"Heh," a deep smirk crossed dry lips as the figure of a lioness crept through the shadows of the night, lingering only while tired paws settled at the border of the Outlands. Her figure was lean and riddled with scars, scars from a time spent far from this place, far from home. Slowly the lioness made her way deeper into the pride until she was stopped by an unfamiliar face, a pale lion with mismatched eyes.
"Hold it-" the lion firmly demanded as he stood between the intruder and his homelands. "Who are you?"
"Iosefka." The female replied firmly as she bowed her head in respect to the pale lion.
"Iosefka, what brings you to this land?" Jasiri spoke with a frown as he lifted a brow to the lone lioness. Her pelt color was a dead giveaway to the other members of the pride, however, she was not familiar, so who was she? "You resemble blood of my blood, yet I can not say I know your face-"
As the male spoke Iosefka smirked and nodded. "The pride is my pride, though for sometime now I have been away, lost to wilderness and held captive until I was able to escape and return here, to my home, to my Queen." The female stood tall though it was easy to see her physical distress, she looked tired and a bit too thin, perhaps there was truth to her story?
Jasiri nodded as the lioness spoke, commenting only when the female finished. "If what you say is true you will have no problem telling me the name of a family member I can return you to."
At his request the lioness smirked and spoke a single name. "Isigidi." She stood proud, though a ringing in her ear would haunt her as his name crossed her lips, leaving her empty as soon as it left her.
"Isigidi? What would the Prince have to do with you?" The pale lion only seemed to grow more wary of this female traveler, what did she want with his kin? "He is very busy right now."
"He will vouch for me." The female could feel his distrust swelling, so with a step closer the lioness plead, her eyes wide and settled on his own. "Please." It wasn't often Iosefka begged, but in this moment she had everything to lose. She needed to see him with her own eyes, even if only for a moment. The lioness could have requested to go home to her own family, but she hadn't. Seeing Isigidi mattered more to her right now, it mattered the most.
Jasiri gave her one final look-over before finally nodding in agreement. "Fine, I will take you to the Prince, but you must stay close, a lot has happened in your absence and everything has changed. He might not be able to see you today if he is too busy, please know this in case he does not agree to see us."
It was true, she had been gone for years now and nothing was the same, still, this effort was worth it to the lioness, even if all else failed she knew he would remember her, she could feel it in her bones. Somethings could not be forgotten. "Thank you," the lioness spoke with another slight bow as she started to follow the lion deeper into the pride.
Isigidi stood in place that did not suit him and acted a role that did not fit. The youngest of his litter, Isigidi had never expected to play a role in the politics of the pride. But with Kethiwe taken and their mother gravely ill, Isigidi had stepped in to help delegate some of the lesser matters of the pride. He needed to take the pressure off of Amachawne, who was the acting regent of the pride now. The birth of his new brothers and sisters had taken a severe toll on the health of their mother. He could not shake the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, that coil of pure dread at the thought that Ashiki would not recover.
He was no fool to be disillusioned by faith, that if he believed hard enough surely the Ancestors would interfere with his mother's life as they had with the Monarch's Soul. If Ashiki withered away, nursing her newborn, the pride would be left teetering upon the edge of disaster. Succession was clear, with Kethiwe gone Amachawne was the head of the pride in all but title.
So Isigidi stood, feeling like the fool that he had pretended not to be as he dealt with minor matters. He had been raised well, and for all of his carelessness and devil-may-care attitude he had picked up on some of the intricacies of politics. It did not mean he was much good at it, but he was holding his head above water and not leaving a disaster in his wake.
The young prince barely held a sigh in as another lion approached him, "Jasiri asked if he could see you, has someone with him who says you can vouch for her validity..." Isigidi's attention wavered, not from disinterest but rather from exhaustion. One more thing for him to tackle - the battlefield was far easier than this. Of course, his skills had failed him there too. He couldn't even save the Crown Prince, his eldest brother. How many of their pride had died because of his failure as a warrior? His fighting prowess was his only true skill, and the thrill it gave him made him yearn for the rush more.
"Of course, I will see them." Isigidi's reply was delayed, earning a curious eyebrow raise from the other Outlander. When the male left, Isigidi released a deep sigh that he had not known he had been holding in. He had that itch he could not scratch, the deep-rooted need to fight. Perhaps he could con Majuto into a spar, give him something to take the edge off for a little while.
