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A vulture landed on a branch in a gnarly bush nearby and watched the wandering cub. It tilted its head this way and that and edged closer as if to check if the lioness was edible. Vultures usually didn't eat live prey, or lions, but this one must have missed the memo.

"Are you lost, little snack?"

It clacked its beak in a manner that might appear alarming and looked... very hungry actually. It hopped closer, but since the bird was running out of branch space it couldn't get much closer without taking wing again.




"Xefo," a voice called in the distance, and a young lion could be seen wandering through the grass. It looked as if he hadn't seen the young lioness or the vulture yet. Hlengiwe might recognise him as the Enda that had recently returned to the pride. He had been initiated shortly after Gakere took charge of the pride, so she might or might not remember him becoming an Enda and his subsequent departure on his first journey.

Xatu had seen Xefo land, but the cub was nearly hidden in the grass and only when he closed in on the two of them did he notice her. The first thing he saw was two dark ears sticking up, and with a few more steps he was close enough to see the sitting cub.

"Hello," he said and smiled at her, "You aren't bothering the kid, are you Xefo?"

His vulture did have a peculiar idea of what was funny, and he was worried about getting complaints if he tried it on the wrong lioness in the pride. Some of the huntresses seemed to lack all traces of humour even on their best days, and he didn't want an impatient female to break the poor birds neck.

The vulture gave him an almost wounded look at the mere suggestion. Him? Bother a kid? Really? Xefo fluffed up his feathers and bobbed his head once up and down.

"I would never do such a thing," he said, "I just made sure she wasn't lost. She isn't."

He winked to the cub. She was all right in his book, especially since she had not run away screaming when he pretended to want to eat her. The world could be a harsh place so if he could help the kiddos in it become a bit sturdier he was doing them a favour. Someone should really have offered Xatu a bit more tough love when he was young in his opinion. The male could hardly hold his own in a fight after all.

"Hello Hlengiwe," Xatu said and bowed his head in a formal greeting, "I'm called Xatu and I'm an Enda in this pride. Do you know what Enda means?"

Xatu might be a full grown lion, but he felt more kinship with the cubs in the pride than with the lionesses or ruling males. In some ways he was still like a cub, only with a vulture and with more responsibilities. When he was spending time around the males he was all too aware of his status as not-quite-male, and when he was hanging around near the lionesses he was constantly afraid he'd foul it up somehow. As if he could look at a lioness wrong and make her pregnant. No, hanging out with cubs were much safer...

The vulture would not have argued against the cub part. He was an old vulture, and if you asked him he was the brains of the operation. Xatu was young and had very little experience of how life worked.

"Means he's a vulture whisperer," Xefo croaced, and laughed when he got a dirty look from his lion. Ah, lion baiting... A sport only a vulture could appreciate fully. He must share that little nugget with Bora the next time they talked. Vulture whisperer... Ha!

"Yes, we travel far," Xatu confirmed and glared at the vulture, "The vulture is called Xefo, and he thinks he's funny. I do more yelling than whispering really... But it's nice to be able to go back here now and then. This is my home after all."

Xatu ignored the two lions and busied himself with some preening. He was very pleased with himself. It was too easy to ruffle the young lion's feathers, so to speak. He used his beak to make sure all flight feathers were clean and aligned properly, but he still listened to the two lions. It was an act he had perfected over the years, and it had allowed him to overhear interesting things at times. And every fledgling knew you had to keep the flight feathers in good condition so he really achieved two good things at once.

He wondered if she could understand his desire to do anything to stay with his pride. Being a female she would have a home with the pride for as long as she wanted. He had seized the opportunity to become an Enda to be able to stay and keep in touch with his family. This young female seemed to want to become an Enda for other reasons, and he wasn't sure he understood all of it. He didn't want to discourage her, but he wanted to make sure she knew what she was asking for.

"I had to have a tooth extracted to show my dedication," he said and showed Hlengiwe the gap, "Xefo wears it around his neck, and he gave me a feather in return to show our bond. That's the visible difference between an Enda and a Cinga."

Xatu hadn't really reflected about the mark, but when Hlengiwe pointed it out he saw what she meant. The purple was unusual, but he hadn't noticed it at first since it was barely visible when she was standing in the tall grass. He knew all about undesirable coat colours... Being a male, and a male with a white mane at that, hadn't exactly helped him when he was young. The colour prejudice in the pride wasn't as bad as it had been, but there were still plenty of females who valued a dark coat and especially a dark mane more.

"I don't think the Abaholi will mind much once you're fully grown," he said honestly, "You're very dark, and that's a good quality."

Xefo was busy preening his tail feathers one moment, and the next he was staring eagerly at the young lioness, preening all but forgotten. He chuckled at the prospect of that story. It was a matter of pride for the vulture. He had set out with the intention of finding a lion, and he had succeeded without too many mishaps.

"Look at him," he croaked, "I had to take pity on the poor boy. Help him out a little."

Xatu gave his suddenly talkative bird a murderous glare.

"Yeah, I've got Xefo so we keep each other company," he said "But when I'm home I also have my mother, and I get to meet my half siblings… "

Not that he spent a lot of time with Gakere or with Simo... But they were there, and he could talk to them if he wanted to. Nahmba's children had sure made an impression in the pride. With Gakere as the leading male and Simoshile one of the current Umama... Xatu's role as an Enda wasn't half bad either, but he didn't think of himself as terribly accomplished. He was just doing his best, and hoping that no one would realise he had no clue...

Xefo bobbed his head. Relations between the lions of this pride were weird and tangled, and he had almost given up on keeping track. It didn't help that Xatu forgot that the things he took for granted was foreign to anyone not born here. It was easier for birds, he mused. You had one mate and that was it. No need to make it more complicated than that.

He landed heavily on Xatu's back and preened his mane briefly before turning to the young lioness again.

"Vultures are very loyal," he said, watching her intently with his beady eyes, "We only have one mate and not many. We only have one lion. If you want to befriend a vulture you need to gain his trust. You need to be like his mate would have been and be prepared to stay together, always."

Xatu wouldn't have describe their relationship quite like that. Xefo was more like an extra parent than a mate, and he was just as good at embarrassing him as any real parent.

Xefo whipped his head around and gave Hlengiwe a piercing look. Gakere? The family ties among these lions made his head spin. He gave Xatu a questioning look. Perhaps it was a good thing that the lion wasn't allowed to take a mate here. The vulture knew that mating between closely related individuals could make the chicks weak.

"You two are related?"

"Uh... No, not directly," Xatu said, "At least I don't think so. My mother is Nahmba and I think Kamal must be my father. Gakere has the same mother but was sired by Matifu, making him my half-brother."

He took a deep breath, giving himself time to think. Hlengiwe must be from Matifu's last litter. She looked too big to be born after he left, and he would know if his own mother had another litter.

"Hlengiwe is Matifu's daughter," he said, giving her a look as if to question if this was correct, "And that should make Njalo her mother. Xefo, you've met Njalo."

Xefo fluffed up his feathers. Lions and their family ties... He remembered Njalo. She was loud and had distinctive markings, and he also remembered something about her being low in rank due to... Yes it must be due to these cubs. Lions were strange creatures... This little one seemed to properly appreciate birds at least.

"That's the spirit," he said to the young female, "I'm sure you'll find your companion eventually."