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Tahi sighed, slowly letting the air out of her lungs. Not that she was tense, or unhappy, in fact, an eerie tranquility filled her spirit. Her sigh perhaps fit better into the category of loneliness - Although she was satisfied or relieved that no lion needed her services, she couldn't deny that sometimes that small cave where she lived and cared for her patients, became gigantic with the silence.

The rainy season didn't help much, because depending entirely on her hearing, the gentle sizzle that the raindrops rumbled on the blades of tall grass or the broad leaves of the acacia trees was enough to disturb her sense of space. The vibrations of footsteps mingled with the distant rumble of thunder, and smell was impaired, too, as any scent was masked by the damp petrichor of wet earth.

So, for her own safety, the healer lioness had to remain cloistered in her own home, hoping that someone had woken up with a headache or stepped on a thorn, anything that would bring her company.

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Kazimir gazed at his own reflection in a pond not far from the plethora of trees that littered the pride’s territory. He shook his lengthy mane, trying to get it to lay perfectly. When it didn’t look just right, he would start over. Look, shake, consider, repeat. The process went over many times, then finally he took a last glance at himself in the pond, and nodded silently when he felt satisfied with the results.
The lion stood and yawned as he stretched. He must have been sitting and doing nothing for a while because he felt incredibly stiff. Kaz sauntered over to where the rest of the pride usually gathered when there was no work to be done. To be fair… there was always work, but that didn’t quite reach Kaz’s radar since he embodied more of a ‘free spirit’ way of life. He hated being tied down by monotonous tasks like patrolling or guarding.
Kazimir comfortably slid into a lay, careful to not tug on any of his body jewelry as he scanned the area for any other pride members. He spotted Meiomi; who looked like she was taking a nap- but frankly one could never know what she was truly doing. He learned the hard way that even if she looks asleep, she could be observing every little thing around her. Kaz never really understood that, but honestly he was rarely alert or aware of his surroundings. The lion set his head in his paws as a bored expression formed on his face.

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Kozmier rolled onto their side as the morning sun hit their eyes. Sunrise, as they understood it, was the perfect time to become enamored in tasks. Just beyond where they had slept, they could spot their brother and sister lying together. They huffed as they stood on their paws, releasing the tension in their jaw with a large yawn.
Walking over to Kaz and Mei, they began prodding their brother with a black paw, eager to get a reaction out of the prideful lion. "Your manes messed up again, Kazimir." They said with a deadpan exprestion. Many lions had told them that they looked... bitchy. But that was fine with Kozmier. The more unfriendly they looked, the less liklyhood of other lions actually trying to talk to them.

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Kaz lifted his head and gave Kozimer a horrified look- he actually felt quite devastated “Is it really??” he practically shrieked. He figured that Koz wouldn’t be joking by their expression. The lion cleared his throat and spoke again “I just spent the longest time fixing it…” he huffed as he rolled his eyes dramatically. He silently recalled waking up well before all the others to perfect his look.

Meiomi grinned with her eyes still shut, her ears swiveled in the direction of her siblings as she listened to Kazimir get all worked up.

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They leapt onto their brother, rolling him around in the dirt before leaping back again, a triumphet look on their face. "It is now." They said, a smug look creeping onto their face.
Despite their cocky words, they sat back down and began to help their brother re-groom his mane, licking his cheek apologetically.

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A pocket of sunlight beamed into the den, the rays entering from the singular hole. The light didn't quite reach Nam'Kal, instead it lifted the mood of the den from a dark gloomy cave to a dimly lit hollow allowing more visibility. Her internal clock told her it was time to wake up, rising from her lying position to stand, the dark colored lioness bent down for a stretch. Her spine extended while a yawn shoved past her mouth. It was time to start the day with her usual duty of overseeing, she'd have to check that everything was in order. Making sure the hunters gathered enough food for the pride, that mentors were instilling proper technique to the trainees, and the flora were growing well in the current climate.

She could have delegated someone else to supervise, maybe one of her children? The twins should be taking more of an active role in the pride, one day they may rule. Or maybe give the task to her youngest? No matter the age her offspring should learn responsibility, they'd have to learn the skills required in running a pride. Every tiny piece mattered from the smallest of roles to the biggest. They each had their part to play, and Nam'Kal hated incompetence, just the mere thought sent a white hot flash of rage running through her veins. Shaking her head to rid such thoughts the lioness took off out of the den.

She gracefully prowled through the land, keeping her pawsteps light. One could never be too cautious. While roaming her eyes caught sight of many twinkles, she'd know those glittering jewels anywhere. Even better, all of her cubs were in one spot, she wouldn’t have to search them out. Nam'Kal sauntered over to the group, acting as if they didn't have a care in the world ....how amusing. "And pray tell what exactly you are doing, my dears?", despite the honey tone used the sentence broke off into an angry hiss.

