It was quiet in Pride Rock. The moon was out, the stars glittering bright in the pitch black sky. The birds had gone to sleep, almost every animal tucked up in bed and asleep. There was no sound outside beyond the rushing of water from a stream, a river, perhaps a waterfall. The sounds Kion most enjoyed. But they didn't reach his ears. Kion could hardly hear anything - Occasionally, he had to tap his claws against the ground, creating soft clicking noises, just to ensure he wasn't deaf. The usual snores from his father were surprisingly absent, and Kion, who was usually quite annoyed at the noise, was more irritated that it wasn't there to lull him to sleep. The silence was unsettling, so unsettling that Kion found it hard to drift off. Every time he closed his eyes, he just saw the pitch black darkness, and heard nothing. Not the best thing to fall asleep to.

Kion carefully drew his paws under him, trying to stay as silent as possible so not to awake his family. The golden cub heaved himself to his paws with a quiet huff, turning his amber gaze toward his family briefly. Nala lay curled beside his siblings - Kiara, Kila, and Kopa, who all slept soundly. Simba was curled around them all, his huge frame casting shadows over the moonlit cave. Kion stood a few feet away, where he'd been laying before. He had curled beside his siblings to begin with, but moved when he became restless, not wanting to wake them.

He often had nights like this, nights where he couldn't sleep. Where he lay awake staring into the darkness, left alone to his thoughts. Where he would try to get to sleep, but each futile attempt somehow fueled whatever it was keeping him awake. Blinking his amber eyes to clear his vision a bit, Kion turned on his paws and headed for the entrance, ducking out into the cool night air. It was usually awfully hot in the Savannah at daytime - The nighttime is what Kion relished most, when the wind was much more chill, and the heat of the sun was gone. The young leader fluffed out his fur slightly against the wind and padded forward a bit, his gaze tracing the Pridelands from where he stood atop the rock, taking it all in. He could name every place his gaze trailed over, having memorized the Pridelands by heart.

The cub's lips twitched into the smallest of smiles, settling down on the cool stone and stretching his front paws out in front of him briefly, looking ahead toward the desert. Where his good friend, Chaka, lived. Chaka ran his own Empire, an Empire Kion quite liked. Besides his father, he could easily say that Chaka was possible the best ruler he knew - He was fair, kind, calm, and his subjects simply adored him. Often, his grey friend would ask him if he ever considered making his own Kingdom, and Kion replied negatively. Why would he want to rule? For him, leading was a big enough responsibility. Being in charge of the Guard and looking after the Circle of Life, the safety of the Pridelands… Kion loved it, but he could never imagine having to be King.

Sometimes, Chaka would muse to him that he might as well be ruling the Pridelands with as much as he worked to protect it. Kion never saw the similarities. To him, Kiara had it much harder. She was training to be Queen. She had the entire Pridelands and every single animal to think about, to rule over. Kion had several duties, and perhaps they were a bit similar, but there was a difference where it counted, right?

After all, titles mattered, too. Kiara would be officially considered Queen. Kion was officially considered the leader of the Lion Guard, nothing more. Yes, he was a Prince, and should something happen to either of his sisters, he would step up as heir to the throne. But part of Kion's job was ensuring nothing like that happened, and he was going to do his very best to make sure it didn't.

Sighing, the golden cub flicked his ears forward, a small smile appearing on his face as he stretched out slightly. It was a peaceful night, and despite not liking the silence, he was glad nobody was in trouble, nobody was hurt. It was a great feeling to have, to know the Pridelands were safe.

Because of me. Because of us. Kion's smile widened ever so slightly at the thought, his eyes slipping shut for a second. Maybe he could lull himself to sleep with the thoughts of the Pridelands being safe from harm. Perhaps that was why he had trouble sleeping? Perhaps he felt like he had to be awake to protect them?

"Mm." Kion sighed and opened his eyes again, pushing himself to his paws and preparing to turn to head back inside. But that's when Kila slipped out, blinking her tired amber eyes at her brother.

"Kion?"

"Kila," Kion smiled gently at his twin, thinking back to the night, a long time ago, when the roles had been completely reversed. Kion had stepped outside to find Kila stargazing. She told him she planned on seeing the stars from far away, planned on… Well, leaving. He'd begged her to wait until they were older, and Kila had said she would try. The next morning, she was gone. Kion told his parents all he knew, all she'd told him, but they were unable to find her.

Kion himself disappeared not too long after, and returned to find his sister already back home. Kion had disappeared against his will, however. Taken to a camp with tigers, and leopards, and other lions. Many other animals. Most of them enslaved, most of them soldiers. And the King who ran it all - Lucifer. Kion knew after all the Saber-tooth had done to him, he should feel some fear toward the evil King. But he didn't. And he didn't quite feel angry, either. Not as angry as he should be.

