Ankou was in the rogue lands for the first time ever. She was searching for a male or some females to join her. The rogue land seemed so open and a bit dull. It was nothing like her jungle. She couldn't understand how anyone could stand living out there. Leenah had fallen in love with her jungle, something which made Ankou pleased. She didn't want her mate to hate where they lived. It pained her to leave Leenah so early in their relationship though. She wished she could have brought her with her, it would be good to have company, but she was afraid that Leenah may fall back in love with the land. That could not happen.

Instead she would do this adventure by herself. It was her duty as head of the family to bring back new members for their family. She would have preferred to wait in her jungle for someone to come around and get them to join their family. However she knew it could be months till someone would wander into her jungle. Plus she would have more variety in the rogue lands. So many different characters. If she wanted a gentle giant, she could find one. However if she was more in the mood for a masculine male she would find one just as easily.

She had a hard time deciding what type of male she wanted as her and Leenah's mate. Her usual type of male she liked was ones who were obedient. She hated those who thought they were better then females. However she thought that maybe she would enjoy a more masculine male, one who knew what he wanted and would do what he needed to get it. She did not want a violent lion, that just would not do. She could handle a dominate male, but a violent one? Her thoughts were on Leenah and how she was so fragile. A brutal male just would not work for the.

A sweet male though, she wondered how she would fair with that. There had been many times when she would hook up with a kind male, only to break his heart when she left him. That was when she was younger though, when she had taken to breaking hearts. It was when her own heart broke that she realized what she had done. Kinder males were harder for her to be around, despite how comfortable she felt around them. When she was with one, she could only think of the males she had hurt.

This made her hope that she would find a more dominate male as a mate for her and Leenah. Maybe a male who would stand beside her, unlike the rest of her mates. She had never really thought about having a mate equal to her. It would be an interesting idea, she thought with a smile. Though she would have to find the right male, which would be difficult. Even if she didn't find him right away, she could still bring a male back to be her temporary mate.

Jolanka had been traveling, almost aimlessly in the rogue lands. She hadn't really thought of a destination, but instead decided to see what she could run into. Her goal was to find a pride, a pride that she could fit into. However she was a bit picky. It needed to be her dream pride, an almost fairy tail like pride.

She smiled. Her father had told her when she was young about princes and princess, fighting evil in what ever shape it came in. She would never tell her family, but the real reason she left her home was to gather her own sort of stories like her father's that she could tell to her cubs. As nice as the dessert was, it really didn't have much in the way of excitement. She could never figure out why her father, a great adventure, would ever settle down in such a dull place! As an adventurer herself she decided she did not want to stay somewhere boring.

She wanted adventure around ever turn, some place her cubs could be, well cubs! In the dessert she felt so limited. Where ever she ended up she wanted her cubs to have plenty of opportunity to play around. As she wandered the savannah she noticed a green lioness, who stuck out like a cactus. The lioness reminded her of a story her father told her about a prince who got turned into a frog. She couldn't help but wonder if this lioness might have been a frog once. Quietly she watched the lioness to see if she portrayed any frog like behavior. To her disappoint the lioness just seemed lost in thought. She had hoped that the lioness might have done some weird jumping like frogs do. That would have been interesting.

She decided that her curiosity could wait no further. Slowly she approached the lioness.

Ankou hadn't realized someone was watching her. Instead she had been focused on her travels. She watched in front of her, debating what path to take. She saw two main paths she could take. A rough, rocky path that lead up toward a mountainous area. The other seemed much smoother. She was sure each path would lead the same way, but she wasn't sure which one she wanted to take. The mountain one would be more exciting, she thought. However the other one would be easier.

It was, as she was sitting she heard someone approach her. She quickly turned around, her claws bared. What she saw took her by surprise. This whole time while in the rogue land, she thought that any moment she would be attacked by someone and taken back to her pride. That was basically what she was doing, except without the attacking part. She thought that's why others would venture into the rogue lands, to take weaker creatures back with them.

However looking at her were the gentle violet eyes of a lioness. The lioness didn't looking threatening at all. In fact, in a way, she reminded Ankou of Leenah. Ankou lowered her paw. “Sorry about that. I thought you were about to attack me.” Ankou said with a bow of her head. “Out here in the rogue land it is hard to tell who is your enemy. I believe though that you are not my enemy.”

