Roar

by Natavia

  “I knew you were coming. When the wind blew last night, it spoke to me. I’ve been sitting here since the rise of the moon,” he said and slowly stood up. Ockbutu used a stick to walk around because of the slight hump in his back.

  “I thought immortals don’t age,” I said when I held him up.

  “We don’t but I don’t want to live forever. I’ve been around for thousands of years. I sacrificed my soul to the ancestors. I’m slowly dying so my soul can be reborn again. Enough about me, let’s get you home,” he said and patted my shoulder. Ockbutu pulled out a horn and blew it to alert the others. The villagers came to the hill, some in human form and some in their animal form.

  “We have a lot of work to do before I die. Follow me,” he said.

  The villagers bowed their heads at me when I walked through the crowd. Flowers were thrown over my head and they began singing in their language.

  Don’t be nervous, Sy’noba. The villagers worship your goddess. You protect them and they will protect you. Y’kiki’s temple is deep in the jungle, it will take a few days to get there. The villagers will pack food and water for our journey, Ockbutu said. A young girl, around eight years old, walked through the crowd. She made a necklace out of vines from a tree. The necklace was decorated with pretty colorful stones and flowers. I kneeled in front of her and she placed it over my head. She spoke to me in sign language and Ockbutu translated it for me.

  “She said you’re very pretty and when she gets older, she wants to be a great warrior,” he said.

  “Tell I said, she is already a great warrior and I will forever treasure her gift,” I replied. He told her what I said with his hands and she hugged me. Eze came across my mind as I followed the villagers into the jungle. Although things turned out differently for us, I was grateful to him. If it wasn’t for him, I would’ve never found Tiban. He was truly a blessing but I was better off without him. He had one purpose in my life and he fulfilled it. Still, I couldn’t deny the attraction I had for him. My body was beginning to crave his more than before. The love he made to me with his tongue was a feeling I couldn’t let go of. My eyes watered and Ockbutu squeezed my hand.

  “Eze will come for you,” he said.

  “He has a mate,” I replied and he chuckled.

  “Noooo, he had desires. A mate is more than being intimate. When you give yourself to him, you and he will make an oath. You will praise his god and he will praise yours. When the gods give you two their blessing, you will be his forever,” he said.

  “I thought males can have more than one mate,” I replied.

  “Each pride has their own beliefs, not all are the same. Some villagers here have one more than mate, some don’t. It’s not right nor wrong,” Ockbutu said.

  “I think he loves her,” I replied.

  “Intimacy doesn’t mean love, Sy’noba. Spiritual connection means love—a bond. You are still young and have a lot to learn; you will see but you have to let him show you. I can sense the anger you have for him right now. Let it go and let him in,” Ockbutu replied.

  “Why do you make everything sound so easy?” I chuckled.

  “You will see when you get old,” he replied.

  During our journey, we sang and danced. A villager gave me a wooden cup and gestured for me to take a sip from it. The strong drink burned my throat and almost made me gag. Suddenly, I began feeling goofy.

  “What is that?” I asked.

  “Cannabis mixed with wine. I made it myself,” she said.

  “You speak English,” I said because most of them didn’t.

  “Yes, I speak many languages. My name is Safari,” she said. Safari was my complexion and wore her hair in thick locs. She looked around my age and had a lot of spunk with her. She was free-spirited and laughed a lot. Maybe the drink was the cause of her silly behavior. The spots on her arms and neck told me she was a leopard. Most shapeshifters who had stripes or spots didn’t lose them in their human form—it was a permanent mark of their species.

  “Many of us are from Africa. There are many portals here that will take you there. Maybe we should go one day, it’ll be fun. My ancestors are from Egypt. We worship Sekhmet. What is it like being a chosen one?” she asked.

  “It’s hard to explain but I’m grateful,” I replied.

  “Can you turn your hair into weapons?” she asked and I laughed.

  “I’m learning,” I replied.

  “I heard you and the king of Camden hit it off. He’s very attractive but all of the sabers are. They are the top of the cat species. They’ve been here longer than our kind. You’re lucky,” she said.

  “Eze is a friend,” I replied and she spit out her wine.

  “Friend? What on Earth is wrong with you? How can a tall, masculine, beautiful cat like him just be a friend? You haven’t fucked him yet?” she asked and Ockbutu hit her with his stick.

  “Your mouth is filth, Safari,” he scolded her.

  “I apologize,” she said then whispered in my ear.

  “Be careful because I heard they will split your cat in half during intimacy. Some of the cats in Tiban had to soak in a remedy to stop bleeding,” Safari said and I giggled. Ockbutu cut his eyes at her and we burst into laughter.

  “The queen shouldn’t be entertained with promiscuous behavior,” Ockbutu warned Safari.

