A den here, a mountain there. And hey look, more trees. He hated scouting, it was a taste for the birds or the faster species, not something for a lion who'd packed on a few extra pounds. Still, he did as he was told loped along, making a little map in his mind. They should have sent someone else though, his map was horribly distorted, the distances spread far too long.
Life was good once more! Life was always better in the after-glow from seperating with a tasty little sweetling who had no hitches about him leaving. In fact, she seemed as pleased about him heading off as he had been to do so. Oh yes, it had been pleasant all around for them both! That was always the best kind of encounter. Vigo was sashaying in a relaxed ramble in no particular direction, eyes unfocused and dreamy. Females were wonderful things, and he was very glad of them. Not all were as fun, of course, but still... life definitely was good. He topped a hill and stopped for a moment, inhaling the air appreciatively before plopping his hind end down and gazing about himself. Oh look! It was another male roaming about! He gave a lazy roar of greeting, as they were too far apart for actual speaking. If the stranger was in a hurry, no big deal. Might be nice to sit and talk though!
Rahmara spotted the other lion a moment before he heard the roar. It was a good natured sound, one that suggested he might take a break. After all, his family couldn't complain about him stopping to greet this stranger as long as he pointed out the off chance that the male could have joined them. He knew he wouldn't, he had the square shoulders of an independent, but they didn't need to know that. He looked up, offering a crooked smile, and sat himself down as if he were going to wait for the other to either continue from his high perch or come down to his level. "So I'm not the only tired soul out and about?" he called with a laugh.
So it seemed he was welcome to join the other. Lazily he got back on his paws and picked a slow and random path down the hillside, coming to level ground a bit ahead of the other male. "I'd not say tired," he commented, though he also promptly sprawled himself on his side. "Rest is always welcome though!" He smiled crookedly and flipped his tailtip carelessly. "Are you scouting for intruders such as I?" he inequired calmly. Such guards were common for claimed territories. "It'll be pretty easy to warn me off, as I'm not heading in any particular direction," he added as reassurance. He wondered what pride had claimed this previously open ground, for there was no doubt there was the scent of others about this earthy-colored lion.
"Scouting," he sighed lazily, rolling his shoulders, "Not for intruders, for things, fruits and such for my herbivorous family." Feeling he should remain on the same level as the other he lay down, propping his head up with his paws. "They're a lively bunch, ever lived with a baboon?" Some days he considered eating one of them, but it wouldn't do any good. Any squabble just ended in more responsibility being piled on him.
Vigo's eyes widened in surprise. A babboon? "Those horrid stinky things?" His horrified expression said it all. "Whyever would you put up with them in your pride?" Sure, they had their benefits, with those clever fingers of theirs, but they were loud, rambunctious, and unpredictable to Vigo's mind. There wasn't much he'd want to do with a babboon, much less live with one. Or... more. He eyed the other male closely. "Is it A babboon or.... an entire troop?" The oddness of a lion looking for fruit also finally struck him. This was highly unusual. He blinked several times and waited to hear what unusual situation this lion was in.
"Not a pride," he corrected, yawning a bit, "A family. There's a couple of them. My brothers are lions, but the rest are a mixed bag." He even had an elephant for an uncle, but he'd found that that bit of information was best kept to himself. "They found my brothers and I, can't exactly turn on them now," he explained, "Much as I'd like to some days."
His brows bunched as he considered this. A family of babboons had found lion cubs and taken them in... and now they were HIS family? He cast the other male a rueful look. "I don't think having babboons as your family is the only situation in which you wish to turn on your relatives and beat them to a pulp," he commented. He was sure he had family somewhere, but he'd left them far behind him long ago. But he'd seen it, plenty of times. Children only just barely tolerating interfering parents, or aunts and uncles resenting getting nieces and nephews shoved on them unespectedly. They said you could choose your friends, but not your family. Apparently even for orphan cubs, this was true! He smiled a bit at the thought. "Sounds rough, though," he summarized. "So long as you don't have to eat the fruit yourself, I guess," he amended with a laugh, imagining himself trying to get into a coconut.
"No," he laughed, having a similar image of himself biting into a handful of overripe berries, "I don't touch the stuff. But I do try not to eat any of their kin." That was often more difficult than he had thought, and he spent most of his time bringing live prey back to ensure that he didn't kill some far thrown cousin. "But they keep life simple enough, no strict rules like you see in a lot of the prides. Rank is basically size and age," he exaplained. That sort of system usually put him high up.
Echoing his companion's thoughts unintentionally, he chuffed a laugh. "Ah, then you must surely be top lion, or at least second in command!" What lion could be smaller than a babboon, after all?? "Perhaps one of your brothers...," he trailed off and amended belatedly, "lion brothers, that is, surely they or you are in charge, then?" He sat up a little straighter, growing more and more intrigued with this strange tale, all the more for its truth.
"No, there are a few others that rival us, they have the disadvantage of not being predators though, so occasionally discussions become less than civil," he admitted, "Usually in response to my brother's cries for mates." That had come down to his fault in the last discussions, that he had made the mistake of changing the status quo. He wouldn't do that again. In truth he wasn't entirely sure it was wise to stay with the family for much longer. He might seek the female, or another like her.
