literature

Through Different Eyes - Ramiel/Jasper RP

Deviation Actions

OneLifeRemaining's avatar
Published:
428 Views

Literature Text

remember how i used to be by OneLifeRemaining


Ramiel laid curled in a corner of his cell, napping for the time being. It wasn't like there was much else to do. The bars were too strong to break, the lock to complex and out of reach for Ramiel to toy with. There hadn't been anyone interesting to talk to in a while. The last he'd seen of his father, the irritated jaguar had scolded him for trying to escape and putting him through the trouble of getting Ramiel out of these cages. 

Before another mishap like earlier happened, Ramiel supposed. The talk- more like argument, on Ramiel's part- had put the apprentice in a sour mood. He hadn't expected for his cage to be moved toward the arena for him to fight, but he had been so riled up, he hadn't minded. As soon as his gate opened he bolted down the pathway, stretching his limbs as far as they would reach and looking forward to seeing who his opponent would be, in the coliseum that was so talked about for ages. That was, until a screech, and the gate to the arena suddenly slammed shut in front of Ramiel's nose. He'd slammed to a halt, casting up a plume of dust as he partially crashed into the gate. He'd shaken himself for a moment and looked over at the cat who had closed it with a snarl. He was a young leopard. "Why did you do that??" He had demanded, his eyebrows furrowed in anger. He'd been looking forward to getting out some anger on some stupid wolf or criminal or something. But the leopard was too busy explaining his actions to his superior. Ramiel cast a glare at him as he turned to head back to his cage before the humans began to poke and prod him to force him in. 

He hadn't seen the leopard boy again until he happened to pass Ramiel's cage, and he briefly explained he'd done it to save his friend. 

Ramiel flicked his ear as a waterdrop landed on it. He had been too irritated at the time to realize fighting in the arena meant there was a possibility that he could have fought other cats. That he would have been expected to /kill/ them. He pulled himself into a tighter curl. He supposed the leopard was a Hunter. He didn't know if the cat in the arena was too, but the suggestion that a Hunter would put himself on the line to save a fellow Hunter went against what Ramiel had expected of them. He had always thought that each one only cared about himself. That if one went missing, the rest wouldn't search for him. Could that have been false? Ramiel had gotten tired of contemplating it, and had instead turned to sleep to occupy his time until his father came for him. He grudgingly had to admit he'd rather be at Pallis' home than here in this smelly cell. 




Jasper crept silently down to the colosseum underground. He wasn't supposed to be down here alone without a Hunter, something about Empire cats being more prone to escaping at night, or being more angry that they weren't able to do so. Jasper hadn't been able to find another unguarded entrance and Anabeth had left her favorite bracelet in the stands today. Jasper, as tired as he was, had gone back to see if he could sniff it out for her.
It wasn't until he was halfway down the hall that he recognized the feline with the strange markings. The young cat was curled up, probably having trouble sleeping. Jasper didn't blame him, he was eager to get back to his own bed, but first he had to find that bracelet. That's when he kicked the chain left lying on the floor.




A sudden chinking chain sound jolted Ramiel from sleep, and his head shot up, eyes wide. He was faced toward the far wall, with the eyes on the back of his head and ears staring at whomever had stirred him. After he took a moment to get his bearings and remember where he was, he turned his head around to look out through the bars, expecting to see his father. But it wasn't. Ramiel wasn't sure if he was relieved or disappointed. He squinted in the dim light to see the markings on the small cat. Pale light filtering in through a tiny opening at the top of his cell wall shed just enough moonlight for Ramiel to recognize the young leopard hunter from before. Everything he had seen of the leopard and continued to see suggested he was just an apprentice; his sneaky posture only solidified the notion. Ramiel grunted. 

"Aren't you supposed to have a Hunter escort?" Ramiel asked dryly; he quite enjoyed his sleep when he had it. Perhaps not all cats would know the protocol and rules for hunter apprentices, but Ramiel knew them quite well, even if he wasn't in their ranks. 




As soon as the captured cats head shot up Jasper internally cursed to himself. That was a rookie move not watching where his paws were going.
Eyes that didn't blink stared at him until the feline's head spun around and the blue ones, the real ones found him. 
Jasper felt his fur bristle. This cat was creepy, and how the heck was he supposed to have any idea Jasper was breaking rules?
"I've never been the best at keeping hunter rules." He added softly, in a tone that was very detached from the situation. He refused to let this cat intimidate him, and even more so let this cat in a cage boss him around. 
"...Something you witnessed today I'm sure. Did I wake you?" He asked, listening secretly for any more sounds in case the cats noise combined with his had stirred anyone else up.




