Kiasi'mtunza had been in for a whirlwind of the past few weeks. She had met her first lion and her first cheetah, and then met them both again! Not only that, but she had met a second lion, though she still hadn't any idea how she felt about that meeting. She wasn't sure whether she should have felt threatened by Unguzo, but she had definitely held a healthy respect for his size and strength. She had had no intentions then of offending him, nor now. Of course, she had been no where near as afraid of him as Noti had been of Jua'randa. She couldn't completely understand it; how even after he shared his meal with the cheetah and was so kind, that days later the feline was still unsure about whether or not he had meant her any real harm. Tunz couldn't comprehend that kind of fear, but then again she had never really been given reason to fear anything like that. She had always reserved some level of caution for species bigger than she, but never outright uncontrollable fear.
Wandering the savannah, she had no idea that she was strolling towards another meeting with a lion that she didn't completely understand. Then again, Tunz never really expected to meet anyone twice out in the wide open plains, but who was she to say never?
The large, muscular lion was in a bad mood. He had never been so insulted in his life. At least not without getting himself some manner of retribution, or taking a lesson from it. His climb in the old Dhalimu, after all, had been one filled with mockery and difficulty, his peers not making his task an easy one and making sure he hated every effort he made. But it had made him stronger, made him more resilient. And had made him proud. For a hyena, no bigger than a juvenile, had managed to bite him: to wound him.
That was unbearable.
Walking proudly, though unable to bear weight on the wound, he took solace in how swiftly he had killed the pup. It had been a hollow victory, unfortunately, because the beast had dared tell him he would die with honor, just knowing he had hurt the brown lion’s paw. It was enough to infuriate Unguzo beyond reason, beyond rationality, and he wanted to keep the blood flowing. Growling, a thunderous sound, he prowled across the rogue lands for as long as his leg would bear weight, until he was forced to sit and rest.
Glancing up, he spotted something coming toward him. He snarled in anticipation, just hoping it would be something he could vent on.
The poor wild dog had no idea what sort of trouble she was wandering right into. Regardless, by the time she realized that she was approaching anyone it was too late to turn around and pretend as if she had seen no one coming at all. It wasn't even really that she saw someone at first so much as she felt them in a way that sometimes individuals could when someone else was eminating such a strong emotion: and this stranger was enraged.
But then, this stranger was not a stranger at all. Rather than turn tail and run as she should have, Tunz lifted her head and her teal eyes brightened with quiet curiosity as she recognized the approaching figure as Unguzo! How strange that she would meet someone else twice in the same month. She was starting to worry if she was wandering around in circles, for Mkodi's sake - or if they all were, to be truthful. Instead of running, however, she quickened her pace before stopping a few polite feet away.
"Unguzo! What a wonder seeing you again, sir." She noticed the wound and winced, though she wasn't sure if she should draw anymore attention to it or not. She knew that the lion was a proper beast and that he seemed to have certain protocols for certain things: would it offend him to mention the injury? Or would it be impolite not to? She decided to err on the side of caution and keep her mouth shut past a greeting.
Unguzo growled fiercely. He was not so upset that she was there, but that she was someone he knew. He could not wholeheartedly rip her limb from limb, knowing as he did that she was an interesting creature that he had only recently learned existed. She was his first link to the realm of the Wild Dog, and he could not help but respect her. At least very slightly. Heaving a profound sigh, he did not stop growling as he nodded at her.
“It does seem odd, for we two to meet again,” he said disinterestedly, not looking at her for longer than a moment. He snorted and lifted his front left paw, licking at the still bleeding wound and grumbling incoherently to himself. Often alone, he had taken to speaking his thoughts out loud. He was still working on keeping them in his head while in the company of others. Not that he particularly cared for manners: it was more a concern of his thoughts getting into the wrong heads. There were important things being worked out in his mind, after all, and to let them slip into the air would be costly if the wrong ear was near by.
Heart thundering in his chest, it was all he could do to force himself to focus on his paw and not leap at her, his eyes moving up to her throat and then dropping to the floor in front of him a few times as he silently waged war with his impulses. He wondered if conversation might distract him from his blood lust, “still wandering, then?”
