The Common Royalty
Chapter 1
Washed Ashore and Taken In
Simba's life was finally starting to look up in the Pridelands. Scar had long been defeated after the Hyenas dealt with him. green trees and yellow Savannah grass had returned to their once former glory, the herds of all the animals had come back to the Pridelands and Simba's family had started. Months ago he had banished Zira and her followers and since she would not surrender her two cubs, Nuka and Vitani, they were forced to go with her. No one in the Pridelands knew she was baring a third cub as they made their way to the Outlands.
Not long after Kiara was born. She had grown into a mischievous little cub. Sarabi said she took after her father, though Simba would try to deny it not wanting to put his daughter in danger, especially with Zira, and her threat to avenge Scar. Where ever she went, she usually had Simba and sometimes even Timon and Pumba trailing after her, even though she didn't wander far from home. She did give her father a good scare whenever he called for her and she didn't answer. Even though he was a bit annoyed by his daughter's antics, he still loved her and laughed inside at how much she reminded him of himself. He had a great family, with his mother, Sarabi still around and his mother-in-law Sarafina, even his brother-in-law Mheetu, when he visited from a neighboring pride that let him stay after he met a lioness. One big happy family. But the royal family was not yet complete. There was someone that had yet to be revealed. Two actually. Simba did not yet know this, but his whole life was about to change.
Elsewhere, a cub had just managed to pull himself out of a raging river and escaped the jaws of crocodiles to the cliffs above. His fur had a gold pelt with a brown tuft on his tail and the top of his head. He was now out of breath. But his break was short lived. He caught a lion's scent and made a dash for the nearest cover which was under a bush. He saw a powerful lion walk by and stop for a moment. The cub then realized that the lion must have caught his scent for the wind was blowing from behind him. The lion seemed to shrug it off and walked on. The cub was safe for now. Since the lion payed him little head, he decided it be best to just rest here under the bush for the time being. He soon let sleep win over and closed his eyes.
While the cub was sleeping, Simba had just made his rounds for the morning. He had caught a new scent in the area and thought he heard a bit of panicked breathing. He gave it little concern thinking it was just some prey new to the area, even though the scent did peak his curiosity a bit. Since Nala was expecting him back, he made his way to Pride Rock, but he still couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched, or maybe followed. As he made his way into the den he saw his wife waking up from her nap, meaning more than likely Timon and Pumba, or Sarabi and/or Sarafina were watching his daughter for them again. "Well hello there my king," Nala said.
"And hello to you my queen," Simba replied.
"So what did the Pridelands have trouble with today?" Nala said.
"Oh, the usual grazing quarrels between the plant eaters, trying to get the Elephants to forget about somethings, but they can't, and the usual monkey business with, well, the monkeys. I'll admit, when I was scouting by the river, I caught a unique scent. Now it was probably just another plant eater that just moved in, since other predators know their boundries, aside from the hyena's before they ran off. Still I couldn't shake the feeling of being watched... or followed," Simba said.
"Oh Simba, your letting your imagination run away with you. With Zazu in the sky, your bound to know when there is trouble around," Nala said.
"Yeah, just one problem... I haven't sent Zazu on his mourning sky patrol yet," Simba said.
"Sire, I am so sorry I slept in late, I'll make up for lost time, and have the morning report before noon," Zazu said.
"Be sure you do," Simba said in a mocking serious tone.
Zazu soon flew off. "You like to pick on him a lot don't you?" Nala said.
"Hey, it was for all the times he wouldn't leave us alone to play," Simba said.
"Well why don't we go for a walk in the Pridelands together. Kiara is gonna be off playing for a while," Nala suggested.
"I suppose we could. It can give me time to clear my head," Simba replied.
Soon the King and Queen made their way down Pride Rock and out towards the Pridelands. "Come on, I'll race you to the river," Simba challenged.
"You're on," Nala accepted.
Simba and Nala soon took off in a sprint to the river. When they reached the river, they stopped for a quick drink being careful not to upset the crocodile nearby. They soon started conversation again as the as the rest of the day went on. "You know, I still feel a bit hurt for having to send Zira's cubs and her followers away. I just wish she would learn and let her hatred go," Simba said.
"Simba, you did what had to be done. Zira made the decision not to end her hate. She has too much pride since she was chosen to be the bearer of Scar's heir after I left. It really is sad that her cubs don't get the chance to enjoy a life of plenty. You know, actually know what it is to be loved and cared for, not this false hope that they will be looked up to by bringing Zira's tyrannical ideas," Nala said.
"That's why I am actually concerned for the cubs she bares. She's already won Nuka over. He's grown far too much to see the errors of his mother's ways, still one can hope. I still see a chance to save little Vitani and that other little cub's minds though. The only thing is, I can't just walts into the Outlands and take them from their family. Zira's not easy to get around, and she'd alert the pride before I could get close," Simba said.
"There's only so much you can do Simba. The rest is for her cubs and her followers to decide," Nala told him.
"I know bu- hey did you see that?" Simba quickly changed the subject.
They had come to the area where Simba had been earlier, and where the little cub had been sleeping. Now both were on alert. "See what Simba? I think your letting the stress of fearing Zira trying to take over get to you," Nala said.
"I know I saw someone and I can smell them too," Simba said.
Nala sniffed the air and soon caught the scent of the stranger. "Whoever you are show yourself," Simba ordered.
The little cub whimpered as he crawled out from underneath the bush. "Awww," Simba said with a sympathetic look as he saw the cub.
Nala was already feeling a hint of care for the cub once she saw how small he was. He seemed to maybe a week or two younger then Kiara. "Don't be frightened little one. Come here, we won't harm you," she assured the cub.
The cub slowly made his way towards the king and Queen of the Pridelands. Nala then spoke once more and asked, "Where's your mother dear?"