Ramiel got to his paws and padded from his corner slowly up to the bars. He stopped a good distance from them and kept his voice low as to not wake any sleeping neighbors. "Yes, though I hardly believe you care about how much sleep I get.. I'm just empire scum, afterall." Ramiel's tail tip flicked in annoyance as he said the commonly used insult. He continued.

"If you don't like to keep Hunter rules, why train to be a Hunter?" His voice was slightly monotone, and a bit cracked from sleep. And perhaps lack of water. He didn't want to resort to licking the slimy walls for moisture; it would probably make him sick anyway, and he'd much rather be thirsty than sick and thirsty.




Jasper smirked at his mention of empire scum. It was an insult the leopard had heard but he had yet to use it himself. This conversation had just gotten interesting. He didn't have to answer, but Jasper was curious now.
"I suppose not. The more tired you are the less likely your chance is of killing one of us. Which you would have done in the arena had you been let out." Jasper was confident that would have been the outcome. Empire cats were wild and ferocious, they couldn't be tamed and therefore couldn't be trusted.
"I train with the hunters so that your kind never has the chance to massacre my home again. Because its what my master asks of me. I don't care much for the laws of cats." 
It was true, humans were the real law makers, they were the ones to be feared and respected. They were the creatures that had given Jasper what no cat, save one, had ever given him.




Ramiel sighed, shaking his head lightly. How could there be so much that these cats didn't know and understand? But he looked up again at the leopard. His oddly colored eyes burned with curiosity. "So, you were trying to save your friend, then? Why was a Hunter even in the arena to begin with? I thought that was a job for low-lifes and a punishment for criminals?" 




Jasper smirked again. This cat knew more then Jasper had expected him to, but he still knew so little.
"We have to train don't we? Our masters organize sparring matches. There wasn't supposed to be any killing today, that is for...like you said, criminals and lowlifes."
Suddenly Jasper felt like he might have said too much. He didn't know what an Empire cat was planning to do with information like that. "Sorry to disappoint you." He added.




"But there's the training Colosseum for that." Ramiel pointed out, then stopped. His ears pricked. "Wait, if there wasn't supposed to be any killing, why was I released?" The Lightning apprentice cocked an eyebrow. "I shouldn't have been put in the Colosseum at all. This was supposed to be just a holding place for me."




This time Jasper made a face. He hadn't completely figured that part out yet himself, but he was curious as to why this empire cat thought it was just supposed to be camping out rather than fighting.
"Held for what? You make it sound like you shouldn't even be in there. Is there someplace else you would rather be in the city or aren't you a prisoner?"




The look on the leopard's face told Ramiel he didn't know ether. The lightning empire apprentice's muzzle twitched as he withheld a smirk. 'Do don't know who I am, do you?' He said in his mind. Then a sudden wash of guilt swept over him. 'Am I actually PRIDING myself in being the son of an elite hunter? What's WRONG with me?' Ramiel pushed the feelings away and shook his head softly.

"Forget it," He mewed aloud. "I'm more curious about what you were saying earlier. Something about empire cats being too wild to be trusted or something?"




Jasper's tail twitched in irritation. Obviously neither one of them was really willing to share what the other wanted to hear most. This was only Jasper's second time conversing with an empire cat, he had been a cub the first time, and the conversation hadn't been long.
Jasper decided that he would see where this could go, though he only intended to believe half of what this cat said. But with no hunters around, Jasper wanted to see what he could find out.
"What would you call it then? Attacking an entire city, killing cats and people alike..." Jasper stopped short, the faces of tribunes that he knew who had been slaughtered in the streets. "There was a cub I knew, was killed that day, I saved his life and the empires took it. Not even the hunters knew he was killed, they were too concerned with Thanatos running away."




He shrugged. "What could possibly drive entire empires of cats to behave such a way?" He asked, as if he didn't already know. Irritation pricked at his fur as he continued sarcastically. "Could it possibly be that the hundreds of cats who only want to live independently and away from ill-treatment by humans might have gotten fed up with their loved ones being taken away and slaved and killed?" He mewed. His voice quieted. "When I was a cub in Lightning Empire, someone I loved was taken away from me by the Hunters. Nothing was the same after she was captured...I asked one of my friends to find her for me and bring her back...But I guess now I'll never know if she made it." Ramiel was quiet for a moment, a stabbing pain in his heart when he remembered miss Melinda and the times they had when he was a cub, and he had adopted her as his mom. 

