AN: Hi there! I hope you're all enjoying the summer. In my home country we are suffering from temperatures close to 35ºC, and since soon I'll be moving to Italy where there's even hotter, I wanted to leave something here for you to read.

Due to the heat, I've been having the situation in the Pridelands during the drought on my mind. During Scar's reign, that is- obviously, I wouldn't be myself if I didn't write about him, and now I'm even writing from his perspective XD. In such severe heat people start acting strange, so what if the irritated Scar got a bit tired, for example?

Yeah, this is the idea this time. I hope you enjoy it. This isn't going to be a very long story, tho. I don't want to tire anyone during such scorching heat…

Part I – Heat

The afternoon was particularly hot and unbearable. Somehow, from the very moment the sun rose above my kingdom, I knew that it was going to be a bad day. And when she came to Pride Rock after the hunt, I was positive of that.

By saying she I mean Sarabi, the leader of the huntresses and the former queen. Former, because she chose not to accept me as her king, alas, after the tragic death of my brother of cursed memory… Anyway, that afternoon Sarabi came to me looking peculiarly down, and since the first thing that caught my attention was that she came with empty paws, I felt even worse. I knew that food in the land was scarce due to the drought, but failing to bring me even as much as a meager mongoose was really a failure. She understood that- I could tell by the apologizing tone of her voice with which she attempted to ease my nerves so that I wouldn't make a scapegoat out of her again. She did that for show, she didn't care if I was angry or not, as long as I would leave her and the rest of the pride alone.

Yes, I felt enraged inwardly, but still… I didn't want to yell at her this time. She'd lost a lot of weight trying to pursue the escaping herds in order to get food, and I could clearly see how her failure caused her to feel miserable. And now, I was experiencing hunger myself… Sarabi explained that she and the other lionesses are just going to have to try harder the next time, but I decided I rather not just dismiss her after she said she's sorry. I wanted to get to the bottom of the problem. It was interesting to see how, for the first time in history, lions were failing to get food for themselves in their own land. Well, we've had droughts earlier, that's true, but even the likes of my father or my brother were able to somehow prevent the pride from famine. But it was different this time. I was almost starting to think that I somehow became cursed because of the way I obtained the crown…

But that was nonsense. To know the real reasons, I needed to ask Sarabi. That female had always cared for her pride, even to the point of foolish sacrifice on her own behalf. And, to my surprise, when I showed to be concerned myself, she actually seemed to like that in me. It was… interesting.

Oh, but you know the answer already - she said in a rather provocative manner. Yes, true… She was clever enough to know that, and clever enough to know that I knew. It were the hyenas- my stinking army of retarded air-heads, unfortunately. They were the cause of the major deterioration of wildlife in the Pridelands. It wasn't so bad before the drought, but now their hunger lead to something of a crisis. I had told Shenzi to be careful with that, but all she ever did was complain that food was short even if her pack barely ate enough to stay alive…

I suppose Sarabi sensed that I was slowly starting to question the necessity of the hyenas' presence in my kingdom. She even said- Not exactly a glorious future, isn't it? as a joke. Not to mock me, lucky for her, but still I became angry and asked if she was criticizing me. Maybe I was even a bit too harsh… She denied immediately, explaining that who she was criticizing were indeed the hyenas. And then I believe she said a bit more than she initially intended, because to my great surprise I heard her announcing that Shenzi was not as faithful to me as I thought…

I was all ears at once. Sarabi could see that I wouldn't let her leave the cave without explaining that to me. She wasn't the type to tell on others, but since the cat was already out of the bag, she found herself in a tight spot, forced to speak up by her own carelessness. With a most adorable sense of shame she convinced to have lied to me about that day's hunt. The fact was that the lionesses have actually managed to kill some single zebra that probably went astray during it's search for food… She said she wanted to bring the meat to me, as I had ordered her to do, but then, suddenly, a whole bunch of hyenas appeared from nowhere, snatching the prey right from their paws and devouring it before she was even able to say a word. And Shenzi was with them, too…

So then I became really angry. And Sarabi seemed to have enjoyed it, somehow. Probably because she was still furious with the hyenas herself. Can't blame her for that- those stupid gluttons stole the lionesses' food countless times, I can't remember how often she'd come to me to babble that I should do something about it… But now they had the audacity to steal my food, and that was far too great an offence! Great enough to make me question the deal I made with those traitorous creatures years ago. Sarabi saw it… She took the risk for the good of her pride. She wanted to see what would my reaction be. And, actually, for the first time since who knows when, I kind of agreed with her.

