Minseok dipped his paw into the water, be two things with a halfhearted hiss. Firstly, the water was wet, which was never a favorable trait for anything to have. Secondly, the water was warm, which didn’t do much to cool him off.

He settled back, the warm water off his paw. He had found a spot that had a little bit of shade, which was extremely lucky. At this time of year and at this time of day the watering hole was crowded.

“Things are going to change, I know it.”

“A new boss means everyone is going to have to figure it all out again. I wish they would just stay put for a few years. This is getting ridiculous, Martha.”

Minseok half listened as the two flamingos gossiped while their children played in the water. They were talking about what everyone was talking about, the subject that had dominated the savanna since it was announced. There was a new pride leader and it appeared he was far more intimidating and strict than the last two.

Minseok didn’t care, because usually the lions didn’t bother with him. He was much smaller and his prey was never their type. While he chased mice they went after gazelle.

“To beat down Siwon he must have been a brute,” the flamingo whistled. “I am afraid to see just how massive this one is.”

So what. A big lion. He had dealt with big lions (by not dealing with them). Life would go on, those who were timid and took the laws of the King as a religion would adjust and Minseok would go on running around the plains and napping in the noontime sun. Nothing to worry about. Nothing at all to worry about.

“Ohhh, I think I injured my leg. I am not sure I will be able to follow my fellow dik dik anymore. I certainly hope no one will eat me.”

Well, there was that. Minseok sighed, looking away from the sound of the voice.

“Oh dear, I seem to want to expose my neck. It would be a shame if anyone bit me there.”

Minseok closed his eyes. Maybe if he pretended to be asleep it would go away.

“Gasp, did I just bump into a dik dik eating monster?!”

Minseok felt the small creature collide with his nose, purposefully throwing himself onto the African wildcat. He would have snapped his eyes open and maybe snapped his jaws too - if it was anyone else. But this particular creature would like that too much so he continued to pretend to be napping.

“I think this shall be it for me.” Minseok felt the body lean against his side, a heavy weight thudding against his ribcage. “What a horrible place to collapse, next to my natural enemy.”

Minseok gritted his teeth and kept his eyes shut tightly. Natural enemy his .

“Hey Minseok, you busy?” A new creature approached, adding, “Luhan, didn’t see you there. Sorry little buddy.”

Minseok opened his eyes, sighing loudly as Luhan peeked over to see if he was awake. Minseok ignored him, instead focusing on the zebra that was standing in front of him.  “Hey Junmyeon, what’s up?”

Junmyeon was a zebra, or so that is what he was called. Minseok had seen a lot of zebras but he had never seen one like Junmyeon before. Instead of being black and white Junmyeon was a pretty chestnut colored, with a white diamond on his head. It earned him a lot of stares when he was with his zebra family and because of the unwanted attention most of the other zebras loathed him. Minseok felt bad for him, because honestly he was a really nice zebra. Different but nice.

“Did you hear the rumors?” Junmyeon leaned forward, his brown mane falling into his eyes as he whispered. “About the lion pride?”

Minseok nodded. “Yeah, new boss.”

“No, there’s more.” Junmyeon whispered. “The pride has a bunch of new members and I heard they’re absolute monsters.”

“Monsters?” Luhan asked from where he was lying on Minseok’s side. He sounded scared.

“Yeah, and they aren’t female. Word on the savannah is the new king in town brought his own liongaurds with him.” Junmyeon was still whispering, his eyes darting around to see if anyone was listening. “Whoever the new king is he must be the most ferocious beast to ever live.”

“That sounds terrifying.” Luhan pursed his lips, a sight that Minseok noticed out of the corner of his eyes.

Minseok wanted to tell Luhan to go mess with the new lion and leave him alone, considering Luhan was awfully fixated on Minseok being a predator. It was something that had bothered Minseok to no end, the way Luhan tried to lure him in by being the overeager prey. It was the only thing Luhan thought of him - the only thing he associated with Minseok and it had been an unwelcome situation for a very long time. Which was made funnier considering they were the same exact size. It wasn’t like African Wildcats ate Dik dik to begin with.

Still, Minseok knew he was more than just a predator, more than a bloodthirsty cat with an amazing face and sleek movements. He was more than what he ate for breakfast. And honestly, he could offer more than just pouncing on whoever he ended up stalking. But to Luhan it was the only thing Minseok was good for. It was frustrating and depressing enough to make him want to curl up under his favorite Acacia tree and take an eternal catnap.

“So when is this new king going to make an appearance?” Minseok asked, trying to forget about the way Luhan was reacting to the news of the new lead lion.

“That’s the thing, no one has seen him yet. Seems like his liongaurds are keeping him hidden away.” Junmyeon looked worried. “Just be careful both of you, okay.”

Minseok could feel Luhan shivering, and he was 100% certain the small deer wasn’t cold. To act so afraid of something he liked so much was very hypocritical and Minseok hated hypocrites. “I need to go,” Minseok stood up, ignoring the way Luhan whined as he toppled onto his side.