He turned his head to the entrance of the cave, awaiting his guests, and when he saw her all of his worries were washed away by a flood of relief. "By the Ancestors, you're alive!" Regality was tossed aside as Isigidi rushed over to Iosefka. A boyish exuberance radiated off of Isigidi as he wrapped his paws around Iosefka and pulled her into the most awkward but honest embrace possible.
Time stood still as his familiar face came into view, it felt like everything around Iosefka fell into a dead silence and nothing could be heard, not even the sound of her heart that beat loudly in her ears. The deafening noise surrounded her like a thick blanket as she felt her throat tighten, grasping for words that she would never be able to speak. Truly in this moment she felt terrified, frozen by her own self-doubt and disbelief. The lioness has been gone for three years, and while that might have seemed like a short time for some the space between the lioness and Isigidi was so vast she could hardly see him, even now as he stood before her, full-maned and grown.
She wanted to cry out and run right to him without any hesitation at all... but her paws held her still, trapped by her own shadow as pale eyes shifted from his face, settling on the ground. For a moment the lioness could hardly bring herself to look at him, even though she had been preparing herself for this moment for some time, experiencing it was a completely different story. Guilt smothered Iosefka's intentions as the Prince wrapped his paws around her neck, holding her as close she could possibly be to him without choking her fragile neck. As he spoke her ears pinned back in disbelief. It really was him, his scent filled her lungs as she allowed herself to enjoy the embrace long enough to find her lost words, speaking into his mane softly.
"I found you."
It took the lioness a moment to remove herself from his grasp, but when she finally did the female looked him over once before speaking again, gasping under a sorrowful apology, "-I'm sorry if I worried you."
In truth Iosefka had no real way of knowing if he had searched for her after her disappearance as a young adolescent thirsty to see the world, still, apart of the lioness had always hoped he had. He was her best friend after all, or... he was all those years ago.
"Are my parents well, Isigidi? Do they know I never meant to leave them?" Or you - she wanted to say but couldn't muster up the courage to. For now the female simply stood face to face with her long lost friend.
"I looked for everyone for days... but I never made it back home, I was abducted and taken prisoner by a roaming party that took me to a pride beside the sea, I lived my life as a slave until my keeper died and I was able to escape." As the lioness spoke she turned her face to show him a scar that lay just under her left eye, it started at her cheek and stopped at the bridge of her nose. "-This was the last mark that b*****d was able to get on me before I drove my fangs into his throat." Her voice broke under the weight of her words, the emotions were still very raw.
"But I made it back, I...I'm here now." Tears filled her olive colored eyes as she looked away from her Prince. "...I'm home."
As the pair spoke Jasiri turned himself to the entrance of the den, speaking over his shoulder to the Prince. "I will leave her with you, my Prince."
Iosefka would search Isigidi's face as she waited for him to speak.
He had thought her dead, or long gone. They all had after how long they had spent searching for her without receiving any answers to her disappearance. It was almost like witnessing an Ancestor walk the earth, though he could tell instantly that the means of her return were vastly different than how the Monarch's Soul came back to them. She was alive and well, and all those scars that littered her pelt only made her prettier. The world had tested her, and she had come out stronger for it from what Isigidi could tell.
An amused chuckle rumbled in his chest at the words 'I found you'. He had genuinely worried over her, but those words made it seem like they had just been playing a game for the past three years and Isigidi was just really good at hiding. "Don't be, I am just glad you are back." In a time where they had lost so many, little miracles kept cropping up. Perhaps the Ancestors really were guiding them all now.
Reluctantly he allowed her to pull back out of the embrace. After all, he could not hold her there all day. It was for the best, it seemed, because she had not returned to the best state the pride could be in. Her question drew a weary sigh from the male, making the answer clear without words. Isigidi inclined his head towards her, beckoning her to follow him. "Walk with me." He wanted to give her a sense of purpose or destination, so that the words he spoke next would not paralyze or break her.
"Your mother passed away seasons ago - not long after you disappeared yourself. She was never well after we forced ourselves to give up the search for you. We grieved over the loss of your father, who fell with so many others when our lands were attacked." He did not want to say it, that she had come back just after the mourning period had ended. She had only been weeks away from seeing her father alive, but that information was too cruel to speak just now.
