Struggling to Survive

Maila backs off. She looks up and spots the Shellos group. Because she is not part of the group, she runs off, not having to worry about the fight. Iwahine abandons Ulani in a bush. Luckily, the female pup stays there. Iwahine hears something. A cry. She looks around and spots Kal'Kaua, about 30 feet away, struggling to make it to the group. He is dragging his right back foot painfully, but for Iwahine that's not her problem. She sees a Martial Eagle about to capture the pup. Iwahine dashes forward, but the eagle is faster. Kal'Kaua is snatched...or is he? The eagle's talons are empty. Kal'Kaua gets up again. He layed down, his fur camouflaging him against the sand. That's what saved him. Iwahime manages to catch him, but the eagle is closing in on her. She makes a desperate dash back to Ulani and makes it there just in time. She sets down Kal'Kaua and sounds the alarm. The Hawaiis have retreated. The Shellos's are too large. Iwahine grabs Kal'Kaua and Inoa grabs Ulani. The Hawaiis make it home safely. Back at home, Gumba and Malama greet the Hawaiis. Kapepe bites Gumba's tailbase and shakes gently, a punishment for letting the pups go. Iwahine and Inoa set down the two pups. Kal'Kaua's leg is twisted back at a painful angle. Kapepe gently tries to nudge it into place. It heals some, but its clear that Kal'Kaua will be deformed for the rest of his life. While the group is caught in the struggles with the pups, Maila sneaks in on them slowly. She dashes down the burrow suddenly, but no one notices. In the burrow, Maila grabs one of her four pups and gets out a different exit. She sets it down in the entrance of a bolt hole. After doing this two more times, she comes back to get her last pup. But the Hawaiis are in the burrow and she's lost her chance with her last pup. Maila makes her way back to the bolt hole and brings her pups deeper into the tunnels. 2 weeks later, Maila has managed to keep herself fed and her pups alive, but she's still evicted. Her last pup is still living as well. Kapepe seems to realize that with one of their current pups deformed and the group relatively small, any number of members would help. But it seems as if she is not accepting Maila's other pups. The group has waited this long to allow Kal'Kaua to gain strength for the day ahead. Today, Ulani and Kal'Kaua will forage. The group emerges and lazily work on the burrow. Soon, Kapepe chirps and leads the whole group out. Without a babysitter looking after Maila's pup, Aolani, is serious trouble. When the group moves off, Maila approaches. She cautiously descends down the burrow and find Aolani. At the foraging party, the adults are making sure Ulani and especially Kal'Kaua are getting a good amount of food. Kal-Kaua's leg is making it harder for him to move, but he's just as pesky all the same. Soon, dominant male Mahalo, who's already eaten breakfast, spots danger. The Palaces, led by Pinky Pie. He chirps the alarm, and jumps off the stump he was watching from. Iwahine hides the pups under a bush, and twists Kal'Kaua's leg back so he cannot move. She can do nothing about Ulani. If she runs away, then she's in serious danger. The Hawaiis rush into the fight, pronking their legs high into the air. The Palaces see that they mean business, and Pinky Pie leads them into a hasty retreat. When the group gets back, Ulani and Kal'Kaua are still sitting under the bush. Malamalama twists Kal'Kaua's leg back into position, and the pups begin wandering around, harassing the adults for food. At home, Maila is keeping watch above the burrow. Its important for her to spot the Hawaiis quickly when they come back. In a few hours, the Hawaiis return home. Maila spots them coming and goes back to her little bolt hole. When she smells Maila all over the burrow, Kapepe is furious. She and Mahalo scent-mark the area. Dundy, the rebellious little teenager, goes into the burrow. She comes out in a minute, dragging Aolani with her. Kapepe attacks Dundy and Malamalama brings Aolani back into the depths of the burr0w. 1 week later, Maila has lost two of her pups and most of her weight. Her last remaining pup, Kaikala, is emerging today, as well as Aolani. Kapepe waits up at the entrance. Finally, Aolani pokes her tiny head into the sun. She is temorarily blinded, but gets over it quickly and crawls out. Kapepe leaves Kapu'a'notting at home to watch her. Then she sets off. Kaikala is late. Maila waits and waits. Finally, at noon, the pup creeps out of the burrow. Luckily, the shade keeps her eyes out of the sun. Maila cuddles her pup and looks around. She's made it this far, and she;s not about to back down now.

