After healing from her injuries, Haracha was starting to wonder what exactly her latest mission was going to be. What could have been more important than finding her boss' brother? Wasn't he the whole key in taking down that monster?
The muscular leopard stretched out in the den, brushing up against more than one sets of legs. She was currently nestled up against Xandeleigh near the rear of the tiny cave structure, with Sangria and her cronies near the front. Sleeping with dogs wasn't exactly her cup of tea, especially when she remembered how eagerly they had torn into her flesh.
"Xandeleigh...pst. Xandeleigh," She nudged the lioness. "Are you awake?"
"I am now." She yawned, stretching her forepaws out into the early morning void. The light was just beginning to reach the mouth of the den, which meant it wouldn't be long before they would need to find another cool place to hold up until night fall. "What's wrong? Are you bleeding again?"
Haracha shook her head. Honestly, the amount of tenderness she'd been shown these past couple of days had been enough for her to start to trust Xandeleigh again; key word being start. "When you said my mission wasn't over, what did you mean? I thought that finding Abrafo for you WAS the mission?"
She shifted so that she could better see her reactions. The key to understanding Xandeleigh was to see her face. If she showed emotion, she was faking and if she was dead then she was telling the truth. Since it was still too dark, though, she couldn't tell one way or the other.
Xandeleigh pursed her lips into an aggravated snarl. This wasn't the way she had planned on waking up. Leopards were an impatient breed who weren't as easily conned as her own kind. It was with much trepidation that she finally decided to let the worlds slip from her lips.
"When you are healed, you will come with me to Abrafo's family lands. Once there, you will seduce one of his sons, and when you are pregnant you will give me every single cub. After that, you will be free to go."
Haracha choked on her spit. "CUBS?!" That woke up the sleeping dogs. More than one surprised yelp radiated around the cavern, followed soon by drowsy heads that turned to look at the females. "That's what this is all about? You've put me through hell and back because you want cubs? Why can't you just have your own?"
After all, the lioness might be getting on in years, but she was in no way barren. The shock of the whole situation had Haracha seeing stars. Cubs? Seriously?
"I plan on having some of my own as soon as I can find a suitable partner." Xandeleigh huffed. Finding a male for herself was a harder task than this leopard seemed to think, and not just any ol' lion would do. She needed someone of superior breeding to produce fierce warriors for her incoming invasion. They would need to be swift, intelligent, and bold.
"I need more reinforcements, though, and what better way than with cubs you yourself can produce? Don't look at me like that, dear heart. You only have to sleep with the male once if you're lucky." She teased.
"You still haven't explained why it has to be one of Abrafo's sons. What difference does it make if the male has any connection to that big b*****d or not?" Besides, she didn't much like the idea of laying beneath a leopon. Haracha shivered. Strange, awful creatures they were. What if her cubs came out that way?
She also didn't like the idea of Xandeleigh raising her offspring. It was a tough situation she'd been placed into; her cubs or her freedom. If she took her freedom, Gods only knew what would become of the poor things, but if she raised them herself she would be forever tied to Xandeleigh. A rogue thought passed in her head, but she just as easily dismissed it. The decision to simply refuse to bare cubs wasn't an option; Xandeleigh would more than likely pin her up in the den until she could find a male to shove in with her.
she stood and stretched out her legs, indicating with a wave of her paw for the leopardess to follow her out of the den. The morning breeze felt best on her fur when she was standing outside, her eyes closed off to the sun and every imperfection she could spot in the world.
"I've already chosen a son for you, if you'd care to hear it." When she all she received was silence, she took it as a sign to continue. "I would like you to capture the heart of Izinhliziyo. He is one of many leopard bastards my brother was forced to raise when his mate slept with one of her kind. As of now, only three males reside within the family of this union; Kamau, Tendaji, and Izinhliziyo."
"Kamau is currently raising a family, which places him out of the running. Tendaji's pelt matches better with your own, however, he seems to have...issues. These issues, and his guard dog, make him too skittish of a target. Izin, however, is perfect. He believes his true love resides somewhere just out of his reach and has been in search of her his entire life. If you can convince him that you are his soul mate, the mission itself shouldn't be all that difficult to accomplish."
"Right." Although her leg was still stiff, Haracha had to admit that walking was a lot easier. Xandeleigh really was a good healer. "Get in, steal Izin's heart, have cubs and get out. Something about this seems a lot harder than you're making it out to be." She cocked her hip to the side, giving the lioness a side long stare. "Hypothetically speaking, if Abrafo were to find out about this...or any of the other family members for that matter, would you be taking the fall with me or am I going to be on my own?"
Xandeleigh laughed. "Haracha! You're on the dot as always." With a light hearted chuckle, she reached out to poke the leopard's nose. "If you say one word about my involvement, or what I'm planning, I'll kill you. It's the same as with every mission, you know that."
"In that case, I better get a head start." Haracha faked a laugh and bounced out into the open, stopping only to send a wave to her boss before running as fast she possibly could. It hurt like hell to move after such an attack, but she couldn't bear to be around that female a moment longer.
Sooner or later those orchid eyes were going to be hunting for her, but for now, they looked at her with love. Love that would last only as long as she keep up her fake love for Xandeleigh's nephew. It wasn't long before the lioness had caught up with her, content to jog on their way to Abrafo and Izin.
Haracha just prayed this all worked out soon.
(WC: 1190 )
