As expected, Cadenza (or Mao Kuan, she allowed those closer to her to call her by her 'birth' name though) and her chosen 'mate' had gotten into another one of their lovely fights. He didn't believe in arranged marriages, though he was given the honor of 'suffering' one with her, and she had found that she wanted absolutely nothing to DO with him. But no, she was engaged to be with the future Lord of the South.

Shoot, when had she decided she wanted to be the Lady of the South again? Oh yeah, never. Never ever. Because all she and that stupid boy did was fight.

Which perhaps was why she was lounging out in the sun of her 'comfort spot'. Some people went and ate rediculous amounts of food when they were distressed, Cadenza just.... moped out in the sun, really. Why could SHE have been named heir instead of Miliki? Then SHE wouldn't have been engaged off to another house.

What a way for the houses to maintain peace.

Ah, what a pretty butterfly that was. Kumbuka watched it with mild interest for several moments before turning back to the meeting she was in. It wasn't a big one - a small, informal once without the presence of the lord, simply to confirm with the Central House's historians that she had recorded everything correctly. To be perfectly frank, she wasn't worried in the slightest - she was even slightly hurt, that they could even think that she'd be so careless as to record an inaccurate fact. Her place in the East House was well respected by most, some whom even envied her remarkable memory.

Oh, her mind was wandering now. Shaking idle thoughts from her head, she turned back to the messenger with a rather forced smile, giving a curt nod at the dismissal she was given. Usually, she would speak out with distaste at the 'dismissal', as they were of equal ranks. They had no right to dismiss her. But she needed a walk to clear her head, and was off as soon as the meeting was over.

She walked for several moments, blue-gray eyes scanning the area around her, remembering anything new. That root there had grown a little more, and that flower was more purple. But otherwise the image of the Eastern House lands was imprinted perfectly into her mind, exactly as she saw it now. When she looked up, however, there was something distinctly different with the land before her. Namely the brown lionness sitting in the middle of it.

A name instantly came to mind - why wouldn't it, especially for a childhood friend such as Cadenza. "Mao Kuan?" came the quiet, gentle voice of Tianxia-named Qī Wàng, as she approached the female carefully, neck extended in mild concern. She could leave her work for a little longer - her friend looked unsettled.

Her ears had flicked slightly at the sound of paws approaching, sighing lightly before she lifted her head, but not turning to look towards the one who had approached before she heard them speak - Ah, it was Qi Wang. She could handle such a visitor as she, turning her head towards the striped lioness with a sigh.

"Mmmm, yes. It's me..." she answered, sort of... watching the words form quite an array of colors. They'd gotten quite the visual 'gift' from their father, to be honest. Was that recorded in their history? That the house of the East's family bore a few members who had come with special 'color gifts'? More humanoid species would have labelled them as a 'disease', unfortunately.

"I got into another fight with him today... over as stupid of a reason as they always are, unfortunately. I don't see how our parents will expect us to marry, nevertheless reign over the southern house together when it comes to such.." she admitted, resting her head back on her legs.

Kumbuka allowed her maw to stretch into a warm, comforting smile at the lionness' confirmation of her identity. She knew it was - she didn't get things such as names wrong. But she had learnt not to correct such trivial things anymore - it just irritated people, and made it seem like she was just arrogant. Mao Kuan sighed and recalled the reason for her distress, and Qī Wàng felt concern flow through her body - an emotion she didn't feel very often. Whilst her fellow lionness had cared enough not to, as some did, feel the need to go 'Remember this? Well...', she found herself not caring. Instead, she padded closer to her friend, laying herself down beside her and pushing her nsoe to the female's fur in a sign of reassurance.

"Have you talked to your father about it?" she queried, watched the brown female with gentle, warm eyes. She herself didn't want Cadenza to leave, but she knew it was necessary. Every historian was required to record marriages, deaths and births, and out of the marriages a good portion had been between houses, to try and form alliances. And what better way to form a strong alliance than with children of royalty?

"Perhaps you could find a solution together?"

