AN: Jesus Christ it's a lion GET IN THE CAR!

-shot-

Hmm. -frowns at this chapter- It's not quite as good as I would have liked it. Feels a bit awkward to me.

Oh well... I guess I'm just not that good at action. -shrug-

Disclaimer: I own no part of Yu-Gi-Oh!. If I did, there'd probably be a lot of random shots of a lizardlike creature lurking in the dark corners of Yami's labyrinth of a soul room...

Anzu had been slightly alarmed when the lions began roaring.

"Might be a good idea to get back in the car, Hiro-"

And then the lions began chasing something. Thankfully, they weren't charging the Jeep, so it wasn't really too much of a worry. They'd probably just seen some poor, soon-to-be-dead prey animal, and decided to take out their frustrations on it. She believed that the smarter animals grieved and mourned just as much as any other human being. They'd filmed too much not to make her think that way. And when emotions ran on high, well...

...Wait.

That. Wasn't. A damn. Zebra.

"Shit!"

A crackle came from the radio, and then a burst of terrified Jonouchi-speak poured from the device. When Jou got panicked, his accent got a lot, lot thicker. Right now, it was at the point that almost nobody would be able to understand him. This, of course, included Anzu. Thank god that stupid CEO didn't just be lazy on these radios and make them so that we have to talk in turns. Don't know what I'd do if he had. Not that that made their oh-so-benevolent sponsor any less of a pain in the ass...

"JONOUCHI."

Silence. Guess I got his attention. Good.

"Mind telling me what the hell's going on out there?"

"Frickin' lions is what's goin' on out 'ere!"

"Great. We've determined you're not blind." She said flatly. "What. Happened. Why're they going nuts?" Oh, good, Hiroto was getting into the car. Not a good idea to remain on the roof with rampaging felines in their midst. They might be focusing on the other Jeep right now, but there was absolutely no guarantee that they wouldn't turn on a new, more defenseless target if they saw one.

"I dunno!" Jonouchi sounded as if he was wondering he exact same thing. "I didn' do anythin' dat'd piss 'em off, I know better'n dat! Dey jus' attacked!"

This wasn't good. Why would they attack creatures that they didn't know were potential prey? It didn't make sense! They had been careful to keep the pride from thinking of them as prey animals. Standard procedure, integral to surviving in a life like this. So why were they attacking? The pride should have thought of them like they thought of the trees and the grass: immovable, inedible, and unimportant. How, exactly, did they figure it out?

Blue eyes were riveted to the Jeep speeding away from the watering hole. All they could do now was hope...

Well... And rely on Yugi's insane driving, of course.

"Holy shit! Yug'! Gimme some frickin' warning next time!"

"Shut up and let me drive, Jonouchi." Yugi's voice was strained and tense as he spoke, his blunt, abrupt sentences revealing his nervousness. His narrowed eyes and tight grip on the steering wheel also showed that he was supremely unnerved by the pride of lions on their tail, hunting them like a straggling wildebeest.

Which still didn't change the fact that he'd made the car leap a dry riverbed. A rather deep dry riverbed.

"Gimme a heart attack, why don'cha!"

Yugi ignored him in favor of dodging around a large termite mound, speeding towards the moonlit horizon. This quick movement tilted them onto two wheels, causing Jou to let out a high-pitched yelp and clutch his seat belt like it was his only lifeline. After that, he decided not to criticize. After all, no matter how dangerous his stunts were, Yugi was getting them away from those cats... Besides, Yugi was pretty high-strung right now, and Jonouchi didn't want to end up in a totaled car after a trick gone wrong.

Dodging around the termite mound actually did have a purpose, it seemed. The pride hadn't been expecting it, and shot past the mound instead of turning to intercept them, slowing the pursuit enough to give them a good head start.

It seemed that Yugi was feeling quite tame today, though – after that, he simply speed across the grasslands at speeds of over sixty miles per hour. Seeing as lionesses could only reach a maximum of fifty miles an hour in short bursts, they quickly left their pursuers in the dust. The spiky-haired driver continued to speed away for a few more minutes before slowing down. Best to make sure that they wouldn't be caught up to.

Yugi released his white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel, abruptly relaxing himself against the back of his seat with a small thump. A long, slow hiss of a sigh escaped his lips.

Slowly, Jonouchi relaxed beside him. After a moment, he spoke. "Dat," he said flatly, "scared da shit outta me."

Snort. "You and me both, Jou. You and me both."

A pause.

"...You know, we should probably try and figure out where they're going to den down."

"Yer kiddin' me. Ya gotta be kiddin' me." Jonouchi sat up, turning incredulous brown eyes to Yugi's resigned purple. "We are not goin' back out dere, Yug'. Not tonight. No frickin' way am I goin' back out onta dat godf'rsaken grassland. No. Way."

Tired laughter. "You know what? You're right. I need a shower, and I need some sleep. It's been a long, long day. How the hell'd so much happen in just one day?" He shook his head. "I'll call Anzu and Honda, tell 'em we're fine. Then we'll head back to the base. Sound good?"

"Hell yeah. Tell 'em dat I say 'hi', I'm gonna take a nap. If I can, aftah dat ride!" Jonouchi snickered. "Where da hell'd you learnta drive like ya do, anyway, Yug'? I seen drag racers who're more careful!"

Yugi grinned. "My grandpa was an adventurous man. He learned how to do all kinds of things before he settled down to run the game shop..."

Jonouchi stared for a few moments, then shook his head. "I don' wanna know, do I?"

The grin grew more mischievous. "Probably not!"

The blond snorted, then leaned back into his seat. "Wake me when we get dere." He then promptly fell asleep.

Yugi smiled, shook his head, then turned on the radio. He had a brief conversation with Anzu, telling her and Honda that they were fine, then checked his GPS.

He then began the long, long journey home...

They had lost their prey.

Atemu snarled in frustration, clawing the grass beneath his front paws to shreds. The not-beast had gotten away! Stupid thing. Why had it been there? Why was it watching them when they grieved? It had no right to be there!

Well, at least it was gone now. Good. They shouldn't be there. Only the pride members should be there.

He shook his mane wildly, dislodging some dust, and then strode over to his mother. Hmm. His mother. Was she truly his mother? He... Didn't look like a lion, really. He looked more like the creatures from the not-beasts. Fleshy, nearly furless, and weak. But he was stronger than the not-beast creatures, wasn't he? None of them had ever slain a hyaena. No. Even if he was not lion in body, he was lion in spirit, and lion he would be. He gave his mother a comforting lick on the cheek, mewling quietly as he did so. She rumbled quietly, not quite a growl or a purr, and nudged him with her muzzle.

A gentle reminder: We have to get moving again.

Very well. He would help lead the pride to a new hunting ground. Moti and Father had taught him the extent of their territory. He could map it out in his mind as clearly as any other lead lion could with their territory. He would take charge of the pride for now, until some other male came. It was not proper for a cub to lead the pride. He could manage for now, but one more experienced would have to take charge someday.

But that day was not today.

Atemu turned his face into the wind, catching the scents of the savannah.

This way, he decided, and strode off.

The pride followed.

Hmm. Not my best chapter. Oh well...

R&R, please!