Ramiel sighed. "The empires don't kill cubs. We're not savages. It's part of our code. We're not even supposed to kill." He pointed out. "But I heard about what happened. Some crazed cat desperate to find his mate did it or something..." The strangely spotted hybrid looked up. "Don't blame the intent of all of them on the actions of one." He muttered. "Dumb idiot." He cursed the cat who'd done it. "I'm sure if his leader found out what he did, he'd have been dealt with by now." Ramiel sat down, wrapping his tail around his paws. They felt bare without his wrappings. His ear flicked; he wasn't sure if he was supposed to be polite to Hunters, but it was just in his nature. "Anyway, I'm sorry for your loss." His gaze flashed away for a moment. "It's not easy losing those you love." 

Eager to leave the thoughts behind, Ramiel cleared his throat. "You said...Thanatos...ran away?" He echoed. Being trapped ever since the night of the attack, Ramiel hadn't received all the news about what had gone on in the Hunters, save for bits here and there. Usually things he overheard from others. 




Jasper found himself growing more agitated as the empire cat grew sarcastic. He didn't appreciate sarcasm. It didn't make sense to him why any cat would be so stupid. To live side by side with a human meant trust on both ends, they provided you with everything you could ever need and in turn you protected them and the things that mattered to them. It wasn't rocket science. Punishment came only when you disobeyed their orders. 
"It's not our fault that Empire cats can't keep the laws." Suddenly Jasper realized something huge though. It was nearly impossible for cat families to stay together if they were captured and bought individually. Though Jasper had never been outside of the city, he could imagine cubs were born every day in the wild, growing up to hate humans and start this eternal circle of more hatred that had fueled the war. They were growing up raised to defy the laws of man, and it was tearing their families apart. New resolve on his face Jasper made a silent decision that he would find a way to end it. He didn't care for cubs, but deep down he didn't want to see them taken from their parents, at least not like he had.

When the empire cat mentioned that they weren't killers and didn't kill cubs Jasper merely scoffed to himself. This was one of the things he would file under the 'yeah right' category. He had met cattle thieves who claimed to be empire cats, and they had nearly ripped apart him and his adopted brothers.

What Jasper did react to was the hybrids sudden shift to sympathy. ...It's not easy to lose the ones you love."
"I didn't say I loved this cat, I can't even say I liked him. Don't think for a second that was the case." Though Jasper's voice was quiet, it was surprisingly angry. Love was something dangerous in Jasper's life. The only cat he had ever truly cared about was taken away, not by humans or cats, but fate. He had decided though that love was something far too dangerous to allow himself to experience again. "You're right though, I don't blame the Empires for killing those cubs. They were idiots and couldn't keep the rules either. It probably was a waste of my time saving that cubs life, since he got himself trampled only a few weeks later anyway." Why was he talking like this??? He didn't really believe it did he? Jasper wasn't sure at the moment. But he felt afraid for the first time since being in the cages. Afraid of what he might be becoming. Was there no safe place between Monster and having a heart that was likely to be broken again?
"I'm sorry." Jasper sighed. It wasn't this empire cats problem that he didn't know who or what he was.
"Yes Thanatos is gone, the coward ran off with his family and ...a few others, one of them a friend of mine. It created some drama in the Hunter ranks for a while there." Jasper had his suspicions about how much this cat knew and why. "You know who Thanatos is though." It wasn't a question.

As he said this though, Jasper took notice to the Empire cats voice. It was raspy, probably thirsty. Jasper glanced around. If this cats cage had not been moved when it wasn't supposed to he would have gotten his daily portion of water. Finding the bucket Jasper padded over to it. It was half filled, and had a little dirt in the bottom from the gathering Colosseum dust but other than that seemed fine. Jasper picked up the bucket and brought it closer, though he stopped a good 2 steps from the bars, aware of how vulnerable it would make him to get closer with the bucket in his mouth.




Ramiel sighed. "Laws are easily broken," He looked at the leopard pointedly, flicking his tail to indicate the apprentice breaking said laws by being here. It didn't look like the other cat seemed to believe much of what he said, but Ramiel hadn't really expected him to. Hunters were raised to hate the empires; why should one trust an empire cat? He hadn't expected the leopard's sudden change to anger and thought for a moment that perhaps he had overestimated the loving capacity of a Hunter. He glanced sideways at the cage next to him to make sure the cat there hadn't woken. The other side of Ramiel's cage was a wall, so he only had one neighbor. 