He walked by her side, and spared a concerned glance down towards her. There was so much more that he needed to say to her, but she needed time to digest what he had said. Isigidi knew that if he spoke more she would become overwhelmed. He was never the best at reading others, but he felt like he could read her. Even after all these years, he knew her best.
It gave him time to digest what information she had given him. He had to swallow the anger that burned his throat when she confessed that she had been taken the same way his brother had. The pride that she spoke of likely was the same one that had attacked them so recently. It seemed like their numbers were vast, and that they were willing to travel great distances to take what they wanted from others. Another attack would be something they needed to prepare for.
He would have to let her speak with Amachawne later, but for now he gave her the time she needed as he led the way through the heart of the pride and to the place she needed to be.
"Oh," a blank stare followed his words as the lioness, in all her tiredness nodded slowly, never reacting to his statement, never looking past what was now in front of her once more. "I see," the guilt she felt was easy to read as it danced across her face like hot flames, scorching any questions she might have had about her now once family. Heavy eyes drifted as she slowly turned to look away from him, as if to hide her own sadness over the state of the pride and her own family. Still, there was a fire in her that burned... faintly.
"Isigidi, I feel like I have arrived at the worst possible time." her voice fell hushed under a deep whimper as the female did her best to fight back both her tears and frustration. This wasn't right, this was unfair, why?
"I'm sorry, I-" the lump in her throat only seemed to grow as her eyes shifted from his face and to the ground, tracing the cracks in the earth as she searched for the right words to use.
"I have no one now - I don't want to be alone, please." The thought of him dismissing her soon made the female's chest tighten with worry, Iosefka couldn't bare the thought of being alone right now, not after everything.
"I need to lay down I think, I need to process this. I'm sorry, I-." she was starving and weak and all of the information he was willing to share had started to weigh her down to the point of tears, Iosefka just needed to gather herself for a moment, without feeling embarrassed about feeling weak and vulnerable.
"Could you take me somewhere to rest for a while? I have no family den to go back to now I guess, or I would..." this was raw, it was going to hurt for a while.
Isigidi felt her pain. He did not need to look at her to know the emotions that were tearing at the core of her being. Instead he gave her that moment of privacy, yet knew that it would be a long time before the loss of her parents did not bring her to her knees. All around them now disaster had struck. The pride had been attacked, his mother wounded to the point he feared she would not recover, and his brother taken hostage by the Stormborn. If he lived, Isigidi hoped that life was not unbearable for him. All Khethiwe had to do was survive until the pride was strong enough to take him back from the villains that tried to destroy their pride.
He feared that whatever he said next would bring no comfort to her, only pain. Isigidi had never been adept at navigating the subtleties of conversation. It was a skill better cultivated by his elder brothers. As a lion who served his family's name through physical strength, it had never seemed important to know how to express what he felt. But, just because he did not know what to say it did not mean that he lacked feeling. "You are back now, and that... matters a lot. When we have all lost so much, it's good to finally find something again."
Her father's den was still empty, but he loathed the idea of bringing her there. It was too soon, and perhaps that place was better off in a different family's paws. In time, he would find some place else for her to live. Right now, she just needed a place to be secluded and process what she was experiencing. Isigidi offered a temporary solution, "Okay." The word was spoken with a single, soft breath.
"You can stay at my den." He was a Prince, there were many other places he could stay. His den was not an ideal location, being so close to the activity of the pride, but it would serve its purpose for her. "And do not worry about putting me out of a home." His smile was kind and soft, an unusual expression for the Prince.
The young male, a spitting image of a relative long lost, turned to lead the way back to his den. Thankfully it was not far, because he was not sure how long she would be able to hold herself together. As they walked, he seemed adept at deflecting attention away from them. It was true that the pride had greater matters to be concerned over than a 'new' lioness within the lands. Soon, they made it back to his den where she would not need to have curious lions warded away from her. It was a natural cavern of red-tinted stone, and as expected of young bachelor, a little unkempt. "Sorry... for its condition." At least he had the decency to apologize.
Iosefka's pale eyes closed tightly as she nodded in agreement, finding some solace in her pain. His offer made her heart lift from the bottom of her chest as the lioness slowly moved to nuzzle her forehead against his, speaking a voice that was faint enough for only him to hear. "Thank you, Isi." his kindness would never go unnoticed. Though they had spent a long time apart, that part of her that cared for him burned deeply even now, so any sighs of comfort he offered would heal her more than the Prince could ever know.
