The morning was cool as the elder lioness moved though the mists. It was such a nice morning, so it was debatable whether or not she had a true purpose to her rambling, or if her only reason was to stretch her legs in the quiet. Of course, should one have been privy to her thoughts, one would know that while it wasn't entirely her intent, she wouldn't necessarily mind running across a friend of hers. But then, perhaps friend was a strong word. No, in her mind at least, they were. As much as her father's gift of her life had bestowed a second sight upon her, she couldn't delve into the minds of others. Perhaps he, too, saw her as a friend. They had been "together" for long enough, niggling one another with the various quirks in their personalities. And she had cared for him, deeply, for the longest time. But that was beside the point. What she enjoyed most often seemed to be trying his patience. Perhaps if he caught her, wandering about on her own when they both knew the mists would eventually bother her joints, he would probably be exasperated with her. She wasn't that old, it just seemed like her body formed a silent rebellion at times. And she didn't need reminding!
A rustle of feathers off to one side caught her attention, a bird suddenly alighting nearby.
One she hadn't thought she would ever see again.
"Hermes?" The name left her maw on a gasp and the young male's feathers ruffled slightly, the corner of his beak quirking just enough to smile at her.
"Morning, Mama." Without another word, the raptor launched himself at her and wrapped his huge wingspan around her neck in an almost desperate hug. La fell into a sitting position, one paw wrapping around him as she laughed. She had been a young oracle when an infant goddess had been given to their pride to raise, along with an egg that contained the raptor who would be her closest companion. In all the time the pride had taken to raising Tarishi, the goddess of messengers, Hermes had never left her side. To find him alone after she had left as a juvenile in search of her father, it made La wonder.
"Hermes, where is Tari?" Hermes sighed and affectionately preened Mama La's fur for a moment, drawing back so that he could regard her with steady, mist-blue eyes."She's on her way. She wanted me to fly ahead, to let you know she was coming." His heart warmed at the way her face lit up at his news. Of the oracles, La'siene had been the one primarily taking care of Tari and him when they were young. In truth, he would always see her as his own mother, had imprinted on her in the very beginning.
He glanced around at the new pridelands, this would be the first time he and Tari would see the pride after the upheaval. How much had changed, he wondered. Luthe had told them bits and pieces of what he knew, that few of the pride had returned, that they had joined with remnants of another old pride and rogues to form something new. Beyond that... He was as much at a loss as his mother was.
"We missed you, Mama. There's..." He paused, rubbing one wing at the back of his neck as he tried to find the right words for it. "We've so much to tell you."
And there was. In all their travels, they had still yet to find a member of Tari's family, neither her mother nor her father. On one occasion, they had found someone who might have known her father, but that had led to be fruitless. Tari had mothered her own litter of young with a mortal, had left them with an older lioness in a moment of uncertainty and fright. Because of this, she had lost every one of them and had been searching for some time now. At the moment, she had only found her eldest sons, the solitude-loving young Luthe and... And Styxx. Hermes didn't even want to contemplate his story. She had also met another god whom she might fancy, though she never mentioned it to Hermes. And they had raised a falcon chick together, who now acted as messenger between Luthe and his mother.
But it wouldn't seem right to tell Mama La all of this, not when it was Tari's story to tell.
As if reading his mind, La shook her head and gave him another short hug.
"There will be time for that when Tari catches up. Will you head back to her, or stay and wait?" La asked and studied him. Hermes had grown up so much, she remembered when he had been a gabby little chick, always poking his beak where it didn't necessarily belong. There was a maturity to him, one that provoked equal measures of pride and concern in her heart. How had they changed since leaving the protection of the pride? What might have happened in the outside world? She had always thought that Tari had been too young to leave. But she had been so headstrong, had wanted to find her father so badly, there had been no stopping her. At least she had Hermes with her.
"I'll stay. My wings could use a rest," he replied, the good-natured, playful tone she fondly remembered returning to his voice. This was the Hermes she remembered. He had always been a charming, fun-loving young male. Just like Tari, herself. Perhaps it had been the fact that they had been so young when they left the pride, La wasn't sure if they had really been mature enough to leave the shelter of their home. Hermes seemed... more mellow, grown-up. Would Tari be so different?
It didn't matter, La just wanted to see her again, to have her home.
"Come, then. We'll get you something to eat and you can rest and I'm sure the king and queen will be ecstatic to know she's on her way." She smiled broadly, giving him a nuzzle and nudge towards her den. A god was returning to their lands, Messengers was coming home. Oh, La knew better, Tari wouldn't be coming home to stay, few gods had the luxury of staying in one place as they were meant to watch over many. But still, Tari was coming home and that was good news indeed.
(WC: 1,083)