He frowned first over what herbivore could possible outweigh them, but set that puzzle aside at the mention of fights over... their desire for mates? "What, they don't wish you to take mates, to have families of your own?" Despite not being a family or pridal lion, this bothered Vigo. "That just doesn't seem right, I have to say," he admitted freely. "If you wish to take a girl as your mate, why would your extended family protest?" He shook his head in disapproval and bafflement. A very strange family group indeed, if a prey animal was leader over lions, and the group was forbidding matehood for the felines!
"No no, you misunderstand," he said calmly, realizing he had phrased the rule very poorly. It likely wouldn't make sense to an outsider, but he figured he would at least try. "They would be more than happy for us to start our own families," he went on, "But I am to take the first mate, being the largest. My brothers cannot take one until I do, so that if their female turns against our family my mate and I will show an unbiased front that the brother could not." He cracked a smile, this was a rule he enjoyed taking advantage of, and he knew that things would change if he did end up leaving. "The problem being, I refuse to take a mate, and my brothers wish to do so."
That was a lot to chew on. He thought on it while drawing patterns in the dirt with his tail. What if his own mate turned against the family? He tipped his head speculatively at the odd lion. "You refuse females completely?" he asked hesitantly. He'd heard of some males who... well... weren't normal at all when it came to choosing mates. Even he looked normal compared to them. He shifted slightly, ears swivelling. "I can't imagine not enjoying females," he confssed candidly. "Why do you refuse, if I may ask?" Better to ask directly than beat around the bush.
Rahmara seemed to consider the implications of the other's words, suddenly flinching when it hit him. "Oh, no. It's not females I refuse," he said quickly, "It's the idea of choosing a permanent one. I prefer a more fluid lifestyle." Though he might have kept the last female around, had things not turned south with his family. His brothers would certainly have to wait longer because of it. Still, the idea of going after her seemed to have potential.
Vigo visibly relaxed at that declaraion. "Ah, now THAT I can understand!" he exclaimed. "Taking one girl to be my sole mate is not really my style either," he continued with a grin. "There are far too many beauties in the world to restrict myself to just one. Even if they are heavenly," he added dreamily, thinking of that last girl. She had been perfection, right down to not miding his wayward ways. He heaved a sigh with a contented smile. "Friend, I think you just need to set off on your own," he imparted without having been asked for his opinion. "Family is good and all, but the best means to doing things your own way is to go and do them on your own." He nodded sagely, his thick mane swaying with the motion. His eyes drifted closed for a heartbeat. Mmm... a nap would be just the thing right about now.
"You know I've considered that myself lately," he said with a nod, "But I've got no clue where I'd go, these little scouting trips are about the extent of my travels outside the family." He shifted, glancing over his shoulder at the horizon, "I suppose I could just pick a direction, any suggestions?" It was a tempting thought, he felt he was outgrowing his little group.
"I rarely have a particular direction I go," he replied, gazing about them speculatively. "Except when I'm escaping enraged fathers," he amended with a wicked grin. That had been one harrowing escape, but escape he had! "Nah, most of the time I let my paws take me where they will. I'm not sure I've ever crossed the same territory twice, or at least not in the same direction I did the time before." He rather liked this exploratory lifestyle. "It means there is always something new to see, some new person to meet, some new danger to face." He was not the sort to question his own lifestyle much. It worked for him, so why fix what wasn't broken?
He couldn't help but burst out laughing at the thought of a father chasing off his new found friend. He had been fortunate never to be in that situation himself, having kept his dalliances to rogue adults. "It sounds like an interesting like for sure," he agreed, "I've been seeking that sort of thrill myself lately." The last female had changed things, he felt that there was something more out there he was missing by confining himself to the movements of the family.
He clapped a paw on the other's shoulder. "You should become one of the rogue brotherhood, spreading joy and genes across the continent!" It was part jest, part reality. "But as for me, I feel I must get moving, or I shall fall asleep where I sit." He heaved himself up onto his paws with a grunt, shaking off the loose dust. He paused then and gave his new friend a inquisitive look. "You could come with me, right here and now, you know," he invited solemnly. He generally didn't take traveling companions on, but this male seemed a kindred spirit, a rarity in the wide, wild lands. "I wouldn't be adverse to some company, and I could kinda... you know, show you the ropes." He meant about life on one's own in the roguelands, rather than the other, more suggestive connetation. "What do you think?"
As tempting as the offer was, he couldn't simply abandon his family with no goodbyes. "Regretably," he said with a smile, "I'll have to decline for now, but should I find you again in your travels I might have changed my mind. I can't leave them without word, you understand." Even if they'd been difficult to deal with recently they had done a lot for him.
As foreign as the idea was to him, he accepted it as plain truth. "To each their own," he nodded. "I'll look forward to meeting you on the wide plains one day, brother." It was odd to feel such a connection with another male, for Vigo. Life didn't often present him with such a friend, and he almost regretted moving on without him. He hesitated a moment more, then smiled lopsidedly. "Take care of yourself... ah, what is your name, friend?" He chuffed a laugh. "All this talk of families, and we never exchanged names! I am Vigo."
"Rahmara," he responded, his tone as if the name was as good as a farewell. He nodded, getting to his feet as he adjusted himself to the idea of leaving. How he'd tell them would be a problem, but it would be possible. "Good luck then Vigo, until I see you next."