"I'd like that." the orange female would follow Isigidi to his den, settling herself into the safety of the dark space upon arrival. Her figure wars lean in a skinny way, in a way that was unlike the lioness he once knew. It was going to take some time to build her muscle back up - it was going to take some time to heal and Iosefka knew Isi respected that, he above all else understood loss and the toll it took on the physical form. She could only try to imagine what he was feeling right now, knowing what he had lost and what the Pride had endured.
It felt like pain was a plague she couldn't escape, but here in this moment... at least for a short while she could find some peace.
"Come here," the lioness beckoned the Prince to her side as her eyes slowly opened to trace his figure, a soft smile on crossing her lips. Against all odds she was still able to muster a smile for him, perhaps she was just thankful to be home now.
"Stay with me for a while longer...? I know you have to go soon, just.. until I fall asleep, please?" he could hear the hesitation in her voice as the question left her chest, still, she wouldn't be ashamed for needing him, not right now - not in this moment.
He had intended to leave, worried that his presence here would be overwhelming for her. Iosefka had a lot to come to terms with, and he knew that it would take time. Isigidi himself had not yet accepted the truth that his brother had been taken and his mother left to cling desperately to life. The royal family were in dire straights. Even if they were used to overcoming such challenges the pain in his chest would not dull. He needed his brother to return home to rule the pride. It was his destiny, and no marauding lions from the seaside would rip that away from him.
Isigidi walked across the open space of the den to her. Here and there pelts were laid about, little tokens of victories with stories that had yet to be shared. He grabbed one off of the cavern floor and shook the red dust free from it. The young prince was not known to be tender, but that did not mean he could not try to be. Upon reaching her, he draped the pelt over her shoulders. The climate was not known to be cold, but he hoped that it would comfort her in some way.
"Sure," he answered her. Duties could not be neglected, but he could set aside time for his oldest friend. Isigidi would not abandon her if she needed him. "I can stay here for a little while with you." He lowered himself down onto his belly to lie down next to her, though maintained a respectful distance between them. With most, he would not second guess such actions, but he did not want to step over the boundary with Iosefka.
Isigidi could not see how his presence would bring anyone much comfort. He was a warrior, hot headed and intense. There was little in the way he carried himself that would bring to mind even a word close to 'tender'. But, if him being near Iosefka helped, he would be there.
As the Prince settled himself to lay beside her Iosefka found some peace within his presence. While the world around her seemed to burn, here, in this confined place, she felt safe. Locked away from all that would harm her. It was true, she was lost in the throws sorrow, swaying some place between live and death, yet here she lay, unable to die, unable to rise to her feet. This moment was all she had in the entire world, so for a moment she would rest.
"Thank you-" her words came softly as her eyes started to fade, closing as sleep beckoned her to follow.
"I can not say just yet I feel. Perhaps I am numb to it right now, but... I know that when I wake again... I will awake here, in my home, with your friendship and confidence once more." the lioness spoke in a small voice as her jaws rested against her paws, the pelt he draped over her heavy with a warmth she craved.
"-I will never forget this kindness, Isi."
Her familiar way of speaking to him came so naturally, and while the female longed to say more, her voice silenced as she rolled her head over to rest. Iosefka understood that when she awake he would be gone, but for a moment's time his attention belonged to her. Something about that helped lull her into a deep sleep.
A sleep she so desperately needed.
Isigidi laid his head down on his front paws and tried to will away the burden he carried upon his shoulders. There was so much that he needed to accomplish, and he was not used to being an idle lion. But, he needed this just as much as Iosefka needed him now. He had come very close to drowning underneath the weight of responsibility that he had not expected to fall to him. With Kethiwe gone, the burden of responsibility and duty had shifted enough that even Isigidi felt it.
He had to tell himself that it was okay to take a moment for himself and breathe. "You are home, and I promise no one will ever keep you from this place again," he swore to her. He had lost enough already, he refused to lose the childhood friend that had just found her way back to them all on her own. Isigidi could not take another loss like that. What was all his strength and battle prowess for if he could not use those skills to protect the ones he loved?
"Tomorrow we can..." He lifted his head to look back towards her, only to realize that she had already fallen asleep. He smiled, and for a brief moment his expression was tender. Well, they could tackle whatever may happen tomorrow. For now, the young male allowed himself that precious moment of peace.
