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It was a fine day to relax - it was bright and sunny, but not too hot, so Chozi took his time wandering from the big tree to the small pond. He was cheerful, mind still alight with his last encounter. She had nudged him back this direction, but he didn’t mind so much. His body still ached completely from the cuts along his side and back, but not painfully.

He moved stepped into the water, trudging carefully within until it lapped at his spine. It was cool against the scabs - soothing the itch he wanted to scratch there. As far as Chozi was concerned, it was a fantastic day indeed! The only thing that would make it perfect was perhaps someone to converse with. Perhaps he should have asked Mellas, the avian in the great tree, to accompany him here.

Relaxing wasn’t one of Suri’s strong suits. She was always traveling a lot and when she stood around idly she would get incredibly bored. She only rested when tired and relaxed on very very rare occasions. Though right now wasn’t one of those times. She hadn’t found a suitable place to rest and the more she wanted the more tired she was beginning to get. Before too long, she found herself at a body of water. A pond really, but it was deep enough to step into and get a good soak which she noticed another male was doing. She noticed he was a little different then most males she bumped into over the years.

“Hello.” She said softly to him unsure if she herself wanted to take a dip in the cool water. “How is the temperature in the water?” She asked flicking her tail and stepping close to the edge of the water eyeing her reflection for a moment before looking back up at him once again.

Chozi stretched a little, looking over to the source of a new voice. He hadn't been terribly startled - it was a pond after all. Still, he didn't expect someone to address him directly. "Hello," he returned cheerfully. "The water is nice and cool, you should come in," he prompted. It was always a nice time for a swim in his opinion. Then again, his home was a marsh. He enjoyed the waters.

He shifted a little, stirring the water a little, a warm patch of water sinking down a bit to brush against his sides, and he shivered. "Welcome! Are you just passing through?"

This male was a little bit on the cheerful side. It didn’t bother her too much; just she wasn’t use to it. She was more of a loner anyway and the sheer presence of another lion was enough to startle her nerves. She didn’t even know if she should go into the water, but the male’s invite was too tempting. It was far too hot to argue right now. She took a few steps forward and walked into the water feeling the chill hit her body causing her to shiver lightly. “Your right it is nice and cool.” She mentioned giving him a small smile.

“Yes I am. I usually wander every where..I don’t really have a set home.” She told him feeling the water completely surround her body to the point where it was only her head poking out of the water. “What about you?” She asked with her ear flicking slightly. “I never seen a lion quite like you..are you a lion or am I just crazy in thinking your something else?” She was curious. He was definitely something she never met before.

Chozi smiled when the female joined him. Today was completely perfect now, and it was wonderful. "Oh, I have a home, somewhere that way," he tossed his head back towards the tree and the marsh beyond it.

He turned back to her. "Oh! My mother was a lioness," he told her. "You're not crazy, Miss. My father was a cheetah. I got his frail bones, but I'm small because my mother was," he gave a small chuckle.

She was a little jealous of this male. He had a home, she didn’t and didn’t think she ever would. “That is good. What’s it like to have a home? I don’t really have much of a home anymore. I left my family when I grew up. My mother is around somewhere and my father…well I never knew my father.” She shrugged and the only home she knew of was when she lived with her mother as a cub. Now she simply wandered around endlessly looking for a home to call her own.

So he was one of those hybrids she heard about before as a cub. She never thought she would actually meet one since she heard then they were quite rare. “Well you’re my first. I never met someone like you and you give a good first impression.” She told him and when she heard about his frail bones she wondered if he fought a lot. Probably now because he would probably break a lot of limbs if he tried to spar with a lion and it was something she was sure about. “So I’m guessing you prefer the more calmer side of life that doesn’t involve a lot of fighting?” She asked him flicking her tail against the surface of the water. She didn’t want to leave this cool place just yet.

"It's nice, I think. It's a place to return to, no matter how far I wander," he told her. He tended to wander away quite a lot, but he had the habits of his mother, where he always returned to the same spot once they become fond of it.

"Oh good, I'm glad. I'd hate to make a bad one. There are quite a few that loathe hybrids. We're not bad though, just different, I guess. Though, I've always been mixed, so I wouldn't know the thought process behind it." Chozi shifted back a bit so he could sit in the water. "And my life is a bit simple," he agreed. Though he couldn't fight, he was wounded quite often, but they were not battle scars. "Can't say bleeding isn't something that doesn't happen though," he giggled.

"I'm guessing you're a fighter then?" he leaned forward with some interest.

