Post by Satya on Oct 2, 2010 23:08:21 GMT -7
Clouded leopard juveniles Kavin and Sabera play, under the watchful eye of elder Pranjal.
---
Kavin left the river and the young chital far behind as he abandoned the ground so he could run through the trees. He's fully aware Sabera is still following him, but for the moment he looses himself in the joy of leaping from branch to branch at speed, feeling the blast of leaves as they rush past and the wind streaming across his fur. "Woo!" Comes the cry as he drops into a leaping freefall from one higher branch to a lower, landing with a relative amount of grace and just a bit of sway and wobble.
Making her way along the ground, as opposed to the trees is Sabera, trying her best to keep up with the stronger, and faster boy cub. "Wait up!" Her high pitched voice can be heard echoing through the air, huffing and puffing as she goes. "Kavin, I can't see you!" She only catches flashes of his fur in the branches as he zips through each tree. Why does he always have to be such a boy for?
The branches shaking make a line showing Kavin's path, and that of Sabera behind him. It gets Pranjal's attention fairly quickly - but what is it? Only a hunter would move that fast... or a child. The victorious call from Kavin, and Sabera's plaintive cry, helps confirm which it is, and she chuckles, stretching herself out along the branch she's been resting her old bones on.
"Then stop runnin' down there!" Comes Kavin's panted reply as he slows his breakneck speed, pausing at a clearing in the leaves and branches to peer down towards Sabera. "It's way more fun to run up here and not on the dirt. Besides, you can see more! I wouldn't have saw Bhiita's mom if I wasn't able to climb aaaalll the way to the top! I even spotted an eagle, but they didn't see me!" And for a small cat, an eagle can be an honest threat, at least until he's older. Of course, he could just be boasting. His mother has scolded him about being in the open a fair number of times.
"You're gonna fall and break your legs and then you won't be able to do much of anything! You should come down here!" Sabera demands with a frustrated huff, stamping at the ground with her small paw. "I thought you were gonna play with me!" She hates shouting upwards into the trees. It's not lady like, and her mother always told her to never shout.
Pranjal pulls herself to her feet and pads her way closer, her motions gracious despite being slow. There's an economy of motion that barely even makes the branches shake as she steps from one to the next along the high-road. She chuckles again at the shouting back and forth - half the jungle has heard the cubs' argument at this point, most likely. "What's this I hear about playing together?" she calls out as she approaches.
"Pfft. Leopards are /supposed/ to be in trees." Kavin says as he eyes Sabera from the heights, his tail ticking back and forth below the branch. "You said we were supposed to play tag. So, I started running." Wasn't it obvious? Suppose not. When Pranjal approaches Kavin glances aside to the elders, his ears slanting askew. "Eh... Sabera wanted to play. I'd told her we could. We just helped a little... eh... cheethal... or... whatever she said she was find her mum, so, we just got back."
"Whatever." Sabera says with a heavy breath, annoyed at her male companion. "I'm just gonna find a new friend then! Yer' being a jerk." She says in a pouting tone, tail twitching back and forth behind her in a quick series of snaps. "Hi Pranjal!" She calls out, cheering up a bit as she spies the Elder.
Pranjal smiles. "It was nice of you to help the little one out..." she replies to Kavin, and then smiles down to Sabera. "Hello, Sabera!" she calls down. Not that she's not helping out Kavin's case just by being up in the trees herself. "Doesn't seem like it's much fun, though, if you're up here and you're down there..." she muses, looking from one cub to the other.
Kavin looks both annoyed and perplexed. First she wants to play tag and now she's upset because he was running? What's up with this? Girls are confusing. He flicks an ear and passes Pranjal a sideways glance as she brings up the gap issue, which is what he was thinking but apparently he's somehow wrong. "I am /not/ a jerk." He huffs out as he jerks around and heads for the trunk of the tree so he can claw his way down to ground level. "I was trying to play! Ya can't play tag sitting down."
"You know I don't like heights! It's not fair. I can't tag you if you're in the trees!" Sabera says with an upset tone in her voice, looking even more frustrated now. "And you're faster, and.. and... it's not /fair/." She sputters out again as she sucks in a deep breath, her voice hinging on a whine. "Come down here and play with me instead." She pleads.
Pranjal swings herself down for a better view, in a graceful motion that starts with a stretch and ends up with her dangling from her hind claws. She tilts her head to look at Sabera, partly upside down. "What's this about not liking heights, kitling?" she asks. "Haven't you heard the story of why they call us the clouded leopards?"
