Imani, Dawn (C) Namacub95

Azazel (C) DakotaWereWolf

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A Little Test

            "I'm going to give you a little test," sneered the tawny-colored lioness.

            "Little test?" asked the dark-furred male. He was not liking this idea at all. Concerning who it was that was giving him this test, he had every right to be.

            "Yeah, just to prove your metal... so you can travel with me and Dawn. So you in?"

            "Uh... sure?" Not wanting to seem like a wimp, Azazel was ready for any challenge Imani was about to throw at him.

            She smirked. "Excellent! Okay so here's your test..." She turned her head and looked far out in the open. Azazel tried to follow her gaze, but even he was at a loss of what she was looking at. "Okay so what I'm going to have you do is rhino-tipping."

            "Uhh come again?" Did she say RHINO tipping? Azazel hoped that she was mistaken when she said that.

            "Rhino-tipping," repeated Imani.

            "Why that?" Recalling his memories from when he used to live at Pride Rock, Azazel knew that rhinos were far from friendly. Was she trying to get him killed on purpose? He knew that he and Imani did not get on the right paw when they first met, but surely she knew by now that he wasn't a threat?

            "'Cause it'll prove that you're good to travel with us."

            "If I go out there, there'll be nothing left of me!"

            "Are you scared?" Imani sneered more. Oh, how Azazel hated that! She was prodding him with just that look.

            "No!" growled Azazel. "I'm not scared!" He was not going to take that taunt lying down!

            "Then can you do it?"

            "Of course I can! Watch me!" Snorting loudly, Azazel stalked past Imani, an annoyed expression on his face.

            When he was far enough from her, he finally realized what he had agreed to doing. He gulped, and looked over his shoulder. Imani found a nice spot not too far from him, and sat down, sneering at him. He growled. I can't go back, he thought to himself. If I do, she'll laugh at me. What did Kovu always say to me?

            "Azazel, remember one thing!" Kovu said to the adolescent lion. "Don't do stupid stuff. If you do stupid stuff, you'll get paid for doing stupid stuff."

            "But why do stupid stuff in the first place?" asked Azazel.

            Kovu shrugged. "Just don't do it okay?"

            So that was it. Azazel was stupid then to buy into Imani's tricks. He sighed. He had to do it just to prove he was not a wimp. He just hoped that he could outrun a rhino.

            Trotting in the overgrown grass, Azazel soon found himself staring down at a lone rhino grazing. He gulped. That horn... it could definitely tear through him cleanly. And those legs... they were thick enough to stomp him into a pancake.

            Azazel carefully studied the rhino. He didn't see him at all. The rhino spent his time grazing, and then rubbing his body against a low tree branch to get rid of the itch he had. Azazel thought it was a stupid looking creature. A stupid-looking creature with a big horn on it! Raising his head up, Azazel looked over his shoulder. He couldn't see Imani anymore. He was pretty far away.

            I could probably run away, thought Azazel. I mean who says that I have to travel with her anyhow? Who says that I have to do this stupid test anyhow? Yeah, that's a good idea!

            As he turned to leave, Azazel accidentally stepped on a twig. He froze, and quickly turned his head to the rhino, who had his head raised in his direction. Azazel started trotting a little bit faster away from the rhino, but it was already too late. The rhino, startled and angered by the noise it heard, started running in Azazel's direction. His eyesight was bad, but in his mind the rhino thought that he was being stalked upon by a predator.

            Azazel growled loudly in fear, and began running as fast as he could away from the rhino. Each stomp that the rhino took seemed to make the earth shake. For a second, Azazel thought that he was being lifted into the air by the rhino's earthshaking stomps.

            "Azazel!" cried a familiar tone. Ahead of him, Azazel saw Dawn sitting down, meowing for him. How she got away from Imani he never knew. From the couple of days he had been with them, Dawn had always been in Imani's eyesight.

            "Damn!" Growling to himself, Azazel quickly grabbed Dawn's backside and held her in his mouth as he continued struggling to out speed the rhino. He felt himself starting to become tired. Lions could only run for so long...

            Azazel stumbled over a small rock that was out of place. He fell onto his stomach with a murmured 'humph!' Dawn was crying out Imani's name, and Azazel could feel the rhino getting closer and closer to them.

            "Azazel!" This time it was Imani's panicked voice calling his name. Quickly getting to his paws, Azazel lunged in the direction he heard the voice, and he sprawled onto the ground with little Dawn still in his grasp. The rhino see saw him leap, and turned in his direction. Gasping, Azazel covered Dawn with his paws, knowing it was no good, but nonetheless he needed to try.

            Then Imani let out a loud roar, and jumped in the rhino's charging path. Alarmed, the rhino set his sights on her, and began chasing after her. Getting to his paws, Azazel dropped Dawn to the ground, and looked around for Imani, who was no where in sight. Needless to say he was a bit concerned. He couldn't take care of a cub on his own!

            But there was no need to worry about that. Imani re-appeared again, smiling triumphantly. "Gave that old rhino the slip," she said. She gasped when she saw Dawn with him. "Dawn! What're you doing here?!" she asked shrilly.

            "I followed Azazel," said Dawn innocently as she trotted up to her sister. "You weren't watching me."

            "I... oh Dawn..." Azazel watched as Imani gave Dawn the tightest squeeze he had ever seen a lion make. "Don't ever do that again."

            "Okay sis."

            He looked at Imani who was returning the look. She let go of Dawn and approached him. This time Azazel noticed something different in her eyes. She didn't seem hostile or sarcastic with him... there was a sort of gentleness in them. As though she did care of what happened to him out there. She approached him, and at first Azazel thought that she was going to engage him in a hug just like what she did with Dawn. Maybe she was.

            Not that it mattered much anyhow. Perhaps realizing of what she was going to do, Imani stopped, and gave Azazel a smile. "You saved Dawn... t-thanks."

            Azazel was a bit embarrassed. He never really did anything to deserve anyone's thanks, much less save a cub. "No problem," he said.

            Imani's smile then morphed into a smirk, but it was a good kind of smirk. "You did it."

            "Yeah I guess I did. So... did I pass the test?" chuckled Azazel. I swear I better did or...

            Imani chuckled a bit as well. "Yeah. Yeah you

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