The long awaited...CHAPTER 2! I love writing for Jari, even if she's an OC. I'm pretty satisfied with this chapter, well, kinda. Please Review!
Enjoy!
JARI'S POV
I couldn't believe it. What was Tal doing here? Why on EARTH did she just jump down in front of me. But then I realized the diverted attention and took the opportunity to melt into the brown/grey rock of my home when I heard screams. Tal's screams. She sounded angry but I thought little of it. Nowadays, everyone was mad at my Dad. But then, he said, or rather yelled something that caught my interest.
"IS EVERYONE COMING BACK TODAY?" I paused. Everyone? Who else was back? I peeked over a rock, purely out of curiosity, and got the biggest surprise of my life.
"Yes, yes they are." I did a double take. Was it him? Was it really him? I hid again, took a deep breath and peeked again. It WAS HIM! Only he had that golden fur, that confident smirk,
those brilliant amber eyes. My heart skipped several beats and sped up. HE WAS ALIVE! My heart swelled with uncontainable joy, something I hadn't felt in a long time. I found my way to the waiting group of lionesses, a bounce in my step. That is, until I saw who was at the front.
Nala.
Her.
The witch. The evil spirit sent to torture me. She was at the front, following the back and forth of Simba and Scar. My nails unsheathed themselves involuntarily. I wanted to do nothing more that rip her little throat out. To wipe that high and mighty air right off her face. But something stopped me. A yell. I turned and stared in utter horror. Simba was hanging on to the edge of Priderock with only his paws. My heart caught in my throat. WHAT WAS MY DAD DOING? He leaned over as if to push him off, I could only watch. But then, Simba miraculously jumped up and screamed something. I didn't understand what. My mind was still reeling. WHAT THE HECK WAS GOING ON? Before I knew it, everyone around me let out a terrific roar and jumped out towards the hyenas, teeth and claws bared and ready for battle. I could only stand in shock as growls, roars, screams and shrieks of pain filled my ears.
Simba? Where was he? I watched as Nala saved him from being buried in hyenas and let out a growl. Hatred seethed into every crack of my being.
I was going to save him. NOT NALA! I lunged forward and slashed at anything in my way, eyes searching for any glimpse of the freakish light tan color I hated so much. Nowhere. But I wasn't gonna give up. I batted and swiped and slashed and crushed, bit, clawed, tore. Destroyed everything in my path. Until someone cried out to me.
"Jari!" It was a voice I'd never thought I'd hear. "JARI!" I scanned the moving mass of grey, brown and tan. And spotted a limping figure.
"Mom?" I breathed. It was her. She was in worse shape than the rest of us. She was running as if in pain. Shouting out to me. I ran up to her.
"MOM!" I yelled, digging my head into her neck, breathing in the scent I thought I'd never smell again.
"Oh thank the Kings! My Jari, my precious Jari..." I felt tears flow down my face, felt my mothers tears fall on my shoulder. It was too good to be true. I was alone. All this time, I was alone. And now, Simba AND my Mom came back! This was THE best day ever! I didn't even mind that I was covered in blood, or that cold rain was falling on me, chilling me to the bone, or the fact that the ground was covered in mutilated bodies. Because I wasn't alone anymore.
"Are you all right?" She asked me, tears (or rain) streaming down her face. I merely nodded. "Can you forgive me?" she whispered. Then I remembered what happened before.
She lied.
She hid the truth.
Then she left. She left me ALONE. I pulled away.
"I...I don't know." I said. "You lied to me. You told me that you didn't know who the father was! And he was here the whole time." My voice raised slightly.
"I know, I know, but I did it for your own good! I did it for you!" She cried.
"Oh really?" I countered "You stripped me of a father figure!"
"What kind of father figure IS SCAR?" She screamed. "Did he ever tell you he loved you? Hold you when you were scared? Called you his little girl? Did he ever even show ANY affection at all? Did he-"
"STOP!" I yelled, ears back. "Just STOP!" I didn't want to hear anymore, mostly because it was all true.
"I WILL continue!" She countered. "I didn't tell you because he was never going to be a father, he was only going to use you! He only wanted an heir!" she closed her eyes and staggered forward. "I love you Jari. Why isn't that enough?" she gasped for breath and collapsed. I ran foward and tried to push her up.
