An Elephantastic Safari
(setting) Africa
The two black-haired men grinned when they saw the brochure in the hotel lobby. Sirius lunged forward to grab it from the stall and scanned it as fast as possible. "A safari! We should definitely do that, James! It's the Great Migration! There's wildebeests, antelopes, and zebras!"
James looked over his shoulder to make sure Remus and Peter weren't around before nodding excitedly. "And we will… But what about Moony and—"
"We won't tell them where we're going," Sirius exclaimed, rubbing his hands in delight. "We'll say it's a surprise!"
"Remus will kill us. You know animals aren't comfortable around him… and Wormy? He'll shit his pants if he found out," James said, already laughing at the image.
The smirk on Sirius' face was devious. "I'm signing us all up, then."
"Hurry up before they get down here," James hissed, shoving Sirius towards the reception desk.
The day the four boys had graduated from Hogwarts, Fleamont Potter had told them that he was going to Tanzania for a worldwide conference meeting with other potioneers. He had asked them if they'd like to come along, and the boys had all jumped at the opportunity to travel.
Three days ago, they had Portkeyed to Arusha, the capital of Tanzania, where they had enjoyed touring the interesting mix of markets, old colonial buildings, and coffee-shops. They had even gone to Sumbawanga to see the wizarding community and had been enchanted by the lack of wands and the locals' Self-Transfiguration skills.
And as James watched Sirius sign them up for the safari, he grinned, thinking of his own Self-Transfiguration skills. A brilliant idea formed in his mind, and he knew it would—one way or another—be epic.
"We're doing what?" Remus asked, his eyes wide with shock. "Sirius! No! We're not going on a safari! What would we say when none of the animals come close to us? That they know there's a predator in their midst?"
James threw his arm around Remus' shoulders and said, "Moony, we're on holiday in Africa—it would be a crime if we didn't go see the Great Migration! Think of how cool it'll be!"
"This is a bad idea," Peter said, tapping his foot repeatedly. He squirmed in his seat, wringing his hands at the thought of all the larger than life animals they would see on their tour.
They were already on their way to the reserve in their private open jeep. The wind rustled in the trees, swaying the grassy wands, and Sirius was already standing in the middle of their vehicle, his long wavy hair blowing away from his face.
"Mooncakes, I swear this will be great," Sirius said, sticking his tongue out and closing his eyes. "Give it a chance, will you?"
Remus sighed, aware that they wouldn't listen to him anyway. "Fine. It's not like they'll turn the car around."
"That's the spirit, my precious moonpie," Sirius said, reaching down to rub Remus' cheek, who tried to smack his hand away. "Hey, Prongsie! Come on up here! Feel the wind in your hair! See? Don't I look fabulous?"
The other three had to admit that yes, Sirius did look good with the wind blowing his hair behind him. James immediately shot to his feet and tried to mimic him, but the wind simply caused his hair to stand up on its ends, making him look like he had been hit by a Lightning Spell.
"Do I look good?" James asked, grinning down at Remus and Peter, who both covered their mouths to muffle their laughter. James frowned, unaware of the mess that was his hair. "What?"
"Nothing, sweetie," Sirius cooed, patting his shoulder. "Perfection takes time. Why don't you stand right there and let the wind make you feel fabulous?"
Peter mouthed to Remus, "Take his picture."
And Remus grinned as he did just that.
When they arrived at the reserve, they were greeted by their tour guide, a young man named Emmanuel. He led them around the reserve in the safety of their jeep, pointing out various lion and leopard tracks along the way.
The four boys witnessed elephants bathing in the river, zebras grazing through the pale yellow grasslands, and even a herd of giraffes feeding on the leafy greens. Though none of the animals dared step foot near the jeep—a fact that their driver and tour guide both commented on only once—the boys enjoyed watching the animals in their natural habitats.
When their jeep stopped at the little lodge and Emmanuel told them they could go in and have some refreshments, James grinned and whispered something in Sirius' ears, too low for even Remus to hear.
While Remus was busy discussing animal facts with their guide, and Peter was already halfway to the canteen, James and Sirius snuck out of the lodge with the camera, which Remus had Shrunk for easier access.
A brilliant light hugged the grasslands as the sun stretched out with golden arms, its rays cascading onto the vibrant reserve. The trees around them were enchanting in the light, the stream in the distance shimmering like diamonds under the clear baby-blue sky.
"Wow, perfect day for a run, huh?" Sirius said, stretching his arms overhead. He grinned at James, who was swinging his arms back and forth to get his blood flowing. "Want to race?"
"You're on!" James cried, immediately changing into a stag and hopping over the grass blades towards the trees.
"Cheater!" Sirius yelled, but he shifted into his Animagus form and ran after James.
The pair nipped at each other's heels, darting through the trees and barking at each other. When they saw an elephant chewing on the foliage, lazy as can be, Padfoot whined and nudged Prongs' heel, wagging his tail excitedly.
Like only a true friend would, Prongs understood. Trotting over to the elephant, he leaned against the animal's front leg, glancing over his shoulder at Padfoot.
Transforming back, Sirius quickly hid behind the bush and pulled out the Shrunken camera from his pocket. He turned it on and aimed it at Prongs, who puffed his chest out with pride and made a low keening sound. Sirius grinned and murmured, "Oh, this is great! Hey, Prongs, any way you could climb the elephant?"
Prongs nodded before he casually walked over to the tree right behind the elephant. He looked down at his hooves and thought, 'Okay, this might be a problem.'
Still, he didn't want to scare the elephant away, so he did his best to climb, scrambling to find footholds in the trunk. Raising his rump, he scooted up the tree, his legs wrapped firmly around the bole.
Meanwhile, Sirius pursed his lips to muffle his laughter, amused beyond belief at the sight of a stag climbing a tree with its hooves wrapped around the trunk.
Finally, Prongs reached the top, and Sirius grinned as he gave him a thumbs-up. Prongs awkwardly balanced himself on the thin branches as he moved closer to the elephant's back. He carefully placed one hoof on its back before placing the other.
The elephant shifted its weight onto its other foot, and Prongs almost screamed as his hoof slipped and he lay sprawled on its back, his legs spread out in an ungainly manner.
Sirius burst into peals of laughter as he clicked another picture, tears streaming down his face. "The boys will have such a laugh when they see this!"
Prongs let out a loud bellow, and the elephant flicked its ear at him, reaching up with his trunk to swat him away like one would a fly. Without hesitation, the stag hopped off the elephant and darted back to Sirius' side.
When James transformed back, Sirius handed him the camera and said, "It's my turn now. Watch this."
James watched as Sirius turned into a dog before scampering towards the elephant. Padfoot excitedly jumped up and down near the elephant's trunk, watching it swing to and fro.
When Padfoot managed to grab onto the elephant's trunk, he quickly climbed up, wagging his tail enthusiastically. Barking loudly, he stood on top of the elephant's head and gave James a wolfish grin, who laughed but took his picture.
Just then, a jeep drove by, and before Padfoot could jump off, the tourists caught sight of him standing on the elephant's head.
"What's a dog doing here?" a middle-aged woman asked the guide, who gaped at the dog with confusion.
"No idea, ma'am," the man replied, still squinting at the bewildering sight. "Must have wandered in by mistake."
James laughed under his breath as Padfoot began to saunter up and down the elephant's back, his tail still wagging. When he tapped the elephant's head with his little paw, it began to move away from the tourists and into the trees.
And then, to James' absolute amusement, Padfoot turned his head, looked at the tourists, and waved his paw at them. James didn't miss the opportunity to take another picture, laughing at how shocked the Muggle tourists were.
What a vacation this is!