Hours have passed since the Royals and Rafiki visited. Makuu was feeling better now, at least on the outside; the inside, not so much. He cannot stop thinking about what Rafiki said before he left and why he pointed at Masika. He had an idea as to what the mandrill was hinting at, but no matter how hard he tried not to think about it, the more the notion seemed to stick out to him.
{This is absolute nonsense. How can Rafiki possibly know whether I like Masika as a friend or more than a friend? We've only known each other for a few days, and I still don't know that much about her. I mean, she's great and all, but...but...oh, I don't know! Forget about it! Rafiki is probably right. I mean, why else would I be acting so differently than normal? But even if my feelings for her do become romantic, or something like that, it doesn't really matter unless she likes me back. What am I thinking? There's no way she could have those feelings for me. After all, she considers me more like a brother than...that. Nothing more, and nothing less.}
"Hey, Makuu," Masika greeted, breaking Makuu from his over-the-top worrying.
"Oh, hi, Masika," Makuu said from his spot at the water's edge. "Something on your mind?"
"Yeah...you don't seem yourself. Is something wrong? Or are you going to tell me to back off and mind my own business?"
"Just thinking about complicated stuff. Nothing you need to worry about."
"You sure?"
"Positive, and if you don't mind, I would like to ask you something as well."
"So long as it doesn't regard my family, I'm good."
"I don't think it does. Not directly, anyway."
"Your question?"
"Why did you leave your float?"
"...I knew that question was coming, but I'm surprised it took you this long to ask me that. Well, luckily for you, I'm not that girl who usually keeps secrets, at least, not as often as other females do. Anyway, the point of the matter is that, the reason I left my float...and you might find this to be a very stupid reason, but...it's because I don't want a mate. It's okay, you can laugh, if you want. I mean, that's what everybody does whenever I tell them why I left. Trust me, when you do this every mating season, leaving home just so you don't have to have a mate, you get used to it. My float is so used to my comings and goings now that they consider it normal behavior for me."
Makuu wanted to laugh, but he didn't. He kept himself under control and cleared his throat to keep himself from laughing.
"So you left your home just so you wouldn't have to mate? It sounds a little over the top, but then again, I don't know what the crocodiles from your home are like. Mind explaining it to me?"
"Controlling. I would explain further, but all you need to know is that I value my freedom, and I'm afraid that if I was to mate with anyone, my freedom would be taken away, and I would feel weak and helpless, two things I know I am not."
Makuu wanted to say something, to make Masika feel better, but was beaten to it.
"Hello, Masika!" Talib greeted as he joined the conversing crocodiles. "I hope you don't mind, but I need to talk with Makuu in private."
"I can already tell that this conversation is going to be about me, but whatever. I don't really care. Besides, I promised to help the other crocodiles with their techniques while Makuu is currently taking a self-health break."
With nothing left to say, Masika turned around and left.
"Did we offend her or something?" Makuu asked once Masika was out of earshot.
{I don't think I'll ever understand females. They're way too confusing.}
"It's just Masika being Masika, so don't take it too personally," Talib casually replied. "So, you wanted to talk to me about something?"
"Yeah, I did. It wasn't long after you left yesterday that something strange happened."
"Strange how, exactly?"
Makuu explained to Talib what happened, and once he finished talking, noticed that the bird looked a little hesitant.
{He knows something, and he doesn't exactly look happy about it.}
"Well? I'm waiting," Makuu said.
"If I'm being perfectly honest with you, Makuu, I don't really know," Talib responded. "Masika is a difficult crocodile to understand, courtesy of her home life. She loves her friends and family, but completely ignores the rules and customs. She is very independent, but knows very little of responsibility. She's smart, but uses her brawn more often than her brain. I guess you could say that she's a hatchling in an adult's body."
"What does any of that have to do with what I'm trying to get an answer to?"
"Change, Makuu. Masika doesn't do well when it comes to change, especially when that change is personal. She hangs on to her childhood memories because something happened that made her not want to let go. Made her not want to move on. None of us are sure why, but since she refuses to discuss many things about herself with others, it's best just to let things lie."
"I'm still not getting the point here, Talib."
"What I'm trying to get at is that Masika unfortunately has a habit of holding onto the past for longer than she should. In turn, that longing for something familiar affects her psyche, sometimes making her see or hear things that she wants, like..."
"Her brother?"
"Yes, like her brother."
"So you're saying that Masika thought she saw her brother yesterday and that's why she reacted the way that she did?"
"Yes."
"But why, of all things, was it her brother that she thought she saw?"
"Like I said, I don't know. All I can tell you is that it's psychological. Now, are we done here or what?"
"I..."
Makuu was cut-off from his response when he heard strange sounds from somewhere nearby.
"What was that?" Talib asked, though he sounded more curious than worried.
"Sounds like...fighting!" Makuu responded, fear spreading throughout his scales as soon as he realized what the sound was, and that it was coming from the same direction where Masika and the other crocodiles were. "Talib, I know that you and Rafiki don't want me doing anything that could possibly make my shoulder worse, but if my float is in trouble I have to protect them."
Makuu began to limp off towards the clearing where the sounds of confrontation could be clearly heard, but was stopped when Talib flew right in front of his face.
"Oh no you don't, Makuu! You have to stay off of that leg! If you harm it even further, then healing would be practically impossible!"
"At this point in time, Talib, I don't really care! The only thing I care about right now is making sure that my float and Masika are safe."
"Uh, guys," Hodari called from his look-out post in the tree, but neither Makuu nor Talib were listening to him.
"I know you have a duty to your float, Makuu, but how do you expect to protect them when you can't even properly take care of yourself?" Talib questioned.
