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Home. It use to be a strange word to the young lioness. Previously she never actually considered having one! Sure, she had places she liked more than others, friends that she enjoyed visiting, family to bug, but never did it feel like she owned something or that she truly belonged somewhere.

Well, that is until this last trip back out into the Rogue lands. What had previously been a exciting and fun time to her now seemed...draining, boring, tedious. She longed to feel the soft sand squish in her toes, she tried to mimic playing in the waves by swimming in every lake and river they had come across, hell she even mourned the little curls in her coat that had developed from the salty air once they flattened back out.

Yukio felt like a piece of her was missing, something that had never happened before. When she had finally brought her woes to her father he laughed - actually laughed - at her and explained to her that she felt homesick.

Homesick? Bah! At first she had scoffed at him and brushed his comment away with a flick of her paw. How absurd of an idea! How could someone be 'homesick' when they didn't have a home to begin with!? Honestly, she had to wonder if her father had finally lost it or if he was just pulling her tail.

But the farther they traveled from the warm sands of the Bahari the more it dawned on her that, despite how silly it sounded, he was right.

She was struck with a bad case of homesickness, and there was only one way to fix it!

Parting with her father was possibly one of the hardest things she had to do. He promised her that he would be following after her shortly, but he had some prior business up north to deal with before then. She coooould have waited or gone with him she supposed, but truthfully? As tempting as the idea of frolicking in the snow was she just didn't have it in her to make that journey and delay her return even more.

No, now was the time for her to branch out on her own. To carve her own path for herself, to make her own adventures, to find where she belonged once and for all.

Now it was finally time for her to go home.

Yukio was thoroughly and utterly lost. She hadn't even gotten her damn foot out the door and already she had managed to screw it up royally before the afternoon was over with.

So clearly things we're going great so far - Spectacular even!

How did she get lost so soon in the first place? Well, originally her father had explained that following the river all the way down would be a straight shot back to the Bahari lands and she would be home in no time flat The problem came when she had inevitably gotten hungry. Tired of fish and small game she had the brilliant idea to go trail off the river to go attempt to hunt her first big game by herself. Because the river should be easy enough to find back to, right? The thing was gigantic after all!

Well turns out rivers are champions at hide-and-seek. Who would have thunk it? That or she perhaps was a wee bit too overzealous in her hunting efforts and went farther out than she originally thought, honestly it was a real toss up on what was the real cause behind her situation.

So here she was, wandering around aimlessly, beginning to plot her new future as permanently living in the rogue lands when a odd black shape appeared on the horizon. Squinting her eyes Yukio took a step forward, angling her head to get a better view of it.

Oh my gods it was a person! Another lioness, though she was extremely small compared to Yukio's size, if she was seeing things right. One who had actually change course and was starting to come closer closer? Huh. Was she upset that Yukio was in her territory, or just curious? Ohoh, if she was a local she could point her in the right direction!? Gods be praised she might actually make it home after all!

Plumping down onto her rump unceremoniously Yukio lifted a paw, waving it maddeningly in the air as she called out, "Heeeellllloo there!"

...Well, to her credit the girl did attempt to respond it seemed like? Problem was she was so dang far away still, coupled with the fact that she was quieter than a mouse Yukio couldn't make out a single word she had said. With a tight frown she pulled herself back up onto her feet, slowly stepping forward once more to close the distance between the two. "I'm so sorry, I didn't quite catch what you said before! Would you mind repeating that for me, please?"

Stepping forward Yukio craned her head down, peering from the side to the much smaller lioness. Truly she still was adjusting to her sudden growth in height, it had barely been over two months before she started to get pains in her legs as her body expanded rapidly. She still wasn't use to people being intimidated by her size instead of her personality!

Frowning Yukio lowered herself into a crouch, trying to eliminate as much difference between the two as she possibly could. "Hello, hello right back at cha!" She replied with glee. Finally she was starting to open up to her, it seemed her little plan had actually worked! Or at least, that's what she thought was the reason for Moyo's sudden boast of confidence.

Flashing her a soft smile Yukio brushed off the awkward timing of her question. She was trying, she could respect that. "Well, I wish I could say I was doing better. I'm a tad lost right now off of my path. How are you doing today though?"

"Oh! I'm headed-" Stopping Yukio's perked at Moyo's sudden interruption. My goodness, this girl apparently had a talent for mind-reading! How neat. "Actually that's exactly where I'm heading! Or...was heading." Furrowing her eyebrows her green eyes lowered in shame. "Like I said, I'm lost. My father said to stick close to the river and just travel up it but...I didn't listen to him." She admitted softly, the last bit coming out little more than a mutter.

Once she found her way back onto the right path (which she was determined to do one way or another!) this little experience would surely be sticking around for a good long while as a valuable life lesson. When someone gives you directions, you don't veer off course!

But alas, her problems most likely held no concern to this girl. There was no sense dawdling on them and bringing the mood down.

"What about you? Where are you heading off to?"

Yukio's face beamed with a gleeful smile at the giggle. Oh-ho! Now they were really getting somewhere! "Nope! Well, I've been to the mountains before but I don't live there." She was completely and utterly oblivious to her little comment about being as large as a mountain. "Perhaps I'm not huge, you're just reaaaalllly small, hmmm?" She was enjoying herself with this new girl, already she could tell that if things continued on this path that she would be a new addition to her collection of BFF friendship bracelets in no time.

Blinking her head tilted to one side, peering at Moyo inquistivly. "Who says you can't still tag along? I might be lost but that doesn't mean I'm not having an adventure still." Clicking her tongue her head straightened it's self back. "I would imagine not particularly for someone who knows this area, but it is for me."

Letting out her own curt laugh Yukio rubbed the back of her neck shamefully. "Wellllll...not exactly," Truth be told she had been prone to driving her father up the wall by sneaking off to go explore on her own. She had earned the nickname 'Slippery demon child' for a good reason! "But this is the first time he hasn't been hot on my tail." She finished.

Puffing out her chest proudly she flipped the short tuft of hair she had been managing to grow out. "I have always been my own boss! I came out of my mother a boss child!" Pausing she let out a snicker at herself. "Okay perhaps not quite my mother, but I certainly know that I can handle myself out here!" After all, she wasn't that far off the mark given from a early age she been abandoned to wander the Rogue lands alone.

"I was hungry." She bluntly shot back in response to her question. "Tracking prey animals took me a bit more out of my way than I thought." She topped off with a loose shrug of her shoulders.

Plunking down onto her rump Yukio let out a hm, her toes drumming against the bottom of her chin. That was a fair question, where was the direction of the river? She had stopped over there to rest, she had been chasing the zebra from that direction sooo...

Extending a toe she pointed in her best guess where the river was. "That way...ish? I know it's pretty large and it eventually leads to the jungles."

Yukio's ears perked at the dark lioness' confession. Home? She also wanted a home? Well...there was one place she knew that always accepted lost souls. "You could come home with me?" She offered with a smile that quickly faded once she realized just how bad that could have sounded. Ever since she had hit her growth spurt she had dealt with one or two males who mistook her great size as her being a fully grown adult. Oh boy was that an awkward family dinner talk to have! "I-I mean I don't mean it in like a 'Hey baby come home with me for the night' way! I just...the family I'm from is super welcoming to everyone, and nice! They'll love you."