The day had certainly been a long one for Thayiga'Thunzi, with several meetings and contracts to iron out. Unfortunately there had been nothing substantial that warranted more than a mercenary or two, but work was work and the Tani'Ajiri would take what they could get. Now his paws carried him back to the dens, where he could find a nice spot to lay down in the cover of the forest. There had been something rather interesting to have happened earlier in the morning, with one of his ranger's coming back with a particularly strange request. He had wanted his 'mum' and 'auntie' to join the pride, however they had not been interested in fighting. Most who joined the Tani'Ajiri did so because they wanted to fight for them, but not these ladies. Thunzi shook his head slightly at the deal he had made with them. They could join if they hunted for the pride, and he had to admit he was rather pleased with the idea. Since the mercenary band's creation the task of hunting had been shared by all members, but that took time away from training and contract work. Thunzi foresaw this new arrangement as very beneficial for the Mercs, and as an added bonus, more ladies meant more opportunities to flirt.Siyo'Jini had very recently returned from a small job a few days travel away from their new territory, and he had yet to catch up with his fellow pride leader. The first order of business of course had been to catch a small nap during the hottest part of the day, and now that the air had cooled and the sun was setting the dark lion had awoken once again. His emerald green eyes scanned the forested area silently as he took in their new territory. There was a part of him that would miss traveling across the savannah to find work, but he had to admit it was nice to finally have some place he could call home. The bulky lion rolled from his belly to his back to stretch his muscles before finding his paws and standing with a shake to wake himself up. He would need to find something to eat soon, and he wondered what might have been scrounged up during the day.
Thunzi, ever the perceptive one, saw Siyo'Jini before the black lion saw him. He had heard that his fellow leader had returned not too long ago, but Thunzi had been in the middle of ironing out the details of a contract at the time and had not been able to get away to meet with him. How fortunate then that he happened upon the great black lion as he had. Thunzi smirked as he easily slipped into the growing shadows of the forest, his pale body weaving in and out of tree lines like the last remaining rays of sunlight. It didn't take long for the leopard to make his way to Siyo'Jini, and it took less time for him to silently leap to the top of a near-by boulder and watch as the unsuspecting lion walked right underneath him. Thunzi kept very still and very quiet until Siyo had his back turned to him, and then with one push from his hind legs Thunzi gracefully dropped from his perch to pounce on the large lion's back.
To give Siyo'Jini credit, he was very hungry and wasn't expecting to be pounced upon by anyone in their newly claimed territory. However; as soon as he felt the weight upon his back the black lion reacted wholly on instinct. His body moved with the momentum of the attacker as he twisted and turned to slam his side, and the attacker, onto the ground. However, said attacker was already gone and leaping away from the move and Siyo was quick to regain his feet and to pursue. When he happened to catch sight of Thunzi grinning at him from atop a cluster of nearby boulders the large lion snarled and shook his mane to calm himself. "Very funny," he groaned, emerald eyes narrowing up at at the pale leopard. He probably should have expected as much.
"I thought so," Thunzi agreed, his silver eyes bright with amusement. "You nearly crushed me that time," the leopard chided, as he did nothing to hide his smirk. It was good to know that he could still count on Siyo to keep him on his toes, for he had been close to crushing him, and Thunzi needed to keep his skills sharp. The leopard yawned and stretched on his rock as he settled into a comfortable sleeping position on his side. This was a good a perch as any to find some shut eye. "I take it the contract was completed without issue?" Thunzi asked idly, as he was sure it was. Otherwise Siyo would not have been so calm.
"No issues," Siyo reported with a shrug of his broad shoulders. It had been an easy job, and the contractor was quick to make their payment after completion. Honestly, it had been rather boring for Siyo'Jini who was still itching for a proper fight. "Anything of interest happen while I was away?" the large lion questioned, his claws flexing idly into the dirt under his paws. After he got something to eat, he would have to look into finding a sparring partner for the night. He needed to train and his body needed the release.
Silver eyes watched Siyo as the large black lion fidgeted restlessly. Hmm, must have been a boring job. Thunzi had noticed that his fellow leader had been increasingly restless lately, though he had yet to comment on it. "A few small contracts here and there, nothing too exciting," Thunzi said with a yawn. "Though we did get two new recruits today. Two lionesses that have agreed to hunt for us, in return they simply wish to live amongst us. Seems they have family here."
Siyo raised his brows at this, caught somewhat off guard by that statement. For the longest time they had simply been a band of mercenaries, fighting and hunting as need be, but Siyo had to admit he liked the idea of having someone else handle the hunting for the pride. They had grown in number, and he supposed it was inevitable that eventually they would take in those that did not wish to fight. "As long as they pull their weight, I'm fine with this," he said at length, considering the other problem of having non-combat members. "Can we protect them?" It was a simple, quiet question as Siyo had lowered his voice, just in case any listening ears were around. He didn't like the idea of having to worry about vulnerable members of the pride in times of danger, but he didn't want them to get hurt either.
Thunzi was quiet for a moment as he considered this. He knew Siyo better than anyone in the pride, and probably better than anyone ever had, so he suspected the big lion was genuinely concerned for their new hunters. Siyo'Jini didn't often show that side of himself, but Thunzi knew it was there at the core of the black lion, just buried under layers of pain and suffering. "They know the risks," Thunzi began quietly, his silver eyes shifting to stare at the colorful sky the setting sun painted above the tree line. "I think with a little restructuring, we could provide a safe place for them to live. And others, as well. Even families, I suppose," Thunzi went on, his tone somewhat whimsical now. He hadn't quite thought about it before, but maybe he also would want a family. Maybe. "We'll make this territory our own."
"We'll make it our home," Siyo corrected quietly as he too turned his eyes to the sky. The word sounded foreign to him, like a stranger he had only heard about but never met. It sounded nice. "If you think it can be done, then I'll leave the planning to you, friend." And with that Siyo'Jini turned quietly to leave. He had many things to ponder, and a hungry belly to fill.
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