A Rouge's Journey

[Dakota]

Maisha was leaning in listening intently to what Memkra was saying, she was hoping he would have something more to say about the others, she missed Sheek in some ways.

"Destiny you say, well we could look at it like that, I'm not sure really. Maybe I'm meant to wander looking for Safila, and thats all my life will consist off, I'd like to think there will be more for me."

Turning her head she looked at Sarafina with Leela, and Seleter with Duna, and coming up in the rear NightFlame. I wonder if we will all stay together, and what the others are looking for /

Suddenly something pricked her memory that Memkra had said " You'd better not have any thoughts in your mind about leaving us, you do know that we need you here...with us ?"

Moving ahead quickly Maisha turned and planted herself in Memkras way and tapped her paw agitatedly. With a frown now upon her face she waited for an answer.

"Well Memkra, I'm waiting ?"

[genie]

Memkra smiled silly like at her, walked up to till their faces were practically touching then suddenly licked up her mouth and nose and said quietly "Life is full of doors... you never know what is waiting for behind the next door..." and he walked by the stunned Maisha, playfully giving her a flick of his tail. "I'm sure you'll find your sister one day soon" he added in his normal volume as he walked on waiting for Maisha to recover from her surprise.

-------------------------------------------

Leela's energy was starting to wane now from all her running around the place and she was panting hard with her mouth open with her ears hanging down and said to Sereana "Momma, i'm thirsty..."

[Dakota]

Karensha ran onwards moving faster feeling the cool air rush against her face, and carry on tugging at her purple tuft, blowing it into disaray around her.

She could feel the coolness of the air from where they had been, slowly changing into a warm heat that was enveloping her as she got nearer to whatever was ahead. Cautiously she started to slow her running down, not sure what she was about to face, but finding that she was coming to the outskirts of the jungle.

Catching her claws in the hard ground she bought herself to a stop. Not moving Karensha lay down amongst the foliage partially covering her, over to her left through the greenery she could see Zulu sitting talking with the cub.

Just lying there, she waited, not moving nor making a sound, her ears alert and tail flicking a little.. just waiting

[Sarafina]

Nadayshana shook her head.
"I cant ask you...."
She said sadly. She looked around and sighed. She then looked up at Zulu with a small smile. She really wish she could as him if he liked Sereana. But she thought about it. Why would a Cheetah was a Lioness as a mate? He wouldnt. He would gladly pick another Cheetah. Since there were some here, he had some to choose from.

Nadaysshana coughed a little and then stared at the ground. Her mind wandering on how she could think something so stupid. She was just being selfish. All she wasnted was for Zulu to be her Step-father..... She looked up at the sky and just stared. She knew what she was doing tonight. She wasnt sleeping, she was going to talk to her father. Not that she would get an answer...but she would talk and get everything off her chest. She just wish Night Flame would talk to her. She felt bad. She didnt mean to hurt him.

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Sereana smiled at Leela. She was so hyper! She was more hyper then Nadayshana was. That was surprising. Her ears perked up as she heard her daughters voice. She picked her up and placed her on her shoulders and smiled.
"Come on sweets, Momma will find you something to drink."

Sereana smiled and turned to the left. She padded softly through some tall grass. She could smell the soft breeze from te water coming up. She sighed and continued to towards the smell. In a couple of strides, they were at a small watering hole. She layed down and let Leela get off. She smiled and lapped the water a little. She then looked at Leela and smiled.
"Someone needs a bath today Missy."
Her voice was soft anf in a motherly tone. She smiled and licked Leelas head.

[genie]

Leela's squeaky laughed rolled around she was licked by Sereana, it was ticklish today and she smiled and closed her eyes as she was cleaned, she loved her new mother, not to say she didn't love her new sister as well, but she felt closer to Sereana as she'd never had a sibling before so it was a lot more new to her. As she sat there happy as a bee being cleaned, her tail swished back and forth, the fluff at the end just hitting the water edge and sending small splashes and ripples out.

[Dakota]

Maisha stood there, total surprise written all over her face "wha..wha..what did you do that for Memkra " too late he hadn't heard her words and just kept on walking past her, with a flick of his tail.

