were all in his head - but Leon was terribly susceptible to guilt, and it didn't help that his passionate nature simply compounded all his feelings until the extremes he felt became the norm. For now, he pushed it all aside, knowing that it was necessary he attend the meeting. Meetings were always about something important.

He arrived in time to hear Cancer explain why he was leaving and what he was going to do on this little journey of his. When Cancer asked if anybody wanted to join, Leon cast a quick glance at Makyna, only to feel a pang of relief as she suggested Bevy accompany him instead of her. Bevy, in turn, rejected the offer and assured the leopard he would be fine on his own. Leon furrowed his brow slightly. He supposed it would be important to have a kind of map of the cave system; Leon himself already knew the lay of the caves pretty well, but it wasn't as if he could share that information easily with Cancer. Mostly, it was a mental map he had crafted in his head. The bear came up beside Makyna and tilted his head. "We'll watch over Pisces while you're gone. Don't worry." He said and glanced at his friend, sending her a half smile. He was confident that they could hold down the fort while Cancer was gone.

Cancer didn't expect Makyna's protest to be so forward. He'd expected her to shy away from the open shows of affection after the way Leon had looked at them... and after that admission of his jealousy. Surprisingly, though, she wasn't ashamed to be concerned for him, and that was a good feeling. He smiled despite her protest. Bevy also replied with her own admission of being tired. Yes, he was glad to hear it honestly. As much as he loved both girls, in different ways, he wanted this to be his own adventure. Finally, Leon piped up and despite the look he shared with Makyna, Cancer couldn't help but appreciate the bear's sentiment. He narrowed his gaze at the closeness to his lady, but with a brisk few steps, he brushed it off- almost literally- as he swept by both bear and lioness, giving both a long, hard rub across their chests with his side. He lingered with his head beside Makyna's for a moment. "Keep them out of trouble for me, okay beautiful?" He'd miss her so much. Then, with a quick kiss goodbye to her cheek, he darted off and out of Pisces cave for what would be a long and eventful journey.

-exit Cancer-

She voiced her concerns of having him go alone but it seemed that her friends didn't see it as a big deal. So, she supposed she was just worrying over Cancer too much. The butterflies in her stomach started fluttering twofold when she realized just how much she was being worrisome over him. "Yeah, we'll watch over everything then... be careful." She said, looking up at him. She glanced to the side at Leon and gave him a smile back. Yeah, they could do it while he was gone. She just hoped that Cancer would be alright.

When he came forward to nuzzle her and she lowered her head to rub it against his. Normally she would have been a lot more reserved around Leon but she couldn't help it! Cancer came towards her and he just felt so good to touch and rub against and oh-- she loved it! A purr slipped out of her mouth and when he whispered in her ear it made her tingle all over. Especially when he called her "beautiful". The lioness shot him a look through half-lidded eyes that said all things her mouth didn't. All the "I care for you" and "be safe". Her mouth didn't same them... but her eyes and thoughts did. Be safe. I'll miss you... With these words she sent also a feeling of comfort and love to him, the feeling that washed over her now as she watched him go.

The lioness then turned to Leon and Bevy, tears hanging unbidden in her eyes. At this moment she didn't really feel like being with everyone so she gave them smiles and said, "Think I'm gonna go to my den and take a nap. See you all later." With that she set off to her den for a nap and mope about Cancer being gone.

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words: 308
tagged: Cancer, Bevy, Leon
ooc: ---
muse: 5/10

"Talking looks like this!"
Thinking looks like this...

Part of Bevy wondered if what she had said mattered at all. Cancer wanted to go off on his own and so he would-- Leon helped decide that anyway. Something in the young bird shrank a bit as the leopard slipped across the bear and the lion, murmuring a soft few words to Makyna. She felt so small, so... Angry? She wasn't mad at her friends, but she certainly felt a tinge of bitterness. Yes, that old jealousy. She knew no one would notice, but she cast her gaze down at her talons.

Keep them out of trouble. Keep her out of trouble. Makyna keep Bevy out of trouble. Bevy didn't get INTO trouble! She wanted to... to...! But Cancer was already off, down to the tunnels. Her heart sank to her feet and she glanced at Leon-- probably the only other one there who understood. She heard Makyna say she was going to take a nap, but that was the last she wanted to stick around for. Bevy took to her wings and flew off; quietly, softly stewing in her own painful emotions.

Yeah. A nap sounded real good right now.

;; Bevy Exit!

Cancer deciding to take his leave from the cave had improved his mood, at least a little bit. Leon had begun to feel that maybe he'd get a nice break from having to be on his toes all the time - and yet, after exchanging a smile with his friend, Cancer was quick to crush it again. The leopard moved towards them, rubbing against both of them. The touch alone had caused his muscles to seize and his coarse hair to stand on end - Leon's shoulders stiffened, frozen in alarm at the leopard's sudden breach of personal space. After pausing at Makyna, Leon was given the chance to recoil. He inched backwards, allotting a space of zero contact between him and Cancer while the two felines exchanged their goodbyes. Of course, Leon had to feel that, too.

The tingling that Makyna enjoyed was a roiling dread in the pit of his stomach. He sensed it, and his eyes dared to flicker towards the pair, seeing the two of them exchange sweet little words and gentle looks. Leon's nose wrinkled, and everything inside of him seemed to turn. His heart nearly launched itself out of his chest. The bear's eyes tore away from them, and he was two seconds from fleeing the scene when they had finally detached from one another. Another feeling had spawned inside of him, and he didn't know if it was his own or hers - but it was something uncomfortable. When she dismissed herself, his eyes fell back to the floor. "Yeah. Bye." The bear answered curtly. Normally, he would have pined after her, craving to know what caused the lioness such turmoil.

This time around, he knew what it was, and he wanted no part in it. He immediately picked up his paws and headed off in a different direction. He couldn't fight the knitting of his brows, the small twinge downward of his lips. He just hoped Makyna wouldn't be able to hone in on it.

exit Leon