Maybe she could find something similar to that one day. Maybe it wasn’t too far off from now. She didn’t know when her life would take that kind of turn or if she would ever settle for one area. “That sounds nice. Hopefully I have a place like that eventually.” She said to him as she walked slowly to the edge of the water looking back at him thoughtfully.

“Really? I don’t understand why your kind would be hated..I mean yes your different, but isn’t different suppose to be a good thing?” She said thinking on her own words a little bit. She didn’t mind that he was different from her. In fact it was quite intriguing. “There is nothing wrong with a simple life. I lead a pretty simple one myself. I travel around so much…that is pretty much all I do.” She shrugged her shoulders before stepping out of the water letting the water just run off her coat. She didn’t mind it. It helped with how hot the day was at the moment. “Maybe you should be more careful and try not to get hut as much unless it’s from hunting. Then I can understand that.” She got hurt sometimes from the animals she hunted either their horns would hit her or hooves.

“Actually I’m not.” She said ears perking to the question. “I prefer to have peace then have to be aggressive all the time. It isn’t something that I like, but to each their own. I don’t even remember the last time I fought another lion..I think it was when I was an adolescent..” She thought about it and couldn’t really place a moment in her life when it happened. “I try to be as friendly as possible.” She smiled giving him a firm nod.

"I have no idea," he shook his head. Unfortunately sometimes lions and cheetahs, and even leopards had superiority complexes! Not that some hybrids didn't. He wouldn't lie and say he didn't know a few himself. "Some are just like that and won't change their ways." He shrugged.

"Oo, I used to travel a lot before I found a pride. I was barely an adult then," he noted. He'd left his family as a young adolescent, ready to conquer the world, but that didn't happen. He didn't have the heart to tell her the wounds on his sides were purposefully put there by a lioness called Tikoto.

"There isn't much to fight around here, if you were! I certainly don't fight, and it's been really peaceful here lately." Tikoto was further out, and Chozi would watch to make sure that the lioness didn't head in her direction. She didn't seem the masochistic type, so Tikoto would destroy her. He wouldn't like that very much - the lioness was very kind. "It's a very nice place to relax, honestly."

She didn’t like hearing that some lions didn’t like hybrids. It’s not like they could exactly change who they were or become another race entirely. “Well I can assure you that I’m not like that. In fact I like that you’re different. It would have happened eventually anyway.” She didn’t think there would only be lions, cheetahs, leopards, etc. She knew that nature had it’s own little way of changing things.

“A pride? Is it a good home for you?” Utsuri wasn’t really fond of the idea of prides. She didn’t see herself in one and wasn’t planning on joining any either. Maybe if she really needed to she would, but it wasn’t something she was interested in. “I don’t think I ever want to join a pride. I like being able to travel anywhere without the worry of others.” She nodded.

It had been very peaceful. She hadn’t fought in so long she was beginning to enjoy her peaceful life a little bit too much. “That is a good thing. You shouldn’t have to fight all the time. It would get a little tiring I think.” She nodded shaking off whatever excess water was on her coat. The sun was beginning to dry it out again. “Yes it is.” She said softly and wondered where this male had gotten his wounds from, but she wasn’t going to pester him. “I should leave you to your relaxation. I was simply passing by anyway.” She told him feeling the need to continue on.

"I think it is," he told her. "I've been there since the group was really small with only a few members. It's nice to see everyone mingling and growing - both physically and in character," he rocked a bit on his paws. "But pride's aren't really for everyone. My father, for example! He couldn't stay in one place for long, but my mother refused to leave her home behind." He grinned at her.

"If you'd like," he nodded. Sometimes encounters didn't last too long out here. "It's a nice day for travel, no need to waste it!" He gave a small laugh. "I wish you luck on your travels."

Maybe a pride wouldn’t be a bad idea for the future. Right now she wanted to be free and enjoy her free life as it came to her. “You are pretty devoted to it. Maybe someday I will be devoted to a pride myself. After I grow up a little bit and have my roots settle. I just have too much to see for me to stay anchored to one place all the time.” She knew that all pride’s varied, but she was certainly not trying to limit herself just yet. “Your father sounds a lot like me. I love to travel too much to stay in one place. That might change when I have children, but for the moment I like going on adventures.” She told him softly looking away into the distance.

“Yes it is and I don’t plan on wasting it.” She slowly began to walk away from him, her tail swaying slowly behind her delicate form. “Thank you for your time and I wish you luck as well. Be careful. You don’t want those wounds getting infected so make sure you take good care of them.” She looked back briefly to give him a nod before disappearing into the tall grass.