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Her days had been less than quiet. Yhe had grown up in a decently sized family, but by the time she had become an adult most of them had split off to find their own paths. She had grown too used to the peace and sometimes solitary life of a rogue. In Bast'ion's den, there was no peace nor quiet at times. He had three growing daughters, and too many young sons for Yhe to keep track of. To say they stressed her out a little was an understatement.

Sometimes, it became all too clear why Bast'ion would slip away to go on raids. But, these were his children, his cubs - his responsibility. Yhe was just thrown into a motherly sort of role that she was not wholly ready for yet.

So, taking a cue from her 'master', she slipped away from the dens while most of the family was asleep. The lioness was mentally exhausted, and probably not in the best of moods to be tested. While the family was pleasant enough, Yhe truly had no friends or companions outside of it now. Having the family at the center of her life was a little jarring. This was not where she expected to be, and even if she came to terms with her enslavement it was difficult to adapt to it.

Keeping her gaze focused on the path ahead of her, she ignored some of the looks she was given as she passed by. While she may have 'threatened' to go to other meals just to get back at Bast'ion, she was in no way tempted to.

Eventually she found the peace and quiet she desired, away from the heart of the pride. A thrall probably had no business being so far out, but none had questioned her yet. She had to wonder if they could tell that she had no inclination towards running now. Yhe knew she wouldn't make it far. The dark lioness laid down on top of a large boulder, and for a few perfect moments, she enjoyed the quiet. The weather was surprisingly cooperative - the sky was clear, the drizzle of rain so subdued that she could barely feel it against her fur.

There really was no running for her. She shouldn't have been surprised to see Bast'ion strolling up to her as if he had been there all along. While she hadn't suspected she was being followed before, now it was pretty clear that he had been trailing her. She suppressed another loud sigh, and fixed on him a flat look. Her ears flicked back, and she waited for the lion to speak himself before offering any words herself.

She had no reason to explain herself - she had done nothing wrong. But, she was also very tired of fighting, and tired of a lot of things in general. The boulder was large enough that she could comfortably lay atop of it, and so she did. For some reason it gave her a great amount of pleasure to be able to look down on Bast'ion for once. "Running away," she answered, tone humorless.

Letting that sink in for a few seconds, she rolled her eyes and came out with a more truthful answer. "Taking a break from your family. If you haven't realized, I'm with them nearly every hour of the day and there is only so much my patience and tolerance can handle..." They weren't bad cubs - there were just a lot of them. Yhe was vastly outnumbered.

"I just wanted some time alone to be myself, to try and figure myself out again. A lot of things have changed lately," and the pointed stare at Bast'ion made it clear who it was she blamed for it, "and I'm not sure I'm the same lioness I was back when I was free." She did hope he felt a little bad for disturbing her, but she doubted he did.

"Whatever possessed you to have cubs I will never understand," Yhe told him disapprovingly. She was sure the lion at least loved his children, but he seemed to hardly ever be around them. Only lately had he begun to stick around long enough for Yhe to witness some of his interactions with the family. Before she would have questioned if he had even wanted cubs at all with how often he disappeared into the rogue lands. His attention was unfocused, his priorities completely out of whack.

The lion was not a perfect family man, but Yhe wasn't exactly motherly herself. He may have wanted her to watch over his offspring, but she did not quite possess... the parenting touch. She was empathetic and, deep down, a very sweet lioness. Bast'ion's capture of her had only driven those qualities into seclusion.

"That's-" the protest died upon her lips. Her intent had been to get away from the lot of them, Bast'ion included. The lion just wouldn't take the hint, and she wasn't sure she could chase him away without a fight. "You have to work to deserve a break," she scolded softly. But, she doubted he cared.

Yhe steadfastedly secured her spot on the boulder. She wasn't going to budge for him, nor was she going to hop on down and take a seat with the lion. Some days she would listen to him, but that was about the most use he got out of her. It was entirely likely she only listened to him because she had nothing better to do. There was only so much boredom she could handle. "Your girls are nearly all grown now, huh? I have to admit I don't really know how this pride works... Are marriages arranged, or even well... become a mated pair in this pride?" If there were loyal couples, she'd be surprised. She was pretty sure she had witnessed a fair amount of infedility from just about... every male she came across.

Somehow, Yhe really wasn't surprised that Bast'ion hadn't planned for having cubs. The poor mother must have died before she gave those cubs over to such a careless father. If it was even possible, her opinion of Bast'ion lowered even further. The lioness looked down at him from atop the boulder, her brows furrowed and her gaze disapproving. "You know, for taking responsibility I hardly see you 'parent'." Yhe hadn't been captured for long, but she could already tell what kind of lion Bast'ion was.

