The sun was high in the sky and shining unhindered, not even a wisp of cloud in sight. The heat would have been unbearable if not for the breeze coming in off the ocean, ruffling the water's surface into small waves that lapped lazily at the shore. Even with the breeze, Dhoruba'Kali found the heat undesirable; he didn't feel like swimming though, so instead he took to the thick jungle surrounding the beach, relishing the cool comfort of the shade the trees offered. Casually, he ambled through the trees alone- well, alone, but not quite; Dhoru was almost never alone. Hasi was usually with him, even if no one - himself included - could see her. He could feel her presence, and definitely hear her voice. He heard her now, as if she were walking along beside him.
"Ah, that's more like it. I'm really glad you chose to escape from the heat in here instead of in the water. It's just unnatural for a lion to enjoy swimming."
Dhoru chuckled, not taking Hasi's insult to heart, mostly because she probably didn't even realize she might have insulted him. "Maybe if you'd try it sometime instead of standing on the shore waiting, you'd change your mind. It's really quite relaxing and very refreshing.", he teased. He was used to her abrasive nature and short temper, and it was those traits that made him rather glad that other lions couldn't hear the things she said. Dhoru could count the number of occassions on which Hasi had seemed kind or sweet on one paw! Regardless, she was a big part of his life, and he couldn't imagine a day without her - it would be like losing one of his brothers or sisters.
"That will never happen.", Hasi snapped. "There is nothing that you can say or do that would make me willingly get wet. I don't even like the rain!"
Hasi sounded completely repulsed, and Dhoru could just imagine her lips drawn back and her ears laid back in disgust. Dhoru had never seen Hasi, but after The Lifting when he had become aware of her existence, he had asked her what she looked like. Even though her tone suggested that she was offended - or possibly that she thought he was an idiot - she had described herself as the same chocolate brown as him, with the same tan toes, one black paw and a black ring around her left eye. She had also told him in a somewhat startled tone that their eyes were "literally exactly the same." Thanks to her description, Dhoru had no trouble picturing the lioness when they spoke.
Laughing aloud, he responded, "Alright, alright. No need to raise your hackles. I'm not going to try to make you do something you wouldn't like. Not that I'd succeed.", he added quickly. While he had added that last statement mainly for the benefit of Hasi's ego, Dhoru didn't really know if there was a way for him to "control" her actions. He didn't think so, and even if there was, what would be the fun in that?
As if she read his mind, Hasi shot back, "You wish you could make me. I could whoop your tail into tomorrow.", in a smugly satisfied voice. Dhoru imagined her sauntering about with her head and tail held high, as if she'd just brought down a buffalo single-pawed. He chuckled softly and shook his head ever so slightly, making sure that Hasi wouldn't notice. If she wanted to be proud, he wouldn't burst her bubble; it's not like any harm could come from it. He could just ignore her if she started to actually bother him.
As they continued to pad on through the jungle, walking slowly in a large circle, they continued to ramble on - about the weather, about hunting, about nothing in particular. They were headed back towards the camp when the topics became a bit more sensitive. It had started out as simple remarks about the recent progression in the pride, and ended up a heated debate about the effects of The Lifting. The Lifting was usually a touchy subject with the pride's older members - the ones who used to have muses and insanities - and it was even more so between Dhoru and Hasi. Before The Lifting, Dhoru hadn't even known Hasi existed; she had been so much a part of him then that only one of their personalities could be active in his body at one time. When she came out, he blacked out, coming to after varying lengths of time with no idea what had happened. Now that they were more aware of each other, and Hasi was basically her own person, discussing the old times proved to be quite awkward.
In an attempt to lighten the mood, Dhoru joked, "Honestly, I'm glad that things between us changed since The Lifting. Now when I tell Jani that I love him, he doesn't look frightened!" Dhoru chuckled; his joke was in reference to Hasi's feelings towards Dhoru's brother Takadamu'Jani. When Hasi had taken over Dhoru's body and shown her feelings towards Jani, things were made quite... complicated. While Dhoru's comment had been in jest, he hadn't really thought it through, and so Hasi's reaction didn't altogether surprise him.
"You're happy?! Do you mean to tell me that you're happier now that I'm less of a part of you? Why would you say something so hurtful? And then laugh about it!" Hasi's voice rose until she was very nearly shrieking in anger.
Taken aback, Dhoru pulled back his ears and tried to explain. "No, that's not what I meant. I just meant that it's better for both of us to have our own separate feelings, and not be able to influence the others thoughts or actions. I feel better now that I know your thoughts were your's and not my own."
Still furious, and not one to be easily calmed, Hasi raged on. For several heartbeats, angry and wounded words cascaded from her mouth without end, and Dhoru was unable to get a word in edgewise. Finally, Hasi ended with, "I thought you liked me, why would you feel better about this?"
Dhoru waited a couple of heartbeats to see if it was really the end of Hasi's tirade, then calmly stated, "Because, Hasi, it was confusing feeling that way about my own sibling - and my brother, no less! You may enjoy it, but I didn't."
His words seemed to make Hasi understand his arguments a little. When she spoke again, her tone was more subdued and her voice was at it's normal volume. It just hurts a little to know that you're happier without me." Her own words seemed to tear open the wound again and renew her fury, and she spat, "What if I just totally vanished? Would you be even happier?"
Dhoru let out a long sigh of exasperation. He hadn't meant to hurt her feelings; he just wished she would jump to anger so quickly, and let him explain himself. "Oh, Hasi," he began, "You know that isn't what I m-"
Dhoru stopped speaking abruptly. They had reached the edge of the pride's main camp. Dhoru had no problems speaking to Hasi with others around - everyone in the pride was at least familiar with insanity and everyone tended to just let him be - but their arrival at the main camp isn't what silenced him; he had just noticed the pride's lead Mummer, a beautifully marked white lioness named Nema. She was standing not too far from him and she appeared to be talking to herself, something Dhoru had never seen before.
"I wonder..." he muttered. The gears in his brain were turning, remembering all of the snippets of gossip and rumors he had heard. Raising his voice so the lioness would hear him, he called out, "Hey Nema! What are you doing?"
