The Harcourt Family

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

((DONE! I'll write what Oka and Panthe and their parents are up to in the next post 'cause this was getting pretty big and I didn't want to write too much for you))

The flight was eight to ten hours approximately, so although they ate the lunch that was brought to them, they spent most of the trip sleeping. James watched movies or read magazines in between the occasional break to stretch his legs or visit the bathroom. The rest of the time was spent sleeping or zoning out listening to music.

At last the plane touched down, and they took the hotel’s escort car to their accommodation. It was a luxury resort, and perfect for people who wanted to spend their honeymoon, or even family trips.

When they got to their room, all their luggage had already been brought up. There were welcoming brochures, information packets about the sights and what to do and see here, and order in menus on the table, as well as a complimentary bottle of wine, with flowers and chocolates to congratulate them on their wedding. James carried his sleepy wife into the room and gently placed her down on the king sized bed. “Well, this is nice” he sighed, stretching out with a wide yawn and going to inspect the card and items on the table. “And so is this. How thoughtful of them. We should thank the hotel manager when we get a chance” James sat down, removing his shoes and going to flop on the bed beside Cheria. He laced his fingers with hers, smiling wearily yet happily.

“Strange when we got off the plane. The air smells so different here. And it’s hot and sticky” he wrinkled his nose at the tropical and unfamiliar scents that had greeted them during the short walk out of the airport to wait for the courtesy car that brought them here. It was musky, thick, and soupy with all sorts of strange and spicy scents that were unfamiliar to him. They had landed in a place very similar to Africa, with all kinds of wild animals, and wild landscapes. It was true that Firaca was not quite the same as the abovementioned continent, yet it was similar in so many ways that it could be its cousin. James leaned forward to press a kiss to Cheria’s ear, “We should rest up, so we’re ready for tomorrow. Geez, it’s a long way to Firaca” he complained with a groan, voice slightly hoarse from jet lag. He despised jet lag – there was nothing to do but sleep it off.

***

Iouya swooped through the tall grasses, coming up empty handed on the first dive through. The cubs were playing around and moving again, and must have leapt out of his grasp. Flapping back into the air and tuning his ears to pinpoint their location, he heard a series of squelching sounds and unhappy howls. Iouya laughed to himself. 'Looks like they found that old waterhole. Mud wallow is more like it! Fit for elephants'

"Hang on you two, I'm gonna pull you out" Iouya called out to them, swooping back down, this time knowing exactly where to look. He reached out and plucked a very mud caked and miserable looking Luke from the reeds.

Quarrow, who'd been circling above the grasses, also dived in and snatched up a cub in his big mossy paws, uttering a grate of triumph. He flapped onto the ground, dropping the cub gently into the shorter grass with a soft grunt while wrinkling his nose at the smell emanating from Caleb. A claw swished past the cub's head, dislodging a piece of old water weeds with a flick. Quarrow's feelers hovered around the boy, checking for any harm as he leaned forward and gave a cautious sniff. Yuck! Quarrow drew back with a shake of his head and a sharp snort, ears drawn back and tail swishing agitation. Caleb stank of stale water, rotten plant materials and muck. This one would definitely need a wash. He put out his big paw and rolled the cub around the grass a bit, trying to wipe some of it onto the grass.

Iouya held firmly to Luke, despite his squirms and protests, mud slathering onto the bat's hands and arms. Luke was slippery and difficult to hold, but Iouya held on tight, determined not to drop him, yet careful not to pierce him with his claws. Looking towards the Lypthera and Caleb, he called back to them as he flew towards Silaeca. "This way you two. We need to tell Silaeca where we're going first" he ordered cheerfully, landing beside the snake woman with a still wriggling and shouting Luke.

Quarrow picked up Caleb and followed after Iouya with a flap. Normally, he'd pick the cub up in his teeth, but not covered in THAT! He sat on his haunches and dropped the child-cub to the ground again, placing one big paw on him to stop him running away. He grate-growled in a friendly yet insistent tone that meant 'stay put!'.

"Silaeca...hey! Wake up!" Iouya clapped a muddy hand to Silaeca's cheek several times, instantly rousing her from her nap. Panthe and Oka were nowhere to be seen, the picnic blanket empty. There was a confetti of ripped book pages and a chewed and clawed book cover though.

Silaeca blinked and gave a startled hiss, reaching to wipe her cheek and looking at her hand in digust. "Iouya! Ss! What was that for?!"

"You fell asleep, you big nong! Someone had to wake ya up. And not to raise any alarms, but where are the brats?" He pointed to the empty blanket, raising a brow at her. "Saberlin's gonna have our hides"

"The - oh no! The kidssss!" Silaeca was instantly alert, awake, pushing off the tree and looking around in slight panic. She sighed, tasting the air with her long serpent's tongue. Her eyes slid closed and she seemed to concentrate, before opening them again. "I've got their sscent. I know where to find them. And there'ss a trail,worry not!". She nodded to the ripped pages, fishing a wipe out of the diaper bag and wiping off her hand and face. She slithered towards the bushes and tall grass that had a trail leading through it. "Now what have you two been up to that's causing such an awful messs?" she asked, eyeing Luke and Caleb's state of affairs.

"We..." Iouya started, but had to stop to adjust his grip on the lion cub in his arms that had just burst into tears and shifted shape back into a toddler. "Come now, Luke, I thought you liked playing in the water" he cooed to the boy, trying to comfort him. "We are going to take a bath! It'll be fun" the bat's grin stretched wider, drawing a smile and a shake of her head from the naga.

"Oh yesss, fun for whom?" She teased. "Okay, go now. I will fetch the others"

"We can deal with your punishment when I get back" Iouya replied, half joking, half serious and a tad worried. It wasn't like Silaeca to nod off that way. Was she sick? He'd have to check in with her later.

Picking up where they left off, Iouya took Luke's chubby toddler mitt and waved it cheerfully at the snake woman, despite the boy's sobs, as he took back to the air along with Quarrow. "Bye bye Miss Silaeca!"

****

Luke and Caleb soon found themselves not in the mansion or in a bathroom, but standing in another part of the garden with flowering bushes and plants, and a short green lawn. Iouya was holding a garden hose. He had turned the water onto running and was carefully hosing the mud off them both. It didn't matter if the water was cold, the day was sunny and the water was a nice temperature for a summery day. "See this isn't so bad is it? I'll even put the sprinkler on once we're finished and you can play in that" he offered.

Quarrow sat nearby, watching them like a hawk, to make sure no one tried to run away. His gold-orange eyes glowed when they watched the mist coming from the hose spray. He loved mist and playing in water, his moss always went softer and brighter after he bathed.

 

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

Cheria sleepily hummed her agreement. "That we should do love."

