Things had gotten much more interesting with the family lately and Tetemeko had cheered up since their return home without Vikasini. He still felt guilty and wished there was something he could do to help them out, but he just didn't have the control and, well, everybody seemed to be trying to move on. Shani certainly had, Tete just needed something else to focus on for a while but there wasn't really anything for him to focus on. So he would just have to go out and find something. Maybe he needed a girlfriend, but thinking like that made him think of Manuku- new family-in-law that, well, was a little obnoxious about it.
A walk was a good start, he had eventually decided, and gone off around the waterhole to see what he could find, see what he could do. Maybe he could get in on a hunt or something. Anything to break up the day.
Enzi was on his way home from his awkward walk with Kafara where they had run into her brother. Now that they had been found out by her family he was feeling more pressure, feeling more awkward about it-- and considerably more worried. But he didn't know who to talk to. He didn't really have his parents, though he had Shani and he loved her dearly he was just a little too shy. He could talk to Wahabu but he had had three mates or something, he didn't seem like a good one to ask, even if that was an opinion that Enzi kept to himself and felt a little guilty about. Nevertheless, he was going to have to figure something out now because he really didn't want to let his worries stop him from going to see Kafara more.
He didn't get very far from the path he and Kafara had followed when he spotted a familiar figure. It was his cousin, Tete! He didn't even look terribly occupied so Enzi figured there was no harm in interrupting him. It wasn't like it was something they worried a lot about in their family, everybody was in everybody else's business at some point or another.
Enzi was hard to miss, being the bright blue color that he was. It was as good a way to spend the afternoon as any and once he knew Enzi was heading his way, Tete started out to meet him. He noticed that he was looking rather worried but with Enzi that hardly seemed unusual- especially in the absense of the pretty lioness he had been hanging out with so much now. Stopping short of running into the younger lion, he greeted him with a smile.
"Good afternoon, Enzi," Tete greeted him, "What are you doing all the way out here?"
He looked around them. It wasn't really that far from anything but it was farther than Enzi often wandered on his own, that had to mean that Kafara was around somewhere. Even if Enzi didn't acknowledge it, everybody had come to expect to see them together. Most of them, anyway. They were just waiting on the two of them to sort things out for themselves.
"Where's Kafara?" he asked brightly.
"Hey, Tete," Enzi responded brightly, already expecting the questions that his cousin soon asked. There weren't many reasons he would be out here, especially by himself. He would usually be with Kafara, and he would still be if she hadn't felt so guilty about her brother. She had wanted to go talk to him and, well, Enzi had chickened out of the idea of going back with her. Kafara would report back with what the general opinion seemed to be, what to expect. They both knew what was going on, they just wouldn't admit it. Or was that just how Enzi saw it? He really didn't like not knowing.
"She went home," he said, frowning before continuing, "Her brother ran into us, I don't think he likes me very much."
"You haven't met her brother before?" Tete asked with a chuckle but he smiled sympathetically at the younger lion, he had trouble with his own relatives sometimes, it wouldn't be any easier dealing with the relatives of someone he loved. Or so they suspected. Which was why he had to suppress another chuckle.
"What makes you think that? You're a very likable lion," he said.
"The way he looked at me," Enzi said, barely speaking above a mumble. Despite what Kutunza had said before he left, he knew he wasn't exactly trusted yet- just like Enzi didn't really trust what he had said. He understood but he didn't like it, it was an uncomfortable muddle really.
"And the way he spoke to Kafara," he added, "He wasn't exactly friendly and I know they're really close." He was frowning again and he shuffled his paws awkwardly, looking around.
"Don't worry," Tete said encouragingly, hopping over and nudging Enzi playfully, "He'll come around, besides, you're not intending anything malicious. There's no real reason for anybody to be suspicious of you or upset with you, I have no doubt about that." He nudged him again, feeling a sudden restlessness.
"Let's head back home, you don't look like you want to chat with anybody else right now," he said, though he didn't really mean anything by it, "But you have to tell me the truth about Kafara, you're too upset about this to keep denying it."
Enzi was nodding along to the idea of returning home until Tete tried to get the truth out of him and he stumbled- both physically and mentally. But Tete kept moving, so he had to hop to catch back up to him. He didn't say anything right away but decided that Tete was as good as anybody to talk to, even if he didn't have a mate or family or anything. That might make him better to talk to, he wouldn't necessarily pass the information along.
"I- I like Kafara," he said lamely, "But I don't know, I mean, everybody expects something from us or about us or whatever. I don't even know if it's what I really think, or- or what she really thinks."
It was hard to get out but once he said it he knew he meant it. Joking about him having a girlfriend was one thing but to an insecure fellow like him, it was starting to mess with his head and cause worry about mixed up perceptions.
"What if I said something but she didn't agree?"
Tete made sure to keep things moving along even when Enzi stumbled, knowing this was one of the better ways to get information out of him. He wasn't trying to make it a big deal, it was just a friendly conversation, though it was forced out of him to a certain extent. He couldn't help but smile when Enzi explained his concerns.
"Well, you'll just have to figure out what you think," he said, "And take it from someone who knows, you don't want to miss your chance just because you think she might not feel the same." He thought of Sineri, wondering how things might have been if he hadn't been such a moron. The farther they walked, the more distracted he seemed to become, though he did his best to continue paying attention.
"What if I don't know what I think?" Enzi asked worriedly before Tete could add on his warning. Raising a brow, he looked over curiously, not sure he had heard this story.
"Someone who knows? What do you mean?" he asked, but he almost immediately regretted it when he saw the distracted look on Tete's face. Was he trying to avoid answering the question? He bit his tongue but didn't say anything that might indicate he didn't want to know.
"I might have had a chance for a mate but I never got brave enough to say anything," Tete responded, though he was looking around as he said it, "We grew apart, stopped seeing each other so much, we don't even talk now. Who knows if it would be any different now if I had made a move but it certainly wouldn't be any worse for trying." Maybe he was a little optimistic but he genuinely believed what he said. He would sound more like it, too, if he weren't so busy looking around. His ears flicked back, flattening against his head and he squinted out into the distance. Something was up but he couldn't quite figure it out.
"That would be terrible," Enzi muttered when Tete explained what happened to him and the lioness he had liked. He frowned thinking about that happening to him and Kafara, he certainly didn't want it to. If he let Kutunza get to him, though, that might be exactly what happened. He had to be brave for Kafara like she was for him, he was convinced-- but that didn't mean he was about to turn around and march off to find Kafara. He had to just hope nobody said anything that convinced her he was an inappropriate friend, or more.
"What's going on?" he asked suddenly, realizing he didn't have Tete's attention anymore.
"I don't know," Tete answered, giving the area another quick scan before looking off in one specific direction. Something was up and this was the way to go to find out what it was. Feeling the need to rush, he picked up the pace.
"Come on," he said, and then started to run.
"But Tete--!" Enzi called after Tetemeko as he began to run off. He still didn't know what was going on but he couldn't very well argue with someone who was running away, and if something was wrong he couldn't leave him either. With a nervous look around, he sprinted to catch up with Tete.
"Wait for me!"
Continues/finishes here
