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Afsar was.... tired? Maybe, but more like wary. She was tip toeing around Elsa, trying to make the Banu as comfortable as possible because she didn't know what else to do. The orangeish lioness yawned as she stretched out in the sun, enjoying her walk through the pride. She was on her way to see her family, not even sure if her mother was there. Of course her father wouldn't be. He did things through out the day for as long as she could remember. Afsar figured she could offer help with the cubs today. It would be a break from her own den and the underlaying tension between her and Elsa. She also wanted her mother's tips on how to work with or get comfortable with other Banu. She knew it was pride policy, but she wanted Ilyas to herself. It wasn't like Ilyas loved Elsa, or the other way around, but he still brought her into her life. So, she had to work to get comfortable.
She had went to her mother's den to find no on there. Not Fila, not any of the cubs. It was unnerving. Things were always busy at this den. Having two litters born around the same time meant that there was always something going on. Walking away from the den, the lioness frowned and sighed. "Now what am I supposed to do today?" She flicked her tail as she wandered and thought, not really paying attention to where she was going now.

Mirsajadi was making plans. He would soon be leaving to go on his coming of age quest, from which he would hopefully return with at least one truly excellent banu. He would like to have more, of course, but he was more interested in quality over quantity, and yet there was also an element of speed. His brother and littermate, Akram'Raja had made it very clear that he considered them in competition, and Mirsajadi didn't mean to lose that competition. He would win by coming back with the bettrer banu and impressing his father. Even as an adolescent, he still wanted nothing more than to please his father. Even with the suspicion that it was from his father tha the had gotten those debilitating seizures he suffered.

Asking for help wasn't something he did, really. Mirsajadi was too proud for that, and too conscious of his position as the son of the sultan's more powerful and effective vizier (in the opinion of his children, anyway) to jeopardize anyone reputation by asking for help or pointers about getting along in the rogue lands. But if anyone happened to mention anything...well, he was getting good at directing conversations where he wanted them to go.

The question on his mind as he wandered was whose brain he ought to pick. He was so intent on that thought that he failed to notice a brightly colored banu wandering, and barely managed not to run into her.

Snapping back to reality, Afsar blinked and looked about. It seemed she'd almost run into .... Crap! "I'm sorry, Pad. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." Well, he probably wasnt a Pad yet, but she would still direct him as such. Tilting her head in a nod, she bit down on her lip and eyed him. He looked familiar. "....I think we played together once... Or your brothers?" Those marks and colors looked so familiar. "I'm Beybanu Afsar of Pad Ilyas." She dipped her head again and looked him over, trying so hard to remember where hi- "Pad Mirsajadi? Was that your name? My mother brought me over to play with you and your brothers once! Ha, I remembered." She puffed up at that and laughed.

Now he probably thought her insane, but at least she remembered who he was. It was a personal triumph for her. "But I am sorry about nearly running you down. My family's den had been empty and I was trying to think of where they could have gone. As it comes down to it, I haven't the faintest idea. I don't know my mother's connections, nor the other Banu's."

Mirsajadi hadn't recognized the banu immediately, being largely too surprised by her sudden presence to notice much else beyond her color and presence. It didn't take him very long to snap into the present and become more observant, however. He watched her study him and decided that she wasn't completely at fault. He also appreciated her use of the title Pad, even though he knew he barely looked the part. Being small for his age was more than a little annoying.

"Most people remember my brothers," Mirsajadi said. They were a good-looking litter, he had to admit, and not easily forgotten. "And I suppose it's possible that you did play with us. When we were younger our mother made every effort to socialize us."

Not that it had been hugely successful. But Mirsajadi did remember the playdate she was talking about. He winced inwardly as he recalled how hard they had all tried to impress her, and how rough and tumble she had been. He wondered if she had grown out of that particular trait. Or maybe Ilyas just liked his banu a bit rambunctious. Mirsajadi wasn't sure he wanted to deal with that particular trait in his own banu.

"But, yes. My name is Mirsajadi. You remember correctly. Was it urgent, what you needed to say to your mother?"

Oh, no, she was still rough and tumble. Afsar liked playing. It was a trait her mother didn't have, and no one was really sure where it came from. Father was a warrior, mother was the picture-perfect Banu. And they had two of the most interesting Banu the pride had ever seen. On more than one ocassion, Aali had told them to calm down and watch their mother for what to do. Being a Banu meant being domestic and listen to what their Pads told them. Well, that was fine, but where was the fun? It was good to play every now and then, good to surprise attack your Pad to keep him on his toes and in good practice. A grin came to her face as Mirsajadi seemed to wince. Seemed he remembered, too.