  “We are just having girl talk. That’s not a crime,” Safari said. She gave me more wine and it tasted better than the first time.

  “We are going to be sisters,” Safari said.

  We began walking slower so that Ockbutu could walk in front of us.

  “Do you have any cubs?” I asked.

  “Nooooo, I’m not in heat yet, but when I am, I want a sabertooth,” she said.

  Safari was a breath of fresh air. Growing up around a lot of females made me standoffish because of their catty attitudes. It seemed as if I’d known her for years. I never had a friend before but a lot of great things came out of Tiban and she was one of them.

  “Once you get settled in, we should go to Rainy Springs,” she said.

  “What is that?” I asked.

  “It’s a forest with beautiful flowers. The flowers are so huge you could lie on the petals. The water is crystal clear and sparkles like diamonds. It’s a hangout spot for younger cats,” she said.

  “Sounds interesting,” I replied.

  “I’m going to show you how to really celebrate,” she said.

  We walked for hours and my legs began to ache. Ockbutu told me to climb on a tiger’s back so I could rest. The drinks Safari gave me put me into a very deep sleep…

  Eze

  A day later…

  Q uanir sat on the opposite side of my desk going over the week’s schedule. My mind was elsewhere as I thought about Sy’noba.

  “Cuz, do you hear me?” he asked, but I was looking out the window in my office.

  “Yeah,” I replied. He slammed his planner on the desk before he turned my chair around to face him.

  “I’m trying to do my job, bruh, and you’re not listening to me,” he said.

  “I wonder if Alexander would be upset if I hired someone else to run the company for a few months,” I replied.

  “OH, HELL NO! Do you not understand the danger that can put our species in? We need the money so we can continue sending livestock to our lost land,” he said.

  “Sy’noba is in Tiban. What if another male is trying to seduce her? I wonder if I’d get some type of punishment for ripping his throat out. That’s all me, cuz. Why would she go there knowing she’s about to go in heat? I think she’s trying to piss me off and it’s working,” I replied. Quanir squeezed the bridge of his nose in frustration.

  “I’m gonna pretend like the king of his world isn’t going to ruin it for everyone over some pussy,” he said.

  “It’s not just some pussy, it’s my pussy, and watch your fucking mouth. I know you don’t take things seriously sometimes but this is a serious matter to me. Sy’noba is my treasure. I can’t st
op thinking about her. This is punishment, bruh,” I replied.

  “Wait, you’re really serious,” he asked.

  “As a human havin’ a heart attack,” I replied.

  There was a knock on the door and I told them to come in. Lakita walked into my office carrying a bag of lunch.

  “I’m sorry, is this a bad time?” she asked.

  Maybe she’ll get your mind off Sy’noba. She’s phat! Quanir thought.

  She’s not phatter than Sy’noba, I thought.

  You ain’t lyin’, bruh. Sy’noba is thicker than cow meat, he thought.

  Get out of my office before I shift in front of this human, I replied. Quanir grabbed his planner before he left my office.

  “I finally got you alone,” Lakita said when she sat across from me.

  She pulled out plastic containers and sat them on the desk.

  “I hope you like spaghetti,” she said.

  “I love it,” I lied. I hated pasta and processed meat.

  Lakita began rambling on about her busy week and her sister not paying her back for lending her money to get her hair done. My mind drifted off to the night I got back from taking Sy’noba home. Lynx was in my bed half-naked waiting for me…

  “Where have you been?” she asked.

  “I just came back from taking Sy’noba home. What are you doing here? You have class in the morning,” I replied.

  “I thought you were going to come to the cabin until I called here and Quanir said you stepped out. Why do I feel like you’re ignoring me? I thought last night was special,” Lynx said.

  “It was very special, but I have a lot on my mind. Look, baby, I don’t know how to tell you this, but I can’t do this with you. If you’re pregnant, I will do everything I can to make sure you’re straight. I’ll be there for my cub but I realize that’s all I can offer you, I replied.

  She picked up a lamp and hurled it at me but I caught it and sat it back down on the nightstand. Her eyes glowed and she began hissing.

  “You are treating me like I’m a whore!” she cried.

  “How, so? Because I’m not letting you have your way? I take care of you, pay your credit card bills, and let you live in my house! And I’m telling you I won’t let you go through pregnancy alone!” I said.

  “It’s hard loving someone when they are afraid of loving you back. I’m only mad at Sy’noba because she just walks into your life and takes over when I’ve been here proving to you that I care about you. It’s not fair!” she said.

  I took off my shirt and shoes and climbed into bed with Lynx. She reached for my dick but I moved her hand away.

  “Let’s just go sleep and talk about this in the morning,” I said.

  “I want to feel you again,” she said.

