So far she had had nothing but an earful of half-squawks and partial insults thrown in with careful fragments of conversation with the vulture she now sat toe to toe with. The past afternoon had been trying for the lioness’ patience, as she only half-jokingly entertained the idea of putting the bird out of its misery. Though through those small fractions of what she would call ‘normal’ speech pattern, she grew ever more hopeful that the bird’s condition was due to starvation rather than a defect of the mind. And if that was true, then Dina’s efforts would be rewarded once the bird was back to its usual self. Hopefully that would include a willingness to work with her, as well. Calculating blue eyes studied the pale white creature as it dug at the fresh kill Dina had managed to catch for it. Nothing big, but it had hooves and fur, making it a prime target for the vulture’s meal. Perhaps it was the fawn of some miniature antelope breed; Dina didn’t rightfully know as they all looked similar at this age. There wasn’t enough meat to be more than a snack for her, but to this feathered bag of bones it would suffice. Of course it had been a chore to catch the darned thing with the constant worry that the vulture would simply fly off while she was gone, but she somehow doubted feather-brain even possessed the ability to fly in its current condition. As she was watching its beak dive into to grab another piece of flesh she was surprised to hear its muffled voice from within the carcass. ”Might want to speak up,” she suggested casually, tail flicking out behind her in mild interest. She was growing tired of the meaningless jabber it had spouted earlier, so for the sake of her good mood she remained mostly detached from the creature as it gorged.
The bird was quick to pull its head up, pale blue beak and head painted with dark splotches of red from its meal. ”Perhaps you should pay more attention”, it retorted, beady eyes now fierce with focus on the golden lioness.
Dina’s lips uncurled to expose the tips of her fangs, her mood surely soured by the ungrateful sack of feathers. It was no wonder she stayed clear of buzzards, they were horrible, foul, little gremlins that showed no respect for where it was deserved. “I wasn’t the one stuffing my face and trying to talk”, Dina reminded it, snorting out a bit of breath in a hiss. It wasn’t exactly her idea of fun to argue with a bird, and the lioness did have need of its services. That last bit was a hard fact to swallow, but there it was, and Dina knew it to be true. “Though it must be nice to be able to do both without constantly checking over your shoulder for danger,” she digressed, returning to her earlier tactic of trying to nudge the bird into an area of thinking that might prove beneficial to forging a partnership.
The lioness watched as the vulture’s wings unfurled and shimmered in what she assumed to be a gesture of ‘whatever’. “Yes, yes, remind me to thank your ego later. Big toothy cats do tend to scare away the competition,” though just to make sure, the vulture did chance a glance at the skies, checking to see if said competition may be lurking about, waiting to steal her meal.
Now that was something to grab her attention, and the lioness snatched it up as an actual piece of conversation. Ignoring the obvious jab at her expense, of course. “Competition? Aren’t they your allies, friends even?” Coming from a pride of tight-knit… well, normally tight-knit lionesses, Dina found it baffling to think this vulture held no ties with others of its kind. As far as she knew, they traveled in large groups, which made them so pesky to deal with when guarding kill sights.
The bird gave yet another loud screeching squawk, wasting no time as it hopped forward in a jumbled mess of feathers and outstretched wings. By the time it stopped it was already a hair’s length away from her face, and the lioness did all she could to withhold the instinct to snap and kill it out of instinct and ill-humor for the disagreeable vulture. “They’re no friends of Bora’s! The bird’s eyes remained locked on Dina’s as its head jerked up and down in a vague attempt at nodding. “Steal the sky right out from under me they did! Take the best kills too, none left for me but bones and dust.”
Truly it hunger that gripped at this buzzard’s rattled brain, for it certainly was capable of speech and conversations, but its manners left more to be desired. The lioness took her time in understanding what it meant, having to decipher bits of its cryptic nature. “They drive you away when you fly and chase you from kill sites, do they?” The lioness spoke again, an inkling of an idea seeping back into the forefront of her mind. A slow smile crept onto her maw as the lioness raised her head to stare down at the scrawny bird, taking in its features once more for a final inspection. She was certain that if fed properly, it would be able to take to the skies once more, flying high enough to keep an eye on the immediate surroundings. “Bora, I could help you,” the lioness spoke slowly, gently as she would a cub. She had to be exceptionally clear with this proposal, sly and intriguing in order to insure the bird’s complete focus.
To Dina’s smug delight the bird’s reaction was that of interest as its wings settled back down against its ragged sides and its bald face swiveled to look at the large cat dead-on with a single, unflinching eye. “What sort of help would this be, lion. Should I expect to be pounced on again as soon as I turn my back?” The skepticism plain in the bird’s hollow voice, its form slinking back for the first time as if just realizing how easily it could be killed.
With a wave of her forepaw as if to dismiss the manner Dina continued in her attempt at goading the buzzard into her favor. “Nothing so bland, I assure you. I was thinking more of a partnership between you and I.” The lioness craned her neck to the sky as she watched the cloudless blue stretch from end to end. “I can protect you from competition and predators while you feed, and in return-“ The lioness’ sharp blue eyes snapped back to the snowy buzzard, toothy grin evident as was her genuine excitement at the idea. “All you have to do is lend me your wings. You can scout an area ahead of me from the safety of the sky, and we can travel easily and quickly. Of course, insuring you have something to eat each day as I’ll share my kills with you.” There, it had been done. The lioness waited eagerly for the bird’s response, ears perked forward as she watched it for any signs of a quick get-away. It had become skittish now that they were talking, and the last thing that she wanted was to have it fly away suddenly.
“That… that is an acceptable plan, lion.” Out of hungry desperation, anything that promised a good meal sounded like the ideal solution. For any sane bird, may very well have scoffed at the idea. “We shall see if you keep your word.”