Grining Maisha then let a loud burst of laughter escape through her lips so..he likes to play does he, we'll see about this Turning ready to follow after him, the lioness stopped when she saw NightFlame trailing along behind coming up in the rear.

mmm, well something happened between him and the cubs, wonder if he is ok

Not stopping to think, Maisha turned and made her way next to the Lion, and started to walk along side him, not saying a word. Gradually they kept each others pace, and she kept darting him little looks, not seeing his expression change one little bit. As usual the lioness couldn't help herself, she wasn't knowen for her ability to keep her thoughts to herself.

" well NightFlame.... would you like to unburden yourself and tell me what happened with Duna and Nadayshana ?, I saw them both scamper as fast as they could away from you, and I think one of them is still giving you sideway looks. I am a good listener you know, not only Karensha."

Maisha lifted her head a fraction and looked around her, giving him time to decide if he was going to reply or ignore her.

[Tamber]

Duna had begun to relax walking next to Seleter, but she still felt rather on edge being anywhere near Night Flame. He seemed to give off an uneasy feeling, even when he was paying no attention to her.

Suddenly Seleter spoke up. Duna listened to her words and was instantly ecstatic. "A guessing game!" she replied. "Oh yes yes yes! How do you play?"

Seleter then went on to explain, and Duna became even more excited. "Oh my...yes! I want to play! You start! What do you spy?" The cub found herself incredibly excited over the game's notion, moreso than she had expected. Duna was normally relatively calm and collected for a cub, but this group was bringing out new traits in her than she had never been aware of.
___________________
Zulu's ears flattened at the cub's response. "Well, ok," he replied solemnly. "You don't have to tell me, if you don't want to."

The cheetah couldn't stand seeing Shana like this anymore. He missed her smile, her laugh, the things that reminded him of cubhood. But she was so troubled, and the more troubled she was, the more troubled he became. He decided it was time to talk to her specifically about what was going on.

"Ok, Shana,"he said, lifting her upon his back. "Tell me what's wrong, girl."

[Kirsui]

Seleter grinned at Duna playfully. She was glad she had managed to excite the cub like this.
"All right then", she said.
"I spy..."
Seleter gazed around, looking out for something fairly easy to guess. Karensha she had used as an example, so the snow leopard was out of question... She didn't want to use anyone else from the group either, so that meant...

Seleter grinned as she saw a bright blue hornbill sit on on of the branches of a nearby tree.
"I spy something blue", the golden cheetah said.

---

"Well NightFlame.... would you like to unburden yourself and tell me what happened with Duna and Nadayshana ?"

The dark furred male glanced at Maisha from his eyecorner. He had continued trailing behind the group after Karensha had left, his mood slightly better than it had been earlier.

His expression was calm with a slight hint of throughtfulness in it as he went through what to say to Maisha. He had told all this to Karensha already... Should he speak it out again...?
"With Duna... I made a mistake I regret I made."
There, that wasn't so hard... Was it?
Night Flame sighed, keeping his gaze locked forward as he walked.
"With Nadayshana... I have no idea. The cub seems to be lost in a world without a father. I do not know if Sereana is aware of how her daughter feels."
He shook his head, glancing at Maisha.
"But I assume the cub is looking for a father figure, someone to replace the empty place that the missing father left. I do not know if the cub's father is still alive somewhere or if he is dead, but if she keeps dwelling on that matter much longer she might drown into the feeling of being left alone."

Night Flame blinked, surprising himself with what he just let out of his mouth. He wasn't supposed to say things like this, was he? Things about how loneliness could kill...? Wasn't he supposed to be the one who hated the cubs more than anything because they reminded him of what he had lost? Wasn't he supposed to be the one who made them cry? Wasn't he supposed to be the one who was drowning into his sorrow?

He really didn't know anymore, but for some reason he didn't feel as... Sad as he had felt earlier.

[Sarafina]

Nadayshana sighed on Zulus shoulders. She wanted to tell him..So she was going to.

"I...I want my father. Or a father. My father was my best friend. Sang me to sleep everynight, held me close..He loved me when my mother didnt really want anything to do with me. The only reason she doesn now is becuase i look just like him and she doesnt want to loose him again. Now that she adopted Leela, its different. She spends more time with her.."

