The female had been traveling with Malenga for a few weeks now. He was constantly looking for the female he spoke of, yet to no avail. To say it put him in a pissy mood sometimes, was an understatement. Demi did her best to keep his temper in check, otherwise she would be the brunt of the anger. So she did her best.
But sometimes it just wasnt possible.
She yawned, her eyes tired. She had grown used to walking in the night, but still sleep seemed to just naturally want to come when the sun went down.
She looked over to Malenga, waiting for her commands. She did what he wanted, when he wanted, and she was getting better at not doing anything without his permission. She wanted to remain in his good graces.. She had seen him eat stronger, bigger lions than herself. That was enough motivation for her.
Malenga sighed faintly, sitting himself down as he scanned the area. Once again, his lover couldn't be found. Where had she gotten to, anyway? Wasn't like she was that hard to pick out of a crowd, yet he couldn't manage to find her anywhere. If he didn't know better, he would think that she was purposefully attempting to avoid him, just to keep herself out of trouble. Which, of course, probably meant that she was doing something he wasn't going to be pleased with.
Annoying.
Feeling a bit tired, the somewhat smaller male glanced at his travel companion, frowning thoughtfully. Tell her he wasn't feeling well and risk her running off, or keep it to himself and collapse somewhere down the line? Either way, it seemed as though he would be losing his recent company. Drat.
She was starting to prove useful to him. "Why don't we call it quits for tonight," he grumbled after a moment, "could use a bit of a rest. What say we find a place to get a drink or something to eat?" He wasn't feeling up to hunting another lion, so perhaps they could settle on something she actually liked eating for a change. Not as a favor to her, of course.
She nodded, eyes a bit nervous, though she worried about his trust in her. She had given her word, and she prayed that he believed her. She was almost positive once he had no use for her, she'd be easier to kill. She gave a little smile, though her smile was weak as she didnt like smiling much around him.
"That sounds really good." She said, her belly growling as if telling him it was a good idea. She tried not to eat much lion, when he brought it down, so her hunger wasnt always satisfied.. But she ate enough to live, even if it meant she was slightly skinnier than when he had first found her.
"What did you have in mind?" She asked.
"I was thinking maybe I could see you kill something for a change," the male replied with a shrug of his shoulders, "been doing all the work of late, haven't I? Bout time you started pulling your own weight around here!" Plus, he wasn't feeling up to hunting for himself and he figured she wouldn't be completely helpless about that kind of thing.
Everyone knew how to hunt.
"Just find something to kill and kill it, yeah? Don't make me have to jump in and help you out either, cause I'm not going to. You don't catch something, then you don't get to eat. Pretty simple concept if you ask me." He watched her carefully, making sure he didn't give too much away about how he was feeling.
She nodded, gulping. She hoped her talents came into play. She had once known how to hunt, but with the hunting of lions, she hadnt really taken a paw in the hunt. She hoped she wasnt too rusty. She looked out on the savannah, and wondered what she could possibly catch. Something smaller, for sure, as she wasnt really that large of a lion, and she was hunting alone.
"I-I can do that." She replied, another nod as if to reassure her. She looked at him, as if to get permission to leave. She wasnt just going to take off, otherwise he might think she was leaving him. She couldnt risk that. She didnt catch at all that he might not be feeling well enough to chase her.
"Should I go do that now?"
"Yes, now, what would you possibly be waiting for?" Malenga replied with a light growl, a little cranky in his somewhat ill mood. He grunted in irritation, lowering himself to the ground in order to rest a bit, "make sure you bring back enough for the both of us, alright? I don't eat piddly little things like you might! Get something with a bit of meat on it." He watched her a moment, wondering if he was doing the right thing. Up until now, she had been good about keeping to her promise and staying near him, but that didn't mean she was going to continue.
Maybe she would take this as her chance to flee. It was more freedom than he had allowed her since they had come to traveling together. Still, it wasn't like he OWNED her. In a weird, somewhat deluded way, he felt more like they were simply travel buddies, rather than someone who had more or less kid napped her for the fun of it.
She liked being around him... right?