“Bye,” Junmyeon called after him.

“Bye,” Luhan whispered as he righted himself. When Junmyeon wasn’t looking he frowned.

 

 

 

 

Jongin yawned, stretching his legs out as he rubbed against the bark of the tree limb. There was a gentle breeze in the air, the prefect sleeping temperature. The perfect–

The tree limb shook, sending the leopard into a defensive stance in an instant. He arched his back and dug his claws into the tree limb, prepared to fight. Instead of the expected predator the large and oddly shaped head of his friend appeared inches in front of him. In retaliation for waking him up, Jongin swatted Chanyeol on the nose.

“Hey! That hurt!” Chanyeol moved his long neck, placing his head outside the tree’s canopy. “I just wanted to say hi!”

“He just wanted to say hi!” Chanyeol’s perpetual sidekick, Jongdae, chirped from somewhere on the giraffe’s back.

When Jongin had first encountered the two he felt overwhelmed. Jongdae, an African tickbird, was loud. Chanyeol, an overeager giraffe was loud. Put them together– including their frequent arguments and teasing sessions– and you had a veritable headache of chatter.

“I was trying to sleep!” Jongin hissed, letting his back go lax. “This better be something important.”

“It is!” Jongdae squawked. “New boss in town.”

“There is a new boss in town!” Chanyeol repeated. “Moved in last night.”

“A new boss?” It took Jongin a moment to figure out what they were taking about. His friends often for being perpetually half asleep, which gave him a slower than normal reaction time even for a sleek and fast feline like himself. “You mean a lion king?”

“Yep. We should go introduce ourselves!” Chanyeol said cheerfully.

“We should say hi!” Jongdae repeated.

Jongin gave them a funny look. “Is that really a good idea? Do we know anything about him?”

“Nope, but if we want to get in his good graces we should probably introduce ourselves before everyone else. Early bird ­“Chanyeol looked towards his back and chuckled, “gets the worm and all that.”

“I eat ticks!” Jongdae protested.

“Same difference.” Chanyeol nudged at the branch again, apparently feeling like Jongin would no longer swipe at him. “Are you in?”

Jongin thought about the last boss, Siwon. He hadn’t disliked Jongin but they weren’t exactly friends. During the last yearly council he had passed Jongin up on a promotion to chief leopard, which had made Jongin rather ambivalent when it came to his fate. Maybe getting in good with the new boss was a good idea. “Yeah, I’m in.”

“Great, come on!” Chanyeol moved away.

“Great, come one!” Jongdae mimicked.

Jongin decided he would most definitely need to run a little ahead if he was going to survive the journey with his sanity intact.

 

 

 

“I bet I can do it.” Baekhyun held his head high, confident in his abilities.

“I bet you can’t,” Yixing said, though he stepped out of the way regardless. Baekhyun did a little shimmy, which was more of a big shimmy as his movement caused very noticeable ripples in the watering hole. At his actions a collective groan could be heard from the other animals that were in the water bathing.

“Here it goes!” Baekhyun looked smug as he dipped his head into the water and then pulled it out quickly. With a serious look in his eyes he began, opening his mouth and spitting out a stream of water that dowsed a group of hyena that were sitting at the water’s edge. Things got noisy very quickly as the hyenas began to complain. Baekhyun, however, was nonplused at the reaction– at least from his victims.

“See, I totally did it!” He turned to Yixing. “Are you proud?”

Yixing gave Baekhyun a fond smile before lifting his trunk to caress the hippo’s face. “You are so good at it, babe I should never have doubted you.”

“Get an Acacia you two!” One of the hyenas shouted at the couple, earning snickers from the others.

“What if I want you guys to watch him lather me up with his trunk?” Baekhyun shouted back, moving closer to Yixing.

This heckling was nothing new. It happened whenever they were at a large gathering. Animals liked to point out that Yixing had a trunk while Baekhyun didn’t. But little did they know that Baekhyun was, in fact, an elephant without a trunk. Yixing had said it so it must be true.

Yixing was amazing. He was sweet and kind and the love of Baekhyun’s life. He spoiled the hippo trunkless elephant at every opportunity. They were in love and happy and touchy and feely and maybe-Baekhyun-wanted-Yixing’s-trunk-touches-in-public-so-what. There was nothing that could bring them down. Well almost nothing, of course like everything in life there were some exceptions.

“Yixing, come plaaaayyyy with me.”

Always an exception.

“Yixing, can you get me some food, mom left and I am hungry.”

Noisy, little exceptions.

“Yixing I accidently made that rhino mad can you save me?”

Baekhyun felt Yixing’s trunk slide from his face, exhaling sharply as he lost contact with his boyfriend.

“Coming,” Yixing called out, making his way to his little brother.

While their lives were pretty much perfect, there was one constant interruption to Baekhyun’s amorous adventures. The interruption went by the name of Tao, AKA Yixing’s little brother. Tao, who was turning officially adult in a few weeks, could still whine and act like he couldn’t take care of himself. And Yixing, sweet kind Yixing would come running whenever his brother called.