"Mom! MOM! Please get up!" I screamed. Her breaths became ragged and she looked at me.
"Do you forgive me?" She whispered. I nodded frantically. I didn't care what she did before. She was my mom, she couldn't die. Not now.
"Yes, yes I do! Mom, please, don't leave!" I tried calling for help but my cries went unnoticed in the crackling flames.
"Shh, Jari...Calm down." She said, resting her head on her paws. "I'll be fine."
"NO!" I cried, vision blurring with tears. "We have to get help! HELP!" I screamed again.
Suddenly, a dark brown, almost black lion jumped down besides me.
"I'll get her to safety, just follow me." Bonsu said. He managed to not stutter and I merely nodded frantically in response. He picked her up, and put her on his back. "Just hang on Livali!" he called, then took off, surprisingly fast. I scrambled to keep up, tears still blurring my vision. I ran after the retreating dark figure. Tripping over every little thing in my path. I roared in frustration as a hyena launched itself at me. I fell on the stone ground and swung blindly at whatever attacked me. The weight on my back suddenly dissapeared. I whipped my head around to find Shenzi staring at me.
"You were the one who was killing off my people!" she growled, advancing slowly. I spat at her paws. She took a step back.
"I was simply helping get rid of some pests. It was orders" I growled, never taking my eyes off the the matriarch. I had no idea where I was going with this.
"Pests?" she barked, a look of rage on her face. "PESTS? Just WHO's orders were you following?" she took several steps towards me before a voice stopped her.
"No Simba wait, I am f-f-familyyy! It's the hyenas who are the real enemy! They did it! They planned everything!" We both turned our attention to my Dad's voice, coming from above us,
slightly behind a wall of flames. I still saw my father's scared expression. I knew he wasn't going to surive the fight. I bit back a laugh. My dad had a knack for lying, but this time, it was going to fail him. He never loved me. So now, I officially never loved him.
"Does that answer your question?" I growled, narrowing my eyes. I then sighed heavily. Enjoying the look of surprise on Shenzi's face as my dad's...no, Scar's statement clicked in her head. "Scar never liked you guys, he simply needed you to get to the throne. He ordered me to start killing you off, one by one. I refused. But he threatened to kill all of your pups, all of MY people as well. He threatened to torture me slowly. And I'm his daughter. So I relunctantly agreed. I tried to go as slowly as I possibly could, killing small numbers. I tried to help you, so that you would notice what was going on and confront Scar, to stop it. Because you guys are more cunning, more capable of arguing with him than me." I breathed a deep breath after my monolouge, wishing desperatly that Shenzi would apoligize and leave or SOMETHING! I NEEDED to get to my mom, to see if she was okay!
"You could have told me!" she snapped suddenly.
"I could have, yes, I realize that, I was planning to actually. Scar got suspicious when he saw me starting to approach you. I didn't want him to know what I was up to." Gosh, I was lying through my teeth!
"Fine, I won't kill you." She seethed. "I'll just make sure that I have NOTHING! I SAY NOTHING! To do with you idiotic LIONS!" She barked an order to a hyena I never realized was there and looked at me again before starting to walk away.
"Hey!" I shouted, not believing what just happened. Why was she giving up so easily? "Where are you going?"
"Just to repay a favor." she said, a suspicious glint in her eyes. With that, she dissapeared behind the flames. I stood there, confused before a mass of hyenas swarmed past me. I yelled in surprise and scrambled up the side of Priderock, trying to escape their wrath. After the last of them passed by, I heard deafening screams. My heart tightned in my chest. Scar. My dad.
NO
He wasn't my dad. He didn't do anything for me like a father should have. My mother was priority. My mind cleared and I bolted for the front of Priderock, eager to see my mother and Simba.
Simba.
I loved him. I loved him since...well...forever! I couldn't wait to see him again. He would be so happy to see me that he would forget about that witch Nala and exile her to the Outlands! We would be the best King and Queen Priderock had ever seen! I smiled at the thought and quickned my pace. I almost shouted with joy when the ledge came into view. When a sight stopped me in my tracks and made my heart shatter.
