[Private] Love Will Tear Us Apart

[YFWE]

"What're you going on about, Kito?" said Ari with a nervous laugh, trying to downplay the situation. She knew what he meant, though; her mother had told her almost the exact same thing about passion fruit. She had never tasted one and had never even known what one looked like until then, so she had not thought anything of it when she had taken the fruit from Hiroshi. And not that she was necessarily one for fate or destiny or any superstitions, she had to admit that she liked the thought of her and Kito being bonded together. Perhaps it would cause Kito to talk to her more quickly... or perhaps it would even cause her to get over her fears and tell him of her feelings. Either way, though she feigned ignorance on the surface, internally she was cheering even more loudly than she had before So this is passion fruit, she thought. Boy, do I owe Kito one for bringing us here.

She tried not to laugh as Kito attempted to coax out of himself the meaning behind what his mother had said, but either he truly did not know or he was as good as hiding it as she was, for he shrugged and ending the conversation there, going off to find more fruits for himself and perhaps the rest of the group.

Ari turned her head to face Hiroshi as he spoke to her and proposed their little rendezvous further into the jungle together. She smiled. How could she say no? Still, once again trying to downplay the situation, she shrugged. "With you? Ohhhh, if I must, I guess." To show that she was only joking, she entwined her own tail with his for a brief moment before walking off toward another try, sending Hiroshi a sly, "follow me" type of look.

Kweli had been picking at what was left of the fruit he had already been eating when Kito called over to him, tossing a new type of fruit his way. Kweli caught it, though not without losing a tiny bit of the juice that flowed inside. Looking over at Kito with a playful grin, he called back, "Er... sorry, Kito, I heard your speech about sharing fruit and that's cute and all, but I don't think I'm feeling the same feelings for you," he said with a laugh as he put the gourd to his mouth and began to drink, letting more warm juice flow into his mouth and down his throat. This gourd's juice had a slightly more bitter taste to it than the previous fruit's did, though it was just as delicious. When he was done, he wiped his muzzle off with a paw, sighing contently. "Very tasty," he said. He looked around. "Any other different kinds of fruits around here to be found, then?"

[KiarasMate]

Not even needing to be told twice, Hiroshi immediately accepted Ari’s invitation as he felt her tail briefly intertwining with his before she moved off, giving him a look that seemed to make all the butterflies in his stomach reemerge once again. Padding along side the golden furred lioness through the opposite side of the splendid meadow that Kito and Kweli had opted for, Hiroshi seemed to forget about everything, including his hunger as he admired Ari’s frame as it rippled through the grass and flowers, barely swaying them as she passed, as if her mere presence was a kiss from the heavens, causing them to bow ever so slightly. Realizing that he was staring at her for the third time today, Hiroshi casually cleared his throat as he addressed his lioness friend in a quizzical tone.

”Hey Ari, do you think what Fila said is true? I mean, do you think a piece of fruit can really bring two creatures closer together if they already have feelings for one another?”

Perhaps it was the fact that he was at a place that reminded him so much of a better time in his life, or perhaps it was just the intoxicating scent from the flora and fruits around him but whatever the case may have been, Kito found himself quite amused from Kweli’s statement, actually taking it good naturedly as he thought back upon the promise that he and Ari had made from earlier. Shaking his head and repeating the tactic he had used upon the gourd that he had given to Kweli, upon the other gourd he had managed to free from the tree, Kito drank down the contents of its center before lazily chucking the leftovers over his shoulder with a resounding thump as it landed some distance off. Wiping a fore paw over his muzzle before turning back to Kweli, Kito replied in a humorous voice as he patted Kweli’s shoulder with a fore paw.

”Aww, you sure about that Kweli? When I’m king, I’d surely make it worth your while.”