She turned so that she was facing him and scooted closer to him so she could share his warmth. She was somewhat already used to the heat, her lion DNA kicking in. Giving a yawn that was big for her, she finally forced herself to roll off the bed and get into the bathroom to brush her teeth and put on some PJs. Coming back in, she noticed how James was already asleep, quietly snoring away. Smiling, she got in the bed, and wrestled him into bed after she got him into his sleepwear [with some difficulty, mind you]. She just laid there for a couple minutes, taking the time to gently move some hair away from his face. She planted a kiss on his forehead before cuddling into him and falling asleep tucked into him.

***

Luke tried to catch the water droplets in his hands, but was distracted by the bright flowers. Pushing himself up to his feet, he toddled towards the flowers and ended up tripping on a small rock that rocketed him forward.

Caleb looked towards the area where the crash came from. Getting up, he toddled towards his brother, wanting to help him up. His little tail wiggled in the air. "Wuke! Wat are you doing? You silwy."

Luke got up and followed his brother back to the gentle spraying of the garden hose. "OK Caweb." Finally, he was entranced by the sparkling water, laughing when Quarrow nuzzled him, tickling him with the feelers. He cupped some of the water and gently splashed Quarrow with it, trying to play with the Lypthera. Caleb joined in, gently letting the water trickle from his fingers and on to Quarrow. From time to time they gently patted Quarrow on the mossy parts, liking how soft it became. Luke, dripping wet and slowly drying out, bounded over to Iouya, and patted his leg.

"Iou'a! Moss, see an' feel?" Luke handed him a tiny piece of moss that had somehow come loose from Quarrow's back. It was very soft, and somewhat soothing.  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

The room was swept cool by an overhead ceiling fan, one above the bed and another in the lounge area. The climate was warm, and would have been sticky and humid otherwise. There was also an air conditioning unit on the wall. James found that the sweat on his skin cooled quickly under the fan's gust and as his body began to enter sleep mode, his temp lowered further. He allowed Cheria to snuggle close, idly circling an arm over her torso and breathing in her scent. Exhausted, he closed his eyes. He felt her move out from under his arm and the shift of the mattress as she got up off the bed to pad into the bathroom. The jaguar lazily flicked an ear. He would have liked to freshen up. He told himself he'd get up in a minute; just another moment or two, after Cheria finished with the sink.

Somehow, without knowing when, he drifted off to sleep.

He opened his eyes to a peacefully darkened room. It was shaded enough by the blinds and closed door that what small amount of light did get in only lightened it to a soothing shadow. It gave him no idea what time it was. James rolled over onto his side with a yawn, running a hand through his sleep tousled hair. He had vague memories of being moved last night, helped into his pyjamas. Holding up an arm to look at the pyjama sleeve, he knew they were correct. He'd woken up a little but his mind had been so sleep fogged and his body so drowsy that it seemed more like a dream.

He looked at Cheria's sleeping form with a soft smile. She needed her sleep, so he let her be, trying to get out of bed quietly and not rustle around too much in case he woke her up. Stepping foot onto the carpeted floor, he stretched, raising his arms above his head and arching his back, his tail quivering as the stretch ended. Mmm...that was a good sleep!
A spontaneous idea struck him and James decided to go with it. He took one of the flowers from the bouquet on the table and picked up the card that came with them. He flipped the card over and scribbled on the back of it with a pen he found near the telephone and notepad. James wrote ‘Good Morning. I love you’ on the back of the card, and placed the rose and the card beside Cheria on the pillow. Smiling to himself, he quietly backed away.

Grabbing some clothes, he went into the bathroom while Cheria slept. This morning, they were going to go out for breakfast at one of the local eateries and then explore the area; the buildings, the markets and the wares, just to see what it was like and of course, meet the people. He also wanted to make a call back to the mansion, to check in with Luke and Caleb, though he’d wait till Cheria awoke so they could both talk to the boys.

***

Saberlin led Fern deeper and further into the rainforest, moving branches aside and pointing out where it was safe to tread. He could hear the rushing sound of the water growing louder as they got nearer and soon, even Fern could hear it. He stepped out into a clearing with a deep, rocky pool. A waterfall tumbled down the rocks and mossy plant life, spilling mist into the air. Birds trilled and called sweetly around the falls and a scent of wild honey reached his nose. Tropical flowers were dotted everywhere, attracting butterflies and wild bees. “It would seem we have arrived” Saberlin remarked, looking around. He was well pleased with this place; it was prettier than he would have thought and it looked like the pool might be accessible for swimming.

“Well then…” Saberlin raised Fern’s hand to his lips, brushing the back of her fingers with a light kiss. Releasing Fern’s hand , he allowed the leopard to rise to the surface, the Change sweeping over him. He felt his body begin to shift and reform, the light tingling sensation as though mist were dancing on his skin. A brief white glow surrounded him, before dissolving into fading sparkles. There he stood in his wild cat form; a magnificent rainforest leopard. Leopard Saberlin’s mouth hung open in a wide toothy grin. He groaned and gave a luxurious stretch as though having been freed from a small container, shaking out each paw, flexing his claws, shaking his tail. Padding over to Fern, he nudged and rubbed against her legs, nearly knocking her over in his enthusiasm. He let out a sort of hiss that turned into a thundering purr. “Now, this is more like it” Saberlin sighed, with his rumbling feline voice. “You do not mind me being like this, do you?”

***

Fern gasped and smiled as he rubbed against her, laughing. “Saberlin, careful! You’re going to bowl me over” She smiled, running her hands through his coat, watching him. “It’s fine. Have fun. Enjoy yourself. I love you no matter what form you’re in. I know you’ve wanted to do this for a while” she replied, leaning down to lightly cup his head in both hands and kiss the top of his head.

***

Saberlin waited for a second and then chuffed at her, loudly.

***

She squealed and pulled back when he chuffed at her, accidentally tripping and landing on her bottom. “Saberlin~!” Fern laughed.

***
Saberlin took the chance and moved in, leaning down and starting to jab at her with his paws and lick her. He was in a playful mood, and he liked making her laugh.

***

Meanwhile, Panthe and Oka were enjoying their game. The two had tested out their claws and teeth on a discarded book that landed on their picnic blanket. Then one had started to bat at the other’s tail, and before they knew it, they were engaged in a hunting, stalking game that led them into the bushes, away from their nanny.
Panthe had turned into her feline form and Oka had soon copied his sis. Transforming took practice but was becoming easier each time they did it. Seeing Luke and Caleb had given them ideas.

Oka was glancing around nervously as he crept along, belly close to the ground. His ears swivelled this way and that, trying to catch any trace of sound. His tail was between his legs and he moved his paws uncertainly. Every rustle, every swish of grass, had him on edge. She was somewhere, stalking him. But where?