"Well he says it's for the better. There's yet to have been a Lord of the South, as Lady Ming hasn't taken a PROPER Lord yet..." 'Proper' in that the heir was not born of any man that the Lady of the South had taken up, and she'd also not formally chosen which of her suitors she wished to reign with. Ah, such a powerful position.... She wanted to be able to choose her own mate.

"And further, if any situation were to occur, it'd be me governing at the brat's side." Okay, so perhaps she was also a bit of a brat on the subject, but it was obvious that the two of them would have been better chosen to be... oh...
...
........ not.. paired? Shoot, one of her sisters would have done the job better, it wasn't as though her father was lacking DAUGHTERS by any means. The East house was practically BRIMMING with females. Perhaps that was why Lord Zahi wasn't allowed to be left alone with anybody of the house.

"I don't know, I mean... I know I complain about this a LOT, but am I just blowing things out of proportion?"

Kumbuka hummed lightly, nodding to show she understood. She could see the Lord's point of view, too. He loved his daughters, every one of them. She doubted he wanted to see Cadenza unhappy, but what other choice was there? Exactly why he'd chosen Cadenza for the role, she wasn't sure, but she did know that there must've been a good reason for it. It just clearly wasn't one he wanted to share with his daughter.

"Wouldn't you enjoy the position, though? Being a Lady isn't easy - more like a challenge. But it's one most lionness' are eager to take, and they envy you for having the chance."

She spoke continuously and without pause, her head cocked to the left a little as she made sure to form each of her words carefully, checking that they made sense as she went along. She ceased her humming, turning to Mao Kuan as she spoke again. A sigh blew air out of Kumbuka's nose as her lips twitched, the female reaching down to nuzzle her friend in a show of fondness she didn't usually condone. But these were pressing circumstances. "I don't envy you, Mao. But surely there must be some good qualities in this boy?"

"I've yet to have seen any in him, but the again... whenever we meet each other, we fight. I'd rather pick my own mate, HE would rather pick his own mate... so it's almost guaranteed that we'd only have one litter together to have an heir and then be off distracting ourselves with other parties....." She wasn't implying she'd be having an affair, but more that they'd be a bad example as parents.

Off playing the game of 'don't do anything together'. Goodness, she couldn't even imagine herself with children. Certainly she'd be able to love her children, as they would be hers, no matter what, but never the less.....

"I mean, how am I supposed to see good in him if we can't even communicate properly? It's very very....stressful, for a lack of better words. It's as if any day now I wait for our parents to throw us out of the pride to go 'bond' together, just to see what happens..."

Ha ha, how very little she knew. Not that anybody really expected their speculation to actually HAPPEN, but for real... it was getting to be a bit much for her on top of everything else.

Sigh.

"I mean... I just don't know.... I really don't."

She could see the problem quite clearly. If they only fought, how were they supposed to sit down and have a conversations, to find similar interests and work out the basis of a relationship? But at the same time, what was the solution? Perhaps if all they did was fight, it was inevitable that the relationship wasn't going to work... But of course, the Lords wouldn't take that as adequate proof. She understood Cadenza's frustration too - picking your own mate meant you could get to know each other first, and be sure of your compatibility before taking the step of marriage. A forced marriage such as this one was likely to yield unwanted stress.

She wasn't going to admit that she didn't know the answer. Kumbuka didn't know the answer to everything - no-one did - but that didn't mean that she had to go around freely proclaiming so. She enjoyed her respected position in the pride, built on her intelligence and memory. "Perhaps that wouldn't be so bad an idea? Instead of waiting for them to throw you out, go willingly, that way you can decide for how long. You can't possibly fight all the time - once you've both calmed down, you can discuss the situation in a more civil manner."

A confession? Kumbuka blinked - she hadn't expected that. But alas, her friend needed comforting, and she was the only one around. Another fond nuzzle and an affectionate chew on Cadenza's ear hopefully provided the reassurance she was searching for, Kumbuka's eyes staring directly into Cadenza's as she replied. "I know, Mao. I know. But you can't give up - you're too strong for that."

Well, her friend did have a good point about the whole 'SIT DOWN AND CHAT' bit. As it was, her position TECHNICALLY made her the consort of the south. Which was... a little bit depressing, actually. She should have been spending her time bonding with her 'new' family and everything else related, instead of moping at home.