Bursting into a fit of laughter, Kito playfully cuffed Kweli across the muzzle before taking another look around, spotting both Ari and Hiroshi on the opposite end of the meadow to which they now stood. Thinking about the question that Kweli had prompted, Kito tried to remember what other delicious foods his mother introduced him to way back when the last time they were here. Recollecting upon one particular tasty treat, Kito turned his head as his ears swiveled from left to right as if trying to pick up some distant sound or so it seemed. Giving the air a quick scent, Kito gradually began to meander off through the lush grass as he motioned for Kweli to follow him. Focusing his senses upon the trail he had picked up, Kito lead the pair to a withered looking tree, at which point he halted and lifted a fore paw up towards a rounded object that dangled from one of the higher limbs. Having to raise his voice slightly as the sounds of constant buzzing began to drown out the peaceful silence around him, Kito inquired in a mischievous voice.

”Ever had honey before Kweli?”

[YFWE]

They walked through the meadow, Hiroshi and Ari, Ari treading lightly on and through the flora so as to not disturb the grass too much. It appeared as if creatures of their size did not make their way through the meadow--or even Paradise in general--and Ari did not want to take away from the beauty the land possessed from being almost completely untouched.

As she walked, she could feel Hiroshi's gaze once again and noticed it out of the corner of her eye, but decided not to return it, trying to keep herself as pleasing to his eye as could be, even beginning to tread on the ground even lighter, almost daintily. She heard the lion clear his throat and was hopeful for a moment, that perhaps now would finally be the time he would spill his feelings--they were alone now, after all--but had to settle with Hiroshi's query about the passion fruit, which was still by no means a subject Ari did not want to discuss. Thinking back to what Nafsi had said to her when she was young concerning the fruits, but wanting to keep up the ruse she had implanted before about not knowing for sure about the legend, she shrugged as she looked away, pretending to be very interested in the nearby trees.

"I dunno. It might just all be superstition that was created due to its name," she said. "Though... I suppose it can't hurt, you know? I think that... if two beings do share the passion fruit with that intent, it means they already are quite in love with each other, so whether they share it or not, chances are they'll be mated for life anyway. The passion fruit is just some sort of object symbolic of that love or of the promise to stay true to each other forever." She paused. "That's what I think. What about you? Do you believe in it?" she added with a small, thoughtful smile.


Kweli was glad that Kito had taken his comment good-naturedly, knowing full well that he could not if his mood was not exactly in the right mindset. "What would that make me then, your queen?" he asked innocently, glad the two of them seemed to be getting along well for the time being. "Wonder what everyone else would have to say about that. Then again, given the lack of available lionesses like you said, maybe that idea's sadly not as farfetched as we'd like to think."

He followed Kito along as they walked along a new trail and away from Ari and Hiroshi. This time around, Kito stopped at a rather worn-looking tree, at the top of which was a large, rounded object that Kweli did not recognize. There was an odd buzzing noise coming from it, a noise that sounded like bees. Kweli had seen a few bees in his life, but they were often solitary; was this one's home?

"Never even heard of it," he replied to Kito's query. "I'm guessing it has something to do with bees though?"

[KiarasMate]

Expecting such a response from Ari as he knew that when it came to deconstructing that which was difficult to understand, Ari just seemed to have a natural knack for this sort of thing, Hiroshi listened intently to her reply, causing a fond smile to work its way over his muzzle as he stared at her. Watching her speak and hearing her angelic voice carrying through the tranquil atmosphere around him, Hiroshi could see, for a fleeting second, the image of his mother standing in place of Ari. As quickly as he had witnessed it however, it was gone and had he not been thinking clearly by this point, Hiroshi might have questioned his own sanity but realizing that part of Ari’s allure was the fact that she reminded him so very much of his beloved mother, Hiroshi knew that his mind hadn’t betrayed him. Shaken from his little day dream from Ari now turning his own query back upon him, Hiroshi needed a second to gather a response before he stated in a gentle voice.

”In all honesty Ari, I believe that it takes much more than a simple fruit to bond two souls together. While it’s a romantic notion, I think there’s a deeper meaning that I just can’t comprehend at this point and it doesn’t help matters much that good old Kito forgot the rest of the saying, so who knows how it ends. I agree with you though that if two creatures really share the same feelings for one another, that destiny will bring them together in the end. Even those we love seem to find their way back to us even after death. I know this for a fact because I just saw my mother’s spirit in you Ari. Call me crazy but I did. She seemed so happy to. The same kind of happiness I feel whenever you’re around me.”

