Tit For Tat

Written for the Daily Flash Fiction Challenge with a word limit of 300.

The prompts: Story must have an animal that talks

Tit For Tat

The lion jumped onto the trail and roared viciously at the stunned pygmy. The small morsel screamed like a girl until he recognized the big cat.

“Lion! You can be such an asshole sometimes. You are lucky I recognized you before I unleashed a swarm of poison darts at your dirty old hide.”

The lion seemed to take this threat for what it was worth. With a mighty yawn and stretch, he rolled over onto his back hoping for a tummy rub.

Foblongo, the pygmy, smiled. He couldn’t stay mad at Lion. They had been friends every since he saved the animal from the big game hunter. Never mind that Foblongo had actually been aiming at Lion when he threw the spear. The fact was that it had pierced the heart of the man who was about to shoot Lion dead on the spot. This last bit was something that Foblongo forever neglected to tell Lion.

Lion and the pygmy had been close friends ever since; a symbiotic relationship that both valued a great deal.

“Tell me my little tummy rubber, how do you manage to survive with such poor jungle skills?” asked Lion. “I think you were dropped on your head as a cub. That you are still alive is a mystery to me.”

“I don’t need to be a great hunter. You, my friend, possess all of the skills I need,” replied Foblongo. “Tell me Lion, what do you have for me today?”

Lion dragged a gazelle carcass out from behind a bush saying, “This should maintain your title as senior village hunter. What do you have for me?”

“I will continue to keep our hunters to the north, away from your territory.”

“And…?” ask Lion.

“And I will give you a tasty tourist to be named later.”

Word count 300


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