A/N: Thank you MrSimba, GuardianSaint, Money100, and CandyCane21 for the reviews :D! This chapter has a little more occurring in it, I'm trying my hardest to update as soon as I can! And, it's finally Friday!

...

How it ends

The sun's rays fluoresced Nala's den, causing her eyes to gradually slide open. In an instant, she jerked up. The den was empty. Her mother and father gone, her brother too. Her father had probably gone to Pride Rock everyday like he always had; it was his job. Sarafina has most likely gone hunting, or she'd taken Mheetu for a drink. She seemed pretty mad at Nala last night, and probably needed time to cool off. Nala heard faint snoring from behind her, though.

Teal eyes redirected to a bright tow-coloured male with auburn mane and blue eyes. Tojo. He must have heard her sigh, because seconds afterwards he aroused too. Tojo caught sight of Nala, erected onto his paws and stretched. He proceeded to approaching her and pushing his face against hers, delighted to have his mate be the first thing he saw that morning.

"Good morning, love," he greeted affectionately, pulling out of the nuzzle to bless her with a lick. Nala rolled her eyes, but he didn't notice.

"How'd you sleep?" Nala asked politely, her voice not as affectionate. In fact, she seemed rather distressed. She'd dreamt of Simba last night, her friends and their crushes. They were all happy. She was slightly ashamed to have dreamt of another lion while sleeping beside her mate.

Tojo yawned. "Better now that you came here." It only made Nala feel worse that she hadn't even thought of him once that night. He pulled away from her and shook his mane, as if to make it seem more attractive. "And it really bothers me that I can't spend any time with you."

"Why can't you, anyway?" Nala jumped to her paws, eyeing him doubtfully. Not that she actually had any doubts about his claims, but she was still curious.

"I'm in training," he said. "Simba is sure that Zira will prepare an attack soon and he wants us to be ready. Don't you remember how the battle with Simba's father and Zira's mother turned out? And how Zira's mother managed to get Scar on the throne?"

Nala and Tojo were only cubs when Zira's mother, Hasira, had managed to overthrow king Mufasa, killing him. Hasira had managed to chase Simba out of the kingdom too, but he'd recently returned. She worked with the hyenas and some lionesses in order to convince the pride to get Mufasa's brother, Scar, on the throne. Thus initiating the reign of the Shadowlands - where the rivers mostly remained evaporated, the lands herdless and the lionesses famished. At the time, Tojo and Nala were adolescents and Mheetu had just been born.

"Yes, I remember," Nala recalled dejectedly, biting her bottom lip. "But must it hog so much of your time? All I want is that you have a little time for your own mate..." In truth, Nala didn't want to be with him at all. But if she wanted their relationship to work, she might've as well spent time with him and learn to love him rather than hating him and knowing nothing about him.

"I know we should spend more time together, but I must take orders from the king. It's my duty."

"You're telling me that every single day, from the moment the sun rises till it sets, you don't have time for your own mate?" Nala demanded, narrowing her eyes at him. "We're mates, Tojo! We're supposed to start a family by now, but I don't even know how I'm supposed to bear a cub in this state-"

"The Great Kings of the Past will bless us with cubs at the right moment, Nala, but right now there are certain duties we must overcome," Tojo interrupted, his voice as serious as Nala had ever seen before. He headed towards the cave entrance. "I'm going now. I'll see you later." He left.

Anguish consumed Nala as she watched Tojo leave. She felt so...jealous that he'd had just as much freedom as she did. But that he didn't even have time time to visit her. Freedom of being with who he loved. Tojo adored Nala dearly, but it was only because his parents were great friends of her father that Sarafina and Ni had decided to betroth them. She didn't even like Tojo. She couldn't admire anything in him.

Nala reclined in a small corner of the den, her paws nestled underneath her jaws and her tail wrapped around her hind legs.

After a few moments, Mheetu gleefully sprung in at the sight of his sister.

"Nala!" the grizzled cub exclaimed. He clamped his paws around Nala's back. "Can you take me to the waterhole?"

Nala groaned. "Why can't Mother-"

"She went hunting," Mheetu interjected. "Dad's not here and Tojo's not either! So please..."

