Totem found herself at the foot of the obelisk closest to the dunes that led into the swamp. She didn't know for certain that's where she'd ended up, but it's the location she'd wished for the hardest and she had yet to be disappointed by her new favorite form of freedom(even if something about the journey always made her insides feel wrong and slimy.) Best Friend was with her, and she pressed against him gently to let him know that she was ready to move when he was.

Instead she was met with a soft growl and his body blocking any forward movement. She sniffed at the air and frowned lightly. There was the faintest trace that someone, definitely another kin, had been there but it seemed like they'd moved on. Were they still close enough by that her lion could see them more than just smell them?

Totem called out in the most friendly way she could muster, and she could muster a lot-

"Hello? If there's anyone nearby I'd really like to meet you! Or, if you'd prefer, would you please move further along and away from me?"

She took a big breath and continued.

"It's just, you see, my lion won't let me go anywhere until he knows I'm safe and we're kind of wasting daylight!"

It was never a dull day for Echoed Chorus who always found some way to entertain himself and stress out Lyric. So far today they'd left the oasis they'd been resting at with full bellies, found a snake who didn't wish to be disturbed and let Echo know by striking at his hooves, wandered towards the Swamps as well as the Obelisk that resided there and sniffed around the base for a bit, hoping someone might come to investigate it as well, and had finally given up and started to wander back into the desert when a voice caught his attention.

Ears pricking up, Echo whipped his head back around in the direction of the Obelisk. Much to his delight, a fiery Acha stood near it as well as a dark lion that kept close to her.

"Oh! Lyric, come on!" he said with glee in his voice as he trotted back the way they'd come. Lyric dutifully followed behind at a slower pace, ears pressed back against his head in displeasure. He couldn't smell the two they were heading towards and he rarely trusted easily thanks to all the things Echo got into on a regular basis: the Acha was better at accidentally irritating others than making friends and Lyric often had to go on the defensive to keep things in line.

"Hello!" Echo called out as he drew closer, oblivious to the huffy lion behind him. "I'm of no concern to your lion or you, I'd much rather meet you than walk away!" Finally the bright male drew close enough to see that the other Acha couldn't see and he paused only for a moment before continuing his greeting.

"New friends are always something I welcome," he said, his smile evident in his voice for the sightless Acha. "I'm Echoed Chorus! But Echo will do. And- and I have a lion too! That's Lyric back there, he'll make his way over eventually," he said, tossing his head back in the direction of the starry lion who was still approaching.

Best Friend reacted before Totem could tell there was another someone coming closer and while it was slightly irritating how protective he was sometimes she had to admit that overall it was appreciated and Totem knew it was coming from a place of love. She nuzzled gently into the top of his head as thanks and was pleasantly surprised when he moved out from in front of her and pressed against her side. She could feel his that his ears were back and his tail was lashing furiously, however.

A giggle erupted from her lips as the other kin introduced himself.

"Hi! I think Best Friend here gets to decide if you're of concern to him, especially if you have another lion with you, but I think it's safe to say you're of no concern to me!" She grinned in response to the smile in his voice.

"Definitely no concern if you're a new friend! It's lovely to meet you Echo. I'm Totem, and this is Best Friend- He helps me see while were exploring. I can't wait to meet Lyric!"

At that her own lion let out an irritated huff and Totem was overcome with the giggles again.

"I'm sorry," she struggled to say as she caught her breath, "we don't come across other lions very often."

As Echo drew close enough to carry on a conversation easily with his new friend he came to a stop, respecting the cautious lion. Thanks to Lyric he was pretty good at reading the feline body language and he was well versed in things like 'this is mine, stay away from it' or 'I'll only growl once more before I lunge'. He didn't want to press his luck and send the two lions into a tussle, so he kept his distance despite wanting to get nose to nose with the female.

He glanced over his shoulder to ensure Lyric was still coming and, when he saw that he was, turned to look at Totem as she gave her name.

"Hullo, Totem, Best Friend. A suitable name for him, I think," Echo said with a little chuckle, echoing Totem's giggle. "That's awfully kind of him to help you out." He couldn't imagine not being able to see but he knew he'd trust Lyric to help keep him from bumping into things or walking off cliffs or into waterways that he wasn't expecting.

Lyric finally came up beside Echo and sized up the other Acha and lion. The Acha didn't seem to be of any danger but the other feline posed a threat. He wished his tail back and forth, ears still pressed down into his mane, though otherwise he remained still and silent.

"Ah, Lyric, so kind of you to join us. Once these two realize no one's going to do anything silly I'll introduce you properly to him," Echo said helpfully. If Totem couldn't see then he was sure she'd appreciate being able to touch his fuzzy friend.

"So! What brings you to the Obelisk? I was just hanging around here for a bit to see if anyone came out. Did you come out?" he asked eagerly.

"Oh, hopefully some silly will be okay!"

She leaned gently into Best Friend again before letting out a series of little clicks. Best Friend hesitated, looked outright irritated, and then sat down next to her instead of standing guard.