Baekhyun sighed, not even feeling like blowing water on hyenas anymore.

 

 

Junmyeon watched the hyenas taunt the hippo, mildly amused at the way he yelled right back at them with glee. When Yixing wandered off to go see his brother, Junmyeon frowned at Baekhyun’s sudden turn of mood.

He was so distracted by watching what was going on in the middle of the watering hole he had completely forgotten that Luhan was still nearby, sulking after Minseok had slinked away.

“Here they come!”

Junmyeon looked down when he felt a nudging on his leg, catching sight of the small deer as he ducked under Junmyeon for protection. The zebra scanned the watering hole for whoever “they” were, his gaze instantly fixated on the animals that were scurrying away from a spot on the opposite end of the pool.

Everything became chaotic as the same number of animals tried to fit in a much smaller space, relocating to cut a wide swath for the newcomers. Junmyeon was shoved aside by one of his cousins, his movement knocking Luhan onto the ground.

Everyone hushed as the figures came into view, a group of graceful felines moving slowly up to the murky water. Junmyeon recognized the lionesses, they were a fixture in the pride. There was Irene, Joy, Wendy, Seulgi, and the smallest one, Yeri. But accompanying them were new faces, two tall and powerful lions with shaggy manes and serious eyes.

It was an intimidating sight, one that had all of the animals shaking in their hooves / feet/ paws. Would the new lion king show his face? Would the great and mighty beast who now ruled over the savanna make an appearance?!

As the lions grew closer Junmyeon turned his head to the side to get a better view. The mighty lions crowded around the watering hole, knowing full well that they were causing the other animals to panic. And Junmyeon knew this was the way of things. He also knew, after concentrating all of his attention on one lion in particular, that one of the two new lions was not a stranger.

“Sehun,” he whispered, his heart beating fast as the memories flooded back. When the lion made eye contact with him, like he could hear his name being called, Junmyeon turned around and ran. He ran as fast as he could, as far away as he could from the bad memory that had invaded his peaceful watering hole.

Sehun had been a lot of things to him way back when and Junmyeon didn’t want to relive any of them. Not one.

 

 

“I need to go tell Jongin!” Tao slapped Yixing’s ear with his trunk. “I need to go, can I go. Puh-lease.”

He couldn’t wait to tell Jongin about what had appeared at the gathering spot. Two ferocious creatures slinking in as a warning to all. And a precursor to when their boss would make an appearance, because he most certainly was not present at the moment.

Yixing sighed, a sure indication to Tao that he was frustrated– or at least as frustrated as he ever got. He was unfailingly a positive elephant.

Tao sighed in turn. The elephants and that stupid-not-elephant-hippo his brother was shacking up with had even moved to the side of the pool, giving the lions a clear path towards the water. Yixing was annoyed since they were all crowded in and Tao vaguely recognized his whining probably wasn’t helping anything. But this was important!

“Just be careful,” Yixing instructed, giving Tao a gentle push. He let out a loud noise and took off towards the plains as fast as his large size would allow him to go. He was an elephant after all, even if he wasn’t full grown.

He made good time in getting to Jongin’s favorite Acacia tree, which undoubtedly would be where the leopard was napping at this time of day. Tao started ranting about what had happened without even checking to see Jongin was there, taking it for granted that his friend was where he always was.

As Tao finished rambling he looked up in the branches to gauge Jongin’s reaction. The leopard wasn’t there. Tao stilled. Could the ferocious lion have already gotten to him?!

 

 

 

Minseok was lying in the shade, his head resting on his paws. He kept replaying Luhan’s words in his mind, feeling worse and worse the more he thought of it. Why couldn’t the dik dik see him as more than a bloodthirsty killer? And why did he seem to only like that part of him?

He thought back to when he had first met the dik dik. It was during the dry season, a time that was bad for most animals. For Luhan and Minseok it was okay since they didn’t need much water. It was for that very reason they met to begin with.

While the other animals were searching for the quickly evaporating watering holes Minseok and the other African wildcats were enjoying the plains, as were the Dik diks. They saw each other now and then but never really interacted. There was no reason to. The cats hunted mice and small rodents while the tiny deer ate leaves and foraged.

It was on a dare that Minseok had first pounced on Luhan, a stupid dare uttered by Baekhyun. The hippo had come barreling along the plains after Yixing had ended up spending the afternoon with his little brother elephanting around (or as he said “Yixing ignored me for an elephant WITH a trunk”). He was bored and ornery and he had taken the opportunity to goad Minseok into “acting like a big cat or will you be a tiny cat forever”.

Minseok had spotted Luhan and playfully pounced, never intending to hurt the dik dik. He hadn’t even scratched him and only left the faintest scrape with his teeth. After a tumble to the ground Minseok was rolling off him and running back to Baekhyun. That had been the start of it. After that Luhan was always hanging around him, making comments about being attacked, about Minseok pining him down or scratching him. About how intensely vulnerable he was at all times.

