The sky was a deep shade of blue, the grass an irreplaceable green, and the herd lay just in reach. Aavi crouched low in the grass, inching her way forward to today's meal as her stomach rumbled. She hadn't had a decent meal in days, and with the prey animals being so close in range, today she just couldn't deny the call of her instincts.
She heard a rustling just a few feet away and couldn't help but investigate. No sooner would she do so that she would come face-to-face with a lioness, the look in her eyes matching Aavi; confusion. And it was in this confusion that they both forgot what they were doing and just... stared.
"Where did you come from?" Maati hissed, glaring down the cheetah with a nobler-than-thou glance. It was obvious; she didn't like anything that wasn't a lion.
Aavi, however, would not have it, and she was quick to respond, "My mother, obviously." She glared down the lioness, not backing down for a second. She wouldn't take an attitude from someone, not this early in the day.
Sparks were flying, and had Maati been any less hungry, she might have started a fight. Instead she turned back to her prey, crouching low and inching forward. She didn't hunt nearly as often as most, but it was a desperate call at the point. If it wasn't this prey, it was starvation. And Maati couldn't kill herself over something so simple.
Aavi wasn't about to let this prissy lioness have first dibs, and so she was quick to follow suit, shuffling forward a little faster than the lioness. At times, she was certainly glad she was a cheetah. Lighter on her feet and much faster, she was sure to stake her claim long before the lioness could, and the idea of it brought a smirk to her face.
Letting out a growl, Maati sped up in an instant, lunging for her prey a second too soon in the process. She had barely raked the prey's hindquarters with her nails, tasting a mouthful of dirt when she landed on the ground behind it. She didn't even have the strength to hunt properly, it seemed.
The herd started to run, and Aavi wouldn't lose this chance. When Maati had thrown her leap, Aavi did not. She raced with all her might, easily catching up the the slow speed of her prey. She adored the idea of shoving this in the lionesses' face; that cheetahs were much better at running than her.
She gripped the wildebeest by the hindquarters, but found herself dragged behind it when she wasn't strong enough to pull it down. Being hungry was the downfall to both of them, and Aavi hated that fact right about now, with her sides being scraped along the ground like a useless twig, stuck to the back end of her dinner.
Maati was amused, at first, but then she started to think. And when she thought, of course, it was for her own gain. She sped up to the injured dinner and the cheetah lodged in it's backside, whipping herself around alongside it and headbutting it at just the right moment.
The preybeast fell over in an instant, giving Aavi the opportunity she needed to get out of her situation.
But then came the moment when lioness stared at cheetah, and cheetah stared back at lioness.
Who's was it?
"Do you have any family to share with?" the cheetah huffed, irked by the lioness from her earlier attitude. However, she could probably see to forgive her if she had family. Being a mother was something she herself dreamed of, but she knew some took to it in a stressful way.
Maati gave the cheetah a glance-over and smirked, "I can tell that you don't." Personally, Maati had nothing against cubs, but for now, they were an inconvenience. She would only bring cubs worthy of her bloodline into this world, and if they weren't, she'd ditch them the first chance she had.
Aavi could tell this was going nowhere, so the crease in her brow only seemed to deepen. "I don't suppose you'd be willing to share, would you?" Her tone was hopeful, but she felt in the depths of her mind that there was no budging the lioness.
Maati's eye twitched lightly, "I... would... rather not." Besides, who knew what this little speed demon carried in her disgusting saliva. She didn't want to chance catching anything from her, and that included a mouthful of drool. She gagged involuntarily.
Aavi sighed and walked towards the tag-teamed kill, dragging a claw along its' side, "What if neither of us passes this point?"
Maati growled, "What good would THAT do?"
The cheetah pointed towards the nearest trees, her expression grim, "It's either that, or the birds get to it first."
Maati's heart sank as she followed the other femme's gaze. Just as she'd pointed out, birds of prey were starting to swarm, watching them with greedy little eyes and waiting to have a chance at the feast. "Alright, fine. No crossing that line." She hissed, the air escaping through her teeth with a hated defeat.
Aavi nodded and circled around, taking in which parts would be the most delicious and a waste to leave to the birds. Regardless, they were getting something, especially with his bratty the lioness was choosing to be at the moment.
Maati watched her, rolled her eyes, and quickly shoved her out of the way, going for the dead center of the prey's stomach. The little cheetah was on her in a second, shoving her back, and she growled, "WHAT?!"
Aavi frowned, "You're trying to leave me with his back fat? Why can't we go heads or tails?" She gestured to each part as she spoke the name out loud.
Maati wasn't happy at all, and this little gnat wanted to make things worse. On one hand, there was the massive head that took up most of the frontal space. But the back... she didn't want to go there. A paw raised to her lips, she pondered over it, mulling the choices in her head with a frown.
Aavi rolled her eyes. This was going to take longer than she thought. Hopefully, the birds wouldn't get any closer...
[1050 Words]