A bush rustled nearby. With a soft growl, Oka swung around and swiped at it, startling a grasshopper from it’s hiding place. The insect landed on his nose with a plop and the cub jumped and shook his head with a startled mewl, pawing at his face in attempts to dislodge the insect.

Panthe had been waiting for a chance to leap. This was it! She leaped out of the flowers, landing on her brother with a playful growl, and they went roly-poly, clawing and biting at each other. The grasshopper leaped off in alarm, only to be chased by two rambunctious leopard cubs.

They were just about to catch their hoppy prey, when out of the bushes slithered a red naga.

“Sss, there you two are! Now what have I told you about going off alone? And about tearing up books!” Silaeca scolded, with her best ‘scolding’ tone. She wasn’t exactly mad at them she just wanted to teach them it’s bad to run off on their own. “Come here right now”

Oka and Panthe tripped over their own paws as Silaeca suddenly appeared, and ended up crashing into their nanny. The grasshopper hopped away.

Panthe looked up at Silaeca with her ears drooping down, making herself as small as she could. Oka, meanwhile, cowered and tried to hide behind his sister. Uh oh, they were in trouble.

***
Iouya had managed to wash all of the mud off the boys and himself and had put the garden sprinkler on for them to run around in. He moved it from place to place, to prevent the lawn getting too muddy. His shirt had been stained by mud so was rinsed with hose water and now hanging over a tree branch to dry. He kept an eye on the kids while they played, occasionally opening his wings and letting the misted droplets spray them while flapping to cool down.

Quarrow loved to play with the children. He let them drip and splash water on him, sometimes splashing them in return. When Luke tripped over, he gave a concerned grate, and let his whiskerlike feelers trail over the kit to check for injuries. Thankfully there were none, and he continued to play in the water with them. Quarrow opened one wing, angled it just so…and tiny streams of water came falling off it, pouring off the edges and onto the little nekos.

When the boys got interested in his moss, he allowed a small piece to fall off. It was medicinal, and Saberlin’s lab had some pieces of it to study, finding out different properties. Since it regrew, he didn’t mind sharing.

Iouya, who was checking to see if his shirt was dry yet, looked down at Luke and then knelt to see what he had to show him. “Oh, you got some of Quarrow’s moss hey?” he reached out and gently felt the dark green moss with his finger. It was springy, soft and with an almost velvety texture. Tiny beads of water were sprinkled all through it, making rainbow pinpoints. Iouya knew that Saberlin and co. were studying pieces of it down in the labs, and coming up with beauty products and medicinal products from what they discovered. “This moss is very special. It was nice of Quarrow to give you some. Do you know what colour it is?” he asked, testing Luke’s knowledge of colours.

 

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

Luke looked at Iouya, his head tilted a little bit in exsperation. "Weally, 'Ouya, it's gween. You need to memowise your colwors." He poked Iouya gently with a claw, his damp ears back.

Caleb and Luke finally had enough of the sprinkler. They kept wandering off and finally flopping down in a sunny spot where the sprinkler didn't reach to. They just stretched out and sunned while the sun did it's work and dried out their fur.

It felt good to be a lion then. Not when Iouya comes to scoop you up. Then it was pure torture.

***

Cheria slowly woke up from her sleep. Rolling over from her left side, she saw the flower and card, and she flipped the card over to see what it said. After reading the message, she got out of bed, which was putting the flower back on the pillow, then rolling over until she fell out of bed with a THUMP. Groaning, she got up, and shuffled over to the other side of the bed.

"James? Is it possible for me to get a quick shower to freshen up?" Cheria stumbled into the bathroom, her hair in all sorts of crazy directions.
(Think Princess Anna's hairdo on the Coronation Day in Frozen)  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

James was already in the shower when Cheria called out. The warm water pounding over his skin and through hair and fur was soothing and refreshing after their long day of travel the other day. He was busy washing his hair and ears when she called out and he carefully opened his eyes and looked over to see Cheria enter the bathroom.

“Sure, if you want. There’s enough room for two. I don’t mind sharing” he called out, moving over to make room and opening the shower door for her. The bathroom was steamy but the exhaust fan was on. Scents of shampoo and soap mingled in the air, creating a nice perfume. Seeing the state of her hair, he laughed. “Looks like somebody slept well”. Never mind that his fur and hair were sticking up at odd angles and covered in suds. His ears and tail always looked different when the fur was wet.

***

Iouya just laughed and petted Luke’s head, ruffling his ears up. “Cripes! I think you’re right! Maybe I outta go back to the books and study harder” he grinned. “Here I was thinking it was blue. How silly of me”. He was quietly glad that the lessons the cubs were taught were sinking in. They seemed to have mastered colours pretty well.

Iouya went to turn the sprinkler off once the boys had finished playing with it. Although he had tried to prevent it happening, there was now a big muddy patch in the lawn. Thankfully, the lion cubs preferred to lie about in the warm sunshine as they dried off their fur. Since they were content to do that, Iouya found a perch in a nearby tree and hung upside down to keep an eye over them, a position he naturally liked.

***

When the lovely spray from the sprinkler ceased, Quarrow grated his gravelly noise, sounding disappointed. He folded his wings down again and loped over to sprawl under the tree Iouya was hanging in, watching Luke and Caleb under its dappled shade. He didn’t seem to mind being wet and his stone and moss hide appeared glossy and lush after the misting from the sprinkler. His tail tip flicked a lazy rhythm and he yawned and stretched, flexing his claws. Today was a nice one for sunning around. Of course, the lypthera spent much of his time doing just that. Outside in the grounds, he often liked to sit still and pretend to be a statue then scare the daylights out of people visiting or the gardeners. If it came to kids, he usually let them climb all over him. He watched Luke and Caleb in the sunshine and vowed to protect them from sunburn if they got too warm.

***

Silaeca slithered into view a moment later, carrying two rather subdued leopard cubs, one in each arm. She also carried the bag with their toys and supplies. She placed Oka and Panthe down where Luke and Caleb were sunning themselves. Putting down the bag, Silaeca dug around in it and brought out a small ball, about the size of a tennis ball but brightly coloured with red and white stripes.

“All right now, who wantss to play? It is sssuch a lovely day we cannot ssspend it sulking” she smiled, looking at Panthe and Oka and tossing the ball so it rolled across the grass. Distraction tactics usually worked well with the leopards, who were still sulking at having their romp ended. Oka had flopped onto his side, and Panthe had her head between her paws, her ears drooping.

Panthe was the first to respond. Her ears flipped up and she ran for the ball with a clumsy run. She batted it between her paws, trying to pick it up in her mouth, but it kept rolling away. The ball’s bouncing, rolling movements imitated an escaping prey, and she pounced at it excitedly.

