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The rougelands. To Rieseln, who had joined a pride as a young cub, they were the place of mystery and stories and adventure that her father always spoke about. She didn't remember much of them since she had been far too young to really have any lasting memories, but the tales her father wove of his past adventures filled her imagination to the brim. All kinds of animals, no rules or restrictions...sometimes it was hard to find water or food, but if you were smart, you'd stay alive.

The challenge and the adventure called to Ries, and once she discovered she was a seer and had the whole pride clambering after her to predict the races, she knew she needed to get out. She loved meeting new creatures and talking, but she was a free spirit and didn't want to be bogged down like that. So, after a quick talk with her father and the promise to return to visit on occasion, Rieseln set off on her journey.

She had been walking a few days before she really started to feel boredom creep in. Her hunting and water seeking had been going just fine, so she wasn't hungry nor thirsty. It was just that she had no one to talk to! Sometimes the birds would fly overhead and caw down at her, but they never wanted to stay and chat. A little discouraged, she pressed on to the east, following the sun in the morning and letting it cast a shadow before her in the evenings. She didn't walk during midday, and it was just that time when she stopped to rest under a tree. She'd start up again once the sun wasn't beating down on the dry earth.

Ries tucked her chin on her paws as she stretched out in the shade. Thankfully her pelt was mostly white or light in color, so the sun didn't affect her as much as it did other, darker lions. She had her mother to thank for that. Her father was completely shades of grey, while her mother was nearly completely white. She gave a little sigh as she closed her eyes, content to nap until it was time to move on.

She hadn't had her eyes closed for very long, though, before someone spoke. She lifted her head in surprise to find a dark male standing before her, golden eyes looking down with concern. Her ears turned forward in interest, all thoughts of napping gone now that the initial surprise was wearing off. Someone to talk to that wasn't a bird! Ries couldn't have been more excited. The fact that he was incredibly easy on the eyes was nice, too, and she put a charming grin on her face.

"Hello to you, too! Oh, you're so kind," she said, her voice full of honest delight. "I'm quite well, if a bit starved for conversation. Just relaxing during the heat of the day." She tilted her head just a bit, surveying the male before motioning with a paw for him to join her in the shade. "Why don't you join me? You look like you could do with getting out of the sun for a bit."

Ries was excited to see the male was willing to stay and chat for a bit. She didn't miss much about her pride except the fact that she never had to go far to find someone to talk to. She had thought the rouge lands would be full of interesting new creatures to meet, but so far she hadn't had much luck. Things finally seemed to be tipping in her favor, though. She scooted over slightly to let the male lay in the shade with her, her tail flicking back and forth in delight.

"Rieseln," she said as Abin gave her his name. Now that he was closer she could admire his dark markings around his bright eyes, the contrast making her swoon a bit. She let her own pink eyes dart to her paws in mild embarrassment, hoping her flush wouldn't show through her pale fur. "So, Abin...you been a rouge long?"

Maybe he'd know some good places to find lions willing to talk and have fun with. Then again, he might be a new rouge like herself. And if that were the case, maybe they could travel together! Not that she really had any set destination in mind. She was just sort of walking around, looking for fun. He might have an agenda to stick to.

Rieseln, who was used to being around cheetahs mostly, was quite impressed with Abin's size. She herself was quite small, even for a lioness, so the shade that they shared was more than enough. Now that he was in shadow rather than in the stark contrast of the sun he seemed even larger, too. It wasn't an intimidating factor, though. He was far too polite for her to feel threatening. Instead it offered a sort of safe feeling, one that she wouldn't mind sticking around a bit longer.

"Thank you," she said with a grin as he complimented her name. "I like it as well." At his answer she gave an excited laugh and reached out with her paw out of habit, placing it over Abin's larger one. She had gotten the touchy-feely aspect from her father and didn't think much of it anymore...except when she was flirting. Which she might have been doing now. Might have.

"An experienced male, then!" she teased. "This is my third day out of the pride I grew up in. I was born in the rouge lands but had my parents there beside me and my brothers, and we made it to the pride I lived in just a few weeks after we were born. Needless to say I don't remember much, and what I do is mostly playing with my siblings as my parents watched over us. I think it's a bit different now."

She had to rely on herself for protection, food, and water, after all. The rougelands of her cubhood were far different from those of her adulthood.

"I don't have any set place in mind as I walk...no real destination. Do you have any tips for a new time wanderer?" she asked, keeping her eyes on the larger lion, a curious and mildly flirtatious look on her face.

"Oh...sort of lots of little things all building up," Ries said, waving her free paw in the air. "It was a mixed pride, all sorts of species, which made for a lot of friends when I was little. But when I grew up..I had sort of seen everything there was to see, and my father's stories of his life in the rouge lands were sounding more and more fun. You can only watch so many cheetah races before you fall asleep during them," she said with a little snicker. "I think the final straw on my back was when I had my first vision. Seers are very highly prized in the pride, especially past seers...which lucky me," Ries said, pausing to roll her eyes. "I am a past seer. So swarms of cheetahs and their coaches or sponsors would come to me asking what they could improve upon to win, or if so and so had really pushed them out of the way, so on and so forth."

She shook her head at the memories. "I like talking to others, but when they just want something from you it's not very fun. So I spoke with my father and he thought heading out would be good for me. So here I am!"

She lifted her head with a grin once more and nodded at his advice. It was sound, as she had been told a few stories of her father getting chased away by lions, hyenas, and even wild dogs! Who'd have thought it?

"I'll keep that in mind. Thanks, Abin," Rieseln said with a little hum, her tail flicking back and forth in delight. "So you've lived here all your life...have any favorite areas you could recommend going to see? My father suggested the outskirts of the...Pridelands, I think it was. He said they were very friendly and the lands are fertile. Good for a little relaxing stay."

Riesseln shook her head just a bit at Abin's words. Not amazing, really. She had thought so at first, but after all the unwanted attention - and that was saying something coming from her! - it garnered, she didn't think it was so cool anymore. She did know they were a bit rare, so she could understand where Abin was coming from since he'd never met one before.

"Much better so far! The quiet was nice at first," she admitted with a grin. "And now that I have someone to talk to for a while, it's gotten better." When he confirmed what her father had said about the Pridelands she perked up a bit, her tail flicking back and forth once more in interest, occasionally bumping Abin's. When the offer came, along with Abin's head resting on her paw, Ries let her brows raise and a teasing smile replaced the excited one.

"I certainly wouldn't mind," she nearly purred, letting her tail bump his a bit more obviously. "Having a tall, dark, and handsome guide like yourself would be an absolute pleasure. Is it very far?" she added, tilting her head just a bit, her flirtatious grin still on her face.

Rieseln was more than happy to have Abin accompany her to the Pridelands. This way she could get some experience being out on her own while having a friendly face to guard her back as she learned the ins and outs of not belonging to a pride. She'd think of a way to repay him, she was sure.

"That sounds great," she said with a purr, kneading his paw with her own gently in delight. "And yes, resting is perfectly fine! I was doing the same," she reminded him with a little wink. "Once you're ready to go we can start walking, though." She had just wanted to avoid the heat of the day, so a few hours rest wouldn't put a damper on her plans. Not that she had any.

"Why don't you take a nap?" she suggested, scooting a bit closer to the lion. "I'll keep an eye out for any nosy hyenas or rhinos."