Kavin descends the last few feet in a leap, releasing his claws from the bark and dropping down to his paws. "Alright, alright... see, I'm down here." He says with as much of a reassuring gesture as a very resigned voice can muster. But then he perks up visibly as Pranjal hangs from above, cupping his ears forward and sits back to his rump with a grin on his face. "Ooh, I love this story!"
Trotting over towards Kavin, Sabby gives him a bit of a pawing at the shoulder, before flopping in against him. "Yes, I've heard the story, but I don't like heights." She pouts as her ear slants back against her skull. "It's scary up there, and I get really dizzy when I look down. I always get sick." Her tail curls about her haunches a bit, frowning.
Pranjal swings herself in again, leaping over to a treetrunk and then rebounding against it before landing on the ground to join the cubs. Yeah, she's showing off a little, and her legs probably won't be the happiest come tomorrow, but it's all in a good cause. She listens with a sympathetic expression to Sabena, and then nods slightly to the cub. "One of my cubs used to get dizzy sometimes..." she says, and thinks for a moment. "He told me that it helped if he pretended he was walking on logs over the river, and all the leaves were the surface of the water. It made him feel like it wasn't so far down..."
Kavin can't help but picture Pranjal not bounding off a treetrunk but right off a cliff and landing in the tree. He'll never get that picture out of his head, cuz one day he will! There's a flicker of disappointment as no story is forthcoming. It's one of the few things that'll hold his attention. Still, as talk turns to remedies his curiosity is piqued as he turns his head from Pranjal and onto Sabera. "You think that'd help?"
"No, that wouldn't help either because I can't pretend that I'm on logs if I know I'm in the air. I'll just be a regular leopard I guess." Sabera says with a sulking tone, quietly jealous of the older leopard easily jumping about in the air as if it was no big deal. "Should just play with me down here instead. We can still have fun I'm sure." She says, butting her head into Kavin's shoulder firmly.
While Pranjal ordinarily doesn't mind repeating her stories, this time, she rather suspects it might come off to Sabera as a lecture. And that's not really her style. She nods. "Well, if you're going to be an ordinary leopard, maybe you can show Kavin how to hunt on the ground? There's plenty of spots to hide around here..." She leans in, adding in a confidential tone, "If you played hide and seek on the ground, I bet he couldn't stay still enough to hide!"
Lucky for Pranjal that Kavin's attentions are already wondering and he only gets the idea he's being talked about as opposed to exact conversation, though it elicits a "Hey!" in protest regardless. "Well, Sabby, we ganna play or what? I'm hungry too. Did I hear hunting? We should hunt! Then I catch my /own/ dinner and it'll be the biggest, most awesome dinner ever." So easily distracted.
Ears perking a bit as the Elder whispers, Sabera turns her eyes upon the young boy, then pushes him over with a hard shove, then starts to dart off through the thick grass. "You're it!" She giggles, bounding happily over a rotted log, then ducks herself behind a tree. She peeks out with a cheeky grin on her face, trying to hide from him.
Pranjal chuckles, sitting down and curling her tail around her legs as she watches the younglings start to play.
Kavin yelps as he's toppled by Sabera, the boy left sprawled on his back and flailing to regain his footing. Cats may land on their feet, but once lost, getting them back can sometimes pose a challenge. "Nofair!" He blurts as he claws his way back to his feet, jerking his head this way and that as he tries to spy where she's gone to. He knows Pranjal wouln't snitch, but she might be hiding Sabby. He gambols over to the elder, peeking behind her. Nope. Huffing, he gives Pranjal's shoulder an affectionate butt of his head before he heads towards the bushes.
Peeking out from behind the tree, Sabera is holding her breath as best she can so not to cause attention to herself. As the boy starts to head for the bushes, she slowly starts to creep around. Holding herself low to the ground, she stalks after him, then bounds forward in an attempt to fling herself at him from behind, and hopefully tackle him to the ground. Sure, he's 'It', but she is also full of surprises.
Pranjal smiles, and leans down to give Kavin a light nuzzle as he bounds off again. Ahh, the energy of youth. She'll just rest here, where there's a little patch of sunbeam reaching down through the branches. She catches her breath in as Sabera makes her pounce - with any luck, this play will start building up the young female's confidence. Certainly, it'll help both of them get stronger and quicker!