They were kissing.
Nala...Simba...they were...KISSING.
And he seemed to like it! They seperated and after a bit, he leaned in for more! That BASTARD! He was supposed to love ME! I felt hot tears escaping my eyes, streaming down my face. This couldn't be happening.
THIS. WASN'T. HAPPENING.
It was a nightmare. A hellish nightmare.
I turned around and ran. At least I tried to. I ran into something hard.
"Hurts doesn't it?" I looked up to see two ruby eyes.
"What would you know?" I spat. Not wanting anyone's sympathy. Especially Zira's.
"I was exactly in your position when I was younger." she said, gazing at where all of the lionesses were talking, excited at having the rightful king back.
"I doubt it." I countered staring away from the painful image.
"I was. Scar, you see, he loved another when we were younger. But I loved him. He usually didn't give me a second glance and gave the other lioness all of his attention. But I took matters into my own hands." she said, harshness creeping into her words.
"What did you do?" I asked, curious of her solution.
"I got rid of her." she answered simply. "He spent some time mourning, but I was there to help him through it. And eventually, he loved me." she finished the staement with a triumphant air and looked at me. "I'm not fond of Simba killing my mate. And I'm not fond of him doing something like this to a kindred soul. I have a plan. But I need your help." she said, leaning in close.
"I'm listening."
NALA'S POV
He loved me! He freakin' LOVED me! It was the BEST day EVER! I nestled my head into his thick mane with this thought. It was perfect. I loved Simba, Simba loved me. I must have repeated this sentence a thousand times in my head before drifting off to sleep. Safe in his arms.
I woke up when a cold breeze swept over me. I shivered and reached out to bury myself further into Simba when I realized...he wasn't there. I sat up and looked around. I spotted Sarabi, my mother, Miko and Tal, Kuju and Kiki, Hallette and Falo, everyone except him. Where did he go? I stood and stretched to wake up my sleepy muscles and walked outside, I was instantly greeted by a cold breeze. I shivered and looked around, walking to the edge of the large pointy ledge at the front of Priderock. What on earth possesed Simba to get up this late and in these conditions?
"You should be asleep." A voice said softly from behind me. I turned to see Simba padding up to me, mane rustling from the wind.
"So should you." I countered, watching him until he sat next to me.
"I was just looking at the kingdom, wondering what we should do next. You know, where we should go, what we will eat." He scooted over till our sides touched and nuzzled my head softly. I purred slightly.
"You have tommorrow to think about that. Right now, all of the SANE lions are inside, asleep. You should too." I leaned into his affection and laughed as he sighed.
"I know. I know. Let's get out of this cold. But first..." he wrapped his arm around me and kissed me. Hard. I kissed back and snaked an arm around his neck and dug it into his mane.
Heart pounding and head spinning. We finally broke apart, both of our faces slightly red.
"What was that for?" I breathed, not giving up my grip on his neck. He chuckled and pressed his head against mine.
"For being the lioness that I love." he smiled and unwrapped his arm from around me and started for the den. Leaving me giggling on the tip. I raced up to him and licked his cheek. That was the second time in one night he told me that he loved me.
"I love you too." I whispered. He smiled and nuzzled my cheek. We were walking around the pride, careful not to step on anyone when Simba stopped. I looked to where he was staring and bit back a laugh. Miko had his back facing Tal, shivering. Tal was curled into a ball, equally cold. Simba rolled his eyes and walked over to where Miko was and gently rolled him over until his stomach was against Tal's back and his arm was around her stomach. He stirred slightly but only smiled and snuggled close to Tal, who's smile was equally wide. I giggled as Simba nodded, seemingly satisfied and joined my side. I looked around and spotted Kiki's head on Kuju's paws, his head nestled on top of her's. I smiled and giggled when Simba spotted them as well and nodded. We both settled on the platform, in our previous position.
"What was that all about?" I whispered.
"They just needed a little push." He responded, tightening his grip on my back. I laughed softly and dug my head into his mane. We drifted off to sleep. My dreams full of Simba.
Well, how did you like it? Please tell me!
