Disclaimer: Not mine. Lion King belongs to Disney. Hail them. Zephyr is all mine though. I know... it's going to end up a cliche plot, but I'm going to try lead hell of a story to get to the end.

A/N: Ha... I might finish my other stories some other time. Feeling Lion King-y. Also feeling sort of scared. I kept hearing sounds as I wrote this– I think there's a poltergeist in my computer room...

Zephyr

'Mum! Dad!' the voice wailed, definitely sounding like that of a young one, rather high, yet loud and convincing. And, in this situation, desperate. The cub's features showed it, a worried look immediately crossed his face, brow furrowing, his mouth turning downwards in a frown, and his eyes looking large.

'Mum! Dad!' he repeated, his vision glancing around. His ears longed to hear his mother's sweet voice again. Long to be reassured she was there, and alive. They longed to hear his father too, as temperamental as he could be, there was the occasion where he really got along with his son. The cub's eyes closed, hoping it was all just a dream. It hadn't happened. It couldn't happen. It could never happen to him.

But when he opened his eyes, he was still in the same place. No different. He wasn't sleeping in his den, warmed by his mother, and father's fur. He wasn't feeling drowsy, groggy, or anything you feel when you just wake up. Terror was the next emotion he felt, and he almost yelled out as it over took him. A whimper escaped his throat, sounding strangled. Nothing had changed.

The ground beneath his feet was a golden brown, coloured like sand. It was like clay. It was like that in the Savannah. Dust blue up around him, barely visible. There was rarely a patch of grass to be seen, and if it was there, it was just poking up through the cracks in the ground. It wasn't the home he remembered. Now it looked like death.

'They're... gone' he said in disbelief. It couldn't be happening. He remembered the memory so vividly. So much it scared him to even retrace over his thoughts. The only place he could see his parents anymore. He was alone in this big empty world, just because five or so lions didn't like his parents. Or maybe they just killed for the fun of it? But why did they leave the cub there? To just sit there, utterly defenceless, and play with him, before making the kill, or were they actually giving him a chance? Or maybe they had never even spotted him? All were possibilities.

The cub couldn't help his next action. No one could if they were in the same situation, and he was surprised it hadn't occurred earlier. Tears began to fill his eyes, making them shiny. He choked, trying to force them back, but they soon flooded down his cheeks, staining his fur. He tried to keep his crying as soft as possible, so no one would notice him.

The memory of what happened flashed through his mind again, and he almost saw it before his eyes. The cub closed his eyes, burying his head in his paws, so he looked like a ball of golden brown fur, but it didn't help. He still saw it all. Whether with, or without vision, he couldn't stop memories, and as he remembered it, his sobbing grew.

They had seen the lions approaching from afar. Big, and intimidating looking. The cub whimpered, hiding behind his mother, who smiled toward her son. She lowered her head. Her fur was a brownish white, a hard to describe colour, really. She looked at him with topaz-yellow eyes, filled with recognition of protecting him if anything went wrong, though, by her words, she seemed determined nothing bad would happen.

'Do not fear, Zephyr, everything will be okay...' she said in a soft voice, satisfying the cub, 'If there's anything wrong, your father and I will protect you. I promise you. I really promise you.'

Zephyr's head nodded, as he peered around her leg to spot the oncoming lions. Most were a brown colour, with black manes framing their heads. And when they all began to growl, and roar, Zephyr's mother immediately begun to fear for her family. She whispered to Zephyr. 'Go into the den, honey... I'll be with you soon.'

Zephyr hesitated, before he turned, and ran, glad to be out of the larger lions presence. He gulped in his throat as he reached the cave they slept within, a place that had been rather randomly spotted. Lying in the dirt, he sat there for over an hour. The sky was beginning to dull in colour, as it had been quite late in the afternoon when the encounter happened. He began to worry, and peered out of the cave. Seeing the coast was clear, he wandered back out into the savannah.

His eyes gazed around, before spotting his mother and father. He had been relieved for only a moment, as one of the lions from earlier suddenly leapt at his father, tackling him to the ground, trying to bite at his neck and kill him. Zephyr shook his head. His parents would take care of this, there was nothing to worry about.

Another of the lions leapt forward at his mother, and two others followed. She would surely be crushed. He could see his father, still, as he was only dealing with one lion. The cub shuddered as he saw how many wounds his dad had. His brow creased with worry, before the last lion bounded toward his dad to help finish him. Zephyr shook his head. He couldn't bare to watch. He ran back in the opposite direction.

He was assured the lions were gone now, but, unfortunately, his parents had gone as well. He was alone in this big empty world. And he was going to die. He knew it from the moment he heard only his own voice echo around the plains, instead of the two more he should of heard. His head bent, and tears continued to make their way down his face. He hiccupped variously, and his body shook with each of the sobs. He only hoped no one was around to hear him.

But, there was.

A/N: Aaaand... it's short. Deal with it. ;)