At least he didn't try to hide his nature, but she felt bad for all the chaos that he left in his wake. "I am not going with you to ruin more lives," Yhe shut the idea down quickly. Following that trail of conversation was altogether too risky. In no time Yhe would become irritable from the reminder alone that she had been captured on one of those 'vikings'. Bast'ion would have to drag her out of the pride by her tail if he wanted her to help him.

"But marriage is a thing, here?" It was one of the first times Yhe had shown any semblance of interest in the culture of the Stormborn. From what she could tell, they were a lawless group of lions who took pleasure wherever they could get it. They had no limitations, and no regrets for their actions. If they saw something they wanted, they took it. She viewed marriage as a more peaceful, loving commitment. These lions were almost all monsters, terrible creatures with no compassion or remorse.

"It just seems strange to me. Your pride does not seem to be much of a... loving group."

"I know," Yhe responded with just a small amount of smugness in her voice. She normally would not indulge herself in the little victories, but she was learning to take what she could get now. There was little happiness in this new home of her's, though that wasn't to say she was unhappy all of the time. Yhe was... adjusting, and that thought alone made her cringe. She saw no way to make anything of herself here. She was cornered and trapped in a pride when she was more of a free spirit.

Out in the roguelands, she could do as she pleased. Sure, survival was rough, and sometimes she went hungry... but she could at the very least be herself out here. Not this miserable shell of a lioness she once knew.

"I am surprised. After all, the lion I know the most in this pride is you... and you don't exactly paint a picture of a devoted lion." Yhe honestly would not be surprised if he had more cubs lying about. Bast'ion seemed to have little intent of settling down with a mate, and she doubted he was even capable of it. He was a broken lion. His ideals and actions were so far out of the norm for Yhe that she could only view him as such.

"Your idea of entertaining is skewed. If you settled down and stopped going on Vikings, you could spend time with your children and your friends. I think that is very fulfilling." Her tail flicked, curious eyes drawing back down to Bast'ion. She was being critical and judgmental, but she had no reason not to be considering what he had done to her. He deserved all of her ire, and none of the kindness she had once been so known for.

"It's not," Yhe countered with a knowing sigh, "trust me on that. The bits of your daughters' lives you missed are pieces you can never get back. In the end, for them, having a father is better than having none." The time had long since passed where Yhe had yearned to know who her father was. He had abandoned them all before they were even born, had left their mother to raise the rambunctious brood on their own. Perhaps he had known to distance himself from the tragedy that was their family.

She had wanted to find him, wanted to hear from his own mouth the reasons why he left them. The young, romantic fool that she was had hoped he posessed a legimitate reason for abandoning them. Yhe now knew that there was none. Her father had left because he did not want them and had no desire to be a part of their lives. It had been a painful lesson for Yhe to learn. The bitterness in her heart wasn't only just reserved for Bast'ion, after all.

"I don't. My conscience instead questions whether I've done enough. I watched as my family fell apart, and I was incapable of keeping them together. My mother dipped into solitude and grief, and there was no amount of joy that I could bring her. But I can't mute it, couldn't possibly figure out how to. It's just there, every day, moreso now than ever before. Because now," her gaze lowered back to him, silent and judging, "I cannot fix the mistakes I have made."

Her gaze turned away, unable to linger upon the sight of her captor. "I don't think drowning it out is the best way to handle your guilt. The only hope you have of conquering it is if you face it, but I do not suspect you are a strong enough lion to."

"Everyone makes mistakes," Yhe interjected, watching curiously as Bast'ion's words trailed off into something she could not understand. His voice had grown low and thoughtful, and she wondered if something had been stirred within him. She never expected to make Bast'ion see the errors of his way - she only hoped that he could look at himself and realize just how messed up he was. Yhe doubted he took any time at all to reflect upon himself. There were too many distractions in this world for her captor to even stop and take a look at himself.

She had said something that pushed the male too far. Frowning, she watched as the lion rose back up onto his feet and turned away from her. Running again. He had to know that Yhe spoke the truth, but as always he did what he seemed to be best at... running away.

"If you can't even face me now, you can't expect to be able to face yourself, Bast'ion!" she called out behind him. But, she suspected her words would have no effect.

With a sigh, she laid back down on top of her boulder and watched as the male disappeared into the distance.

He really was too far gone.