And Minseok, for as annoying as Luhan could be, started to feel real affection for the small deer. He liked the way he rambled about everyday things when he wasn’t trying to get Minseok to attack him. He liked the color of his fur and the way he seemed to excel at Dik dik activities. But every time Minseok appreciated something about Luhan his affections were dashed by Luhan insinuating Minseok should eat him.

It was stupid and sad and frustrating – and African wildcats didn’t even eat dik dik! Minseok sighed thinking about it all. How stupid. Stupid Luhan and his stupid dik dik-ness and his stupid tiny horns and his stupid wanting to get eaten and–

Minseok heard the galloping and knew without looking it was Junmyeon. When the dust kicked up behind Minseok he knew the zebra had stopped and was standing nearby.

“Hey,” Junmyeon sounded upset, Minseok could tell. He had known the zebra for years, it wasn’t something he could hide from him.

“What’s wrong?” Minseok asked, trying to sound sincere.

“I–“Junmyeon made a strange noise, something that the other zebras never made. It sounded like he was blowing air through his teeth then puffing out his cheeks while whining. He only ever did that when he was really annoyed.

“That bad, huh?” Minseok sat up, knowing his friend needed him. And maybe, Minseok thought, it would be good to talk about his problems too.

“The lions came to the watering hole. Not the king but the others. And I know one of them.” Junmyeon sounded distraught. “I met him when I was little. You could call him my first love.”

“You mean only love?” Minseok didn’t remember Junmyeon ever falling in love before but he could have missed it.

“Yeah, I guess. Look we were sweet on each other. He caught me a few rabbits though I couldn’t eat them. And he told me that even if I didn’t look like the other zebras he thought I was the prettiest zebra of all.”

“That is–“Minseok paused, trying to think of the words, “really cheesy but sweet.”

Junmyeon nodded his head. “But you know how I don’t look like other zebras? Well running around with a lion made it worse but then everything was a thousand times more complicated when he told me one day that I was adopted. Minseok, he told me I wasn’t a zebra!”

“That is crazy!” Minseok said what his friend wanted to hear.

“I know! To think he wanted to crush my zebra dreams. It was too much, I broke it off then and there and hadn’t seen him since. Until now of course.” Junmyeon sighed.

“What is he doing with the new king?” Minseok wondered. It was strange to see male lions following another male lion, that wasn’t usually how it worked.

“I don’t know but I don’t want to see him and I am so stressed and I am definitely a zebra!” Junmyeon cried.

“It seems we have opposite problems,” Minseok bemoaned. “The person you love doesn’t want you to be a zebra while the person I love only loves the fact I am a wildcat.”

“Wait, you love Luhan?” Junmyeon looked shocked, his teeth showing as he stared at the small cat.

Minseok instantly regretted admitting such a thing. He had never said it before. “Maybe…but Junmyeon he only likes me because I am a carnivore. Only because that one time I pounced on him. He doesn’t like anything else about me.”

“Hmm, that is problematic.” Junmyeon was always known for his good advice, which lessened Minseok’s anxiety a little. The zebra perked his ears up. “I know! You should test him, see if what you think is true. Go vegetarian. If he only liked you for being a carnivore he won’t come around you, but if you are wrong and he likes more about you then you will know.”

Minseok blinked. Go vegetarian? But he hated plants. They tasted all not bloody and meaty enough. But Junmyeon did have a point. “You think it will work?”

“Yeah, I am sure of it.”

“Okay, I’ll try it.” Minseok had a feeling he had a long road ahead of him, he just hoped Luhan proved him wrong and was worth it.

 

 

Baekhyun liked to think he was a friendly elephant-without-a-trunk. That is why he had the most friends of anyone on the savanna. Even the wildebeests, which were finicky creatures, adored him. So it was an easy decision to be the first animal to talk to the new lions.

He stepped forward, hoping he looked approachable. When he got closer he almost stopped, these were big lions. But he had a reputation to uphold, so he introduced himself anyway. “Hello new friends. Quite the manes you got there. How are you liking it? If you are bored we could play some impala tag.”

The largest of the lions looked at him like he was insane. “Do we know you?”

“Nope, but you should.” Baekhyun chuckled. “How about your name for starters?”

“Kris.” The large lion answered, tilting his head as he observed Baekhyun. “That is Sehun.”

“Ohhh what strong lions you are! I bet your boss is even bigger!” Baekhyun cooed.

“Baekhyun be careful,” Yixing sidled up to him, whispering in his ear. Baekhyun nodded.

“Don’t talk about our boss,” Kris grumbled.

“Ah, sensitive topic I see. How about we talk about you then. What do you like to do for fun?” Baekhyun was starting to feel like these new lions were the boring, stay at home type.

“Eat things,” Yifan answered.

“Haha well, would you look at the time,” Baekhyun stepped back, Yixing tugging him further back with his trunk. “Have a great day! Enjoy your time here!”

Baekhyun went to the far end of the pool and cuddled into Yixing’s side. Maybe he didn’t need to be friends with everyone.