In for trouble

In the morning, Maila is first up. Maybe Kapepe and the rest of the group did not discover her pups. But when Kapepe emerges next, she gives a harsh bite to the base of Maila's tail and runs her off. Maila is not evicted yet, but she is on the verge of being banished. Her four pups may have died within Kapepe's jaws. Soon, the whole group is up and digging, except for Ulani and Kal'Kaua. The new arrivals make their way up the sand slope and start chasing each other. Maila walks over and watches them, but Malamalama chases her off. Suddenly, Iwahine, Ke Ali, Inoa, Omba, Marigha, Kapu'a'notting, and Dundy chase Maila off. Kapepe joins in, and spits at her as she runs into the brush. Without a mother, Maila's pups, even if they are still alive, will die. Dundy is most at risk now, for she is a teenager-adult, and she is very rebellious. After work is done, Mahalo and Kapepe briefly groom eachother and then take the foraging trip out. They leave Gumba and Malama at home to watch the pups. Ulani stays at home, but Kal'Kaua attemps to follow the foraging trip out. Luckily, Malama grabs him and keeps him at home. Gumba goes underground for seemingly no reason. But crying is heard. Maila's pups must have survived. Maila attemps to get closer, but Malama chases her off. But he has left the pups alone. Kal'Kaua dashes out into the brush, following the foragers. Ulani follows excitedly. When Gumba emerges and Malama returns, they frantically search for the pups. When they cannot find either of them, they go underground to babysit Maila's pups. Maila herself tries to get back in through the foraging party, but Kapepe runs her off. Ulani is seen coming from the bushes, and she runs up to the group. But Kal'Kaua is not around. Iwahine keeps Ulani close to her. Maila manages to get close to the group, but Kapepe grunts and warns her from coming any closer. Maila is evicted, Kal'Kaua is missing, and Ulani is in danger. What will happen next?

Pups Galore

2 weeks after the vicious battle with the Hawaii's main rival, the Shellos mob, Kapepe's two pups are ready to emerge from the depths of the burrow. The feisty male Kal'Kaua struggles up the sand "dune" confidently. But his sister Ulani is less eager. She prefers it in the quiet of the burrow, out of the blinding morning sun. The teenager Hahela gently pulls her out. Mahalo scent-marks the burrow entrance. His jealous brother Kapalo sits by himself. Ulani and Kal'Kaua slowly gain confidence in themselves. But Kapepe can't wait forever. She has to eat, and so does the rest of the mob. So she leaves her two little pups in the capable hands of Iwahine and Ke Ali. But there's one more female staying home. Its Maila, and it doesn't look good for her. She went on a secret fling with a rover from the small mob that sometimes competes with the Hawaiis, the Palaces. The rover's name is Jon Greg. He is the oldest and most experienced guy in the area. He is probably the 4th best male in breeding, after the dominant males of all three mobs. This is not the first time he has come around to a Hawaii girl. In fact, when Kapepe was just a pup, young Iwahine got evicted for having pups with him. But now she is older and not so foolish. Maila soon emerges from the burrow and looks around. She is much thinner. It seems she is going to help Iwahine and Ke Ali in the babysitting duty. Meanwhile, Kapepe has lead the Hawaiians close to Palace territory. They discover that while the Hawaiians are away, the Palaces will play. Their territory is soaked in Palace scent. And the rival mob's babysitting burrow isn't too far away. Unluckily for Kapepe, the group is still at home. Pinky Pie isn't leading them anywhere for now. But Kapepe will have none of it. She starts a war-dance, followed by the other 13 foragers. The small Palace group with only 9 members quickly grab their three week old pups and make a hasty retreat. The group then scent-marks the territory until it is thoroughly reaffirmed that this is their territory and they will have no one stealing it. Then the Hawaiians begin the serious business of foraging. Back at home, the pups Ulani and Kal'Kaua are practicing their digging skills. Maila has kept the babysitters from investigating the burrow and managed to rub off her pups' scent before they could smell it and bust her. But Ke Ali's mad and snarling face is enough to send Maila running back to her pups. He lays in the shade of the burrow. Maila is in real trouble. Kapepe will soon find them and may kill them and evict her. Ulani takes a break from the hot midday sun and goes down the burrow. Ke Ali accompanies her. He leaves babysitting the feisty pup to an experienced babysitter like Iwahine. Eventually, they pass close to Maila's chamber. But Ke Ali, after sniffing a bit, decides its best to follow after Ulani. Maila cautiously comes out of her chamber, carrying her newborn. She moves it quickly into a deeper part of the burrow. She comes back for her others. After moving them all, she arrives back up at the burrow. She thoroughly rubs off her scent before emerging. Iwahine sniffs her, but cannot detect the pups' scent. Soon, Ke Ali and Ulani arrive up also. Back at the foraging party, loyal sentry Mahalo spots danger. Its a rover. Not just any rover. Its Jon Greg. He calls the alarm, but Jon Greg stays hidden. The group surrounds Kapepe. Mahalo jumps down from his perch and scent-marks Kapepe and the area around her. The males keep a sharp lookout for Jon Greg. After a while, Gumba spots him. He and the other males rush after him and Jon Greg makes a hasty retreat. Its getting late, so Kapepe returns home. She is pleased to see that her pups are OK and the babysitters did a good job. She gives them a quick feed and goes down into the burrow after the rest of the family. No telling what will happen down there between then and now...

