[PRP] Mission: Gossip (Haja & Aberforth)

[Basil Brett]

Maboya had to stifle the urge to laugh for about the hundredth time that day. He had spent most of the morning observing Haja dramatically sigh and mope about from boredom. The rain certainly didn't help as it prevented them from fishing. Having moved on from the moping, the yellow lioness had then proceeded to pace about their cave like a small cub, pouting lip and all. Then, as if in some comic routine, Haja sat, squirmed for a couple of seconds and dashed out of the cave. Maboya had followed of course, with a sigh.

Now he watched as the glaringly bright lioness proceeded to sneak about the territory, searching, no doubt, for some juicy piece of gossip.

He really should tell her to do something more productive, but hey, he was bored too and at least this offered him some amusement.  

[Cajanic]

Aberforth sat under the shade of a tree, watching the clouds as they slowly shifted by him. Just because they were dark and gloomy and had a tendency to dump water on top of him didn’t mean they were all bad- they still made shapes he could figure out, same as any other clouds. Darker clouds seemed to offer better clarity, in fact, in the designs they formed, making them far more fun to look at than the normal white splotches in the sky. Sighing, he let his gaze shift to his side, where his vulture sat observing him, her eyes thoughtful.

“What?” Aberforth ventured, though that look never brought with it anything he actually wanted to hear.

“Nothing,” Uchungu replied, “you just look… different than you used to. Are you losing more of your mane?”

“WHAT?!” Yelped Aberforth, getting to his feet, “D-does it look thinner? But it’s been raining! It’s… it’s just because of the rain making it wet!” The vulture could only watch as the suddenly surprised male sprang out to find some still water he might be able to catch his reflection in, not remotely interested in watching where he was going, apparently.
 

[Basil Brett]

Haja's rather comical sneaking was abruptly interrupted by the equally comical antics of another lion. The lemon-colored lioness nearly lost her nose as the white lion shot quickly by her, in frantic search of something. Wide-eyed, Haja watched him, Maboya looking on with amusement.

Finally, Haja's curiosity won out and she ventured over, having to quicken her pace here and then to meet the lion.

"Aberforth!" she called out, praying he might stop so she could ask him what he was doing. It seemed like he might have dropped something, for he was moving quickly, his gaze intent on the ground around him, a panic stricken look upon his face.

"What did you lose?" she asked, venturing a guess.  

[Cajanic]

Halting almost quickly enough to send his rear right over his head, Aberforth looked over his shoulder, spotting Haja not too far from him. “Oh!” Good, a second opinion. He moved back towards her, hearing her question as he approach. “My hair!” he wailed easily enough, “do you think my mane looks thinner than it used to? Do you think I’m going bald?!” They would look the same soon enough- he would look like a really big, really awkward female! This was not the fate a male was supposed to have to worry about.

Uchungu fluttered over, looking exasperated. “It was just a joke, honey! Your man is fine! Honestly, you can’t take a joke, can you?”

Aberforth frowned. “I don’t know, I think you sounded serious… Haja? Do you think I look any different?” He raised his head, puffing out his chest to look a bit more manly. Maybe he could make it look like he had more hair.
 

[Basil Brett]

Haja couldn't help it, she had to stifle a laugh. But stifle it she did, clearing her throat in what she hoped sounded like a thoughtful manner. She considered his mane, and then, simply for the drama of it, circled Aberforth as she studied him. The poor guy; he was just too fun to play with. Finally, she acquiesced and beamed at him.

"Nope, no difference! If anything, I think it may look a bit fuller today than usual."

She shot a quick wink at Uchungu before looking back at Aberforth.

"But you know, they do say that stress can cause hair loss. Are you stressed out?"

Perhaps there was something going on Haja wasn't aware of. And if anyone needed to know what was going on, it was Haja.

Maboya sighed lightly. Typical Haja. He settled into a branch of a nearby tree, letting his bonded do her usual snooping. No use in trying to stop the inevitable.  

