A/N: Story requested by vampygurl402 to arashi wolf princess. Happy Birthday arashi wolf princess! Hope you enjoy what I've written!
Disclaimer: I do not own Lion King. The Lion Guard would've been out by now if I did.
Marriage
Sarabi could not a remember a time when she had seen so much love between two lions. It wasn't a surprise when Simba proposed to Nala, there was always a platonic love between them, even as toddling cubs. But now, after a few short weeks of the Battle of Pride Rock and Simba's Return, they were obviously falling into a deeper, more romantic love with each other. One would have of had to be a fool to not see the love they shared.
Nala respected Simba, as a fellow animal, as a leader, and as a friend. But the respect wasn't filled with fear, she brave, much like her mother Sarafina, no, she made sure Simba knew when he could make a better decision. She wasn't afraid to fight with him or make the first apology.
Simba cared for Nala. She was his right paw lion, his closest companion, his confidante. He had so much faith in her, trusting her to lead the Lioness Hunt, to report any trouble or newcomers, to be by his side as his friend. He trusted her in a way unlike any other. He even trusted her more than those two he brought back with him- That Timon and Pumbaa.
Both Sarabi and Sarafina liked the meerkat and warthog duo well enough, they were both kind and had interesting stories to tell of Simba. Their stories did show how true friends do stick together until the end. But…if only the mother lionesses could remember which one was which! Sarafina thought it was Pumbaa and Timon, being the meerkat and Timon being the warthog, but Sarabi was almost sure it was the other way.
Sarabi sighed blissfully at the sight before her, leaving the thoughts swirling about her mind. Simba and Nala were finally getting married. It wasn't a very large ceremony, unlike hers. Her marriage to Mufasa was atop of Pride Rock, with every Pridelander coming to see it. It was as if the new heir to the throne was being presented. It was almost ridiculous.
No, this one was simple. It was under the Tree of Life, Rafiki's baobab tree. There were only five other animals at the wedding besides the bride and bridegroom. There was Sarabi, Sarafina, Timon and Pumbaa (or Pumbaa and Timon, as Sarafina kept insisting) and the good shaman, Rafiki, who preformed the ceremony.
As the two mother's watched Rafiki began the ceremony. Going on about how everyone was here today to witness the marriage of-Oh, even at her own wedding she was barely paying any attention! Not until the vows.
"They look so happy," Sarafina whispered in her dear friend's ear, barely audible enough for either of them to hear.
"Yes, Sarafina, they really do."
"Much like you and Mufasa on your wedding day."
Sarabi smiled sadly, remembering that day, "… Yes, Sarafina. Much like us."
Sarafina looked toward her. Sarabi missed him. She loved Mufasa now as much as she loved him when they were first married. She missed as if his death was a day ago. but Sarafina knew she was happier now that her son was safe, alive and home.
"They will be a very happy couple, and great rulers," Sarafina assured Sarabi.
"Of course," Sarabi replied solemnly.
Finally, the long and beautiful ceremony was almost over. The two almost newly-weds were finally exchanging their vows. Simba said his first,
"I, Simba, take you Nala, to be my wife, my mate in life and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever. I will trust you and honor you I will laugh with you and cry with you. I will love you faithfully Through the best and the worst, Through the difficult and the easy. What may come I will always be there. As I have given you my my heart to love So I give you my life to keep So help me Kings."
Then, Nala said hers, barely being able to hold back her tears of joy and happiness,
"I, Nala," The bride choked out, "Take you Simba, to be my husband, my mate in life and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever. I will trust you and honor you I will laugh with you and cry with you. I will love you faithfully Through the best and the worst, Through the difficult and the easy. What may come I will always be there. As I have given you my hand to hold So I give you my life to keep So help me Kings."
Neither of the lover's tear could be contained as they finally said, in unison, their last vow,
"Entreat me not to leave you, or to return from following after you, For where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay Your people will be my people, and your Great Kings will be my Great Kings. And where you die, I will die and there I will be buried. May the King's of the past do with me and more if anything but death parts you from me."
"Now," Rafiki exclaimed, "If there is anyone here who knows any impediment why you may not be joined togeth-"
"Forget that part!" Interrupted the meerkat, who had been sobbing uncontrollably since the ceremony began, "These two were meant to be! It is their birthrights to marry! If there is anyone here who doesn't want these two lions to marry, they can go he-" He stopped for a moment and jerk his head towards the warthog, once again screaming, "Shut up!"
"I didn't say anything!" Pumbaa (or Timon) yelled.
"Well, you were thinking."
"Can we please get back to de ceremony?" Rafiki asked furiously, looking as if he wanted to hit the insectivores with his stick. The meerkat and warthog nodded, keeping quiet.
"Good, I now pronounce you Husband and Wife, de King and Queen Consort of de Pridelands. You may nuzzle the bride."
As Simba and Nala nuzzled affectionately, Timon and Pumbaa both sobbed into each other, saying something about "Not like, love." Sarabi and Sarafina just smiled to each other and the newly weds.
Both Sarabi and Sarafina knew that things were only going to get better.
The End.
A/N: I feel like I could've done more with it, like make it longer. I think it could of been better.
Anyway, I sorta made some references in this, if anyone noticed. I wrote one part at 1 AM (Because honestly, that's when I get some of my best ideas) and 1 AM me thinks her reference are extra clever but she's probably the only one who get them. One reference was to Hamlet, the part where Sarabi and Sarafina couldn't remember who was Timon and who was Pumbaa. That was bit from Hamlet, where the King and Queen didn't know which was Rosencrantz and which was Guildenstern. The others probably don't count as much, but I'll tell them anyway.
One was of my other TLK fanfiction, Friends Stick Together Till the End. "they were both kind and had interesting stories to tell of Simba. Their stories did show how true friends do stick together until the end."
The last ones were Sherlock references. I love that show, I was watching it before I was writing some of this, so not putting in reference or two would be pure evil. So I ended up writing Timon telling Pumbaa to shut up when he (Pumbaa) was thinking, and I phrased "their last vow" (His Last Vow was a beautiful episode of Sherlock, it won some Emmy's) instead of "their finale vow"
Sorry if the order of the wedding stuff is wrong, the last time I was at a wedding was about two years ago, and the I haven't seen The Sign of Three (Sherlock episode again, Dr. Watson's wedding!) in a while, and the skipped the ceremony in the episode.
Reviews and constructive criticism are very much loved and appreciated!