[3rd POV]
"I need more!!" Dr Tonson shouts while waving at the other researchers staying in the vehicle.
On the other side, no one wanted to respond to that. They all stayed eerily quiet as they simply watched Dr Tonson wave at them and shout repeatedly that he needed more of that Betadine solution.
Everyone waited for the other to move first, to speak first, and to volunteer first. No one wanted to be the one to go.
In the end, it was Ramirez who spoke while keeping one eye on the cara that was taking footage of everything that was happening.
"Dude, I think you should go," Ramirez said to his best friend while kicking him on the leg, his eyes never leaving the cara to look busy, too busy.
"To hell with that?! Why ?" Malik said, aghast that his friend tried to push him like that.
"Dude, you're both African. Maybe Leo knows the indigenous people," Ramirez said with no sha in the world.
"I don't give a rat's ass if he is African, he is a huge lion. And why are you asking ? Why don't you go?" Malik asked.
Ramirez simply pointed at himself, busy using the cara, "Dude, I wish I could. But soone needs to do his job 24/7."
"Ridiculous excuse. I am the driver too, so I need to stay in the jeep," he replied.
"I can drive," Elena said helpfully.
"I can drive better," Malik shut her down instantly. And then he suddenly got an idea, and he turned back to his friend.
"Mo can cover for you as the caraman," he said.
"Mo is on drone duty," Ramirez replied without even looking.
Everyone else turned to Mo, who was currently in the middle of starting the drone. It was clear that he wasn't even controlling the drone before the need for help ca up.
But under the deadpanned face of everyone, Mo successfully released the drone into the sky and by that point, it was too late to stop him. He finally turned to everyone else and said, "What? I'm busy."
No one wanted to be the one to get near the lion. It was starkly different from when Leo ca into their camp and they got the chance to be in his presence and even touch his body. The task required them to clean the wounds, which could stir Leo the wrong way.
It was much more risky than a simple confrontation. The animal could not know what they were doing. What if, while they were cleaning his wounds, the Betadine caused Leo pain and he took that as an attack and retaliated?
They were fragile like a baby to him.
If Leo sneezed wrong, he might just kill them.
The researchers sighed, and then finally they turned to the friend of Dr Tonson.
"Dr Robert, you're friend is over there," Malik said.
"A friend in need is a friend indeed~" Ramirez whispered but everyone could hear him.
"Just for the record, I was opposed to this idea from the very start," Dr Robert said, a sigh leaving him. But after thinking about it for a while, he relented.
"Okay, hand the dicine," he said and was about to leave but he was stopped by a hand.
"No, I'll go," Hana said, finally deciding on being the one. She realized from what Dr Robert said that everything was her idea, and she should be the one to do it, not anyone else.
"Are you sure?" Elena asked, concerned.
"Yes. I was the o-" Hana was about to speak but the dicine was shoved in her hands.
"Okay," they said.
No one needed an explanation why; they were just glad she was the one. It was like they were passing around unwanted chores. Hana shook her head, a smile on her face at everyone's antics.
She climbed down the jeep and took two steps before she paused suddenly and turned back to the others.
"Hana?" they asked.
"Actually, if you want, I can go in your place," Malik said, concerned because he thought Hana might be truly scared for her life.
"No... pass the syringe and the antibiotics," she said.
"!!!!"
"Are you sure? Cleaning his wounds is one thing but injecting a fully conscious lion..." the others asked, concern turned into deep worry.
"I'm sure. There is no better ti. I want to help him. We've known each other for a long ti so if he is going to trust any human, it will be us," she said, referring to herself and Dr Tonson.
Professor Elena passed her the kit and with a nod, Hana turned and walked towards Leo again. This ti, there was new determination in her steps.
Everyone wished her luck in their mind, so praying for her. The fact that she was intent on giving him an antibiotic changed the situation quite a bit. It went from a risky situation to a dangerous situation.
But before she even reached them, Leo ca forward. He seed to have sensed the fear growing in her heart so he walked straight to her.
Hana froze when the beast entered her space. But Leo only released a calming grumble and he circled around her, his mane rubbing her body in a way cats would often rub at their owner's leg. The only difference was that their sizes were reversed.