Kavin pokes his head into the bush, a toothy grin on his face as he expects to come nose-to-nose with Sabera and show her just how quick he found her. But, there's nothing but leaves, and his grin turns upside-down as he scowls at the empty space. Huh. This seemed like the perfect hiding spot. Where else would she-- "AAAIIHH!" He cries out in a loud yowl as his rump is assaulted and he is toppled sideways, his front half tangling in the bush while his hind paws and tail flail in the air. "Attack! Attack! Pranjaaaaaalll!"
Grabbing him by the tail with her jaws, Sabera starts to drag him out of the bushes, back peddling as best she can, grinning widely around his spotty appendage. Spitting it out and leaving it a bit drooly, she giggles in a loud manner, then starts to dart off again, bounding as fast as she can away from him.
Pranjal laughs! "Oh, well done!" she calls to Sabera with a grin, and then, "Twist around, Kavin! Just because she's got you doesn't mean you can't get her back..." to the dragged cub. She'll cheer for both sides, she will!
Pesky neutral elder, being fair to everyone! Tangled up, Kavin does his best to curl his body back on itself, but he just ends up with a faceful of leaves for his efforts. Sabera helps pull him free, though she's already running by the time he gets his feet under him. "Gannagetyou!" He calls out with a fierce look on his face as he bolts after her, half jumping and half running in an attempt to eat up the distance.
"Nuh uh! I'm -faster- than you!" True he may be the king of the clouds, but she is the queen of the ground. As she barrels through the grass, she zips around behind Pranjal, trying to use her larger frame to hide her. "Save me Elder! He's gonna try and -kiss- me and give the cooties!" Ew! Cooties are gross and she heard all about them.
Grey-brown fur is much like grey-brown fur, right? Of course, it's hard to hide properly when someone's chasing so closely... Pranjal chuckles. "The cooties? You'd better get away, then! Those are very contagious, and once you catch them... they never ever go away!" At least, they didn't for her in her long years with her mate. Of course, she called it 'love' instead of cooties...
The brakes are applied as the words Kiss and Cooties are uttered, and a look of disgusted horror brings Kavin to a halt. "Eeeeeew!" He says, tongue sticking out from his whiskered muzzle as he stares at Sabera from over Pranjal. "I ain't ganna kiss anyone, that's gross! Only silly grownups do that stuff. I don't wanna catch that stuff."
As soon as he puts on the brakes, Sabera is once more driving herself into him, head first, square into the chest. She could be a great line backer with the way she tackles. Full forepaws wrapping about him, followed by a twist as she takes him to the ground. "HA!" She says with a proud grin on her face as she pins him down with a wiggle to her rump. "Gotcha 'gain'."
Silly grownups, indeed - Pranjal rather suspects that someday, Kavin will come to see the point in those kisses. But there's time yet before he's grown enough to appreciate it - for now, girls are simply playmates. And occasionally icky - not to mention taking advantage of his disgust! She laughs. "Sabby's a tricky one, Kavin - can't trust her!"
"She's a /girl/, course I can't!" Kavin yowls in response to Pranjal as he finds himself flattened again and now forced to wrestle with Sabera. At least in wrestling he has an advantage. Lurching, he tries to fling his forepaws around her neck and pull her down to his level on the ground where he can get the upper hand.
Squeaking out as she is tugged down upon him, Sabera squirms a bit, shoving at him, and batting at his muzzle. "Oh no, he's trying to smooch me! Eeew!" She says, shoving her head under his chin to force his head back, followed by a firm nip to his shoulder. "Help save me from his yucky boy kisses!"
Pranjal laughs, watching the two wrestle. She makes no moves to save either of them - they're not likely to actually hurt each other, and if they catch cooties, well - an eventual infection is pretty much inevitable! She's not so bad a matchmaker as some, but... if they decide to do it without her having to meddle, that's just fine!
Oh-Ho! She wants kisses, does she? Well, she's about to get one of those dreaded boy kisses. Puffing up his chest as he tries to keep her grounded, the spotted boy gives voice to a gleefully wicked cackle before he darts his head forward and *ssslllluurrp* right across Sabera's face from nose to forehead. It's drooly and messy and, well, what did you expect from Kavin? A cheek smooch?
Puffing herself out like a cotton ball, Sabera freezes as he leans in and gives her her first kiss. Of course, it is hardly romantic, and quite disgusting. ".. EEEEEEEW!" She staggers back, pushing his face away with his paw, then starts to run off with a look of horror upon her face. She reaches the Elder and shoves her face against her shoulder, trying to rub the cooties out.
