Nobody ever told him how hard it would be. Maybe if they had, Tanuri wouldn't be in his current position. A drought was hard, but being in love during a drought was even harder.

Being hopelessly in love was even worse.

Pawing at the sand and sneering at the weakness he was feeling, the male only had a few moments of solitary repose before the object of his affections (and, strangely, annoyance) appeared.

Once able to have a few quiet conversations nearly every day, now Tanuri couldn't see the lioness without barking at her or tossing out at least one snide comment.

"Ohh, the white lump graces me with her presence," the lion heaved, slumping his head onto his paws where he was reclining.

Gobo'mollo was a friendly lioness, but the drought had warped her into a bitter, quiet thing, interested only in resting in the shade and water. Death and pessimism clouded her once-positive thoughts, and despite the struggling efforts Tanuri put forth to help her see the bright side, Momo had turned her back and was now a helpless case.

It was once evident that the two hunters were a peculiar pair of friends, but not so much now.

"Bite me, Tanuri," Momo snarled, stalking away from him.

"I'd like to," the male sneered over his shoulder.

"Shut up!"

The huntress flopped down on her side in the shade as far from the male as possible. She closed her eyes partly to relish in the mild coolness, and partly to have the male out of her sight. It was difficult to pretend someone didn't exist when you felt their eyes on you, however.

Tanuri watched her, his gaze a mix of hunger and revulsion.

In the past, the two would use their time together to talk of random topics--dream deciphering, memories of the past, funny hunting stories...but Tanuri's stories had ended with one too many hopeless responses from the lioness, and a mild remark about said responses had sent the lioness into an uproar, causing what the male would describe as a ground-splitting shouting match.

They hadn't spoken on friendly terms since.

And unfortunately for Tanuri...

He was still in love with her.

"Stop staring at me, dammit," Momo growled softly, using him as the obvious reason why she couldn't relax, even though he was far from the true reason.

"Make me," the male glowered, crossing his forearms under his chin.

"Keep this up and I will," she said, refusing to open her eyes. It was better to ignore him. Ignore everything. Pretend the world didn't exist. If she pretended the world didn't exist, then the world's necessities didn't exist. And if she pretended the world's necessities didn't exist, water didn't exist. Thirst didn't exist. Nothing existed... It was easier that way.

But that red, bulking blob just had to keep screwing everything up.

"I guess I'll keep it up, then," Tanuri said tauntingly, flipping over onto his other side to face away from the lioness. It was better to ignore her. Ignore his feelings. Pretend she didn't exist. If he pretended she didn't exist, then his feelings didn't exist. And if he pretended his feelings didn't exist, emotions didn't exist. Love didn't exist. Nothing existed... It was easier that way.

But that white, hulking lump just had to keep screwing everything up.

"Just. Shut. Up." the huntress said through gritted teeth, as if the weight of her words would fall heavy on Tanuri's ears.

"Why don't you? You're the one who keeps talking," the male spat back childishly, rolling into the sand to create a resting crevice.

The lioness only hissed this time, releasing her frustration through breath instead of language . Half of her knew he was right by saying that, but the other half of her still itched to speak the last word. She hated him for always scolding her--for never just letting her be. Didn't he understand how hard things were for her?! Sure, she had liked him telling her stories to take her mind off things, but what did he expect? Why was he always looking for her to throw up sunshine and cactus flowers?! It wasn't that simple. A few happy stories weren't enough to convince her of a bright future. They were just salves on the wound.

She wished he could understand that.

Tanuri stared at the cliff wall, face blank, but eyes searching. The lioness's steady, labored breaths fingered the male's ears in strange ways, and he closed his eyes, willing himself to go to sleep. If he could go to sleep, he wouldn't have to think about her and about what had happened--about what couldn't happen. But the most irritating part was that even when he slept, she permeated his dreams.

He wished she realized how annoying she was.

Backs facing each other and eyes staring at the rocky walls, they focused on the cool of the shade. They were hot and frustrated and angry. The shade was an escape for many things. But it was difficult to fully relax when the object of your frustrations was mere paces away.

"There are lots of other places with shade," Momo suddenly murmured, pausing before asking, "why do you always choose this one?"

Tanuri sifted sand through his paw several times, choosing not to answer at first. He wondered if it was better to lie or tell the truth.

"Why do you come here?" he chose to ask, paw massaging the cool sand.

Momo glared at the wall. He only acted dodgy when he was trying to hide something. But...what did she care? She didn't care if he hid things. It didn't matter anymore...

"Because it's the coolest spot," she answered firmly, as if he was stupid for asking her the question to begin with. Only half of her answer was true, but she blotted out the other half. The sound of moving sand under his paws was grating her eardrums.

"Well," Tanuri started, kneading the sand, "that's why I come here."

"You're lying," Momo responded immediately. He was a bad liar, and she knew that he knew that, too.

"No, I'm not," Tanu grumbled, a fresh headache pounding against his skull.

"Yes, you are..."

"I'm no--"

"What do you have to hide?!" the lioness snapped, head whipping over her shoulder to glare at her ex-friend. "It's not like it was a difficult question!"

"IT--!" Tanuri started loudly, nearly getting to his feet. He calmed down quickly, remembering himself. The lioness gave him a searching stare, not understanding his sudden wave of rage.

"Forget it. Just shut up," Tanuri murmured, choosing to glare at the wall instead of the lioness.

"You shut up, then!"

"Why don't you make me?!"

"Why do you keep saying that?!" Momo roared, jumping to her feet to confront the male directly. "Maybe I will!"

"Maybe I will!" Tanuri roared back, darting in position for their face-off.

"Maybe you'll what?!" the lioness spat in his face, just an inch from touching his nose. Tanuri blinked rapidly, losing all steam for an argument. Momo narrowed her eyes, not understanding his sudden weakness, but it calmed her considerably. "Why don't you make things a little easier and just answer my question?"

"Fine," Tanuri swallowed, trying for defiance but landing on troubled acceptance.

"Well?" Momo pried, still as close as she was. Tanuri was silent and blinking, seeming allergic to her breath on his maw. Momo's frustration was building, but she held it back. His confusing reaction was catching her off-guard and making her second-guess herself and everything. "The question was why do you come here?"

Tanuri swallowed painfully, mind blank. She hadn't pulled back, but neither had he.

"Because..." he nearly whispered. He felt like his limbs were about to give out.

"What?" she breathed, her glare losing its edge.

"Because...you're here..." Tanuri lost all self-control and pressed his face into the lioness's neck. Limbs failing, he collapsed into her, taking the lioness down with him to the sand. He didn't care what happened next--if she clawed at him or mauled him to death. But she didn't.

Momo threw her paws around Tanuri and nuzzled him back.