Life outside the pride was different, Tariq decided.

It was more free, but at the same time more unpredictable, which made it more unbridled, which made it more...boring.

Life was boring.

When Tariq had thoughts like that, sometimes he felt himself wondering what it would be like to die. Was he supposed to have those thoughts? They fascinated him, but he knew they weren't completely right.

Still, he wondered. Body splayed out defenselessly in the open savanna, the male's eyes remained steadfastly on the expanse of land which surrounded him.

He was a black spot on an otherwise unmarred field of light--a blot on the earth's surface that didn't really matter at all.

No...he mattered to his pride. He was a Vizier. He mattered to his pride, to his banu, and to his offspring.

But in the grand scheme of things, did he matter?

Feeling somewhat melancholy and completely unlike himself, Tariq allowed himself to fall further and further into his thoughts, letting them mold together one by one by one...sinking deeper and deeper into a mental state so unlike anything he had experienced, he felt his body become numb.

Gogo, on the other paw, wasn't feeling numb at all.

Happy once again to be doing something for her beloved "boss", Idili'su, aka Shishi, the curvy leopardess bounded like a baby klipspringer through the long savanna grasses, only able to see above them as she was in the air mid-jump.

"Na na na~ nehneh na na~" she sang to herself as she leapt, smile stretching ear-to-ear.

WHAT A GOOD DAY!

She sniffed it in, sucking inward as hard as she could with her nose. Then she let out the breath in a stream of noisy, sputtering coughs that took hold of her body so intensely that she had to stop jumping for a moment.

Meanwhile, Tariq had managed to shake himself out of his unusual state of mind. He was walking in the direction of the watering hole, hoping he would reach it sooner rather than later. He was thirsty.

And the water might shake him out of his lugubriousness.

"Just a drink and a dunk..." he murmured to himself, head low as he prowled quickly across the savanna. The dry season was killing him.

He knew the water would be only a slight respite from the heat. All the watering holes were nearly as hot as the sun, and there was absolutely nothing cool about that.

He hated the sun.

And it hated him back.

Something about recognizing a mutual hateful relationship between himself a source much bigger than he could fathom made him feel...connected to the earth more--connected to something more closely even than his own banu.

Sometimes that bright, glaring orb reminded him of a love he had parted from long ago, but mostly he just hated the damn thing because it was so hot and enjoyed tormenting the blackness of his pelt.

Tariq shot a quick glare up at it, only returning a gesture that the sun repeatedly threw at him.

"Cursed thing," the lion grumbled, quickening his pace. He'd be at the water soon. At least he could drink.

The sun couldn't drink.

It was doomed to be hot and alone forever.

Tariq grinned at the thought. He was so lost in his musings that he didn't notice the muffled sound of coughing coming from near the watering hole up ahead.

"OHHHH, no--" Gogo murred, coughing and choking loudly. She even began to wheeze. For some reason the idea that eating a strand of savanna grass would save her entered her mind, and she promptly ate one.

Turned out that was a mistake, because she immediately began to cough twice as hard as before.

Gogo finally managed to regain her composure, swallowed several times to smooth over the essence of cough that seemed stuck to her throat, then proceeded to bound through the grass once more--only this time, she seemed more like a sickly hare out of its mind.

She bounded and bounded, seeming free of any negative or burdening thoughts. Her heart and mind felt free. She was happy. It was a good day.

But wait...on good days...

UNDEAD GAZELLES APPEAR!

Stopping hard in her tracks so suddenly that she nearly toppled over, the adult leopardess's jaw dropped and her eyes widened, looking suddenly paranoid.

A hint of a smile twitched on her maw before she shushed it away, not wanting to spoil her serious game with signs of her amusement.

The watering hole up ahead was a prime spot for undead gazelle herds to gather. The leopardess dropped down into a rather excellent stalking posture, proceeding slowly through the grasses and towards the water just ahead of her.