Boys do tend to be icky. They'll grow out of it - with time, the kisses - while they may be just as slobbery - will be rather more enjoyed. Pranjal leans down, giving a little nuzzle between Sabera's ears as those cooties get rubbed into her fur. She's got a long-running infection herself, so she's not too worried.
Kavin looks rather smug as he gets up to his paws, his clouded fur marred with dust and wrestling, like some soldier who'd just won a great battle. A battle of defeating Sabera at her own game. It's not that easy, mind you. "I think you're It now." He says with a chuckle as he flops back on his rump, seeming uninterested to continue on despite his words. Games are rather tiring.
"Ew, I don't want to touch you again! You -kissed- me." Sabera wails out to him with indigence in her voice. "My first kiss and it was wasted on -you-." She says with a whimper, giving her head a firm shake as she tries to rub the kiss out of her muzzle with her paws. Out. Out!
Pranjal chuckles at Kavin's evident pleasure - and then leans down and nuzzles again at Sabera's ears. "It only counts for real the first time you kiss back. You still get to decide where -that- goes. He's the one who used up his... just to win at a game!" she murmurs softly, and smiles.
Kavin doesn't seem bothered at his frivolous waste of what is called a kiss. More like drooled on. "Hmf. You said I was ganna kiss you, so I did." He says simply enough before he interrupts himself as he yawns, a wide and noisy affair as he stretches himself and splays his toes. "...still hungry. Wonder is mom has dinner... or dad... dad catches good dinners."
"It wasn't even a nice kiss." Sabera murmurs as she tries to find some relief in Pranjal's nuzzling. "Yer' a gross boy, Kavin. I'm gonna tell mom on you." She says with a heavy thump on her tail. "And.. and one day I'll have to give someone a kiss and I betcha it won't be -you-. And then....then you'll be /real/ jealous cuz he's gonna be so handsome and.. nice.. and... and a better playmate than you." She razzes in his direction.
Pranjal chuckles, and gives another nuzzle before drawing herself up to her feet. "Well. I'm going to head over to a sunny spot and rest for a little. If you two would like to come along, we can find your parents and see if they've gotten any dinner for you. Growing kittens need plenty to eat!"
---
Kavin left the river and the young chital far behind as he abandoned the ground so he could run through the trees. He's fully aware Sabera is still following him, but for the moment he looses himself in the joy of leaping from branch to branch at speed, feeling the blast of leaves as they rush past and the wind streaming across his fur. "Woo!" Comes the cry as he drops into a leaping freefall from one higher branch to a lower, landing with a relative amount of grace and just a bit of sway and wobble.
Making her way along the ground, as opposed to the trees is Sabera, trying her best to keep up with the stronger, and faster boy cub. "Wait up!" Her high pitched voice can be heard echoing through the air, huffing and puffing as she goes. "Kavin, I can't see you!" She only catches flashes of his fur in the branches as he zips through each tree. Why does he always have to be such a boy for?
The branches shaking make a line showing Kavin's path, and that of Sabera behind him. It gets Pranjal's attention fairly quickly - but what is it? Only a hunter would move that fast... or a child. The victorious call from Kavin, and Sabera's plaintive cry, helps confirm which it is, and she chuckles, stretching herself out along the branch she's been resting her old bones on.
"Then stop runnin' down there!" Comes Kavin's panted reply as he slows his breakneck speed, pausing at a clearing in the leaves and branches to peer down towards Sabera. "It's way more fun to run up here and not on the dirt. Besides, you can see more! I wouldn't have saw Bhiita's mom if I wasn't able to climb aaaalll the way to the top! I even spotted an eagle, but they didn't see me!" And for a small cat, an eagle can be an honest threat, at least until he's older. Of course, he could just be boasting. His mother has scolded him about being in the open a fair number of times.
"You're gonna fall and break your legs and then you won't be able to do much of anything! You should come down here!" Sabera demands with a frustrated huff, stamping at the ground with her small paw. "I thought you were gonna play with me!" She hates shouting upwards into the trees. It's not lady like, and her mother always told her to never shout.
Pranjal pulls herself to her feet and pads her way closer, her motions gracious despite being slow. There's an economy of motion that barely even makes the branches shake as she steps from one to the next along the high-road. She chuckles again at the shouting back and forth - half the jungle has heard the cubs' argument at this point, most likely. "What's this I hear about playing together?" she calls out as she approaches.
