Nyoka wouldn't admit it, but ever since the Goddess had left, he'd missed her. Just a tiny, little bit, so small that it was hardly noticeable. Yet it was there all the time, like a needle in his conscience. Besides, it wasn't her that he missed, it was her powers.

Or that's what he'd convinced himself it was anyway.

As usual, he was lying out in the sun on the edges of the infernal pride the Goddess had left him in. Well it wasn't that bad...he had met Janja here after all.

In fact, if it wasn't for the female serpent he was quite sure he would have left the place by now. One plus side to the desert, however, the sun. He basked in its glory pretty much all day, basked, hunted and basked until the sun went down and he was forced to return to his little den.

It was a lazy life, but a good one.

Janja often found herself thinking about the goddess she had scared away. She hadn't meant to be so cruel but she had just been so...furious. She had very good reason to be. Still she felt guilty. She knew that Nyoka missed Rokopelli even if he wouldn't admit it out loud but she knew. She even missed the oddball herself, but only the slightest bit. Shaking her head she moved from the shade of a tree out into the sun enjoying the feel of warmth falling across her. It felt nice, it always did. It felt even better when her eyes landed upon her mate.

"Nyoka." She called in her smooth tone of voice.

Seeing him always made things brighter. Even if they had come together for the sake of their species she couldn't help but feel a pull to him. It was simple. She loved him.

He lifted his golden-dipped face and turned expectantly to look at her. She was looking exceptionally beautiful today, green, slick and shining in the sun. It was clear she was in good health.

His tongue flickered free to taste the air, more out of habit than anything, and the corner's of his scaled mouth turned upwards.

"Come to enjoy the sssun?" He hissed, moving aside to make room for her on his favourite basking rock. "It'sss feeling exceptionally pleasssant today."

A smile crossed her lips as she slithered forward to rest beside him. "I have." She replied with a nod lightly pressing herself against him. "I mussst agree, however it feelsss better with you by my ssside." She told him even though she knew it sounded rather corny but it was true. Besides being next to him made her forget all about the goddess. "I believe that the sssun isss the bessst part of thessse landsss."

As she brushed against him, that unusual but highly pleasant sensation tingled through his body. It was static and it increased the smile on his arrow-shaped face.

It seemed that she, too, had become something quite dear to him, though perhaps he hadn't quite realised it yet.

He agreed with a nod of his own. "Though I do missss the jungle. Were you born here in thisss desssert or did you travel like I did?"

Janja hadn't missed the thrilling sensation of his flesh against hers. It felt so perfect...so right. When he spoke of the jungle she nodded missing the humidity more than she had imagine she would have before. "I did a bit of traveling. There was a lioness I used to know...she..I..." Her voice trailed off as she tried to form her words into the right sentence. She was having difficulty. "When I met her, I lived in the jungle, she was a scared thing. I spent a bit of time with her before this male came to her and whisked her away."

She shook her head remembering that male. She hadn't liked the salmon striped male at all. "Later I found myself wanting to find her, to see that she had made it out okay. Instead I found you." She told him with a light laugh. It all seemed so silly to her.

Well this was interesting. Janja had spent time with lions too? Nyoka had to admit that he'd never liked them that much. Rokopelli had been an exception, but only because...well, she had wings, he supposed. There was no way he would have put up with her for so long if she'd been 'normal.'

Either way, it was surprising to hear that Janja jad once befriended one of the 'furries'.

"If you want to, maybe we can go and find thisss lionessss of yoursss sssometime? I would help it you wanted me to. Thisss easssy life isss okay, but I have to admit I do missss ssseeing the world. A challenge keepsss the mind sssharp, asss they sssay."

He lifted his head and glanced to the sky.

"How do thossse sssilly lionsss get by alone?" He murmered softly.

"Perhapsss." She replied and would have shrugged had she had shoulders. "I wouldn't know where to look for the girl though." She admitted with a light sigh. It was true, the oasis she heard that the lioness was at was abandoned and she had found nothing. "I wouldn't mind traveling however." She told him the smile forming upon her lips again.