 

 

Junmyeon swallowed a mouthful of grass, feeling sleepy as the sun began to set. He was with the rest of the zebras, eating dinner before they settled in for the night. His mind was still troubled after his encounter with Sehun at the watering hole. Just why was that no good lion back and why of all places for him to show up did he have to slink into his savanna?

“Junmyeon.” It was his mother, her gentle and soft voice unmistakable. “I heard something today.”

She hadn’t been at the watering hole when the lions appeared, so she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes. Yet he was certain she knew. Word travelled fast in the zebra world. “He is back,” Junmyeon confirmed, adding, “But I am not going to talk to him so you don’t have to worry.”

“Take care of yourself, dear,” his mother nuzzled him for a moment, an awkward gesture since she was much smaller than him. He was the biggest zebra around, which was only another thing to add to the list of what made him an outcast.

“I will mom, I will,” Junmyeon promised. Yet deep down he had a part of him that wanted to run to Sehun, to find out if the lion was well. To comment on how pretty his mane was, since the last time Junmyeon had seen him it was only just coming in.

No, he thought, that is the worst thing I could do.

 

 

 

Sehun watched the grassy plain from afar, his eyes fixated on one silhouette in particular. He stood out as he grazed, his shape similar but noticeably different from the others.

“Is that him?” Kris asked from somewhere in the tall grass.

“Yeah, that’s him.” Sehun felt his chest tighten as he kept watch. He knew if he got closer the herd would scatter. The last thing he needed was for Junmyeon’s family and friends to go into a panic because of him.

“Don’t spend your entire guard duty staring, actually move about a bit okay,” Kris instructed.

“I will, I will.” It was Sehun’s shift to wander the perimeter, making sure all was well. He took one last look at Junmyeon’s silhouette against the horizon before running off to make his first sweep of the vicinity.

 

 

“He still isn’t back?” Baekhyun looked towards the plains, feeling a knot forming in his stomach. Tao had been gone all day, ever since he had ran out to tell Jongin about the new lions.

“No, and no one has seen him either.” Yixing looked like he was on the verge of throwing his trunk over his head and crying.

“Maybe he will be back in a little while?” Baekhyun tried to sound positive, hoping that would be the case.

“We should go look for him,” Yixing stated. “But the matriarchs say we should wait.”

The older female elephants, affectionately known as the bossy trunks by Baekhyun, were in charge of the herd. Yixing would never go against them, but Baekhyun would. “I’ll go look for him, they won’t say anything to me since I don’t have a trunk.”

“Are you sure?” Yixing gave him a worried look.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Baekhyun nudged Yixing affectionately before creeping towards the outer edges of their resting ground.

“I love you,” Yixing called after him, earning a reproving snort from one of the matriarchs.

“I love you too!” Baekhyun purposefully called at the top of his lungs, charging off into the grasslands to look for his boyfriend’s little brother.

 

 

 

 

Minseok felt sick. He had eaten a tiny portion of leaves after his-last-won’’-catch-another-for-awhile meal of rat and apparently the two were not a good combination. He laid down in his borrow, hoping the nausea would soon pass.

“Oh my word, I think I am completely alone out here.”

Minseok tensed. Of course Luhan would show up now, just when he was trying to get through the first pains of turning into an omnivore.

“What if a fierce cat were to pounce on me? I would be so helpless.” Luhan called out as he walked closer to Minseok’s borrow, his head down and his gait slow. “I am the perfect prey, wouldn’t even put up a fight.”

“Go away, Luhan,” Minseok hissed.

The deer perked up immediately. Minseok was usually not that harsh with him. In fact Minseok rarely said anything to him, either ignoring him or listening to his rants in silent appreciation.

“I mean it,” Minseok growled, his words sounding dangerous.

“Are you going to attack me?” Luhan asked, stilling as he looked at the cat.

Minseok could barely contain his anger. Was he going to attack Luhan? No, absolutely not. He was going to puke all over him ALL BECAUSE HE WAS A STUPID DIK DIK HEAD WHO LOVED CARNIVORES AND MINSEOK HAD TO PROVE THIS ALL WRONG DAMN THE SAVANNA.

Luhan fell to the ground, exposing his neck. “Do it, bite me.”

Minseok’s anger overpowered his ill feelings. He stood up and glared at the deer. “Is that all I am to you? A carnivore? Do you ever think– have you ever thought that maybe I am someone under my hunting skills?! Do you even care that I like to look at the clouds on sunny afternoons or that I once ran laps around the savanna to build muscle because I was always the smallest wildcat around?! Do you care that my favorite thing to do is my paws and rub my ears or that I wanted to be a bobcat until I knew I couldn’t be?!”

Luhan stared at him, clearly shocked. “I-“

“I’m not finished!” Minseok hissed. “Have you noticed that I like you? Does that matter? Because I am not eating animals anymore, Luhan. What do you think about that? Let me guess, you don’t like me anymore. Great, wonderful you shallow DIK DIK.”

