Lamentations of the Wild

[Lief]

The woman made noises but Kida didn't care for their meaning. Her purring was getting somewhat noisy as she curled up against the woman and kept her head nestled against her arm. At first she tensed to the embrace, before it reminded her of Furry and she became excited all over again. "Fuurrrrry" she murmured, enjoying the moment.

Without warning, however, a bird landed in the clearing not too far from them. Her nose twitched as her enhanced senses picked up on it and her eyes snapped open. The child leapt away from Siobhan and immediately her bones began to crack as her body changed, thick fur growing all over her body which had grown in size.

When she landed atop the bird, catching it within what had become paws instead of hands, Kida had become what could only resemble a Daux-cat, a species native to Endor. Albeit smaller than most of her kind, being that she was still a kitten, she still had a fair bit of bulk that made her body seem far more powerful than that of a child.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Kida Ravos"]


Ok. This was confusing and unexpected. Very much so! Admittedly this was not the first time Siobhan had encountered a shapeshifter. For one, her former boss, Cira, was a Shii'do. Which was not nearly as well-kept a secret as the former Lady Protector thought it was! See, suddenly sprouting wings in public during a droid invasion of your capital got noticed and the holonet was a wonderful thing. That said, hoogling 'chicks with wings' had also taken her to a number of rather disturbing sites...


However, this did not make it any less surprising when little Kida suddenly trannsformed into a big feline right before Sio's eyes and pounced upon a bird, catching it between her paws like a cat would. It all happened so fast that Siobhan could only stand there dumbfounded, looking and feeling quite silly. Oh my stars, I don't think I can handle this one, Siobhan thought to herself once she had finally regained her composure. "Err...nice work, dear. Good girl." Well, the little girl had gotten herself a meal! That probably deserved praise. With a bit of a limp she approached Kida and her prey.

 

[Lief]

This one's writer totally did not know that Cira was a shapeshifter! Then again, she's never done any writing with that particular character, so... Anywhom, the little Daux-girl lowered her maw down to pick up the bird within her jaws, teeth carefully placed so as not to puncture and kill the animal. Instead the child made her way over to the woman and nudged her good leg with the tip of her nose.

It was not dinner, not prey, but instead a gift! After all, had the woman not given her food? The bird was very much alive and while it was a little startled it was otherwise completely unharmed. Kida did not release her jaws until near Siobhan, however, not wanting the bird to fly away! Once at the woman's feet Kida lowered her head and opened her mouth, the startled bird laying still on the ground, its little chest rising and falling rapidly.

Then, without further warning, she changed back into her human form and murmured a quiet "Taa-oo!", eyeing the bird in an amused manner.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Kida Ravos"]


And here I thought things could not get any weirder, Siobhan thought when, rather than eating the bird, Kida suddenly returned and depositd it before her feet. It did actually make sense. After all, Siobhan had given her food, now the girl had made her a gift. Err...does she expect me to...eat it? The former Exarch wondered to herself. Or does she still think I'm a bird?


There, once again Kida had managed to render Siobhan speechless. This was quite an achievement, when you thought about it. Anyhow, she did not want to upset the girl and did feel sort of proud of her, so Siobhan gave Kida her best smile. "Good girl, good catch. Thank you," she said warmly, reaching out to affectionately pat the girl's head and stroke her probably rather messy hair.

 

[Lief]

The bird perked up and leapt into the air, its tiny wings flapping until it soared into the air. Kida giggled and watched it go with awe-filled eyes, as mesmerized as she had been by the butterflies of Teth. Her instinct was to chase it, however the more human side of her simply adored the beauty and allowed it to make its bid for freedom. Her stomach was nice and full, after all, and Kida wasn't the kind of creature who played with prey for fun.

With the gift having been given, the small child crawled closer to the woman who had been petting her unkempt hair and curled up. She was always sleepy after eating, and catching the bird had taken it out of her! Nuzzling against the woman's touch, little Kida lay within the dirt and grass and closed her eyes. Even lacking clothes and fur she did not shiver, though the temperature in the forest was mild and chilly. She had adjusted well to the wild through her years.

[member="Siobhan Kerrigan"]

 

[Siobhan Kerrigan]

[member="Kida Ravos"]


I was wrong about you, dear. You're full of surprises, Siobhan concluded after Kida had curled up and abruptly fallen asleep. The girl was a lot less feral and animalistic than she had thought. Her reaction to the bird clearly showed that. Her instinct might have been to chase it, but she had seemed mesmerised by its beauty, like any child would. She had some feral mannerisms, but was still a sweet, innocent girl.


What am I gonna do with you? the Countess wondered as the girl nuzzled against her touch. While Kida slept Siobhan kept stroking her hair and looked down upon her with a expression of fondness. For a moment she was concerned about the girl being cold, but she did not seem to shiver. Undoubtedly this showed that she had been living in the wilderness for a long time. Take you with me? The thought came to her automatically. The wilds were not the place for a child. She was all aone here. Someone else might find her and abuse her - and the Force potential she had. But...this was the environment she had grown up in. It might be cruel to tear her away from it and force her into civilisation. She may very well be better off here. Never mind Sio's own doubts about being equipped to raise her.


I'll have to check up on you. With a heavy heart she made her decision, placing a kiss upon the little girl's forehead. When Kida awoke Siobhan would be gone, but the little wildling would be covered in leaves and the fur of some animal rather than lying exposed on the cold ground. Likewise the Countess had gotten her a few unwrapped candy bars and left them there for her.