  She straddled me then kissed my lips. Lynx pressed her breasts against my chest and purred.

  “Make love to me,” she said.

  “Chill out, I’m tired. I have to work in the morning,” I replied. She climbed from off top and laid back down on my chest.

  “I’ll just wait until you’re ready again,” she said. I kissed her forehead and closed my eyes. Hours later, Sy’noba barged in with confusion on her face. Her eyes glowed and her teeth and nails sharpened. She was angry with me.

  “So, am I wrong for taking her to court?” Lakita asked, bringing me back to reality.

  “Huh?” I replied.

  “My nasty-ass sister. I’m taking her to court for borrowing money from me and not paying it back,” she said.

  “Whatever floats your boat,” I replied.

  “You’re not eating,” she said.

  “I kinda got a messed-up stomach. I’ve been on the toilet all morning. I ate Burger King for breakfast,” I replied.

  “Ohhhhhh, I know all about that. I had their sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich and I was crappin’ for a week,” she said and I chuckled.

  “How old are you, Lakita? Do you have any kids?” I asked.

  “I’m thirty years old and I have one kid. He’s ten years old. I had him when I was in college,” she said.

  “Ain’t nothing wrong with that. Great things happen unexpectedly,” I replied.

  “You’re right about that. Tell me about yourself,” she said.

  “I’m twenty-three years old and I have no cubs, I mean children. I graduated college last year with a degree in business. Not much to tell,” I replied.

  I hope his fine ass isn’t gay. Not once did he look at my cleavage. Look at those gold teeth, umph! I love a man who can do both. A corporate thug! she thought.

  “Nice top by the way,” I chuckled.

  “Oh, this old thing. I got it on sale at Marshall’s,” she said, fixing her shirt so I could look at her breasts. Janet knocked on the door and peeked her head around the corner.

  “Excuse me, but you have a conference call in three minutes,” Janet said.

  “Thank you,” I replied.

  “Welp, lunch was great. I guess I’ll see you on your way out the building,” Lakita said, grabbing her things.

  “I appreciate talking to you and I can’t wait to dig into that spaghetti once my stomach is back to normal,” I replied and she blushed.

  “I will bring you some more tomorrow because I know you will love it,” she said before she walked out of my office. Janet stepped into my office with her arms crossed.

  “I smell a love connection. Lakita is beautiful,” Janet said.

  “That she is but I have my eyes on someone else,” I replied.

  “Who?” she asked.

  “Sy’noba,” I replied.

  “The cleaning lady? She’s a little beneath you, isn’t she?” Janet asked.

  “No black woman is beneath me. She’s the queen of the Earth, a Nubian goddess, and where I’m from, they worship her,” I said.

  “Nooo, I didn’t mean it like that,” she said.

  “It’s cool, I wouldn’t expect for you to understand but you can shut my door on your way out,” I replied.

  His father would never talk to me that way, she thought as she left my office.

  That’s because he’ll fuck anything with a pussy, I thought.

  A few minutes later, the phone on the desk rang and I took a deep breath before I answered. The job was a hard one; dealing with a lot of upscale, proper humans was a headache. Before my father passed the business down to me, he was investing in putting nightclubs inside the hotels. On the phone were two popular club owners who wanted in on the plan. One was an Italian guy named Russel and the other was a Jamaican guy named Gwan.

  A bigger headache, I thought.

  “How do you feel about a strip club inside one of your establishments? Promote it to the athletes, rappers, and celebrities. They can get an island feel mixed with a little Hollywood,” Russel said.

  “Did you discuss the strip club with my father?” I asked.

  “The strip club part was left out. No offense, but you’re younger and more hip. The club scene is very popular now more than ever! Strip club rates are going up because that’s what most of the rappers like. Just think about it. If you don’t agree, we can stick to the original plan,” he said.

  “I agree wit’ da mon. We can have different nights, Island night on the weekends. Ladies can get in free before midnight. All we need is for yah to say you gonna take da chance. We can set up a meeting and go over the contract,” Gwan replied.

  Alexander is going to shit a brick! But he left me the business and I can do what I want with it, I thought.

  “How about this, we try two of the hotels in the city just to see how it goes. If it does well, we can expand and go over a long-term contract. But, if I get word of prostitution going on inside my hotels, I will immediately terminate the contracts. My family worked too hard to get a bad name,” I replied.

  “We got a deal,” Russel said.

  “Me, too, look forward to doin’ business with yah,” Gwan said and we all hung up.

  ***********

  Hours later…
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  I sat in the library inside of Saber Estates reading the pamphlet my father gave me. On the last page, it said the king of Camden should follow all rules in the pamphlet and if not, they would have their strength stripped from them as king. The pamphlet, Sy’noba, Lynx and the business all gave me a headache.