Fearing that if he continued speaking, that his nerves would surely give way and result in him saying something way too brash, even though he had made up his mind to tell Ari upon this very day, how he felt about her, Hiroshi just absolutely had to be sure that she shared the same feelings as he did for her, or else he’d look quite the fool forever it would appear. Thinking long and hard for a moment, Hiroshi remembered the way Ari’s tail had toyed with him back when the group were making their way through the pitch black cave. Looking a little embarrassed but figuring that this would be the best and most subtle way to see if Ari’s feelings were mutual without straight up posing the question directly to her, Hiroshi spoke to her in a hopeful voice.

”Back when we were making our way through that cave to get to Paradise Ari, I felt your tail brushing up against me and it didn’t really seem like it was an accident. It felt really nice but why did you do that? I’m just wondering is all.”

His grin spreading across his muzzle now as he heard Kweli’s answer to the question he had formally posed to him, Kito was slightly relieved that his friend was clueless when it came to the source of honey. If Kweli had known what Kito had in mind, he probably wouldn’t have even followed him in the first place but now that they were here and Kito knew that Kweli had no prior knowledge about bee’s, other than their name, he wasn’t about to let this opportunity slip through his paws as he could almost taste the heavenly substance upon his tongue. His mother had treated him to his first taste of honey when he was young but had never shown him how she managed to go about retrieving it from the structure she referred to as the hive. Nodding now as he turned to stare up at the seemingly alive mass in the tree tops, Kito spoke in a quiet tone, knowing that their company could easily be perturbed by their presence.

”Yes. The bees make the honey and we’re here to…lets say, borrow some. Now how we go about getting that is a whole nother story though Kweli. You see, bees are very greedy creatures that don’t like to share their good fortune with just anyone mind you, so a little tough love is in order.”

Pausing his dialog momentarily as one curious bee lightly alighted atop his nose, Hiroshi narrowed his eyes at the tiny being perched atop him, his breath slowing as not to give the insect reason to sting. Sighing softly as the bothersome creature buzzed off quite literally, Kito resumed speaking as he searched the ground around him, obviously looking for something in particular.

”Now, we could just try climbing up there and sticking our paws where they don’t belong, but I don’t think either of us are that stupid, now are we Kweli. So, the only other way I figure we get ourselves some of that honey is to let gravity do the work for us.”

As he spoke these words, Kito’s paw toes coiled around a flat surfaced stone he managed to come across. Gripping it as best he could, Kito’s eyes shot back up to the sight of the hive above planning his next move thoughtfully. Assuming that if their home would be toppled, that the bees would most likely choose to find another place to stay, as who in their right mind would want to tangle with two creatures who were several hundred times their size, his plan made sense to him as his paw raised and in one quick motion, the stone that had once been held within it now whistled through the air and found its target perfectly. With a swift snap, the entire hive detached itself from where it had been hanging from the branch of the tree as it came plopping down to the ground below, resting upon a bed of flowers which cushioned its fall. Expecting to see the small masses leaving now, Kito was sorely disappointed as his eyes caught sight of the bees, who began to swarm and form a rather ominous looking cloud of bodies legs and wings. Kito’s disappointment quickly turned into panic as the angry mob began to descend upon them now. Turning to Kweli, Kito could only manage to stammer out a single word before his legs took over and he was nothing more than a blur through the grass.

”RUN!”

[YFWE]

Ari was somewhat glad to hear that her feelings concerning the passion fruit and the notion of it entwining two souls forever seemed shared by Hiroshi, even if it was not the most romantic viewpoint on the matter. She would much rather have a possible future mate that fully agreed with her on the matter rather than one that said something mushy or romantic just because he felt as if that was what the female wanted to hear. She heard the other lionesses complaining about this all the time and had begun to understand what they meant.

She could feel her face flush again when not only did Hiroshi reference his mother, but compare her, Ari, to the deceased lioness. It was extremely flattering and something that she honestly did not feel worthy of a comparison to. Giving a weak smile, she replied, "Aw... trust me, Hiro, I feel the same way when I'm around you. Not that I'm not happy when I'm around Kweli or even Kito sometimes, but... with you, it's more. I never had any sort of father figure or male presence in my life, and... well, not to say I look at you as my father or something, but... you're probably the closest to a male presence in my life I've ever had, and I really thank you for that."