Nadayshana was surprised she just said the truth about her mother, That was a bad thing... She sighed and looked at the ground.

"I tried talking to Night Flame..but I made things worse for btoh him an I. Im alone now... no one cares. I..."

She stopped and snuggled into Zulus shoulders. He was the only one who cared. Her mother did, but only when she needed to. Sereana did love Nadayshana more than anything. It was just hard to tell. Nadayshana sighed.

"And my mom likes you...Just letting you know that...She likes you a lot.. But shh..I said nothing.."

She closed her eyes and held back many tears.

[Dakota]

Karensha lay there still in the green foliage, taking in all the surroundings. She could see Duna and Selter having fun while moving closer to where Shana and Zulu had stopped and were in deep conversation.

Stretching her neck up a fraction, she could now see Memkra ambling along, a smile broke on Karenshas face as she watched, and there closely behind him came Maisha with NightFlame. Pausing she kept her eyes trained on the lion. He carried himself with an air of strength, yet as the same time she saw a frailty in him.... too much hurt has engulfed him, almost over whelming him. he needs to find some peace within him...soon I hope

Karensha lay there waiting for the last two to come into sight. where are Sarafina and leela. why hasn't anyone noticed they are missing

The snow leopard pushed herself quickly up from her hiding place, and moved back from where the others had come from. Raising her face, she caught their scent on the slow moving breeze. Crouching down as she moved through the tall grass slowly and steadily, till she caught a glimpse of Sarafina at the water hole.

Karensha stopped almost annoyed, didn't she know it wasn't wise to wander off with a cub by herself, where none of the others could help her if she got into trouble.

Emerging quietly, she came up behind Sarafina and sat down discretely watching as the lioness bathed the little cub .As her gaze fell upon leela, her eyes softened, taking in the sight of her all excited and happy with her tail swishing around. Karensha found a sigh slip out I wonder if I will ever have a cub of my own...would I even know how to love it I wonder

Frowning now, Karensha spoke up " Sarafina, its not safe for you to be here unprotected, anything could happen, if you're finished with leela, how about we walk back together and catch up with the others, I'm sure Nadayshana would like to have a little one on one with her mother as well....Shall we ?"

[Tamber]

Duna took in Seleter's description and started looking around her. Blue...blue...what was blue around her? She looked up. Not the sky. It was too obvious. Blue...blue...blue....there! Duna saw a blue hornbill sitting in a tree as they passed it, and she grinned. The cub looked up to Seleter with a grin and answered. "That hornbill," she said slyly, certain her answer would be correct.
________________________
Shana's thoughts poored out of her, and she more she told Zulu, the more he wanted to hold her tight. All these horrible things haunting a little cub's mind. It shouldn't be this way. No cub should be this upset. Cubs should live life to the fullest and love every moment of their young lives, especially Shana. Zulu wanted more than anything for Nadayshana to be happy. He just didn't know what he could do.

Zulu waited a moment, then decided to reply. "Well..." he began, "I'm very sorry about your daddy, Shana. He loved you very much, and I know you love him. But I want you to know that your daddy hasn't left you. You may not be able to see him, but he is always with you, Shana. He watches over you every minute of every day, and he's walking right beside you right now. He still tucks you in at night, and he silently sings you to sleep. He still loves you, and he's still with you. He will always live within you, sweety. He's part of who you are, and nothing, no matter how bad, can take that away from you.

"And I don't want you to ever doubt your mother's love. I know your mommy loves you more than anything. She would do anything for you, I have no doubt in my mind. It's just part of having a little sister. She's going to get more attention than you sometimes, but it doesn't mean your mother loves her more than you. She just trusts that you will be a big girl and be able to take care of yourself sometimes, because right now Leela is too young, and she can't. But I promise you that your mother will always be willing to make time for you. If you need your mother and she's not with you, all you have to do is ask her. You have a very special place in her heart. You're her first daughter, her only true daughter, and she will never forget that."

Zulu thought about some way, any way to make Shana happy again. He had an idea, and he knew it was a stretch, for he wasn't totally sure, but he gave it a shot. "I will tell you now, that when we get to Talli Peak, your daddy will be there. He'll be there in the same way he is with you now, but you won't doubt it. You'll feel deep inside that he is there, I promise." The cheetah looked up to the cub and gave her a comforting smile.