Oka, on the other hand, lifted his head to watch Panthe, flicking one ear back. Hmm, nope, he didn’t want to play. He laid back down with a soft sigh, and blinked sadly. Getting caught and scolded was no fun. He just wanted to explore. His eyes roamed the garden until a particular movement caught his eye. The way Silaeca’s snake body was moving and wriggling as she picked up the ball for Panthe and threw it again and followed after his sister, gave him an idea. Rolling over, he got to his paws and trotted over to start chasing the end of Silaeca’s tail, swatting at it with a paw. Chasing her tail was entertaining him nicely.

***

Feeling something swat her tail, Silaeca glanced back over her shoulder and saw Oka. She grinned, and moved a little faster, wiggling her tail for him while she threw the ball again for Panthe. "Here, catch!" she hissed playfully, having fun with the two of them. They were really good kids, she thought, just a little mischievous as most children can be at times. Well, actually, now that she thought about it, Panthe seemed to be the leader when it came to wandering off to new places.

***

Saberlin pawed and nuzzled at Fern, hearing her laughter. As soon as she was breathless, he let her up, grinning cattishly. He backed off a step to let her catch her breath.

Fern got to her feet, flushed and still giggling a little. She brushed leaves and twigs off her skirt, also trying to pick them out of her hair. “Had your fun now?” she asked, smiling at Saberlin. “No one back at the house would ever believe me if I told them you were this playful” she laughed.


Saberlin walked around Fern, rubbing his face on her legs, he purposely leaned his weight against her, to put her off balance.

“Hey, what are doing now? You’re going to tip me ov-aaahh!” With a small shriek and a splash, Fern fell backwards into the pool behind her. She came up spluttering, but laughing. “What was that for?”


Saberlin crouched down on the rocky edge before leaping into the water, creating a splash. He popped back up and paddled over to place a sandpaper kiss on Fern’s arm and cheek. “Thought you might need a little excitement in your life!” he teased, with a tremor of laughter, swimming in the cool water.

 

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

"Hehe, yeah. I did. Looks like Anna from Frozen." Frozen was the cubs' new favorite movie, after The Lion King trilogy, of course. Cheria hopped into the shower and playfully shoved James to the other end of the shower.

"Move over, you big cat. I need to use the shower as well. After we get cleaned up, let's get breakfast at a local cafe?" She started to soap up her body and hair, getting herself clean. Soon, her hair was squeaky clean. Her ears were wet and tufts of fur were sticking up. Her tail was throughly wet as well, and she was almost done. When she was done, the tuft of hair on her tail was soaked through, as were her ears. She stumbled out of the shower, toweling off once she was out.

"That felt good. Getting the travel dust off your body is a wonderful feeling." She turned back to James and kissed him. "Mmm, I can get used to this."

***

Finally, Luke and Caleb were dried off. They rested in the sun, but finally, the restless cat woke up. Luke was the first one to get up and change into a cub, his ears perking up as two almost gigantic fuzzy satellites, minus all the metaly bits. He got up, a smaller cub with distinct jaguar, leopard, and baby lion spots melding together on his legs. Lighter jaguar and leopard rosettes spotted his backside,with a dark dorsal stripe common to lion cubs. He started to pounce on Oka, growling playfully.

Caleb was more relaxed. He lazily changed into a cat, almost the same as Luke, but his pattern of Jaguar and Leopard rosettes were different. He got up and pounced on Panthe, his larger frame almost pinning her down. Nipping at her ear, he growled playfully, batting at her ears and tail.  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

James groaned "Not that movie again. I think we've seen it a thousand times" Although he had to admit, it wasn't bad and secretly it was one of his favourites. Their cubs were simply at an age where they loved to watch and re-watch movies to the point of driving their parents crazy. He moved over to make some more room for her in the shower, not minding being shoved as he knew it was in jest. James playfully splashed Cheria with the warm water. When she mentioned the cafe he nodded, splashing more water around.

"Of course we will! Let's visit that one we saw in the travel brochure; the ‘Taste of the Morning’ Cafe. We can go there and try some of the local foods for breakfast" James replied happily, busy washing all the suds and shampoo off. "But afterwards we should call Luke and Caleb and say good morning. I think they'll be happy to hear from us".

He stepped out of the shower as well, grabbing his towel and drying off, ardently returning her kiss. "So can I" he purred, tenderly stroking one of her ears. “Let’s make the most of it. But first, let us freshen up and wake up, so we’re ready for whatever’s out there”. James made a sweeping gesture at the bathroom window. He then went to the sink and cleaned his teeth before going back into their room.

The jaguar neko started getting dressed, pulling on a clean white t shirt and a pair of jeans, and then his pair of new walking shoes, that he had broken in before coming here; just in case they were on their feet all day, wandering around, or if they went for scenic walks. He waited while Cheria got dressed, picking up his phone, putting it in his pocket, along with his wallet. He checked to see whether Cheria was ready to go, and grabbed the room key, placing it in his other pocket. James went and flopped down on the couch, sprawling out with a sigh and a stretch. "I'm ready whenever you are, my dear”, he called to Cheria, while he waited for her, listening to his stomach growl.

***

Oka was still chasing Silaeca through the garden, pawing at her tail as he tried to catch it. He leaped, clamping his jaws onto…a tuft of grass! Oka shook his head, trying to spit the grass blades out, while pawing at his mouth. He crouched as Silaeca shifted her position, running her tail back past him in the opposite direction, the way one would trail a string in front of a kitten. Oka started to chase after it again, eyes bright and focused, ears alert, paws running – bam! Something leaped out and pounced on him just when he almost had it. “Mrow!” Oka was so startled that he let out a squeaky mew, and there was a puff of sparkles as the neko boy changed back into his half human form, taking a little tumble across the lawn.

Instantly picking up Luke’s scent, he felt the weight and the claws and paws of a lion-leopard-jaguar cub sitting on his chest and looked down at his cousin in surprise “Luke! Nyu pounced me?!” Oka gasped, before giggling a little. He reached out and petted Luke’s head. “Dat was scary!”

***

Panthe on the other paw, was still in her little black leopard cub form. She kept batting the red and white ball with her paw, chasing it, sometimes managing to grab it and tousle with it, bunny kicking it with her hind paws as she bit it with her sharp little teeth. She kicked it a little too hard and it popped out of her grasp and went rolling. She went to chase it again when she got pounced on by Caleb, having her ear nipped and paws swatting at her. Wriggling out from under Caleb, she pounced back at him with a playful mewl, play fighting the way that cats do.

***

Fern continued to swim in the natural rock pools with Saberlin. The water felt nice, and the surroundings were peaceful. She relaxed in the cool water, just swimming around, even though her clothes were wet, she didn’t mind. She knew they could get changed back at their room.

