Zazu was just completing his patrol, on his way back to Pride rock while passing by the water hole. He looked down to make sure everything was business as usual, expecting to see that it was, but instead he was presented with an image of horror. Three lions, one a male and two lionesses, were motionless on the ground, soaked in blood, with Kovu standing in the centre of them. Zazu gasped and flew even faster towards his intended destination.

"This must be reported immediately."

00000000000000000

Sarabi forced her eyes open. She'd taken a few nasty blows but was still alive somehow. She checked herself and found that she was bleeding on her left side but apart from that there didn't seem to be anything seriously wrong with her. She seemed to be fine, until she looked up and saw what was standing over her...

Kovu, looking so tall from her low angle, was towering in front of the view of the sun which was casting him in a dark silhouette. Almost none of his features could be made out because of the dark shadow over him. What was wrong with him?

Although she had rarely met him Sarabi knew the kind of lion Kovu was and this was totally out of character for him. Despite the fear she felt she managed to stand, now able to see his face a bit clearer. Some things were still hard to make out but the lioness could see enough to conclude that Kovu looked... Kind of confused. It was like a strange mixture of anger and confusion, like he knew he was doing something terrible but wasn't sure why he was doing it.

Whatever the reason for this apparent distress, Sarabi had enough motherly instincts from raising Simba to try and help his successor.

"Kovu, isn't it? Look at me." She instructed.

To no huge surprise Kovu obeyed and kept his stare on the lioness. So far so good.

"Sarabi?" He said, clearly confused.

"Yes. I want you to stay calm. I'm trying to help you. Take some deep breaths and relax."

For a few moments nothing happened, but just as Sarabi was starting to think she wasn't having an effect on him, Kovu began to breath slowly and deeply. Something was working, which was a relief of sorts.

Sarabi was about to try something else to calm the dark lion further but before she could act the hulking shape of Simba appeared behind Kovu, accompanied by Zazu and Nala. He didn't look happy, but he also had an element of confusion in his expression as well. Obviously he was reluctant to believe Kovu had done something like Zazu had clearly described to him.

"Kovu?" He said.

Kovu turned to the king, still upholding his expression of confusion and distress. He was now starting to look as though he was registering his surroundings once more. The two dead lions, Simba standing before him looking less than happy, and blood on his claws and around his muzzle.

"What hap-... I... no-No!" Kovu muttered, in a bit of panic. The scent of lion blood as well as taste came upon him like a charging rhino. "Did I? ...What have I done?"

Kovu now sat alone at the back of the cave at Pride rock, his paws folded over one another with his head resting on top. Sarabi had insisted on accompanying Nala and Zazu as they escorted him back while Simba stayed to try and identify the body of the male lion he'd somehow killed but had no proper memory of doing so. And even though he knew Simba wasn't the hateful or vengeful type, that didn't mean Kovu would go through this unscathed, if not by Simba and his family then by others in the Pridelands.

Typical that just when his bad luck seemed to be running out it comes back and bites him in the rear again. Kovu had definitely had more bad luck in the last year than most. Maybe by 'Chosen One' Scar and Zira had meant the one chosen to be granted constant bad luck in life. Obviously that wasn't true, but it might as well have been.

'If things carried on like this who knew where it could lead?' Kovu thought. 'Next thing you know something bad will happen to the cubs-' He stopped himself there. That was one thing he wasn't willing to think about.

Thankfully Vitani appeared and interrupted his train of thought. If anyone would be sympathetic towards Kovu after this, it'd be her. She sat down and looked down on the wreck of her brother on the floor. A little smile in the corner of her mouth as she nudged him lightly.

"You alright?" She asked.

"Oh yeah, just grand." Kovu huffed, turning his head away.

Vitani adopted his lying down position to get closer to him. She hated to see her brother sulking like this.

"Look on the bright side. You're OK, aren't you?"

"Psychologically, no."

"At least you didn't get hurt."

"I suppose so. Although I do have a terrible headache." Kovu said, rubbing the side of his head with one paw.

"Well you can just stay here and rest until Simba gets back if that's the case. Don't want you getting any worse." Vitani said as she stood up.

"I don't think I can get any worse to be honest." Kovu called out to her as she slowly trotted out of the cave.