[Sarafina]

Nadayshana listened to Zulu. She listened carefuly. She doubted er mothers love all the time. A sighed escaped her muzzle. When he started talking about her father, Shana snuggled her face into his fur. She wanted it to be true. She wanted her father back so much. She knew it would never happen.

She sighed and looked at him. "I know what your talking about Zulu....But it wont be the same.. Hes always in my heart. I just wish he was here again. " She sniffled and sighed. She looked at Zulu. "How much longer will it be when we get there..?" Now she wanted to relax. "Zulu...Is there a place to look at the stars there?"

All she wanted to do now was stare at the stars and talk to the stars. Well, talk to her father. She wanted to tell him about everything. The night with Night flame, she only got to say a couple of things. She wanted to spill everything out.

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Sereana looked over and sighed. She saw Karensha. She didnt want to go with the group, but what else culd se do? Sereana licked Leela and sighed. "Come on Love." She picked her up and rested her on her back. Her gaze drifted back Karenshas. She gave a small smile. "Thanks..." Sometimes she wished something ould happen to her.

She nuzzled Leela and looked at her paws. "I think I'll just let Nadayshana stay with Zulu..." She said moving her head to Karensha again. "She likes being around him. I....I'll let her go. " She shrugged and sighed. She then started walking slowly back to the group. SHe looked at Karensha. "How are you KArensha...We havent talked in a while.." she said softly.

[Dakota]

Karensha stood there silently watching the expressions pass over the lioness face. seems we all have things in our lives that cause us hurt .

"I'm sorry to disturb you and Leela, but we really need to get back to the others, I think they are getting ready to move ahead, and well...we need you. How about I carry the little one for a while and give you a rest."

Not waiting for a reply, the snow leopard leaned over and took Leela by the scruff of her neck and placed her on her back up where she had plenty of purple tuft to hold onto. "Now hold on tight Leela, we are going to give your mum a rest for a while"

Moving slowly Karensha cast a look sideways at Sereana, she seemed depressed and sad. Not really knowing what to say to her, if Memkra had of been here she would have encouraged him or Maisha to have a word.

"Whats wrong Serana, it's obvious something is hurting you, I don't know if I can help, but I tend to be a good listener, maybe you need to let out what is eating away at you, what do you think ?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Maisha walked her ears perked up taking in all NightFlame was saying. She didn't really know what to say to him, he didn't need comforting, in fact he almost looked a bit relieved as he spoke about the cubs.

"well... I think with the cubs, they seem to both have had sadness bestowed on them in their short lives, and if they both have lost their fathers, its only natural they are going to want and need someone else to fill the space. It also means that they loved them very much and had a deep bond with them, and it's you for some reason they have turned to, so obviously they must sense something good and kind within you that calls to them. I don't know if you are or have been a father, but Duna and Nadayshana are willing to share their hearts with you, and not everyone gets to be cared about."

Maisha turned her head looking at NightFlame walking tall along side her, she could understand why the cubs wanted to get to know him, in some ways he looked powerful , also with a touch of frailty and sadness about him.... but... in the short time he had been with the group, he seemed to have softened or was coming to an understanding with himself.

" Don't worry NightFlame, just take it as it comes, and maybe a smile in the cubs direction sometimes when they are sneaking those little peeks at you, wouldn't hurt. They will come to you again, just... next time, maybe think a little what its like to be a cub trying to work out new feelings and hurts, and I'm sure you have a lovely smile, if you would care to use it"

Breaking out into a laugh at his expression, Maisha winked at NightFlame and moved forward once more to catch up with the others.

[genie]

Leela swished her tail some more and tipped her head to one side looking like she didn't understand what Karensha was saying to Serena "Is mummy sad?? Am I bad?? Did I upset mummy..." her little lip trembled and it looked like she was gonna cry.

--------------------

Memkra watched Maisha talk to Nightflame, he glanced around, where was Karensha, Sereana and Leela, they had all disappeared, he looked all around and sniffed around trying to catch their scents on the wind.

