Things had been...interesting as of late. Qual had never thought he'd wander further than the borders of his pride, but they had all needed to flee the lands or risk death. The normally confident and smooth lion was shaken to say the least, unsure about how things were going to go now. Their leaders didn't seem too worried - to their faces at least - but Qual was certainly nervous. He didn't know what the rogue lands held, what might be lurking around the corners and the bushes and the rocks. He was moving with his pride, yes, and they were a tough bunch, but there were tough creatures out here as well. Qual wasn't a fighter, he was a smooth-talker and, as he'd recently started to find out, a bit of a romantic.His thoughts of massive lions creeping up behind him were put aside as Qual's thoughts turned to the wonderfully sweet lioness whom he had brought into the pride what seemed like ages ago. Lamia was a bright spot in his day to day life and he had enjoyed helping her get familiar with the pride. As he had suspected, no one had batted an eye at her markings in a way that might have made her feel unwanted. Over time he had gotten so used to the toothy grin that Qual barely even saw it. He gave a bit of a wistful sigh as he let his mind wander to some of their more recent conversations when he'd been trying to get her to laugh and forget herself a bit. She was so fun to be around that he wondered why he ever left her side.
...probably because that might be a bit odd for her if she didn't want him around all the time. Ugh...matters of the heart were so troublesome when it was more than simple flirting! Qual paused in his walking when he reached a rock, gazing up to the top before pouncing to reach its apex. From there he glanced out over the rogue lands, his ears twisting back to hide in his mane, a look of concern chasing away his more lovesick expression. When would they be able to go home?