Slinking through the reeds, a young lion watched his prey. The amphibians sang their merry song, now and then hopping amid the reeds themselves. The juvenile grinned, carefully placing a paw. Near by, a frog let out a bark, before jumping right in front of him. In a fast movement, Ubati pounced, clamping his paws over the amphibian. "Gotcha!" He held his prize up, grinning as it wiggled and struggled.
The splashes were what alerted her first. On a nightly walk, Mimi had found herself wandering near some reeds, when... Well... She heard a splash. She looked over, red eyes filled with curiosity. What she found was a younger lion, a juvenile, holding up a frog. The small amphibian was struggling, trying to get free from the lion's grasp. Mimi was suddenly reminded of Xavier, the god she'd run into at a watering hole. "Oy! You! Drop that poor froggy!"
Ubati let out a surprised sound, letting the frog go. It hit the water with a soft 'plunk' before shooting off, swimming away and warning the other frogs. As he watched them all leave, he let out an exasperated sigh, before turning to the hooded lioness. "I wa'n't gonna hurt 'em none!" He got up, shaking mud off his paws as he walked back to shore. "Jus' catchin' 'em." He looked up at the lioness, frowning. "None wrong with that, is there?"
Her ears suddenly went back, eyes widening. "Forgive me, but where DID you learn to talk?" His word structure was absolutely ATROCIOUS. "It's 'NOTHING wrong', not none!" She'd have to see about having a word with his mother and father, whatever they were teaching him wasn't sticking too well. That or he was WILLINGLY talking like that... Which worried her more for some reason. "And why WERE you trying to catch frogs, anyway? What'd they ever do to you?"
The juvenile sat down, scratching an itch on his shoulder as he shrugged. "Learned same way everone else did..." He never really thought about the way he talked. He just... Did it. "Wha's it matter how I talk, anyway? You unnerstand wha I'm SAYIN', at least, right?" Wasn't that the entire point? "An' I was catchin the froggies to do it." He paused in his scratching, motioning with a paw. "I ain't gonna eat 'em or none, just catch 'em, let 'em go. Is' good practice." He'd need it when he went on his name quest. He'd like to not starve out there.
Mimi let out a huff, ears still back a bit. "And if you hurt one, then what?" Somehow, it hadn't occurred to her that frogs could be food. "You couldn't let the little froggie go THEN.. It'd get eaten by an owl or something!" As much as his speech mannerisms were grating on her, she'd have to suck it up, from the sounds of it. He wasn't about to change it. But the frog catching... That one alarmed her for some reason.
Ubati blinked. "If'n I hurt the frog... Then I'll eat it." The alarmed look on her face made him crack up. "Wha, you think nothin' eats frogs round here?!" He slapped a paw on the ground, then fell over, rolling onto his back as he continued to laugh. "They taste good! You should eat one some time!" He pointed at the water. "An' they have so many babies, eatin' one in ten frogs ain't gonna hurt the poplation none!" He sat back up, grinning wide. "Things gotta eat, an crocodiles eat more frogs than I do any day, anyway!"
She made a face, ears dropping. She couldn't imagine eating a frog... Near by, a plunk signaled the return of the frogs, deciding it was once again safe to be in the direct area. "What's a frog taste like, anyway?" She couldn't imagine they tasted good. "I'd rather try and catch a fish than a frog..." Fish couldn't JUMP. Could they? Then again... She'd never run into a fish that jumped. Not yet, anyway. A frog landed next to her paw, and she slowly lifted it up and away, eyeballing the little amphibian. So slimy...
He let out another laugh. "Oh, froggies taste GOOD! They have such tender meat..." He licked his lips. "An' the skin... It's perfect for slurpin'!" He'd clearly been doing this for a while now, as he grinned and seemed to drool a bit. "You should try one!" When the frog landed in front of the lioness, the young male's eyes widened, before he dropped down. "An' there's one now!" He grinned wide, before jumping at the frog. It gave an alarmed bark before jumping away, Ubati chasing after it. When it landed in the water with a plunk, he landed with a splash, just missing the amphibian. He sat up, hair dripping wet as he smacked the water. "Missed it!" Then he looked over at Mimi. "Come on, give it a try... Um... I don' know your name..." He pushed his hair out of his face, pausing, then piped up, "I'm Ubati!"
The albino lioness hesitated, before carefully stepping in the water. "I do know your name, Ubati... Your parents are Gebali'moyo and Baridi'ini..." She paused. "So from the family lesson my father gave me, you're my... Very poorly verbally articulate cousin. Distantly." As she found herself ankle-deep in water, she looked around. Naturally, her father had taught her to swim, and to appreciate the water, and she DID adore it... But not so much the mud, nor the... Frogs... She leaned down a bit, closer to the water. "I'm Mimi Kutembea'usiku... But I just go by Mim--" A frog suddenly landed on her face. Mimi's eyes widened as a look of abject horror crossed her face. "EEEEEEEE!" She scrambled back, shaking the frog off her face before running off.
Ubati watched her go, before cracking up. "Come back and try again later, when you're not afraid of a little ol' froggy, Mimi!" He then turned, hunkering down before launching at a frog. With a splash that sent not only water flying but a little mud, he soon held up a new frog, as covered in mud as he was. The young lion grinned, sitting up with his prize, before checking it over. No wounds, no injuries... He let the frog go, before getting ready to go for another one.