She was pretty, Ankou had to give her that. Her eyes lite up and her colors were lovely. She could imagine this lioness curling up with her and Leenah. The three of them would make such a lovely small family. And when she finally found her male there would be even more cubs to add to her family. A small smile spread on her maw. She glanced back at her choice of paths. “Which road would you suggest? I have been debating about it and I think I would like some help.”

Jolanka had only good intentions, but when the lioness brought her claws out, she had to back away. She didn't want to get into a fight, she was a peaceful lioness. “I am sorry to have angered you! I meant nothing of it.” She was almost on the verge of crying, though was able to stop herself when the lioness apologized. “I-I shouldn't have snuck up on you like that. So I am sorry as well.”

When the lioness mentioned it was hard to tell who your enemy was in the rogue lands, she thought back trying to think of anyone who was terribly mean to her. So far everyone she met was kind to her. She wondered what kind of experience the lioness had to make her think that she had enemies in the rogue lands.

When the lioness asked her which direction she would take, Jolanka examined the two paths. One would be easy traveling with no struggles. She noticed a creek not too far up the path. It led into a forest that would be great for shade. The other path however looked rugged, dangerous and probably would take twice as long to travel. She didn't know this lioness, so she didn't know if climbing was her thing.

However she knew which road she would want to go on. “Well, I would like to go up the mountain. It looks like it would be full of adventures and fun.” Jolanka explained. “After traveling on that mountain you would be able to tell all sorts of stories to your family. I mean, that's why I travel. I want to tell my cubs story after story of all my adventures. I don't want to tell them any dull ones either. A story about traveling in the forest would be no fun, except maybe if there were monsters in it.” She mostly said the last part to herself.

Ankou smiled. “So the mountain path, because there lies more adventures. Well than come along. If I am expected to go out on an adventure I will need a companion for a little while. You seem to be traveling alone so you might as well stick with me. We can protect each other.” She explained to the lioness.

She hoped the lioness would say yes, since that was the real reason she asked her which direction to take. Personally she was sure she would have picked the other route, but if going up the mountain meant she would have a companion than she would go that way. So far the other lioness was a bit different, she thought. She seemed to be focused on adventures and such. Very youthful, Ankou thought. She couldn't help but be reminded of Leenah which made her happy. Anyone with the sweetness of Leenah was good in her books.

This was most certainty her best day ever, she thought. She had never had a traveling partner before. Normally she would spend sometime with someone, than they would part ways. They never traveled anywhere. Just had a quick meal. She thanked the gods before nodding her head. “I would like to travel with you! It is better to share adventures then travel alone. That is what my father always told me.” She said, excitedly.

“My name is Jolanka by the way. It is great that I am finally getting a partner after all my travels! We are going to see so much and go on so many adventures.” She couldn't wait to get this adventure going. She felt that this was the start of a great story. In her head, she imagined her cubs sitting around the den as she narrated the story to them. Their eyes staring at her, waiting for the next word. They gasped and laughed at all the right moments. Before she could get sucked too far into her fantasy she snapped out of it.

Ankou smile widened. She thought they would make a good team and maybe eventually a good pair? Before she brought the lioness back to Leenah she wanted to make sure that the two of them got along. Leenah had been a perfect click, however not everyone was like that. Ankou would test the lioness first to make sure they could get along. “It is nice to meet you Jolanka. My name is Ankou.” She gave the lioness a smile. “Now we better get started on this mountain if we want to get a ways before nightfall.”

She was sure they could find a place to sleep somewhere in the mountain. There was bound to be a deserted cave somewhere up there. Ankou started walking up the rocky path, careful of her footing. She hoped that Jolanka would be okay traveling up the mountain. “Watch your step when you walk.” She called down.

Surprisingly Jolanka took up climbing like a natural. She found it a bit easy, keeping her eyes peeled for a good place to put her paw as she climbed higher. She decided not to go too fast, because she wanted to make sure that her new companion would make it up alright. It would be interesting to see how their friendship would take shape. She wondered if Ankou had ever traveled with anyone. The way she almost attacked her, she thought that she probably never did.

She wanted to make sure that they would be friends. They started off rocky, but she was sure that having adventures with each other would let them grow closer. This being her first companion, she did not want to screw it up. She also wanted to have good stories to tell her cubs when she had them. No matter what happened this adventure would be one to remember, she was sure of it!

WC: 2,116