All Vitani in response was give a quick look at her brother and a smile before heading off to wherever she had in mind. Kovu sighed and closed his eyes. He'd told Kiara to leave him alone for a few hours while this situation was sorted out. A request she had very obediently kept. But now he was regretting not having his mate next to him, not having someone trustworthy to talk to who could maybe help him understand even half of what was happening.

This incident is exactly the sort of thing Kovu associated Scar with after hearing the true stories about him. That was likely the biggest worry of them all for him. All the effort he'd made over the past year to try and distance himself from that monster and now it looked like it had been for nothing. Why did it have to happen now as well, when he was so close to getting what he most wanted in life? A good family, a mate, a cub or possibly two, and as an added bonus he was set to be the next king of the Pridelands. Question was how would that hold up now, after this?

I guess only time will tell.

Sarafina's body had already been removed and taken somewhere until the pride could hold the burial for her. This meant there was only one body left at the scene of the crime, the unidentified male lion. Simba had remained by the water hole in the hopes of figuring out the identity of the lion, who actually bore quite a resemblance to Simba himself come to think of it.

Many of its features were badly mauled by the attack, making it harder to piece together what this lion actually looked like before. As a result it was several minutes before Simba managed to recognise parts of the unfortunate creature. Once one thing was identified so was another, and another, until eventually Simba was able to put a name to the bloody face at his feet. And it shocked him...

"Kopa. My son?"

It was undoubtedly him! Kopa! Simba and Nala's first son, thought to be dead because of past events. Past events that Simba refused to remember now.

But he was alive somehow. What was he doing in the Pridelands though? He must've just returned very recently otherwise someone would have seen him by now and told Simba. Maybe he decided to pay a visit to his old home? Yeah, that seems like something Kopa would do. On his way to pride rock he must have stopped for a drink and then... The incident happened.

If there was one thing to learn, it was that Simba definitely hadn't lost his emotional attachment to Kopa, as he was starting to get a strange mix of sadness and anger. Kovu had killed his son, but there was something that didn't quite make sense. Kovu would never do a thing like this, not in his right mind at least. The only way to find out more as to question the lion himself. Hopefully Simba would be able to contain his anger for such a time, but that could be easier said than done.

Nevertheless, something was going on, and Simba had every intention of finding out what it was.

….

The late afternoon sun shone through the branches of Rafiki's tree, casting long lines on the ground. This gave the place quite a warm and cosy feeling or some reason.

Right now the Mandrill had two patients to deal with, one being Sarabi and the other Kovu. He was tending to Sarabi first since she was more beaten up than Kovu. As a matter of fact Kovu was barely even scratched at all. He was waiting outside in the gentle summer breeze all kinds of misery and self-hate running through him while he ticked off the long seconds before his turn.

Inside Sarabi was sitting upright while Rafiki checked her back, a common place of injury among older lions. He concluded his examination and nodded with a smile.

"Well, dat is it and ya seem to be OK." He informed his patient.

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. Only a few minor bruises and scratches. Dat is all."

Sarabi gave a smile in return.

"Alright, if you say so. Thanks again, Rafiki."

"It is noting'. And on your way out could you send Kovu in, please?" Requested Rafiki.

"Of course."

Sarabi strolled on out and Rafiki heard her voice outside.

"He's ready for you now." She said.

"Listen, I... I... Sorry, I don't know-" Kovu began to apologise but Sarabi cut him off.

"It's alright. You should worry about yourself right now. Goodbye for now."

Presumably the lioness went away after that as Kovu came in slightly sheepishly, his turned down somewhat with a glum look on his face. He came and parked himself down before the monkey and huffed a sigh.

"And what has gotten you all huffed today, Hmm?" He asked in his signature manner of cheeriness.

"You know what." Kovu replied.

"Yes, but a problem is a problem halved, is it not?"

"Maybe. I couldn't care less about it right now."

As Kovu clearly wasn't in the mood for talking Rafiki got straight to it and started examining the basics first. He checked for any signs of the skin being penetrated, of which none could be found. Kovu grunted a little as others areas were searched, some of which he wasn't used to having searched. There was never any kind of doctor or healer in the Outlands. Like everything else out there it had always been fend for yourself or die, and that included everything from food to water, from health to all aspects of survival. Things were certainly different here. Better.

