Timon: Yoo-hoo! I love you, Kari! ::Hugs the industrial-sized box of Mud and Bugs with pray-mantises from Jedi.::
Pumbaa: ::Pops out of the box.:: Yay!
Kari: ::Munching on a muffin.:: Yeah, it's amazing... when I first started this, I was really worried I wouldn't receive the same praises I got from Son of Fearless Buzz. But judging from all the treats we've been getting, I'm doing a pretty good job. Yatta!
Zuri: ::Sniffs a stick of pocky.:: What's this thing?
Kari: Japanese wheat cracker treats dipped in chocolate or strawberry call pocky. It's a major favorite treat among Anime fans.
Zuri: ::Makes a pocky-ka-bob with bugs and eats it.::
Kari: What a waste... OK, here's the next chapter, which excludes Zuri for now.
Zuri: WHA--?!
Kari: Sorry, Zuri, but what I had planned for this chapter didn't include you physically.
Zuri: ::sniffle.::
Chapter 8:
Pumbaa trotted across the desert all night, Timon lying on his back, looking up at the stars. Timon rolled onto his stomach, letting his arms and legs dangle on the warthog's sides. He let out a small sigh.
"Are you OK, Timon?" Pumbaa finally asked.
"OK? I'm better than OK, Pumbaa. I think I'm in love," Timon replied, sounding a little dazed.
"Oh... well, good for you, Timon," Pumbaa said, sounding a little down.
Timon caught wind of this and sat up. "Aww, chin-up, Pumbaa! There's someone out there for everyone... hey, maybe even Zuri's warthog friend is female."
"I thought you said she said she had a warthog for a friend in a joking way when you said you had a warthog for a friend."
"Could you put that into English?"
"You said she was lying."
"Oh. Well... yeah, you're right, I did. OK, OK, but just remember, you're not the only warthog in the savanna."
Pumbaa perked up, "Yeah, you're right, Timon. Look, we're here!" Timon climbed to the top of Pumbaa's head and smiled when he saw the oasis in sight. "Bringing the colony back to the Pride Lands... do you think it'll work?"
"No, but it's all I've got to go on. I gotta try to bring these two colonies together and bury the hatchet, or Zuri's gonna marry Makali in two days." Timon shook his head to clear his head of that nasty thought. "So, forward march!" Pumbaa ran towards the oasis.
Pete was sitting in the tops of the outer trees, then squinted when he saw Pumbaa coming. "Pumbaa?" He grabbed onto a vine and climbed down. "Pumbaa! Over here!" Pumbaa skid to a halt before running Pete over. Timon had ducked down. "What are you doing back so soon? Where are Max and--?" He noticed Timon's paws still gripping onto Pumbaa's ears, and grimaced. "You know, Pumbaa, you've got some odd looking ticks on your ears."
Timon's head shot up and looked around Pumbaa's ears. "Ticks? Where? I'm starved." He gulped when he realized he was tricked out of hiding as Pete folded his arms in front of his chest. "Heh heh heh... heya, Pete!"
"Got rejected, didn't you, Timon?" Pete asked with a cocked brow.
Timon furrowed his brow at Pumbaa. "Pumbaa, you told Pete, too? Who else did you tell?"
"Nobody, I swear, Timon! He was there when your mother twisted my leg!" Pumbaa whimpered.
"The only ones who know are your mother, Max, and me. While you were off chasing girls, Timon, I had to keep the others from finding you out, thus embarrassing you further."
"Gee, thanks, Pete," Timon said as he slid off Pumbaa and walked over to Pete. "I need you to do me another favor, OK?"
"I've run out of excuses, so don't you be running off again!"
"No, no, nothing like that. I need you to gather everyone together at the big tree for a meeting."
"OK, gather everyone together. I can do that." Pete nodded to himself and took off.
"And while he's doing that..." Timon said as he schemingly rubbed his paws together. Pumbaa went over to the stream for a drink as Timon went to work. Timon ran over to a tree, removed a large piece of bark, and grabbed the grubs lying underneath. "Oasis Grubs... I haven't had any in almost a week... chow time!" He shoved the whole pawful into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed. He licked his paws off and smiled, satisfied.
