Chapter 223: Chapter 223: Black and White Friendship
"HUFF... HUFF..." Just as Hah’Er was taking his first bite, Shi Gaofei returned with another rabbit. He seemed furious that the prey he had worked so hard to catch was being eaten by Hah’Er, and he glared with his small eyes, panting heavily.
"Nn!" Seemingly oblivious to Shi Gaofei’s menacing presence, the goofy Hah’Er extended a paw, offering the rabbit leg Shen Yibin had just handed him. He’d taken a liking to this animal with a similar color palette and decided to use Shen Yibin’s handiwork to build a connection.
Shi Gaofei arrogantly lifted his head, as if to say, ’I catch my own food when I’m hungry. I look down on freeloaders like you.’ But his furiously twitching nose gave him away. Shen Yibin had, after all, brushed a layer of honey on the rabbit while roasting it. Any other food, he could have ignored, but honey was a temptation Shi Gaofei found utterly irresistible.
And so, he snatched the rabbit leg from Hah’Er’s paw, darted over to Shen Yibin’s feet, and began to tear into it. In no time at all, he’d picked it clean.
"Hang on, the next one’s almost done," Shen Yibin said, reaching out to stroke Shi Gaofei’s back. Shi Gaofei’s eyes narrowed in pleasure; he was growing quite fond of these little gestures from Shen Yibin.
As Shen Yibin turned back to grilling, the restless Shi Gaofei shot over to Hah’Er’s side again, making Shen Yibin shake his head. ’Hah’Er doesn’t have any more rabbit meat, what good will that do you?’
"Nn!" Hah’Er cried out suddenly. Shi Gaofei had lunged forward and clamped his jaws around the panda’s paw. Hah’Er tried shaking him off several times, but to no avail.
"Shi Gaofei, stop it!" Shen Yibin shot to his feet. ’Hey, even if you’re craving bear paw, you shouldn’t go after a panda. A panda’s paws aren’t even as tasty as a black bear’s.’
"Nn~ Nn~" Hah’Er’s tone suddenly changed from panicked to a silly giggle. His whole body began to tremble, as if he were shivering.
Shen Yibin took a closer look and instantly relaxed. As it turned out, Shi Gaofei wasn’t trying to eat Hah’Er’s paw at all. He was licking off the honey that had gotten stuck to it when he’d been holding the rabbit leg. ’That little glutton won’t let even a single drop of honey go to waste,’ Shen Yibin thought. ’And Hah’Er’s giggling must be because it tickles, right?’
He licked the left paw, then the right. After both were spotless, Shi Gaofei licked his lips, still looking like he wanted more. It was as if that tiny taste of honey had done nothing to quench his craving.
"Nn?" Hah’Er seemed to have an idea. ’This game is actually pretty fun!’ He snuck over to Shen Yibin’s side, picked up the honey jar, and poured a little more onto his paw. He then presented it to Shi Gaofei again, who immediately and shamelessly buried his face in Hah’Er’s paw and began to lick furiously.
’Dude, you’re supposed to be the king of the African savanna,’ Shen Yibin thought. ’So why are you acting like an addict? Does your honey craving make you forget everything else?’ He and Sylvie exchanged a smile, utterly speechless at Shi Gaofei’s behavior.
’And as for Hah’Er,’ Shen Yibin mused, ’you might be having fun now, but just wait until tonight. Let’s see how you manage to wash those paws. Honey isn’t easy to get off. You’ll be in for a sticky situation.’
But that little bit of trouble was nothing compared to the fast-growing bond between Hah’Er and Shi Gaofei. In just a few short days, Hah’Er had become Shi Gaofei’s best friend, second only to Shen Yibin. It made Sylvie incredibly envious. ’Does he have some kind of innate talent for making friends?’ she wondered about Hah’Er.
’It seemed like Egg always got along best with Hah’Er, too. And as for Cheeky, even though he constantly bad-mouths and teases Hah’Er, it’s all just talk. In reality, they get along great as well.’
By now, Shi Gaofei was sprawled lazily beside Hah’Er. While he licked the honey off one of the panda’s paws, he allowed Hah’Er’s other paw to stroke his back. Hah’Er was just imitating the way Shen Yibin petted the honey badger.
"To think we’re leaving tomorrow... I’m really going to miss this beautiful scenery," Shen Yibin lamented, gazing out over the vast savanna. He’d had an incredible time these past few days. He’d witnessed herds of wild horses galloping past, gatherings of elephants by the river, and all sorts of other animals like rhinos, hippos, and cheetahs. And that was to say nothing of the thrilling excitement of watching Shi Gaofei get into fights with all of them. But this place wasn’t home, and the time to leave had finally come.
"I won’t be back for more than a few days before I have to return to my studies," Sylvie added with a sigh of her own. For all the conveniences and honors that came with being a princess, there was a price to pay. She had to do things she didn’t necessarily enjoy. Life at school was nowhere near as carefree and relaxed as it was at the pet shop.
"Well, you can always visit during your holidays. Or we could go visit Egg at Sakai Kaori’s place together?" Shen Yibin suggested. ’Cheeky can pop in for a visit now and then, but it’s not that easy for Egg. He must get a little lonely, right?’
"We’ll have to see. There’s a state visit to Japan planned for the second half of the year, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to find the time," Sylvie answered, sounding dejected. Arranging her own schedule was a luxury she rarely had. Now that she was an adult, she was expected to assist Sokovia with certain political functions.
"When we head back into town tonight, I need to pick up some gifts for everyone back home. Aren’t you buying anything?" Sensing the mood had become a bit heavy, Shen Yibin changed the subject.
"I could get some Mysterious Fruit," Sylvie said, nodding. "It’s a very strange fruit. After you eat one, everything tastes sweet for a few hours. That’s because it contains a natural glycoprotein called miraculin. Miraculin itself isn’t sweet, but when it coats the tongue and then comes into contact with something acidic, it alters the shape of the sweet receptors, making them register the sour taste as sweet. It would make for an interesting gift."
"Hmm, I wonder what Cheeky’s reaction would be to eating one of those?" Shen Yibin began to ponder his own gift list. ’Aside from the Mysterious Fruit, I can get Sun Qian a real African hand drum. An Ivory Ball would be too much trouble at customs, so I’ll get a Coconut Fiber Ball instead. The Cat’s Eye Stone jewelry has a unique style, too...’
But as Shen Yibin was lost in thought, he failed to notice that Hah’Er had waddled off into the distance. The panda seemed to have taken a liking to a large tree up ahead and wanted to climb it for a while. What he failed to notice, however, was that a hyena had already fixed its gaze on him, ready to attack at any moment.