Taking in Hiroshi's next question, she flashed a brief, quizzical glance before softening her features. "I figured you of all lions would know that... you were the one that gave me the sudden lick on the cheek in the dark... right? I mean, if it wasn't you, then..." she paused, remembering how Kito had slammed into one of the walls of the cave almost instantly after she had felt the lick. "...oh... it was... gawd, I'm going to kill Kito, I swear." Now extremely embarrassed, she stared down at the ground, unable to face Hiroshi. "I'm... sorry, I thought it was you. That's why I did... you know, that."


Looking up at the beehive thoughtfully, Kweli listened intently to Kito's plan and felt that it was more than likely going to fail... then again, he had done well in all of his other endeavors that day, so he figured that it would not hurt to trust his friend on this as well. "What way are you thinking...?" he asked before seeing Kito pick up a nearby stone, his features suddenly downturning. "...oh. Do you think that's a good idea?" he asked. He was not sure if bees took kindly to their homes being tampered with, but his logical guess was that they, in fact, did not.

As he finished speaking, however, Kito had hurled the stone toward the hive, coming into contact with its top and sending the hive hurtling toward the ground. For a brief moment Kweli was excited, thinking that the plan seemed to be working fairly well. And then out came the bees from the hive in one large, malleable mass... and they did not seem pleased. Kweli glanced over at Kito expectantly, his eyes wide with a mix of fear and curiosity, trying to figure out if this was, in fact, a bad thing. And judging by Kito's expression, it was a very bad thing.

He took off as soon as Kito called for them to run, setting his legs into motion as he sprinted off behind Kito. He was not as fast as the other lion, so he had slowly begun to lag behind, and with a quick glance behind him saw that the bees were following them intently, a living, breathing swarm of downright angry insects. "Oh gawd, please, I'm sorry, we didn't mean it!" cried Kweli as he continued to follow Kito's lead--that is, running like a bat out of hell. "I don't want to dieeeeeeeeeeee!"

[KiarasMate]

Fearing the countless number of potential stings chasing him now, Kito ran as fast as his legs would carry him through the grass, his large frame trampling numerous flowers in his wake as he risked taking a glance behind him. Spotting Kweli, who appeared to be struggling to stay ahead of the buzzing mob not too far behind him, Kito cringed as he thought of how badly Ari would chew him out if anything were to happen to the smaller male. Acting without thinking, which was clearly something Kito excelled at, Kito doubled back until he passed Kweli, trying his best to turn on a dime as he placed himself squarely behind his friend, shielding him from any wrath that the bees might choose to inflict upon them. Still, not wishing to have the world’s furriest pin cushion as a behind, Kito egged Kweli onwards as he called over the loud angry sounds of buzzing.

”For the love of all that’s holy, these things don’t give up easily, do they? Come on Kweli! Can’t your small ass go any faster?”

Hiroshi was initially surprised by what Ari had just told him. A part of him wanted to go find Kito and give him a good punch in the nose but Hiroshi’s rational side won out in the end as he knew that it was probably just another one of Kito’s stupid jokes since to his best knowledge, both Ari and Kito could barely stand one another, let alone have feelings for each other. Ari’s reaction only proved to reinforce this fact. Hiroshi was right about to speak up to try and assure her that he wasn’t offended by what she had done, when his attention was suddenly grabbed by something in the distance ahead of them. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what had happened and realizing that the two of them probably wouldn’t be safe from whatever trouble Kito and Kweli had gotten themselves into, Hiroshi sprang into gear as he forced Ari in front of him, exclaiming to her in a urgent voice as he nudged her flank with his muzzle, encouraging her to move and move quickly.

”Oh gawds! This doesn’t look good Ari. Run! Run and don’t look back until you reach the lake. Jump in and don’t come to the surface until everything seems clear, you hear me?”

