Nadia had been led here for a purpose. The royal woman still wasn't quite sure what that purpose was but she knew that it was something special. Things were certainly turning out to be quite interesting, between the countless challenges for prides and the many different unusual individuals she happened to come across. It almost seemed like her own melanism wasn't so rare in a sea of faces that were all unique in their own aspects. But regardless Nadia needed information to work with. She never went into a situation unprepared, oh no. Long limbs carried her svelte frame forward with poise and ease, nose twitching slightly as she inhaled the air around her. Another rain storm was on the horizon, but with the endless mounds of sand dunes before her she didn't mind. A little rain wouldn't hurt. But from what she could tell a pride lived here, so she trailed along, following their scent borders to determine for herself just how vast it was here.

+5 - Learn the extent of a pride's border (1/2)


@Ashelia

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH

The borders here are new but freshly kept - the pink king did a solid job of marking what was his. It's an easy enough thing for her to walk them, absorbing the little warmth the day had to offer. The sands are easy to traverse and she has no problems keeping her lackadaisical pace - stopping to sniff at rock formations of note, pausing to observe a bird swooping overheard. Ultimately it was a peaceful day, and during such times, her mind was keen to wander. Far past the shores of this island, past the boundries of the previous valley. To the desert she grew up in, the same one she had lost. It seemed so far away now, little more than a distant memory. Yet here in the sunlight, it was easy enough to recall. The weather wasn't nearly as warm, but there was the same sort of perfume on the wind. So much so that it knocks the winds out of her sails, and the Azar woman comes to an uncertain stop. Caught unawares. Sunlight eyes shift suddenly, and before her comes a starkly familiar shape. She stares, mouth agape, at the form - certain it was some sort of mirage. An imagined shadow. But it is no such thing, for she would never forget that face. @Nadia? comes her breathless voice, shaky on the wind. Like a little girl she calls out, uncertain - knowing her heart will fully break if this is some sort of trick.

code by irish; art by tanzani

She was unsure how long she was walking but what she did know for certain was that this area, surrounded by the sand dunes, reminded her of her old home. Her past that she had managed to leave behind along with the painful memories it carried. She trudged along, slowing her strides every so often so she could also lower her nose to the sand. There indeed was a pride here and the borders were relatively fresh. Over time Nadia was beginning to discover that there were many prides within this foreign land. "Nadia?" Instantly she froze her movements, dark eyes quickly darting to her surroundings. And for a moment, the frame of her former friend seemed to move and blend in with her surroundings. For a second Nadia wondered if this was just a mirage from her being out among the sand and heat, after all her ebony coat wasn't very friendly with the sun's rays. But then she found she was moving closer, strides quickening to close the gap between herself and the other. "Ashe!" She yelled then, her voice beckoning the woman closer to her as she bounded forwards. She took up the ground with ease, running towards her until eventually her frame collided with the other in a tight embrace. She inhaled the scent of Ashelia, hardly believing that she was here, alive! "I - I thought you were gone! Perished with the rest.." She said then, dark eyes glued to Ashelia's face as she pulled away just enough to really look at her. She pulled her in closer then, her grip tight as she held her to her. She was alive.


+5 - Learn the extent of a pride's border (2/2)


@Ashelia

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH

she waivers where she stands, unsteady as a sheet in the wind. her features, so pretty and refined, are pale underneath the brilliant sun as she stares. sunlight eyes do not stray from nadia's shadowy form, so familiar but unexpected. she all but clings to this moment, the heartbeat between moments, as she waits. truly she expects @Nadia to be nothing but a shifting shadow against the sands, a figment of her tired imagination. but... no. she is here, she is real, and she is bounding forward. a strangled cry rips from the azar's throat as she, too, leaps forward - intent on meeting her sister-in-law halfway. nadia, i - ! for the princess who prides herself on her words, she struggles here - dropping the ball almost immediately as all words fail her. she squeezes nadia, holding her close - delighting in this woman who she'd assumed was lost to her. forever. nadia moves back and ashe almost doesn't let go, but she does - a blinding smile on her face. i... we had to leave. we couldn't stay, not after everything... she struggles, a little, as she says this: swallowing thickly at the wave of emotions that come with the memories. her father, slain - for his crown. i can't believe you're here - i must be dreaming! her relief was palpable, even if she couldn't quite believe it just yet. are you okay? what about your family? your brother?

