A Change of Plans [PRIVATE: AC & The Whistlerify]

[AustralianChaos]

Ganya now grinned openly as Marini took his query with confusion...he loved it when they had no idea what he had in store for victims who wandered into his forest. "You see, I'm a very active leopard...I like to keep strong. But just wandering and climbing around this forest gets boring. I like visitors because of the...sport they provide."

He gave Marini a cold, meaningful look, telling her all that she needed to know. He intended to have a hunt, with her as the prey...and he was not going to change his mind for anything.

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Tanga also came to that conclusion, and was horrified. but if he did not do something, then Marini would most likely run the moment she had the chance, and if he lost sight of the leopard, Marini was dead...he knew Marini was a fast lioness...she could win any race between all five of them, but this leopard knew the layout of the forest better than them, and could very easily hunt her down no matter how fast she was.

Knowing he had to act, Tanga did exactly that. All thought of stealth gone from his mind, Tanga sprang from his hiding place, a blur of gold, silver and black, as he raced straight for the leopard, his claws unsheathed, and absolute fury raging in his blue, which now appeared to be crackling with inner lightning.

Before the leopard could do anything more than turn to face him, Tanga had arrived, pouncing into the air, crash-tackling the leopard and sending them both crashing away into the undergrowth. Rolling away from his opponent and gathering himself, he only had time to yell a single, desperate cry, before the leopard attakced, snarling, forcing him into a fight which he knew was not only for his own life, but for Marini's as well.

"Marini, get out of here! Run! I'll deal with him, just go!"

[TheWhistlerify]

Marini understood what the leopard was intending to do the moment she tried to ran away. But all she could do was hope that if she ran back the direction she came from she could get out of the forest before the leopard got her again. She wanted to try and flip him with her back legs but Tanga came in all of a sudden. She was never this happy to see Tanga, although the happiness she had back then faded after a few seconds when she realised that the leopard was still there. She knew that all Tanga wanted was her to run away, but she feared that there might be no one left to save by the time she got back and called for Sarabi's help. But thinking of it again, there wasn't much she could do to help Tanga besides trying to get help and hope that it would arrive on time. "I'll get Sarabi!" she said and turned to the direction she had entered the forest from, hoping that the fact she was a fast runner would make help's arrival quicker.


Simba was next to wake up. He yawned and stretched as he got to his feet. Seeing both Tanga and Marini were gone he came to a conclusion that the two lovers were probably having a walk. Sarabi and Nala were still there on the other hand. He decided not to wake them up and take a short walk himself.

[AustralianChaos]

Tanga fought with the leopard viciously, as he heard Marini's returning cry. Focusing all his efforts on the leopard in fron him, the two of them exchanged blows for a time, neither able to get a solid hit on the other. The leopard was simply too fast for Tanga to attack, and his mane was protecting him from the majority of the black cat's darting, lethal blows. But he knew he was not the strognest or the best fighter, and his small size gave him no advantage to use there, either's despite lions generally being bigger than leopards.

Tanga knew, in that moment, as the leopard came in for another wrestle, that he had gotten himself into very big trouble, and his life was hanging in the balance.

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Nala woke up just as simba was leaving, blinking her eyes open, she saw him walking off, and decided to see where he was going. "Hey, Simba...wait up a minute!" she called as she stretched and rubbed her eyes, before getting to her feet and joining her best friend.

In the four months that had passed, she had not brought up her growing feelings for him, and she continued to feel slightly awkward and embarrassed in his presence. It was driving her insane, and after a talk with Sarabi yesterday about it, she had vowed to herself that, when she could get a moment alone with him, she would find a way of telling him how she felt.

Coming up beside Simba, she did her best to look straight at him without her blush becoming too prominent. "Where are you going this early...and where have Tanga and Rini gone off too?"

[TheWhistlerify]

Marini ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She felt like she had never run any faster in her life. She just hoped Tanga would managed to fend off untill she brought someone that could help.

Simba began walking, allowing his legs to take him without really looking at the direction. Suddenly hearing Nala's voice he turned around and saw her come to his side. "I thought I'd take a walk." he said as she also asked about Tanga and Marini, "They're probably together wandering somewhere around here or something." he said and began thinking where could he find them

[AustralianChaos]

Nala nodded, and was just about to say she's come along with him when she heard a sound coming from the forest nearby. Startled, she jumped away from the forest, staying close to Simba. "What was that?"

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Sarabi, at long last, woke up herself, a little surprised to find the cave empty. Looking outside, she saw Simba and Nala walking away, and smiled, deciding not to get up...she had taken a habit of sleeping in over these last couple of months, now that the four friends were older, and capable of taking care of themselves in their middle adolesence. She put her head back down on her paws, but kept her eyes on Simba and Nala, just making sure they weren't getting up to any mischief...although Sarabi assessment of their recent behaviour had suggested that they were starting to grow up emotionally as well as physically.

[TheWhistlerify]

Simba kept walking with Nala, they were about to walk past the forest when he heard the sound Nala heard as well. He was a little alerted but suddenly noticed Nala close to him. He wanted to say something when Marini came out of the forest running and gasping. "Rini, what's..."