Thanking her for being sincere, I dismissed her and decided to look into the matter myself. First of all, I called for Shenzi. Not revealing all that I knew, I asked her a few questions… Of course, the old hag denied everything. It was predictable, but I would never let myself get fooled by someone like her. So I sent Shenzi away and then observed- who do you think was the first person she went to? Sarabi, obviously- to tell her to keep her mouth shut next time, threatening her with whatever she could think of, still not scaring the lioness in the least. The atmosphere became tight, but the next day the huntresses just went out to do their job as usual. Only this time, I decided to follow them and see what would happen. Everything was going pretty bad- the pastures were dry and dead so the females had to walk a long distance, searching for anything to catch. They had to go as far as to the border of the kingdom to find a place where there was still some green grass left. There they finally found and ambushed a small herd of gazelles, and, fortunately, managed to obtain a kill. Sarabi, being very obedient, what I liked very much, permitted the rest of the pride to feed, but reminded them to leave some meat so she could bring it to me. And so the females did. But as soon as they laid themselves to rest…

I should have smelled those filthy thieves from a mile away! Truly, just as Sarabi had described, a pack of hyenas appeared out of nowhere. They were about to swallow the leftover meat, but before they were able to do that… I showed myself to them. That dim-witted Shenzi and her two sidekicks didn't know what to say… A shame they just ran away when I roared at them, not able to give me a proper explanation. The lionesses were laughing their heads off! So after I had lunch I decided to leave them alone, this time.

I called Sarabi to come meet me at Pride Rock at once. I thought like speaking my mind at last, and she was the perfect person to talk to. I said that I've had enough of being surrounded by those idiots, the hyenas. I could bear their underinteligent behavior as long as they didn't get in my way, but after what I've experienced in the hunting grounds I was almost about to get rid of them for good. I would not let myself be treated like a fool. I knew that Sarabi agreed with me- she'd have agreed if I told her that long ago. She knew she had a great opportunity, and she was eager to use it. She suggested that I should send the hyenas away… Trying to test her, I said that I've made a deal with them, to what she said she knew why I did that… Hmhm, poor thing… She didn't know half of it, really. I had told the lionesses that I let those beasts live at Pride Rock to maintain peace and provide mutual protection. It was utter nonsense because lions didn't need no protection from hyenas whatsoever, but still the females somehow swallowed it up. However, my deal was far more serious than that…

Then Sarabi used a clever method to convince me. She asked if it would be more dangerous to keep the hyenas here, or to banish them. I considered both possibilities and realized that each was connected with a different risk. Letting the idiots stay could have meant starvation. Not a very pleasant scenario… Then again, if I broke my deal and ordered them to leave, I'm sure that they wouldn't just move. Oh no, they would have fought back- even for such a dry piece of land as the Pridelands presently were… And even though I wouldn't have second thoughts about breaking the promise I gave them for their assistance in my plan to take the throne since they were cheeky enough to lie on me, I definitely wouldn't want to take part in an open war… War just wasn't my thing.

Sarabi could see that my mind wasn't made up, and naturally, continued to encourage me. But I would not let myself be manipulated even by her and her questions were starting to irritate me. She asked if I was the king of this land. The answer was obvious, but what she really meant was to know if I at all cared for my kingdom and the lions in my pride. I couldn't see why she was so concerned with it suddenly. She always consented with being left to care about the pride herself, and now suddenly it seemed to me that my sister-in-law was somehow trying to… test me? For what? I couldn't recognize the strange shine in her eye when she said- show me what you can do… Did she want me to prove something to her? And what would I get for it if I agreed? I wasn't quite sure, but still I wanted to find out. I became interested.

What if I do show you what I'm capeable of? – I asked. My question made her smile, an emotion she did not show to me for so long I couldn't remember. When she said - then I might just change my mind about you – I considered that a sufficient answer. I liked what it meant. The sacrifice she was about to make for the sake of her pride was worthy of my appreciation. All in all, she'd get what she desired, and me, as well… Everybody would be satisfied. I said my goodbye with a smile and promised to think about it, asking her to await my answer.

What was she trying to obtain? Did she think that without the help of my minions I would be more vulnerable to do the females' will? No, she wasn't foolish to think such a thing. She only wanted to see me differently, as I have been years ago, when we were younger. Not Scar the king. Not Scar the despot, as I was sometimes referred to by some of the bolder lionesses. Oh, what a nice picture she painted for herself in her mind- a Pridelands without hyenas, with a king by her side a little bit more like the old one… But she knew that was an illusion. I would never become like my brother. She knew all she could hope for was this small amount of care I could show to my subordinates. And even though the hyenas would be gone, she'd still have to pay a high price to save her pride from starvation- the price of becoming my queen, the mate of someone she hated.

And she would do it. Now she had no other choice but to sacrifice herself. And for this, just like for nothing more, I would agree. Because I needed a queen. And I wanted her to be my queen. More than I wanted the protection of the hyenas. As well as I knew Sarabi, I was sure about one thing- she might not love me like she loved my brother, but she would never become a traitor. At this point, the hyenas were far more likely to start a mutiny than the lionesses.

And besides, I already became sick of those stinking parasites anyway. All I needed now was to be sure that the upcoming changes would leave me safe and unharmed…

That was why I called for Sarabi. I can't express how astonished she was when I said that I decided to go on vacation… I explained that I would be away from the Pridelands for a few days, and that during that time she and her females would be permitted to do whatever they wanted. And, also, that I expect the hyenas to be gone for good when I'm back.

I suppose she was shocked to experience my… self-serving attitude, so to say, but then again, she felt content. True, the pride would not have my support, but when night would fall and the hyenas would be asleep and unprepared, my girls might not even need it. To this we agreed and next day, after announcing my will to Shenzi and her troops, I swiftly left, temporarily putting Sarabi in charge of Pride Rock.