Saberlin did a sort of doggy paddle, in his own feline style as he swam around in the pool with Fern. He swam under the waterfall, letting it cascade over his fur. Ah, now this was the life! After a while, he got tired of swimming and hopped out, going over to Fern and grabbing onto her clothes with his teeth. He gave them a light tug. It was time to go back

((I say we do a time skip soon for Oka, Panthe and company. Since I’m a little stuck. Maybe they could play trains with Silaeca and then go back to the mansion. Unless you have other ideas))  

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

Cheria came out to meet him in shorts and a tshirt, though not white but rather a light blue color. Her ears had tiny diamond studs in them, the diamonds twinkling every time the sun caught them. She had other jewelry on, but not enough to feel bogged down, but enough to feel a little dressy. Her feet were also clad in new walking shoes, but she broke them in a couple weeks prior by running after Luke and Caleb all over the mansion.

Flopping down on James, she peered up at him and smirked. "Are we ready, love? I know I am." She got up, pulled him up halfway and then let go. "I can't lift you all the way up." She made a face and then sighed. "Well, I'll just have to go all by myself then."

***

Caleb played with Panthe, romping all over the lawn, Caleb skirting the muddy central patch. He crouched behind Silaeca, and when Panthe was close enough, he POUNCED! He managed to catch the edge of Panthe, but it wasn't enough to pull her down. One of his claws snagged on her shoulder, and instantly his ears went back. He darted away, tail tucked between his legs and ears down. He didn't mean it, but to a toddler, it was injury and insult.

Luke giggled out a raspy mew, and butted Oka in the head gently. He tried to be careful, but it seemed like he had bowled over Oka. "Oka, up naow?

Luke rasped and got up Oka so he could nudge him up. He wanted to play with his cousin.


((Yeah, a time skip would be lovely. smile ))  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

When he saw Cheria, James smiled appreciatively. She looked lovely today, the way she was dressed and the bit of jewellery she had on. He wasn’t really paying attention when she tried to pull him up off the couch, too busy staring at her. That is, until she made a face and mentioned going alone.

James quickly got up off the couch, his stomach reminding him how hungry he was. “I’m ready, I’m ready! That couch was just a little too comfortable” He laughed, getting to his feet.
Walking to the door, he held it open for her and made a gracious sweeping gesture with his arm. “Come my gorgeous bride, our breakfast awaits”.

James looked at the brochure he had grabbed on the way out, studying the small map of where to go. “Looks like we have to go to the ground floor and then outside and down a side street of cafes and local eateries. It should be easy to find. Or at least, I hope it is” He was feeling hungry this morning and looking forward to their breakfast together.

They took the lift down to the ground floor and stepped out into the streets, greeted by the sights and smells of Firaca. The sun was shining and the air was close and warm. There was the smell of spices, different foods cooking, dust and thick foreign scents that were hard to place. The air was filled with chatter and the calls of merchants plying their wares. Around the streets were shops and small stalls, selling different items such as toys, shoes, clothes, jewellery, furniture, storage containers, bags, weapons, baskets, just about anything you could imagine.

But the most interesting thing was the people. All of them seemed to have lizard or dragon like features, from anthro dragons walking around, to those with sprinklings of scales, claws, tails or wings. They came in all different colours and shapes and their clothes were just as colourful and patterned. James stayed close to Cheria, looking around as they walked towards the side street where some cafes and other stalls catered to tourists looking for a sample of the local cuisines.

***

((Okay, I'll try.))

It was all fun and games until Caleb accidentally nicked her with his claw. Panthe felt the scratch on her shoulder and flinched away, reverting back into her semi human form with the usual puff of sparkles. The toddler began to cry due to the stinging sensation on her shoulder, which was bleeding a little.

Iouya, who had been watching the whole thing, flew down and picked up the small girl, soothing her while Silaeca handed him a band-aid for the scratch. “Shh, shhh, it’s okay. I was just an accident. Caleb didn’t mean it and he’s very sorry” Iouya looked at Caleb, who did indeed look sorry with his ears down and his tail tucked away. He walked over to Silaeca, who dabbed a little antiseptic on Panthe’s shoulder.

Iouya spoke to Caleb while holding Panthe, who seemed to be calming down. “It’s all right Caleb. No need to hide. You didn’t mean it so it’s okay. Panthe is fine, see?” He showed Caleb the band aid which was now covering the small scratch and had pictures of cupcakes on it.

Bending over, Silaeca petted Caleb gently and smiled at him. “No need to worry, sss. Accidentss happen. Let’s keep playing until it’s time to go inside, shall we?”

Hearing Silaeca, Oka’s ears perked up and he rolled to one side, getting to his feet somewhat clumsily. The little boy ran over to the naga and without waiting for permission, climbed onto her tail happily “Trains!” Oka called out and waved at Luke to come join him, wanting to play at trains. “Choo-choooo!” Oka cried, imitating the whistle of a train. He had sat right at the front and apparently, was going to be the driver this time.

The cubs continued to play around outside, playing trains with Silaeca and taking turns at being the train driver, stalking and pouncing each other and exploring the grounds until it was time to come inside. They all helped to make a dinner of mini savoury mince pies before being tucked in bed with a story. All in all it was a good day.

TIME SKIP (well, it's not very good but I tried...)

The next morning, all four cubs were in for a treat. It was a special outing to the zoo and then the aquarium. So after breakfast in one of the mansion’s dining rooms, they followed the nannies into one of the family’s limousines. Not because they wanted a big car, but Silaeca had to sit in the back and somehow fit her entire snake body into the vehicle. The Harcourt twins were strapped into their car seats in the front behind the driver’s area, facing Luke and Caleb who were strapped into their car seats on the facing seat. Iouya sat next to them and one of the chauffeurs was driving. The zoo they were going to was something special. All kinds of animals were there, collected from all over Gaia. There were the usual animals as well as the more exotic ones.

***

When they returned to their room, Fern jumped in the shower. She had enjoyed their swim in the waterfall and was sure Saberlin had as well. It was nice to see him let his hair down and be playful and carefree. In fact, it was nice for her to as well. She felt tired but happy. Her mind wandered, wondering what their kids were up to. She hoped they were behaving for Silaeca and Iouya. Stepping out of the shower, she dried off and slipped into her night dress, before going back into the main room. “Saberlin? Bathroom’s free if you want it” Fern called out.

While she was in the shower, Saberlin went to his bag and dug around. Their suitcases and bags had been unpacked earlier, except for one special thing he had been hiding from Fern. He took out a package wrapped in paper and placed it on the table in the kitchen area. He was still dripping wet from the swim in the rock pools, so he stayed in the kitchen and made a coffee. Saberlin pulled out a chair and sat down at the table, his back facing the bathroom door and his body hiding the small box shaped package from view. His ears swiveled to catch Fern’s words as she emerged from the bathroom. “Thank you. I shall have the shower in a moment” he answered, “But first, there’s something I’ve been meaning to give to you” Saberlin picked up the package and turned around, hiding it behind his back as he stepped towards Fern, who looked pretty in her pale pink silk nightdress with her long chocolatey hair cascading over her shoulders.

