Sinzia was, as usual, bored. He was also, as usual, alone. That made finding something to do particularly difficult. He was growing increasingly irritated by being alone. It’s not that he wanted friends, of course, or someone to follow him around all the time, but he could do with more random strangers popping up and offering him a good time. He sighed, wondering how long it had been since he last ran in to another hyena. A few days, maybe a week.Annoyed, disgruntled, and vaguely lonely, the yellow and brown hyena trotted listlessly across the savannah. He kept his head to the floor, ears flopped forward, dragging his paws a bit as a small cloud of dust picked up in his wake. It was going to be a long day, he was sure.
Flopping down abruptly, not looking at where he was or what was around, he heaved a profound sigh and closed his eyes. He was certain he was only so lazy and sleepy all the time because he just didn’t have enough to do with his time. It was a depressing thought, but he knew eventually he’d find something to amuse himself. Or at least that’s what he hoped.
Auri’samaki was likewise alone but she didn’t mind nearly as much. It was easy for her to find things to keep her occupied. All she had to do was look up at the clouds in the sky to find a funny looking shape and she was off laughing, a grin on her maw. This was exactly what she was doing now, heading across the Savannah, orange eyes on the clouds and laughter pouring from her mouth. She was so busy staring at the clouds that she wasn’t even watching where she was going so when she stumbled over something warm and furry and tumbled to the ground she was confused. But that didn’t mean she didn’t find it hilarious, her body shook as she chuckled.
”Oh my,” She glanced to the side and saw that it was another hyena that she had tripped over. Trying to smother her laughter and failing she rolled over so she was on her stomach instead of her side. ”I didn’t hurt you did I?” A giggle escaped before she managed to clamp her maw shut, but the laughter still showed in her eyes.
Sinzia grunted when something tripped over him, but didn’t move. He heaved an annoyed sigh, but his head remained stationary. He didn’t bother to look up, expecting whatever it was to keep on moving. It seemed to slowly dawn on him that this moving thing that had tripped on him must have been alive, and thus it was some form of company. Something he could play with. He lifted his head in time for her to speak.
Tilting his head, he was surprised to find a female hyena near him. He had thought their kind the rarest of them all, for some reason, so it always took him out a bit to run into another one.
He stood shaking his head.
“Nah, I’m pretty much made of solid muscle, baby, you couldn’t do me any harm if you tried,” he flashed a toothy, cocky grin. Today, he decided, he was going to be very confident and ridiculous. She seemed the kind of girl that might like it, considering how giggly she seemed to be.
Auri looked up at him as he stood, looking over the thing she had tripped on. She was surprised to find out it was another hyena. She hadn’t actually ran into one before, well other than her parents but they didn’t count. The hyena had to admit he was attractive; he wasn’t all skin and bones like some animals she had come across in her travels. Her orange and blue streaked tail swished across the grass as she laid there, amused by this turn of events. Socializing was always more fun than staring at the clouds.
When he spoke she couldn’t swallow the laughter that bubbled out of her. ”Oh really? What if I tried really hard?” Grinning she tensed up and then sprang attempting to pounce on him. She really wasn’t trying to hurt him, she just wanted to see how he’d react.
“You’d have to try really hard,” he said with a pompous grin, throwing his head up into the air and pointing his nose t o the sky. He stood with his shoulders back, his chest puffed out, tail high and ears perked forward grandly. His eyes flashed as he focused on her, looking down his muzzle at her. He arched an eyebrow as she moved to actually call him on his claims. He tilted his head.
“I should warn you that I’m pretty tough,” he said cautiously, lowering himself into a defensive posture. He grinned, trying to affect an air of danger about himself, “I’ve taken lions down, you know. Big ones. All teeth and claws. A pretty little thing like you would have no change against me!”
He certainly hoped that last part was true, anyway. If she pounced on him and he failed to defend himself properly he would be really embarrassed. And his whole persona would be ruined before it could even be crafted. He darted away from her when she did pounce, trying to look cool rather than a bit cowardly, “are you sure you wanna test your luck?”
The female smirked as he acted all tough, and big and bad. He was fun to mess around with at least. She stared up at him from her pre-pouncing position, her rump wiggled side to side as she got in the best position for pouncing. She chuckled as he continued to boast about how strong and indestructible he was. ”Really? Were they big full grown lions?” A smirk pulled at her maw as he said she’d have no chance. ”Oh don’t be so sure, I’ve taken down three lions…at the same time!” Of course it was a lie, but it sounded good, right? Right.
When she finally pounced she find her paws hitting nothing but air, and then she smacked into the ground. Laughing she rolled over and then pushed herself back to her paws once again. ”I’m pretty sure my luck would hold, but for your sake I guess I could let it go.” She winked and then chuckled as she sat down her tail flicking back and forth over the grasses again.
“Oh course they were full grown lions. Any puppy can take on a lion cub. They’re stupid before their manes come in, that’s something every hyena worth his claws knows that.” He looked at her in wonder. Did she just lie to him? Had she already figured him out? He wasn’t used to people playing along with him. A bit taken out, he blinked, then grinned widely.
“Three at once, huh? That’s pretty impressive, I guess. For a little girl, anyway. Now if you had tried five I might have been more inspired. But three? Yeah, I guess that’s okay, if it’s something you wanna brag about,” he shrugged his shoulders languidly, dancing in place as she backed down from what might have been an embarrassing scuffle for him. She had already proven she was a match for him, where bending the truth was concerned.