"No... I just needed some.. pointers on getting along with high strung Banu. ...See, Pad Ilyas brought back Banu Elsa, and everything is OK. But there's.... tension. She's not comfortable and I don't know how to talk to her or make her comfortable. I mean... we don't fight, but we don't do anything together. We don't really talk, and it's like... I mean, I know he rescued her out there, but I just....." She sighed, taking a breath and hanging her head. "You wouldn't happen to know anything.. ...about this would you? Of course not." She looked othe side, looking utterly defeated. What the hell was she supposed to do about Elsa?

"...I want to be her friend. So we can get along better. ....I can't play with her, I know that much. She'd be..." She waved her paw as an example and then shrugged. If Afsar played with Elsa, she'd probably be terrified.

Mirsajadi couldn't really help but stare at Afsar. His acknowledgment of her correct identification of him seemed to have been all that was required for her to assume they were acquaintances of the sort that shared personal information about their lives with each other. He wasn't sure where she had gotten that impression. Certainly, he had asked whether her errand was urgent, but he hadn't asked about the details. He didn't want to know.

At least, that was what he initially thought, but after allowing her to continue to speak uninterrupted he learned that maybe all was not well within the den of Pad Ilyas. He wasn't sure how that information would serve him, but it couldn't hurt to know it. At least, it couldn't hurt him to know it, and he wasn't hugely interested in whether or not something would hurt Ilyas. He was a lion out to please his father and bring honor and glory to himself. If others got in the way, they got what they got.

For a moment he opened his mouth to answer that he knew little about how banu managed affairs amongst themselves, but then Afsar continued, talking over him and blithely assuming what he had been about to say anyway. He sort of resented the implication of his ignorance though, and now felt obliged to come up with some sort of advice.

"Why not find out what she liked to do with herself before Ilyas brought her back? Perhaps she'll surprise you with something interesting." It was the best he could do without thinking too long or hard.

She hadn't thought of that. How dumb did she have to be to not think about asking what the other liked to do. At the same time, she saw him getting impatent and inwardly winced. Well, she fudged this connection for Ilyas, didn't she? Looking to the side and rubbing her nose with her paw, Afsar just stood there for a minute and put her ears back. On top of it all, she realized that she shared very personal information with a fellow Pad who could use it. After all, this was the son of a wicked Pad that her father had warned her about. Would he be the same and use that information to hurt her and her Pad? She'd bloody kill him if he tried. She could do it, too. Her father taught her how to fight somewhat, and she took it on herself to learn more.

Damn! How could she be so stupid. "...I'm sorry for... dumping all this on you. You don't even know me.." At least she could apologize and recognize what she did wrong. That was good for something, wasn't it? "....How is your mother?" Maybe this change of topic would be better suited for him.

Mirsajadi shrugged and looked as small and young as he could. "I'm sure you mean only the best for your pad and his harem. There's no need to apologize for that."

Honestly, Mirsajadi truly didn't care if Ilyas had trouble in his harem. He couldn't see how that would help or hinder him. He'd only met the pad on two occasions, and he only remembered one of them. The other one he had been deliberately stiff and polite because the older lion had managed to come by and spoil one of the few times Mirsajadi had felt playful.

"As far as I know she's fine. She's fretting a bit because my litter's getting ready to leave, but banu do that so it's nothing exciting. I'd ask how yours is, but you could probably have told me better if she'd been where you expected her to be." He considered that for a moment. "Actually, if she'd been where you expected her to be, we wouldn't be having this conversation. Hm."

"Ahah.." It wasn't really funny, but she felt as if he had been joking or something, so he got a chuckle. Whatever. She rolled her shoulders a little bit and bit down on her li before nodding. "My mother fretted when my brother left. ......He never came back, though...." He didn't need to know that either, but it kind of just slipped out there. She sighed again and shook her head. Afsar really had to learn how to talk to other Pads. Ilyas didn't mind her rambling, or her need to play, but all the others did. It was so weird. Even her father minded it. She supposed that was because he wanted to be on good terms with the pride. And she didn't care if she was.

Argh, being a Beybanu was confusing sometimes.

"Im glad she's doing well, though. Mother misses her company."

One thing Mirsajadi did not worry about was the possibility of not returning. He would either return in triumph or not at all. It was better to leave the pride forever than to return shamefully. True, there would be some shame for his father if he never returned, and he would miss his friend Zoey, but his father's shame would no longer be his problem, now would it? And Zoey, well, he could find other friends to amuse him and make him want to laugh and smile.

"I will suggest to my mother that she pay her a visit then. Perhaps it will take her mind off of her concerns to have someone to talk to who has gone through this before." As long as Afsar's mother remembered not to mention that one of the pesar didn't return.

"I won't keep you any longer, Banu Afsar," Mirsajadi said, sensing that there was little more to say if they were to the point where they were talking about getting their mothers together. "Good afternoon."