"Pfft. Leopards are /supposed/ to be in trees." Kavin says as he eyes Sabera from the heights, his tail ticking back and forth below the branch. "You said we were supposed to play tag. So, I started running." Wasn't it obvious? Suppose not. When Pranjal approaches Kavin glances aside to the elders, his ears slanting askew. "Eh... Sabera wanted to play. I'd told her we could. We just helped a little... eh... cheethal... or... whatever she said she was find her mum, so, we just got back."
"Whatever." Sabera says with a heavy breath, annoyed at her male companion. "I'm just gonna find a new friend then! Yer' being a jerk." She says in a pouting tone, tail twitching back and forth behind her in a quick series of snaps. "Hi Pranjal!" She calls out, cheering up a bit as she spies the Elder.
Pranjal smiles. "It was nice of you to help the little one out..." she replies to Kavin, and then smiles down to Sabera. "Hello, Sabera!" she calls down. Not that she's not helping out Kavin's case just by being up in the trees herself. "Doesn't seem like it's much fun, though, if you're up here and you're down there..." she muses, looking from one cub to the other.
Kavin looks both annoyed and perplexed. First she wants to play tag and now she's upset because he was running? What's up with this? Girls are confusing. He flicks an ear and passes Pranjal a sideways glance as she brings up the gap issue, which is what he was thinking but apparently he's somehow wrong. "I am /not/ a jerk." He huffs out as he jerks around and heads for the trunk of the tree so he can claw his way down to ground level. "I was trying to play! Ya can't play tag sitting down."
"You know I don't like heights! It's not fair. I can't tag you if you're in the trees!" Sabera says with an upset tone in her voice, looking even more frustrated now. "And you're faster, and.. and... it's not /fair/." She sputters out again as she sucks in a deep breath, her voice hinging on a whine. "Come down here and play with me instead." She pleads.
Pranjal swings herself down for a better view, in a graceful motion that starts with a stretch and ends up with her dangling from her hind claws. She tilts her head to look at Sabera, partly upside down. "What's this about not liking heights, kitling?" she asks. "Haven't you heard the story of why they call us the clouded leopards?"
Kavin descends the last few feet in a leap, releasing his claws from the bark and dropping down to his paws. "Alright, alright... see, I'm down here." He says with as much of a reassuring gesture as a very resigned voice can muster. But then he perks up visibly as Pranjal hangs from above, cupping his ears forward and sits back to his rump with a grin on his face. "Ooh, I love this story!"
Trotting over towards Kavin, Sabby gives him a bit of a pawing at the shoulder, before flopping in against him. "Yes, I've heard the story, but I don't like heights." She pouts as her ear slants back against her skull. "It's scary up there, and I get really dizzy when I look down. I always get sick." Her tail curls about her haunches a bit, frowning.
Pranjal swings herself in again, leaping over to a treetrunk and then rebounding against it before landing on the ground to join the cubs. Yeah, she's showing off a little, and her legs probably won't be the happiest come tomorrow, but it's all in a good cause. She listens with a sympathetic expression to Sabena, and then nods slightly to the cub. "One of my cubs used to get dizzy sometimes..." she says, and thinks for a moment. "He told me that it helped if he pretended he was walking on logs over the river, and all the leaves were the surface of the water. It made him feel like it wasn't so far down..."
Kavin can't help but picture Pranjal not bounding off a treetrunk but right off a cliff and landing in the tree. He'll never get that picture out of his head, cuz one day he will! There's a flicker of disappointment as no story is forthcoming. It's one of the few things that'll hold his attention. Still, as talk turns to remedies his curiosity is piqued as he turns his head from Pranjal and onto Sabera. "You think that'd help?"
"No, that wouldn't help either because I can't pretend that I'm on logs if I know I'm in the air. I'll just be a regular leopard I guess." Sabera says with a sulking tone, quietly jealous of the older leopard easily jumping about in the air as if it was no big deal. "Should just play with me down here instead. We can still have fun I'm sure." She says, butting her head into Kavin's shoulder firmly.
While Pranjal ordinarily doesn't mind repeating her stories, this time, she rather suspects it might come off to Sabera as a lecture. And that's not really her style. She nods. "Well, if you're going to be an ordinary leopard, maybe you can show Kavin how to hunt on the ground? There's plenty of spots to hide around here..." She leans in, adding in a confidential tone, "If you played hide and seek on the ground, I bet he couldn't stay still enough to hide!"
