Author's Note: What follows is a collection of one-shots all about The Lion King. There is no single theme that connects them; they are just a bunch of short stories that I'm posting as I come up with them. I hope you enjoy them.

Simba's Proposal

Nala woke up that fine morning with a light heart and a smile. The sun was shining as brightly as it had before Scar's tyrannical reign, although the kingdom was still a long way from completely recovering from those two long years. It had only been a week since Simba had returned. The ground was still charred in several places around the Pride Lands, and the vegetation had yet to start re-growing. The herds, most of which had not yet heard of Scar's defeat, were still beyond their boundaries, and food was just as scarce as it had been a week ago. But despite all this, Nala was still smiling. Things could only get better from here.

She looked around the den and was mildly surprised to see that Simba wasn't there. Then again, she supposed, he was the king now. He had a lot of responsibilities to deal with, and one of the most pressing ones was bringing the Pride Lands back to their former glory. No small task, indeed.

None of the other lionesses were awake yet, so Nala stood up, stretched, yawned, and stepped outside into the bright sunshine. A brief glance around confirmed her suspicions: Simba was talking to Zazu at the tip of Pride Rock's ledge. His back was turned to her, but she could see that Zazu looked displeased about something. Odd, Nala thought. It was a lovely day, and the Pride Lands were slowly returning to normal. The rain that had fallen the night of Simba's return had been a blessing, and plants must surely be starting to grow again. And once the plantlife had returned, the herds would come back, and peace could once again be restored to the Circle of Life. So why would Zazu be upset about anything? She stepped forward to listen.

"You can't do that, Sire! You simply can't!" Zazu squawked indignantly.

"And why not?" Simba asked, sounding as though his patience was starting to wear thin. "I see nothing wrong with my choice. It's for the good of the kingdom, now and for future generations." His voice softened as he added, "I know this tradition was started by a Great King, but traditions wear out with time. It's time to change, Zazu."

Zazu opened his mouth to reply, but stopped when he noticed Nala standing there. His expression changed immediately; he smiled at her fondly. Indeed, most of the pride had started looking up to Nala. As the only one to go for help, it was because of her that they had been saved from Scar's tyranny. And it didn't hurt that everyone was sure that Simba would pop the question soon. They were counting the days until Nala would become their queen. Not only were they betrothed, as was the custom, but they had been spending most waking hours together, walking around the desolate lands and catching up with each other. Sometimes, all they did was stand close together, not saying anything, content to simply be together. Nala kept hoping that he would ask her to be his mate soon, holding out hope from day to day, but he hadn't asked yet. He's being a gentleman, she kept saying to herself. He's just waiting an appropriate amount of time to ask me, that's all. And it was with this in her head that she was able to face each new morning with a smile.

Following Zazu's gaze, Simba looked around and smiled when he saw Nala standing at the mouth of the den. "Good morning," he said warmly, turning his body so that he was facing her. "Did you sleep well?"

Nala smiled and nodded. "Yes, Simba. I slept fine. And you?"

"Like a baby," he replied. He nuzzled her and sighed. Nala returned the gesture with affection. "Oh, Nala," he whispered. "Just to be with you is…is…everything I need."

Nala sighed in response. Zazu, looking strangely weary, said, "Well, I'll go see if there are any improvements, shall I?"

Simba nodded and said, "Yes, thank you, Zazu."

The hornbill flew away, and Nala looked up at Simba. "I overheard you two arguing just now. Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," Simba said softly. "Zazu and I just had a slight disagreement, that's all. How much did you hear?"

"Not much," Nala replied. "Something about changing a tradition for the good of the kingdom."

Simba nodded but didn't elaborate. "Would you walk with me?" he asked.

Nala felt her heart flutter in her chest as she nodded, trying to keep calm while her mind began whirring excitedly. This must be it! He was going to propose to her!

Simba and Nala descended the stone steps to the ground below. The earth was still in varying shades of black and gray, quite a contrast with the clear blue sky above them. They began walking in no particular direction and with no destination in mind. They talked a little but were mostly silent. Nala's heart was pounding and was finding it very hard to keep her voice steady. If Simba noticed her apparent nervousness, he didn't comment on it.

Finally, once they had wandered over to the water hole (which was still dry, but hopes were high that this would soon change), Simba stopped walking, and Nala too came to an abrupt halt. "Nala," Simba said slowly, not looking at her, "I want to tell you something. And to ask you a very important question."

Nala's knees trembled, and her voice quavered slightly as she said, "Oh? And what's that?"

Simba took a deep breath. "It's about what Zazu and I were arguing about. You see, I…I've decided to do away with the tradition of betrothal. The lions of this pride will be free to choose their own mates from now on. Zazu disagrees, but that's because it's a tradition that's been upheld for a long time, and he can't imagine changing it." A small smile crossed his face as he added, "Remember when he told us about it, when we were cubs?"

Nala blinked and nodded. Her heart was still pounding, but now it was out of fear more than excitement. What was Simba saying? Why was he telling her this? No, he couldn't possibly be suggesting that he loved another! He couldn't! She loved him!

"Nala, are you all right?" Simba asked, bringing Nala out of her panicked thoughts.

"Y-yes," she stammered. "But Simba…what are you saying? Do you mean we…that we…"

Simba's expression was very gentle as he replied, "Do I mean we are no longer betrothed? In essence, yes."

Nala heard a loud crash. It took her a moment to realize that it was her hopes falling to pieces all around her.

"But I want to rectify that," Simba continued almost immediately. "And I want to do it right."

Nala was too stunned to understand what he meant, but she figured it out pretty quickly when Simba knelt down on his foreleg in a regal bow and, looking lovingly up at her, said, "Nala, you have saved me from more dangers than you can possibly know. I love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you. So Nala, would you, not out of need but out of love, be my mate?"

Nala stared at him for a moment. Her mind, which had been whirring and shrieking only moments before, had fallen suddenly silent and inactive. Then one fact fell into place. Simba had asked her to be his mate! He still loved her!

She let out a cry of joy and threw herself on Simba, who laughed as she nuzzled him. "May I take that as a yes?" he said.

Nala nodded. "Yes! Yes! Yes! Simba, of course I will! I've been waiting for so long to hear you say that!"

Simba, still chuckling, drew back and said, "I've wanted to ask you for a long time, too, but I had to make sure I was able to handle being a king before I took on the extra responsibilities of starting a family."

Nala sighed. "You scared me," she said. "I thought you were about to say you'd fallen for another lioness or something, and that was why you were changing the betrothal tradition."

"What?" Simba said, sounding surprised. "Oh Nala, never. No, I just thought it was a silly tradition. I wanted you to agree to marry me because you love me, not because you were forced to by some dumb law. That's why I changed it."

Nala mumbled something incoherent, her face still buried in Simba's mane. Simba chuckled again. He said, "I love you too, Nala."

They stood there for a few moments, completely silent, nuzzling each other and reveling in each other's presence. At length, Simba said, "Come on, let's get back to Pride Rock. I think the other lionesses will want to know about this."

Nala nodded, and the two started back toward home, tails entwined fondly and smiling contentedly as the sun climbed higher through the morning sky.

Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this. Please write a review! I'll have the next one-shot up here soon, and I promise, I'll start work on my other stories soon as well.