The Lion King
And the Black-hearted Traitor
A/N: LionRoaR: Hello everyone! This is a fanfic I've been dying to write for a long time! Unfortunately for me I'm terribly picky. I finally just decided to give you what I had and forget about the rest! So I hope you enjoy! By the by, the title of the story (in Swahili) means "Black Heart Traitor". Yep. Uh-huh.
A bit of an explanation of the introductory chapter... Well, I'm not giving much away except that in the first part we are NOT among the Pridelands yet. You may be a little confused, but bear with me. It'll be explained... eventually. And now...
DISCLAIMERS!
I do not own The Lion King or any of its characters except my OCs!
Please review! I lovelovelove feedback and questions, 'cause that means I get to reply to them and people actually like/will comment on my storiez! :D YAYZ!
Chapter One
Accusation. Not one pair of eyes that stared down at me held one ounce of anything more. Hatred. Anger. Fury. But no compassion, no doubt. In their minds, I had done this terrible deed. I was a Mhuni - a traitor. My heart fell as I stared up at the face of a lion I had known so long, loved so dearly... I still loved him, even as his gaze burned into me with the emotional depth of a thousand lifetimes' betrayal. And had I not, in his mind, betrayed him? Was I not worthy of death? I dug my claws into the soft loam beneath them, feeling my stomach twist up painfully as I cast a glance at the angry lionesses around me. Mingled within them were the male guards, all tense and ready to fight if need be. If I refused to die peacefully, they would finish me slowly. Painfully. A shiver passed through my skin. I was a coward: I knew that. I had always been a coward. I was no better than a hyena. All I did was bark. I had no bite. Was I a lion? No. I couldn't even stand up for myself now. Was it because I knew it would do no good? Was that why I refused to fight for my honor? Was it those looks, glaring at me without a single thought of whether I could be not guilty? Were they what had caused me to lose hope, to give up all faith in life and the ones I loved - and still love? Perhaps I was weak. I had never been able to fight over anything before. And now, as I stared up at the lion I had once called father, a terrible loneliness spread through me. "Jua Nyota", they had once called me. "Sun's Fortune". But what did they think of me now? Was I the innocent, shy lion I used to be? No. The years had stolen my innocence away. Now I was corrupted, ruined. Now I was destitute. Now... I was alone.
"You traitor! Do you even deny what you have done?" My father's voice rattled in my head painfully, adding to my headache. I winced and shrank back a little, despite the trembling in my limbs. My whole body felt so numb... My wide green eyes stared up at the lion I had always looked up to, always loved with all my being. No one had ever understood me truly. They looked at me and only saw what they had wanted to see. And now they wanted to see ugliness in me. A traitor. How easily they decieved themselves. Or perhaps they had right to accuse me. Beside my father stood a thin, long-jawed grey lion with dark red eyes the color of blood. His shoulders still bled from my claws tearing across them. There was a familiar look in his eye, a malicious sort of expression that I knew so well. The other lions didn't see it. They didn't want to. They didn't think to look.
"Please, father, let me explain-" I knew the words were futile as soon as I spoke them.
"There is nothing to explain. And I am your father no more. You have disgraced me, and you have betrayed your Pride, as well. You are henceforth banished from my sight! Sein – make it so!" The King turned sharply to a small, sickly golden lion. This lion had helped raise me, had been by my side and knew me better than any other creature ever had. This dear lion's shoulders were stooped slightly, and long thin scars ran across his shoulders and back - scars that I remember well. Sein limped forward slowly and then held forth his tail, dipped in something red and foul-smelling. I knew what it was, even as Sein closed his eyes and quickly slashed his claws across my face. I said nothing, only shut my own eyes and my heart to the pain - the pain of seeing his claws coming towards me, the pain of feeilng them slash through my skin. My eyes stung, but I stood still as Sein rubbed the red stuff into the wounds. It stung terribly, perhaps a reminder that now the scars would never go away. Sein's potion would make it so. I would never escape this fate. I held up my head as I blinked open my left eye, feeling the sting of the wounds as the movement contorted them. Five long slashes. Good. I deserved them for my cowardice. I deserved them for the simple fact that I didn't deserve them and could do nothing about it. I shook my scaggily blonde mane, and glared up at my father with accusing green eyes.
"This injustice done here will haunt you for the rest of your lives. I'll make sure of that." I growled before turning and sprinting out of the valley. I ran as far as my legs would carry me, but I was young then and my stamina only lasted so long. With a gasp I collapsed on the savannah earth, sobbing and wishing things had been different. If only, if only...
-.:~*~:.-
The savannah seemed to shimmer in the pale dawn. Animals from all corners of the Pridelands came towards Pride Rock, and the air was filled with excitement. Many voices murmured, many footsteps pounded across the turf.
"Have you heard?"
"Twins! A miracle!"
"-the first time since King Mufasa!"
Many years had passed since the reign of Mufasa. His predecesor, King Simba, had also passed away not three years ago. Now, King Kovu stood at the tip of Pride Rock, waiting to be joined by his mate, Kiara, and Rafiki. Kovu stared at his gathering subjects, feeling a nervous sort of apprehension about the event that was to take place that day, in only a matter of moments. He turned his head, fixing his green eyes on Kiara as she carried the youngest cub in her mouth. Rafiki held the eldest, marking the cub's forehead with a red paint. Kovu wondered what his cubs' lives would be like as Rafiki held both out to the onlooking animals. The male, Narua, was much larger than his sister, Aliona. He was a rich golden color, like Kiara, but had deep green eyes like his father. Aliona was dark-furred, like Kovu, but had rich blue eyes that stood out from among the other cubs. They reminded Kiara painfully of her mother, Nala, who had died of illness only a short time before the cubs were born. As the ceremony ended, Kiara and Kovu felt an ominous sort of presence. They looked out at the gathered creatures, but both knew not what exactly they were searching for. Kovu looked down at his paws and noticed five scratch marks in the stone. He didn't remember digging his claws into the rough surface - wouldn't it have pained him? So where did the marks come from? Kovu frowned and then looked up at the horizon. There was something wrong about this day. Just what was the matter... he didn't know yet.
A/N: LionRoaR: Yes, so, I apologize for the first chapter's shortness but I can't spoil absolutely EVERYTHING in the VERY BEGINNING, now can I? Anywho, it'll make more sense after the time skip. And just so you know, the first part of this chapter happens several months after the event in the second part. Yep. Thanks for reading, if you liked or even if you didn't please review! I love helpful suggestions and general compliments! XD