[Cajanic]

Well, that made Aberforth's day- learning that his mane wasn't looking thinner, and was actually looking fuller was certainly something he needed to hear. And his bird companion didn't seem to have the heart to continue teasing him. She simply smiled and let him have his happy look on his face.

At least it was better than looking ready to panic.

aberforth frowned when she mentioned stress, looking thoughtful for a moment. Was he stressed? No, he supposed he didn't have anything in his own life that made him stressed, specifically.

"Maybe I just worry too much," he mused thoughtfully, "I don't really know. I guess I'm always thinking about... something. If my hunting is getting better, if other lions hate me... if other lions are doing okay... you know... everything." He chuckled lightly, shaking his head.

"you're lucky- you have such lovely fur and it never looks like it's getting thinner. I wish my fur looked as nice as your fur!"  

[Basil Brett]

Haja sat amused as she watched the succession of emotions on the pale lion's face. Aberforth always shared his feelings so openly; whether he wanted to or not. Haja, despite much effort to the contrary, was the same way. So she couldn't help but give a bashful smile at his compliment, though she knew he only meant in it contrast to his own coat.

"Nonsense, Aberforth... You have a lovely coat," she said firmly. Despite his somewhat eccentric nature, he had always been a warm presence in the pride and Haja did genuinely appreciate his company.

"But," she added, "I thank you for your kind words."

Above her head, Maboya shook his head slightly with a small sigh. Like many conversations his bonded had, this one appeared to be going nowhere. Oh well. As long as she was enjoying herself.  

[Cajanic]

Aberforth felt contented. Not because someone told him he had a nice coat- he didn’t need to hear that when he knew it wasn’t really true- but because he was told he had a nice coat by Haja. She was such a nice female and he liked spending time with her. Somehow, her compliments were nicer, too.

“Haha, well, I’m glad we’re here talking together.” He smiled and let his tail swing around happily. They could have been talking about how many fish were in each and every pond in the pride lands and he would have been happy with how things were going. Sometimes, it was just nice to talk to someone rather than sit back and watch. Being afraid was not all it was cracked up to be, it seemed.

As if anyone had ever praised it.

“So what were you doing today, Haja?” He asked lightly, “maybe we could go get something to eat, if you’re hungry! I’ve become a much better hunter.”

Basil Brett

 

[Basil Brett]

Haja beamed at Aberforth's brightened demeanor. Her smile grew even broader at his invitation.

"Gosh, that sounds fantastic! I am rather hungry," she admitted.
"And I didn't really have any plans."

That last part wasn't exactly true. She had ventured forth for the day with the plan of acquiring whatever gossip she could round up. But the idea of a hunt with Aberforth sounded like great fun.

"I will remind you," she said with a slightly bashful flick of her tail.
"I'm not... the best hunter around. Kinda clumsy on my feet. Always was much better at fishing. But I'm sure that between the two of us, we're up to the task!"

She turned to her bonded, still resting contentedly above the two lions' heads.

"Maboya, you up for a hunt?"

A light nod confirmed that the fish eagle was ready and willing.

Cajanic

 

[Cajanic]

"That's okay," laughed Aberforth, "I'm not very good at hunting or fishing. But hopefully two heads really are better than one! And eight paws are better than four." He imagined, with his practicing and her presence, they would be able to find something to nom on without problem. He was looking forward to it- he wanted to eat with her and find out more about the things she had learned about the pride.

She always had the best stories, and he really liked to listen to her speak.

Smiling, he moved to lead the way to a good hunting ground, fairly pleased with himself for being brace enough to move out in front. Somehow, he knew he had confidence inside of him, it was just a matter of bringing it to the surface. A slow process.

His bonded watched, smiling contently. She could see he was trying to impress his lady companion, the silly fool. No doubt they would end up in another mess because of it.

He was difficult to keep out of harm's way.

Basil Brett

Fin? It only took three years!