Fear -- it tied the striped child down, encaged him behind impenetrable bars, pinned him to the ground. For many days straight the child had starved nearly to death, remaining in the shelter of a rock overhang, practically sitting in his feces. Silently he would beg for the rock to collapse and end his struggle against life. He was too afraid to leave it's stone-cold embrace: to see what new life could promise him. He knew naught of hunting, of surviving without someone to teach him how to live by himself. A quiet sob would come from the traumatized child as thoughts of his mother would flow into his consciousness. Why had she abandoned him? Mother's didn't abandon their children, right? None of his siblings had been abandoned, only him. "Mama... was I not good enough?" Quietly, the boy would curl up, his thin frame providing little warmth in the cold shelter, his frail figure collapsing beneath it's weight. He only weighed fifty pounds by now, having starved nearly to death and suffered from disease. It was so cold... so deadly... Darkness creeped in on the boy's vision, peeking at the edges. No... there had to be a new life for him. There had to be! He'd go with anyone by now. He just wanted a home. He just wanted to belong. He now was tightly curled into a small ball of orange and striped fur, large ears alert for noise of anyone coming. He begged to hear someone -- even something to call a companion. Verde and carmine gems would search the dark and misty forest, imagining monsters seeking to eat the poor child alive. The sound of a twig snapping would send the boy scurrying to shove himself into the smallest crack he could, to get away from this potential predator. But it was obvious from the piles of feces and scents of urine that there was a free meal here -- not very fleshy, but it would do... Quietly, he would curl, struggling to hold his breath and pinning his ears, banded tail tucked between his tail, trauma lighting his eyes. ""

It wasn?t often he found himself in the swamplands, he hated it here, but for some reason this was where some of the most tender of game came from. With the wealth of Spring gone, all of the newborn prey was grown up, he had to search further to provide for his family. Long stride would carry him further, his nose on alert for any hint of prey. He?d catch the scent of a stray rabbit, boring but bigger and plumper than he?d ever seen. Scorpion would take its life expertly before turning to find his way home, however a scent of fear would arouse his curiosity.
There was also a stench of cat. With the rabbit still dangling from his jaws he?d follow his nose, right to the sight of an orange and white ball of fur. He?d seen cats before, but this one was odd. He was obviously young, and his colors were vibrant against the green moss he was curled on. Scorpion would even feel a tinge of worry for the creature, his bones were seen quite obviously through his coat. What was he doing out here starving? There was no other cat scent on him, the mother was long gone.
Being the paternal guy he was, and rather selfish as he thought of the rewards saving a cat like this would be. Even if he grew no larger, he knew with the right diet he could become a powerful ally. He hoped the boy could understand him. Dropping the rabbit words would pour from his lips, "You, eat this." He wondered then how Othello would react to yet another pup to raise.

"Speech"

Quietly the scent of a freshly killed meal would waft toward the striped child, a mirage amongst the scent of the predator that had pursued him. His stomach would growl against his ribs, guts beating at the fragile bones as if he were eating himself from the inside. What if it was poisoned? A trap to lure him out from his measly shelter so whatever predator could devour him? He was an easy -- but bony -- meal just waiting to be tricked. This time he'd hopefully not be as na?ve. Kaleidoscope gems watched the legs of his pursuer approach, the prey falling deftly from clamped jaws in front of the shade. He had obviously seen and scented the small child already, words slipping from inky lips. "A-are you s-sure? Y-you aren't g-going to eat m-me?" His small striped skull and large black ears would dart forward from the shadows momentarily to snatch up the hare, dragging it back into the shade, regardless of what the strange creature would answer with. Noisily he would nip the hare, the sniff the whole meal for any funky and strange accents to the prey smell. When he would account for every part of the tender meal, he would begin to noisily suck it down, eating as much of the rabbit as he could siphon with his tongue and small muzzle. He was full and satisfied once the hare was left as a grotesquely twisted ribcage, with every limb and head intact. Salmon tinted tongue would swipe across his jowls, freeing any chunks of meat caught in his whiskers. "T-thank you..." Perhaps this could be his new father, if he'd allow the striped child to call him a father and follow him to whatever home he resided in. Slowly he would slither from the den, limbs still rather weak, his tail between legs fearfully from being so exposed. "W-would it be o-okay for me to come w-with you? C-can I call you D-dad?" ""

The small cat cub seemed timid, but with an obvious dose of starvation he would pull himself forward. Unsure words would crawl from his weak throat, but they would not stop his advances on the plump carcass. "Why would I eat you when I?ve got a nice fat rabbit right here?" He would let his paws coil beneath him as bright golden eyes watched the tiny fellow inhale his meal. He?d finish quickly, and instead of being greeted with a food coma the cat would send his thanks. Orange paws would drag him from the thicket, bright eyes looking up at him as he asked to come with him. A dark smile would play on Scorpion?s features, he didn?t even have to forcefully put the cub under his control, just a scrap of meat and he was now his. "You can call me whatever you want, and just stay close behind me." He?d encourage the cat to his side as he began the walk back to the range, his long legs would try to match the child?s stride. "Speech"

The strange creature would make promise of not eating the striped child, which silently filled his tiny body with sheer joy and happiness, making him feel slightly better about leaving his shelter. He slurped up the last bits of his meal and would exit, gently purring in happiness. "T-thank you... d-Dad..." He would watch as his new adoptive father would match his stride, which was a slow crawl. Weakly he would hang low on the ground, and within moments he was exhausted, his weak limbs collapsing beneath him. A gruff pant would come from his small muzzle as he struggled to push himself up, silently whimpering. "M-my legs are still weak... It m-might be faster if y-you carried m-me by m-my scruff... B-but for you I m-might be a bit h-heavy..." What words he spoke were true. The child weighed about fifty pounds, but when he was healthy he weighed ninety-seven, far too hefty for this man's neck to be strong enough to handle. It was meant in no offensive manner, but he wanted this man to not break his neck trying to carry the striped child... and speaking of his new dad... what exactly was he? He was definitely not a cat. He was in no way shaped with supple muscle and sleek figure like a cat. He didn't have stripes like him, only on his face. He had a short -- but fluffy tail. He would still yet lie in place, neon colored eyes would stare right up into the golden gaze of his strangely lanky father. "W-what kind of a-animal are you?" He had seen nothing quite like his new father, kaleidoscope gems now spotting the marks extending down his muzzle. "A-are you some kind of c-cat? A t-tiger like m-me?" Did he know what a tiger was? He didn't seem surprised by his vibrant colors and stripes. But it didn't seem like he knew quite what he was... "Do y-you have a n-name?" Kaleidoscope gems would scan his father eagerly for an answer. ""

The little cat would follow him from the den, stammering a thanks as he padded out. Hopefully he wouldn?t do that the rest of his life. Scorpion would walk up a few paces when the child fell to the ground. The kitten would whimper, and stammer after Scorpion towered over his form. "You needn?t waste your breath, boy. You?re scarcely bigger than the rabbit you just ate." He?d take the cat by the scruff, hefting his weight and would begin to drag his form back towards the range. The kid would ask an odd question, but with having him in his jaws there was no way he?d be able to say anything. The kid would just have to be patient, and hope that Othello accepted this cub too. He?d growl deeply, signaling for him to be still as he would drag the thin cat through the swampy parts of old Covari.
.ooc. Gonna start a new thread

"Speech"