"Alright," Mheetu's older sister decided. "We'll go, but we won't go for long."

...

Simba sauntered out of the cavern, with Malka, Chumvi and his cousin, Malek tagging along after him. They were currently heading to the waterhole. The four males writhed down the rocks that formed a sort of ramp for the koppie, trekking onwards. It was rather rare for Simba to be relieved from his duties, especially since he had a lot to fix from the previous reign. But by now, many missions of his had been accomplished. And he'd finally made some free time to hang out with his buddies.

"Hey, Cousin," Malka called, as they ambled to the waterhole, "Have you thought of a queen?"

Simba remained silent for a moment.

"Yeah, you are the king now, you know." Chumvi quickly put in. He and Malka exchanged snickering glances.

Simba rolled his eyes. "No, not yet," he admitted. "But none of the lionesses really impress me in that way, to be honest."

"And don't forget," Malek began, joining in on the conversation. "Cubs."

The word made the three males cease and stare at the lion in bombshell. It brang up several images in their minds - it was rather...awkward. Yes, they were by now young adult males, but none of them had even considered perceiving a mate. Simba's eye twitched, and he instantly frowned at his cousin. His face contorting into a look of horror.

"What, you turned king not knowing you needed an heir?" Malek inquired, continuing to saunter.

"Of course I need an heir...and a queen," Simba nearly shouted, slightly flustered from what his cousin had just said. "But the...It...Cubs, it just-"

"Don't worry, Simba. You won't have to worry about not having cubs, because you'll probably be siring cubs from a lot of our pride lionesses." Malka taunted, enjoying Simba's discomfort.

"...Thanks, guys," Simba said awkwardly, rolling his eyes. His tone had a tone of annoyance. The males had finally reached the waterhole. It remained peaceful, soundless and nearly empty. There were three lionesses and a young cub.

Marah, Tama and Nala stood beside the water, peering at their reflections. Mheetu had bounded off to go and frolic elsewhere as he always did when he visited the waterhole with his mother. Marah spun her claw around in the water, releasing several currents that disturbed the water's peacefulness. She glanced up, and at the sight of Simba and his friends, her ears perked up.

"What's wrong, Marah?" Nala asked warily as she noticed her friend spring to her paws. She stood up and tried to trace Marah's gaze. The lioness nearly fell over when she saw the king there.

The same could be said for Marah and Tama, for Marah had accidentally bumped into her friend upon seeing one of the males. Before Nala even realized it, she was two seconds away from falling into the water. Marah hadn't noticed her accident, only when Nala yelled for help.

Nala closed her eyes, expecting the waterhole's glacial water to slap her body in less than a second. But for some reason, she'd stopped falling. It was as if she was hovering in a sort of way.

"Wha..." Her gaze averted to a golden male lion with crimson mane, that grasped her shoulders and prevented a bad fall in the water. It was Simba. King Simba.

"Are you alright?" His voice sounded soft and gentle; it was almost as if he wasn't a king at all. The same could be said for the way he held her. He held her gently, making sure she wasn't hurt in anyway. In all honestly, Nala had expected him to be slightly audacious and snobby.

"Y-Yes..." Nala could feel her face burn under her fur. She was probably going red now. "T-Thank-"

"Nala!" Marah screamed frantically, aiding her friend as she was safely released from the king's grasp. "I-I'm so sorry!"

"That's okay, Marah." Nala replied shyly. Malka, Malek and Chumvi came rushing over, intrigued in the scene.

"No offense but," Simba began. Once again, an awful feeling aroused in the pit of Nala's gut. "You're heavier than you look."

You're heavier than you look, you're heavier than you look, you're heavier than you look, you're heavier than you look.

Nala's snout suddenly crinkled into a snarl. "What, did you just say..." A growl became audible. Had it not been for Chumvi, Nala would've leaped onto the king and ripped his throat out right then and there.

The brown, muscular lion hissed back at the lioness. She knew not to mess with him any longer, but she was still mad.

"Oh, no you didn't." Tama seethed, baring her fangs. She approaching Chumvi with a low growl, but as soon as she noticed Malka, she froze. "Hey... It's you."