"I-I don't know. There was a big storm last night with thunder and lightning. One moment I was on dry land and the next I was in the river. I got out and almost got eaten by those crocodiles, and I don't know where I am. I'm scared," the little cub said.
"Don't be. We'll look after you. Looks like we got ourselves an orphan Nala," Simba said.
"Looks like it. And a scared, tired and hungry one at that," Nala said as she bent down and nuzzled the cub to calm him before she continued, "Come, let us take you back to Pride Rock and I'll feed you there."
"Thank you," the cub said.
"I'm Simba by the way," Simba introduce himself.
"And I'm Nala," Nala added.
"I'm Eurus," Eurus told them.
"Nice to meet you Eurus," Simba said.
All of the sudden frantic flapping was heard and then came Zazu who cried, "Heeeelp, sire, heeeelp!"
They saw that a snake was biting down on Zazu's tail as he flew past them. "And that believe it or not is our majordomo Zazu," Simba said.
The three laughed and soon Nala took the little cub by the scruff of his neck and began to walk back towards Pride Rock. None of them had suspected that they were indeed being watched by two sets of eyes from across the river. "So, Simba's got a new cub in the pride huh. Better tell mom about this Kovu." Vitani said.
Kovu was the last born of Zira's cubs, just a few days younger then Vitani. His birth was a few days after Kiara was born, nearly right after they had been banished from the Pridelands. Zira had trusted them to enhance their scouting by themselves while she found some menial task for their older brother. "Vitani I don't get it. Simba took the cub with him and his mate. Mom said he was a killer of cubs and wouldn't think twice before killing a cub not of his pride. Why did he take that cub then? It doesn't make sense," Kovu said.
Vitani was about to say why he took the cub but stopped. Kovu brought up a fine point. From the stories she had remembered from their mother when they were banished, since she was too young to remember the banishment itself, Zira had told them Simba would kill any cub that didn't dwell in his pride without a second thought, and the only reason Zira's cubs were spared was because she had gotten them far enough away in time. That cub wasn't from Simba's pride, and Simba didn't even lift a paw or bare his teeth to indicate he was going to kill the cub. Now Vitani was begining to wonder. Could Simba not be the ruthless King they were told he was? Did their own mother lie to them and make them think Simba was a cub killer? What if Zira had lied about Scar's death by Simba too? Was there a chance that maybe Simba might take her and Kovu in if they left their mother?
All these questions began to twirl around in her head, mainly because their life in the outlands was horrible and with a mother making them work as hard as they did, Vitani hated to admit it but, she was willing to look for any way out of the state she and Kovu were in. Even the fellow Outlanders treated them unkindly that Vitani and Kovu barely got anything to eat, since Zira had stopped nursing them both early. "Hey Vitani, you okay," Kovu snapped her back into reality.
"Huh, oh, sorry, thinking about what you said. Honestly, I don't know, but we got to tell mom, she'll probably have us running like 100 times around the termite mounds if we don't tell her. And there's something I want to talk to about later tonight," Vitani said.
"Okay. Well, lets go. The sooner we get home, the sooner we might get rewarded," Kovu said.
"Right," Vitani replied and soon the two of them headed back to the termite mounds.
Meanwhile at Priderock, Nala had just started nursing little Eurus. The cub was quite nervous, for everyone was a stranger to him. The pride thought he was a cute little cub, and his timidness made him all the more cute. Simba had gone off in search of his majordomo hoping he could have him spread the word of the new pride member. Nala knew the cub needed to be looked after and she felt it was her responsibility to watch over him. She didn't know if Simba felt the same way, but she had a rough idea of what his intentions were.
Besides, Kiara was always talking about how she wanted a brother or sister to play with. trouble was, Nala didn't know when Eurus would warm up to Kiara, and Kiara was always the playful type. As Eurus finished his meal, Nala put him between her paws and began to give him a bath. She was surprised he didn't squirm away as she did, but then thought it must be because it's his first day with a new pride and a lot can be scary for a cub his age when he doesn't know much about them. As she finished giving him a bath, she said, "You know you don't have to be afraid Eurus. This pride is very kind and no one here would bring you harm. We want to help you and let you be part of the pride, and if my mate allows it, you could be part of my family."
"Wha- be a prince your highness?" Eurus finally asked.
"Yes, you've been through so much in such a short time, I think you deserve it," Nala tells him.
"But, what if King Simba says no your majesty?" Eurus asked.
"Hmhm, there's no need for the formalities Eurus, and don't worry, I know that Simba will, besides, I have a few tricks up my sleeve to get him to agree, even if he disagreed, but I know he'll agree," Nala said.
"O-Okay," Eurus said, still a bit nervous.
"Now get some rest. I am sure that trip down the river was very tiring for your body, so you need as much rest as possible dear," Nala said.
Eurus agreed. He had to admit, even though he had gained some rest after being free of the river, he still felt very tired, and he was already showing he was on the verge of passing out to begin with. He soon fell asleep between Nala's forepaws and she pulled him close to keep him warm. Nala knew that Eurus was going to need to be introduced to the kingdom at sometime, but she would worry about that another day. Now she was just waiting for Simba to return so they could talk, and for Kiara to return to meet her possible new brother.
End of chapter one. Hope you liked it. So Simba's pride has gained a new member, and possibly prince. And the Outlanders are up to their notorious schemes. Nala seems to have a really soft spot for Eurus. So will Simba agree to make him a prince? What will Kiara's reaction be when she see's him? How will Eurus adjust to his new life in the Pridelands. What will Zira think of this latest development? And what is going through Vitani's head right now? Read future chapters to find out. I thought I would try something new to put a twist on the story of Lion King II. Let me know what you think and leave a positive comment and constructive criticism for me. As always, I'll update when I can and stay tuned.