Tariq was completely oblivious to the approaching "danger" as he fell face-first into the thick, heated pool of something he could only assume was once water.

The liquid clung to his pelt and he opened his mouth, drinking in the muddled water. Then he felt large ripples move over him and disturb the water, along with the sound of a large splash.

Then something was on top of him.

Eyes shooting open in the pool, the male's body tensed and he flung himself upward in an attempt to throw off whatever had just made his back a personal floating device.

He succeeded in his attempt and leapt out of the water, body completely sopping wet. Water fell off of him like the Niagara falls and he violently shook his black bangs from his face, pink eyes darting for the source of his discomfort.

...Oh, sun...

Was that...?

"You..." Tariq breathed almost noiselessly, practically unable to fathom what he was seeing.

Gogo was giggling excitedly where she lay, surrounded by a pool of water. She was sopping wet also, only she seemed more happy to be so.

She tried to speak a few times, but her own giggling constantly cut off her words. Finally, she managed to toss Tariq a large grin before she rolled onto her feet and shook her body free of water.

Unfortunately for Tariq, all of the water she unleashed splattered all over him, making him twice as wet as before.

Tariq sneered, frustrated by his confusion. He didn't like not knowing. He didn't like not having the upper-hand.

"Are you following me?" he asked, trying to sound cool and calm like his usual self, but he failed miserably.

"YES!" Gogo screeched, but she seemed to realize she had cried out a bit too loudly, so she giggled and lowered her head and said more quietly, "yesssss..."

Tariq stared, mouth agape.

"Why?" he asked on a breath, utterly baffled just as he had been the first time they had met.

"Because!" Gogo piped, frowning, underbite jutting out in her displeasure. "You were an undead gazelle, but you ruined Gogo's game."

Tariq shook his head, glowering at the leopardess. He shook the water from his own pelt and took a deep breath, slowly beginning to understand what sort of a puzzle the female was.

He began circling her as he would prey, examining every inch of the leopardess. "What game?" he asked solidly, no longer seeming lost in the moment.

"Na na neh~ na~ na~" the leopardess sang hauntingly, eyes closed as she smiled to the sky. "Ummmm..." she murred suddenly, ears flicking backwards in the direction the male was currently in. "I was the hunter, and, annnnd...umm, you were the...undead gazelle, and I was gonna catch you, but you weres...um, was--wait...what?" she said, head whipping around to stare at the circling male.

Tariq was confused once more. He gaped at her, then walked close, daring to be more than a couple of feet apart from her. Gogo didn't seem to mind at all. She continued to smile, tail coiling and uncoiling beside her.

"Who. Are. You." the lion asked, making himself appear as menacing and as in-control as possible.

"Gogo. Is..." the leopardess began, only to putter off into a serious of puff-like giggles. "--Gogo...!" she finished, before finally exploding into laughter.

"Gogo," Tariq said, staring seriously at her, though he felt it wouldn't help--there was nothing serious about that leopardess. "why are you following me?"

Gogo suddenly stopped laughing and turned around, looking offended.

"Gogo's not! Gogo was just playing..." she said, voice fading softly as she stroked her paw against the dirt in a guilty fashion. "Gogo's sorry..." she muttered sadly, sighing.

Tariq's eyes wavered over the female's face, still not understanding what was happening. She was so...off. She was just like a cub stuck in an adult's body. He didn't understand her, but part of him was slowly beginning to feel that it didn't...necessarily mind.

"That's okay," he said quietly, his voice cold. Maybe it was better to leave than to prolong the "conversation". Yes...it was better to leave--for her to go away.

"You should...go back home, Gogo." he cautioned the younger female. His words seemed to trigger a memory in the leopardess, and she perked up, getting to her feet. She nodded and tossed the male one last surprising smile before darting off once more.

Tariq watched her go, paws seeping into the wet, muddy earth beneath him.

He stared.

And he stared.

And he realized...

He really needed to stop accusing the world of being boring.