Fresh grooves etched into the mottled acacia bark as Ubukhosi slid back down onto the dry grass. The sound of it crunching beneath her paws only irritated the young lioness further; failure to her ears. She paced around the trunk of the tree, dappled by the sunlight that trickled from above through the expansive branches that hung overhead. Ubukhosi's eyes squinted, adjusting to the intense morning light. Rising before the sun was no miraculous feat for her. It was the norm, her mother rising to find her already gone for the day. No, what was a strange sight was that her efforts were not being put towards joining the others in the pride-wide hunt for the missing herds, or that she was not scouting for and watching over the small satellite bands that still remained in the Bonelands; a common activity of hers.
No, instead of her normal tasks, Ubukhosi was adding more wear to the already existing worn path around the base of this singular acacia tree.
Ubukhosi huffed, completing her circuit thrice more times before planting herself down on her haunches. Idly her tail swept the ground, brushing dust, and branches into piles as it swayed in both thought and annoyance. How in the world was she going to get up this damned tree?
Tawa plodded through the tall grass slowly, eyes tracking a bird that flew overhead. It wasn't a vulture but perhaps it could lead him to something promising. He - along with most of the Bonelands - was getting desperate. Something had to be done and if the Abholi didn't figure out what the right path was, he was going to speak up. Before he'd lost his mate he'd been more outgoing and would speak his mind, but since then he'd become more solitary and quiet. He was a Firekin by birth, though, and he would only stay quiet for so long before he put his paw down.