Although Kovu wondered what life would be like back in the Outlands. Occasionally though, no more.

He stopped having these thoughts when Rafiki came to him and stated: "Lets see how many bruises you managed to get." In his joke-like tone of voice.

Rafiki began his examination of Kovu.

…

The results of Kovu's examination were thankfully largely positive with no major injuries or breaks present, only some cuts and bruises. Because of the minimal extent of these injuries Rafiki sent Kovu back on home to Pride rock. Although he didn't head straight there, opting to take a short detour around the grazing grounds. Choosing to venture through an area that was always deserted this time of day was a smart move as Kovu was still rightfully frightened of himself from the earlier incident. It also meant there was no one around he could hurt.

I killed someone...

I killed two people...

And injured a third...

How was he ever going to forget this? Could he forget? Would the others forget it or would they see this as the final straw and hold it against him indefinitely. In the end only time would tell.

These events couldn't have come at a worse time. When he first started to experience blackouts and such a year ago, he thought nothing of it at the time. That was a foolish thing to do as after a long time of nothing they had suddenly sprung back to life and come back to haunt him in a much bigger way. Luckily these problems didn't ruin his relationship with the Pridelanders like he thought they might and the Outlanders had successfully integrated into the pride, but now things could all change.

It couldn't have been a coincidence that Kovu's 'issues' had arisen again when his and Kiara's cubs were nearly due, the throne wasn't far from being passed on to him and his mate and strangely enough he had started to have recurring nightmares again, just like before. He'd never told anyone about these nightmares, not the recent ones anyway. And that was probably for the best since the members of the pride seemed to be suspicious about many things currently.

After a short while the towering structure of Pride rock was in sight. Kovu kept up the pace as he headed there, eager to get whatever might happen next over and done with. Simba would be there for sure, waiting for him. Kovu had a sneaking suspicion of who that male lion he killed might have been. It was just a passing thought but if it was true then Simba would undoubtedly be mad with him.

Kovu reached the base of Pride rock and he was now able to hear some voices muffled by the distance. One male and two female. Simba, Nala and Kiara perhaps? He began up the steps and tried to make out some of what was being said.

"Simba, please..." Probably Nala.

Now only a couple steps away from the top Kovu could hear perfectly what was being said as he carried on onto the large platform outside the cave.

"Daddy, no!" Came Kiara's voice.

The next thing he knew Simba was marching towards Kovu with an expression of pure anger on his face. He lifted his paw and swung down, impacting on Kovu's face right by where Zira once scarred him. Kovu lost his balance from the sudden blow and fell onto his side, Simba now standing over him menacingly.

"Traitor! Murderer!" He yelled at the top of his voice.

Everyone behind him in the cave backed up slightly, not daring to come near him while he was so worked up. When Kovu opened one of his eyes he could see a few tears in Kiara's eyes. He got to his feet awkwardly. He was hurting around the eye Simba struck and it felt like he'd received another scar across his eye like the one his mother gave him, but he hadn't quite.

"Wha- What?" Kovu managed, actually terrified now. Simba had never done this before. He'd never hit him, no matter what he'd done by accident he'd never hit him. This pretty much confirmed Kovu's suspicion about who the lion he killed had been.

"You killed my son." Simba stated coldly.

"Simba I- I didn't mean to. I didn't know he was-"

"Silence!"

Kovu had heard a few times about Kopa, the first born of Simba and Nala. No one liked to talk about him because of what happened but from what he'd heard Kopa was supposed to have died a long time ago. Now though it seemed he had returned to tell his father about his survival presumably.

That was until he'd met with a horrible end...

"I really don't know what to do with you." Simba continued. "But I can think of a pretty good place to start."

"Simba, please. Let me explain." Kovu pleaded.

"What is there to explain?"

"Simba, I wasn't in control. I have no memory of what happened and I would never have done something like it in my right mind."

Simba stared at the dark lion with an expression that simply read 'go on'. Kovu continued.

"You've seen supernatural things in your time, you should believe me of all people. Please Simba, I wasn't in control. I don't know what happened but... something just... Took over and I have no idea what."