"We mussst keep sssharp, after all we would want our children to be sssharp jussst like usss don't we?" She asked him in a content tone. When he went back to the subject of lions she shook her head. "I don't know. I think that mossst do but that one girl...the lion who took her away....I didn't trussst him."

The glint in his eye showed that he agreed. Travelling would suit him well and maybe if he got away form this place he could forget about Rokopelli and live like a proper serpent again. No more relying on a goddess for flying around the world. He'd travel the serpent way.

"Indeed. Sssharp ssserpentsss for sssharp children. It'sss the only way to sssee our ssspeciesss sssucceed after all."

"Then we ssshould go travelling and if we sssee her along the way then all for the better." He canted his head and blinked at her, curious. "Like sssnakesss there are good and bad lionsss. If ssshe wasss in danger then ssshe mussst be trusssted to care for herssself. The world is an unpredictable place."

But the question was, when to travel? Where would it be better to raise children? Here in the desert or out there in the world?

It felt good to think about traveling, it would let them do something other than just sitting around doing nothing. While the sun felt nice and it was enjoyable to sit out basking in the sun's warmth it did get old after a while. Besides simply thinking about going out and doing things well...it felt wonderful. "We are the sssharpessst ssserpentss after all." She agreed a glint in her own eyes.

"Agreed. Perhapsss it isss ssssimply bessst not to dwell on the passst." She stated looking away from him and to the vast expanse of desert before them. "Sssshould we travel ssshould we wait or ssshould we leave sssooner rather than later?" Important questions.

He was a vain sort and when she agreed with him he couldn't help but smile again. Yes, they were pretty impressive, weren't they? If he didn't know better he'd say they were probably the two greatest snakes ever to have hatched.

"Children born on a journey might grow ssstronger and sssmarter fassster than if we were to ssstay here. But the dangersss will be greater. If we ssstick together the chancesss are better. But I will do whatever you decide is bessst. I have to sssay I don't feel as comfortable here without Rokopelli around." He eyed the land somewhat sceptically.

Janja had quite the ego, always had. She knew how to get her way and she'd be lying if she told anyone she didn't think that she was amazing. In any case she definitely thought that the two of them were all that and more.

"I'll be honessst Nyoka. I don't feel comfortable here, while I enjoy the warmth of the dessssert the lionsss here...they unnerve me." She told him hanging her head just the slightest bit. "I feel asss though I am not welcome." Of course she only started to feel that way once Rokopelli was gone. She felt as if they blamed her for the goddess's disappearance, which was her fault. "I would like to go on the journey. I believe that it isss bessst."

Nyoka would never blame her for chasing off Rokopelli. In fact he probably wouldn't have been any less harsh in Janja's position. Being dropped from the sky probably wasn't the greatest experience of all.

Besides, he'd been extremely nasty to the little Goddess before and she'd never freaked out like that. She was an odd one, certainly.

But like all irritants, Nyoka had a feeling she'd be back someday. She wouldn't be that easy to get rid of.

"Then it'sss decided then. We'll go asss sssoon asss posssible. There'sss really nothing keeping usss here after all. We'll pick a direction and head that way until we come acrosss sssomething interesssting. What'sss the point of living if you don't live a little after all?" He reached out and rubbed his head against her neck, the first true sign of accetion perhaps he had ever shown.

"It'll be much more enjoyable with you asss a partner."

She shuddered at the memory of the day she had snapped. It had been terrifying, falling from the sky. She had warned the other female not to drop her and she still did. Unforgivable.

Still...

She shook her head and leaned into him as he rubbed his head against her neck. "I wouldn't want to go with anyone elssse but you." She told him happily. It was true even if she might not have realized it at first. It was funny how things worked out sometimes. "To the future."

With that decided, Nyoka began to prepare himself mentally for the journey. It would be hard going at first. He'd have to toughen up his scales again! He'd have to adapt to soil and grass and get used to the fact that the sun wouldn't be as strong.

He dipped his golden-tipped face towards her and flicked out his dark, forked tongue. "To the future." He agreed.

And the future looked promising...