[cult] THIS IS HOME.

[alehue]

as soon as arya saw her old friend return, excitement rushed through her, and she forgot about being acknowledged by the cult, even if some had already nodded to her. when she saw how easily elena interacted with the members, arya was tempted to just sit back and watch, but when they seemed to start taking possession of her, making friends with her, a touch of jealousy spread across the black orbs of the female, and her eyes narrowed. she trotted through the canines and felines assembled, until she reached the spot where elena was now wrapping herself around nerah, one of the canine of the group. arya nudged her with a smile, then took a couple of steps backwards, her eyes inviting the feline to follow her.

[Meesh]

Silva woofed as the creature- the butterfly, fluttered around till it landed on her glossy black nose. yipping, she shook her head from side to side in excitement. What in the world was it, that it would fly like that? Could Silva fly too? she had never tried, but it looked so easy....maybe if she jumped into the air.

silva jumped, landing with a thud on her behind. hm. Maybe she was supposed to flap her paws as well?

[nightrider]

Elena quickly forgot all about the butterfly and commenced rubbing against Arya with much enthusiasm, almost toppling over with excitement. "Hello hello hello!" she squeaked, eyes back in love-saucer mode, "I was following your scent-my, but this world is big!-and I came upon all this! What is it Arya? Is it some sort of assembly? Are we going to have a...." her eyes grew glassy at the thought, "Higher purpose?"

Elena's head was filled with visions of her going on epic quests for knowledge with Arya by her side. She could be extraordinary!

[alehue]

arya looked down at her feline friends, lapping happily at elena's head, in a display of friendship and affection towards the little feline. "hi, elena," arya said, her friend's enthusiasm rubbing off on her, the canine's normally calm demeanor melted away to reveal a more playful side of her that arya didn't even know existed within her; that was one of the high points of having the playful feline as her friend. arya couldn't stop smiling at elena. the little kitten was arya's best friend, she realized, her smile widening. it was nice to know she had a best friend, the canine thought - apani was more of a partner than a friend, and knowing there was someone who would be there for her was a good feeling.

"we do have a higher purpose, elena. you see, in the world we live in, males try to control females. and if you join this group, we call it 'the cult', you'll help make females, like you and me, more empowered, the more dominant gender. will you help me, lena?" arya asked her feline friend.

[nightrider]

Elena mewed as Arya licked at her head with her big doggie tongue, a feline version of a giggle. Her giggling ceased, however, when Arya explained the purpose of the Cult: Elena was back in Serious Kitten Mode.

"What is this you say?" -indignity now creeping into her voice-"Males try to...control...females? Where is the sense in this?" She paused, realizing that she had yet to meet a male, although she had some vague innate knowledge of what they were. "Oh my, this is indeed a noble cause.." -pause to swat at a grasshopper-"And I will most certainly be joining. After all, what do these males have that we don't have? In fact..." a confused and childlike expression came over her face, "Arya, what is the difference between a male and a female?"

[ironic]

Being a curious boy, Ognian had decided to scuttle through his new world, a large stick in mouth, weighed down by leaves and multiple branches on one side, causing his head to tilt slightly, and a wag to his tail. Eyes were bright, and happy, pleased to just be moving. The boy was just happy to be around, in anything. This new world was so bright, and pleasant, and new. He couldn't help but love it.

Everything around Oggie had colors, and colors were just so fine and dandy. They were different. They were colorful. No really Oggie? That was quite an observation you had there. The sticky nectar that clung to his fur, produced by his pod, was gone, washed off in the river nearby, along with the leaves and dirt that had been stuck there by the nourishing fluid. Of course, because of taking a swim in the river, he was entirely soaked, water dripping from his golden fur.

The large branch he carried had been grabbed from the banks, and was waterlogged, just like Ognian himself. Oh Oggie darling, such an innocent beast. Everything was just so pleasant and full of life in his eyes. Everything seemed just so wonderful and amazing. Nothing seemed as though it were wrong, and nothing was ugly. Not even waterlogged, leaf covered branches on riverbanks.

Tail was wagging at an amazing speed behind the boy as her trotted along at his own merry pace, soon picking up the sounds of others. Head tilted slightly to the side, and ears shifted in an attempt to pick up the noises. People? Pace picked up near instantly as he heard them, extremely curious as to what these would look like.

The large stick would be dropped at the entrance of the cave, and Ognian would standing staring dumbly at everyone there, as though not sure what to say. He'd let a few seconds pass with his own silence before speaking, "Hi!" Oh, such an unclever little boy Ognian was.