Malka flinched. It was that lioness that'd tried to start a conversation with him, who noticed his obvious displeasure of her attempts to impress him.

"Well, I don't see the point of staying here any longer," Tama merely said. She glimpsed at Nala and Marah, who were rather perplexed at what had happened between Malka and Tama. "Excuse me, cousin Nala. Excuse me Marah." She headed off to who-knew-where. Probably off to go and search for Mheetu and spend time with him instead.

To her surprise, Malka chased after her. "Tama!" the male lion with bi-coloured mane yelled. "Tama, wait up!"

It wasn't until they ended up away from the rest that Tama decided to cease. She half-turned to glare at the handsome male lion that was awaiting her, before dragging her paws to attend him. "What is it, Malka..." Her tone flared with a hint of fury.

Malka detected her bitterness and sighed. "I'm sorry if I seemed a little rude the other day," he said apologetically.

"Rude? Impudent is more the word!"

Malka narrowed his eyes. "Let me also point out that I wasn't that harsh, Tama."

"Hah! Easy for you to say," the headtufted lioness laughed wryly. She sits on her haunches, out of exhaustion. Tama wanted to avoid his gaze, she'd embarrassed herself in front of this attractive male enough.

"Are you a relative of the king?" Malka inquired innocently.

"No. My mother only works with the shaman there," Tama replied.

"No way...You're Elena's daughter?" he gasped, his tone emphasising his astonishment. He stood up. "I owe her my gratitude. That lioness is so kind...And look at you." He snickered then.

Tama furrowed her eyebrows, wanting to smile. But she managed to resist the temptation. "Hey, I'm not that bad..."

...

"I think you should tell your friend to calm down, Your Majesty." Marah advised, as politely as she could, for the sight of a really protective Chumvi irked her.

Simba took her advice, placing a paw over his friend's shoulder. "Chumvi, it's okay."

"Gee, you'd think he was your boyfriend or something." Tama snorted, rejoining them with Malka at her side.

"And nobody'd think Malka was your boyfriend?" Malek chuckled, earning a low growl from Tama.

"The point is," Marah stepped in to defend Nala. "While the king did save Nala, he also made an embarrassing comment about her."

"Marah, it's fine," a flustered Nala cried. "Don't worry."

"This whole thing is exaggerated and childish," the lioness's rant continued. "I'm going to take a drink." She began to amble off towards where the water was.

"I'm quite thirsty too," Malek agreed, before tagging off after her. Nala and Tama could see that the lion and lioness had gone together, leaving them alone with Simba, Malka and Chumvi.

Simba turned to Nala once Marah was out of earshot. He didn't want her to unexpectedly return and yelling her head off at how he'd offended her friend. "I'm sorry, Nala." he said apologetically. To his surprise, Nala ushered him with a smile.

"No harm done, Your Majesty." she said.

"Please," Simba pleaded. "Call me Simba."

"You can call me Malka," Malka introduced himself, stepping in beside his cousin. "I'm Simba's cousin, related to him through his mother. I serve as a guard at Pride Rock." Strangely enough, he looked to Tama to see her reaction. Perhaps he could get her on his good side again. But she didn't even seem to be fascinated by it.

"I'm Chumvi, I guess..." the brown lion said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "I'm a friend of Simba's, also a guard at Pride Rock. I'm sorry for being so harsh on you guys earlier."

"Don't sweat it." Nala smiled at him. She turned around to get a look at Marah and Malek, who'd by now disappeared into the distance. She wondered if they'd really gone to take a drink, or if they just used that as an excuse to talk alone. "Is Malek a friend of yours, too?"

"Yes, he's my cousin, related through my father." Simba replied.

"I'm Tama," Tama presented herself, pawing her headtuft. "I'm Nala, Marah and Kula's friend, and my mother works with your shaman at Pride Rock. I'm sure you know who Elena is."

"I'm Nala, I'm Kula's cousin. She's not here right now, as her and her mother were busy. Her, Tama and Marah are my best friends. My father, Ni, works as a guard at Pride Rock."

