Perhaps... it had been a mistake.
She supposed she should clarify what she thought was a mistake. Niyati sighed, and paused underneath the moonlit sky. Glancing upwards, it was easy to pick out every tiny star in the sky. Some claimed they could see the stars forming shapes, and that some had meaning. One lion would claim that one star had a certain meaning, while another animal would say that same star means something else. When she looked up at them, she saw no deep meaning, no special aura to the little lights in the sky. Perhaps she just was not that romantic or dramatic. Surely someone who believed in investing meaning into these stars had to be a little bit of both. Niyati was, to a degree, both romantic and dramatic. She was playful, flirtatious, even easy-going around other lions. When alone, however, those emotions and attributes seemed to be driven away. Niyati would have to admit that she was the type of lioness to get lonely. These long treks alone did take their toll on her. For a while she had remained glued to her family's side, but had once again left with the promise that she'd come back... eventually.
How long ago had that been? Too long, Niyati noted sadly. The joy she felt for this world was beginning to seep out from the bottoms of her feet, sucked back into the earth. Niyati was the type of lioness who needed attention, craved attention... but was also a bit of a free spirit. Otherwise she would have remained with her siblings instead of following a flight of fancy and leaving them again. Maybe she'd be better off traveling in a small group, lions who could fill her need for attention but never drag her down. Niyati refused to be weighted by the feeling of commitment, which may have been the reason she left Do'al and Makri to begin with. She'd have to return, and perhaps she should apologize to them, but knowing her, she probably wouldn't.
She did have to wonder why she was feeling lonely now, and that brought her back to her original thought of a mistake having been made. It had been stupid. Niyati had put a little too much emotional investment in a young adolescent, had gone out of her way to make a union possible, and now that she had ditched him she was feeling like he had abandoned her. There was no obligation for the adolescent to stick by her side, and if he had tried Niyati likely would have grown irritable. The fault lied within herself for putting too much time and energy into their union. She had found him cute, had gone out of her way, and had to admit there was a small emotional attachment to him. She had met Chandran first when he was nothing more than a juvenile, and had toyed with and teased him. Niyati hated cubs, so she couldn't really be blamed for messing with his head.
After a few months away, she had returned to the lands, intending to double back and make her way home when she had run into him again. He was older, and age definitely suited him well. Niyati had given him a full appraisal, and had been immensely pleased with the sight of the adolescent. If she hadn't seen him before, she would have made quick work of him. She would have followed that instinct to spend a little time with him and move on. It wasn't the second meeting that had been a problem. It was the first, all the way back when she had met him as a young juvenile and had indulged him with play. She grew to know him too much, so much so that when it was time to leave she had hesitated.
And that scared her more than anything else. That pushed her into fleeing before he could wake, so she would not be tempted to spend more time with him. The time they did spend together had been awfully fun, but it had gotten her used to the company of another being. It made her feel lonely now, when loneliness was usually something that would have never plagued her. That was her mistake, and realizing it drew a tired groan out of the young pink lioness. It was a mistake that she could not afford to repeat. Perhaps she should make a vow to herself now. If she ever saw the same lion more than once, that was a mistake.
She scoffed and rolled her eyes at the thought. That would mean she couldn't see Do'al again, and he was her favorite out of her siblings. The vow would be changed to something along the lines of 'don't spend too much time with unrelated males, just enough to make yourself happy'. It was vague, but it would do. Those words would serve as a warning to stave off the loneliness she was feeling now. She doubted that she'd be lonely if she had remained with Chandran, but he seemed like the type of young lion to put too much stake into their union. He'd likely follow her around like a lost wild dog pup, hanging on her every word. While it would be cute, the annoying part of it would far outweigh the cute factor. It would have completely spoiled an enjoyable union.
No, Niyati had made the correct decision in leaving before Chandran could stop her. He'd be better off for it too. He'd have a little experience under his belt, so when he did find a young lioness he liked, he could properly seduce her. Niyati had done him a favor, and now he was under no obligation to become attached to her. It wasn't like he could do that anyways, since she'd been gone for two days, and had put a fair bit of distance between herself and his pridelands. She supposed... it was time to go home. Finding Do'al and Makri had never been easy, but at least the journey to them was bound to be interesting.
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