"Good to be home, huh, Timon?" Pumbaa asked.
"Oh, yeah... I hate to leave again so soon twice, but..." Timon pulled a beetle leg out of his teeth and discarded it as he walked off after Pete. "Love calls." Pumbaa followed close behind. When all the meerkats were accounted for, Timon climbed on top of one of the tree's high roots, overlooking everyone. "OK, everyone, I have an announcement to make! First, I wanna know that you're all listening and not just taking bites out of a beetle when I'm not looking." Timon furrowed his brow at one meerkat who had his paws behind his back and his cheeks expanded. "... Right. Anyway, I must confess I was not here most of the week."
"Yeah, we figured that out right away!" a meerkat called out. A few other voices agreed.
"... Right. I had returned to the Pride Lands to meet this meerkat girl I saw the day before."
"A girl from another colony? Are you crazy, Timon? Did they treat you like a rogue?" a second meerkat asked.
"He was a rogue when he left the colony..." a third meerkat said.
"I take offense to that, Stumpy." Timon paced around on the root a bit, running his paw through his hair. "OK, OK, just come out and say it, Timmy boy," he mumbled to himself. He inhaled and then turned back to the group. "OK, bottom line... I need you to come back with me to the Pride Lands to settle an itty bitty dispute we have with this girl's colony."
"Itty bitty dispute? Timon, I thought this colony and Shomari's have a major big dispute," Pumbaa blurted out, to which Timon slapped his paw over his eyes. "Oooh, you wanted to say it in a different way, didn't you?"
"Umm... yeah."
"Shomari?!" members of the colony shouted.
"You've got to be kidding us! This girl you've come to like is in Shomari's colony?!" Pete asked as he climbed up onto the root to meet Timon.
"Kinda..." Timon said, twiddling his fingers a bit.
"'Kinda?' Is she, or not?"
"She's Shomari's daughter," Timon said in a mumbled cough.
"His daughter?! What is wrong with you, Timon?! Your so-called girlfriend is the daughter of the colony that nearly took over our own!" Pete said, grabbing Timon by the arms and shaking him a bit.
Timon pulled out of Pete's grip, and then rubbed his arms. "Did you have to grip me so hard? I'm gonna have bruises there."
"That's the least of your worries."
"Well, how was I suppose to know? No one's ever told me about this feared colony of Shomari. I didn't know until Ma and Uncle Max came bursting into the scene."
"How could you not--?"
"Before I was born, remember?"
"Yeah, fine, we'll give you that," Pete said, folding his arms in front of his chest. He turned to face the colony. "OK, we'll vote. All those in favor of going to the Pride Lands to meet with Shomari, say 'aye.'"
"Aye!" Pumbaa cheered out, then he ducked down when he received a few dirty stares from the colony.
"All oppose?"
"Nay!" the rest of the meerkats called out.
"There you have it, Timon," Pete said, turning his eyes to Timon.
"So that's it then? You're not going to meet this old colony to make nice, not even as a personal favor to your savior?" Timon asked his colony.
"Pretty much, yeah," a few mumbles from the crowd were heard.
Timon stared at them for a moment, and then let his shoulders sink. "I see. Guess I wasted a trip here," he said as he slid down the root back to the ground. He walked past a few meerkats over to Pumbaa. "I guess we'll have to think of something else, Pumbaa." Pumbaa knelt down to let Timon onto his back.
"Back to the Pride Lands?" Pumbaa asked.
"Back to the Pride Lands." Pumbaa turned around and started to walk away. As they started to disappear, Timon shouted back at the mob, "Yeah, nice to know who your real family is! Thanks for nothing, guys!"
"Uh, good luck, Timon," Pete awkwardly waved at him. Timon grunted, and then turned back to face the direction Pumbaa was walking. The meerkats coughed a few times, now a bit guilty for turning him down.
"What'd you do that for, Timon?" Pumbaa asked as they walked out of the oasis.
"Guilt trip. Maybe if we're lucky, they'll come running towards the Pride Lands anyway."
"What if they don't?"