Fern’s face lit up as he said those words. He had something for their anniversary? “But you already went to all the trouble to book this wonderful getaway!” Fern exclaimed, though she sounded delighted. “Oh, Saberlin, you didn’t have to…”

 

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

Cheria gently held on to James' arm, her eyes looking around them as they walked around, trying to find the small cafe. Stomach growling, she followed James to the cafe once they found it and sat down across from him. "Well, this is lovely."

The cafe was open air, and had gauzy billowy curtains hanging at key points on the overhead structure, providing the patrons with something lovely to look at and some protection from the sun and flies. Cheria reached across the table and clasped his hand, and smiled. "Do you want to call the kids now, or wait until after breakfast? I for one would like to wait until after breakfast, but it's whatever you decide." She rubbed her thumb in caressing circles on his hand.

***

Caleb glanced at his brother, who was sleepily cuddling with his stuffed jaguar. The jaguar had lost most of it's stuffing and was more of a floppy toy than a firm one. Caleb reached over and patted his brother's arm. "Wake up, Wuke. Gonna see fome fishies!"

Luke rubbed his eyes and yawned, the jaguar toy rubbing up against his cheek. "Fishies? Where?" He started to struggle up against the car seat straps, trying to see the fishes, but there wasn't any fishes to be seen, only the cobble-stoned courtyard of the Harcourt Residence. He started to pout and tears beaded at his eyes. Caleb patted his arm and tried to get him to calm down.

"Wuke, it's OK. Fishies are lawter, not now." Caleb reached over and jiggled the jaguar, and Luke stopped crying and patted his toy, making sure it was still there. Luke nodded and wiped his eyes, feeling better.

"Caweb! You silwy! Dere no fishies out dere!" He mock scowled at his brother, but as soon as Caleb laughed, Luke laughed as well. feeling not so upset any more. Luke buried his face into the jaguar, giggling like all toddlers do. When he finally came up for air, Luke clutched at the toy, missing his father all of the sudden.  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

They found the Taste of the Morning cafe with no trouble. It was a wide open place with a high ceiling and rafters, which had wooden ceiling fans lazily spinning. The tables were decorated with small vases of native flowers that looked like snapdragons with wings, and the walls were decorated with murals of dragon people and the lands around Firaca. The billowy curtains were a nice touch, giving a cool and breezy effect.

James took a menu as a waitress came and handed them out. She was a young dragon girl, half human, half fire lizard, with a small pair of green wings and a thin green lizard-like tail. She had bright green eyes and a mouthful of pointed teeth. Even her hair was green to match, although it was twisted up in two buns that looked like flowers either side of her head. The rest of her was human, with dark brown skin flecked with bright green scales.

When she spoke, she had a thick accent and a low pleasant rumble in her voice, which was rather deep for a woman. "Good morning and welcome to Taste of the Morning cafe, our dear travellers. Can I get you any liquids this morning while you are waiting to order?" she asked.

"Just some table water for me please" James requested, as the day was already starting to heat up and it was only morning.

James looked up from his menu and ran his thumb gently over Cheria's hand when she reached out to him. "Let's wait till after we eat breakfast. Then we can tell them the different foods we tried" he smiled, looking down at the menu again and getting a bit confused. He pointed at the menu and asked the waitress "What is this? Is it a type of pancake?"

The waitress listened to his question and grinned at him, nodding, "Yes, it is a type of cake. Very sweet" she added. "You put the toppings on it..." she pointed to the slices of fruits in the picture. One looked like a red pear, another was like a mandarin but it was black and grey, and another fruit looked like purple fleshy bow ties. The cake itself was white and puffy with little knobs sticking out of it and looked like...well, James wasn't sure. A small pillow growing new shoots, maybe. Apparently you were supposed to stick the fruits on the protruding bits.

He looked over at Cheria, wondering what food she would be brave enough to try "What do you want to eat?'

***

Iouya, who was sitting in the back with the cubs, listened to the boys' conversation and laughed quietly as they ended up laughing. "Yes there are going to be fish, but first we are going to the zoo to see all the animals. After that, we have a yummy lunch and then we go to the aquarium, which is where allll the fishies are" Iouya explained to them, again, because he'd already explained it about five different times that morning to inquisitive cubs that didn't listen properly. He turned to look over the back seat, to where Silaeca took up most of the room behind them. "Hey Silaeca, did we bring the twin strollers?" He asked, just to make sure.

"Sss, I sssertainly did bring them, they are folded down in the trunk of the car, sss" She clapped her hands, her jewellery jingling lightly. "Now, how about we have ssome mussic during thiss little trip, ss!" She pressed the intercom button and began to talk to the driver and a song came on, one that was singing about the lion sleeping in the jungle.

Panthe had been watching out the window as the car began to move, easing out of the circular driveway and then down the gravel road and out of the Harcourt's land onto the main road, which was tarmac. She kicked her legs and waved her hands at the lion in the jungle song, shouting "Noo. Noooooo!" loudly as she did not like that song for some reason.

Oka on the other hand, was giggling and trying to sing along, "Lion sleeps tonight...in the jungle...the jungle..." he sang, missing some words and getting some of them wrong but having fun nonetheless. He stopped singing and looked at Luke and Caleb "Caw's moving, caw's moving!" he pointed out excitedly as the car was indeed moving. "We're going!" He was happy, knowing that they were going somewhere fun. Although he had no idea of time yet. He looked at Iouya. "We there now?"

Iouya laughed and shook his head. "Not yet little one, we still have twenty five minutes to go before we get there. Which means, er..." How did you quantify time for a toddler? "Oh look, another song came on" Iouya shouted, dancing a little where he sat, "Come on, let's dance" By distraction, that's how.

The trip went fairly smoothly, and soon the limousine was pulling up in specially reserved parking for VIP guests, and the nannies were wrestling twin strollers out of the boot (trunk), and trying to set them up while the kids waited impatiently in their car seats, wanting to be let out.

***

Saberlin's mouth curled into a warm smile "I know I didn't have to. I wanted to. To make this special. Because what we have is special, and I never want to forget that" He leaned forward, kissing her cheek while placing the wrapped box into her hands. "Open it" he insisted, gentle.

Fern blushed and looked down at the box, tearing through the white and turquoise striped paper, and gasping at the carved box that she revealed. "Oh Saberlin, it's beautiful!"

Box

He grinned, "Wait there's more, open the box" he insisted again, wrapping an arm around Fern's waist, but careful not to stand too close because he was still dripping wet after their swim in the hidden pool.

She looked at him slyly, wondering what he had done. "Why you sneaky leopard...what have you been up to?" Her hands lifted the lid and then she looked down and saw the objects in the box.

