The days that followed were hard on both Makuu and Kiburi. With Kellan in the Pridelands, neither crocodile was willing to let their guard down. However, the whole ordeal is more stressful for Kiburi than it is for Makuu. Despite fearing what his father might do, Makuu and his float could take care of themselves; Kiburi's float is smaller, not as strong, and they have a trio of hatchlings to worry about. That, in their eyes, was more of a cause for concern.
"Hey! Where do you think you're going?"
Kiburi lunged forward and grabbed three wriggling forms in his jaws from among the reeds.
"Ow! Watch it!"
"Dad! Put us down!"
"I told you guys this was a bad idea."
Ugh! These three! Why do hatchlings have to do the opposite of what they're told?
"Dad!"
Kiburi growled through his teeth. He couldn't snap at his children while they were still in his mouth, but he couldn't let them out just yet, either. He didn't want to risk them running away, again.
"DAD!"
"Kunto, shut up! You're shattering my ears!"
"Guys, please stop."
By now, Kiburi was out of the reeds and back on the bank, where his float and Zula were resting and relaxing. Until . . .
"DAD! PUT ME DOWN! NOW!"
Kunto's shout caught their attention. Not only that, but she was giving her father and brothers a headache.
Alright, that's it.
Before Kunto could yell another word, Kiburi opened his jaws and let go of his children. The trio stumbled out of their father's mouth and onto the ground.
"Ah! Finally! Back on solid ground!"
"I'm glad that everyone is quiet again."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever."
Kunto removed herself from her brothers and turned on her father. Kiburi couldn't believe how much his daughter reminded him of himself. This made him want to protect her even more. Unfortunately, as Kiburi knew all too well, Kunto is harder to deal with than both her brothers combined.
"Kiburi, what's going on?" Zula asked as she approached her mate.
"Yeah, dad, what is going on?" Kunto immediately demanded.
"Uh...what do you mean?" Kiburi tried to play ignorant. "I mean, you three were wandering off when you know full well that you aren't supposed to."
"Yeah, but..." Kunto tried to argue.
"You what?!" Zula interrupted. "Kunto, you and your brothers know that you aren't supposed to go anywhere without adult supervision."
"Why, though? I mean, you've never had a problem with it before. What's with you guys being so concerned all of a sudden? In fact, you guys have been acting very weird lately. Is there something that you would like to tell us?"
"Kunto, honey, I promise that this is only a temporary thing. You know, for your own protection."
"'Protection'? Protection from what?"
"From someone very dangerous," Kiburi interjected.
Kiburi's words immediately caught Kunto's attention. She turned back to focus on her father.
"Ah, so who is it, then?" Kunto questioned.
"That...that isn't any concern of yours!" Kiburi stressed.
Zula, Berko, and Mosi backed away from their quarreling family members. They decided to stay back with the others, and out of the way.
"But shouldn't my safety be my concern?" Kunto argued.
"Well, yes, but not right now!" Kiburi retorted. "Besides, it's my job to worry about you, not the other way around!"
"And why not? How can you not expect me to worry about you? How can I help if you won't tell me what's going on?"
"Because it's none of your business! Trust me, Kunto, you do not want to know!"
"Know about what? Why aren't you telling us anything? We're your family! I'm your daughter! Why are you keeping secrets from us, your own kids, when we see you telling everyone else?"
"Kunto, trust me, it's for your own good," Kiburi tried to get his daughter to relent. Unfortunately, she was too stubborn, even for him.
"And how would you know that? How can you do good for us when all you have been doing is lying to us?"
"Because you don't know what monsters are like!"
The area fell silent. Kiburi finally snapped.
"You know what monsters are like, daddy?" Kunto asked in a low, cold tone.
"...We're done talking about this," Kiburi growled. "Kunto, you and your brothers go back to the Hollow, now."
"But..."
"I said now!"
"Kiburi!" Zula gasped.
"Enough!" Kiburi yelled. "All of you, just shut up!"
Before anyone could stop him, Kiburi angrily left the float behind. He needed some alone time to calm down and think about things. Most of all, about Kunto.