"He's been trained and helped me teach my puppies to behave and help as well! Hopefully this puts Lyric at a little more ease? Best Friend won't do anything unless I'm about to harm myself or I ask him to help me."

She paused and shuffled a little.

"Not that there's anything wrong letting Lyric be cautious. All in his own time ... And, yes, yes I did."

Totem puffed up her chest a little with pride. It wasn't unknown that not everyone liked, or could even really handle obelisk travel, and here she was- Practically an obelisk veteran(except not really). They were weird and sometimes a little scary, but they meant she could travel far away from home and be back by dinner.

"I live in the Swamp with my mother, siblings, and our tribe. Are you from around here or did you come out of the obelisk too?"

"Oh, he takes a while to warm up to everyone," Echo said with a toss of his head. They really were the perfect example of opposites attracting: where Echo was outgoing and friendly, Lyric was reserved and standoffish. But there had been more than one occasion where his lion's less trusting nature had saved him from some less than friendly encounters.

"Don't worry, he'll come around," he promised, not wanting his new friend to be too concerned or down-trod. He knew he was always a little discouraged when his attempts at making friends with someone new were rebuffed. As Totem mentioned coming through the Obelisk, though, he perked up his ears with delight.

"Wonderful! No, I'm from here, the desert. But recently I ventured into the Swamp for the first time! It's so exciting there, so different from here!" He'd started to experience the Ache, but since he was going so frequently back and forth he rarely felt it. There was so much to explore and SO many more kin there that it was impossible to stay away.

"What was it like growing up there? It's so full of life!"

Lyric, used to the enthusiasm, finally sat down to mimic Best Friend's posture, He kept his eyes trained on the other lion, no longer interested in the Acha. It was clear she wasn't a threat, at least.

Lions appeased, for the most part, Totem turned her full attention to Echo. She was practically vibrating with how excited she was.

"You grew up here??? What are those things called," she pursed her lips in suddenly very serious thought. "The things where it's desert everywhere, but suddenly there's a little lake and there's trees and plants and sudden life EVERYWHERE and it's like a little hidden cove? I found one the last time I was here and everything smelled and felt so nice!"

Well, except the pokey plants, but she wasn't about to tell him about that.

"Wanna go for a walk? And I'll tell you everything about growing up in the swamp if you tell me about growing up here? It'll be like you ask a question, I'll answer, and then I get to ask a question!"

She shimmied an excited little dance. This was the best day ever.

Lutz wrote:Tag!

Echo tilted his head as he waited for Totem to describe what she was talking about, and as soon as he got it he gave a little excited tap of his front hooves.

"Oh! An oasis!" he said happily. "They're our little safe places out here. The desert can be harsh and unforgiving but it's really not too bad thanks to those. We move around from oasis to oasis so it's not like we spend all our time out on the sand." The offer to talk and learn more about the Swamp were hard to turn down, and honestly, he had no intention of doing so!

"Yes! Oh, that would be great, I have so many questions about the Swamp! I've only been a few times and I haven't gone very far from the Obelisk because I don't want to get lost." Echo was very familiar with this area since he'd been using the Obelisk to travel to other places aside from the Swamp so he had no worries about becoming lost. He'd only just recently learned about the Ache and he didn't want to cause his new friend any pain or discomfort by wandering too far from the safe space.

"Want to walk anywhere in particular? There's an oasis not far from here with some really nice, cool water."

Lyric's ear twitched as his guard was slowly eased. This kin seemed to be on a similar level to his own, and her lion companion wasn't making any threatening moves or noises. He'd be wary still, but at least he wasn't on high alert. There were other things out there that were far more dangerous than the two standing across from them.

Totem's excited dancing only increased as Echo explained to her what an oasis was. That sounded like so much fun! How wonderful the world was that nature just made sure there were little pockets of shade and water out in the overbearing heat of the desert. She wondered if the other places of the world had similar spots- pockets of warmth in the freezing mountains or spots where natural light found a way to cascade down to the floors of the caves.

She refocused her thoughts back to the current moment-

"There's so much to discover and learn about the desert! Other acha from the troupe told me all about the travelling, but I don't remember them mentioning anything like an oasis before!"

She giggled with an almost drunken delight and then made a serious of soft clicking noises. Best Friend moved immediately to her right rear flank and pressed a nose against her hide so she'd know he was in position.

"Oh, yes, please! Lead the way, friend!"

Lutz wrote:Thank you SO MUCH for being so patient with me!

"Oh, you'll love it," Echo assured his new friend. "Let's go!"

He turned and reminded himself that Totem wasn't able to go bounding off as he was used to doing - or perhaps she could, if her lion could guide her. There wasn't much to run into in the desert, anyway. So he set off at a little trot, looking over his shoulder to make sure Totem could keep up and adjusting his speed accordingly. Lyric had no trouble pacing him, but he too looked back to see if their new companions were coming.

LOLLI qAq wrote:No worries! We can probably wrap this one too >W<