Sirati was breaking the rules again. After her stint in the Rogue Lands, wandering around for over a week, her parents wanted her to stay in the boundaries of the Kusini'Mwezi lands. The only problem was, that was entirely boring. Sirati was not the kind to tolerate being bored for very long. Besides, it wasn't like she was going to go that far. Only just beyond the edge of the border. At least, that's what she kept telling herself. Sira bounded through the tall grass happily, and made her way to a large boulder that she knew was nearby. She'd be able to see any travelers around from that height, and maybe she'd be able to meet somebody new today.

That was her goal after all. To meet new people, and to see new things. Every day, she wanted something new to happen. Her curiosity was insatiable, always insatiable, and so she did her best to quench that thirst, but often fell short because of her age. She clambered up the side of the boulder and settled down happily on the sun-warmed top, full of self-content. That is, until she saw him.

Kyprioth wandered, as always, through the Rogue Lands, never with any specific destination in mind. He enjoyed that freedom, the freedom to choose, on a whim, where he wanted to go. He traveled by himself, going where he pleased, eating when he needed to, sleeping when he needed to, and meeting as many females as he possibly could. It seemed like an admirable life to him, and he enjoyed it, which was what was important.

His dark paws carried him to the border of the Kusini'Mwezi lands, a place he didn't come very often. He'd been here a few times before, pretty recently, always visiting different females. It was a pleasant place, but seemingly very close-knit. Glancing his dark gaze around, Kyp kept his ears and eyes open for any females that might happen to be nearby. It certainly would make his day more pleasant if it had a fruitful ending.

Sirati glared fiercely at the figure at she saw a few yards off. She'd seen this male leopard before, when she was exploring, and he always seemed to be with a different female, every time she'd seen him. Despite the fact that he was interesting, the fact that he spent so much time with different females did not seem like an admirable thing to her. Well, this time, he was by himself. That was curious.

Probably just hasn't found a new female yet, she thought to herself. Despite her age, Sirati had always acted and sounded older than she was, often having moments of very adult wisdom. Sira glared her gaze at the male, but couldn't help feeling curious. After all, she was passing judgement on someone she'd never even spoken to. That did not seem fair.

Well, there was an easy way to remedy this situation. With a grin of glee, Sira jumped down from her perch and prowled her way through the tall grass in a path toward the male leopard. Here was her new person.

Kyp's attention shifted when he caught notice of the scent of someone nearby. A female lioness, if he wasn't mistaken, but a young one. He groaned inwardly. He was not good with children! Beginning to panic a bit, Kyp realized that it had probably been a mistake coming back here. There were a lot of families around here, with rambunctious children. It was his own bad luck that he would run into one. His expression now nervous, he attempted to follow the scent and realized it was coming from behind him.

If he turned and left now, he could probably slip away unnoticed, and therefore, not bothered. With a sigh of relief, Kyp turned to go, and was stopped by a pair of bright-blue eyes staring back at him from his path. He cringed, surprised and scared out of his skin.

Sirati couldn't help but grin at the leopard's reaction. She was proud that she'd managed to catch him completely off guard. Or at least, that's what she thought. She grinned up at him, her tail wagging in glee. He bright blue eyes shined out of her tan and red pelt as she gazed up at the curiously colored male. Her mother was right. The leopards did look different from the lions. This one looked quite different from her own father. How curious.

"Hello there," she said happily, "I'm Sirati! Who are you? And why are you on my lands?" she added, her imagination as active as ever. She wondered if he was a villain, come to attack her lands.

Kyprioth stared down in horror at the young lioness, not certain how to react. His first instinct told him just to turn tail and run. He knew that he could outrun the young one, but that would put a dent in his reputation, which he couldn't afford. The other plan was just to play along and see if she would just go away. He cleared his throat and attempted a care-free smile.

"Well, hello there, little one. My name is Kyprioth and I'm just visiting. Shouldn't you be with your parents? Are they around?" He hoped that the parent-guilt factor would work, but he underestimated the determination of a curious, young lioness.

Sirati grinned up at the male leopard, not intimidated in the least. She could tell that he was trying to get away, and she thought that he would probably play the parent card. That wasn't going to work on her. So she smiled sweetly before saying, "Oh, they're around here somewhere, but they won't miss me for awhile. Kyprioth? That's a funny name. Well, interesting, really, rather than funny. I like it. So, Kyp, who are you visiting? Would you perhaps like to meet my mother? She's been wondering about the male leopard that had been 'visiting' so many of the females around here. I know she'd like to meet you."

She grinned mischievously up at him, knowing that she had him caught. She wondered how he would react.

Kyprioth glanced in surprise at Sirati, eyebrow raised. A flicker of fear shot through him at the though that a lioness was looking for him. That generally did not bode well. So, he glared down at the young one, decidedly unpleased that she had found him out. He made a mental note not to visit this place ever, ever again. Now, he simply had to attempt an escape.

"No, really, that's okay. I came to visit a friend of mine, but perhaps I got the directions mixed up. I guess I'll just be on my way. He turned to leave, but was stopped by a gleeful voice behind him.

"Well then, I'll simply tell my mother that you were here. She'll be sure to catch up with you."

Kyp turned back, knowing that he was in trouble now. He glared down at the clever cub before asking bitterly, "What is it going to take for you not to tell your mother that I was here?" He was blunt, because he knew that she could handle it.

Sirati sat to think about that for a minute, before responding with a grin, "Tell you what. I won't tell my mother and her friends that you were here, on two conditions. One, you leave the females of my homeland alone, unless they seek you out. Two, you have to come visit with me again." Despite the fact that this male was rather obnoxious, that made him exceedingly interesting. He was also clever, and Sira admired that. She waited, to see if he agreed to her terms.

Kyp smiled ruefully at Sirati. He didn't really want to have to return again, but he somehow trusted the word of this little spitfire, so he sighed and nodded. "Alright, deal. I'll come back to visit in a month or so." With that said, Kyp was not going to waste another moment. Turning tail, he ran back in the directions of the heart of the Roge Lands, wondering when he'd lost his luck.

Sirati grinned happily, pleased at the days events. Really, her mother had never spoken of the male, but it certainly had worked. He'd leave the adult females alone now, and she had a new friend. All in all, a good days work. It with a gleam in her eye, a smile on her face, and a bounce in her step that Sirati made her way back to her family's den.