“Good call,” Sin said, sitting down, too, “the name’s Sinzia, if you wanted to know.”
”They don’t get much smarter when their manes come in either.” She giggled, she didn’t care very much for lions either way but she thought hyena’s were much smarter than them. Looking at him she grinned he seemed amazed by something, maybe it was the three lions things, or maybe it was her bright coat. She chuckled at that thought, she hadn’t had anyone admire her before.
She nodded at his words, but made a face as he continued to add ‘for a girl’. She thought three lions at once was impressive for anyone. But instead of voice her view she just grinned at him. ”Really? Well how many have you taken down at once? Or were they all one at a time.” She watched him for a long moment thinking, she wasn’t sure if she’d actually been able to pin him if given the chance, maybe if she put all her effort into it, but she didn’t spend a lot of her time training. Mainly just traveling and hunting.
”Auri’samaki, but call me Auri everyone does.” She shifted her weight from paw to paw, unable to sit completely still.
Sinzia laughed.
“That is a very good point. Lions, in general, are just dumb.” Sinzia actually had nothing against lions. He had never been hassled by one, really, though he knew them by reputation to be generally unfriendly toward hyena and other canine breeds. So what? He didn’t want to waste his time on them, anyway. And if he did meet one, and it did attack him, he was sure he could get out of there just fine. Or maybe he was just lying to himself.
It was getting hard to tell.
“I’ve taken down six at one time,” he said, challengingly, “but my running total is way higher than that. I could fight a lion a day and never get bored of it. And it’s good to meet you, Auri. I don’t think I’ve ever talked to anyone… quite like you before.”
Auri grinned and nodded, a little chuckle escaping her lips, she couldn’t really stop them. When she was smaller she used to wonder why she laughed so much, but as she grew up she stopped worrying about it and just accepted it. It was better than a lot of things she could be constantly doing. When he boasted of taking down six at once her eyes went wide and then she laughed. ”Really? Six at once? That’s impressive.” She cocked her head to the side a bit and grinned. ”Well I don’t’ think there’s many hyenas like me.” The female lifted her back leg scratching at an itch on her side. ”I don’t think there’s many hyenas like you either, great lion-hunter.” She grinned watching him.
“Damn right there aren’t,” Sin said with a confident nod, “and we wouldn’t want there to be others like us, anyway. That’d make us common and less awesome, which is just not what anyone wants. I mean, as far as I’m concerned, I’m the coolest thing the hyena’s have going for them at this point. And you? Well. You’re pretty, so that’s a plus, and you’ve got some skills going for you. I think it’s better that we be one of a kind. Or. Two of… one kind… each. However that works.”
He coughed, his speech not ending as triumphantly as he had hoped. He tilted his head at her, blinking. Something about her was confusing him, and he didn’t know what. Which, without irony, only confused him further.
“So, do you have any plans for today? We could go a-lion huntin’.”
She smirked as Sin made his grand speech, he made a couple good points. She wasn’t sure how she’d feel if there was more than one hyena like her. That would be strange to say the least. And another of Sin would be interesting, she wasn’t sure she could handle all that confidence. When he called her pretty she giggled, grinning. ”You’re not too bad looking yourself, Sin.”
As he stared at her she chuckled and returned the stare. He amused her greatly all his confidence and hubris. In the back of her mind she wondered if he had a family or even friends, he was alone when she ran into him but that didn’t mean much. It wasn’t a very happy thought, Sin being all on his lonesome.
Catching his question she perked up, ”I have absolutely no plans.” She chuckled and pushed herself to her paws. ”Lion hunting sounds exciting, lead the way great lion-hunter.”
Sinzia coughed. He suddenly remembered that he really didn’t want to go pick on lions.
Really.
“Or…” he said cautiously, trying not to deflate his own sails, “or we could just… sit around and maybe hunt or something? I could do with a nap, really, but I’m always napping. It’s pretty much what I do.” He grinned, wondering vaguely why he had just told her something that was true. He usually didn’t tell the truth about himself unless he absolutely had to. He shook his head, his heavy tuft of fur flopping from side to side.
“I’d like to get to know you a bit better.”
Auri seemed to forget that she’d never actually taken down a lion, but that wasn’t surprising the female forgot a lot of things. When he offered an alternative she didn’t mind, she never really got set in her plans, she was very fluid. When Sin mentioned napping it brought on a yawn, Auri hadn’t realized that she was a bit tired herself. ”Napping’s nice, I enjoy napping too.”
His last statement made her grin, and giggling a little she stepped towards him. ”I’d like to get to know you better too.” She took another step forwards nipping at his maw playfully. ”How ‘bout we nap, then go hunt?” She smiled at him chuckling a bit.
“That sounds like a good plan to me,” Sinzia said, sighing a bit. He was relieved, though he tried not to show it.
He grinned and he trotted toward a shaded area. No one liked to nap in the sun. He made sure she was following, flopping down by falling over, as was his habit. He curled up into a comfortable position and let her sit where she wanted, yawning and humming contentedly. He watched her as he let sleep wash over him. He smiled, shaking his head in wonder, then closed his eyes.
It was going to be a good nap.
End!
