~Aiyenna's Island in Ruins~ ((Semi-lit ~ Always Accepting))

[Saeli]

Nio let out a loud yawn in reply to Ali. Bringing his horse to a stop a few feet away from hers, he easily dismounted. "A nap sounds nice right now," Nio allowed his horse to graze in the grass instead of fastening it to a tree and used his pack as a pillow on the ground. "Thanks, Ali," he muttered quietly.

[~Erica~]

"Yeah, no problem, go on to sleep, I'll keep watch." Ali murmured back, observing him out of the corner of her eye as she loosened her horse's saddle and dropped the reins. She knew Sim had probably trained the horses not to wander to far from their riders. He usually did. After a moment of two though, she sighed and rubbed her eyes. Staying awake was going to be hard, perhaps she should just join Nio and trust their safety to fate?

No. Better not.

She plopped herself down in the grass and leaned back against a tree, finding a comfortable spot between two roots. She would just keep her eyes open and... Ali yawned loudly. Maybe she would just close her eyes for a few seconds...

[Wildmagic_warrior]

As the two princesses entered her throne room, the Leopard Queen stood to greet each of them in turn with an elaborate bow. If the tigresses had not been quite comfortable before, they were sure to be out of their depth now, even though Amaali had done all that she could to make them feel at home. The Leopard Queendom was quite a bit different from the land ruled by Arita; leopards were, by nature, creatures of the land. They farmed for their food and stayed decidedly neutral in most major conflicts. The only exception to this was the Great War, and then only because their queen- Amaali's predecessor- had owed Arita's father a blood debt. Whereas Tigers were direct and aggressive, Leopards were calm and complex. They had ceremonies for everything, and hundreds of ways of saying yes when what they really meant was no.

"Please, my dears, sit," Amaali purred, spreading her hands and gesturing at the pillows strewn about the close-quartered throne room. Clapping her hands twice, the leopard queen summoned forth a servant who had been standing to her left with an ornate tray. Upon this tray was a beautifully crafted teapot and three dainty cups for the royalty to drink from. In Leopoard culture it was considered extremely rude not only to refuse the tea, but also to speak of business before it had been consumed. Shaily and Vanendra had, of course, been warned about this by the guards outside their rooms. Amaali knew that the tigresses would likely not remember, but it would not do to break custom even for foreigners who did not know the ways of her Queendom.

[Vanendra]

((Sorry if my post is short, I'm on a tablet and cant remember how I wanted to respond))
Vanendra bowed back at the leopard queen to show respect. The princess just had an odd vibe,no mattet how comfortable the leopard kingdom seemed. She'd probably feel better if she knew if Sampson was alright. Vane was disgusted with how lovestruck she was for the soldier, but there was just something about him.

[Wildmagic_warrior]

"Please, my dears, sit," Amaali told her royal guests with a tight smile. She seemed more on edge now than she had when she'd greeted the princesses in the courtyard, and the source of her stress was evident; she held a letter in her hand, just opened. Her messenger Elaine (whom she had sent to the ford to make sure that their lady searched the Bears' caravans for weapons) was standing by in the corner of the room, her hair slicked back with sweat. "Elaine," the queen told her messenger, "You are dismissed. If you wish to await your brother's arrival, you have my permission to ascend the wall steps and keep a lookout from the battlements." The female wolf bowed with a quiet, "Thank you, your majesty," before leaving the throne room through the door that had just admitted Vanendra and Shailly.

"The custom is that no business should be discussed before we drink tea together, but I believe that in this instance we may bend the rules," Amaali told the princesses. "My messenger has brought me a letter from the Duchess of Ford-On-Marsh, saying that the bears forced their way through the gatehouse and killed the majority of the castle's inhabitants. They have been shooting down all pigeons and hawks, which is why I did not hear of this immediately after it happened. Elaine was only able to get the letter out at high threat to her own life. I am afraid that the ford has been compromised, and I cannot guarantee he safety of anyone traveling that way, so it is my first priority to help my own people. I hope you can understand that our negotiations, no matter how important to you or your queen, must wait. You told me that Arita is dying; I am very sorry for my old friend, but it would have taken at least a week for that letter to get here. While I do not know this for sure, I believe that it can be assumed that she has died. The Leopard Queendom has not gone to war for a very long time, but we will need to prepare for it now."