Noticing that both Ari and Hiroshi had seen them coming and had already taken the hint to run, Kito called out in as loud of a voice as he could muster without losing breath while he ran, his legs straining to bear his weight as the persistent horde of bees continued to give chase.

”Head for the lake! Jump in and don’t…”

“Shut up Kito! We know!” Hiroshi’s voice echoed back as he stayed directly behind Ari, making sure that no harm would come to her.

Doing the same for Kweli, mostly because he had to now rather than by choice, Kito had a sneaking suspicion that they wouldn’t be able to reach the lake in time before one or more of them were overtaken by the furious swarm. Knowing that this was fully his doing however and hoping that the bees only had him in their sights, Kito thought quickly of a way to at least save his friends. Remembering that there was a split in the path coming up, Kito did the only thing he could think of as he extended his claws and gave Kweli’s rump a sharp poke with one of them, mirroring that of a bee sting in the hopes that it would bring a bit more life into his strides, and that it did. Having a bit more distance set between him and his three friends now, Kito waited until they were at a safe distance before he suddenly veered off course and disappeared into the thick vegetation, the outraged mob of bees following him and him alone.

Being caught up in the moment of panic himself, Hiroshi valiantly struggled to keep himself from tiring out as he slowed his pace slightly in order for Kweli to catch up to him, which didn’t seem to take very long at the pace the smaller male was going now. Taking up a position behind him as he passed, having both Ari and Kweli now in front of him, Hiroshi brought up the rear as the three friends finally arrived at the lake’s edge. Without even a second thought, Hiroshi took in as deep of a breath as he could before tumbling into the chilly water right after Ari and Kweli had.

[YFWE]

They continued to run, Kweli trying to keep up with Kito as best as he could, though the lion seemed to be pulling away from him with each and every stride. He dared not look back again at the swarm that he knew was most surely behind him, given the possibility that looking back could either cause him to slow his pace or to lose his footing and fall or run into something. He was running as fast as he had ever recalled running, at times feeling as though his paws were barely even touching the ground.

Kito suddenly doubled back ahead of him and allowed Kweli to pass him, which understandably distressed Kweli. "Gawd, Kito, what are you doing?!" he cried before noticing that Kito was now directly behind him, acting almost as a temporary shield between him and the bees. Kito began to try to egg him on, and Kweli replied back, "I'm going as fast as I can! My legs don't move as fast as yours."

He spotted Hiroshi and Ari up ahead sitting somewhat close to each other, but Kweli had no time to dwell upon this. "Run, guys!" he called, distressed. "Seriously! NOW!"

Ari did not have to be told twice, even though she was, in fact, told again by Hiroshi to run as well, off toward the lake. This seemed like the best possible option to her, and she took off in seconds, off toward the lake, Hiroshi having fallen in behind her. She was glad to have this sort-of shield, but did not want to have it tested; she ran as fast as she possibly could, her training with the Hunting Party perhaps finally paying off for real as she darted almost blindly through the thick flora, spying the pristine lake a little ways ahead of her.

Kweli felt a slight poke at his rear and, though it felt more like a claw poke than anything, his instincts were in high gear, and he yelped rather loudly, leaping into the air for a split second before coming back down onto the ground, running even faster than he had before. He suddenly felt as if Kito had broken off from behind him, but he could not be sure--at that point it did not matter; what mattered was getting all four of them into the lake, where the bees would (hopefully) be unable to get to them. Hiroshi had slowed his pace slightly and Kweli did not hesitate one bit in sliding in front of him and behind Ari as they neared the pool of water.

Finally reaching the water, Ari screamed as she leaped into the air, breathing in deeply before she hit the water's surface and submerged. Kweli followed suit, doing a bit of an unplanned flip in midair as he came down on the water on his back. Squinting his eyes, he saw that Hiroshi had joined them, and then turned his gaze to the shimmering surface above them.

Ari was surprised of two things: 1)to not see any swarm above them even through the water, and 2)that Kito had not joined them in the water. Thinking not of her own safety for a brief moment, she kicked toward the surface with one formidable waving of her forelegs and hindlegs and emerged from the water, gasping for air and opening her eyes, darting around to find any sort of life. The swarm was not around... but Kito was nowhere to be found. She motioned underwater for Hiroshi and Kweli to join her, before beginning to call through the silence as best as she could despite still struggling to get back her breath. "K-kito!" she called, before coughing violently. "KITO! Where are you?!"

