31A couple hours later, Hayden and Rose found themselves deep in the jungles of Wakanda. The sounds of birds and other animals could be heard from far away.
Rose took a deep breath and let it out slowly, soaking in the Wakandan nature.
"It feels so good to be back home," she muttered happily.
Hayden smiled. "More of a nature kid than a city kid at heart, huh?"
"You have no idea. Being close to nature was all that I knew, since I was born. My birthparents and I lived near wildlife," Rose responded, looking up to see some birds. "I remember the times I wander off to collect bird feathers near the house. Mom helped me put them in a special containment. Even cleaned them up, first."
"Sounds cool. Uncle helped me do photography of animals, for a while. I even got a couple of fangs from animals we helped out."
"At least you still have it," Rose replied, giving a sad-like smile. "I lost my feather collection a long time ago. Since the day I heard my parents were gone by the avalanche."
Hayden looked sad, for a moment, already shifting his eyes to wolf form. He scanned the area for a minute, previously leaping high up onto a tree. He reached for something hidden before jumping down. Opening his fingers, he presented his catch to Rose.
It was an African Hawk eagle's feather.
"Here, to start over again. Aunt Shuri could help preserve them,"
"...It's beautiful. Thanks, big bro," Rose said, holding back some tears of joy yet smiled warmly.
"Hey, remind me to show you the falconers, later. I'm sure you'd love it," Hayden said with a smile.
"I'd love that! Falcons are like my top three favorite birds. My major favorite is owls," Rose replied, now thinking about a certain Tickle Owl from an enchanted dimension. "Especially Hoobert. He's very sweet."
"Falconry is one of the ways we send messages to the smaller villages. Hey, I heard a few eggs were going to hatch. Maybe uncle will let you tend one," Hayden suggested, as they continued walking.
"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Rose smiled at this. "So, are we there yet?"
"Lets see..." Hayden pushed away a few leaves before smiling. "Yep. Rose, I welcome you to the Temple of the Moon Panther."
A great temple stood before them. Statues, glyphs, and banners stood around of panthers in various forms.
"Whoa..." Rose gasped in awe.
"Come on, it's okay." Hayden said, walking towards the temple.
"Oh, I know. Let's go!" Rose exclaimed, already running past Hayden to go up the temple.
ROAR!
Suddenly, a panther larger than Rose she had ever seen jumped into her path, baring his fangs.
Rose didn't panic. She stayed calmed and didn't move. While studying the animal, Rose noticed a single white spot under the chin.
"I'm guessing you're Abebi?" Rose questioned. "Hayden has mentioned about you."
Abebi was stopped mid-snarl; her fangs bared her fur ridged.
Hayden stepped forward calmly. "Hey, Abebi. How's my girl?"
Suddenly, Abebi's whole face changed, as she rushed at Hayden and tackled him to the ground, purring like a kitten. Hayden laughed as she licked his face and neck.
Rose chuckled while watching this heartfelt moment. "Looks like she misses seeing you, as well, big brother,"
Hayden smiled, pushing gently on Abebi's chest to get up. "It has been a while, huh, girl? I heard you went and had cubs without me around. I thought we agreed you'd wait so I could watch. So, what happened, huh?" Hayden asked playfully, scratching the white spot under Abebi's chin.
Abebi looked at Hayden with a fond look before grasping his hand in her mouth and pulling him towards the temple. Hayden followed willingly.
Now laughing heartily, Rose followed her dragged brother to the cubs.
Walking through a maze of hallways, Hayden followed Abebi until she stopped in a large room where a fountain still shed water. A deep growl echoed throughout the room. From the shadows, a large leopard stalked out. Its green eyes gleamed in the shafts of light.
Hayden stood still. "Rose, don't move a muscle. That's Kwame. He's Abebi's mate...and unfortunately, a right pain in the rear."
Rose looked up to notice the leopard, a bit surprised that Abebi would mate with this rude cat.
"Real pain, huh? I'm well aware of that feeling," Rose responded, her voice growing dark with her eyes glaring at Kwame. "Don't even try to mess with us."
Kwame hissed back before moving to Abebi and nuzzling her.
Abebi allowed it, but soon moved away in taking Hayden's hand again and leading him to the opposite side of the room. Upon looking closely, Hayden saw a bunch of leaves and grass piled up into a nest. Inside, he spotted three wiggling bodies.