Testing Endurance

In the vast Kalahari Desert, one little, but close-knit, mob of meerkats scratches out a living. These are the Hawaiis, under dominant male Mahalo and dominant female Kapepe. The rest of the mob:

Neemi, female
Ke Ali, male
Monee, female
Iwahine, female
Malama, male
Malamalama, male
Kapalo, male
Inoa, female
Maila, female
Eikawaii, male
Omba, male
Gumba, male
Marigha, female
Hahela, female
Kapu'a'notting, male
Dundy, female

The day starts with Mahalo and Kapepe emerging from the burrow. They spend some quality time grooming eachother. Soon, the rest of the mob emerges. Mahalo goes on sentry duty, while Kapepe makes sure everyone pulls their share of work. Dundy, the rebellious teenager, is repremanded for not digging. Soon, the work is done, and Kapepe leads the foraging group out. She is pregnant, and needs to find a lot of food. Unluckily, there is a signifigant drought, and the little mob may perish. With only 17 members, many of them quite young and inexperienced, and a large rival mob, the Shellos's, the Hawaiians will have to work hard to survive. Luckily, Mahalo, Malama, Malamalama, Kapalo, and Kapu'a'notting, the large males, will protect the group ferociously. Another small group, the Palices, led by dominant female Pinky Pie, might take over some Hawaiian territory. Today, foraging seems a little better. Dundy, one of the lower ranking females, finally gets her first toad in a month. Kapepe feels odd, and returns to the burrow, leaving second-in-charge female Iwahine in charge. She enforces third-in-charge Marigha to help her. Kapepe gives birth in the burrow alone, but only 2 pups survive. They are Ulani the female and
Kal'kaua the male. Kapu'a'notting returns home and finds Kapepe and her 2 newborn pups. He grooms her. The foraging party, short without a dominant female and a fighting male, encounters the Shellos's. The rivals charge, and the disorganized Hawaiians go in 2 directions - Marigha, Mahalo, Dundy, Iwahine, and Monee go fight, while the rest retreat. As expected, the tiny group loses badly, almost losing Dundy to injuries Retreating quickly, they reach home with all the others. Dundy is groomed and pampered. But Kapepe is groomed more. It has been a traumatic day, but the Hawaiians will recover.