[KiarasMate]

Holding his breath under the chilly surface of the water as the seconds ticked by, Hiroshi spotted Ari breeching her head above the surface as she signaled for him and Kweli to follow suit. Paddling to the surface and filling his lungs with much needed air, it didn’t take Hiroshi long to figure out that Kito was no where to be seen. Staying calm as he didn’t want to cause any more unnecessary panic, Hiroshi hoisted himself out of the lake and joined Ari’s pleas as he glanced back towards the direction to which they had fled from.

”Kito! Where are you? Answer me if you can hear us!”

Straining his ears to pick up any response from his best friend, Hiroshi’s ears were met with nothing but the sounds of the passing winds and Ari’s strained voice. Shaking his head in disbelief from what had just transpired, Hiroshi immediately began to retrace their steps as his mind moved into gear. Calling back over his shoulder, Hiroshi motioned for his friends to follow as he started back through the thick vegetation.

”Come on you two. We better go looking for him but stay together. We don’t know these lands at all so best not to get lost while we’re looking for Kito.”

Using what little tracking skills he had, Hiroshi scented the air, trying to pick up any traces of his friend’s whereabouts. Only smelling the lake water that soaked his fur, along with the countless aromas that wafted from the surrounding flora, Hiroshi couldn’t detect any sign of his friend. Turning his focus back to the ground below him as he walked, Hiroshi’s eyes scanned the ground below him, trying to make out if Kito had come this far or not but to no avail. The ground was a veritable hoj-poj of paw prints that seemed to overlap, making it damn near impossible to tell whose prints belonged to whom, let alone how many sets had come traipsing this way. Finally reaching the hallowed log that they had visited earlier, Hiroshi began to look frustrated as he slammed a paw down upon the log, sending another wave of irritated insects to flood out from the dead wood. Gnashing his teeth together, Hiroshi grumbled out loud.

”Damn it Kito! What mess did you get yourself into this time.”

Just then, Hiroshi’s ears picked up the sounds of movement coming from a distant patch of bushes, causing him to stand alert as his eyes narrowed and focused upon the source of the sound. Waiting with a faded breath, his heart beating loudly in his chest, Hiroshi was suddenly startled by a rather loud sounding roar, followed by the sight of what looked to be a walking pile of mud, shaped in the form of a lion. Almost jumping out of his fur, Hiroshi gasped as he surveyed the oddity in front of him. From head to tail, the creature was completely caked with mud. Only his eyes seemed to shine through the dark coating that enveloped his body. It was at this point when those emerald eyes met with his, did Hiroshi realize just who it was. Letting out a frustrated growl, Hiroshi gave the decaying log next to him another fierce blow with his fore paw as he exclaimed.

”Kito! You moron! Why the hell did you do that!”

Kito, who seemed quite amused by the whole situation, burst into hysterics from the reaction he received from his three friends. He had been lucky that the path he had chosen to go down, had lead him straight into a mud hole, probably used by wild bores or warthogs. The thick armor seemed to have come in handy as he had only managed to suffer through a dozen or so painful stings from the angry bees before they departed and left him alone. Trying his best to compose himself now, Kito shook off a bit of the mud from his muzzle in order to be able to speak properly before he stated in a cheeky voice.

”Gawds! You should have seen your faces. That was priceless.” Glancing over at Ari, Kito smirked as he added in. ”Tomcat, you looked like you were going to wet yourself. Did you, cause it sure looks like you did.” Kito stated, pointing a paw at Ari’s damp fur from the lake water that clung to her still.

[YFWE]

Ari followed Hiroshi to the bank of the lake, pulling herself out alongside him before dashing a few steps ahead of him, looking down the path from which they came and continuing to cry out. "Kito! Kito! Seriously, make some sort of noise if you can hear us!" Kweli got out of the water after the other two lions, adding his small voice to the din of calling vocals, though still nothing could be heard in reply.

