Following Tumble's lead, Ahmen paced a few steps behind them scanning the mentioned area. Grove's weren't his favorite place to sleep. They were harder to find and build shelter in unless you were small and he had a big build. "Hopefully we can find a decent structure in there or something to block the winds".

Lunar's mention of all three of them as a pride made the dark lion face warm up. He hadn't asked Tumbleweed that question yet, he didn't want to rush the idea. He wanted her to join, it sounded interesting but giving her some time to sleep on the notion would be helpful. It also gave him some time to have reality set in about the new pride he joined and friends made along the way. All this contemplating was making his head hurt.

Ahmen turned his head toward the new lioness to inspect her. The first thing that stood out was her unique pelt. He's seen mixed coats but not with those specific patterns of white. But other than that he had no other thoughts, he didn't really know the feline and It wasn't in him to ignore another being sad. "Invite her over! More lions in the pile just makes it warmer right?". With that said the male began his search for a bed.

He followed pace with Tumbleweed in the beginning before venturing into the grove. Inspecting the trees and trying to find the densest group of them. That way they'd be able to block the growing chill and conserve more heat.

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For some reason Lunar's heart jumped when Ahmen agreed to let the lioness join, however he still turned towards Tumbleweed to wait for her opinion. He didn't want her to feel pressure to accept the other lioness, and it wasn't in his power to probe her on the reason - maybe they knew each other?

"Don't feel pressured to agree, you can decide whatever you want - we can always compromise!"

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Tumbleweed looked back and forth from Lunar and Ahmen, getting the distinct sense she had missed some important conversation. Part of the pride? She would go along with it for at least tonight, and think on it in the morning. A yawn escaped her jaws as she considered the question. The right thing to do, of course, was let the lioness stay with them, but something about the stranger's vivid coat seemed oddly familiar.

One of her old pridemates must've had similar markings, that must be it. Trying to shake off any doubts she felt with a quick shake of her coat, partially to get some dirt off and partially to warm up, she looked the other lioness up and down. Definitely not someone she knew. Relaxing almost unconsciously, she agreed. "Of course she can come over. I wouldn't turn away another lioness wanting somewhere warm to sleep." Tumbleweed hoped the other lioness hadn't noticed her acting so odd, but the idea that someone from her old pride had somehow came here had sent shivers down her spine.

But they hadn't, she reminded herself. It was best to move on towards more productive things, like what Ahmen was doing. They would need to find a big tree, she suddenly realized, if they wanted to fit all of their rapidly growing group. She went to join Ahmen, who had moved up ahead, and started to look around, tail swaying slowly from side to side.

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Mistletoe's impatience caused her to follow Lunar. Overhearing the other two lions say she could stay for the night brought so much happiness and hope to her. She trotted over, smiling at the other two. "Hi, I'm Mistletoe." She introduced herself.

Mistletoe glanced over the strangers, giving them a big smile. Her tail occasionally flicked at the bugs that would buzz around her. It felt nice to finally be around other lions. However, she still had a small part of her that felt she would get thrown out. Only time will tell, but she hoped she would stay and make new friends.

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Obsidian had been hiding behind a bush under the grouping of trees while the two lions, a male and female, had walked closer. She watch them from her only usable eye as they seemed to be chatting as they searched for something. ‘Probably a safe and warm cave.’ She thought to herself. She then watched as another male bounded up to them eventually followed by another female. She wanted to hear what they were saying but she knew that getting closer would require her to reveal herself to them. She hoped she wasn’t encroaching on their territory. They looked like a pride and she instantly felt jealous of their seemingly closeness. ‘Why couldn’t my pride have just been accepting?’ She thought sadly. She shook her pelt to chase her thought, which made the bush shake differently that the way the cold wind shook it.

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"Hi Mistletoe!"

Lunar beamed back at her.

"We're just looking for a place to rest for the night, there should be a small stone cave near here... somewhere..."

He brushed dry leaves back and forth with his paws, and accidentally squashed a little worm hiding underneath one with his paw. He flicked his tail.

"I guess we just search a little longer!"

A rustling sound made his head turn and his eyes focused on a small berry bush. It had moved. He was sure of it. Lunar immediately crouched down and bared his long teeth - taking on a defensive position.

"Reveal yourself immediately!"

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Ahmen gave a bow of his head in greeting to the new lioness before continuing with the task at hand. He moved throughout the grove methodically searching into the underbrush for hopes of finding a large enough hollow or material for a nest. This was't the ex-rogue first time by a long shot. The coalitions lived in prior, at times grew to 5 lions. But a coalition and pride were much different. The most experience he had with a pride was his birth one but he didn't like to think about them. Too many unpleasant feelings that he'd rather tamper down.

He was silent as he worked. Ahmen didn't mean to ignore Tumble but his mind was too preoccupied. It didn't help that Tumbleweed was also a new forming bubble in his mind. He liked her well enough and wouldn't mind getting to know her more. Weirdly she made the older lion a bit self conscious, as if he might trip over his own paws. And that would be mortifying, just a bit. Ahmen took in a breath, letting it out as a silent sigh. Oh well, life keeps moving.