"Improvise, I guess. I'll think of something... I hope." Timon looked up to the sky as Pumbaa continued on.
To be continued...
Pumbaa: ::Pops out of the box.:: Yay!
Kari: ::Munching on a muffin.:: Yeah, it's amazing... when I first started this, I was really worried I wouldn't receive the same praises I got from Son of Fearless Buzz. But judging from all the treats we've been getting, I'm doing a pretty good job. Yatta!
Zuri: ::Sniffs a stick of pocky.:: What's this thing?
Kari: Japanese wheat cracker treats dipped in chocolate or strawberry call pocky. It's a major favorite treat among Anime fans.
Zuri: ::Makes a pocky-ka-bob with bugs and eats it.::
Kari: What a waste... OK, here's the next chapter, which excludes Zuri for now.
Zuri: WHA--?!
Kari: Sorry, Zuri, but what I had planned for this chapter didn't include you physically.
Zuri: ::sniffle.::
Chapter 8:
Pumbaa trotted across the desert all night, Timon lying on his back, looking up at the stars. Timon rolled onto his stomach, letting his arms and legs dangle on the warthog's sides. He let out a small sigh.
"Are you OK, Timon?" Pumbaa finally asked.
"OK? I'm better than OK, Pumbaa. I think I'm in love," Timon replied, sounding a little dazed.
"Oh... well, good for you, Timon," Pumbaa said, sounding a little down.
Timon caught wind of this and sat up. "Aww, chin-up, Pumbaa! There's someone out there for everyone... hey, maybe even Zuri's warthog friend is female."
"I thought you said she said she had a warthog for a friend in a joking way when you said you had a warthog for a friend."
"Could you put that into English?"
"You said she was lying."
"Oh. Well... yeah, you're right, I did. OK, OK, but just remember, you're not the only warthog in the savanna."
Pumbaa perked up, "Yeah, you're right, Timon. Look, we're here!" Timon climbed to the top of Pumbaa's head and smiled when he saw the oasis in sight. "Bringing the colony back to the Pride Lands... do you think it'll work?"
"No, but it's all I've got to go on. I gotta try to bring these two colonies together and bury the hatchet, or Zuri's gonna marry Makali in two days." Timon shook his head to clear his head of that nasty thought. "So, forward march!" Pumbaa ran towards the oasis.
Pete was sitting in the tops of the outer trees, then squinted when he saw Pumbaa coming. "Pumbaa?" He grabbed onto a vine and climbed down. "Pumbaa! Over here!" Pumbaa skid to a halt before running Pete over. Timon had ducked down. "What are you doing back so soon? Where are Max and--?" He noticed Timon's paws still gripping onto Pumbaa's ears, and grimaced. "You know, Pumbaa, you've got some odd looking ticks on your ears."
Timon's head shot up and looked around Pumbaa's ears. "Ticks? Where? I'm starved." He gulped when he realized he was tricked out of hiding as Pete folded his arms in front of his chest. "Heh heh heh... heya, Pete!"
"Got rejected, didn't you, Timon?" Pete asked with a cocked brow.
Timon furrowed his brow at Pumbaa. "Pumbaa, you told Pete, too? Who else did you tell?"
"Nobody, I swear, Timon! He was there when your mother twisted my leg!" Pumbaa whimpered.
"The only ones who know are your mother, Max, and me. While you were off chasing girls, Timon, I had to keep the others from finding you out, thus embarrassing you further."
"Gee, thanks, Pete," Timon said as he slid off Pumbaa and walked over to Pete. "I need you to do me another favor, OK?"
"I've run out of excuses, so don't you be running off again!"
"No, no, nothing like that. I need you to gather everyone together at the big tree for a meeting."
"OK, gather everyone together. I can do that." Pete nodded to himself and took off.
"And while he's doing that..." Timon said as he schemingly rubbed his paws together. Pumbaa went over to the stream for a drink as Timon went to work. Timon ran over to a tree, removed a large piece of bark, and grabbed the grubs lying underneath. "Oasis Grubs... I haven't had any in almost a week... chow time!" He shoved the whole pawful into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed. He licked his paws off and smiled, satisfied.