After that, Hana felt herself calming down. Leo then lay down on the ground, exposing the side that Dr Tonson had not cleaned and put dication on. For a mont, it seed like he realized what was going on and he was making things easier for them since they were trying to help.
When he was sitting down, his sheer size was hidden a bit. That cald their instinctive fear of sothing so big.
"Thank you," Hana said and Leo gave a nod.
And with that, Dr Tonson and Hana began applying Betadine all over his body. At one point, it was evident that Leo was aware of what was going on as he changed positions so that they could apply the dicine to every inch of his body.
He was very cooperative with what they did.
"He thinks we are grooming him," Dr Tonson finally concluded.
"You an like how the females cleaned him after the battle?" Hana asked while she pushed the fur apart so that he could apply the dication to Leo's thigh.
"Yes. It also explains why he is so calm even though the dicine probably burned the wounds," Dr Tonson explained, "Lions have very spiky tongues that were designed to lick at off bones. So when the females cleaned his wounds, it probably hurt as well. He expects the pain so he didn't panic at all, rather, he sees it as a natural feeling."
"When grooming, the tongue actually scrapes off rotting flesh in the wounds so they also sowhat work to decrease infection. What we are doing is no different to him," he said.
Hana nodded, awfully interested in what Dr Tonson had to say. After a few minutes, all fear was gone as they both worked together to help Leo.
"But you know what's funny? Since he let us do this to him, he probably considers us as one of his own. Maybe he thinks he owns us at this point, which would not be ridiculous at all. He is the king and we are one of the many creatures living in his kingdom. Leo has shown tolerance for other species being subordinate to him, like the vultures," he said.
"That is crazy to think about. But also makes feel safer," Hana admitted.
With Leo's perfect cooperation, they were quickly done with applying the dication in every open and healing wound.
But here cos the tricky part.
Now they had to give him an antibiotic shot.
"Wait, I have an idea," Hana said, "Can you please prepare the injection?"
She handed him the dical kit and she moved towards Leo's buttocks. She began caressing the place where she wanted to inject him. And then she began pinching the place with her hands.
She had long nails but not on all fingers. Since they were living in the wild, her nails often broke off but that was still enough to pinch Leo.
"Arggg, Arggg," she fake growled. She pushed her face towards Leo's skin and pretended like she was biting him.
"Are you... Are you faking play biting him?" Tonson asked while sucking up the antibiotics from the small capsule with the syringe.
"Yes. So that he will not panic," she said and continued pinching him.
That was not all, she began tapping him on the spot, letting him get used to the pain and the abuse on that part of his body.
At that point, Leo turned to look at her with a deadpan face. But he did not stop her, he acted like he was buying whatever she thought she was doing.
"Now give it to ," she said, and Dr Tonson handed her the prepared injection.
"Three, two, one," she said and then plunged the syringe into his body.
Like she thought, there was no reaction. Leo definitely thought she was play biting him and he thought nothing of it.
She really thought she had outsmarted him.
"Anddd done!!" she said after the injection. She continued tapping gently at the place so that Leo would not notice.
"We did it!!" Dr Tonson also celebrated and they both raised their hands in victory.
But right then, Leo stood up. The abrupt action caused them both to fall on their butt. Panic imdiately filled their hearts but unlike what they expected, Leo simply ca to them and rubbed his head on theirs.
He circled around them a few tis, rubbing at them like lions would to show affection. It was his way of saying gratitude, and they quickly realized that.
"You're welco, no worries," Dr Tonson said as Leo effortlessly tackled him on the ground. with his head alone. The doctor enthusiastically rubbed Leo's mane and showed a genuine smile.
The other researchers on the jeep also celebrated with them.
"You did it!!"
"Way to go!!"
Hana showed thumbs up at them in return.
After Leo showed his gratitude, he turned and left.
It was a simple show of gratitude, and the two thought that was the end of it. But it was way more than that. What they did was a turning point for the relationship between the researchers and the lions, especially Leo.
From an outsider too nosy to mind their business, they beca a distant part of the pride in Leo's mind.
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[IMAGE]
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