Luhan started to stutter out a few words but Minseok wouldn’t hear any of it. He took off running, an amazing feat considering he was still feeling like he would vomit. He did vomit, in fact, when he was a good ways away from his burrow and the stupid dik dik that had come to visit.

He upchucked red, a mixture of a rat and leaves hitting the ground. After pausing for a moment to take a few deep breaths he kept running, knowing Luhan could never keep up with him. He only stopped when he entered a clearing, the sight causing him to still.

He had just stumbled onto the new boss and he could hardly believe his eyes.

 

 

 

Sleep was elusive to Junmyeon. He had been standing in the grassy plain attempting to slumber for the better part of the night. No matter how tired he was he couldn’t sleep, not when he kept seeing the face of a certain adorably attractive lion every time he closed his eyes.

He finally gave up near dawn, shifting his hooves before taking a slow walk around his sleeping herd mates. When he passed one of his cousins he nearly panicked– having not realized the zebra was awake.

“Can’t sleep?” his cousin asked, eyeing him with suspicion.

“Uh, just woke up, taking a walk and then back to bed,” Junmyeon lied.

“You know,” his cousin neared him, whispering so the others wouldn’t wake up, “I heard the others say you should be kicked out. Since you aren’t like us and only upset everyone.”

“Kicked out?” Junmyeon didn’t like kicking, but that was something that made him different too. The others liked to kick but to Junmyeon kicking was not something you did, his body never wanted to buck up as readily as the other zebras.

“Yeah like make you leave,” his cousin looked smug.

“Oh you meant leave.” Junmyeon pursed his lips. They wanted him gone? No, it couldn’t be, could it?

“That lion today was the last straw.”

Junmyeon blinked, taking it all in. Of course, Sehun would make his pariah status even worse. Of course they might want him gone. Of course they probably had always wanted him gone.

“I…” the words stuck I his throat as his emotions welled up.

“Should be kicked out?” his cousin finished his sentence.

Junmyeon did what he was best at. He turned and galloped away in a straight line. And even that was different from the others, who often ran in zig zags. As the wind blew through his mane he felt utterly hopeless. Utterly useless. Utterly afraid.

He ran and ran until he ended up in a place he didn’t want to be. Smack dab in the middle of a lion’s den.

 

 

 

During his rounds, Sehun had purposefully avoided looking over to where the zebras were sleeping but only half of his reasoning was based on self-preservation. The main reason was the darkness did not allow him to make out the animals as well as he could while it was light out, so pining after Junmyeon from afar was meaningless.

When the sun broke over the savanna he reached the area again and tried to be strong and not look. He was almost successful, but a noise got his attention. He crouched down in the tall grass, waiting for whatever was approaching. When he heard the low whine of a zebra he perked up.

“Sehun?”

He recognized the zebra as Junmyeon’s mother, the same zebra who had so coldly denied that Junmyeon was adopted years before. Sehun had little love for the woman, but she looked distressed which piqued his curiosity. “Yes?” he answered, peeking out of the tall grass.

“Is Junmyeon with you?” she asked.

Sehun tensed. “No. Why?”

“He has gone missing, I thought he was with you. Oh my acacia tree this is bad. He never goes out by himself at night. What if something got him?!”

Sehun felt the panic well within him as he imagined Junmyeon being hurt. His Junmyeon, the only creature he could ever love. “I’ll look for him!”

“I am coming too, “she plead, “I am his mother.”

Sehun nodded. “Come on, we need to go now.”

They darted off through the tall grass, in search of the awkward zebra who was nowhere to be found.

 

 

 

Yixing held back a thunderous wail when he spotted it. He had ran from the herd an hour ago, too distraught to care what the matriarchs had to say. Baekhyun and Tao were nowhere to be found and his heart hurt too much to care what anyone else thought about him gallivanting about the savanna looking for them. When he spotted a huge red splotch on the ground he feared the worst.

“Yixing?”

Yixing looked down to see the small Dik dik Luhan approaching him. “Have you seen Minseok?” he asked slowly.

“No. I am looking for Baekhyun and Tao.” Yixing couldn’t hide the emotion in his voice.

“Minseok is missing too, he never came back to his borrow last night.” The deer stared at the red splotch. “Do you think the new boss…”

Yixing didn’t get a chance to answer the dik dik. He heard his name being called and turned to see who it was. “Yixing! Luhan!” Junmyeon’s mother ran towards them, a male lion alongside her. Yixing recognized him from the watering hole the day before.

“Have you seen Junmyeon?” she asked, out of breath.

“No…” Yixing felt like wailing his trunk about. This was bad, very bad. How many animals had potentially fallen prey to the monstrous new lion king overnight?

“Minseok, Tao, and Baekhyun are gone too! The new boss got them!” Luhan was outright crying now, muttering words about Minseok being perfect and the love of his life and why was he so stupid and–

“No, no way. I don’t believe it.” Sehun shook his head.

“Can you lead us to him? I need to know for sure.” Yixing choked back his anguish.

“Yeah, follow me.” Sehun rushed out in front of the three animals.