"Oh, Abebi their beautiful."
Calming down, Rose looked over to notice small cubs and felt her heart melting.
"They're so precious," she said lovingly, really wanting to pet them.
As Hayden moved closer. He noticed something hidden under the grass. Carefully moving some grass and leaves away, Hayden grew shocked.
"Rose, come up here. I think I'm losing my mind," Hayden said.
The female spider hurried to her brother's side and became both shocked yet amazed at what she saw.
"A white panther cub," Rose muttered, officially in love with this bundle of joy.
"Okay, so I'm not losing my mind." Hayden said, picking up the little cub. "Looks like a female...the spotted one like Kwame is a male, one black male and another black female. Four cubs alright."
"Three black panther cubs and a white one," Rose stated, gently petting the cub Hayden is holding. "She's such a special snowflake. Her fur is pure white like the snow and very soft."
"Yeah, but 'Snowflake'? That's not a name for her...hmmm, how about Jalidi? It means Frost in Swahili."
"Jalidi it is. May I?" Rose said, opening her arms to indicate she wanted to hold the white cub.
"All right," Hayden said, handing over the cub before grabbing the spotted one. "Let's see. Little male cub here. What do you think, sis?"
Rose cuddled Jalidi in her arms, looking over the male black cub.
"He's very hard strong like his mom and slightly stubborn like his dad," she noted.
"Hmmm…how about Buck, after that dog in the Jack London book? I bet he'll be a great leader, too," Hayden suggested.
"I'm okay with Buck," Rose replied, petting Jalidi. "What about the last two cubs?"
"Oh, you mean this troublemaker that looks like his father?" Hayden said, scooping the cub up and listened to its purr. "Along with this female? Let's see...how about you name her and the last male cub? That way, we're even two apiece."
"Okay...I'll see what I can do," Rose put Jalidi down before checking on the last two cubs without names. "Well, they're both very black. The only two names I can think of are Coal and Cinder...If not Cinder, maybe Amber. They're the best I got that describe nature."
"Hmmm…Okay. The male black cub can be Coal and the spotted female can be Amber. So, we have Jalidi, Buck, Cole, and Amber," Hayden said, rubbing each of the cubs' heads.
"Sounds about right. And they're all definitely cute," Rose smiled. "Am I allowed to tell anyone about these cubs or is it supposed to be top secret to the public?"
"Aunt and Uncle will just put them in the data base, when they're a bit bigger. For now, Abebi will want peace and quiet. Once their weaned, though, it will be a whole lot of ruckus," Hayden replied, placing Jalidi and Buck back into their nest.
"Good point. So, what next?" Rose responded.
"Well...we could go to the old estate. It has a treehouse where Uncle T'Challa, Aunt Shuri, and... my dad played as kids," Hayden said quietly.
"Oh...Yeah, that sounds nice," Rose responded, sensing Hayden misses his dad from the mention of the treehouse. "Are you sure you'll be okay going there?"
Hayden gave a soft smile before nodding. "Yeah, it's been a while and I want to visit him."
Rose comforted her brother with a hug before moving. "Then, let's go."
Quietly, Hayden stood and went to Abebi before resting his forehead to hers. "See you later, girl. Keep the grump in line."
Rose chuckled when hearing that. 'I'm sure she can handle him. Just like us,' she thought to herself, only to wonder why she used the term 'us' instead of 'me' before shaking it off.
A while later, Hayden led Rose to a small shack that was just outside of the city.
"Babu! Babu, are you here?" Hayden called with a smile.
"Uh, was there some other animal I missed?" Rose questioned.
A deep chuckle came from behind her. Turning around, she found a tall man wearing a brightly colored blue and red dashiki.
"No, I'm not any animal, but people say my laugh is like a lion's roar," The man said with a bright smile.
"BABU!" Hayden raced past jumping into the older man's arms laughing.
"OH, Mtoto Mdogo! You have gotten taller, but not tall enough!" The man said heartily, swinging Hayden around like a child in a circle.
Rose took a few steps back, keeping her distance. Despite Hayden knowing this guy, she was still not sure about trusting Babu.
