It was an especially warm morning, the rising sun promising an even higher temperature by noontime. The occasional small cloud lazed across the sky, refusing to provide any more than a few seconds' worth of shade. It was the kind of day one hoped would pass quickly.
A certain banana-colored lioness found the best way to pass these days was to either fish or catch up on the going-ons of the pride. Some would call Haja a gossip. Some would call her downright nosy. She preferred to think of herself as well-informed. And at the end of the day, she was set in her ways and there was no deterring her. So there she was, a familiar figure wandering around the valley, a fish eagle trailing her like a second shadow.
"Let's see what we can find out today, Mabs," she called out to him, just loud enough for his keen ears to hear. He answered her with something between a sigh and a snort, the usual response.