----------

PUPPET, ognian
TAGGED, cult members
WORDS, three hundred, thirty nine
MUSE, five out of ten
COMMENTS, nope

[Deleted]

This was going to be fun. She knew it. So many kind creatures here, and more had come to join the group. They could get whatever business needed done finished and then play and talk. She was happy to be part of this.

Nerah then frowned when she heard what the group was about. Males controlling females? What...? There were two males in her pack, and they were just fine. All four of the pack founders were equal with each other, and everyone seemed happy with that. Maybe they were exceptions? Perhaps because all four of them got together when they were still new lives? She didn't know. This was confusing.

She stayed, though. If Silva joined the group, she likely had a good reason for doing so. Nerah didn't have to understand it, she just had to keep loyal to her friend and packmate.

But then a male showed up. She watched hi, frowning slightly. Was he one of the bad males that was mentioned. But then he greeted them, and he seemed friendly.

Nerah decided he was friendly and good. She smiled at him. "Hi!"

[alehue]

"yes, i know," arya said with a sigh as the kitten expressed her wonders about what the purpose of males controlling females was. "most males (though I suppose you haven't met many, if at all, have you?) are bigger and stronger than females, and therefore males think it is just - right - for them to be the controlling gender." arya said, shaking her head slowly. males, males, males. what was one to do with them? "i'm glad you'll be joining me, lena - and i'm glad you think it's for a good cause, too," arya said, nuzzling her small friend affectionately.

the scene became increasingly awkward as the kitten asked the difference between a male and a female. arya was saved from explaining that in graphic detail, as ognian, their only male member to-date, came upon the cult's little meeting. "well, elena, you'll have to tell me. this is ognian," arya said, padding voer to the male, "hello there, ognian - my my, what have you brought here?" arya spoke to him in a rather demeaning tone, as a mother may speak to a two year old, "anyways, ognian is a male, and i am a female. look at us two, side by side for a while, and tell me what you think is different."

[Meesh]

Silva blinked, eyes settling on Arya "That's what this cult is about" her tial moved slowly form side to side as she thought about this. Silva hadn't really known what the cult was about when she joined. She just heard the "big group" part and decided to join to make new friends "I don't understand" she finally said "I was born next to two other males, and they're my best friends, next to Nerah. And one of them, Antares, is smaller then me" she cocked her head to the side

[Deleted]

Nerah frowned as the cult leader continued to explain their purpose. Males were bigger and stronger? Er...she didn't notice a difference. She did know she was bigger than some of her fellow canines, though. Maybe her own size and strength were abnormal for a female. Still...it was troubling. The males they knew wouldn't dream of trying to control them...would they? ...No, they wouldn't. She trusted them. Maybe they were just abnormal males. She didn't know.

The feline then asked about the difference between males and females. The leader and new canine were side by side to present a visual aid of sorts, but Nerah had something else to contribute to the answer. "We smell different."

[nightrider]

Elena stared at Ognian, blue eyes narrowed in puzzlement. "Hmph," she finally piped up, obviously getting ready for a big speech.

"We do indeed smell different, but I believe it is more than that. Something within us is different...something very deep inside." She cast about in her young mind for the right word. She found it: "Our souls. I don't really know what a soul is...I think it has something to do with the sky..trees...wisdom...love..." her eyes were beginning to glaze over with influx of knowledge and thought. She shook herself, and continued more clearheaded: "Essentially, our deeper selves are different. How, exactly, I do not know."

[Meesh]

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[atrb=background,http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm184/pikachu59013/silvatablemid.png] Silva, now quite troubled, moved to Ognian's side "He's younger, that's what's different. Sorry to play devil's advocate, but that's just discrimination, plain and simple. I trust our two male friends with my life, and I know they would never dream of controlling us" Though Silva was young, she was still one of the oldest in the clearing, she and Nerah being older then Arya, even. In fact, aside from Nerah and her two other packmates, Silva was pretty sure she was one of the oldest in the orchard, excepting a few others. Ay Nerah's words, she blinked "Well, Oggy....that's your name, right? Ogg smell's like newlyhatched sap. but I guess you're right. It is pretty easy to scent male from female. But I don't think that makes them controlling of us or something....right?"

[Deleted]

Silva defending the male gender, and she brought up a lot of good points, at least in Nerah's mind. Points she herself had been worried about. "How many males have there been here, anyway? I mean, I don't remember meeting more than a pawful... Not to say you're wrong or anything, or that anyone's wrong. This is just a bit confusing to me, that's all." She swished her tail in a very short wag, trying not to provoke anyone's anger. "I don't know. I know you have a reason for feeling that way, but it's not something I've experienced."