Instead, he felt… Stronger. All that torture had pushed him to his limit and past it, pushed him to be better, stronger, wiser. Pushed him to fight more and more. Until eventually, he led a group of slaves just like him, willing to rise up against Lucifer. He found soldiers willing to fight on their side. And eventually, together, they managed to take down the dark King. Possibly the thing Kion was most proud of - Leading his army against Lucifer, disbanding the Sabers and granting freedom to several innocents. But he couldn't possibly have done it alone, and he had many others to thank. Eventually he'd returned home, to the Pridelands, where he belonged.

But he saw the way they looked at him sometimes, like they hardly recognized the golden cub they were looking at. He saw the way they would watch him, almost concerned, as if something was wrong with him, as if he were broken. Kion wasn't broken. He wasn't, but he wasn't exactly whole, either. The pain and anger was easily dismissed. Not to say he didn't deal with it how he should - He accepted it. He let himself feel the emotions. But he let it make him stronger, rather than break him down.

He knew his family thought something was wrong with him. He knew they knew that he wasn't telling them something. And Kion knew he should, but he didn't want to. He didn't want to bring his family into a fight that wasn't theirs. A war that they didn't need to fight. Yes, war. Kion knew it was coming. He hadn't spared Lucifer's life, but he'd spared the lives of his cubs. Cubs he knew had motive to become just as evil as their father, to avenge him. He was ready for it, waiting to be called back. And he knew the other rebels were, too. And soon they'd all be together again, fighting in a war they had to win. Kion didn't know how to tell his family. He knew he should, but he couldn't. Not yet.

He snapped himself out of the thoughts quickly, shaking his head firmly and focusing on his sister again. She'd said something, he hadn't been listening. "Hm?"

"What are you doing up?" Kila repeated herself, sounding almost annoyed. She'd been more irritable, Kion noticed, since her return. "It's really late."

"I can't sleep." Kion gave a half smile, amber eyes flickering around briefly. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Oh, no, you were as quiet as a mouse." Kila replied smoothly, padding forward. She brushed past her brother, identical golden pelts brushing as she headed for the peak of the rock. "Truth is, I can't sleep, either."

"Something bothering you?" Kion asked, turning to watch her carefully. Kila's ears flicked, looking down across the Pridelands.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"It's just insomnia, Kila." Kion replied gently, watching Kila's eyes roll briefly. "You, on the other paw… You're usually out cold by now. So…"

Kila sighed, turning her head to fix him with an almost icy stare, but Kion wasn't deterred. Even before her disappearance, Kila had been quite a feisty one, and Kion knew how to put up with her. Eventually, Kila frowned, letting her guard down just enough to allow her brother in. "Nightmares."

"I'm sorry." Kion murmured, padding forward and leaning close so he could press his nose to her shoulder. Kila hummed in acknowledgement, leaning against him briefly. "Wanna talk about it?"

"Not really." Kila mused with a slightly sarcastic chuckle, pulling back and turning to gaze across the Pridelands again. "'Sides, you're not willing to spare your secrets, why should I spill mine?"

Kion didn't say anything, looking down at her, and Kila turned her head to meet his gaze. Amber on amber, locked with each other, almost in a battle of wills, to see which one would crack first. Neither did. They held the stares with practiced ease, not blinking, not moving.

Eventually, Kion sighed, a weary smile playing on his lips. "I'm that obvious, huh?"

"No," Kila seemed to soften slightly, the ice in her amber eyes melting away. "But I'm your twin, Kai. You can't hide anything from me, I know you too well."

Silence. Again, their gazes met. Again, another battle of the wills, seeing who could hold out longest. Kila broke the silence with a single word, her gaze not leaving Kion's.

"So?"

Kion let out another sigh, his smile fading rather quickly. "Kila, I don't think I'm ready to share." He admitted, turning his head and letting his amber gaze roam over the Pridelands. "Not yet."

"Mhm." Kila nodded slightly. She wasn't upset; She accepted the answer. Granted, she did wish her brother could trust her with his secrets, but at the same time, she didn't quite trust him with hers, so… It was even. "That's okay. 'Cause I don't think I'm ready, either."

Kion smiled again, still weary, but more amused. "Yeah." He sighed, then nudged his nose against her head. "You should try to get some sleep. Nightmares suck, but not sleeping won't help a thing." He stated.

"I'll try if you try." Kila replied, not moving an inch and tilting her head back to gaze up into her brother's eyes, quirking an eyebrow at him. Kion chuckled under his breath, but eventually gave in, giving a one-shouldered shrug.

"Whatever you say, sis."