Painted Flowers

Chapter 27 - The Expedition

Dragonflies fluttered around a small pond; the first bit of water to be found for horizons. The dogs each took their time drinking, savoring every drop as it ran down their dry throats. Jabari then crouched and slid his entire body into it to cool down, which surprised the others, as it had been such a long time since any of them had bothered to swim for fun. Zain wanted pretty badly to follow Jabari's lead, but didn't want to make a spectacle of himself like the older dog was, splashing his mate and little Kioni with waves made from his paws and tail. So Zain just sat on the edge, observing.

Layali was giving Jabari an annoyed look, wrinkling her nose and withdrawing her tail as it was doused. Shani laughed a bit, but then began lecturing him on how he was wasting perfectly good drinking water by getting his filthy pelt all into it. Jabari then sank a bit until just his nose and eyes were above the surface, imitating a crocodile. He waded towards Kioni slyly, and the cub puffed her fur out in fright, but began giggling again once she realized who it was. Zain could imagine him playing the same trick on his own pups when the time came, focusing on that instead of the reminder of when he and Zahra invented games to play with their foster siblings. He smiled in amusement, glad that the group was having fun for once, but stayed out of the way.

The previous morning in which he spent his time hunting hares with Jabari had been a strange one. In truth, Zain hadn't slept at all the night before that, being kept awake by the unsettling new surroundings. So he left the den and spent the night outside. It was dawn when Jabari found him, and he suggested the two of them go hunting for the others, all the while for whatever reason treating Layali like she was Zain's mate and, as such, should have been provided for. It wasn't Zain's idea to go on this weird trip with him, so he was pretty uncomfortable the entire time, but went along with it, knowing that all of them needed their strength if they were to traverse the highlands.

Zain of course didn't offer much for conversation, which he felt guilty about, even though he couldn't help himself. He also didn't exactly have a great impression of this dog, finding him rather irritating with his self-absorbency and his teasing. His playful belittling of female dogs in general is what Zain disagreed with the most, as if Layali was some delicate flower that Zain had to "rescue", when in fact, in a way, they each played an equal role in that regard.

Though he still found himself nodding along with Jabari's loud opinions on pack life. What made a dog a royal, and what made them a "common" member? Why was it that a dog was defined by the uncontrollable situation of their birth, being lesser if they were born from dogs in unfortunate circumstances?

Jabari didn't seem to mind their dynamic, yammering away about how great of a hunter he was, how he never failed to provide for his dear Shani, and how amazing their pups would become if they took after him. Zain had grown terribly annoyed with him, but luckily, it wasn't long until they had stumbled upon the hare burrow.

It was what Jabari spoke about afterwards that left an impression on Zain. Though he was unsure himself, going along with Layali because she was driven by a force that he didn't quite understand, Shani, being a healer, seemed more connected to the spirit world. Jabari told him that bad things would come from dogs who dared meddle with the spirits, and to be especially careful when they reached the cave at the peak. Zain was left more unsettled than ever before. The mountains were dangerous to begin with, but not even Layali knew what exactly lay in wait for them. He wanted to discuss it more with her, but privacy was not something he could have requested at that point. Even if he could, he would not have mentioned Layali's curse to either of the wanderers, and how she tended to have strange dreams that other dogs did not. It was something Layali had to explain for herself.

The four dogs and the cheetah pressed on for about two days. They traversed thick woodlands, crossing over the river that the trio had been following on one side for an entire moon cycle, and towards rocky terrain. Judging by this, the mountains were not very far from where they stood now.