[mysteryfaith]

Apani was happy to sit in the centre of the bustling camp for the Cult she co-led, and watch the world go by. She and Arya seemed to have everything under control; no other groups threatening their territory, and nothing to stop them from being just as ruthless as they saw fit. Some of the Cult members were . . . interesting, to say the least. She looked forward to interviewing them properly in the future - she would grow to know each and every one of them in time, but for now she was simply happy relaxing in the middle of the chaos.

She couldn't help but notice that Arya seemed to have affections for a male; she wouldn't comment on her business partner's actions, but she felt a slight flicker of indignation at the image. Having a mate, and possibly even a family, might be good enough for Arya - but to Apani, it was a distraction she didn't need. What good was it having family when she had enough followers already? Any feline she met and fell in love with would be waiting a long time for her to commit to them; not until she lay dying did she intend to sacrifice her power for a silly little love story which would only ever end in tears.

Shaking away her strange, unwanted anger - it was unlike her to get so worked up about something that didn't even matter, especially when she wasn't even involved in the relationship between Arya and her love interest - Apani turned her attention to the Cult members around her. There was Silva - a black canine with amber eyes, the feline noted. She felt she hadn't been introduced to this Silva character yet, but her time would come; these creatures all seemed to recognise her as co-leader, despite the fact that Arya was more the sociable one of the pair. As Apani was making clear, she simply wished to sit and watch; to some, it was rude and unsociable, but to her, it was observational.

Apani felt a desire to converse with some of the members; no matter how much she observed, she couldn't truly understand a creature until she had met them - smelled their scent, stared into their eyes. Sooner or later, she would have to start her interviews - of course, the Cult members wouldn't know that they were being interviewed to see if they were good enough to be part of the Cult, but that was what made her plan so wonderfully cunning. Apani wasn't known for her ingenuity, but in this situation, she couldn't help but applaud herself for her ingenious way of finding out the suitability of Cult members.

Some of these members seemed a little dim; Ognian, the new boy, wasn't one of them, but he certainly seemed . . . inquisitive. Perhaps it's time to meet him, she wondered, with a small smile to herself. So, the interviews would begin here, with Ognian - a suitable subject for the trial run of her process. She wouldn't tell Arya about it, because she didn't need to know; it's not like she was interviewing her for her suitability. Apani would quietly make her observations, and once she was sure she'd thoroughly examined everyone for their Cult potential, she would sit Arya down and explain everything. Possibly.

Members could be disposed of in other ways than simply kicking them out of the Cult, which she feared Arya might do . . . some creatures simply had to be put in their place, and sending them away simply wouldn't do it. Some creatures had to be taught lessons - especially the cocky males of this world. Trying to rise above females, order them around, pretending to be big when really, they were smaller than pebbles . . . she couldn't stand them, never had been able to stand them, and wouldn't be about to start standing them if one stood up in her Cult and had the nerve to doubt her.

She could get rid of them quietly, without the fuss of a formal process. Arya wouldn't even have to know - Apani would say it was a sad, sad day, because today they had lost a valued Cult member and friend, as he . . . drowned. Yes, that was a good enough excuse as any, so long as she disposed of the battered body; she would say that the disobedient Cult member was walking by the river, they fell in, drowned, and their body was never found. Simple.

With a smile to herself - a confident, everything-will-be-fine smile to match her attitude - she set off from her place at the edge of the clearing, close to the large cave where some Cult members slept, and walked towards Ognian. He seemed to be fit enough to handle the Cult's strict regime - that was a point to him, despite his unfortunate gender. It was looking well for him so far . . . however, a dumb-witted male in her Cult would not be suitable. If Ognian was a truly detestable canine, she could easily dispose of him, just as she had been imagining a few moments before . . . 'losing' him to the river, him dying in a terrible 'accident'.

"Ognian," Apani greeted the canine, smiling warmly at him as if he were an old friend although inwardly, she was retching; already his male stench was reaching her nostrils, flooding her senses like thick, murky water. "I see you've joined us here at the Cult. Are you enjoying your time?" She was treating this like a holiday, as if the Cult was some jolly pastime that wasn't in any way serious - in reality, this was the first test. His answer could quite literally determine his fate; life or death, depending on his loyalty to the Cult . . .

((OOC: Don't worry, she's not going to kill your characters. All bark, no bite, eh? xP))

[Deleted]

Nerah looked around at the gathered creatures, memorizing their appearances as well as their scents - well, the scents she managed to catch without getting up. Somehow, it seemed rude right now to directly sniff anyone. As she did this, she wondered who else was going to show up. How many more members were there? Was this everyone? It seemed like such a small group... No matter, though. Small could be intimate, and she couldn't wait to form close relationships with everyone here. She almost wished her other packmates could be here to take part in things, but then thought about it and decided they wouldn't like what they'd be hearing. They were male, after all.

I wonder when we're gonna start...