...... But what was she to do besides take the male she bickered with away to one side and frown at him a lot? Maybe it was because Cadenza had never had any brothers that this whole 'male' thing was new to her. Why couldn't she have been arranged with a male more calm and wise like her FATHER? Oh, that would have been WONDERFUL.

Kind of.

"I... guess I'll have to wait and see what happens..."

Cadenza said nothing and Kumbuka respected the silence, simply trying to radiate comfort and reassurance instead of voicing it. It troubled her, and caused unrest in her mind when her friend wasn't happy. If she had walked on by, she never would've been able to concentrate on her duties as a historian, and simply would've become more and more irritated. So in a way, it was a good thing she was here - good for her, and good for Cadenza.

A gentle purr vibrated in Kumbuka's throat as her friend finally responded, the female moving a dark-toed paw to lay over one of Cadenza's. She forced her smile wider, mildly surprised at how easily it stretched into a warm smile. It seemed her emotions were taking care of themselves, without her particularly needing to control them as she had in the past. Did this mean she was getting softer? ...That certainly wouldn't do.

"...As the Lord's daughter, you have a duty, Mao Kuan," Kumbuka began, yet was unable to stop herself as she continued. She couldn't stop her emotions of concern and worry over her friend's well-being. "But you also have a duty to yourself. Don't forget that, hmm? Only you know the true answer."

Only she knew the true answer, hmm? Well, that answer sure was doing well with disguising herself so that she couldn't find it, unfortunately. But what was she supposed to do with that? Oh goodness, this would have been a good time for her to go and curl up with Mom to sulk. Mom definitely would have known how to handle this a lot better.

Sigh.

"Perhaps it's my duty to go talk with my parents and see what wisdom they have to pass on to me on the matter..." she replied, seeming very.. bothered by the fact she'd have to, but also, she felt a lot better about the whole thing. Yes, having her friend sit and join her had done her moping some good.

"In fact, I think I just might go and do that."

Ah, at last. They were getting somewhere. Kumbuka was enjoying the chat with Cadenza, but it did get frustrating if it never went anywhere. But now a result was being formed, with the lionness having come up with a solution by herself, with only a little help and advice from Kumbuka. That was the way it should be - giving Cadenza the answers would be like cheating. She had to find her own way.

"I think that is an excellent idea. A civil discussion with your parents will help them to respect any final decision you make, since it will show you put thought into it." Kumbuka spoke, with a surprisingly bright smile. She was happy...yes, it was definitely happiness. Pleased to help her friend, but happy too. Ah, it seemed she'd been put into a good mood, which was no bad thing after such a dull a meeting. "Would you like me to accompany you on the journey?"

Cadenza shook her head at her friend's offer. "No no, I can only keep you from your documenting for so long, after all. At least until you get a scribe to help you out.." she replied, pausing to give a momentary sigh to THAT end as well. Really, they NEEDED to get their butts a good scribe or two.. amongst a LOT of other things, as it were.

Like some guards, and for that stupid consort of her sister's to come back.

Goodness, there really was a lot of tension going down in the pride, but... hopefully things would start shaping up. Cadenza rose to her paws slowly, stretching out her limbs from their nice little baking in the sun, before she sighed, moving to start off towards the den of her parents.

"We'll talk later, okay?"

Kumbuka smiled - ah yes, her documenting. She did need a scribe. Doing two things at once wasn't difficult, but it did cause unnecessary stress, particularly when she was interrupted. She thought quicker than she could write, and it annoyed her to no end that it took her so long to write things down. She glanced up to Cadenza, almost smiling again - they were thinking the same thing, she was almost certain. They did need more members in the East House.

"Of course. I wish you luck, Mao Kuan." Kumbuka responded, also rising to her feet, stretching out her front paws with a wide yawn. Whilst she wouldn't document this conversation, it'd be forever imprinted on her brain. It wasn't particularly important...but it now held a somewhat sentimental value. She did hope Cadenza found her solution. And so, with a smile and a polite nod, Qī Wàng turned and departed, back to her den.