[ You already know that armored bears make awesome friends. So, it turns out, do armored lions.
He can't talk like Iorek could, but he's been with you through thick and thin since the day he started following along with you, and thank whatever god or fate or luck you like that he was around, because when those monsters swooped in and stole Hester and left you helpless with pain, your lion went to war for you.
Who knows how he did it, but does it matter? After eternity the pain is fading, and here's your lion, rushing back as fast as his mighty paws can bring him, armor jingling and clanking, Hester carried in his mouth as gently as his own cub. ]
[Lee can feel her coming, and Hester can feel him getting closer, and it's like life goes into her again. She lays quietly in the jaws that carry her, though she wants to struggle, get to him faster. Rationally, though, she's well aware that a lion can get her there faster than she can, especially now.
When he can, Lee uncurls at last from that little ball he'd been wrapped up in, his hat lying beside him and his limbs shaking from the reaction of being that far from his soul, and pushes himself shakily to sit, holding out a hand to the lion and hare, both.]
[ The lion hardly slows at all; somehow or another the beast understands the importance of a man's soul and he will not delay this reunion. He skids his paws only at the very last minute, bringing Hester back so eagerly that he meets Lee's chest with a headbutt even as he places the poor hare delicately in the man's lap, rumbling the giant feline's equivalent of a purr. ]
[Lee meets the lion with an arm around his neck and fingers dug into his fur, as much from affection as for support in his weakness, The other arm is gathering Hester up close. Everything aches, still, from so much separation, but the emptiness of it is rapidly filling up with relief and affection and rightness, and laughter and tears, both at once. He's burying his face in lion mane as Hester buries her face in his shirt, both of them shaking. They're together again, one again, thanks to this strange, wonderful creature, but neither one can speak just yet to thank him.]
[ The lion is in no hurry to... well, hurry them. He just rumbles away, his oddly human-bright eyes closed tight in happiness. He even manages to wrap his bulk around to support Lee from all sides, all without having to give up that embrace to his neck, even if the tarnished plate and mail that seem somehow permanently affixed to him impair the comfort of the gesture. ]
[After all this time, Lee's used to the metal-- first on Iorek, now on the unnamed lion. He leans into the furry-and-metal embrace, still shaking, and now trying to catch his breath between the laughing that sounds almost like sobs.]
[Of course, Hester's the one who speaks first.] You sound like an idiot, Lee.
[He huffs a final sob-laugh and pats the lion's broad, metal-clad shoulder with a heavy, shuddering sigh.] That I do. And right glad I am to do it, too. All thanks to this guy.
[ The lion rumbles happily for the good thing he's done, the reunion he made possible. When Lee pats his shoulder in thanks the beast shuffles his weight in response and the crude plate seems lighter, looser on his form.
He chuffs, then, and swipes his rough tongue over Lee's cheek first. Then Hester gets one, too, right between her long ears. ]
[Laughing again, Lee ruffles the lion's fur, and Hester closes her eyes with a look of immense patience.] We might hafta figure out somethin' to make it up to this feller, whatcha think, Hester?
Maybe a big haunch of elk or somethin'. [But she's grateful, too, and stretches up to press her whiskered muzzle to the end of Naoshi's big, warm lion-nose. Hares don't go so much for licking, but it's in the same vein.]
[ He flicks his round ears back and forth, chuffing pleasedly. But then a sudden moment or two later, the creature is yowling in surprise and staggering away from the pair, as a whole hind leg of that 'permanent' armor suddenly falls off him. It clatters and clanks to the ground, and then there's metallic snappings all over his body as chainmail links spontaneously start giving way.
The lion's old armor is sloughing off in sections, and as he yowls and claws and pulls at it with his teeth, it appears to be pulling off his pelt with it. ]
[Lee scrambles back and away in surprises as, from the looks of it, his faithful friend for the past however long seems to be going mad, clawing at himself and howling. Hester in particular is even more startled, since it started when she touched his nose!]
What the-- what's wrong? What's goin' on?
[Not like a lion can answer him, but it's the first thing that comes out of his confused and worried mouth.]
