drew in the scents from her son’s fur.

“I knew it would be soon. Who was it? Was she someone I know?” She smiled knowingly, then she sniffed him again and her smile dropped. “No, oh my little leopard, what have you done?”

“I couldn’t help it mother, she wouldn’t let me stop myself.”

“But with Llasani? Didn’t you know she’s promised to your father?”

“Yes,” he said weakly, “...but I couldn’t help myself. She was all over me. You know.” He nodded and hoped his mother did know what lionesses were capable of doing to grown lions.

“Nengwe, you’re a fool one you are. Oh my little Nengwe, couldn’t you just keep your loins hidden for one minute? When Nengwala finds out what you’ve done he’ll… You’ve got to go, get out of here - NOW!”

“But Mother!” Nengwalamwe protested, “Can’t you talk to him for me?”

“Nengwe, you’re my oldest son, but now you’re a lion. You’ve got to live your own life. I can’t help you any longer. You’ve been putting it off and off since the last rains. Now you’ve become a lion you’ve got to act like one and live for yourself. I can’t protect a lion. I’ve got your brother and sisters to look after. It’s time you found a lioness or two to protect for yourself.”

“Mother? Won’t you do anything?”

“I can’t do anything now you’re a lion. Lionesses protect cubs, lions protect lionesses, and you are now a lion. There’s nothing you can do here now.”

Nengwalamwe panicked. Melakwe was leaving him to face his father alone, “But Mother, PLEASE!”

“Go, while you still can.” She turned away from her son, lowering her head.

“Please… Mother, help me!” He ran to her side. He nuzzled her shoulders and licked her cheek desperately. He rubbed his head against hers, but she didn’t move or even raise her head. “Please, Mother, please....” His father roared again, even closer this time. Nengwalamwe raised his head and tried to shake his mane, fighting back the moisture in his eyes.

Melakwe lifted her head a little and said with an almost silent voice that reminded Nengwalamwe of a time before he had tasted meat, “I’ll try to look after Llasani. May the stars shine upon all your hunts Nengwe. Go on, while you can, save yourself, and carry your grandfather’s line with you.”

Nengwalamwe turned and ran a few paces. He looked back to his mother and her companions. She roared gently to him; a roar of recognition, a roar of love.

When he turned away from his mother he knew that he had seen her for the last time. As he ran on he tried to hold that last image of her standing in the grasses roaring to him. It was how he wanted to remember his mother - strong and independent. As she stood before him he felt that it could not really have been his mother. When the time had come she had rejected him and left him to die. She could have helped him at least; after all he was her big son.

In the hours ahead he ran over and over his mother’s words, trying to work out what she really meant. His progress grew slow as he began to feel the powerful hunger return. The mountains still lay some way ahead and the ground had steadily become rougher and the grass thinner. All around the ground thrust up in great bare mane brown rocks. The path, perhaps one trod by his father even, wound round the base of one of the smaller outcrops. As Nengwalamwe walked uneasily in its shadow he felt something fly past his ear and land with a gravelly rattle to his right. He stopped, and seeing nothing ahead, moved forwards. Before he had made two strides something larger flew past his ear close enough for the air to brush his fur gently. He stopped again and looked up - nothing. Then, still looking up, he felt a third stinging stone land on his back. He roared a sharp warning. A faint but unmistakable scent of baboon fell down from the rock above.

“I know you’re up there monkey. If I catch you I will kill you!” There was no reply, than he heard a rubbing sound: a sliding of rock against rock. He looked up again; a blackness fall towards his head.

 

***

 

Nengwalamwe’s head thumped, everything pulsed red around him. He opened his eyes.

“Are you all right? I ain’t never killed no lion before.”

“You ain’t… haven’t killed this one - yet. Who are you anyway?”

“Yeah, well, I gotta run. Bye now!”

Nengwalamwe forced himself to his paws. The outcrop swirled about his head and he fell over on to his side. A baboon stopped swaggering away and stood to watch the great beast falling about.

