Welcome to Gaia! ::

Seema needed to figure out how she was going to tell Akin'Labi that she was his grandmother. She was sure it wasn't going to be an issue. He seemed easy enough to get along with. The truth was that she was worried how she would react. She wasn't one to show emotions and she didn't want to start now.

After they caught their meal they decided to rest and take a bite. Once she finished her share she had ever intention of leaving and returning to Timeus. If she didn't return soon he would get worried and start looking for her. She didn't want Timeus to find out about Akin'Labi or Aureo. Now that she knew Aureo was happy she wanted to keep herself and Timeus far away from him.

After he died she was sure that he had ruined his short life by putting so much pressure on him. He was a great fighter, but he wasn't the warrior they wanted. To think that despite being raised the way he was he found his happiness made her want to cry out of relief, but she held it in. “I am glad Aureo is happy. He deserved some happiness in his life. He was always such a kind lion. It appears that he has had a kind son as well. For that I am thankful.”

Aureo could have easily become bitter, much like Timeus. She didn't ever want to imagine her son becoming the reflection of her mate.

“I am sorry I didn't answer your question about how I know Aureo.” She finally said, as she finished her meat. “I was afraid that if I told you that I wouldn't want to leave your side. I lost my son when he was around your age and I haven't handled his death well.”

Despite the topic, all she could do was calmly smile. “But thanks to you I may have found a new hope. My son that I thought was dead might be alive. He could perhaps be your father.”

Ak-kila had eaten her meal in peace. She did feel a little out of the loop, but she wasn't worried. “It's fine Akin'Labi. I am looking forward to hearing your story. I've often wondered about how you lived before we met. I imagine you have a lot of adventures to talk about.” She said with a nod of her head.

Her attention went to Seema. She stayed quite as the lioness spoke. The story of her son dying was upsetting, though there was a chance that it was 'Labi's father. What was the chances of that happening. It was simply amazing really, for family to run into each other in the rogue lands. She imagined that she could run into a family member if she looked hard enough.

She wondered why 'Labi's father left his parents. It was hard enough for her to leave her mother on this adventure. The thought of doing so permanently was frightening to her. She glanced at Akin'Labi. It would take someone really special to get her to leave her pride. Right now she wasn't sure if she was ready to leave for good. However if it was for someone she cared about she was sure she could leave with out a second thought.

Labi felt his breath still when Seema announced that she, may in fact, be his Grandmother. The only family he had ever really known had been his Father and one of his brothers. Even then the ebbing tide of time had washed away all but some vague memories of his sibling. The sudden influx of news... was mildly over whelming.
He was truly blessed to have the opportunity to meet her. Though, it seems he has been blessed with many joyous meetings recently. With that thought he smiled at kila.

"The way you speak of your son echos with my own thoughts of my father. I have little doubt that they are one and the same." He smiled warmly "If you would permit it, I would love to call you Grandmother!"

A wave of sadness overcame him when Seema said that she would disappear. "I would be happy to answer any questions that you may have. Though I despair that I have only just meet you and that you must already leave my life." He had not seen it before, but a weaving pattern of others leaving him behind began to bloom in his mind. Labi tried very hard not to think of that growing tapestry.

"Besides me, I had three brothers. Two I have very little memories of, for they went with my mother when she left. The third left me and my father's company when he was old enough to strike out on his own. I have not heard from him since. As for his mate..." He glanced at Kila "It seems that he is quite happy with her." a sad smile crossed his lips "And I believe you actually have a new set of Grandchildren out there as well."

Any thoughts he might have had came to a dead halt at her question about him and Kila. What?! He didn't-

"Um, Grandmother, me and Ak-Kila, we are not courting..." Heat flared in his face as he looked over at Kila, hoping that her reaction to the assumption wasn't to adverse. A tight grip settled on something in his chest, and for all of the beautiful and wondrous things he has experienced, he could not figure out what it was.

She loved hearing him call her grandmother. It was a titled she honored to have. The only downside was that she would probably never hear it again. Aureo would never want her to be part of his life. She had as much to do with ruining his life as Timeus did. Timeus pushed and pushed Aureo to the limits and she never stopped her mate. All that she wanted was a strong son who she could be proud of. She never met to drive him away.

“It will be better for both of us if I stayed out of your life. In time, perhaps that will change, but for now it would be best that I keep my distance.” She hoped that answer would work. Since Aureo left, she had changed for the better, in her opinion. However Timeus had grown worse. If he were to meet Akin'Labi, she was sure he would do his best, at first, to be an understanding grandfather, but he would end up putting all his ambitions and goals on the young lion. Seema couldn't handle that.