Lucky for Pranjal that Kavin's attentions are already wondering and he only gets the idea he's being talked about as opposed to exact conversation, though it elicits a "Hey!" in protest regardless. "Well, Sabby, we ganna play or what? I'm hungry too. Did I hear hunting? We should hunt! Then I catch my /own/ dinner and it'll be the biggest, most awesome dinner ever." So easily distracted.
Ears perking a bit as the Elder whispers, Sabera turns her eyes upon the young boy, then pushes him over with a hard shove, then starts to dart off through the thick grass. "You're it!" She giggles, bounding happily over a rotted log, then ducks herself behind a tree. She peeks out with a cheeky grin on her face, trying to hide from him.
Pranjal chuckles, sitting down and curling her tail around her legs as she watches the younglings start to play.
Kavin yelps as he's toppled by Sabera, the boy left sprawled on his back and flailing to regain his footing. Cats may land on their feet, but once lost, getting them back can sometimes pose a challenge. "Nofair!" He blurts as he claws his way back to his feet, jerking his head this way and that as he tries to spy where she's gone to. He knows Pranjal wouln't snitch, but she might be hiding Sabby. He gambols over to the elder, peeking behind her. Nope. Huffing, he gives Pranjal's shoulder an affectionate butt of his head before he heads towards the bushes.
Peeking out from behind the tree, Sabera is holding her breath as best she can so not to cause attention to herself. As the boy starts to head for the bushes, she slowly starts to creep around. Holding herself low to the ground, she stalks after him, then bounds forward in an attempt to fling herself at him from behind, and hopefully tackle him to the ground. Sure, he's 'It', but she is also full of surprises.
Pranjal smiles, and leans down to give Kavin a light nuzzle as he bounds off again. Ahh, the energy of youth. She'll just rest here, where there's a little patch of sunbeam reaching down through the branches. She catches her breath in as Sabera makes her pounce - with any luck, this play will start building up the young female's confidence. Certainly, it'll help both of them get stronger and quicker!
Kavin pokes his head into the bush, a toothy grin on his face as he expects to come nose-to-nose with Sabera and show her just how quick he found her. But, there's nothing but leaves, and his grin turns upside-down as he scowls at the empty space. Huh. This seemed like the perfect hiding spot. Where else would she-- "AAAIIHH!" He cries out in a loud yowl as his rump is assaulted and he is toppled sideways, his front half tangling in the bush while his hind paws and tail flail in the air. "Attack! Attack! Pranjaaaaaalll!"
Grabbing him by the tail with her jaws, Sabera starts to drag him out of the bushes, back peddling as best she can, grinning widely around his spotty appendage. Spitting it out and leaving it a bit drooly, she giggles in a loud manner, then starts to dart off again, bounding as fast as she can away from him.
Pranjal laughs! "Oh, well done!" she calls to Sabera with a grin, and then, "Twist around, Kavin! Just because she's got you doesn't mean you can't get her back..." to the dragged cub. She'll cheer for both sides, she will!
Pesky neutral elder, being fair to everyone! Tangled up, Kavin does his best to curl his body back on itself, but he just ends up with a faceful of leaves for his efforts. Sabera helps pull him free, though she's already running by the time he gets his feet under him. "Gannagetyou!" He calls out with a fierce look on his face as he bolts after her, half jumping and half running in an attempt to eat up the distance.
"Nuh uh! I'm -faster- than you!" True he may be the king of the clouds, but she is the queen of the ground. As she barrels through the grass, she zips around behind Pranjal, trying to use her larger frame to hide her. "Save me Elder! He's gonna try and -kiss- me and give the cooties!" Ew! Cooties are gross and she heard all about them.
Grey-brown fur is much like grey-brown fur, right? Of course, it's hard to hide properly when someone's chasing so closely... Pranjal chuckles. "The cooties? You'd better get away, then! Those are very contagious, and once you catch them... they never ever go away!" At least, they didn't for her in her long years with her mate. Of course, she called it 'love' instead of cooties...
The brakes are applied as the words Kiss and Cooties are uttered, and a look of disgusted horror brings Kavin to a halt. "Eeeeeew!" He says, tongue sticking out from his whiskered muzzle as he stares at Sabera from over Pranjal. "I ain't ganna kiss anyone, that's gross! Only silly grownups do that stuff. I don't wanna catch that stuff."
