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From Sky --
Miss Misa's journey to Xynriel's pride was a long one. During the championships, she watched her former king lose battle after battle. Disgusted by his weakness, she simply left him. After hearing a young male cheering loudly for a lovely looking lion, and then loudly bragging that HE knew the lion personally, she walked up and sat in front of the youngling. He looked at her and tilted his head, and in response she glanced over her shoulder at the winner of the last championship game. He grinned and told her he'd be right back. She watched as he trotted away, whispered to the winning lion, and came back with him in tow. She put on her best "Oh Wow You're The BEST Lion!" face and sighed inwardly at her own display. He smiled at her and licked her face once, a quiet invitation to his den. She followed him home, to find herself surrounded by simpering lions who worshiped the ground their king walked on.
She spent much of her time in his pride on the outskirts, never wanting to be with the other lionesses. She refused to hunt with them, and ate only the small prey she could catch for herself. She went into heat shortly after arriving, and the king sniffed her out, growling about how she shouldn't be so far away from him when she's so vulnerable. She submitted to the breeding out of need rather than any form of desire. Once the cubs were born, the king sighed and rolled his eyes at them, clearly displeased. She continued nursing her litter until they were ready to eat real food, then watched as her "king" sent her cubs away. She had no idea what happened to them following that, she only knew that she needed to escape.
Her chance came very soon after, when a lion came to visit her pride. She was intrigued by him, he didn't look like any lion she'd ever seen before. She spent as much time as she could with him while he was there, and when he departed, she told her king that she was going with him. He didn't put up any fight, so she left. Catching up to him on the road, she playfully swatted at his tail before rubbing against his side. He smiled at her, seemingly glad of her company on his trip home.
Once they arrived at her new pride, she was thrilled to see dozens of lionesses that were all beautiful. She settled in with them, going on a few hunts and working to become part of the pride rather than an outsider as she was before. Everyone respected their king, but it wasn't idol worship as it had been at her last pride. Here, she found that everyone worked together to make the pride better. Everyone took turns hunting, everyone took turns watching cubs. The king helped too, which she hadn't expected. When she went into heat again, she gladly went to her king, asking him to please help her out. Once her cubs were born, her king was surprisingly involved in their lives, even from birth. He came by daily to check on her, and to groom the cubs and tussle once they got a little bigger. She was content here, truly happy for the first time in her life, and she stayed for several years.
Eventually, she started getting restless. She loved her king, truly, and he adored her. But she needed something different, something new. She quietly approached him one evening and tried to break the news to him gently. He smiled, understanding her completely, and seemed happily surprised that she had stayed so long to begin with. He said that, if she didn't already have an idea of where she'd like to go, he had a friend who was known to hundreds of lions, and he might be able to introduce her to someone who sparked her interest. He said he would be very sad to see her go, but he knew that keeping her here would be cruel and unusual. She was thrilled by his acceptance and agreed to stay with his friend until someone new came along. She spent the rest of the evening snuggled by his side, silently thanking him for his support and understanding.
She was escorted to his friend's pride shortly after, and hadn't even gotten a chance to settle in before she was introduced to so many lions it made her head spin. So many of them seemed interested in her, and she was equally interested in several of them. In the end, however, it was Xynriel that caught her gaze and held it. He was quiet and kind, a little younger than her, and the most gorgeous shade of red. She agreed to go home with him and begin the next chapter in her life in his pride.
It was smaller than her former prides, but full of beautiful lionesses, some in their prime and others well past. She thought to herself that perhaps this time, she would stay put and her remaining years could be filled with lovely cubs and quiet naps.
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