Komori wasn't quite sure what to do now that she had left her family. She had accompanied them to the Bahari, if only to spend a little more time with them, but when her mother asked yet again if she wished to join them, she shook her head. She would not be joining an all-lion pride. She knew all too well what she was and it made her uncertain of herself. They had received quite a few stares, being a lioness and two hybrid cubs wandering through the rogue lands.
They had grown up in the rogue lands and Komori had always considered that to be her home, rather than the Bahari where their mother had started to head towards, slowly, with her adolescent children at her side. Her mother had mentioned something about seeing the sea once and always wanting to be alongside it, but Komori couldn't share the sentiment. She felt strange going to a new place and felt stranger knowing this new place was somewhere usually only lions lived.
Not being able to stand the thought of being one of the only hybrids, Komori had turned away from the water and away from her mother and brother at the border. She had said her goodbyes and now it was time for her to set out on her own.
That was easier said than done. She'd been taught to hunt, but she had grown used to hunting in a threesome, rather than solo. It took a great deal of trial and error before Komori felt confident going out on her own. She learned that she hated hunting during the day, but that it was possible to do so. She learned that she loved the sounds and colors of the night time and that she blended right into them. She loved to feel mysterious and sneak up on others, but she also loved talking to others and getting to know them, when they let her.
What she found after many seasons of being on her own, however, was that through her life in the rogue lands, she didn't like being an outcast from others. And, quite distressingly, that's just how others were going to treat her. There weren't many other hybrids about the rogue lands, perhaps because they knew they weren't looked well upon with so many purebred felines roaming about.
For example, she had once found a lion who took one look at her and chased her for three miles out of what she suspected he thought was "his territory". He kept roaring about not needing any freaks in his lands. She tried not to take it personally, tried to think about how the lion surely had his own vendetta against hybrids in general, though she couldn't imagine any of her kind, leopons or otherwise, ever going out of their way to upset anyone.
There are all sorts. She supposed. I may be a hybrid and like being such, but that doesn't mean others will. The thought made her feel very lonely and she had hid herself away from others whenever she felt like that. Whether it was during the day among the shadows or with the darkness of the night, Komori soon found that she was getting considerably better at masking who and where she was. Soon enough, she found that if she didn't want anyone to see her, then they wouldn't. Her knack for stealth became increasingly more useful in everything she used it for. Yet, thoughts of something more persisted.
When she was a youth, she had thought she might start her own family, but her mother explained to both she and her brother that they would not be able to have children, so they were better off joining her in the Bahari so they could have a family in their pride. Those were the words that swayed her brother to join, thought Komori, but they hadn't swayed her one bit.
If only there were a pride for hybrids. Komori had found herself thinking one day. Surely such a thing couldn't possibly be, could it? But she felt herself compelled to ask anyway and so started inquiring after a hybrid group whenever she spoke to anyone else. It took ages, but finally after about a season or so into her inquiries, she finally managed to upturn an idea of her ideal home.
They lived in the mountains, no in the forest, no in a valley, her gathered whispers told her. They were beings called ninjas, believe it, no they were called the Isoba'velius, yes, the Isoba, the Isoba, the Isoba.
As soon as she learned the name, she was able to collect more and more information on it, though it was hard to do. Evidently, this was an exclusive pride, but other hybrids seemed to always be the ones in the know about it. It made her giddy. Hybrids were allowed, but so were every other species. Even hyenas. That made her a bit fearful, for Komori hadn't ever had to deal with hyenas and their bone-shattering jaws before, but if they were in a pride together, surely she wouldn't be in any danger, right?
So, with her information gathered, she set off in the direction she had been pointed in. Komori didn't know how long it would take her to get there, but she was determined to find it and once she did, she would do all she could to get into the Isoba and join a family that would make her feel more whole than the kin she left at the water's edge ever could have. Finally, a family of hybrids to call her own. She was nearly jumping with anticipation over the thought alone.
Soon, Komori thought with a grin on her face as she took off in the direction of her pride-to-be. Soon I will find the Isoba, show them my worth and be able to meet and love all the other hybrids that reside there. A warm feeling blossomed in her chest like a flower. And then maybe, who knows,
maybe I'll be able to recruit other lost souls into the pride, who need a home as desperately as I do!