[Saeli]

Nio woke up with a start in the broken light. It was just past midday and shards of light shined through the leaves of the trees. Looking around in the clearing he wondered why Ali hadn't woken him sooner, then he spotted her nestled in between the roots of a tree. Sitting up, he let his eyes dance around the clearing. The horses hadn't wandered to far from their riders, which was good. Nio would have been quite sad if they had needed to walk to their destination.

As the clearing seemed relatively quiet and safe, Nio decided to try and make a trap to catch some food while Ali slept. Eventually he crafted a very poorly made contraption that could snare a rabbit as he could not use his wrist. After setting his trap up, Nio began to gather some kindling in order to get a fire going. He assumed the risk of someone hunting for them would be slim at this point.

[~Erica~]

Ali jerked away with a yelp, jumping upright, knife in hand, heart pounding wildly in her chest. Seeing no one there she stumbled back a pace against the tree taking in a few deep breaths. It had only been a dream. Dropping the knife, she pressed her hands against her head trying to calm down.

It had been a long time since she'd had a that dream. Or perhaps nightmare would be a better descriptor in this case.

Her eyes flickered around the clearing, spotting Nio in an instant. Jaw clenching with anger at herself, Ali flushed slightly and bent to pick up her knife, hiding her embarrassment. There was no way he couldn't have seen that display of hers.

"Excuse me a moment." She muttered loud enough for him to hear before she slid around the tree to find a quiet spot to calm down. Somewhere he wouldn't bother her.

[Saeli]

Nio had his back turned to Ali as he leaned over the makeshift fire pit trying to get the kindling to spark. The task had his full attention as it was proving to be more difficult than it should. When he finally got the kindling to create a spark a triumphant smile appeared on his face only to be replaced by a scowl when he heard Ali yelp. His twigs fell to the ground snuffing out the tiny flame and his hand flew for his dagger as he turned in time to see hers fall and her hands cover her face.

Sliding the dagger back into its sheath, Nio took a step towards Ali opening his mouth to speak when she muttered something and went around to the other side. Once more he opened his mouth to call out to her but thought better of it and closed it. Their newfound closeness did not necessarily make them that close, yet he still worried about her. He decided he would follow her trail if she did not come back within the hour and went back to starting the fire.

[~Erica~]

Ali slid around to the other side of the tree and headed off, away from their camp. She just needed to get away. Walking through the trees, she sighed heavily and rubbed a hand over her face and through her hair. As soon as she felt she had gone far enough from the camp, Ali settled down at the base of a tree and closed her eyes feeling a few tears welling up.

Why now of all times did she have to remember that? Deep down she knew why. It was because of Nio. He had somehow managed to wiggle his way past her barriers into her affections, and now she remembered why she had promised herself never to let that happen. She pulled the thin chain out from under her dress and studied the thin gold band strung on it. It held so many memories, so much pain, but it was the one thing that kept her going, that kept her fighting. Letting the ring go she put her hands over her face and cried.

[Vanendra]

Vanendra listened to the Queen and nodded. "I hope your assumption is wrong...However, Shaily and I should leave tonight. Our Queendom needs us. We are short on soldiers and supplies but with this war I understand that you must protect your people. We thank you for your hospitality, and hopefully after this mess we could come and visit again...should we have some tea or is there no time for it?" The tigress wasn't sure if they were going to have the traditional tea and didn't want to seem rude by just leaving all of a sudden. Vane knew it would be hard traveling back to their land but she was determined to make it back.