There had been only a few instances where Bikiak felt she could let her guard down. Her and Katua were always running from something and never had the chance to stay in a place long enough to feel relaxed. Even now when they lived in this small pride, all she could think about was their escape plan. It was painful, but she knew that their happiness wouldn't last. It was better to not get attached then to feel the pain when it was time to move on.
Being able to stay detached from others would be easier if it wasn't for her brother and his constant need to get the approval of those around them.
“Biki! There is still more for us to see.” Katua called out, bringing Bikiak out of her thoughts. He grinned at her. “You look pissed off whenever you think too hard.”
“Better that then looking like an absent minded idiot,” she responded while rolling her eyes. “Do you even know where we are going? You said it was important.”
“There are still some pride members I want to meet.” Katua said as he looked around. He was still adjusting to traveling primarily at night. “And I know that if I didn't drag you along with me you would just sulk alone and that wouldn't do! If we want to live here then we need to get closer to our pride mates.”
Bikiak shook her head. Her dumb brother, always the optimist. She decided it was fine to play along this one time. At least it would keep his spirits up. “Alright. Just don't get us lost.”
The more they walked, the more certain Bikiak was that her brother had no idea where he was going. She made sure to keep track of landmarks to make sure that they stayed within their pride's land. If Katua didn't find what he was looking for soon though, she was going to drag his a** back.
Suddenly Katua stopped. He looked at his sister bashfully. “I think I made a wrong turn.” His ears were folded back. “I really thought I knew where to find them. At least where some of them might be.”
Bikiak let out a sigh.
“You are such an idiot. You're lucky I went along with you. You know our pride mates say that there are spirits that haunt the woods. If you went here by yourself, I bet they would have dragged you away.” Bikiak said with a devious grin. “Maybe they still will? Not like I could do anything to stop them.”
“I'm not a cub. You're not going to scare me that easily!” Katua said frowning. Though it did feel like the woods were getting darker, colder and quieter. He looked around to figure out where they should go next when he heard a crack.
“Did you hear that?” He whispered.