As soon as he puts on the brakes, Sabera is once more driving herself into him, head first, square into the chest. She could be a great line backer with the way she tackles. Full forepaws wrapping about him, followed by a twist as she takes him to the ground. "HA!" She says with a proud grin on her face as she pins him down with a wiggle to her rump. "Gotcha 'gain'."
Silly grownups, indeed - Pranjal rather suspects that someday, Kavin will come to see the point in those kisses. But there's time yet before he's grown enough to appreciate it - for now, girls are simply playmates. And occasionally icky - not to mention taking advantage of his disgust! She laughs. "Sabby's a tricky one, Kavin - can't trust her!"
"She's a /girl/, course I can't!" Kavin yowls in response to Pranjal as he finds himself flattened again and now forced to wrestle with Sabera. At least in wrestling he has an advantage. Lurching, he tries to fling his forepaws around her neck and pull her down to his level on the ground where he can get the upper hand.
Squeaking out as she is tugged down upon him, Sabera squirms a bit, shoving at him, and batting at his muzzle. "Oh no, he's trying to smooch me! Eeew!" She says, shoving her head under his chin to force his head back, followed by a firm nip to his shoulder. "Help save me from his yucky boy kisses!"
Pranjal laughs, watching the two wrestle. She makes no moves to save either of them - they're not likely to actually hurt each other, and if they catch cooties, well - an eventual infection is pretty much inevitable! She's not so bad a matchmaker as some, but... if they decide to do it without her having to meddle, that's just fine!
Oh-Ho! She wants kisses, does she? Well, she's about to get one of those dreaded boy kisses. Puffing up his chest as he tries to keep her grounded, the spotted boy gives voice to a gleefully wicked cackle before he darts his head forward and *ssslllluurrp* right across Sabera's face from nose to forehead. It's drooly and messy and, well, what did you expect from Kavin? A cheek smooch?
Puffing herself out like a cotton ball, Sabera freezes as he leans in and gives her her first kiss. Of course, it is hardly romantic, and quite disgusting. ".. EEEEEEEW!" She staggers back, pushing his face away with his paw, then starts to run off with a look of horror upon her face. She reaches the Elder and shoves her face against her shoulder, trying to rub the cooties out.
Boys do tend to be icky. They'll grow out of it - with time, the kisses - while they may be just as slobbery - will be rather more enjoyed. Pranjal leans down, giving a little nuzzle between Sabera's ears as those cooties get rubbed into her fur. She's got a long-running infection herself, so she's not too worried.
Kavin looks rather smug as he gets up to his paws, his clouded fur marred with dust and wrestling, like some soldier who'd just won a great battle. A battle of defeating Sabera at her own game. It's not that easy, mind you. "I think you're It now." He says with a chuckle as he flops back on his rump, seeming uninterested to continue on despite his words. Games are rather tiring.
"Ew, I don't want to touch you again! You -kissed- me." Sabera wails out to him with indigence in her voice. "My first kiss and it was wasted on -you-." She says with a whimper, giving her head a firm shake as she tries to rub the kiss out of her muzzle with her paws. Out. Out!
Pranjal chuckles at Kavin's evident pleasure - and then leans down and nuzzles again at Sabera's ears. "It only counts for real the first time you kiss back. You still get to decide where -that- goes. He's the one who used up his... just to win at a game!" she murmurs softly, and smiles.
Kavin doesn't seem bothered at his frivolous waste of what is called a kiss. More like drooled on. "Hmf. You said I was ganna kiss you, so I did." He says simply enough before he interrupts himself as he yawns, a wide and noisy affair as he stretches himself and splays his toes. "...still hungry. Wonder is mom has dinner... or dad... dad catches good dinners."
"It wasn't even a nice kiss." Sabera murmurs as she tries to find some relief in Pranjal's nuzzling. "Yer' a gross boy, Kavin. I'm gonna tell mom on you." She says with a heavy thump on her tail. "And.. and one day I'll have to give someone a kiss and I betcha it won't be -you-. And then....then you'll be /real/ jealous cuz he's gonna be so handsome and.. nice.. and... and a better playmate than you." She razzes in his direction.
Pranjal chuckles, and gives another nuzzle before drawing herself up to her feet. "Well. I'm going to head over to a sunny spot and rest for a little. If you two would like to come along, we can find your parents and see if they've gotten any dinner for you. Growing kittens need plenty to eat!"