Deep in the heart of the jungle laid a stalker of sorts. Green eyes blazing as she looked at her target; a little lizard on a low part of the tree. Brown and black fur crept low to the ground as her big ears were pinned back, a puppy growl as low as she could make it. Her paws didn't carry her silently; she stepped on twigs and leaves, rustling around in one of the nosiest huntings ever. Still, it didn't mean Izipho gave up on her target. Charging at full speed, the puppy leapt at her target, only to have the lizard jump down and run. Izi, instead, ended up hitting her head on the tree trunk with a loud THUNK!Backing up, she wobbled and then sat down, her head spinning lightly, eyes squeezed shut as she whimpered and whined, tail between her legs. She'd failed the hunt and hurt herself! What would her sisters and brothers think? "Woe is me!"
Of course, if Isi had seen the hunt, he probably would have laughed. But as it was, the golden toned leopard had been napping in a low hanging tree branch. Only to jump at the rather loud thunk, and consequently fall out of the tree onto his back. For a long moment, he just lay there, groaning and blinking the sleep out of his eyes. Until he heard Izi's low whine.The sound made his ears perk, and he slowly rolled onto his feet and padded over to the wild dog pup. "What's wrong?"
Blinking had, she cocked her head to the side, then moved over to the leopard, sniffing at him carefully, nostrils flaring. He smelled funny! "Aren't you a funny lookin' dog?" She remarked, licking his cheek a few times before sitting back down after her head started throbbing again.
"I hit the tree.... There was a lizard on it I tried to get... My head hurts.." Her ears lowered again in a wince.
"I'm not a dog, silly! I'm a lion!" Isi replied, puffing out his fur in an attempt to look more like the noble lion he most certainly was. Of course, after a moment he let his fur fall flat, and the low complaint of the pup made his ears flatten in sympathy. Oh, he'd done that before. More often than he should have, probably. "Poor kid. I know how much that hurts..."
She looked up at him with one eye closed. He wasn't a lion! Lions had big hairs around their heads. That's what momma said, anyway. "Momma says lions got have lots of furs around their head. You don't! You're probably a cheetah!" She said with a nod, never having seen one of those before, either.
"I'm not a cheetah! And I am to a lion! My mane is just reeeeeeeeeeally short. My mom and my dad were both lions, so I'm a lion too," Isi said, sticking his tongue out at Izi. "And besides, cheetahs are really fast! I'm not really fast. I'm not even close to fast!"
"You don't look like a lion," she muttered under her breath, finally shaking her head when it stopped hurting. Getting to her paws, she moved back over to the lion and sniffed him again. "You smell weird.... Like several of your kind! Or.... something. Like the tree." She didn't know what she was saying, the little puppy didn't get away from her family to much. "So you're a lion! Roar for me?"
"Well... Only if you promise not to get scared," Isi teased, grinning and shifting to playfully nose the pup on the head. He didn't mind roaring for the little wild dog, but he didn't want her to get scared and run off!
Laughing as she was nosed, Izipho nuzzled against him and then nodded. "I won't! I hear them in the distance at night time. I guess they're hunting or something." She said with a nod. Scooting back, she sat on her haunches and waited patiently, eyes wide and full of awe.
"Alright then. You ready?" Isi said, grinning and stepping back. He took a long moment before he opened his eyes and gave his best roar. (Which really wasn't all that lion-like at all.)
Izi's ears flattened against her head at the loud un-lion like roar and she frowned a bit before sighing and giving a big smile. Not nice to hurt a new friends feelings was it? Nope! "That was good!.... What's your name?"
"I'm Isimangaliso! But you can call me Isi!" he said happily, grinning an sitting down in front of Izi.
That.... was a heck of a long name. "I'm Izipho! Everyone calls me Izi. They're similar!" She yipped, moving to paw at the 'lion's' cheek. "I'm gunna get bigger one day! My momma said me and my six siblings will be just as big as her!"
"They are similar!" Isi said, grinning and shifting to nose Izi's head playfully. "You are? And how big is your momma?"
She laughed at the nosing again and ended up flopping over, spreading her paws out wide. "She's biiiiig! And very nice! I hope momma gets to settle down somewhere good! So we don't have to keep wandering 'bout the world!"
"Well, you better not get too big! Then you won't fit in neat places!" Isi said, grinning and playfully patting one of Izi's paws. "But wandering is fun! I like wandering!"
Izipho batted right back, her puppy claws trying not to scrap against him. That couldn't be helped, she couldn't retract them, could she? Giggling after a minute, Izipho jumped to her feet and charged at him, hoping to latch onto his cheek fur.
Isi grinned at the charge, playfully attempting to run. Although he allowed the young pup to latch onto his cheek, and he playfully tapping her side.
That made the pup squirm and jump back, bitting gently at his paw, getting a toe between her teeth and shaking carefully. When she spat it out, she blanched at the dirt and dust in her mouth. "Eew... Isi, go take a bath."
"Why? I like the dust! It's a pleasant testament to all the places I've been," Isi said lightly, pouting down at Izi.
Looking up at the pout, the green eyed girl grinned wider and then jumped back away from him. She'd heard something faint and sighed, knowing what it was. Time for her to go back to her pack. "I gotta go now. Sounds like momma's callin' us all," she muttered. "But stay 'round, Isi! I wanna play with you more!"
"Alright! I'll see you later, Izi!" Isi said, grinning and nudging Izi's head.
With that, the puppy nipped him and then ran off through the trees to her den. She really hoped this new friend of hers stayed close by!
