Today was another calm day with nothing new, scar gets up and mopes around the rest of the pride lands and he notices the numbers diminishing. The animals no longer roamed free, the ponds were shrinking, and even the sun seemed a little darker. This was not what he wanted, all he had wished was equality. The chance for everyone to share the pride lands without the discrimination of species.

"Maybe I'll try to hunt" I thought. I've normally had my meals brought to me by other lions and have longed for the satisfaction of a fresh kill. "Maybe I'll try the grassland". I ran over to the normally thriving prairie, only to find it desolate and the grass dying.

"Pity, I wonder what mufasa would do"

I turned around to see zazuu pacing behind me with a scornful frown on his face, "I've never seen this place so drull. Kind of depressing, don't you think?"

I looked down at him, and decided to humor myself with a conversation. "He would probably say something about everything belonging to him and how it's all a big circle or something-or-other."

"No, I imagine he'd say that the hyenas should go back to the graveyard"

"Only to die. You've seen it yourself, that place is nothing but dry, desolate rubble. Not even weeds grow there, not with the dirt being unsaturated"

"Well if you don't do something soon you'll have the same problem here. Why you can see just fine that the animals are afraid to leave their den due to over hunting, and with less animals dying in the grass there's less fertilization and soon the whole of the land will be dead and then where will we be?"

I pondered this for a moment, "maybe your right, but then again, we can't just have the hyenas leave, that would be unfair, yet they can't stay or they'll harm the cycle. So what is it you suppose we do?"

"Ahh, but you see, there's the point. That is the choice of a king, which you are not. Now mufasa would kno-"

"How dare you speak to me that way! I am your king" I shouted, pinning him to the ground, letting my claws unsheathe.

He gaged, his eyes bulging in fear as his wings flapped helplessly. I loosend my grip and he coughed hard, "temper temper your majesty. My most sincere apologies, although I must say that something must be done. Weather you decide to make the hyenas leave or not, just remember that if the pride lands have no food, you have no food." He flew away, lopsided. Maybe I had damaged a wing, but did that matter? If worse came to worse I would simply eat him. Who is he to question me? I asked his opinion, he should be honored, but he just had to open his mouth about mufasa. That name in itself makes me sick. I've worked to hard to get where I am, I just need to think."

I decided that it was time to head back, so I went home empty handed. As I walked thru the den I noticed that the number of lions had dwindled down to only a couple dozen. they were all sharing their food and decided even thouggh i had none, i still needed to eat, so i stopped by the fresh kill pile and found two plump rabbits. I turned a corner and went down a long corridor until the familiar overhanging ivory that was my door brushed me head.

"Well hello. Catch anything?" Sarabi asked out of the darkness

I tossed a rabbit over to har and laid down, "I still don't understand why you stay, with your mate gone, shouldn't you leave as well?"

"This was my home with mufasa and it will stay that way if I have anything to say about it"

"And what if you don't? What if I kick you out right now?"

"You don't have the heart, you may have everyone else fooled, but I know you at least have morals"

I grunted angrily and ate my rabbit. What was with her, she was always so kind, not just to me, but to everyone. She never judged, never found reasons to hate. "Sarabi, why don't you search for a new mate? I know that any lion would take you in a heartbeat, your always so kind to them and even your looks are astonishing, so why?"

She stared at me, thinking, but finally said, "I gave my heart to mufasa and just want to respect that."

"Hmph, well you shouldn't do that to yourself. Even if its not with him, he'd only want you to be happy, he wouldn't like seeing you like this"

She laid there in silence, but spoke up, "I suppose so"

At this we had a silent goodnight and I laid in my pile of leaves that suddenly seemed colder... Lonelier, and drifted into a restless sleep.