"Good to be home, huh, Timon?" Pumbaa asked.
"Oh, yeah... I hate to leave again so soon twice, but..." Timon pulled a beetle leg out of his teeth and discarded it as he walked off after Pete. "Love calls." Pumbaa followed close behind. When all the meerkats were accounted for, Timon climbed on top of one of the tree's high roots, overlooking everyone. "OK, everyone, I have an announcement to make! First, I wanna know that you're all listening and not just taking bites out of a beetle when I'm not looking." Timon furrowed his brow at one meerkat who had his paws behind his back and his cheeks expanded. "... Right. Anyway, I must confess I was not here most of the week."
"Yeah, we figured that out right away!" a meerkat called out. A few other voices agreed.
"... Right. I had returned to the Pride Lands to meet this meerkat girl I saw the day before."
"A girl from another colony? Are you crazy, Timon? Did they treat you like a rogue?" a second meerkat asked.
"He was a rogue when he left the colony..." a third meerkat said.
"I take offense to that, Stumpy." Timon paced around on the root a bit, running his paw through his hair. "OK, OK, just come out and say it, Timmy boy," he mumbled to himself. He inhaled and then turned back to the group. "OK, bottom line... I need you to come back with me to the Pride Lands to settle an itty bitty dispute we have with this girl's colony."
"Itty bitty dispute? Timon, I thought this colony and Shomari's have a major big dispute," Pumbaa blurted out, to which Timon slapped his paw over his eyes. "Oooh, you wanted to say it in a different way, didn't you?"
"Umm... yeah."
"Shomari?!" members of the colony shouted.
"You've got to be kidding us! This girl you've come to like is in Shomari's colony?!" Pete asked as he climbed up onto the root to meet Timon.
"Kinda..." Timon said, twiddling his fingers a bit.
"'Kinda?' Is she, or not?"
"She's Shomari's daughter," Timon said in a mumbled cough.
"His daughter?! What is wrong with you, Timon?! Your so-called girlfriend is the daughter of the colony that nearly took over our own!" Pete said, grabbing Timon by the arms and shaking him a bit.
Timon pulled out of Pete's grip, and then rubbed his arms. "Did you have to grip me so hard? I'm gonna have bruises there."
"That's the least of your worries."
"Well, how was I suppose to know? No one's ever told me about this feared colony of Shomari. I didn't know until Ma and Uncle Max came bursting into the scene."
"How could you not--?"
"Before I was born, remember?"
"Yeah, fine, we'll give you that," Pete said, folding his arms in front of his chest. He turned to face the colony. "OK, we'll vote. All those in favor of going to the Pride Lands to meet with Shomari, say 'aye.'"
"Aye!" Pumbaa cheered out, then he ducked down when he received a few dirty stares from the colony.
"All oppose?"
"Nay!" the rest of the meerkats called out.
"There you have it, Timon," Pete said, turning his eyes to Timon.
"So that's it then? You're not going to meet this old colony to make nice, not even as a personal favor to your savior?" Timon asked his colony.
"Pretty much, yeah," a few mumbles from the crowd were heard.
Timon stared at them for a moment, and then let his shoulders sink. "I see. Guess I wasted a trip here," he said as he slid down the root back to the ground. He walked past a few meerkats over to Pumbaa. "I guess we'll have to think of something else, Pumbaa." Pumbaa knelt down to let Timon onto his back.
"Back to the Pride Lands?" Pumbaa asked.
"Back to the Pride Lands." Pumbaa turned around and started to walk away. As they started to disappear, Timon shouted back at the mob, "Yeah, nice to know who your real family is! Thanks for nothing, guys!"
"Uh, good luck, Timon," Pete awkwardly waved at him. Timon grunted, and then turned back to face the direction Pumbaa was walking. The meerkats coughed a few times, now a bit guilty for turning him down.
"What'd you do that for, Timon?" Pumbaa asked as they walked out of the oasis.
"Guilt trip. Maybe if we're lucky, they'll come running towards the Pride Lands anyway."
"What if they don't?"
"Improvise, I guess. I'll think of something... I hope." Timon looked up to the sky as Pumbaa continued on.
To be continued...