Aureo seemed happy, something she knew he would never be if around her and Timeus. “Thank you for telling me about him. I sometimes dream about what he would have been like as an adult. He was my only son, my only baby. To think that he manged to find happiness in life makes me so grateful. And the thought that I have so many grandcubs running around is overwhelming. Was he a good father to you?” She asked a bit suddenly. If there was something she hoped he didn't inherit from his father, it was his parenting skills. Seema watched her mate raise two sons, one of them not being hers. She couldn't imagine her boy being tough on any cubs he had.

Seema couldn't help but giggle at her grandson's reaction. “My mistake. You two just look so lovely together that I couldn't help but assume you were together. Though if you two did get together and have cubs, that would make me a great-grandmother and I'm not quite sure I'm ready for that.” she said jokingly.

Her family really didn't have any problems. She never knew her father, but that was fine. All of her siblings got a long. Nothing really caused her any grief in her family. Akin'Labi was really close to his father. Just the way he spoke about him made Ak-kila sure of it. She wondered if she would get to meet Akin'Labi's father while they were on their adventure. He sounded like he would be fun to be around. Since she met his grandmother, she thought that perhaps she would get a chance to meet his father as well.

She grinned at Akin'Labi. Ak-kila wasn't sure exactly what she felt toward Akin'Labi. She had cub crushes when she was younger, always admiring handsome older lions, but as she grew older she wasn't so sure about her feelings. She didn't have a clue what 'love' felt like, though she could plainly see when others were in love.

For all she knew, she could having stronger feelings for Akin'Labi then just friendship. He might be the one she was destined to grow old with. But he could just be a friend she would have for a little bit until it was time for her to go back home.

Her smile faded a little bit. She hated the idea of leaving Akin'Labi. Even if he wasn't the one for her, he had lit a light within her, making her happy and letting her be herself. At the same time, she knew that she needed to return home someday and that he might now want to go with her. It was a decision she wasn't going to take lightly. For now she would wait to decide. There was no reason to think about it now.

"No thanks are needed!" He smiled warmly "We are family after all. It is to be expected."

Her words about wanting to be forgiven broke his heart. "If you do run into Father again, I have very little doubt in my heart that he would give you forgiveness. He is so very kind and if he saw the remorse that I see in you now, surely some bridges may be rebuilt."

As Seema's eyes gathered tears 'Labi rose and quickly sat by her side, pushing his head gently into her neck in comfort. "Do not be ashamed of tears Grandmother, especially those of joy. They show an abundance of an emotion so strong that the physical body cannot contain it."

She gave a small smile as she tried to hold back the tears. “It is a comfort hearing you say that. But I am not the type who cries.” She brushed her eyes with the back of her paw. She took a couple deep breathes before continuing. It was amazing what caused her to cry, she thought. When she heard the news of her sons death, she didn't shed a tear. She just went on with her life, quietly hating herself and her mate for what they did to the poor boy. But now hearing that he was alive and happy caused her to feel a happiness she hadn't felt in years.

“You are an amazing young lion. Someday you will make a lioness very happy.” She gave a wink toward Ak-kila. “I should get going. As I said, my mate worries sometimes and I wouldn't want him to run into you. That would cause a lot of problems.” Someday she would tell Timeus what she learned about Aureo and his offspring, but for now she would keep it a secret from him.

She stood up, her eyes still a bit watery from the tears. “Thank you for accompanying me and telling me about Aureo. I am blessed that I even had a chance to meet you two.” She said with a bow of her head.

Ak-kila stood up and bowed her head to Seema. “It was an honor to meet you and I hope we meet again.” She leaned close to Akin'Labi. When Labi said that he was happy, she felt a warmth within her. She couldn't remember a time she had been more pleased then her time with Akin'Labi. In her pride she felt that she just drifted, never knowing what to do. But now that she was with Akin'Labi, she felt like she had a purpose, to enjoy life and all it brings.

“Well I guess we should find a place to spend the night, or do you have any other secret relatives you want to introduce me to?” She said with a laugh as she started to head away. There were so many things she still wanted to see, but she knew that time was running out. Her mother and siblings would worry. She knew that soon she would need to head back.

Her eyes glanced at Akin'Labi. She just needed to figure out what she wanted first.