[Sarafina]

Sereana opened her muzzle a little. She stopped when Leela spoke. "Shh....No no baby. Mommas fine...I promise you." She smiled and winked at her baby girl. She looked at Karensha and sighed.

"I dont know...Nadayshana.... is a daddys girl. She always has been.. And wih it being me and her, a lot has changed. Now that shes back with males in a group, shes getting to attached. I can tell, that she is in love with Zulu.... And he is in love woth her. Nadayshana is just not a mommas girl. We hardly talk anymore. And with my baby girl," She smiled and ooked at Leela. "She doesnt want to come near me. So i just let her go with Zulu or who ever she wants to go to. "

A sigh escaped Sereanas lips. She sighed and shook her head. What could she say? Nadayshana was an unexpected cub? She didnt want her? She wanted to give her away? Yea that would go over well.

[Tamber]

Zulu nodded agreeingly and supportively to Nadayshana's responses. He was glad she was understanding what he told her.

Suddenly a question caught his ears, and they flitted up with his eyelids in surprise.

"Zulu...Is there a place to look at the stars there?"

Zulu looked down to Nadayshana and smiled after a few moments. He giggled and looked at her with joy in his eyes. "Shana, if I said no to that question, it would be the biggest lie I ever told," he said proudly. He hoped that would lift her spirits. Boy, what a surprise she was in for. This gave Zulu some hope that the peak would indeed lift Shana's spirits more than he had expected. It had become so hard for him to cheer her up, but maybe, as it had done for him many times, the peak would give her a rush of hope.

[Dakota]

Karensha listened carefully at what ws upsetting Sereana, she didn't have any experience to go on with cubs or much experience at all in regards to what she had said.

"I've never been around cubs at all Sereana, when I was growing up I was by myself, any friends I had were taken away from me. All I can say is don't let your baby drift away from you, you gave birth to her, whether you wanted to or not, she's your flesh and blood.."

Karensha paused, watching how the lioness was reacting, and hearing nothing , continued
" If she was a daddy's girl, maybe she is still in mourning for him, and doesn't know how to get past her grief. It's only natural that she would turn to another as a replacement father, she has Zulu, Memkra and NightFlame all here. But I think maybe what she would really like, is some special time alone with you, just you her mother, the only other one here who knew and loved her father like she did. Maybe she needs to know that you still love her and want her to be wth you, and that she doesn't feel like you have replaced her with Leela."
"You are in the same position Sereana, you both lost the one you loved the most. Maybe Nadayshana needs to hear about her father, all the good things, the things she didn't know about him, but you did, she needs to hear about him, and you are the only one to do that."

" I've got Leela, you know amongst us she will be looked after, how about right now, you go and join your cub and Zulu, and be with them and share some special time. Don;t leave it too late Sereana, its lonely place being by yourself, trust me on that."

Looking ahead, she realised that Memkra had slowed down and they had caught up with the others. "Leela you comfy up there, or maybe you would like a ride on Memkra now, or perhaps walk like a big lioness, what do you think ?"

Giving Sereana a nudge, karensha smiled gently at her " Now..is the time, I think in your heart you know that...off you go "

[Sarafina]

Sereana listened to Karensha. She looked at the ground taking everything not to cry. She just listened. Every once in a while shed look at Leela and smile. She didnt want to leave Leela now. Leela was her baby... She looked at Karensha and then at the front of the group. she sighed at Zulu and Nadayshana. She sighed.

She felt Karenshas nudge. She sighed and nodded. "Okay..." her voice was softer then a whisper. It was almost un heard. She sighed again and padded a little faster to the front. She smiled softly at Zulu. She looked down at Nadayshana and smiled softly. "Hey baby girl..." she whispered. She licked her head and sighed. "How are you two doing?" she asked Zulu.

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Nadayshana giggled at Zulu. She nodded. "Okay Zulu. Come on Come on... I wanna goo!!!" she said laughing softly. She heard someone and turned. her mother...super! She sighed and smiled fakingly. "Hello mother.." she giggled and looked at Zulu. She gave him a look and then looked at her paws.

Her eyes focused forward. She WANTED to get to the Peek. She wanted to talk to her father in the sky. She culdnt talk to him unless the stars were out...she needed to. She had a lot of things to tell him.