[ The poor lion isn't quite sure himself. Just all of a sudden he feels smothered, contained, in the wrong skin. More than just his sudden fit, the lion appeared to be suddenly losing weight, pelt growing baggy like all the flesh inside it was evaporating or wasting away as more of the armor breaks off and what seems to be bare skin shows through tears in the fur and--
Then even his joints are all wrong as the lion reaches over his head to his back and grabs his own pelt. Between one yowl and the next, the lion's voice turns human with a determined shout, and exactly like a man pulling off an oversized shirt, the creature yanks his hide forward and off the rest of it slides, along with the last few tarnished bits of metal.
And there, panting heavily and blinking like someone coming out of a trance, is a little man sitting among the shed pieces of pelt and armor no longer his, bare as the day he was born. ]
[Lee and Hester both stare. After the pain and horror of their separation, and then the joy and relief of their reunion, now they're faced with shappeshifting, too? Even a world-traveling pair like them hasn't ever seen that before. It takes them a good, long minute before either of them has the wherewithal to say anything. Somewhat uncharacteristically, it's Lee who shakes himself first and carefully sets Hester down-- Hester is still staring-- climbs to his feet, and slides his coat off to wrap around the once-lion's shoulders. Just in case he's cold, without all his fur.]
You a'right, there, son? [he asks, since that's probably the most impportant thing to get straight, first. An explanation can wait until the basics of health and sanity have been addressed.]
[ Lee is the first to move of all three of them. The former lion is in shock, trying to get his breathing in order again, trying to figure out what just happened. ]
Rrrg? [ That's the noise he makes, surprised when Lee drapes his coat on his shoulders, a lion-sound stuck in a human throat. He looks up at the man, and though he's clearly bewildered, his eyes are as sharp as the lion's ever were in all their unnatural clarity.
Then he looks down and makes another nonhuman whuff! of surprise, and another, and several in succession, as he puts his hands out and stares at them, turning them over palm to back to palm again, patting all over himself in search of fur and armor and finding only skin, except for when he winds up with his hands tangled in his own overgrown hair (something of a mane in its own right), and finally winding up with a hand pressed to either cheek, eyes their widest yet when he finds his faceIt's almost comedic the way he looks back up at Lee then, hands still on his face, eyes disbelieving. It's a face that clearly
( ... )
[Looking a little lost, but also rather like he's trying very hard not to smile, Lee crouches down next to him and pats his shoulder. Since the former lion isn't gonna talk just yet, he fills the silence. He's good at that.] Looks like that startled you as much as it did us, hey? Hope it didn't hurt too much, looked kinda uncomfortable, to me. But then, what do I know 'bout shape-shiftin', huh? Not a whole hell've a lot.
[Hester is creeping over now, herself, whiskers a-twitch and ears perked right up with curiosity.]
[ With a blink and another whuff, the former lion eventually manages a nod. Yes indeed that startled him, and doubly so was it uncomfortable! Blessed heavens, just all of a sudden--
He makes a face then and stretches, popping little cricks in his back and shoulders, and figuring out how to get his arms through the sleeves of Lee's jacket... though he almost seems to do it more for warmth and even the curiosity of just putting it on, rather than self-consciousness. And he's making little sounds to himself like he knows there's a voicebox in there and he can't remember how to work it and--
When Hester slinks over, he blinks down at her... and suddenly grins. He splays his hands on the ground to support himself as he bends over, and pops a smooch on her whiskered nose before chuffing sounds that start to sound a little more like laughing. ]
(( And I can't remember if touching a person's soul actually HURTS, but in this little fairytale headverse, Naoshi's more like a daemon, himself, and daemon-daemon contact was okay, right? XD )
((nope, doesn't hurt, it's just rare as all hell and feels, well, like somebody touching your soul X3 in the end of the third book, Will and Lyra pet each other's daemons, and it's meant to be a good thing))
[Well, that's weird. Hester and Lee both freeze at the touch of human... ish... to daemon, but this is the lion who rescued Hester from danger, and who has had no qualms touching him thus far. So she twitches herself out of the shock first and snorts at him.] Takin' liberties, now, are we, feller? [But she obviously doesn't sound like she minds so much.
Lee shakes his head, to clear it, and asks,] Don't suppose you got a name, there, son? Or r'member how to say it? Or should I just keep babblin' to fill the silence?
Since you're so good at it, [Hester quips, and hops up onto the former lion's knee, making Lee twitch a little, but he's rapidly getting used to it.]
He can't talk like Iorek could, but he's been with you through thick and thin since the day he started following along with you, and thank whatever god or fate or luck you like that he was around, because when those monsters swooped in and stole Hester and left you helpless with pain, your lion went to war for you.
