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It was a beautiful day out in the roguelands and, to pass the time, Thaddaeus and Asante had decided to play a game. They led a fairly carefree life together and Thaddaeus put the great majority of the blame on his lovely mate. She was the reason he was so happy here in the roguelands, why he could be so confident outside of a pride after being raised in a pride that was mostly wary of outsiders.

Though Asante liked to joke that it wasn't fair for him to be the seeker because he was a seer, that's what he was doing. The more seriously you treated the game, of course, the more fun it could be. So he was sneaking through the grass, looking for signs of hiding lions and hoping he was headed in the right direction.

Asante was stuck within a specific distance from their starting point but she was always fond of pushing the limits. While she wouldn't make it impossible for Thaddaeus to find her, she would go as far as she could if that was where the best hiding spot was. And he knew that.

She had settled into a comfortable grassy spot near some rocks that weren't too noticeable and still offered some added camouflage. She was waiting for Thaddaeus to find her, occasionally checking for signs of him and planning ahead for another hiding spot to sneak away to.. when she heard some unfamiliar pawsteps nearby. She quietly got up to her feet and peeked out curiously.

There was a young lady wandering by looking rather serious and .. uncomfortable? Odd.

Asante smiled as she kept on watching the young lioness walk. It seemed she had a sense of something going on around her, her steps became unmistakeably nervous. Normally, Asante would have jumped out to scare her but there was something that told her maybe it wouldn't be the best way to introduce herself to this stranger. And she ought to before she stumbled into Thaddaeus, though he was probably an easier introduction.

Another few seconds and she seemed certain as long as she wasn't trying to startle the dark stranger, it would be fine. The grass around her rustled as she shifted her weight back and she jumped up onto the rocks that had been hiding her. There was a smile on her face when she looked down at S'chor, who was even closer than the slightly older lioness had thought.

"Good day!"

He wasn't anywhere near where Asante had gone to hide but it would have been hard to miss the sudden motion of his mate's dark mane and legs coming up out of the grass and.. somehow standing above it. He came to a stop and squinted out in the distance, trying to make sense of what was happening. There was another dark shape there, he realized.

"Hmm."

Well, that was obviously the way to go.. so he started off towards the girls, slowly at first but soon jogging along.

Hmmm. Seemed she was startled but she was pretty good at keeping it together despite that. It was interesting! Asante seemed oblivious to how her place high above the other lioness might make her seem more intimidating. She smiled despite S'chor's apparent anxiety.

"I do," she said brightly, "Well- not here exactly. I live everywhere."

She tilted her head.

"You're not from around here, are you?"

As Thaddaeus got closer it became apparent a conversation was happening here. He made no effort to conceal himself, they weren't playing a game anymore so there was no point. Besides, who knew what might set off a lone rogue.

"That's not much of a hiding place, Asante," he called out when he was close enough to be heard, interrupting their conversation to announce his presence so there were no unnecessary surprises.

"Still took you all afternoon to find me, Thaddaeus!" she shot back, sticking her tongue out at her mate, "Now stop scaring my new friend, here." She looked back to S'chor with a smile.

"I'm sorry, what was your name?"

When he saw the look S'chor gave him, he made sure to keep some distance between him and the ladies- even though it meant he would have to talk louder. He stuck his tongue out back at Asante when she scolded him for being scary.

Some friend, didn't even know her name.

He looked over at S'chor, also wearing a smile and waiting for her name.

"S'chor," she repeated, looking back at Thaddaeus triumphantly, "My new friend, S'chor."

Thaddaeus glanced back at Asante, shaking his head at her and focusing on what else S'chor had to say. He had to assume that caught him up to where they were in the conversation now.

"Where are you from?" he asked curiously.

And where did Asante say they were from, he wondered.

Decidedly ignoring the look Thaddaeus gave her, Asante jumped down from her perch to stand in a more comfortable spot. She positioned herself between the two other lions since her mate seemed ready to keep some distance between them. Probably a smart move.

Then she looked at S'chor.

Jini-mesmi. It certainly sounded familiar but he couldn't quite place where he'd heard it. He glanced to Asante, wondering if she recognized it at all but she wasn't looking at him, she was looking at S'chor with increasing curiosity.

"What kind of pilgrimage?" she asked, looking very interested in what the smaller lioness had to say. She had never heard of this pride- she hadn't really heard of many of them- but she liked to learn about them. So far, a pride that had any kind of pilgrimage had potential to be worthwhile to hear about.

Asante made no effort to hide her confusion at S'chor's answer to her question. She had a name, she had just introduced herself. Even the explanation she gave didn't seem to say very much. Was she trying to find her name or who she really was?

"Oh."

His eyes went back to S'chor with the same curiosity Asante showed when she explained- but he looked back to his mate when all she had to say about it was 'oh'. He chuckled and looked back at the swampie.

"I suppose your mother wouldn't know how you turn out when she gives you a name," he said, voicing some kind of logic he imagined applied in this situation.

"How does coming here help?" she asked suddenly, accepting what Thaddaeus offered but still uncertain why who you were would be so far from home. If she had never heard of the pride, it couldn't be very close by.