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Aurora came to the pride when she was relatively old, forced by the paw of Waovu after a meager exchange of silver beetles. The neighboring prides thought that she would bring some wisdom to the hateful lion's mind, but in truth she was both neglected and abused by the thick maned male. Together in secrecy, her and Moyo had plans to run the pride much differently, but there was never a window of opportunity to attempt a coup-de-tat. The other females were loyal to Waovu by some heavy case of Stockholm syndrome, and a weak male and an elderly female would have no chance to stand up against Waovu's pride alone.
When Madai came to the pride and overthrew Waovu in the first fair fight of Waovu's life, Aurora and Moyo were allowed to stay because Madai saw that they had great information to share with him. Though while Moyo never became Madai's close friend and simply a dispenser of opinions, Aurora became a second mother to the young king. She was the one he turned to for advice, and one of the few who could make him laugh with her snarky comments and cynical-yet-at-the-same-time-optimistic outlook on life. She was so smart and wise that he was naturally drawn to her... and she got used to the smell of dogs and hyenas after a while. As much as Madai loved being around her, she enjoyed his insightful company. She adored how quiet and calculating he was, yet how the dogs and hyenas around him howled and barked and howled and went all-around crazy. They contradicted themselves and birds of a feather flock together.
But she was an old lion and she could not stay forever. She died without warning one rainy day, after telling everyone that she was tired and needed a nap. She just never woke up. Her daughter Mapenzi was the first to realize she would not wake up, and the night that they mourned her was the longest period of time at that point the pride saw Madai stay in one place. Even his companions were silent, curling up around his paws and nestled against her cold body. He became even more distant after that day, if it was possible, but she had left paw prints on his heart. He was no longer as cold as he used to be, and if sought out it was possible to get an audience with him. His deep respect for females and cubs stems from his time spent with Aurora and her only cub, Mapenzi, who succeeds her in the hunting party. One day she hopes to be even stronger and smarter than her mother ever was.
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