Andy woke to being jostled, a calloused hand on his shoulder rocking him gently awake. "Come. Up. We must get moving." It took Andy a moment to remember where he was, and why there was something on his face. It all came back when he saw those dark brown eyes watching him from behind a lion mask. Andy slowly sat up and looked around the camp, Hyena and Rhino were still sleeping, he looked questioningly at Lion. The sun wasn't even up yet, though light was starting to filter into the morning sky as it moved to dawn.
"The trip will be harder for you, we must.." Lion motioned at Andy. "Take care of you."
Andy looked down and knew instantly what his companion meant. His skin had burned yesterday, and now it was an angry shade of red, and now that he noticed it, it felt like ants crawling all over his skin.
"Come.." Lion slung a bag over his shoulder, and motioned for him to follow and they both went down to the watering hole. Strangely, despite the burn and the near death experience yesterday, Andy felt more full of energy than he had in years. He felt like he was back in college. Looking down at himself, he even looked a little leaner, but he guessed he probably shed most of his water weight yesterday risking dehydration and it would be back once he could get enough in him.
It wasn't to the waters edge that Lion led him, but to a mud pit. "Strip." Lion said the word like a man used to giving commands and being followed.
Despite the mask, Andy's hesitance must have been plain, because Lion let out a vexed noise. "Strip. Trust me."
Sighing, Andy did as he was instructed, first removing his boots, then peeling himself out of his shirt and shorts, folding them carefully and setting them aside. He was even a bit pink under where his shirt was, but the line between that and the angry red of his exposed skin was clear. It hadn't been his imagination, the little paunch he had grown the last couple of years was definitely smaller.
"All of it." Lion said with a motion to Andy's underwear. Andy was hesitant to strip naked, and not just because of the comparison between his out of shape, verging on dad bod, physique compared to Lion's well muscled athletic form. But also because he was afraid what might come next. "Listen. You foreigners think you know better. But I will live out here and you will die. So listen."
Andy sighed and nodded. "I'm sorry, you're right. You've done nothing but help so far." The underwear came off and joined the pile.
He couldn't actually see it, but he felt like Lion was smiling behind the mask, something about the way his eyes looked him over. "You will not like this, but it will help." Lion scooped up a bunch of mud in his hand and smeared it across Andy's chest. "Keep you from burning." Actually, the cool mud even seemed to help soothe his burnt skin, acting like a salve. Andy bent down to get some mud himself to help, covering his arms and legs while Lion got the parts of himself he couldn't reach. It was bad enough to have Lion covering his ass in mud, but when Lion grabbed Andy's cock to smear more on, Andy almost jerked back, but the strong grip on his member kept him from getting to far. "Foreigners." Lion said, sounding amused, as if it was no oddity that a near stranger was touching his cock, or that Andy felt himself stirring at the touch. That only seemed to amuse Lion more.
In the warmth as the sun started rising, the mud dried quickly, large bits flaked off, but a fine layer of dirt remained covering every inch of his exposed skin. He went to get his clothes and pull them on, but Lion quickly got in his way, holding up one of those patterned clothes him and the others wore about their waists. "Better for the heat."
Andy took it and looked down, then at how Lion's was wrapped. With a sigh, Lion took his off. The man wasn't only impressive in the muscle department, Andy found himself staring at the hefty tool between Lion's legs. What was he doing, he had no interest in men, he had a girlfriend for God's sake. He hoped Lion didn't catch him staring and instead followed his instructions as he tied his own garment back on. Next came a pair of sandals identical to Lions, which amazingly fit Andy's feet perfectly.
Lion nodded approvingly and motioned for Andy to follow him back to camp. When Andy moved to collect his clothing all he got was a sharp, "Leave them." Andy opened his mouth to argue but figured there would be no point. Not like he had anything important in there, is wallet and passport were back in his backpack he left in the jeep.
When they got back to camp, Hyena and Rhino were up. He expected Hyena to at least laugh at his mud covered form, but both men just greeted him with slaps on his back. Everything packed up into four bundles instead of three. Andy figured that was fair, though they did hand him the smallest of the four, along with a piece of flat bread and some of last night's cold rabbit meat. They ate as they started walking, Andy practically devouring the meal as if he hadn't eaten in days, washing it down with a good swig of cooling water.
Andy was fully expecting to have a hard time on this trek, out of shape as he was, but he found himself keeping up with the three younger men. Maybe they were slowing down for him, but he wasn't lagging behind and that was the important part. In fact, as the day passed on he found the walk easier and easier, as if moving the muscles wasn't wearing them out but waking them up. Without the noisy jeeps, Andy kept spotting more and more wildlife he figured he would only have gotten a passing glance at on the safari, and for a weird moment he was thankful he got left behind. This would be a story to tell, maybe he could even write a book.
He was mostly left with his own thoughts, as when the other three talked it was in their own language, and Lion didn't have a firm enough grasp of English to carry on more than superficial conversation. He knew what he needed to speak to foreigners when they came to visit his tribe.
But he managed to get a few things out of the man. He was the chief's oldest son. This trip was done by all men on reaching adulthood to get in touch with their inner spirit or animal. Andy couldn't tell which and to Lion they seemed to be one and the same. The masks were symbolizing the spirit their tribe's shaman had seen for them, each of them had crafted their own. Except the one Andy wore had been crafted by their dead friend, carried to honor his memory, though none of them seemed bothered Andy now wore it.
While they were walking along a ridge over a valley. Hyena called out a word, then repeated it.
Lion tapped Andy on the shoulder. "He's calling you." Andy looked up and Hyena was gesturing eagerly for him to come over to a rocky ledge. Andy went over and Hyena eagerly pointed down into the valley. There, a whole herd of Zebras were milling about, their stripes making a dizzying pattern in the grass. Hyena laughed and clapped him on the shoulder, the group moving off once again.