code by irish; art by tanzani

It was almost as if she was in a dream, it almost didn't seem real that Ashelia was here in front of her. Nadia had it in her mind this entire time that she had lost her, but finding her here and now was like a miracle. A breath of fresh air. And in the back of her mind Nadia couldn't help but wonder how that pink lion in her dream had known that Ashelia would be here, after all they were the reason that Nadia was drawn here like a moth to a flame. "My family .. I left them behind. Things grew chaotic the second your kingdom fell, I couldn't stand to stay after losing you.. or well I thought I lost you." She said softly, staring at her with complete relief. "Are you alone here?" She asked then, waiting for her loved ones response.


@Ashelia

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH

despite their proximity ashelia moves even closer, intent on blocking whatever rays she could with her body. she was not much taller than @Nadia, though she was #thiccer, but it's a instinctive movement. a habit she is happy to fall into once more. ears duck backwards as her almost sister speaks, and her heart grieves to hear it. the loss of her family was one thing, but to hear that nadia's family, too, suffered was another. surely there were other stories, similar to the dark woman's. i am truly sorry to hear that. she murmurs with a frown, wishing that for all their sakes that day had been different. she could not change the past, though. no matter how she wishes she could. are you alone here? nadia asks, and ashelia pauses. almost, her heart whispers - unkindly. no, i am not, she says instead for it is the truth - brows furrowing even still. my cousin, ebrahim, lives and has followed me here. she wished there were more, oh how she wished. but, dreams meant nothing - she could wish and wish with all her might, and her family would still be dead. i know my father is dead, but i am unsure of the others. she murmurs, and she's almost proud of the way her voice stays strong. it doesn't waiver, even if the words are cruel on her tongue. if they are not dead, then they are lost - gone, surely. but nadia was here. and that.... was enough.

code by irish; art by tanzani

She was relieved to hear that it wasn't just Ashelia that had managed to make it safely here but her cousin Ebrahim as well. She confirmed her father's death and how she was unsure of the rest of her family, unfortunately Nadia's face took on a solemn look. She didn't want to have to be the one to tell her that they had fallen, her family had been so close with her own and the fact that Ashelia's was lost - it pained Nadia to the core. "The important thing is that you are safe." She said boldly, gladly taking cover alongside her friend. The heat was excruciating and although Nadia would have gladly liked to stay longer she knew that it wouldn't be smart for her to do so. "I will be close by if you wish to find me.. we can catch up more. But this sun and this sand .. you know what it does to me." She chuckled before moving to hug her long lost friend once more, "We will see one another soon." She encouraged before taking one more glance around them. Thankfully she knew of shelter nearby and knew her smartest decision would be to find shade and fast. Though this conversation wouldn't be over, she would find Ashelia again, hopefully when the sun was down next time.


Exit.


@Ashelia

ART COPYRIGHT IRISH

safe seems a strange thing, a foreign concept. what was the point of safety when it meant her home - their home - had ripped from them? still, ashelia smiles. better to embrace the fact that @Nadia is here and whole, rather than drown in the sorrows of everything they've lost. better to turn their faces towards the present - the brilliant, blinding sun. come, then, she offers her friend, leaning into the black-pelted woman's embrace once more. she lets the touch linger, hoping to commit the comfort to memory - in case nadia, too, is taken from her. i will walk you out. there was shade back outside of the sands, and ashelia was no stranger to relenting to nadia's needs. exit

code by irish; art by tanzani