the cold bared down on his russet brown coating, causing the juvenile to wrench back and shake every once in a while. the little one would stride by with no worries in mind, the cold seeming to be bearable considering the dominant look he was attempting to display but the truth was all in those round eyes of his, regret. there was no forgetting the feeling of hunger that was currently plaguing him now, it happened to be one of his many regrets for going rogue on the feeling of security the chrysalis had been providing for him, it was a necessary thing to do but then again soon enough he would need some other form of shelter, the use of his spell had seen fit to keep him alert of the various other individuals roaming around these parts. the feelings of regret was starting to sour his moods even further, i miss you. the thought of going back had once or twice crossed the babe's head but it had felt as if he had already come too far and the option of going back was now null despite the fact that it was all in his head; so many steps taken with those chubby legs of his yet so little development made.

A successful hunt always lightened her mood considerably, especially when she managed to get something as large as a cave deer. Not just a normal cave deer but a buck! With Leon along with her she was able to bring down even larger game! They worked together well enough to bring back delicious meals. They could have eaten their catch right where they'd caught it but Makyna wanted to bring it back to her den to share their meal while sitting near the falls. Only... That plan evaporated when her eyes lay upon the shivering form stumbling through Pisces. It was a young cub! Not just any cub but a little lion. It was always exciting to see little lions around the cave.

"That poor thing..." She said aloud to Leon. His fur was probably short like hers, making him unable to deal with the cold wetness of Pisces. It took time to get adapted to the different atmosphere of the moist cave. "Let's take him to our den. He can warm up there." The lioness stepped forward and before reaching down towards him let out a friendly chuff to get his attention. "Come, little one, I know a place far warmer than this." She and Leon could curl around him and hopefully share their warmth. Perhaps he'd even want to eat a bit of their kill. "Can you follow us?" She asked carefully, afraid that his little paws might be to weak and cold to move him. He did look awful new...

---

words: 253
tagged: Leon, Quintus
ooc: She's carrying the cave deer alongside her with telekinesis.
muse: 5/10

"Talking looks like this!"
"Thinking is this!"

Leon always enjoyed a hunt with his favorite Gembound; he enjoyed doing basically anything with her, but working together to bring down a meal in tandem seemed to be one of the easiest ways to feel in sync with her. It was easy to tell what his counterpart was planning to do and he could react accordingly. They complemented each other nearly perfectly, and because of that, their hunt had yielded a large cave buck that would feed them for several days. They could probably even sacrifice a few mouthfuls of meat to anybody else in Pisces that had decided to come for a visit or caught the scent of the kill; Leon didn't mind being charitable, and he was sure Makyna wouldn't mind handing out a meal or two to whoever came by.

They returned to Pisces, intending on sharing their meal in front of the waterfall, in the feel of the shroud of mist it produced. Leon had been chattering away, recounting the events that took place no more than a few minutes prior. Gleefully reminiscing about how cool it was when he had skidded under that cave deer and the sheer weight of his bulk had knocked it over, and how sweet it looked when Makyna went in for the kill - his normally docile girlfriend took on a rather attractive ferociousness in the heat of the hunt, which he was sure to remind her of again and again. Leon was in the middle of laughing about something particularly funny that he himself had said when Makyna's voice broke through, the worry woven into her words causing him to fall abruptly silent.

What poor thing? The bear stared wide-eyed ahead of them and within seconds caught sight of the creature she must have been talking about. It was a little lion cub, shivering against the cold of the saturated air and wandering all by his lonesome. Leon glanced back at Makyna, nodding at her suggestion. While she leaned forward and tried to coax the cub towards them, the bear stepped back and focused on his magic.

Post-Roll Edit:
The roiling heat suddenly blossomed from inside of him. The bear scooted up next to Makyna, and a dull glow began to emanate from his skin, easily visible between fronds of thick fur and where the brown hairs were at their thinnest - along his face, eyes, and muzzle, as well as nostrils and the insides of his ears. The glow was warm and welcoming, bringing a higher temperature to the air around them. "Don't worry, we won't let the cold getcha!" He hummed and laughed, waves of heat gently rolling from his form.

