Betty Chimpo argued with Shane Simba on a night when the moon was full, the trees dripping its scruff  in her yard from a less than gentle shower. 

“Betty, you have become a target because of your relationship with me.”

He was referring to the photographs in the Daily and those shown on Glenda Gorilla’s entertainment feature. 

“I don’t care, Shane. Whatever I have to undergo is worth it to be with you.”

“I don’t think you realize how bad it can get.”

“I’m a big girl. I’ve been around the block many times.”

“I suppose we should be very careful from now on.  No more nudity on the beach.”

“That can be done.  We’ll just do that in closed rooms with the curtains drawn.”

            Glenda Gorilla was dining with Caroline Cheetah in her cottage in the savanna. 

“This is charming but a very small space,” commented the gorilla who was having trouble maneuvering in the cheetah’s small dining area.

“They don’t pay much at the Daily, Glenda.”

“You should get a job at WMM-TV.  They pay more than the newspaper.  Maybe I can get you on there.”

“No way!  I’m sure Betty would cook any chances I would have there.”

“Speaking of Betty, my idea is to take those before and after pictures you showed Shane Simba and publish them.  There’s a fortune in the gossip rags.  We could sell them there,” suggested Glenda. 

“Yes, of course.  Animal Enquirer would probably pay a lot for those. I can even get more of them.  I have access to the archives at the Daily.  She’s all over those.”

“Super!  Let’s go for it.  Shall we?”

“Of course we shall.”

            The small monkey photographer was in a tree in Betty’s back yard. It was late night.  Shane and Betty were making love in the pool.  Their antics were illuminated by Betty’s very ample underwater lights.  Rocky snapped away on his digital with the long distance lens.  He was getting some great shots of crotches and so much more – giddy stuff for Glenda and Caroline’s favorite rag, Animal Enquirer.

             The publisher, who had a remote office in the Mara where all the action took place, was thrilled with his new and very enthusiastic reporters.  Glenda and Caroline had begun to moonlight for the sleazy leopard.  They were even doing some writing under assumed pen names.  The leopard, whose name was Billy, was thrilled with the before and after pictures of Betty and paid handsomely for them.  The really super aspect to Billy was, having few morals or ethics; he didn’t restrict his material to only Betty.  He was happy to catch any outrageous actions of the vice president on his pages as well. Glenda and Caroline were tickled pink with Billy.

            Alexander Simba and his wife, Lucy, were still not settled in an agreeable lifestyle.  He dropped Lucy off at her parent’s home each morning and picked her up in the evening.  That was the pleasurable part.  Alexander loved his in-laws, Sylvia and Bernard Cougar.  The drink or two in their lovely walled garden was the high point of his evening.  It was when he got the pregnant Lucy to their home that the fun ended.  Possibly due to the sutured cervix or perchance just hormonal changes, Lucy was as tetchy as an old warthog with acid stomach.  She would pick unnecessary spats with her husband.  Alexander had already spent a hard day at the Simba Brothers Law Office and wanted only to putter in his garden and relax.  Lucy was having none of this. She followed him about issuing communiqués of a bitchy and complaining nature. 

            At the end of his rope one rainy evening, he stormed out of the house and headed for the Watering Hole Pub.  The crowd was packed close.  He elbowed his way through to a place at the bar.  Alexander ordered a triple Scotch.  He felt a nudge on his back.  He turned to see Caroline Cheetah. 

“What’s up, big boy?” she purred. “Little Lucy misbehaving again?”

“That’s probably not something you need to know, Caroline.”

“I didn’t enjoy your recent rebuff, Alex.”

“I’m trying to make my marriage work, Caroline.”

“But not all that hard, eh Alex?”

“You are quite the bitch, aren’t you?”

“I don’t mind admitting to that.  I’m sure it’s in contrast to your endearing little cougar mix.”

“Are you still living in the cottage in the bush?”

“Yes.  I even bought the thing.  I’m renovating as we speak.  But the bed is still intact.  That is, if you are so inclined to grace it.”

“I might be inclined that way if you give me a reason.”

He pushed his groin into hers and placed a paw on her lower back, applying pressure. 

“I feel your reason.  It’s hard as a rock,” she breathed into his ear.

“Let’s go.”

Roy Lee Simba walked into Christine Cheetah’s office at the arts center.  She welcomed the superstar. 

“Roy Lee, what an honor it is to see you here.”

“You’re doing a great job with this place, Christine. I’m sure Maurice is pleased.”

“I hope he is.  What can I do for you, Roy Lee?”

“I'm hoping you can help me with an ambition I've developed lately.  I have never done stage work in my entire career.  Mine has just been films and more films. I have a yearning to try the stage.  Micah tells me it is the most exhilarating thing on earth for an actor.  I was wondering if you would give me a shot at it, Christine, here on one of your stages.” 

“Oh, Roy Lee, that would be so wonderful to have you on our stage.  A genuine honor, in fact. “

“Good deal, Christine.  How do we go about this project?”

“I will tell Micah about this and we will all three meet again.  Micah can help me with the material and you can decide what you want to do.  Roy Lee, this is so amazing.  I’m so overjoyed with this prospect.”

“Me too, Christine, and thanks for the opportunity.”

            The next phase of Shane and Betty’s escalating love affair was a weekend in Mombasa where Betty stayed the night in his home, again with his cubs present. 

            They engaged in the water sports that Shane, his children, and the Ashley Lyons so prized.  Tookie Simba and her human boyfriend joined them for dinner.  When the evening ended with Staci and Sean in bed, Betty accompanied Shane to his room.  The sex was constant and splendid.

Shane surfs in Mombasa....

Jerrilyn Jackal Scar realty business was booming.  With all of the construction going on in the Masai Mara, she was swamped with calls for housing and rentals.  Ashley Lyon had long ago left the business as her partner.  She had lost several agents who had moved to more fertile careers or marriage.  Now she needed more help.  Jerrilyn and her husband, grocer Oscar Scar, had undergone the French Procedure again at the Exotic Animal Clinic.  Oscar, being a lion, could not impregnate naturally his jackal wife.  They had one daughter who was a jackal.  Now she was pregnant with a lion cub.  She needed help in her business, so she applied for a new agent, offering them a bonus package plus a percentage of the profits if all went well.  She placed the ad in the Masai Mara Daily. 

Jerrilyn Jackal Scar.....