"How have you been, huh? Still running around and getting into mischief?" Babu asked as he set Hayden down and ruffled his hair.
"Oh, come on, you know me. I'm just an acquired taste," Hayden laughed back. Babu looked over at Rose with a smile.
"And who is this jua kidogo?" Babu asked kindly.
"This is Rose, my sister," Hayden said with a smile.
"We met in New York. Bit of a rocky start, but got along really quickly," Rose responded, rubbing her arms.
"Come here, little one. I do not bite," Babu said, opening his arms wide.
Reluctantly, Rose slowly went towards Babu for the hug. She just felt uneasy of trusting a complete stranger she hadn't met nor known yet.
Babu kept his hug small but as warm as he could.
"It's a pleasure to meet you. Now, Hayden, what were you bellowing my name for?" Babu asked.
"Sis and I wanted to go to the old estate…Can we, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase?" Hayden gave big puppy dog eyes, knowing that Babu would understand what he was asking for.
Babu chuckled. "All right, but remember to have them back before sunset."
Giving a loud whistle, Rose listened as a great crashing came from their left, as the ground trembled.
"What was that?" Rose questioned, tensing a bit to a point that her stingers nearly came out.
"Ha, ha, it's okay, sis. It's just Aminifu and Shango," Hayden said, moving to the brush where a large grey trunk grabbed him around the waist.
Rose became surprised. "Are they...elephants?"
"Yep." Hayden said, as he was raised up. Two large elephants came into the clearing; one a bit taller than the other. "The one that has me is Aminifu and the smaller one is Shango. He's Aminifu's son."
"Wow...this definitely brings back some memories with my birth parents," Rose replied, grinning warmly while holding back some tears.
"They will take you to the estate, but be careful," Babu said with smile.
"You got it, Babu." Hayden said as Aminifu placed him behind his head. "Shango, Juu."
The young bull elephant grabbed Rose around the waist and raised her up, placing her behind his head.
"Just like old times," Rose responded softly, patting gently on Shango's head.
"Shango, Aminifu, nenda." Hayden said, starting both the elephants off at a nice walk.
Rose looked around the path she was taking while riding Shango. It had been ages since she did this.
"Having fun?" Hayden asked with a smile.
"I am," Rose responded, bringing a remorseful smile.
"Old memories?" Hayden asked, giving a soft smile.
Rose just nodded her head, letting a few tears form.
Hayden gave a smile, as he stood up on Aminifu's back. "Sis?"
"Yeah?" Rose asked, wiping her cheeks.
"Look," Hayden said, grabbing a large elephant leaf and holding it above his head like an umbrella while standing on one leg like a ballerina.
"Seriously?" Rose questioned, not impressed. "Is this supposed to make me laugh?"
"Maybe…or maybe this," Hayden began swirling down Aminifu's back before standing directly on his rear. Smirking, Hayden began to act like he was falling.
"AAAAHHH, AAAAAHHHH, OH NO, OH NO!" Suddenly, Hayden fell on the opposite side of Aminifu; disappearing from sight but with a loud thud in the brush sounded.
"Hayden?!" Rose exclaimed in shock, ready to get off her elephant to save him.
'Don't get off,' the voice in her head said.
"What?" Rose looked around, wondering who keeps saying this stuff.
'Listen, Rose. Hayden is not hurt. Just stay and watch,'
Calming down, Rose kept on Shango and waited.
"A spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down the medicine go dooooooooooooooown medicine go down. Yes, a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down. In the most delightful way," Hayden's voice came out of nowhere, but slowly Aminifu raised his trunk up; showing Hayden standing on one foot two large leaves on his head in the shape of a hat. "Milady, how are you finding yourself this evening?"
Taking off his hat, Hayden bowed in a gentlemanly way before smiling.
Rose placed a hand on her mouth, actually holding back a few giggles at how crazy this is. Once getting it together, the spider heroine kept a neutral face and fired a spider web shot on Hayden's face from her wrist.
"What is wrong with you?! I almost jumped out of an elephant to come rescue you, Hayden!" Rose nearly yelled.
Hayden chuckled. "Which end did you almost jump? Out of mouth or the other?"
"Not the point!" Rose groaned, facepalming. "I swear, if she didn't tell me about you being safe, I would have become the biggest idiot of Wakanda in falling for such a cruel joke."