The growling did not fall on death ears, though Noti wasn't completely sure if she was the one that was being growled at. Had she done anything to offend him already? He hadn't even reached her yet, but he already seemed less than pleased to see her. Something must have happened since their last meeting, and she appropriately blamed his wounded paw as the source - or at least the product - of whatever event that must have been. All the same, the lion didn't seem happy to see her.
Her ears pivoted back against her skull in an expression of confused fear as she listened to his offhanded comment and watched him lift the paw to lick. His grumbling was left alone because she was fairly positive it wasn't meant for her ear, and she didn't want to push any of his buttons by asking the wrong thing. She supposed it would be best to weather this encounter with as few words and interjections as possible. If she angered or dishonored him, she figured she would be in for quite the eventful evening - one which she wouldn't likely come out on top of.
"Odd, certainly. I've been meeting a number of people twice lately..." She trailed off, biting back a nervous giggle as she curled her bushy tail around her paws and swallowed. At least he didn't seem to be entirely dismissive, so one ear perked a bit as she replied, "Yes, still wandering. I've not been given a reason to stop yet."
“Maybe these lands are smaller than previously thought,” he said, sarcastic but subdued. He winced as he let his mind wander and his efforts to clean the wound got a bit too rough. He pulled his paw back down and stifled a grunt, sniffing indignantly. Snarling, an easier task for him than forcing a smile, he nodded, “or maybe you’re wandering in circles.”
He growled again, his mind returning to the hyena once more. How could one so small, so young, be so capable of riling him thoroughly? He should have been better than it. He was better than it. There was no reason for him to dwell on this: he had won. It was over. The dead hyena had managed the last laugh, but Unguzo had made it impossible for him to
The fact that the hyena had the audacity to attack him in the first place. He should have been feared: his name should have been known. His pride, if it returned to its former glory with his new leadership to guide it, would have ensured that no such creature would dare something so insulting. He glowered darkly, fathomless eyes losing any trace of light as they fixed on the wild dog. “Let me ask you something, Kiasi'mtunza, am I intimidating?”
Well, it certainly didn't do her self-confidence any good for the lion to be bringing up the very reluctant idea that had been haunting her since all these curious second meetings had begun. Her gaze dropped to the ground in some strange mixture of embarrassment and acceptance before her shoulders rolled in an easy shrug, "Perhaps, though I would have hoped to have crossed similiar enough ground to notice such a thing by now. But I guess it wouldn't be a bad thing to be going in circles if I'm not really meaning to go anywhere at all to begin with."
Yes, that seemed reasonable, right? She lifted her eyes to him hesitantly, as if worried that had been offensive in someway. She was careful not to let her eyes dwell on the wound, though she did glance at it now and then when he happened to move it. It had always seemed that boys hadn't appreciated attention being drawn to their shortcomings, so Tunz decided that it probably didn't change between ages and species and that it would be best to not say anything at all or even stare at it.
His question worried her. Would he be offended if she said yes? That was the truth, so she supposed she wouldn't be wrong in saying what she really thought. Still, she shifted her weight anxiously from one foot to the other as her ears pinned against her skull in apprehension and she replied, "Yes, sir. I would definitely think twice before crossing you, if not three or four times."
Unguzo stood, though his ankle wobbled, and he drew closer to her, eyes glued on hers as he did so. Face drawn tight, mouth curled in a grimace, his throat rumbled with his growl, from which his voice resonated. His tail was still behind him, his ears perked forward and paying attention to nothing else but the wild dog before him. Even his fur seemed to be standing at attention, oblivious to the breezes that should have dictated their direction. He spoke slowly, each word measured with some weight.
“I think that would be wise. And yet some, foolish and young, do not see the same thing you seem to be staring at. They see something worth attacking. Something they could dare mar with their unworthy claws and teeth. To be so insulted is insufferable. I can hardly bear it. It makes me wonder what I’m doing wrong. I train. I keep my fur clean and without clumps of fur. My claws and teeth are as sharp as they come: and I know how to use them well. So why, then, do I still fail to inspire fear in those that have every right to cower before me?”
He raised his injured paw and, without warning, swatted it at her. He was testing his strength, to be sure he was still the same lion he thought he knew so well, though he did not bare his claws in the swing.