They all paused for a split second, listening to the sounds around them. Still, as before, there was no sign of Kito, nor even the swarm of bees that had followed them. Ari turned back toward the lake, trying to look across it and even into it. Kito had not come in with them... right?

Hiroshi had called back to them and instructed for Ari and Kweli to follow him, and they succumbed without question, falling in Hiroshi as they began to step down the beaten path, Hiroshi sniffing the air as he attempted to track Kito. Ari and Kweli attempted this themselves, though to no avail; Kito nor the swarm were nowhere to be found.

They had found their way back to the dead log, where the insects were still sprawled about, and had still been unable to find any trace of Kito. In one sense, not having come across the swarm of bees was a good thing as well, but if they had gotten to Kito...

Hiroshi brought a paw down on the log, crushing it further, as Ari and Kweli stood together a little ways away. "We'll find him..." started Kweli, though he was silenced by Hiroshi's sudden movement as he stood alert and facing a spot in the nearby bushes, from which a sound of movement was coming. Kweli cowered back slightly, while Ari took a step forward with curiosity, baring her teeth as she waited for whatever was in or behind the bushes to show itself.

Kweli jumped and Ari gasped as a lionlike roar pierced the silence that had fallen over them. A mud-caked figure emerged from behind the bushes and begin to walk toward them. "Get back!" growled Ari, her pulse pounding in her head as she tried to discern what the figure was. But, as with Hiroshi, once she saw the emerald eyes...

"Kito?! What the..."

The mud-caked figure that was Kito had begun to laugh, though the other three lions, albeit breathing a collective sigh of relief, were none too pleased. As Kito spoke, still laughing, Ari walked over to him and, as he finished speaking, leaped on top of him, claws not (yet) extended, and bringing him to the ground. "Dammit, Kito! What were you thinking?!" she growled fiercely as she pinned his shoulders, glaring down at him. "Do you have any idea how worried we were?"

"Ari, calm down--" Kweli started, before being shot a rather intimidating glance from the lioness, quieting down almost immediately.

She got off of the lion, rubbing her forehead for a moment. "You deal with him," she said off-handedly to Hiroshi, taking a seat off nearby, trying to calm herself down before she did or said something she would regret.

[KiarasMate]

Finding himself suddenly being pinned down by Ari and hearing the verbal lashing she was administering to him, Kito felt another wave of laughter surge through him as even through her tough front, Kito could tell that she had been just as worried about his safety as the others had, making him feel a little embarrassed but also flattered that Ari did at least, care enough to worry about him so. Feeling her wet body moving off of him now, causing some of his muddy coating to slide off onto the ground below him, Kito sat back up as he grinned from ear to ear, glancing at each of his friends in turn before exclaiming in an overly excited tone.

”Aww! You all missed me that much, hmm? Well, I love you all too!”

Dashing over to Hiroshi, Kito gave his best friend a tight hug, wrapping his fore arms around his neck and leaving a muddy imprint of himself upon Hiroshi’s fur before bounding over to Kweli and repeating the process as he laughed maniacally. Coating Kweli’s fur from his muddy exterior, Kito smirked as he dashed over to where Ari seemed to be gathering herself at, giving her an over exaggerated nuzzle, rubbing off as much of the mud from his body onto her as he possibly could before falling onto the ground, gripped by his own laughter.

While it was true that Hiroshi felt extremely cross with Kito for what he had done to Ari back in the cave, and now adding his little muddy prank on top of the matters, Hiroshi’s softer side won out in the end as he couldn’t find the heart to scold his best friend any further than Ari had already done. Making a rather disgusted look from the mess Kito had left upon his fur, Hiroshi shook his head hopelessly as he waited for Kito to finish antagonizing the others before speaking up in a relieved tone.

”Okay, get over yourself now Kito. We were worried about you but now, I kind of wish the bees would have gotten you.”

Rolling to his paws and giving his dirty frame a quick pat with his fore paws, Kito grinned riley at his best friend before feigning to be hurt from Hiroshi's comment. Wiping a fore paw over his rear, exposing his fur, as well as several swollen looking bumps that dotted the length of his hind quarters, Kito stated in an amused voice as he made absolute certain that Ari got a clear look at the spot he was referring to.

