After dropping off Bukaera and his son off at Mazunguko Bedeinka decided to go back to the rogue lands to see if she could find another male to help her have cubs. The task seemed to be harder than it should have been. If only Bukaera was a lion. He seemed to understand her better than anyone else. He was even willing to help her destroy the current relationship between the king and his soon to be consort. Bedeinka shook her head with disgust. Her king would marry a proper lion. Not some leopard.

She walked to a near by lake and laid down. This time she would find the right male though. She wasn’t going to settle for just any male that came around. She wanted one with royalty in their blood. That would make proper noble blood for the pride. She grinned at the thought. Her cubs would be the envy of all the other brotherhood mothers. Of course her cubs would follow the proper way to behave. They would marry proper lions, those of noble birth preferably, though it would be tough getting away from anyone related to them.

She would be a proud mother the day they found their mate. They will be the best cubs in the pride, she told herself proudly. Than she sighed. She remembered that first she must find a male to be the father. As she looked around she noticed a lion with a bright green mane. She grinned. Perhaps she was in luck. Quietly she made her way over to him. She would have to interrogate him first to make sure he was worthy of her.

“Hello there.” She introduced. The lion turned around and smiled. She noticed he was wearing gold trinkets. “My name is Bedeinka. I was wondering if you would help this old lioness out and perhaps hunt for her.” She smiled as gently as she could. “I would be most grateful to you.”

Warray stared at the lioness who approached him. She was older, but very lovely. He wondered what she wanted with him? He was practically worthless to others. Was this the gods telling him that perhaps he had some worth after all? Maybe this was his turning point. “It is very nice to meet you Bedeinka. My name is Warray.” He said proudly. This time he would empress the girl. Preferable before she left. “I would be honored to hunt for you milady. It is a kings duty to help those in need, even if his pride is destroyed.”

A little lie wouldn’t hurt, Warray told himself. She wouldn’t leave the side of an ex king right? Females always flocked to kings and other nobility. It wouldn’t hurt anyone if he told her that he was of royal blood. In fact it might help his chances with her. He saw her grin at him. That was a good sign. She believed him and maybe she was falling for him. Today was his lucky day it would seem. “Stay here and I will catch you an excellent feast.”

Bedeinka watched her ‘king’ run off. She laughed to herself. How easy it was to be her, she thought. A king just walks up to her and practically lays himself in her paws. Her cubs would be princes. Princes of a dead pride, but that didn’t matter. They would be just as noble as Nahasi’s cubs, if not more. Perhaps they would be better fit to rule, she thought. Though that could only happen if Nahasi doesn’t have a male heir. Her offspring would be the first to be able to claim the thrown. How wonderful, she thought. She would practically be ruling.

She watched as the lion Warray hunted. He was majestic, she decided. He would make an excellent father. She wondered if she could convince him to come back with her to Mazu. He would make an wonderful addition to the brotherhood.

This was it, Warray told himself, this was the female he would mate. They would be together forever. He wasn’t the romantic type, but he had been alone for almost all his adult life and he was tired of it. He wanted something different. He wanted a real relationship where the girl wouldn’t leave him. That would be nice. He would have a chance to have a real family. Son’s to look up to him and daughters to protect.

He saw a gazelle that was perfect for the hunting. Silently he stalked his prey, thoughts of family behind him. He was in the moment now. He would catch this gazelle for Bedeinka and she would see him as a great hunter and perhaps a great mate? He grinned at the thought. Than he pounced, striking the beast down. He killed it quickly with one swift movement of his paw. Than he brought the meat back to her.

“Here you go Milady.” He said once he dropped the meat in front of her. “Help yourself. Eat as much as you can. I don’t want any of this to go to waste.”

Bedeinka smiled at him and took a bite. It was nice having food. She would have probably traveled for days without eating. She hated hunting, mostly because she hardly ever had to while she was in Mazu. In the rogue lands she found it hard to fend for herself. “Warray could you tell me more about your old pride. The one you were king of?” She asked curiously. She wanted to know as much as she could about him. When her cubs were born she wanted to tell them stories about how wonderful their father was. She could imagine them awing over their father and how amazing he truly was.

“Well, it died out a few years ago. The pride was filled with lions of all sorts of nobility and I was the king of all of them. We had festivals to celebrating everything. It was amazing.” He lied, thinking up a story. “But my brother, who was jealous that I got the thrown. He and a gang of others who hated the pride attacked it. After killing my own brother I made it out of the pride. It was the most terrifying thing I have ever witness.”

“That sounds horrifying.” She said, putting her paw on his. He was just what she was looking for. “Why don’t we spend some more time together. You can tell me more about your pride. Perhaps we should look for a den before it gets too late.”

“I would like that very much.”

WC: 1,109