While rummaging about, a perculicar bush caught his attention. It looked like every other plant but something about the movement threw him off. He tensed. The male shared a glance with Tumble, his tail raised in a way to ask for silence and lurked towards the bush.

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Tumbleweed joined the two males, claws unsheathed, keeping still. Such a hostile reaction from lunar must mean something was wrong. The bush hadn't seemed offputting, but it was probably best to just follow Ahmen's lead, and keep silent. The new lioness, Mistletoe, was a short ways behind them, probably having followed lunar down into the valley. Tumble had heard a small cave mentioned by lunar, so if they could walk away from whatever this way without a fight, they could probably get some sleep.

She shifted slightly, ready to pounce if anything came charging out of the bushes. Lunar and Ahmen would certainly be more useful in a full on fight, but three lions were better than two.

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Obsidian let out a squeak as they noticed the bush move. She didn’t want to leave her hiding spot but she didn’t want them to attack her either, so she reluctantly stepped out from behind the bush. She really wished to avoid conflict, as it reminded her of her old pride. She stared at the ground as she slowly padded nearer to them. The wind became more intense than when she was hidden in the undergrowth and she shivered slightly.

When she seemed that she was close enough to them, she slowly lifted her head up. She didn’t raise it up very, just enough to look at them through her right eye. She did catalogue some of their pelts as they were strange to her. She then looked to their faces, open hostility still clearly showing.

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Mistletoe moved to stand next to Tumbleweed. She tilted her head as she flicked her tail, her face emotionless. Her face was calm, and her body relaxed. She was too tired to fight and didn't want to fight the stranger. She sat down, licking her paw and rubbing dirt off her face.

She gave the new lion a small smile, shaking her coat. "Hi, I'm Mistletoe. What's your name?" She asked the lioness. She noted the lion's dark coat and bright orange eyes. Bet it helps having a coat like that at night.

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She looks at Mistletoe with her strange markings. And for once, a kernel of hope sparked. ‘Maybe they will accept me?’ She thought to herself. So she mustered her courage, and her words to say, “I’m… Obsidian,” She replied, her voice was rough with disuse. She rumbled her throat to clear it and tried again. “My name is Obsidian.” She said, her voice softer now with a bit more volume to it.

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Tumbleweed stepped forward, enough so that she was standing in line with Lunar and Ahmen, as she looked over the strange lioness, this obsidian. The name was clearly fitting, and Tumbleweed found herself inspecting the lioness a bit more closely. She was clearly half blind, but didn't look starved, or too badly injured. Tumbleweed was definitely intrigued now, ears slightly pricked. If she wasn't badly injured, the stranger was likely good at catching small prey, which would make her a decent addition to their little group.

Tumbleweed shifted back to her former position, train of thought interrupted. It was strange, just how quickly she had started thinking of them as a group, rather than a loose band of lions that had banded together to sleep for the night. Seeing how tired Mistletoe was, Tumbleweed sympathized. She would rather avoid a fight, but two strange lionesses in one day seemed like one too many. They should sleep soon, and think on it in the morning. Besides, it was getting colder the longer they spent out like this, and Tumbleweed would much prefer being able to feel her paws over having to find even more material for a nest. She usually got pretty grumpy when tired, especially in big groups like this.

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Watching the lone lioness present herself sent a pang of sympathy to Ahmen’s chest. She seemed scared and cold and that wouldn’t do. He lowered his hackles, feeling the tension ease from his body. Looking around, many of the others were also ready to put up a fight. “That was a close call”. Thankfully no blood would be shed today.

The dark lion shouldn’t be surprised. The little group were the only ones active in the night. They must have been making noise loud enough to draw others to their location. They still needed to find a proper shelter but the day has been too long already. He was too tired to do anything more.

Surveying the black lioness interactions, she didn’t seem as if she posed a threat. Quite the opposite. What’s one more added to the sleeping pile? “Hello Obsidian. I’m Ahmen, we’re all tired from our travels and you seem the same. Join us for the night and in the morning we’ll talk more. Deal?”, he said with a small smile.

Moving away from the group Ahmen walked deeper into the grove. Finding a spot beneath a cluster of tree roots. It seemed large enough to accommodate everyone. He did a slow circle before laying down and putting his eyes to rest.

(Lol mans is finish for the night and will become sociable again in the morning))

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Obsidian let them assess her and watched the hostility slowly ebb away. She watch the one who went by Ahmen thinking about the offer. Sleep sounded wonderful, she had previously been trying to sleep but couldn’t get warm enough to stop shivering. And she nodded her agreement to the deal, but she waited for the others to follow him first.

As she waited she again studied the other King and lionesses. Mistletoe had laid down before sharing her name with Obsidian. And the other lioness had seemed to get lost in thought. “Sleep does sound pretty nice,”She murmured. “Especially in the warmth of a group.”

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Mistletoe slowly and groggily moved towards Ahmen. She laid down between him and the tree, close enough to stay warm, but far enough she could stretch out without hitting him. She yawned, curling up and getting comfortable. She nodded along to Obsidian's words. "Sleep and warmth are good." She mumbled, her tail flicking tiredly at the restless bugs. She slowly slipped into sleep.

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