Hayden looked at his sister questioningly. Extending his nails into claws, he cut the webbing before hopping from Aminifu to Shango, sitting on the elephant's head.
"Sis, we're the only ones out here. No one else is around for hundreds of miles," Hayden said, worry in his tone. "Are you...feeling okay?"
"I was until you pulled that not-so-funny prank! First that camera footage stunt and now this?! What next, getting thrown into a pit of snakes that actually have no fangs?" Rose questioned, glaring hard.
"Sis! When have I ever lied to you?! About Kraven, about the Avengers, About Me! When have I ever LIED! Especially when it concerns you!" Hayden yelled, his eyes shifting to wolf yellow with the intensity of his words.
"I'm not calling you a liar, Hayden. I just think you are being new in this older sibling thing to a point that you don't trust me anymore because of my past mistakes," Rose reasoned. "It makes me feel like I can't make my own decisions or trust my own judgement."
Hayden sighed. "Sis, listen. It's true that I'll always have your best choices at heart but I won't take away your decisions or judgement for granted. I know you can handle yourself. I've seen you do it. I trust you. However, there are things happening to you that I'm worried about. Besides the training room, you've been tired, and eating like an elephant. I also know there are times where you are hiding things. I haven't said anything because I figured you were still settling in, but now I'm more worried that it could be something else."
Rose sighed. "Okay...I've been hearing a voice. I think it's my own conscience trying to keep me from doing the wrong thing and so far, it's been helpful all day. About choosing this outfit, not being ashamed of my flaws, and knowing you weren't in danger."
Hayden looked at her questioningly. "You think it's your conscience making you train late and eat so much?"
"No, that's different. It's possible that, since I'm out of my daily workout routine, I might be sleep training in trying to catch up on what I missed. And with me burning that many calories, it's what's causing me to have these endless hunger problems," Rose explained.
Hayden looked at her skeptically before sighing. "All right…just promise me you'll get checked out when we get home. I'm really worried about you."
"Of course, I will. I already said yes to T'Challa and Shuri this morning," Rose responded.
Hayden pressed his forehead to Rose's. "I know. Your just perfect in every way, sis."
Rose finally chuckled at that. "You just couldn't help yourself in quoting Mary Poppins, could you?"
Hayden laughed. "Anything to make you laugh, smile, and enjoy freedom."
"True," Rose responded, playing with her own hair. "Are we almost to that tree house place yet?"
Hayden looked behind him and smiled. "Yeah, just around that bend there."
Rose checked, excited to see it...on the inside.
"Uncle said that he and my dad built a zipline when they were younger than we are now. They didn't get to try it out till way later in life because Grandfather T'Chaka caught them," Hayden said. "Acha. Aminifu, Shango, acha."
Both elephants stopped at the base of the tree.
"Chini," Hayden commanded.
Aminifu and Shango went down on their front knees allowing Hayden and Rose to slide off.
"Sounds like your dad and T'Challa were adventurous kids back in the day. Almost as much as right now," Rose quipped, patting on Shango to say thanks before walking. "Doesn't seem so different from you, Hayden."
"Dad loved Wakanda. Probably more than anyone actually born from here. He said that he could go anywhere in the world, but Wakanda still held the most profound beauty," Hayden said, as he stared up at the treehouse with his hands slowly clenching into fists.
"So, despite being labeled as a thief, the original White Wolf still cared about Wakanda and his adopted family," Rose responded, trying to understand before placing a hand on Hayden's shoulder. "I think he would be proud of you for keeping the White Wolf legacy alive. Perhaps in a better way."
Hayden sighed. "He gave everything to protect Wakanda. He may have done bad things, but it was for the right reasons."
"Reminds me of someone I know," Rose replied, looking down with a small smile. "The same guy I laid eyes on the moment Kraven mentioned him in his private files. Despite the mistakes he did, he cared about the people that mattered and was willing to risk his own life."
Hayden sighed. "Come on. Let's go in."
Rose didn't argue. She really did wanted to see the inside of the place. However, Rose was growing worried about Hayden in being here, considering how it brings a lot of memories about his deceased father.
'I just wish there was something we could do for Hayden,' she thought, not realizing she was using the term 'we' this time.