She would have squeaked, had she shown her true feelings at his remark. She nodded once more, and began padding outwards into the savannah. She looked around her, and prayed something with meat on its bones came by. She didnt want to go too far, she wanted him to be able tos ee her.. To be able to note that she hadnt taken off.
Something like a kipspringer would have been nice.. Or a Waterbuck. Anything that was decent sized. She needed to feed both her and him.. And he would likely take first dibs at the meat.
Her eyes looked desperately, and she began nosing along the earth. Once she raised her head, she thanked her lucky stars. A Kipspringer, that was halfway decent sized was making its way back towards its home no doubt. She grinned, and lowered her body, trying to remain absolutely still.
Malenga appreciated that the female had decided not to stray too far from his sight, giving him the chance not only to make sure she didn't abandon him when he needed her, but to check out her skills as a hunter as well. Normally he wouldn't let her get in the way when he hunted something, particularly when that something was another lion. Of course, it wasn't just to keep her from messing up his kill; he wanted to make sure she didn't do something stupid and get herself injured.
She didn't need to know about that, though. As far as he was concerned it was a fluke he felt like that anyway.
As he watched her lower herself down, he smiled. Now it was time to see if he was traveling with someone who couldn't hold her own weight when need be.
Her eyes took on that of a predator, and her body slowly moved forward. The doe didnt see her, her thoughts too into herself, as she was walking rather slowly for a nighttime travel. She wasnt very smart about that.. Demi would have her easily if she kept that up.
Soon she was in springing range, and with a graceful leap, she latched her two front paws on the does rump. The doe let out a startled shriek, and she tried in vain to get away. However, by the time she realzied what was happening, Demi had a hold on her, and soon was on top of her, with her mouth on her throat. She held her there, the flailing creature slowly stopping its kicking and screaming. Tightening her jaws, she would have smiled had she been able to.
Malenga watched her, always impressed with the grace of a female as she hunted. Still, he wasn't really going to admit that she was THAT talented, even if he did find himself smiling almost proudly as he watched the animal stop kicking from between her jaws. It would be something completely out of character- praising her for something.
At least he has something to eat now.
Shaking his head slightly, feeling a little hot even though the nightair was cool and serene, the male didn't bring himself to his feet to go over to the kill, instead waiting for her to drag the food back over to him.
She lacked the grace of his former mate, he found, but she didn't seem completely useless. Perhaps she even knew how to fight. Which could prove useful to him if he ever found himself in a tougher situation than he would have liked to be in. for the moment, though, he didn't need to think about what she might be able to do for him. All he wanted was the food.
Smelling the blood was making him very hungry.
She grabbed a good hold of the caracass's throat and began pulling her towards Malenga. It was heavy, as it wasnt exactly the lightest doe in the world. She dragged it closer, and soon, she was with Malenga, and it was dropped at his paws. She had a proud smile on her face, happy that she had made such a catch.
"Is it big enough?" She asked, hoping it would be enough to make a good meal out of. Of co urse, she was sure it was, as there was enough to feed both of them and to their fill. But shed rather hear it from him.
Malenga pushed himself to his feet, trying not to make it look like it was a struggle. In the back of his mind, he wondered if he might have eaten something that made him feel ill, or if it was just a product of some random event he couldn't even remember initiating. Whatever was causing his discomfort, it seemed to be getting worse rather than better. Thankfully, he was still feeling well enough to get something in his stomach. Sniffing the body a moment, he took on a thoughtful expression.
"'spose it's enough for the both of us," he admitted almost reluctantly, "guess I can trust you more than I thought. But don't think I'm going to let you have first pickings- I get the heart. Don't go eating anything I like or I'll be cross with you." He knew it probably wouldn't happen. Not many lions liked to eat the same things he did.
Yet it was everyone else who was weird, in his mind.
She knew he liked the tender parts of the animals, and she moved to the hindquarters, tearing into the flesh there. She'd leave the organs for him, unless he left them of course. She liked the meat, more than just the organs. She was perfectly fine leaving it to him.
"That sounds fine." She grinned, and began chewing on pieces of the flesh. She had done well, and she was proud of herself. What wasm ore, it was the first time she forgot how scared she normally was of him. Of course, that caution would return rather quickly once the pride wore off.