@Quintus

his magic had made sure to let him know how quickly the two strangers was nearing towards his location and the babe could not help but feel so insecure, despite his boisterous rough and tumble nature all this was too much for the little one to take in yet he bared the slight feeling of confusion from thinking so hard and bared his teeth in defiance despite the futile effort; it's me against the world! soon enough his sea blue optics would catch on the frames of one of the expected strangers and what he had seen caused the babe to quirk his brow upwards in surprise, magic. the sight of a cave deer floating beside the lookalike female causing the juvenile to mew in excitement, "how?" soon enough would come the false promises that dared to come out of her mouth and the babe would quickly move backwards with a wary look in his eyes, not daring to even turn his back and run despite the intimidation that the stranger was imposing upon him. suddenly a certain feeling started to affect him, a warm feeling. quintus's visage would instantly snap towards the imposing figurine of the other stranger and the source of the feeling of heat that was beginning to affect him. the babe would instantly loosen in comfort and instead of feeling fear, he would extend forward in excitement whilst using his hind legs as pistons. instantly he would head first collide with the much larger frame of the stranger hoping he would be able to smuggle a little more of that heat; so much for looking tough. a familiar feeling of security began to encompass him and it was evident in the look of admiration that his starry eyes gave the brute, my hero.

At first the lioness thought the little cub would reject her offer. He seemed to be disbelieving or otherwise untrusting of their intentions. This caused her to worry as a young one like he surely didn't know very much of the world. Her tail flicked with just a bit of her worry but only a bit as it seemed the little one liked Leon straight away. He marched right up to Leon with a happy expression and cuddled into his fur. Makyna smiled and let off a little laugh, turning her gaze up to the bear's. "Well, I do believe he's warmed up to you, teddy bear." She nudged his shoulder with her head playfully before giving him a small flick with her tail.

"Come on," With that she gave a last smile to Leon before turning it on the cute cub. Her den wasn't too far and it was relatively easy to get to, just in the right location for young gembounds. In any case she was certain that Leon would help the cub get up to her preferred ledge.

Once inside she would prepare her next for the new creature by laying the deer carcass in front of it, just in case he wanted to take a nibble. She also fluffed up her den with her little bits of warm fur, feathers, and moss as a little bed for the cold creature. "There! All perfect." She turned to the pair and patted the nest, showing the extra fluffed up sot for the cub.

---

words: 255
tagged: Leon, Quintus
ooc: ---
muse: 5/10

"Talking looks like this!"
"Thinking is this!"

(i'm leaving it vague as to whether or not quin climbed onto leon's back, so feel free to have him either accept or decline the offer!)

Leon had noticed the apprehension with which the child regarded Makyna, and for a second he felt a small swell of concern. It was a strange thing when a child didn't immediately trust Makyna, but he supposed that more often than not, she was the one greeting them first thing out of the chrysalis. She was often the first thing they saw, and he'd noticed that new Gembounds in the cave had a tendency towards imprinting upon whoever they encountered out of the chrysalis. The same had happened to Leon, after he'd bonded to Rohan, his brother - fleeting sadness flashed through his mind at the memory - and the same to Makyna as well. Ever since he found her, she had remained by his side. It was the loyalty and trust of a babe to the one that assumed responsibility for them, a feat that Leon had since realized was incredibly powerful.

They had missed their chance with this child, who now stood before them sounding as if he doubted Makyna's claims of safety. Leon cast a brief glance towards the lioness, searching for her gaze with a look of sympathy and worry. The look had quickly vanished, replaced by one of surprise when the child suddenly bolted towards Leon and into the warm embrace of his thick fur, and the heat that emanated from him in gentle waves. The beast leaned back, cocking his head down to look at the little lion cub. A warm laugh bubbled from his chest as Leon swung one arm around the cub, holding him close while he looked back at Makyna. "Don't you wanna get in on this too?" The bear gave a cheeky smirk before Makyna urged them away, back towards the den.

Leon looked down at the cub, shrugging his shoulder towards him. "Here, climb onto my back." The bear would move back to his paws and lumber after Makyna, keeping close to the lioness as they made their way up to the den. Once there, she had splayed the carcass on the floor while tidying up the den for the young lion. Leon couldn't help but snicker as she turned and patted the indent in the bed she prepared, beaming at the little nest she had created. "Looks cozy!" The bear grinned, shifting his gaze to the lion cub. "If you're hungry, you can eat, or if you're tired you can sleep. You're safe here." He explained, gesturing to the cave deer and then the nest that Makyna had made. "My name's Leon, and this is Makyna, my girlfriend." The term sounded strange and juvenile to him now. "This whole cave is called Pisces. This is where we live."