Yixing plodded after him, the zebra and dik dik running ahead. He hoped his gut instinct was terribly wrong.

Whey they reached the clearing what they found was hard to believe. Yixing immediately looked at Baekhyun and Tao and prepared himself to rush forward to rescue his boyfriend and little brother. A small dik dik beat him too it.

“Lion King, fight me! I will kill you for what you did to my Minseokkie you monster!” Luhan ran towards the clearing, ignoring everything around him as he stared at the large rock formation where the king of the savanna could usually be found.

He ignored everything to the point that when he was in front of the rock he appeared like quite the fool as he announced, “I will tear you limb from limb for killing the most wonderful, handsome, amazing, loves-looking-at -clouds, once ran laps to bulk up love of my life cat you SICK LION BASTARD!”

 

 

Minseok’s jaw dropped as Luhan started screeching about fighting and killing and how handsome and wonderful he was. Wait, did Luhan just say he was handsome and wonderful? He ran from where he was lying near the foot of the rock formation, springing on top of Luhan until they were rolling in the dust.

“You mean that?” Minseok asked, perplexed at what the dik dik had confessed to.

“Minseok?! You are alive!” Luhan began to nuzzle him incessantly, like he was the best grass that he had ever tasted.

“Of course I am alive!” Minseok chuckled, recalling the events of the last night. “But you would really fight for me?”

“I love you, I would fight anyone for you,” Luhan answered seriously.

“But how come you only ever act like you want me to attack you? If you love me why didn’t you ever say it?” Minseok blinked, still confused.

“I uh, well.” Luhan looked embarrassed. “I love you. I also love thinking about you nipping me all over and being strong and-“

“Woah, woah, woah there are children here!” Chanyeol shouted, cutting Luhan off from talking about his love of being dik dink handled.

“There are children here!” Jongdae repeated from Chanyeol’s back, glancing over at Tao.

“Sorry,” Luhan leaned in and whispered, “but I want you to tell me what you like and stare at the clouds with you and maybe now and then you could bite me when we are alone?”

“Deal,” Misneok laughed, rubbing against the dik dik.

“But where is the lion king?” Luhan suddenly remembered why he had rushed here in the first place.

“Up there,” Minseok laughed.

 

 

Sehun spotted Junmyeon near the rock and immediately breathed a sigh of relief. Junmyeon’s mother hung back, apparently afraid to go any closer. Her hesitation gave Sehun the opportunity to approach the zebra, shyly stating, “I am glad you are okay.”

Junmyeon looked away, keeping his head down as the lion approached. When Sehun was only a few feet in front of him he neighed.

“Your mom was worried about you,” Sehun said softly.

“Yeah. “ Junmyeon wouldn’t look at him.

“I was worried about you too.” Sehun wished he would look at him, acknowledge him, just give him one glance, one chance to see his beautiful dark eyes and handsome white diamond crested forehead. Just one glimpse and he could go away forever, as hard as it would be.

“Junmyeon, we need to talk,” the soft voice from behind them interrupted.

Sehun stepped aside as Junmyeon’s mother approached, gently guiding her son away from the lion. He hoped the truth would finally be known, but he didn’t count on it. The past had told him as much.

 

 

 

“So you are absolutely certain you don’t want to join our relationship?” Chanyeol looked down at the rock hopefully.

“Join our relationship!” Jongdae squawked from his back.

“I mean think about it. I am super tall, Jongdae can fly, Kris is quite the beast, and you, well YOU are–“

Baekhyun chuckled and turned away from the umpteenth sales pitch to have a very unique four way relationship. He gave Tao a hard push towards his brother, still laughing as he plodded along. Tao whined but acquiesced, finally going to meet the worried elephant that was waiting for them.

“What happened?” Yixing asked, his ears flapped forward as he welcomed his brother to his side.

“I went to find Jongin and then I got distracted and–“Tao started to explain but was interrupted.

“He fell in love with the new king,” Baekhyun sighed. He had spent a night watching Tao become a lovesick fool and quite honestly it had given him a new appreciation for the kid that he had previously found a bit annoying. In fact, as they talked about love and like and growing up, Baekhyun found he had quite a bit in common with Tao.

“Are you okay?” Yixing looked at Baekhyun with love in his eyes.

“Yeah, but glad to see you.” Baekhyun admitted.

When Yixing began to drag his trunk around his boyfriend Tao made gagging noises, complaining that they were being too touchy in public.

Baekhyun just smiled, enjoying the feel of his boyfriend who loved him even if he was an elephant-without-a-trunk.

 

 

 

Junmyeon prepared himself for a scolding. What he received was anything but.

“I lied to you. Junmyeon,” his mother looked him in the eyes, her black mane flowing in the breeze. “You are adopted. You aren’t my real son but I always raised and loved you like you were. I’m so very sorry.”

“What?” Junmyeon’s ears rang. So it was true?!

“Junmyeon, you are what they call,” she paused, choking up for a minute before finishing, “a horse.”