“Stay still you… Can you stop the ground from moving?”

“Nope! Are you all right now or what?”

“Yes, I’m all right. What are you doing?”

“Watchin’ you. I told ya I ain’t killed no lion before.” He laughed loudly, a chattering, ear splitting screeching laugh that made Nengwalamwe’s head thump even more. Growling angrily, the lion lurched to his paws and rushed at the baboon who simply laughed again and turned - straight into the thin, springy trunk of a sapling. The tree slapped him twice on the head before the baboon keeled over onto the dust. Nengwalamwe staggered over to him and opened his mouth, inching his teeth around the baboon’s neck. Suddenly the baboon opened his eyes and looked the young lion full in the face, nose to nose.

“Kill me kid, an’ you’ll die,” the baboon shouted desperately. Nengwalamwe thought for a moment then dropped the baboon and backed off fearfully.

“Why? You’re not poisoned are you? Look, I -” The lion stepped back anxiously as the baboon jumped up and screeched wildly.

“I got sicknesses you ain’t even heard of. Syndromes, infections and infestations - kid, I got ‘em all.” He picked at his hairy chest and appeared to examine something tiny held between his fingers. He offered the hand to Nengwalamwe. “Here, you wan’ a look?”

“No! No, keep away from me. I want to live, not die of… something.” Nengwalamwe got up as if to go. Jumping up to the top of a rock, the baboon called him back, nodding and twisting his head in the direction of the mountains.

“You won’t live up there,” he chattered, “not for long anyways. Say, why you running away anyhow?”

Nengwalamwe had begun to walk away, trying to look as though he was not afraid of sickness. The baboon’s question pulled him back.

“I’m not running from anything. I’m an adult lion, I’m not afraid of anything.”

“Sure, like you’re not afraid of me.”

“I’m not afraid of you.” Nengwalamwe tried to turn away from the baboon again.

“Yeah, so that’s why you won’t get on and eat me! You’re scared; you’re running away all right. Come on kid, you know you’ll die out there.”

“Maybe I want to. Did you ever stop to think I might actually want to die up there?”

“No. No you don’t.” The monkey’s old eyes gleamed. “You want to taste revenge.”

The baboon took Nengwalamwe aback. How could he have known what Llasani had done?

“Anyways kid, maybes you won’t die up there. It ain’t so bad.”

The lion’s fear turned to intense curiosity.

“How would you know? No one’s ever returned from up there. No one.”

“Except me kid. I’ve been up there. I can tell you all about surviving the mountains.”

For a moment the baboon’s offer seemed attractive to Nengwalamwe. Then he remembered that this was nothing more than a baboon - a midmorning snack for cubs. All baboons were disloyal liars and cheats.

“There’s only one thing you’re good for, but I’ve kinda lost my appetite right now.”

“You wan’advice from me or not kid?” The lion refused to answer. “All right, say - you are listening to me aren’t you?”

”Ahuh...”

“Look kid, whatever you do, do it for yourself.” Nengwalamwe looked on, the baboon eyed him up before continuing: “You know what I’m getting at kid? It’s you that counts, number one right?”

“But what about everyone else? My mother told me we are all part of the Great Ring?”

“RING? Don’t you mean circle? You don’t still believe that sh - err, stuff - do ya? Look - you’re born, you eat, you grow, you mate, and you die. That’s all there is see? You’ve gotta live while you can kid. So what about them? You ain’t the king kid, so they ain’t your problem. You ain’t got to look after anyone but yourself. You know what I mean?”

Nengwalamwe thought; what the baboon said made some sense. If he was going to live alone then he didn’t have to worry about anyone else. The only one that mattered was Nengwalamwe. He was alone but free. A freedom he never thought he would taste.

The baboon went on, “You got that kid? What you doing here anyway?” He paused and a gleam came over his deep set eyes. “Say, I know, you’ve had trouble with girls!”

“You know about that?”

“Sure, what else would you be

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