He tilted his head to the side, trying to come up with some conceivable and reasonable explanation for her response, his mouth opening as a question began to form. But, he shook his head, quickly writing off his question. Judging by what he knew of her, he wouldn't likely get a straight answer. He rose to his paws, tail raising in an arch over his back as he turned around, and padded forward to stand at her shoulder, Alba's head following him as he went. Once he stopped, his head turned to her and they made eye contact for a moment before he nodded towards the large expanse of land before them. "Lead the way."

"Alright, then let's head out," she said, her tail arching over her back. She looked over her shoulder as the rocky slope faded into grass, and her eyes caught a glimpse of a gray cub at the entrance of a cave. The small cub blinked once, then turned and disappeared into the shadows of the cave as they padded on. Alba turned her attention back to the path ahead and took the lead, excitement tingling in her paws as they went towards the grotto. Askari followed behind at a small distance, allowing her to lead him. He kept his eyes on her form, not wanting to lose her in the surrounding darkness. The moon hadn't quite risen yet, so it was hard to make out anything particular in the landscape. This, however, went unnoticed by Alba as she confidently padded onward. Crickets chirped in the dusk, creating a strange melody around them as they went.

The silence seemed to drone on, and Alba felt innately uncomfortable with the long silence, as she was used to the constant noise of her family and friends. She turned her head slightly to catch Askari in her view before she faced forward again. "My mom used to bring me and my brother to this grotto when we were cubs. I always loved going," she began, hoping to catch his attention and spark conversation. Askari raised his head slightly and pricked his ears at her sudden words. He was perplexed for a moment before he figured she probably wasn't used to silence. She was, in fact, a very talkative, friendly person, so it only made sense. He figured it'd be rude to ignore her, and so hummed in acknowledgement. A moment later, he spoke. "What's a grotto?" he asked, pricking his ears towards her in curiosity. He hadn't heard of any near his own home, and he had no idea if he'd come across one on his travels, so he felt clueless about this whole matter.

The side of Alba's mouth moved slightly, and she shrugged, looking over her shoulder to him. "To be honest, I don't know either. My mom just uses that word a lot to describe it," she replied. They locked eyes and he frowned, confused at her answer. "And you never thought to ask what it meant?" he asked, confused. Why would she use a word if she didn't know the meaning? This would only just cause more confusion, so he couldn't see why she'd use it. "No, not really. I always assumed it had no meaning," she added, looking over her shoulder again as she continued to lead the way. He stared at her in utter bewilderment, his mind drawing a blank as he opened his mouth to say something. Unable to come up with a coherent thought, he scoffed and looked away, shaking his head slightly. There was only one thing he was sure of in this moment: Alba was the strangest lioness he'd ever met. How could there be a word with no meaning? He breathed a heavy sigh as he bit his lip in concentration. He knew she was intelligent, most definitely, but her actions seemed to tell otherwise.

She gave an amused smile at his response. "You're thinking I'm weird, huh?" she asked, her voice without offense in it as she looked over him once more before looking back ahead to search for the grotto once more. He pricked his ears at her words, and looked at her from the corner of his eyes as she spoke again absentmindedly. "It's okay. I think a lot of people think of me as strange." His eyes fell to the ground, shame burning his pelt as he realized how rude he must have seemed, how disrespectful his actions were. "My apologies that I made it so obvious. It was a very rude thing of me, and I should not think such thoughts about you," he responded, ears flattening against his mane. If he had acted like that with any of his pridemembers, especially the older ones, he would've been given a harsh punishment for sure. Just because he was in a different pride didn't mean he should have to lose his manners, and he felt a small cold shock of horror at the thought. If anything, his mannerisms and cultural traditions were the only things he had left of his pride. And while he may not find them again, he still needed to hold true to their traditions, no matter what.