@Quintus

the acceptance that the stranger would show via wrapping his hairy arms around him caused the child to squeeze even further into all the layers of fur and fat that the individual had to offer, he was enjoying himself and it was evident in the look on his face. then again a certain thought continued to pop up at the back of his head, should i trust them? he could not help but wonder considering they was nothing but mere strangers to him. they was just so big and he so petite, so strong while he so insubstantial; such thoughts would eventually be forgotten as soon as they had popped up, if they wanted to eat me, wouldn't they have done it already? the babe would jump at the offer of climbing into the gargantuan beast's back, instantly making his way to the top with some difficulty. the feeling of accomplishment would wash over him and he could not help but feel as if he was on top of the world, letting everyone know of his conquest with a mighty squeal roar.

everything began to get even more exciting as soon as his steed began to move, the ride was bumpy but none the less fun; will i ever get this big? once again the amusement would come to an end and he would reach the location the other stranger was leading them to with the bear's help. quintus would lean on the unknown object on the bear's shoulder and look on as the lioness began to move about and mess with things, a curious brow raising in question as to what exactly she was doing; eventually she would stop to reveal what she had constructed for him. looking down towards his mighty steed for approval only to get it, he would slowly climb off the bear's mighty frame and advance towards the nest.

he would make instantly make himself comfortable after a few stretches and look towards the lioness in gratitude, maybe i was wrong about them. the assurance the bear was giving him led the naive babe to easily forget of the past suspicions and the maternal instinct that the female was oozing of caused the cub to want to get closer to them. just as he was about to ask questions, the bear would provide him with some of the information he needed and a content feeling washed over him evident in the expressive movement of his obsidian tassel. sadly he could not give them his own name for he lacked one, "what's a girlfriend?"

The lioness was happy to see that the little cub seemed to be warming up to her now. He came right over to the little nest and made himself quite comfortable. Makyna smile down at him, obviously pleased that he seemed to be coming around. She looked up to Leon when he gave a small introduction of who they were and what the cave was. "That's right!" She agreed enthusiastically.

She was all smiles until the little cub asked what a "girlfriend" was. Oh dear... How did one explain that to a cub? "Well... A girlfriend is a special friend that you have... that... um..." She raised a paw to her mouth, unsure of how to expand. "Leon! Can probably explain better than I can." She turned an apologetic smile on the large bear but she really didn't know how to explian. Sure, she'd told Quix what "special feelings" were and what a boyfriend was but that was different. Quix wasn't a newborn and could understand things better, unlike this newly hatched cub.

---

words: 173
tagged: @Leon @Quintus
ooc: ---
muse: 5/10

"Talking looks like this!"
"Thinking is this!"

As the child descended from the bear's back, Leon for the moment reclined onto his haunches and simply watched. He was quick to make himself comfortable in the little nest Makyna made, and Leon cast a glance towards her, smiling. The scent of the deer wafted through the air and spawned a grumble of hunger in his stomach, so Leon didn't hesitate to climb back to his feet and sneak towards the carcass that Makyna had dropped on the floor. The little cub's question caused him to pause, but Makyna had already begun to answer, so Leon simply let it be. He had reached the carcass and was tearing a strip of meat off with his claws, clutching it delicately as it hung over his hungry, gaping jaws - then Makyna turned to Leon for an explanation, unable to sufficiently answer his question herself.

The bear faltered. Lips trembled and he salivated - food so close to his mouth, yet unattainable. Leon stifled a sigh and lowered his paw, turning to look back at the cub. "Uhhh!" He hesitated, unprepared to answer the question just as well. "It's..." Leon paused and pointed at Makyna. "Her. Except. She's my girlfriend. You can only be one person's girlfriend. Or boyfriend, I suppose." Leon said awkwardly, trying to gesture between them all with the chunk of meat still between his claws. He noticed it, of course, and slowly returned it to the carcass before continuing. "A girlfriend or a boyfriend is someone you love very much, different than a normal friend or your family." Leon said slowly, glancing back at Makyna as he spoke. Would the child even know the difference between friends or family? Would he even know what love was? What a peculiar thing to have to explain.

"You don't really get one until you're older. I wouldn't worry about it for now if I were you!" Leon laughed, folding his front paws in front of him. Falling silent he waited, glancing between the two of them and waiting for confirmation that he could actually start to eat.