Calla Lily Hairpiece

Earrings

Necklace

Saberlin leaned down closer just enough to whisper in her ear. "The wood represents a solid relationship, and the turquoise I thought would look pretty on you" Saberlin said softly. "And the calla lilly is the flower of the sixth anniversary" He picked up the hairpiece and gently slid the hairpin into her hair, brushing a strand of chocolatey silk back off her face. He brushed his lips against hers, feather light. The leopard inside him purred  

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

(Eeeh, sorry I haven't responded. School has been quite hectic. I swear, it's the drugs! They're gonna kiiiilll me! emotion_awesome I'm taking Pharmacology, and that's a hard class. Anyways, on to RPing.)

Caleb and Luke tried to squirm out of their car seats, grunting every so often. Luke flopped back, his cheeks red from holding in his breath. Caleb stopped as well, almost giving up. Luke snarled at the straps and tried to bite them, his eyes gleaming the golden brown of the lion. Caleb giggled at his brother and patted his arm to get his attention.

"Iou'a will hewp us, Wuke. Pwomise." Luke glanced up at him, and reluctiantly let go of the straps.

"Oh, Oway Web." His attention was diverted when Iouya came back, this time to get them out of their car seats. Luke chattered happily, his ears turning to catch every sound. Caleb was next after Luke, but he started to squirm, not liking the height as much as his brother. Gripping Iouya with his claws, he tried to get down, but was gripped a little tighter to keep him from falling. Placed next to his brother, he calmed down a bit. Luke glanced over at him, calm as a cucumber with his stuffed Jaguar. Luke gazed at Iouya, his small eyes almost liquid gold in the sunlight.

"Iou'a, when is daddy an' mummy comin' home?"

***

Cheria glanced at her menu, and glanced over at the pictures. It took a minute, but she finally decided on what she wanted. "I'll have this yogurt looking dish with the kiwis and raspberries please. And water for me as well." She smiled at the waitress, careful not to show her teeth lest it was taken the wrong way. Lioness nekos could be ferocious, but she wasn't ferocious, was she? The dish she picked had a striped look to it, and the toppings looked very similar to those found in Gaia.


((Sorry, it's like a crap on a stick post. Soz!))  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

((It's okay. Sorry for the long wait. I didn't realise you had posted back in November. It might have come up in my notifications but I don't remember seeing it at all.))

Iouya quickly got Cheria's boys out of the car and put them in their twin stroller, strapping them in side by side and pulling the shade cover up. He made sure Luke had his jaguar plushie and that both of them had their drink bottles. He put their diaper bag in the storage space underneath.

Silaeca grabbed Panthe and Oka, strapping them into their twin stroller next to Luke and Caleb and making sure they also had their drink bottles and bag. She applied sunscreen to every one of the kids, since it was a sunny day. Iouya gave everyone hats, tying them on firmly but not too tight.

Panthe had a floppy pink sunhat and Oka had a floppy yellow one. Panthe was wearing a white tee shirt that had a picture of a black cat on the front with the word 'superstitous?' written underneath. She had a little grey skirt with a light purple bow and on her feet were small black sandals.

Top

Skirt

Oka on the other paw, was wearing a black mousie t shirt and some short denim shorts that had a belt with fishies (sharks) on it. He had strap on velcro sandals that were yellow with a white star pattern.

Tee

Shorts

Silaeca grabbed the handle of their pram and began pushing it towards the zoo's main entrance. Panthe and Oka looked around at the stream of people going into the zoo and the trickle of people coming out.

Iouya looked down at Luke's liquid gold eyes as he asked about their parents "They are coming home in two weeks" he told them as he waited for Silaeca to pay the entrance fee before going inside. "We can look on the wall calendar in your room when we get home. Every day you can put a sticker on it, and we can see when your mummy and daddy will get home" he said cheerfully. "Don't worry, you're going to have lots of fun with me and Silaeca"

"That'ss right! We are going to have a good day and when we get back we can ring mummy and daddy and talk to them on the phone" she smiled. The naga woman got a map of the zoo and began looking at different paths. "Okay ssso where ssshould we go firsst? The monkeys, or the elephants?" she said. "Or maybe the giant man eating plant, or the miniature unicorns. Oh, I think they have a petting zoo as well"

Oka drank his bottle of juice contently, looking around at the different surroundings and people. He hadn't ever been outside the mansion that he could remember and this was all so exciting, if a bit overwhelming. Panthe clapped her hands. "Monkeys, monkeys!" she yelled. Monkeys were those funny creatures that lived in trees. She knew from the picture books she had at home, and the DVD of Monkey Jungle, a kids show that she had at home.

***

The green dragon woman nodded, writing it on her notepad. "Thank you. We will bring those out as soon as they are ready for you" she walked away and came back with two glasses and a big jug of iced water with lemon slices in it. She put the water in the middle of the table where they could both reach it. When the food was brought out, James looked at it nervously. "Want to swap?" he asked Cheria, eyeing her delicious looking striped yoghurt and fruits. He picked up his own cake looking thing. "Here goes" he grinned and took a bite of his weird breakfast cake with its weird fruits stuck all over it. "Oh my god this is amazing! The cake thing tastes like pudding and it's like eating a cloud and the fruit tastes...like fruit salad! I can't describe it. It's so sweet" he said, offering Cheria a bite.  

[Incognita Ninja]

Meyaira Firespring

((OK, so what I gather from the previous posts (page 1 or 2), Caleb (the older of the two so far) has ash blonde colored hair and is fair skinned leaning towards tanned, while Luke has dirty blonde hair and is also fair skinned leaning on tanned. Used this picture to determine the hair color. I know Cheria's hair is a tawny color, so maybe a light brown/dirty blonde mix? James' hair is of course a chestnut-y brown?)) Making this small so it doesn't get distracting.))

Luke nodded his agreement. They can do that. He clutched at the jaguar stuffed animal, the head looking like it was almost ready to come off. He turned to Oka, who was contently drinking from his sippy cup and then back to his brother. "Iou'a, dwink pwease?" It was getting warm in the stroller and borderline uncomfortable.

Caleb nodded his head to Panthe's response. "Weah, monkey Silwa!" His golden eyes glittered as he looked for the pathway that would lead them to the monkeys. He had watched the same program with Panthe, often when the kids' parents were busy with their work. Plus who didn't want to spend time with Silaeca, Iouya and Kuloka? He started to squirm in his seat, wanting to get out and move. He reached up and tried to tug on Silaeca's hand, but it was too far up. He huffed, the small puff of hair moving some of his ash colored hair away from his face.

***

Cheria opened her mouth and let James put the bite in. Chewing and then swallowing it, Cheria nodded her assent. "It does taste good, almost like a fairy cake* from back home." She dipped her spoon into her yogurt and tasted it, and hummed. Finishing her spoon she dipped it back into the bowl and brought out another spoonful for James to taste.