”Those buzzing bastards almost did. Take a looksie at these. Guess even bees can’t resist my sexy ass.” Kito stated, giving his rump a quick sway before he continued. ”But seriously though. I’m glad you all made it out safely and sorry for the trouble. C’mon, let’s not wallow in the past now though. There’s still one more place we have to go before we can call it a day.”

Letting one last fit of laughter free from his muzzle, Kito began to make his way back towards the meadow that they had previously been at before all hell had broken loose. Watching his friend taking lead as if nothing had happened, Hiroshi shrugged his shoulders indecisively before falling in line once more, waiting for Ari and Kweli to move before he too set out once again, keeping himself close to Ari as a smile worked its way over his muzzle from the sight of her muddy looking fur. It didn’t take long before Hiroshi found himself seized by the laughter that had just overtaken his friend, finding the sight of the four messy friends utterly hilarious as he did his best to pull himself together before getting on Ari’s bad side. Flashing the golden furred lioness next to him a warm smile, just to ensure this fact, Hiroshi returned his gaze ahead of him as he resumed walking, trailing after Kito as they re-entered the peaceful looking meadow.

Never being the type to leave well enough alone, Kito made it a point to pass by the spot where the downed beehive still rested upon its bed of flowers, its inhabitance long gone or so it seemed. Looking rather gleeful from this outcome, Kito proudly strutted up to the abandoned hive and promptly snapped it up into his mouth before continuing along the path towards their next and final destination for the day. Figuring that if he couldn’t have a swim himself in the lake and the next best way to cleaning all the mud off himself and his four friends, aside from the obvious way, was to take a bath, but not just any bath. Grinning to himself around the empty hive tucked safely in between his jaws, Kito trotted along until they arrived at another cave opening that looked similar to that to which the friends had emerged from when they had first arrived at Paradise. Setting the hive down upon the ground momentarily so he could speak, Kito addressed his friend’s in a pleasant voice.

”Alright, the last stop on our trip is just through this cave. It shouldn’t be as dark as the last one but still, stay together.”

Picking up the beehive in his muzzle once again, Kito ventured forth into the mouth of the cave before disappearing completely. He had been correct with his assumption that the cave would have more light, as various holes in the ceiling of the cavern gave way to random streaks of sunlight that filtered through, illuminating the path ahead in an eary looking glow. As they walked, the ground below them seemed to gradually begin to slope upwards as the familiar sounds of rushing water echoed off in the distance. Staying focused upon the trail in front of him and being unable to talk with a full muzzle regardless, Kito followed the windy road until it broke off into two separate trails. Needing a second to jog his memory, Kito picked the right path as he continued along for a while longer until finally, they had reached the place he had been hoping for.

Staying close to Ari in the cave as they walked along, keeping himself slightly in front of her just to ensure that Kito wouldn’t try any funny business, Hiroshi started to doubt if Kito actually knew where they were going as it felt as though he had them walking in a complete circle that just kept winding upwards. Right as he was about to speak up however, the four friends emerged into an expansive cavern, in which one end opened out into the picturesque scene of Paradise below them, shielded by a thin veil of clear water, obviously from the waterfall that seemed to cascade directly over the cave to which they now stood within. On either side of the cavern, the ceiling had given way, causing thin streams of water to trickle in that seemed to adjoin in the center of the cave, forming a shallow looking pool that was just deep enough to wade into, but not deep enough to completely submerge oneself in. It was an amazing sight to behold, especially with the way the setting sun contrasted against the endless blanket of water that poured downwards over the opening of the cavern.

Setting the beehive a few paces away from the glistening pool, Kito was the first to step paw into the water, knowing that he would be safe in these sort of depths. Letting out a satisfied purr, Kito lazily rolled himself onto his back within the water, motioning a fore paw for his friends to join him as he stated in a relaxed tone.

”C’mon in and clean the mud off. You all look like a wreck. The water’s really warm here. Something about the mountain and the way the sunlight heats it…or something like that, I can’t remember what Fila told me how it worked but yeah, it feels so good.”