Jugnu moved quietly through the pride’s lands. She had long ago gotten use to the snowy weather she now lived in. It was actually hard to imagine how the pride had looked when she was just a cub. It use to be a green lush forest but now it was a frozen forest. Jugnu wasn’t sure which she prefered both had had its pluses. Jugnu smiled, she had always loved her home and she had an endless amount of pride for it. When the pride had first been re-established there had been a baby boom, since then though things had quieted down some. The thought of it made Jugnu frown a little, her and Joto weren’t getting any younger and if she was honest about it they may even be beyond their childbearing years, though that didn’t mean she didn’t want to possibly try have more. But today her mission was to see were one of her own children were in terms of having cubs of their own. The pride was open to cubs in any which way they arrived and it was important for cubs to come into the pride if they were ever going to keep it going. So she was on the hunt for one of her daughters, Lahi.

Lahi was just coming back into the pride after a hunting trip. It wasn’t her job in the pride to hunt by any stretch of the imagination, after all she was one of the strongest seers the pride had. But the purple female loved to be out there stalking and hunting her prey. She dropped off her catch at the pride’s stores before heading deeper into the pride lands. As she moved Lahi had flickers of visions, she had long since gotten use to the visions that gave her the rank she held in the pride. She reported them to the scribes and did her best to be a good pride member. When she was younger she hadn’t been so interested in being so helpful, after all she was seen as less than because of her purple coat, but she had proven that to be all kinds of wrong. It didn’t take long for the avid hunter to spot her mother walking towards her. She smiled, although she had initially felt less important to her mother than her paler siblings Lahi knew now that her mother loved her just as much as her white sister.


Jugnu smiled when she saw her daughter. She was embarrassed to admit that when Lahi had first been born she had been ashamed of her. She had thought for sure that the gods were punishing her by giving her such a vibrantly coloured offspring, but she was pleasantly surprised by the female. Not only was she genuinely a good lioness but one of the strongest seers the pride had seen in ages. Which meant in Jugnu’s opinion it was coming time for her daughter to do her duty for the pride. That being said, if there wasn’t someone Lahi wished for as a mate then she could do what Jugnu’s sister Nurrin had done and find a rogue male to sire cubs for her. Of course Nurrin hadn’t actually brought the cubs back to the pride with her but at the time Nurrin also hadn’t known where the pride was back then so it wasn’t a decision Jugnu could fault her in.

“My girl how are you.” Jugnu greeted her daughter giving her a quick nuzzle. She sat back on her haunches looking her daughter over, “Out hunting again I see.” she said with a chuckle her eyes drifting over the muddy paws her daughter was sporting.

“You know me well.” Lahi said with a laugh, it wasn’t a secret that she enjoyed hunting and her family supported her in it, it helped the pride and helping the pride was good. “Were you looking for me? Do you need something? Is dad okay?” The questions tumbled out of her lips as quickly as visions still continued to dance over eyes.

“I was looking for you, and your father is fine. I wanted to talk to you about cubs.” Jugnu told Lahi. She knew that her mate was old but she never understood her children’s constant worry about their father. “You know you have been an adult for a while now dear.” she began cautiously. It was a conversation they had had a few times before and one that Lahi had never been all that receptive to.

“Oh no mom not again.” Lahi groaned. This conversation was growing old and fast. “I told you I am not ready to be a mom yet.” Lahi told her a smile plastered on her lips. She didn’t want to start a fight with her mom but at the same time she wasn’t really into having this conversation for what felt like the millionth time.

“Well darling you know you don’t have to have a mate, and you won’t be doing it on your own. I will help, and your sister I am sure she would help too.” Jugnu responded earnestly, she was trying so hard she clearly really wanted this.

“Ah my sister now there is something we can agree on why don’t you bug her about having cubs instead of me?” Lahi asked mostly as a joke, they both knew that her mom wanted her to have cubs because of her powerful abilities. Immediately she felt bad for suggesting it though because there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that the next up on her mother’s hit list was likely her sister. Letting out a great sigh Lahi switched up tactics and went for one she actually hadn’t tried thus far.

“Do you know what mom, I will think about it. As long as you promise to help me if and when I find someone suitable to have cubs with. I don’t promise a mate, or any other sort of thing like that.” she told her mother quickly. She envied her parents relationship but as of right now didn’t desire the same sort of thing for herself. Nope Lahi was independent and liked it that way.

Jugnu smiled, she knew the conversation wasn’t over but for now it would have to do. “Thank you.” she said simply before she rose and walked away.