"Try this love, it's very smooth and creamy with the taste of cream. And the fruit must be similar to yours, just like a tropical fruit salad." She fed him the yogurt and fruit and watched his reaction. Smiling, she ate more of the yogurt and of the fairy cake before finishing off the yogurt. She leaned back against the back of the chair feeling pleasantly full and licked her lips, trying to get every last drop of it from the corners of her mouth and the like. Wiping her mouth daintily with the paper napkin provided, she finished and put the used napkin with the dirty dishes.

"Now James, what do you want to do? Anything that crossed your fancy?" She reached across the table and clasped his hands, content for the time being.

((*or angel food cake, similar texture?))  

[Kasumi Roseglimmer]

Incognita Ninja

((Okay so Caleb is the lighter one. I know you said one of them was darker and dappled with spots but I can't find my notes on that, so that must be Luke. smile

You told me "James has green eyes with flecks of gold. His hair color is a light burnt sienna" so that sounds about right ^_^

And this is the notes I have on Cheria: "she was born with the ears, tail, and nails (claws) of a lioness. Her mother was part-lion and her father part-leopard. Since her father is the same as Saberlin's, that makes her his half-sister. Her skin is bronzed and her long, straight hair is tawny and soft. She has multiple pieces of jewellery on her neck, ankles and wrists that feature the lioness. Her tail is bronzed, with the soft tawny tip".))

Iouya smiled at Luke's little nods of agreement. Good. That made things easier. Now the boys could have fun putting stickers on the calendar each day until their parents returned. Iouya would use it as an opportunity to teach them the days of the week too. He looked at the jaguar stuffie and resolved to get that some more stuffing and new stitching so it wouldn't fall apart. He knew how much Luke loved his beloved jaguar. He wouldn't want it to break.

Iouya's pointed ears heard Luke's request for a drink and he crouched down and picked up the sippy bottle that was lying next to the toddler in the stroller. It had been hiding down beside Luke's leg. "Right here little buddy. Here's your juice. That's good manners, good boy for remembering to say please!" he handed him the sippy cup that was yellow and blue and had pawprints on it. He patted his head gently, praising him for saying please.

Iouya made a mental note to check the toddlers' diapers when they had their morning tea break in an hour or so. They'd probably all be wet and need a change.He checked that Caleb was happy and had his sippy of juice too before standing up and walking behind Oka and Panthe's stroller to grab the handle. The kids decided on seeing the monkeys.

Silaeca smiled at Caleb's words. "All right then, ss, we shall ssee the monkeysss firsst!" she said cheerfully. The nannies started pushing the strollers towards the sign that pointed to the monkeys' enclosures, Silaeca's long snake body clearing a pathway as everybody tried to get out of her way (a few people screamed). The path they walked on was surrounded by tropical rainforest plants and had flowers and colourful butterflies flitting about. They could hear screeches and hoots of different types of monkeys in different enclosures as they got closer to the area.

Panthe and Oka's little leopard ears swiveled around to catch the noises and Panthe kicked her legs and laughed "Monkeys! Monkeys!" she clapped her hands excitedly. Her diaper crinkled noisily as she moved about.

Oka giggled and copied the sounds "Ooh ooh ahh ahh!" he screeched happily.

Silaeca pushed Caleb and Luke's stroller and soon they came to their first enclosure. She pushed their stroller right up to the side of it so they could see through the mesh. Silaeca pointed at the spider monkeys that were sitting on platforms amid tropical forest plants, or swinging about on ropes and climbing up jungle gyms. "Look! Ssee the monkeyss? Thesse are called ssspider monkeyss. They are really good at climbing and sswinging through the treess" she said in her hissing accent. Her long red hair hung down to her waist and swayed about as she bent over to show the two boys the monkeys. "Look! That one iss eating ssome fruit. Yummy! And ssee their big, long tail? They usse that to hold onto branchess and ssswing about"

Oka screeched in glee and pure excitement. He had never seen a monkey before. He tried to sit up higher but was held back by his straps in the stroller. Oka pulled at them as he kept looking at the spider monkeys. He had a big grin on his face while seeing a baby one being groomed by its mother. And another two monkeys swinging about like pros. His chubby little finger poiinted to the baby "Look - baby!" he said loudly and delightedly.

Iouya chuckled, crouching beside the stroller so he could point out the animals to the kids "Yeah, that is a baby! Good spotting, Oka. Do you know what colour it is?"

Oka thought, his little brow furrowing as his blonde eyebrows drew together. "Uhh..." he put a finger to his lips, and looked at the monkeys, then at his sister next to him. Oh, he knew! "Brack!" Oka declared, confident he had the right answer "Brack like sissy fur"

Iouya grinned, these kids were adorable "Black? Yeah, that's it! You got it. They are black like sissy's fur" he praised. He looked at Panthe. She was watching them with wide red-brown eyes. The same colour eyes as Fern. Iouya smiled at the look of wonder on her face. "What are they doing, Panthe? What are the monkeys doing?"

Panthe pointed to them, indicating different monkeys as she waved her clawed hand around "Dat one's eating a apple...and dey are pwaying on the twees. And dat one's being silly!" she laughed, pointing at a monkey that was hanging upside down by his tail and hooting loudly. Panthe copied; "oooh oooh, oooh oooh!" She yelled. A couple of people standing around also watching the monkeys smiled or chuckled. She was pretty cute.

Silaeca asked Luke and Caleb some questions about the spider monkeys too. "What iss that monkey doing, Luke? Can you ssee them combing each other'ss fur? And look - what'ss that one eating?" She looked at Caleb "Do you like the monkeysss, Caleb? Ohh look out, here comess a vissitor!"

A spider monkey climbed right up to the side of the enclosure in front of them and banged on the mesh excitedly, looking at all the people. He hooted loudly and swung around. He was putting on a show to get attention. Panthe and Oka squealed and meowed happily, Panthe yelling "Monkey, monkey! Hi monkey! Hiiii!" She waved furiously at it.

*****

James smiled as Cheria enjoyed tasting his weird breakfast cake with fruit. He then opened his mouth to accept the spoonful of fruit and yoghurt she fed him. He chewed and swallowed appreciatively "Wow, that's delicious! We'll have to eat here again" he said happily, licking the creamy yoghurt off his lips. He went back to devouring his cake and soon had all of it finished and in his belly. It had been a big cake and a lot of fruit so he was also nice and full. His jaguar tail swayed in content as he sat back in his chair and finished his drink.

James looked at Cheria when she spoke up. He grinned and nodded "I thought we could do something fun and romantic together" he confessed, letting her clasp his hands. "How about we go on a Safari to see all the wild animals that live here and then...flying on dragon back to see the Silver Mist Falls? And a romantic trek through the glow worm caves at the end?"