The mountainous air, the rocky cliffs, even the trees seemed similar as Hasierara made his way down the mountain side. The odd thing was he was sure that he had never been here before. He had never traveled in this direction for so long, that and he had a decent memory of the places he had been and this was not one of them. It must be that he is over thinking it, he decided as continued his walk. He had finally left Mazunguko after his nephew had left the pride. There was really nothing left for him to do there. He had done enough damage already.

Right now he was searching for his brother and nephew. He needed to set thing straight with both of them. They seemed so different from each other, but Hasi now realized how similar the two were. Heck, it was probably a family trait that they had. If you're in a situation you cannot control, your best option is to run for it.

He had done it himself many times. However he never returned. Bukaera and Ekaitz needed to return though. They had a pride, a life at Mazunguko. They needed to face their troubles and be become better leopards for it. There was no way Hasi would ever force them to return, but he would do his best to convince them. He found a spot and stopped. His weak legs were getting tired. There was once a time when he could travel without rest for long periods of time. When he saw Buka for the first time he was surprised that his brother had stayed in such good shape. Hasi was more bone then muscle at this point mostly from lack of eating.


The young leopardess Puteri was making her way up the mountain, a ways away from Hasi. Like Hasi, she was looking for her family. Her cubs had left her when they had grown up, something that she knew would eventually happen. Her mate disappeared after the cubs were born. It was all sudden. He was there one moment and gone the next. Once her cubs had left, she had started debating if she should go after him. Once she stopped pitting herself, she decided she would find him.

She had spent most of her adult life looking for him and had no luck. There was one place she hadn't looked and that was her old home, the place she was once a princess at but ended running away from. If her mate was there, not only would she be reunited with him, but she would also have a chance to see her father and mother again. It had been a long time since she had seen them. She was sure they probably hated her for running away, but she had to do what she had to. If she would have stayed, she would have ended up marrying someone she didn't love and she couldn't do that to herself.

As she walked she saw a small rock bounce in front of her. A second later a large roar of the mountain was heard. She looked at the mountain at rocks hurdling downward. She couldn't head down, and there was no safe place. Instead she as close as she could to the mountain and prayed to the gods that she would be safe. She let out a cry when one of the rocks crashed against her tail.


The roar of the avalanche echoed the land. Hasierara felt the ground tremble as it happened. Then he heard the cry that was let out. He quickly go up and headed toward the sound. The avalanche didn't happen too far away and he managed to get there fairly quickly. However when he saw the rocks, he paused. Like everything else, this seemed oddly familiar like it had already happened.

He snapped out of it and started to move the rocks. The ones he pulled away he picked by instinct. His body was reacting quicker then his mind. He pulled a rock away and saw a pink tail. The next rock was a lot larger, he wasn't sure if he could move it or not by himself. “Are you alright?” He asked as he started pulling the rock.

All around her were rocks. She felt hopelessness cover her. As she waited for her fate to be decided, she felt the weight of the rock on her tail move. Her tail moved, though as she did so she felt pain. She had hurt her tail badly. “I'm alright, considering the situation.” She called to her rescuer. He was trying to move the rocks near her. She did her best to push them. Any hopelessness that was in her soon left as her hero helped her move the boulders. She was just grateful that someone was nearby.

She did her best to push the boulders. Soon she was able to peek her head through the rocks. She took in a breath of fresh air. Her eyes went to the leopard who was helping her. He was a lot smaller then she would have expected. As he worked on moving the rocks, he seemed out of breath and tired, but he continued. “Thank you for helping me.” She said giving him a smile.


Hasi nodded as he continued to try and move the boulders. If only he was younger, this would have been a simple task. He made enough room so she could see him. When he glanced at her, he paused then continued. “Have we met before?” he asked her as he moved the next boulder. He had seen her, he knew he had. She was so familiar, more so then the land around him. When she gave a smile he felt his himself blush with embarrassment. She was a beautiful leopardess that was for sure. “I swear I remember you from some where. Your name is Puteri isn't it?”

He couldn't remember how they met, just that they had. When he looked at her he felt something pull at his heart. Had they had a romance perhaps? He had never been involved with a female outside his old pride. But he couldn't help but wonder if he had forgotten that they had. He also felt sad when he looked at her, as if something had gone wrong between them. He finally moved the boulder that would allow her to get out.


When the leopard asked if she knew him, she shook her head no. “I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I've never met you before.” Puteri said honestly. “I was once a princess of a pride, maybe you knew me from that?” It was odd that he knew her name but she guessed that he must have been part of the pride she was from. There was no way he would know her name other wise.

She stepped forward when she could, her tail carefully wrapped around her leg so it wouldn't bump into anything. “Thank you for saving me. If it weren't for you I would have probably died down there.”


Hasi laughed and laid down. “Yeah, I doubt you were the princess of the pride I'm from. Lions ruled the pride and everyone else were slaves to them. I guess I remember someone else with the same name. How odd. I swear that I know you though, that I've known you for a long time.” He decided to stop it there. He didn't want her to think he will ill in the head. “Why don't you rest for a little bit. Or if you feel safer you could go somewhere else. I understand if you don't feel safe with me. The rouge lands is a dangerous place after all.” He closed his eyes, deciding he didn't want to watch her leave.

“I appreciate your help.” She said before leaving. He was right after all. Even if he did save her she couldn't trust him. His words brought up her interest though. Her memory was as good as it always was and she knew for a fact that she had never met him. She had heard of strange creatures with the ability to see into the future, past and present. They were the ones who were gifted by the gods. She wondered if the leopard had those powers as well.

If he did, then he saw her and this wouldn't be the last time they would meet. She gave a smile. It wouldn’t be too terrible if they were to meet each other again.

He didn't expect her to stay. After all he didn't look like the most trust worthy leopard. He kept his eyes closed till he was sure she was gone. The thought of seeing her go made him feel a pain in his chest. This had happened before. She had left him and it had shattered his heart. Now if felt like it was happening again. He didn't know what was going on, but he didn't like it. He finally opened his eyes and looked in the direction she traveled. Her paw prints were still in the ground. He stood up and went the other way. It was an encounter he wouldn't forget anytime soon and he would make sure he would never forget her again.

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