Her smile grew at his words, remembering other times when lions and lionesses had given her strange glances. "It's okay, I'm used to it," she said. He didn't reply, his head bowed. He had made the conversation uncomfortable, he knew it, and so he'd decided not to say anything in case he somehow made the situation worse. After a few moments of traveling in silence, Alba stopped to look around, her ears pricked. "We're here," she announced, tail raising happily. He stopped behind her then lifted his head finally. His eyes darted around the darkness, but he couldn't make out anything out of the ordinary in the darkness. The moon had risen a bit more, but it was shadowed in the distance by trees, so the surrounding area was still dark. Confused, he began to feel anxious, as he wondered whether this was a trap. Alba had seemed like a nice lioness, but she acted so strange sometimes, he didn't know what she would do. But, he decided to try and keep his cool until he was sure she didn't mean harm. "Where is it?"

Alba padded along a rock wall towards a small collection of vines overhanging a hidden entrance. She pushed them aside and held them back, looking expectantly at Askari over her shoulder. "Are you coming or what?" she asked, her voice teasing as her blue eyes glinted mischievously in the darkness. He padded after her and paused before the dark entrance warily. He narrowed his eyes towards her, still unsure of her intentions. In response, she rolled her eyes at him playfully, then motioned with a paw. Flexing his shoulder muscles, he entered the opening slowly, testing his paws every step along the way in the darkness. He knew Alba tended to be unpredictable. What if this was a trick? He needed to stay alert, and so pricked his ears to pick up on any noise in the darkness before him. She followed after him, the vines swishing back into place, blotting out what little light they had. She brushed past him, making him jump slightly at her contact. "I remember my parents found this place a long time ago," she said, smiling to herself as she padded further in.

Her bubbly voice echoed around the cave, causing him to pause briefly for a moment. He continued to feel on edge, and found himself straining his senses to try and pick up what he could. He could hear the rushing of water, and it made his blood go cold, reminding himself that he couldn't swim. What was she planning to do? Anxious about everything, he kept himself near the wall, making sure that his fur and whiskers brushed it so it could guide him. The air felt damp and cold, and his paws splashed in a puddle, causing him to shudder. "May I ask what we're here for?" he said, pinning his ears against his head as his own voice echoed back to him. This whole place was very nerve wracking, and he wasn't willing to explore it in total darkness with an unpredictable lioness.

"It's a surprise! You'll see when we get there," she called, excitement bubbling in her chest as she was unaware of his anxiety. Askari's shoulders tensed further at this statement, becoming very wary of her mysteriousness about this place. He began to hang back, padding much slower than her to put some distance between them, but he continued to follow, trying to keep his eyes on her figure. Soon, he could see her silhouette against a shaft of light coming from the roof. Light was a good thing, though it did little to soothe his worries. "We're here," she said, tail curled over her back as she stopped in the light. Askari stopped walking, keeping in the shadows. He was reluctant to take his eyes off of her, in fear she attempted something when he looked away. Finally, he tore his eyes away from her, looking at the illuminated scenery in confusion. He caught sight of rocks and water, but couldn't understand why she'd brought him here. It was just rocks and water, nothing special. He looked back to her, still tense and unsure.

Alba sat down and looked over her shoulder to Askari, and noticed how far back he was. "Are you going to stand over there, or are you coming over here?" she asked, curling her tail around her paws. Her voice echoed around them, and Askari suppressed a shudder at how eerie this place was. Warily, he began to pad towards her, his eyes narrowed in suspicion. He came to the ring of light, and though he came into the light, he stayed near the edge, ready to escape if he needed to. He moved his eyes briefly once more, trying to seem casual in case he tipped her off about his anxiety. He quickly looked back to her, and cleared his throat, flinching slightly at the loud noise. "May I ask what we're here for?" He knew pleasantries should be out the window, but he stuck strictly to his code, and so tried to keep himself polite in case she didn't have bad intentions.

Alba rolled her eyes at him, clearly annoyed as she gave a lash of her tail. "I don't bite, I'm not going to hurt you," she said, ears