[Kirsui]

((OOC: Apologies for the slow reply. XD))



Seleter giggled.
"Why yes Duna", she said. "It is that hornbill."
She grinned playfully, glancing at other group members before turning her attention at the cub again.
"Your turn", she said. "What are you spying?"

---

"-- maybe a smile in the cubs direction sometimes when they are sneaking those little peeks at you -- I'm sure you have a lovely smile, if you would care to use it."

Night Flame actually chuckled at Maisha, an amused smile on his face as he looked at the lioness. Had it been a few days before he wouldn't have been amused. But something had clearly changed, and though he still mostly was the same cold being, a sparkle of warmth had found its way inside his heart. Not that he himself noticed it...

Maisha moved forward, leaving the dark furred lion alone at the end of the group... again. Sighing he shook his head before he gazed around the group. Zulu and Nadayshana were still ahead, Sereana had now joined them while Karensha was carrying Leela... Memkra had slowed down and Karensha seemed to approach him. Seleter and Duna were...

He lifted an eyebrow curiously. The two seemed to play a game. He examined the two, curiousness written all over his face until he had understood the idea. So it was a spying game... He thought he had once played it himself, but it had been a long time ago. He smiled, both at the slightly happier memory and at the cheetah and the cub. He decided to keep at the end of the group like so far, but this time he'd be watching the two play.

And without him realizing it the faint smile remained.

[Tamber]

Zulu grinned at the little cub. Finally! She smiled at him! She was giggling, and at last was eager agian to reach the peak, perhaps as much or more than he was. Looking up he saw Sereana arrive, greeting him and her daughter with a smile. It was the first time he had seen Sereana with Shana since yesterday. He wondered ust what the lioness was thinking. Shana had been planning on sleeping alone with tears in her little eyes until Zulu took her with him. What if he hadn't woken up and heard her sobbing? She might have been alone all night, without her mother to comfort her.

Still, Zulu was as cordial as ever. "Good day, Sereana. Looks like we're just fine. Care to join us in our walk?" With that the cheetah stood up and began walking once more, hoping the others would follow.
_________________________________
Duna snickered under her breath at the fact that she had been correct. Now it was her turn to spy something.

"Hmmmm...let's see..." she thought to herself. "That rock? No, too bovious. Hmmmmm....Zulu? No, he stands out too much." After a few moments, Duna knew exactly what she would choose: the sun! It was so big and obvious, yet more often than not, no one really thought about it being there.

"I spy something big!" she said, confident that her idea was genius.

[Dakota]

Karensha watched as Sereana half heartedly moved to catch up with her daughter and Zulu. I hope Zulu shows some understanding about how hard it is for the lioness to approach them, she feels already that he has taken her place with Shana, anyone can see that she is lonely and frightened.

"how you going up there little one, can you see for miles and miles ?", Karensha could feel Leela's little paws on her back and the slight pull in her purple tuft, but hadn't heard her say anything yet.

Moving a little faster the snow leopard could see Memkra the closest to her, and walked up behind him softly. Reaching out quickly with a paw she swatted the end of his tail playfully, just to let him know that others were there.

" We're back... just had to go find where this little one and her mum had got to, hopefully things might be get a bit better for Sereana and Shana once they talk, in the meantime ,you Memkra are going to help me look after Leela, because...well I really don't know what to do."

why does everyone assume that because you are female, you should know what to do with cubs, this is the first time I've been around any, and its confusing

[genie]

Karensha came up behind him and spoke to him before swatting his tail Memkra turned to look at her with a grin "So the wind has blow two tumble weeds my way, what a susprise... a big one and a cute little one". Memkra took in what Karensha said about looking after Leela and added "How is aunty Karensha, Leela?"

----------------------

When Karensha asked about how far she could see, Leela burst into giggles and said "I don't know... I see sand and more sand... and more sand.. whats a mile??" the concept of distance really did't mean much to her.

Then Memkra spoke about being a tumble weed and she looked indignant "I'm not tumbleweed, I'm Leela!" she was at that age where she took things literally and did't really pick up that it was a joke. Then it was said about Karensha being aunt and she giggle and bounced slightly on Karensha in a excited voice saying "are you my aunty? whats a aunty?"