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A long yawn came from the maned lioness as she patrolled the land. Her aqua colored eyes glittering in the light. They gazed tiredly over the scenery almost dozing off as she walked. They had walked this route hundreds of times even before she was a sentinel and just a mer trainee. Nothing ever happened, except for the few times of young lions being where they shouldn’t be, but inej didn’t blame them. Being young meant causing trouble and learning from the consequences afterwards.

Her mane ruffled in the breeze that passed through. They took in a deep breath stopping to enjoy the wind. The lioness stood tall closing her eyes and letting her other senses take over. Their ears picking up sound of running water, nose catching wiff of prey, her fur feeling the wind blow. Opening her eyes she let out a soft chuckle.

They glanced around herself, making sure she didn’t miss anything will enjoying the wind. When seeing there was nothing new they continued on. She could collect some bones while she was out here. It wouldn’t hurt, and she did need a few more for the necklace she was making. Her tail flicked thoughtfully to their ideas.

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Kazimir abruptly stopped throwing the fit over his mane as he heard his mothers voice.
He sat up and straightened his posture as he addressed Nam’Kal “Good morning mother- I was…” He paused as he thought of something decent to say, as if he wasn’t doing nothing productive all morning “I scouted to the pond earlier, and returned to rest when I found nothing out of the ordinary. I’m actually quite sore! I may have to pay a visit to Tahi soon.” He stretched his limb in an exaggerated manner, then looked as his mother as he tried to gauge her reaction to his performance.

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KozImer looked down at their paws. To say they were imtimidated by their mother was... an understatement. Nam'kal, for whatever reason, always rendered them speechless. As they listened to their brother's performance, they looked up at the queen, watching her emotionless eyes stare through Kazimir. They quickly nudged him, trying to shut him up for once in his life. "We were actually... um... show Meiomi some new battlemoves." They said quickly, once Kaz had finished his ramble.

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Meiomi lifted her head as she heard her name mentioned. She narrowed her eyes at her siblings and shook her head when their mother wasn’t watching- she didn’t want to be brought into this hole they were digging themselves into. Her gaze flicked to her Nam’Kal, a lioness she deeply respected. Mei hoped to turn out just like her mother when she grew up; hardworking, logical, and calculating.
The young lioness stayed where she was, still holding her head high as she watched the scene unfold in front of her. The slight breeze brushed through her fur in the most elegant manner and she appeared quite stoic as she got comfortable and observed. If her mother called her down as well to explain herself, she could talk herself out of it… probably.

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Inej continued her patrol half searching for bones and half looking for anything that could cause trouble. The brown lioness started keeping her gaze more to the floor than anything else around her. They’re big paws pushing aside leaves and branches. It wasn’t until her paws met with a small buried bird skull did she stop.

Their excitement bristled through their fur. Carefully they started digging the dirt around said skull. She definitely didn’t want to break it and considering how small it was, it was easily possible. The maned lioness stayed their digging for more then a few minutes.

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The queen waited patiently as her children tried to explain themselves, her eyes casually darting between them. When there was silence once more, she kept quiet. Only the sounds of the wind carrying through and their breathing could be heard. After a moment a puff of air escaped out her mouth. It could have been a tiny laugh or the beginning of a sigh. "So you're sore?", her icy gaze turning to Kazimir then it rounded on KozImer. "And both of you took it upon yourselves to actually do some duties? Training your sister?". If Nam'Kal knew one thing, it's that no one really wanted to work unless they had some sort of stake in it. But this could be a wonderful opportunity to not have them lazing around. Made up with her decision the grey lioness let out a hum, "Yes, that sounds wonderful. I'll be sure to check up on you later for progress in the training", her tone easing out to something more neutral. Her gaze scanned her children faces once more before giving a small nod of approval and walking off. She flicked her tail in show of communicating her goodbye, carrying on with her overseeing.

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To Kazimir, that went better than he expected. He turned and whispered to his sibling “I actually am sore by the way.” Then he looked at Mei and hissed “Hey come here- it’s time for your training.” He smirked as he watched her reluctantly get up and waltz over to where they were gathered. “I knew you were awake the whole time” he muttered.

Meiomi stood in front of the two and let out a sharp laugh “You two are knuckleheads. What are you going to teach me? Sparring? Tracking? Healing?”
She eagerly waited for them to reveal the lesson- the thought of learning something new actually excited the young lioness and put her out of her stuffy mood.

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