Marini ran as fast as she could and when she noticed Simba and Nala it was the biggest relief she ever felt. "Simba, Nala!" she said, breathing deeply as she walked closer, "You have to help," she began saying, noticing Simba was staring at the claw marks the leopard left on her chest. "It's Tanga, hurry!" she said and turned back, leading her friends to where she left Tanga with the leopard. The fact that she saw them so lcose to the forest bought some precious time.

[AustralianChaos]

Nala turned and followed Marini into the forest without a second thought, chasing after her exceedingly fast friend, calling out to her back as they ran. "Rini, what happened? Where's Tanga?"

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Sarabi saw the whole situation unfold, and in an instant, she was on her feet, chasing after the three teenage lions, at the same time furious and terrified, the latter emotion currently taking the majority of her attention. She had only heard parts of Marini's desperate cries, but had heard enough. Tanga was in the forest...and was in terrible danger. She quickly caught up with Simba and Nala, but said nothing, focusing on following Marini, hoping she could lead them to Tanga before it was too late.

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Tanga was somehow, after all this time, still fighting, and still holding on...but he knew he was almost done. He was tiring, fast, and this leopard seemed to be hardly breaking a sweat. Tanga already had a small cut across one foreleg from where the black feline's claw had glanced across it.

But even as Tanga ducked a swipe from the leopard, he realised he had made a grave mistake, as the swipe was revealed to be a diversion, and the other black paw came straight at his face, Tanga instinctively ducking away from it.

but he was too slow, and roared as white-hot pain flared through the right side of his forehead, particularly his right ear. He could feel that the leopard's claws had given him at least two deep cuts in his forehead, and had also sheared half of his right ear clean off. Distracted by the pain, Tanga unleashed a secnd roar, this time of pure agony as the leopard swiped him across the chest, leaving four more long gashes behind and also nicking his left foreleg as the black cat pounced, throwing him onto his back, his jaws going for Tanga's throat, moving in for the kill.

[TheWhistlerify]

Marini ignored Nala's question and kept on running. She hoped they'd make it on time. She didn't noticed Sarabi was there and her mind was only telling her to keep running. She wouldn't forgive herself is something bad happend to Tanga because of her. She heard the two fighting and ran as fast as she could. She noticed Tanga was still alive, but the leopard didn't intend on keeping it that way. She felt herself filling up with anger she'd never felt before as she ran towards the two. The leopard was too busy to noticed her arrival and she took that option. SHe unsheathed her claws and swiped the black cat as hard as she could on the face before shoving him off her friend. The leopard was probably now expecting that, she leaped at him and pushed him down before he could get up, her teeth beared and a loud growl escaping her throat as she pinned the leopard down.

[AustralianChaos]

Ganya was just about to bring his jaws down on the throat of the lion that had dared to confront him when the lioness from before returned...with a vengeance. He looked up...just in time to have her paw strike him hard across the muzzle, leaving cuts behind and causing him to recoil away from the injured male, before the same lioness pinned him down, growling ferociously at him.

But Ganya had absolutely no intention of giving up...he knew that these creatures would have no mercy on him, and his parents had not taught him to become the most ferociously deadly leopard in the land for nothing. Snarling right back at her, he snapped his jaws at her face, before using the distraction to free one of his paws, not bothering to take time to unsheath his claws as he simply swatter her across the shoulder, dislodging her from her place on top of him, her claws leaving marks behind which he pais no mind to as he sprung towards the golden-furred male again. He was intending on using him as a hostage to get away, since he could hear the sounds of more lions coming.

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Tanga saw the leopard knock Marini aside, but was in so much pain he could barely do anything. He tried to stand, but his eyes widened when the cat came back for him once more, pouncing at him. Instinct kicking in from his many wrestling sessions with his friends, Tanga bunched his legs up, and in a move that probably would have made Nala proud, kicked the leopard as it landed on him. Rather than flipping the both of them over, as Nala tended to do, the leopard instead was flung up and over Tanga, where he smashed into the trunk of a large tree, before slumping to the ground, Tanga unable to tell if he was unconscious or dead.

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Nala arrived at the scene with Simba and Sarabi just in time to see Tanga launch the leopard into a tree. Focusing on the creature for a moment, determining that it was well and truly out of the fight, Nala then turned to her friends, staring at them both.

Aside from a few marks on her chest, Marini appeared to be okay...but Nala gave a horrified gasp at the sight of Tanga. The right side of his face and muzzle was stained crimson from scratches across his cheek, and a large section of his right ear was simply gone, cut off in the fight. On top of that, Tanga chest and left foreleg had large cuts across them. The lion was hurt...badly, and Nala knew it. All she could do was sit there, rooted to the spot in sheer shock, Sarabi mirroring her as she took the horrific scene in.

[TheWhistlerify]

Marini was slashed by the leopard again and was knocked off. She didn't show any sign of pain at this. Saving Tanga was now the only thing on her mind back then. The leopard ran at Tanga, Marini knew that she couldn't get there and that the leopard could kill Tanga in a matter of seconds. To her surprise Tanga, despite his wounds, had managed to flip the leopard over him with his back legs as the leopard was smashed into a tree.. She was frozen and still for a second but then ran to Tanga to see if he was okay. "Tanga..." she said as she stood next to him, "I'm so sorry." she said apologetically, a few tears in her eyes as she looked down at the badly injured lion.