Ramiel pricked his ears as the other apprentice continued. He seemed angry that Ramiel had suggested he had had any love for the cub he had saved, but Ramiel had an inkling that perhaps the anger was actually due to frustration; having gone through the work of saving a life only to find it having been taken away shortly later. That would have to make one feel as if their efforts were wasted, pointless due to fate's stronger influence. Ramiel glanced at his paws as a moment of quiet came upon them, finally broken when the hunter muttered an apology- Ramiel shrugged- and continued on about Thanatos. Ramiel's ear twitched. The leopard seemed curious. Had he said too much?

"I thought everyone knew who Thanatos was." He rasped casually. He cocked an eyebrow curiously as the leopard began to look around, and pricked his ears as he padded away. A pang of disappointment settled in his stomach as his shoulders slumped a little. He'd quite liked talking to the Hunter apprentice, even if they weren't on the same page about some things. 

But before he was out of sight and swallowed by the shadows, the leopard stopped by a bucket. He examined it briefly then picked it up by the handle. It appeared to be heavy, by the way the leopard carried it, and Ramiel sat up straighter with interest as he heard the sloshing of water, and his eyes widened. A glimpse of it barely spilling over the side as the cat came nearer made his mouth feel ever dryer with thirst. Before getting too close though, the leopard stopped unsurely; he must not want to get too close to the empire cat. They were wild and untamed, after all. Ramiel got to his feet and backed up a couple paces, eyes and senses trained on the bucket of water. He prayed to Sator that this wasn't a joke to make him suffer.




Mid contemplation on whether or not this would work, Jasper's ears perked forward as the empire cat stepped back, not a gesture of fear, but of welcome, aware of Jasper's concern for vulnerability.
It gave the leopard a strange feeling. He didn't believe in pity, the idea of someone pitying him was enough to make Jasper sick. But giving this cat water was something he knew Anabeth would do if she were here, even if this cat was wild and needed to be locked up, whether it believed it deserved caging or not.
Cautiously, stepping forward eyes trained on the strangely spotted cat, Jasper brought the bucket closer. It was too wide to fit between the bars, Jasper would have to push it under the slot where food was pushed, or at least try to. Ears listening for anything coming up and down the halls, Jasper brought the bucket forward, his neck exposed as he set the bucket down and moved it best as he could before he felt too uncomfortable and stepped back.
Once away from the bars Jasper turned his back on the cell sitting down and wrapping his tail around his paws, pretending as though he was more concerned about the long dark hallway.
"Everybody knew Thanatos." He muttered more to himself. "I wonder how long you have to be gone before you're forgotten?"




Ramiel began to pace as the leopard began to wedge the bucket into a space in the bars made for shoving the prisoner's daily ration. Once he had stepped away and turned his back with a mutter, Ramiel padded forward- it took quite a bit of self-control to stop himself from rushing over- to the bucket. He didn't take more than a glance at it to check the water level before he put his muzzle to it and drank. The cool water felt like heaven quenching his thirst.

"Legends are never forgotten." Ramiel replied as he lifted his head to take in air before drinking again. "Lightning's first leader, Spartacus, lived longer ago than anyone living can remember." Ramiel commented, unknowing that Spartacus was his grandfather. "Yet we're not close to forgetting what he's done." Ramiel bent his head to the bucket water, lapping more slowly now. Finally he sat up, feeling the water slosh in his tummy like tiny waves cresting on the shore. He gazed at the back of the leopard's head. The water hadn't been a trick. It didn't taste poisoned either; an idea the thirsty apprentice hadn't thought of checking before drinking his fill. 

"Why help me?" He asked. 




Jasper glared at the darkness in response to the Legends response. He didn't like it. His sister was remembered by no one but himself. She deserved to be remembered. It wasn't fair. "Who chooses the legends then and what right do they have to decide?"

The cats question though made his fur bristle slightly. Jasper had been hoping that he wouldn't ask.
"It was partly my own fault you didn't get your scheduled water...and it's what my Annabeth would have done if she were here." It was probably more Annabeth than anything. She was so gentle. Jasper would do anything to keep her safe, even become a monster himself.




Ramiel ignored Jasper's response to legends. He had a feeling he might tread over a sore subject if he continued the subject.