“I am a horse?!” Junmyeon’s jaw dropped open as he took in the revelation. So Sehun had told him the truth all those years ago? He wasn’t actually a zebra!

“You were left by some humans when you were young. I wanted to give you a good grassy plain to rest in. I am sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.” His mother looked distraught, which made him move closer to nuzzle her and assure her it was okay.

Once they talked it through and Junmyeon promised he wasn’t mad, she retreated, telling him she would see him back with the zebras. He promised he would come back, but not yet. For now he had a certain lion to speak to.

When he found the lion hanging out back towards an Acacia tree he felt his heart swell. He approached slowly, like he was afraid he would shatter the moment.

Sehun looked at him with fond but sad eyes. For the first time in many years Junmyeon had no trouble running up to him.

“I am sorry I didn’t believe you.” He wished he could take it all back.

“Make it up to me by never leaving again,” Sehun said.

“Yeah, I could do that,” Junmyeon smiled, feeling his heart swell as he looked at the handsome lion in front of him.

 

 

Jongin pouted, rolling closer to the lion king. He ignored the glare that Kris was sending him. He had been on the receiving end of the look all night, he had learned not to be afraid.

“You are too close to the boss,” Kris whined for the umpteenth time.

“Maybe I want him to be close,” the boss snapped.

Kris hung his head, making his own discreet move to inch closer to the new king of the savanna.

Jongin had been pleasantly surprised when he had followed Jongdae and Chanyeol to meet the new ruler.  Much to his surprise they hadn’t stumbled upon a ferocious, gigantic lion. No, instead they had found what Jongin termed “the most adorable thing since that one really cute baby panther years ago”.

The new king had wide eyes and a really fluffy mane. He sounded fierce but he was small. Adorably small. He said he wasn’t cute but everything he did was beyond cute. He was, Jongin had decided, the love of his life. It was rather unfortunate many other people thought the same.

Chanyeol and Jongdae had spent the night trying to get Kyungsoo, the king of the savanna, to join their relationship. Kris seemed to have a fixation over the lion (which apparently is why he followed him here, going against customs of not having more than one male in a pride, while Sehun just slinked after Kris by habit). Tao had googly eyes for the lion king, exclaiming he was too adorable not to love. And then Minseok and Baekhyun had joined in babying the lion and pretty soon Jongin was hissing under his breath.

But now Kyungsoo had said seven words and made it all better. Maybe I want him to be close.

Jongin smiled, feeling like things were finally coming together. For once in his life, he didn’t even feel sleepy.

 

 

 

 

 

Four Months Later

Minseok sat at the edge of the watering hole, a soft purr rumbling within. Luhan was resting next to him– or more accurately was curled half on top of him. They were napping, ignoring the world as they snuggled into each other.

“Hey, Minseok, Luhan.”

Minseok opened one of his eyes a crack, spotting Junmyeon’s hooves. He knew that Sehun was next to him, he never saw one without the other anymore.  “What is it?”

“There are some new animals around. Chanyeol and Jongdae spotted them coming this way.” Junmyeon whispered.

“New animals?” Luhan asked, his face half buried in Minseok’s side. “What are they?”

“Jackals,” Sehun answered. “There are nine of them.”

“Wake me up if they do anything interesting,” Minseok mumbled, cuddling back into Luhan. He didn’t want to move if he didn’t have to, not when he was in the best place in the savanna, also known as next to Luhan.

 

 

 

Baekhyun vibrated with excitement. “Tao, they are probably almost here!”

“Shouldn’t you say Yixing they are almost here?” Yixing frowned.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. Ever since he had become close with Tao, Yixing had become expectantly jealous. He gave Yixing a nuzzle before turning to see the jackals slink up to the pool.

The crowd only shifted a little, not as afraid of jackals as they would be lions. The newcomers looked around. It was evident they were nervous.

“Welcome to the savanna!” Baekhyun announced cheerfully, stepping forward to be the welcoming committee. “Names please.”

One of the jackals cleared his throat and through a few cracks in his voice said, “ I’m Taeyong, this is Yuta, Doyoung, Ten, Jaehyun, Sicheng, Minhyung, Haechan, and Taeil.”

“Okay that wsa too many names to remember. I shall call you jackals for now,” Baekhyun smirked, finding the newcomers all sorts of cute.

“Who is the boss around here?” Taeyang asked nervously.

“Oh the boss?” Tao stepped forward. “He is a ferocious lion, almost as big as an elephant.”

The jackals stepped back, looking like they were about to run.

“Yeah, he is ferocious. Even ate half the savanna his first night in charge,” Baekhyun added.

“I– have a nice day!” Taeyang turned and ran, the others trailing after him.

As the jackals disappeared from sight the group at the watering hole laughed loudly, only stopping when a certain small lion appeared with a leopard and larger lion following behind him.

“I am not cute Kris, stop telling me that. Jongin, get some water for me.” Kyungsoo sighed, plodding over to the pool. It wasn’t easy being king of the savanna. It wasn’t easy being the king.