Quinlan had met with one of the other members of the pride, but she didn’t seem nearly as happy as Borachio- in fact, she looked the exact opposite of happy. She was clearly very upset, pacing her cave and leaving a bit of a carved-in path from all the walking back and forth. When he had first spotted her, he felt he needed to try and find out what was going on, but with the unhappy look on the pink lioness’s face, he didn’t know how to approach her. Eventually, he just settled on the direct route, slowly moving towards her with a cautious, slow walk.

“Miss?” he asked softly, “are you alright?” He tilted his head to the side, sitting himself down not too far from her. The pink, spotted female looked up in surprise, her pacing finally coming to a stop as she looked at Quinlan. She blinked a few times, having never seen the lion before in her life.

“I… I’m okay… I’m sorry… are you knew?” She asked faintly, though it was clear it was more because she felt she had to ask than because she wanted to know. Her thoughts were somewhere else.

“Just a visitor,” Quinlan replied, “I’m Quinlan… you know, you really don’t look alright. Is there something I can do to help? I know you don’t really know me, but… I don’t like seeing a pretty lady upset.” The female shook her head, though she couldn’t stop herself from smiling at the compliment. The best way to get her to brighten up was to be charming- her mate was already well aware of that. It really applied to anyone who met with her. A compliment could go a long way.

“Thank you… I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be rude, it’s just… my son has been gone for a while and I’m worried he might have been injured. He’s fully grown and he doesn’t live with me anymore, but I haven’t seen him in the pride in days and I’m really starting to get worried… I’ve tried looking for him, but… I don’t really feel safe outside of the pride lands anymore… I feel like such a failure!” She sighed and plonked herself down, sitting with such a dismayed look that Quinlan knew he wasn’t going anywhere- not without offering to help her in any way that he could. He couldn’t imagine what it felt like to have a son, grown or not, go missing. He wouldn’t wish that kind of feeling on anyone.

“Well, I’m from the rogue lands, so maybe I could look for him for you? It’s not scary for me, and maybe I can cover more ground a bit quicker, since I won’t be looking over my shoulder all the time.”

“You would… go looking for him for me? Even though you don’t know me, or have any obligation to this pride?”

“There’s a certain magic in helping others,” Quinlan told her brightly, “and I’m a sucker for magic. So leave looking for your son to me, alright? I’ll do my best to find him, and I’ll be back to let you know how it goes one way or another!” He grinned, trying to get her to smile at him as well. It seemed to work, the pink lioness offering him the faintest of smiles in return to his goofy grin.

“His name is Lalaith,” she said softly, “he went out to gather some stories and knowledge the other day, but he never came back even though it shouldn’t have taken so long… he promised he would return that night, and now I’m worried something may have happened to him. He’s not the type to lie or spend too much time from home.” She was eyeing the ground, the idea of her son being hurt clearly a difficult one for her to deal with. Quinlan knew he would have to do everything in his power to find her son, even if it meant looking all night long.

“What does he look like?” Quinlan asked gently. He knew she would be ready to describe him, but he didn’t want to push her if she was still too caught up in her emotions about the matter. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like that was going to be the case. She looked at him, a heart broken smile on her face.

“He’s green,” she said softly, “green with darker green spots and a pink mane… his eyes are blue.” She frowned again, tilting her head slightly to one side. “Are you sure you want to help me? I have nothing to repay you with… I just have my thanks.”

“And that’s all I need!” Quinlan hummed, “you just sit here and stay rested, okay? Try not to worry too much- I promise to you that I’m going to make sure I bring your son back here safe and sound. It’ll be my greatest feat yet!” Magic would certainly play a part in things, he knew it. To find one lion in the whole of the rogue lands? He was going to need something extra on his side. Still, none of his concerned leaked into his comforting expression, the male leaving Melda with a sense of calm.

“Thank you,” she said again, “you are the nicest lion I have ever met.” Well, second nicest, perhaps.

“Thanks! You’re not so bad yourself. Alright! I’ll be back soon. You won’t even have time to wonder what I’m up to, promise.” With a nod of his head, he turned to leave, fairly certain that he was biting off more than he could chew. But Melda had pointed him in the right direction, giving him about as much information as to where the other lion may have gone as possible. It wouldn’t be SO bad, right? Of course not. He was Quinlan.

The male moved to leave the pride lands again, though he knew it wasn’t going to be the last time he saw the place. Not if he had anything to say about it, anyway. Hopefully he would have a green companion on his return trip.