"I already told you, it was an accident! I didn't mean to forget about it. I just thought it would be nothing to worry about. How was I supposed to know that it would turn infected?" Makuu argued.
"Guys, seriously, you might want to stop arguing with each other," Hodari called down, again, and just as before, Makuu and Talib weren't listening to him.
"Maybe if you just listened to me in the first place, we wouldn't even be in this situation!" Talib snapped.
"Why are you saying 'we'? I'm the one with the stupid shoulder injury here! If you were so worried about it getting infected, then why didn't you just treat it right away?" Makuu shot back.
"Jeez, I don't know. Maybe it's because I'm new to the Pridelands and the fact that you were and still are a stranger to me!"
"Guys! Stop fighting! Please! This is really serious!" Hodari pleaded in a loud voice.
"What, Hodari?" Makuu snapped as he turned on the gecko. "Can't you see that we are in the middle of a conversation?"
"You should really listen to that gecko more often, Makuu."
Makuu turned away from Hodari, and soon, felt a stone lodge in his stomach the moment he recognized the newcomer.
"Then again, you don't really listen to anyone," Kiburi added, stopping a few tail lengths away from his former leader.
"I thought you would have given these daily attacks a break, considering you haven't done so in a few days," Makuu pointed out. "I wonder what was so important that you actually had to take away some of your time to bother us in order to do something else."
"Sorry to disappoint you, but I had some other business to attend to, and since that's now out of the way, we can get back to antagonizing you lot. Speaking of surprises, I noticed that there is a female hanging out with you now. Who is she?"
"None. Of. Your. Business. Besides, she hasn't done anything to you or your float."
"True, but since it looks like she's with you now, technically, she is our business."
"Stay away from Masika, Kiburi. Trust me when I say you're better off fighting me."
"Her name's Masika, huh?"
Kiburi stared at Makuu for a few moments before bursting out in laughter.
"I can't believe it. You really, actually like her, don't you? Well, this should make things a little more interesting, especially once you're out of the way and I become leader."
"Over my dead body, Kiburi! As long as I'm alive and leader of this float, I will never stop protecting my own, including Masika!"
{Although, to be perfectly honest, Masika can handle her own and would most likely be able to take out Kiburi and his crocodiles no problem.}
"We'll see about that," Kiburi said before charging.
Makuu stood his ground, despite his injured shoulder. He was prepared to fight, but he wasn't prepared to be defended.
With no warning at all, a stranger dashed out in front of Makuu, blocking him from Kiburi, who skidded to a halt to avoid colliding with the stranger. Both crocodile leaders were confused at this sudden turn of events. Makuu stared at the stranger, who just saved him from a fight that he knew he probably couldn't win, and noticed that the newcomer, who was in fact a crocodile, looked very familiar. It wasn't that Makuu knew this stranger, but rather because they had a very similar appearance to that of Masika.
{But...that can't be. Another River Valley crocodile? What's one doing here? And why are they protecting me from Kiburi?}
"Get out of my way! Can't you see that I'm trying to do something here?" Kiburi snapped.
"Sorry, but I won't get out of your way just because you told me to," the stranger said in a low, cold voice. "If you want to fight someone who is currently at a clear disadvantage as compared to you, then you're going to have to go through me."
"I don't know why you're bothering to protect someone you don't even know, but if getting you out of the way means that I can fight Makuu, then I'm all for it."
The stranger coolly snickered in response.
"Big mistake, southern crocodile."
For the next few minutes, Makuu stood back and watched as Kiburi and the newcomer fought each other. Makuu noticed that Kiburi's fighting style and techniques have improved significantly, despite already being a decent fighter to begin with, but knew the fight wouldn't last much longer. The new crocodile was larger and stronger, and used moves that neither Makuu nor Kiburi have ever seen before.
Little time had passed before the stranger managed to get the upper claw and pin Kiburi down, on his back, which meant that his underbelly was exposed. Makuu knew that Kiburi was now stuck in a rather troubling predicament. The last thing that anyone wants to happen in a fight is for their underbelly to become exposed because that is where all of the softer parts are, which can be very easily damaged.
He didn't know what compelled him to do this, but Makuu had the sudden urge to get closer, and despite the silent protests from both Hodari and Talib, he moved forward anyway. He limped over and stopped a tail length away from the two crocodiles, not wanting to get any closer, just in case. Now that he was no longer far away, Makuu could see how the new crocodile was keeping Kiburi pinned down. The stranger forced most of his weight onto Kiburi, with three of his legs on solid ground to keep his balance, while his remaining leg pressed against Kiburi's throat, clutching onto it tightly with his claws to make sure that he stays in place.
{Impressive, but I should probably get him off of Kiburi, just in case. That would be a good idea, except for one thing: How in the world am I supposed to convince him otherwise?!}
Before Makuu could even think of a way to separate the newcomer and Kiburi, his attention was immediately drawn to something else. It was Kiburi's float, and they were clearly in a hurry to get away from something.
{Or someone. Probably Masika.}
"Kiburi! We have to go! That female is way too strong for us!" Tamka, one of Kiburi's followers, exclaimed, but he and the rest of Kiburi's float stopped in their tracks once they realized that Kiburi wasn't able to do anything at the moment.
Makuu's float and Masika followed. Once they caught up to the others, they also stopped in their tracks to survey the scene in front of them. Masika moved forward to get a closer look. That's when her demeanor completely changed.
"I...I don't believe it," Masika breathed, tears forming in her eyes.
"Hello, Masika," the stranger said, raising his gaze.
"Uh, Masika?" Makuu asked.
Masika was clearly distracted, looking into the stranger's dark, emerald green eyes. Makuu tried to reach her again, and this time, she snapped back.
"Uh...Makuu...this is Zaire...my brother."