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Rain was scarce in the dry season, and it was both a relief and a surprise that a few massive thunderheads had rolled their way across the savanna. Baridi had taken refuge under a wide tree, but when the wind picked up and the leaves began to pour more water on her than the sky would, she knew she had to find a better place to stay.

Running around in the rain wasn't on her list of favorite things to do, but she was very thankful she did as a huge bolt of lightning struck the tree she had been under moments before. With a startled yelp and a new drive to run, she sprinted across the muddy plains towards what looked like a pile of rocks. She hoped there would be a cave or an outcropping to hide under there. She also hoped that no unfriendly animals had also decided to take refuge there.

Soaking wet and scared, she came to a halt just beside the huge rocks. After walking around them she found a cave that led into the ground a bit. It looked dry and warm, but there were quite a few trails leading in and out. Some were prey animals, but the freshest set looked to be that of a leopard.

"Hello?" she called out over the din of the storm. "Hello? Is anyone down there?" She hoped that if there was, they would be friendly and wouldn't mind sharing the space until the storm blew over.

There came a quiet noise from the cave and Baridi tensed a bit. There was someone in there. Whoever it was they weren't moving terribly quickly, so she doubted they would attack her. A bolt of lightning lit up the sky behind her and shone into the cave just enough to let her see the outline of an approaching leopard. He continued moving closer so she could see him through the dim lightning and, once he made a motion for her to come in, she did just that.

She shook herself by the entrance so as not to soak her temporary companion. Once she had most of the excess water off her, she padded a bit closer to the dark male.

"Thank you very much," she said in earnest as she sat down. "Once this storm blows over I'll be out of your fur." Hopefully that would be fairly quickly. With the way the winds were blowing it seemed like the storm would be gone in just a bit. The rain was most welcome despite it drenching her and the dark male, though. Perhaps some of the streams would swell up a bit for a few days. That would be nice.

Baridi smoothed her fur down with a paw after shaking off again, not wanting to look silly in front of the rather reserved male. His silence didn't bother her, as it wasn't an uncomfortable silence. He simply seemed to be a quiet fellow and there was nothing wrong with that in her book.

"Thank you," she said again with a little bob of her head as she joined him on the ground. Oh, it felt good to get off her paws. "The storm just...came up out of nowhere!" she added as she glanced over her shoulder. A bolt of lightning followed by a loud clap of thunder made her jump, and she found herself settling down a bit closer to the dark male.

"Sorry," she said a bit sheepishly as she looked up at her temporary cave mate. "Loud noises startle me. Well, I'm sure they startle everyone but...they've always seemed to bother me more than most." Maybe she had sensitive ears...who knew? She just had horrible memories of hiding under her mother during thunderstorms. Obviously she couldn't do that now, but being closer to another warm body usually helped.

Baridi remained frozen for a while before calming down. Her heart was pounding heavily still, but the calm, cool, and collected male made her feel better. Usually a calm presence - like that of her mother or father - would sooth her worries as a cub, and now seemed to be no different. Great! All she had to do during thunderstorms was find someone as collected as this male.

It took her a moment to realize the other leopard was speaking about himself, and she gave a soft 'oh!' when she did. She bobbed her head in greeting as well, a tiny smile on her face. "Nice to meet you, Nishant. I'm Baridi." She was glad Nishant was the one she was sharing this cave with. She had come across some...interesting characters in the recent past that she wouldn't be so thrilled to spend more time with.

"So, Nishant...what brings you out here?" There weren't any prides as far as she could tell. "Just roaming and happened to be caught in the storm? Or do you call it home in this area?" Or perhaps he was on some sort of mission for his pride! That could be exciting, right? Or maybe he was just a roaming nomad like herself. There seemed to be quite a few of her type around as of late.

Baridi nodded a bit as Nishant spoke again. He was so quiet that she could barely hear him over the loud rain and occasional thunder. She kept her ears towards him, and it helped her ignore the storm outside. It was always polite to give someone your full attention during a conversation, after all. She was glad she found herself sharing a cave with someone not adverse to talking with her.

"I as well," she agreed. "I don't think I'd do very well in a pride. I enjoy moving around, seeing new things, meeting new people...I'm afraid I'd get rather bored with the same thing over and over," she added with a light laugh. "Not what you'd call a creature of habit."

She crossed her paws over one another, warming up a bit as her fur dried. "Forgive me if this is out of place, but your eyes are very pretty. They remind me of a sunrise I saw a few days ago. The sky turned so pink just before the sun broke the horizon." True to her sweet disposition, Baridi always found room to compliment those she liked for one reason or another. Strengths and accomplishments were so under appreciated in her book, and she knew that most people liked hearing random praise from time to time, even if it was over something they couldn't control.