Melda sighed to herself. She wanted to keep calm as much as possible, but how could she? Somewhere out there, her son was possibly in trouble. Or not, and he was going to be in a world of s**t when he returned. Either way, she didn’t have it in her to remain calm. Quinlan wasn’t even someone from the pride. Why would she believe that he could do something for her? Maybe he just took off after playing such a really mean joke, making her think he was going to help. Then again… she didn’t like thinking ill of people. He seemed like a good guy, and she was willing to keep on believing that he had meant what he said. She wasn’t going to give up hope. She couldn’t.

She could, however, pace around the entrance of her cave for hours on end, until she spotted a familiar green limping her way in the distance. Instantly, he sprang forward, rushing to meet the male who was making his way towards her.

“Lalaith!” She wailed, butting head with him the moment she got close, “I was so worried about you! What happened?! Are you alright?! Did you get lost!? What happened to your paw?!”

“I’m fine, mom, I promise,” Lalaith assured her in a soothing tone, “I got my foot trapped in some roots and I couldn’t get it free. I had to kind of wait around for someone to come and rescue me. Thankfully, that lion you met came to help me out. Quinlan, I believe his name was? I think I have you to thank for him saving me.”

“I would do anything to make sure you’re alright, I’m just glad that he found you! But what about your paw, is it okay?” She sniffed at his back foot, checking the injury out. Though she could see some skin discoloring under his rich green fur, she couldn’t see a lot of blood, or anything that suggested a much more serious sort of injury. It was nothing more than a boo boo that needed to be kept off of for the night, or something. She sighed, happy to see that her son had not been harmed. She would have been really upset if anything had happened to her children. Anything.

Lalaith was a bit of a worrisome sort, not quite as out going or collected as some of her other children. Maybe that was why she was always fussing over him, even with him living in a cave of his own.

“My paw is fine, mom,” Lalaith replied lightly, though he knew she could already see that he wasn’t going to have to suffer through anything horrible, “I think it just got a little bruised from being stuck in place for so long with things against it.”

“I’m glad. I don’t know what I would have done if something would have happened to you…”

“Don’t cry! I’m fine, I swear. I didn’t mean to worry you, honest. I just went out to look around the boarders of the pride. I wasn’t even stuck that far from home! But it was a dense area, and difficult to get to. I don’t know how your friend managed to find me, but somehow he pulled it off…” He smiled lightly, moving to comfort his mother. She was over come with emotion, sobbing into his fur as they nuzzled one another. It had been a long time since she had felt something really bad had happened. Being in the rogue lands had been the last time something horrible had occurred. Once she was in her pride, her home, everything had changed. For trouble to find her again… it was a little jarring, even now that the fears were passing. She sniffled lightly, trying to regain some composure.

“I’m sorry. Your mother is such a big baby… I just didn’t know what to think when you didn’t come home. I’m glad Quinlan found you. He was so kind to me, offering to help without even knowing me that well! I’m so glad he found you… but where is he?” She asked, suddenly realizing that he wasn’t there with them.

“He said he didn’t want to get in the way of our reunion. Considering you’re only just noticing that he isn’t here, I guess he had the right idea. It would have been kind of awkward for him,” laughed the green lion, bringing a smile to his sad mother’s face, “he’s still around him somewhere, exploring the pride a bit. I think he’ll probably come and say goodbye before he leaves for good.” He nodded, confirming his own thoughts in his mind. Melda nodded along with him, though she was simple understanding what he was saying.

“I see… he is a very kind lion,” she said softly, happy to have met someone who had been so willing to help a stranger. Without him…

She didn’t want to think about it.

“Yeah, I like him! Too bad he’s only passing through. It might have been fun to see him around the pride more often. But maybe he’ll stop in again some time, you know? I think he’s better suited to travel around than he is to settle in one place.”

“You’re probably right,” Melda replied, smiling softly, “I’m just happy everything turned out okay. But you really need to be more careful! What if he hadn’t come around? What if I hadn’t been able to find you with my searching? I did look you know, but the rogue lands…”

“I know. They scare you. They’re scary for me, too. I’m glad things worked out as well! I didn’t really like being trapped in place for so long!”

“Come into the den, honey,” Melda offered, “there’s some food left and you can rest your paw before going home. I’m sure you could use some water, too, if you were there without anything to eat or drink!”

“I had plenty of water on the way home,” confirmed Lalaith, “but I would love something to eat. Thanks mom.”

“I love you, honey.”

“I love you too!”