Nabila looked her mother in the eyes one last time before she slowly turned away from her and began her journey alone. She had already said her heartfelt goodbye and told her mother how much she loved her. Most importantly, Nabila promised that once she was done with her self imposed quest to find herself, she would begin the search to find her way back to her mother's side. One way or another, they would be together again. Nabila couldn't find it within herself to completely let her mother go. She was the last thing left of home that Nabila had and she didn't want to lose that connection to where she came from. No matter what happened, she didn't want to sever herself entirely from her past. It had shaped the person that she was becoming, and would mold her into whoever she was to become.
So, setting her eyes forward into the endless horizon, Nabila prepared to temporarily leave her mother behind and face the world solo. It was the first time that she had ever been on her own in ever. The thought alone caused her to waver in her footsteps, but she pressed forward and decided that she would do this on her own.
Nabila loved her mother, and she had loved her siblings when she had lived with them, but Nabila felt as though that part of her life was over. She wasn't yet full grown, but she was nearly there. The young lioness needed some time to process all the things that had happened in her life lately, and she wanted to do it on her own.
The memories of her childhood were precious to her, and in many ways it made dealing with the present that much more difficult for her. Thoughts of running through grass along a blue river with her siblings at her side seemed almost like a dream now.
First, her brothers left home once they reached adolescence, off to find their destinies in the wide world. Not long after the departure of her brothers, the entire pride in which she had been born and raised had collapsed and left it's members to fend for themselves. It hadn't taken long for her two sisters to split away from them, also to seek out their own paths.
That had left Nabila and her mother to roam the rogue lands with only each other. At one point, her mother had met a beautiful lioness and had fallen in love with her. They'd hear of a pride where females ruled and they would be safe and happy, so the three of them had traveled there in hopes of finding a new home. At the time, Nabila had been filled with youthful dreams of living life among the amazons. However, as luck would have it, no sooner had they arrived there did that pride collapse as well, leaving them alone in the rogue lands once again. Not only that, but the new found relationship that had blossomed between her mother and their travel companion ended up dissolving along with what was to be their new home.
After that, Nabila had completely lost hope of finding a new home for her mother and herself. She'd become bitter and even a little spiteful after all that had occurred. She was finding that it was adversely affecting her relationship with her mother, which caused her to come up with the idea of their separation. Nabila did not want to destroy the wonderful relationship that she had with her mother with her unyielding hopelessness. She needed to find new purpose in life and regain her sense of optimism.
With a sudden feeling of remorse, the young lioness turned to take one last glance at her mother, who faded far into the distance. Nabila hadn't realized that she'd gotten so far already. An old instinct made her want to turn around and run back to her mother, but instead, she faced forward and pressed on, removing herself from her mother's field of vision. Surprisingly, she could feel the sting of tears come to her eyes as a feeling of finality overcame her. She felt like she would never see her mother again. What if really never saw her mother again? What if something happened and this was the last time she saw her?
Before her darkening thoughts caused her to turn tail and return to her mother, Nabila broke into a uncertain but unstoppable run. The sound of her paws hitting the ground seemed to thunder in her ears as she moved further and further into an unfamiliar life. A life where she was alone. The thought brought the tears back. What would she do with herself all alone. She had never been alone. Slowing down to a trot, Nabila began to search out a place to hole up for the night. She took deep breaths to stall her tears and slow her heart. She hadn't known how terrifying this moment of separation would be for her.
Nabila walked until she spotted a small fairy circle of trees that had grown close together. She carefully walked in the center and found it unoccupied and well hidden from view. With a heavy heart, she scratched at the grass and leaves until it formed a semi comfortable pile, and she laid down. Despite her fears and mild panic, a small part of her was beginning to revel in the freedom of solitude. There was a certain peace in being alone. Although, that part of her was still very small, and the part of her that was terrified was much closer to the forefront of her mind.
However, she knew that she would be okay. Her mother had taught her many things in their time together, and Nabila felt confident in her survival skills. She knew how to hunt. She knew how to hide. She knew how to fight and defend herself. She even knew how to find water. Yes, despite her fears she knew she would be okay. Even so, she knew that she also had a lot to learn.