"Now I see the resemblance," Simba noted, a gleeful smile creeping onto his maw. "But I'm guessing you look more like your mother."

Tama laughed. "She does. They're like twins with different colour eyes!"

"Hey, aren't you Tojo's mate?" Chumvi asked, a curious look upon his face.

All eyes were on Nala as she skeptically looked down to her paws, and then away from them. She wasn't comfortable sharing such information as she'd never loved Tojo. She never planned on being stuck with him and having a future with him. Her parents had just arranged her to him. To her, telling them this was another way of showing how strict her parents were, or how she had no freedom. But who was she to lie to the king? They'd probably find out anyway.

"Yes, I am," Nala admitted rather hesitantly. "My parents made me marry him, but I didn't want to."

"It's better than being in my situation," Simba awkwardly stated.

"What do you mean? Don't you have a mate?" Tama asked.

Simba shook his head. "As king, I have many expectations. One of them is to find a queen and-"

"-And sire lots and lots of cubs!" Malka exclaimed gladly, not wanting to skip the opportunity to embarrass his cousin in front of two lovely lionesses.

Simba rolled his eyes at his cousin. "Yes, that." He put emphasis on the word, clearly demonstrating that he wasn't so fond of talking about the situation, yet. "But finding a mate is hard. I have no lionesses in mind, and I don't want to be stuck with someone I don't love forever."

"But then, why do you want to be in my situation?" Nala inquired. "If you're in my situation, that's bound to happen. With your situation, you're free to choose whoever you want."

"If you're really struggling that much, you could always get to know lionesses that don't live at Pride Rock," Tama suggested, "Or, if you're lucky, you could always visit neighbouring prides to-"

"Likewise..." Nala interrupted with a ticklish simper. Her heart only seemed to thump more when she thought of Simba with other gorgeous lionesses. It was almost like she was jealous in some way.

"Thank you, Tama." Simba lowered his head. "I'll take that into consideration." He gaped at Nala's paws.

"In fact, I think that's what I'll have to do too," Tama suggested. "After all, I'm too boring and clearly not impressive for the lions here. If I want to find a mate, I'll have to look elsewhere." She was obviously baiting Malka out.

Malka only frowned at her.

"You know, it's kinda weird how we all met," Chumvi pointed out, changing the subject. He seemed to be the only one who wasn't taking love into consideration. "I mean, it's not everyday lower-ranked lionesses get to see the king and his loyal guards."

"And it certainly won't be the last." Simba remarked. "We'll meet again soon, even if it means you three, or four, coming to Pride Rock."

"We'd be honoured!" Tama beamed.

"Honestly, when I first saw Simba, I thought he'd be a snobby and arrogant king, who I wouldn't ever get to talk to." Nala said. "But this little meeting changed my perspective entirely." She suddenly remembered something: she had to be back by nightfall. Nala looked up; the moon was locked high in the sky.

Her teal eyes scanned around for a young grizzled cub. Mheetu was nowhere in sight. The lioness stiffened. "Mheetu!" She looked around frantically. "Mheetu, where is he?"

"Didn't he go off with Marah?" the headtufted lioness wondered, glancing around too.

"I don't know, but we have to find him." Nala took off into the bushes, with Tama, Simba, Malka and Chumvi charging behind her.

It took some time, but after a long while, they finally found the young cub. He was perched on a small cub, spaciously staring in the direction of the Outlands, rather motionless. Nala approached her brother gingerly, nudging his back with her nose and causing him to subside in the dirt.

"Nala! You scared me," he yelped, approaching her foreleg and nuzzling it.

"You scared me," Nala laughed. "Is something wrong?"

"I was just thinking about the Outlands." he answered. "I heard Mother say last night that we were in war with Zira's pride, and Tojo mentioned it this morning."

Nala watched him yawn in dejection. "Don't worry about that, Mheetu. Let's go home." She quickly placed the dazed cub on her back, turning to her friends. "Thank you all for today. I had fun. But we have to go now, see you tomorrow."

"Bye Nala," Tama, Simba, Malka and Chumvi dismissed her in unison, before turning around and making their way home as well.