[Dakota]

Karensha grimaced when she heard Memkra call her Aunty. sending him a 'look', the snow leopard turned to Leela, still tapping away on her back, and tried to answer her as best as she could.

"well Leela, an aunty is just someone who cares about you, and looks after you when your mummy is busy.. which means that this smart lion here, is now your Uncle Memkra as well"

Letting a smile appear on her face, Karensha also blew a stream of air out to blow back all her fur from her tuft that was now hanging over her face thanks to the little cub moving all about, while trying to see what was up ahead.

"So Leela you can see lots of sand, that means we will be moving fromthe coolness of this jungle, out into the heat, you will have to take care so you don't get overly hot..ok, maybe you could hide down a little under my tuft or even on Memkras back, he seems to have a lot of wild fur hanging around with that mane of his."

As they kept walking ,getting closer to Duna and Seleter, Karensha turned her neck and looked back over her shoulder, just making sure NightFlame was still with them all, it wouldn't have surprsied her to find him missing, but seeing he was still there, and even had a look of satisfaction on his face, made Karensha give a smile of encouragement to him, beforeshe turned her head back to the front seeing the group all start to merge again.

[Kirsui]

Seleter lifted an eyebrow.
'Something big...?' she thought, glancing around.
'Something big...'
What would a cub consider big? There were a lot of things around that the golden cheetah thought Duna might have meant. Rocks, stones, trees, the group members...
'Something big........'
She glanced up at the tree tops and saw the sky, the sun, clouds.
'Something big.............. Oh!'
She smiled and turned back at Duna.
"That cloud above us?" she guessed, unsure if it was right or not.

---

Night Flame chuckled amusedly when he heard Duna's hint. It wasn't an easy one, there were a lot of big things around. The trees were huge, the nearby rock was huge, even the sky itself was huge. But for some reason he felt that the cub wouldn't pick up something as simple as those. No, he thought she was smart enough to come up with something much more complicated.

Such as the sun.

He really didn't know how he knew, but for some reason he just knew that had to be what the cub was thinking. And he actually had a very amused smile on his face as he followed how Seleter struggled with the answer. When she finally said cloud as her answer he shook his head, again chuckling out of amusement while he continued to watch the playing duo.

Duna indeed was a clever cub.

[Sarafina]

Sereana sighed and smiled softly. "I guess ill walk with you. " Her voice was soft and almost non heard. She really didnt want to. But she wasnt going to upset Nadayshana. She looked down at the cub who walked with Zulu.

She knew that Shana was in love with Zulu. She just didnt know what to do with that. Zulu was.... different. She sighed and looked around. She didnt know what she was going to do now. Talking to her daughter felt weird. She loved her to death, but it didnt feel right.

Sereana looked at Zulu and smiled. She looked at the ground. Her head turned and she looked at Leela. Her, Karensha and Memkra were all in the back, Leela looked so cute. It was like Leela completed her life. She mentally hruged. She then just looked at Zulu and wndered what they should do .

[Dakota]

Maisha trotted along, still having the smile on her face after teasing NightFlame, she liked seeing the startled expression come over his face, when she talked with him, and left him with a playful comment, she wasn't being hurtful, just trying to make him come out of his shell a bit more and relax. One day she hoped to see from the lion ,a huge bellow of laughter and then she would know her job was done.

Looking over her shoulder she saw karensha giving Sereana a nudge and take Leela from her and place her on her own back. ooh Sereana doesn't look happy, and now she's with Zulu and her cub, and the Cheetah's not too particular about having her there as well

Not too sure about what to do, Maisha knew it wasn't the time to interupt, that 'little family, turning back she quietly started humming a tune to herself to pass the time, while up ahead she could see a heat haze emitting from the pale sand. It looked like the coolness of the jungle was about to give way to some hot days of travelling.

[Tamber]

Zulu, newly uplifted by the fact that Nadayshana was now excited and happy to be moving again, was again disappointed to see a saddened Sereana walking beside him. Zulu wasn't always the happiest cheetah, by any means. No, he had plenty of hauting problems of his own. Still, he prefered happy company to sad company. If he was in a good mood, he would do anything to lighten the moods of others. He wanted them to feel the happiness along with him. Besides, if everyone around you is downhearted, how could one expect to remain happy for long?