He tipped his head. "Anabeth?" Ramiel echoed. "Who's that?"




"My masters daughter..." Jasper said without thinking, then whirling on the cats cage so fast he was an orange blur Jasper hissed teeth bared "If you or your empire cats ever come within 300 feet of her I swear...stop asking questions about me, there isn't much I can tell you that you couldn't use against me. For all I know you were captured to gather information for another attack...and I just told you Thanatos is gone." Jasper felt like an idiot. He needed to be more careful. This was probably why Apprentices weren't allowed down here alone.




The leopard moved with such vivocity that Ramiel backed up a step, his hackles raising instinctively. He stole another glance next door as he heard a shuffle from the cage. He waited until the other cat quieted again and turned back to the apprentice Hunter.

Ramiel scrunched up his face in a look of distaste, as if he had just bitten into sour prey. "I have no interest in your master's daughter, nor using information against you." He retorted quietly. His face softened again, glancing around his cage at the stone cold bars and seeping walls. "Fat lot of good I would be for returning information anyway, if I can't get out of a measly cell." He didn't expect the other cat to aid him in escape, no. He'd have to wait on his father for that one. Ramiel settled back into a sitting position.

"What brings you down here, anyway?" 




Jasper stared into those blue eyes, searching for any hint of deception or hostility. It was weird, Jasper had seen more hostility in a passing hunters eyes then in this young empire cat.
"I should go. I'm late." Jasper said looking away. It was easier when things were black and white, he wanted to get home to where things made sense again. 




Ramiel glanced over his shoulder at the moonlight filtering in. The beams had slid sideways; they'd been talking longer than Ramiel had realized. He turned back to the leopard. "But you only just got down here." Ramiel was curious to know what had brought the rival apprentice here. "If you had to have snuck down here, it must have been for something important." Ramiel shrugged. "But by all means, if you need to go, don't let me keep you." 




Jasper paused before leaving, glancing back, his face softened but difficult to read. Something about the true eagerness this cat had to talk to him.
"I came down here, to look for something, something Anabeth lost today. I really shouldn't stay any longer or they will notice I'm gone. Keep your head down, and you shouldn't be selected for any fights anymore."
Jasper went to take another step. "What do they call you? In the Empires. What's your name?"




Ramiel watched the leopard leave. He nodded. "I'll do that, thanks." He had turned away when the cat spoke again, and he returned to the bars to catch the leopard's eye again. 

"I was named in Massilia. My name is Ramiel." He dipped his head slightly as he introduced himself. "And what do they call you?"




The Hunter Apprentice stood there for a long moment. Playing the name over in his mind.
"Jasper...they call me Jasper."
With that he padded silently into the darkness. More than careful to avoid any chains. He found the bracelet, almost buried in dust. It would probably need to be fixed a little but picking it up he found the east entrance unguarded and headed home.
He had this feeling in his stomach though that said he would meet Ramiel again, and that it may be under completely different circumstances. He wondered, what it would be like when there no longer any bars between them.




"May Sator go with you," Ramiel called after the leopard. "...Jasper." Ramiel spoke the name quietly to himself as the leopard was swallowed in shadows. "I'll see you around." He stood there for a moment in thought before turning away from the bars and padding past the beam of moonlight back to his shadowed corner. The cat contemplated the idea of names- sounds created by mouth to indicate specific individuals- before his mind traveled to more thoughts. He curled himself into a ball and closed his eyes while he thought. 

How strange it was that fate could lead you one way, then make you double back to where you began. How you could encounter so many other souls while missing so many others if your paws go left rather than right. And which direction is right? When you've returned to a fork in your destiny, and fate tugs you toward both directions, what can one do? Both paths are blurred and foggy. One route could mean death, but the other could mean renouncing your friends and family. Was life worth living if you had to make your closest loved ones believe you hated them? 

A long breath escaped Ramiel's nose, and he curled tighter into his corner. Perhaps time and evening sun would burn away the fog lying along the paths of his destiny. Perhaps tomorrow he would have a better idea of where his paws might take him. 

With swirling thoughts of Hunters like Jasper and Pallis, Ramiel slipped closer to sleep on the uncomfortable stone floors of his dark cell. 
Ramiel belongs to OneLifeRemaining (that's meee)
Jasper belongs to CCDooMo 
© 2016 - 2024 OneLifeRemaining
Comments4
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
WFengs's avatar
+9 for wordcount, +5 for RP CCDooMo