It was another uneventful day for the young lion. Wake up, spend time with his only Banu, eat breakfast, than go out on a patrol hunt. Most of these patrol hunts didn't turn up any bit of gold for Harith, but it was required of Pads and he would do it. Otherwise, he would just get into trouble. And he didn't wish to get in trouble.
Today, however, was a little unlike the rest. While nearing the border, he had spied a strange lion staring at him from behind a bush. Feeling a slight surge of panic, the double toned lion crossed the borderline into the roguelands, chasing down the strange lion, which turned and ran off. If the stranger had meant any good, he would have stood his ground and explained his actions. As it were, his running away obviously meant he had nothing good to bring to the pride and Harith had done good to scare him off. Standing and looking around, he made sure the area was vacant before he let his guard down.
The roguelands stretched around him. Memories flooded back to him as he stood on the virgin earth that probably had never been claimed as pridelands. The day of his coming of age quest flashed through his mind. The nervous and confident faces of his brothers and the other young Pad's before they set off together. The older Pad's bidding them good luck. Harith had been the first one back, a feat he never thought he would accomplish. As it were, he thought he would be out here long into his adult days. But he had come back and with a pretty female in tow he had not forced to join up with him. Ima had come back some time after him with his own Banu. The sight was strange to Harith. The first time he had seen his brother with a female who wasn't their mother or their father's other Banu.
A wave of sadness occupied this thought as he recalled, as he often did silently, that one of his own brothers didn't return. Whether he had come across some trouble or simply found a different life, Harith wasn't sure. Ram was always a pain, but he found the yellow male would be missed.
But that was life. Maybe one day he'd find his brother on a patrol or someone would come by who had seen him.