Who knows how he did it, but does it matter? After eternity the pain is fading, and here's your lion, rushing back as fast as his mighty paws can bring him, armor jingling and clanking, Hester carried in his mouth as gently as his own cub. ]
Reply
When he can, Lee uncurls at last from that little ball he'd been wrapped up in, his hat lying beside him and his limbs shaking from the reaction of being that far from his soul, and pushes himself shakily to sit, holding out a hand to the lion and hare, both.]
Oh, thank god.
Reply
Reply
Reply
Reply
[Of course, Hester's the one who speaks first.] You sound like an idiot, Lee.
[He huffs a final sob-laugh and pats the lion's broad, metal-clad shoulder with a heavy, shuddering sigh.] That I do. And right glad I am to do it, too. All thanks to this guy.
Reply
He chuffs, then, and swipes his rough tongue over Lee's cheek first. Then Hester gets one, too, right between her long ears. ]
Reply
Maybe a big haunch of elk or somethin'. [But she's grateful, too, and stretches up to press her whiskered muzzle to the end of Naoshi's big, warm lion-nose. Hares don't go so much for licking, but it's in the same vein.]
Reply
The lion's old armor is sloughing off in sections, and as he yowls and claws and pulls at it with his teeth, it appears to be pulling off his pelt with it. ]
Reply
What the-- what's wrong? What's goin' on?
[Not like a lion can answer him, but it's the first thing that comes out of his confused and worried mouth.]
Reply
Then even his joints are all wrong as the lion reaches over his head to his back and grabs his own pelt. Between one yowl and the next, the lion's voice turns human with a determined shout, and exactly like a man pulling off an oversized shirt, the creature yanks his hide forward and off the rest of it slides, along with the last few tarnished bits of metal.
And there, panting heavily and blinking like someone coming out of a trance, is a little man sitting among the shed pieces of pelt and armor no longer his, bare as the day he was born. ]
Reply
You a'right, there, son? [he asks, since that's probably the most impportant thing to get straight, first. An explanation can wait until the basics of health and sanity have been addressed.]
Reply
Rrrg? [ That's the noise he makes, surprised when Lee drapes his coat on his shoulders, a lion-sound stuck in a human throat. He looks up at the man, and though he's clearly bewildered, his eyes are as sharp as the lion's ever were in all their unnatural clarity.
Then he looks down and makes another nonhuman whuff! of surprise, and another, and several in succession, as he puts his hands out and stares at them, turning them over palm to back to palm again, patting all over himself in search of fur and armor and finding only skin, except for when he winds up with his hands tangled in his own overgrown hair (something of a mane in its own right), and finally winding up with a hand pressed to either cheek, eyes their widest yet when he finds his faceIt's almost comedic the way he looks back up at Lee then, hands still on his face, eyes disbelieving. It's a face that clearly ( ... )
Reply
[Hester is creeping over now, herself, whiskers a-twitch and ears perked right up with curiosity.]
Reply
He makes a face then and stretches, popping little cricks in his back and shoulders, and figuring out how to get his arms through the sleeves of Lee's jacket... though he almost seems to do it more for warmth and even the curiosity of just putting it on, rather than self-consciousness. And he's making little sounds to himself like he knows there's a voicebox in there and he can't remember how to work it and--
When Hester slinks over, he blinks down at her... and suddenly grins. He splays his hands on the ground to support himself as he bends over, and pops a smooch on her whiskered nose before chuffing sounds that start to sound a little more like laughing. ]
(( And I can't remember if touching a person's soul actually HURTS, but in this little fairytale headverse, Naoshi's more like a daemon, himself, and daemon-daemon contact was okay, right? XD )
Reply
[Well, that's weird. Hester and Lee both freeze at the touch of human... ish... to daemon, but this is the lion who rescued Hester from danger, and who has had no qualms touching him thus far. So she twitches herself out of the shock first and snorts at him.] Takin' liberties, now, are we, feller? [But she obviously doesn't sound like she minds so much.
Lee shakes his head, to clear it, and asks,] Don't suppose you got a name, there, son? Or r'member how to say it? Or should I just keep babblin' to fill the silence?
Since you're so good at it, [Hester quips, and hops up onto the former lion's knee, making Lee twitch a little, but he's rapidly getting used to it.]
Reply
Leave a comment