Zulu grinned and held his head high as he looked to Sereana. "Well, why so unenthused, Sereana? You make it sound like I am the biggest bore of a traveler." As the lioness looked up at him with a sad expression, he returned it with a beaming smile, showing his good intentions and pure heart. He then turned to Shana, who was bouncing along happily on his back. "Well Shana knows better, right chickypoo? Why don't you go show your mother what fun travelmates we can be?" With this the cheetah leaned forward and let Shana slide gradually off his neck. He gave her a reassuring nod, knowing she might be uncomfortable seeing her mother. Beaming brightly as he looked in the cub's eyes, he hoped she would keep her spritely spirits alive as she visited her mother for the first time in quite a while.
_________________________
Duna held a proud head as Seleter searched around her for a guess of what she was spying. Hearing the cheetah's answer, she gave a short and gentle chuckle to herself. She looked up to Seleter proudly. "Nope," she said with a sly expression and confidence in her voice. "Guess again!"

[Sarafina]

Nadayshana wasnt very happy that Zulu was making her go see her mother. She sighed through her smile. She trotted over to Sereana. Her face was still a little sad, but she didnt want to explain herself to Sereana.

All she thought about was the night before with Zulu. How come it seemed like he was the only one who cared about her right now? Was he the only one that cared about her right now? She hoped not. But who knew? Maybe he was the only one. She wagged her little butt and sprang onto Sereanas back. She looked at Zulu with a small smile.

"So travel group...what shall we talk about?" Her little voice sprang out of no where. She totally broke the silence. Oops. Oh well. Her eyes gave Zulu a look that told him: 'Later, ask her whats wrong...'. Knowing her and Zulus bond, she hoped he understood. She really hoped.

SHe was upset, but seeing her mother upset wasnt helping her out much. Even though as of right now, she could care less. Her mother was a careless mother when she was younger. She wasnt really raised by her mother. It was all her father. Why do you think she was so much like a little boy cub? Her dad taught her everything.

. . . . . . . . . .

Sereana smiled as Nadayshana slid off of Zulus back. A smile that hasnt been on her face in a while. She laughed a little as she felt soft paws land abruptly on her back. She looked back at her and nuzzled her in a loving way. It felt really wierd.

Sereana hadnt seen Nadayshana in almost a full day. Maybe more. She wasnt really sure. Her life was slowly getting better, yet in a way it was getting worse. A soft sigh blew through her lips. Her ears perked up as a soft voice filled the air. She looked over at Zulu.

"Hmm...Im not sure Shana. What exactly should we tralk about, 'Ol Boring one?" She wasnt being mean, She had to. Her focus was on Zulu. A smile never left her muzzle. She nudged his neck with her muzzle. "You know im kidding cu-" She stopped herself.

CUTIE! What were you thinking Rea. She shook her head and looked away. Maybe this..wasnt a good Idea. She sighed. It was more a groan, then a sigh. But a sigh non the less. She stomped her paw once aggravated, but made it look as though a fly was othering her. She just TOTALLY messed up there. He wasnt supposed to know she liked him. He will NEVER know...no one will ever know.

[genie]

Memkra smiled somewhat to karensha and said to "My my... aunty karensha seems confused... everyone knows its not uncle memkra but mr fun memkra!!!" and he chuckled a bit mostly to himself waiting to see what reaction she would give to this.

----------------------------

Leela gave a yawn and laid her head down in Karensha's fur, it was soft and springy like it was made for laying on, add on to that the fact that she'd tired herself out from the burst of energy previously, her eyes soon dropped and she was sleeping there in no time.

[Dakota]

All of a sudden Karensha couldn't feel Leela bouncing around, Oh my goodness I haven't dropped her off my back have I

Twisting her head around, she breathed a sigh of relief, when she saw the little cub snuggled down fast asleep in her purple fur, life seemed so easy for Leela.. play, eat and sleep.

Listening to Memkra, a smile came to her face " Mr Fun Memkra, is it , we will see, you might be good at splashing water, but I haven't seen much else from you yet.. promises, promises ."

Carrying on walking by his side, Karensha fell silent, just matching his pace as they came closer to leaving the cool lush jungle behind.