"Daddy, please leave him alone!" Kiara cried out.

"Simba, is this really necessary?" Nala asked.

Simba looked at them and then back at Kovu, not faltering in his angry glare.

"You're claiming something supernatural is affecting you?" He said.

"Yeah. Somehow." Kovu confirmed.

"Very well. First thing tomorrow morning I'll take you to Rafiki and you can tell us everything. And I mean everything you know. Do you understand me?"

"Y-Yes." Kovu replied.

"Good. And you can sleep in the lower cave tonight. For all out safety. We'll see tomorrow what's really going on here." Simba said as he turned and marched away into the cave.

He passed Kiara and Nala, who still had shock across their faces at what he'd done. Kiara quickly went to Kovu and licked him on the cheek.

"Kovu, I'm sorry. What's going on?"

"I don't know. But I don't like it."

"Kiara!" Simba called. He was looking back at his daughter, wanting her to come inside.

"OK, I'll catch you up tomorrow at some point." She said. "Goodnight."

"Night." Kovu repeated, bowing his head and sighing.

Kiara rushed inside and Kovu watched them disappear into the warmth of the den. Once he couldn't see them any more, or perhaps couldn't bare to look at them any more, he plodded away down the steps until he reached the narrow entrance of the small cave that sat on the ground level of Pride rock. It wasn't even really a cave but more of a small gap in the side of the structure. Kovu went inside and did his best to get into a comfortable position on the ground.

This was the lowest Kovu had ever felt and he was even worrying that Simba might not let him be present at the birth of his cubs. Maybe he wouldn't even let him take over as king any more. He knew he would be angry but he could never have prepared himself for how Simba reacted. His only hope now was to pray that Rafiki could pinpoint what the matter was and help to correct it in the morning.

But somehow Kovu didn't think he would get much sleep that night anyway...

…

The pride had settled down now, the best they could at least. Although Kiara was shedding tears still and seemed unable to get comfortable, an annoying side effect of being so close to labour. Vitani lay to the side of the main group pretending to be asleep, her eyes closed but thinking hard.

Simba wanted Kovu to tell him everything he already knew about what was happening to him. Was it a good idea for him to know? She'd been trying so hard to keep all this a secret but it seemed like that would be ruined when Kovu starts talking. Smart thinking would be needed to get around this obstacle, to keep this secret she'd spent so long trying to hide. From her brother, from everyone.

….

It was strange spending the night without Kovu beside her. Kiara had grown so used to him that he felt like something she couldn't live without. But last night was different, as her father had made Kovu sleep away from the rest of them as a result of what happened the previous day. Kiara didn't know what was going on exactly but she knew that Kovu would never do something like Simba described to her of his own free will.

Simba had always been a bit suspicious of Kovu, despite accepting him after the battle with Zira was over, there was still something in him that wouldn't let him forget the connection between Kovu and another lion of which he was related to. Scar. And what worried her the most is that these events had come at such an inconvenient time too.

For the time being she was with Nala at the water hole. She would have been here with Simba but he was currently getting Kovu to take him to Rafiki in the hopes that he'd be able to shed some light on these bizarre occurrences.

"Aren't you thirsty?" Nala asked her daughter when she saw she wasn't drinking.

Nala had just finished lapping up her first drink of the day.

"Um... Not really." Kiara replied, looking down at the ripples her mother had made in the water.

"Are you sure? You should have a drink, you know." Nala prompted.

"I know. I just..." Kiara gave up on trying to think of a full reply and instead did as she was advised.

Nala watched on as Kiara drank from the water source. Looking at her she was reminded of what it was like for herself when Kiara and Kion were born. This experience made her want to help her daughter as much as she could when the time came.

Just as Kiara finished Nala spotted Zazu in the sky above. He came down and landed between them, bowing at Nala.

"Your majesty."

"Zazu."

The hornbill then turned to Kiara.

"I trust you are in good condition today, princess." He said.

"I'm fine, thanks Zazu." Kiara replied.

The bird went back to Nala and began his report.

"I thought I would come and inform you that Simba is taking Kovu to Rafiki now. He's expecting to be done there before midday."

"OK. I really hope he can help." Nala voiced her concern.

"Don't we all, ma'am."

Nala gave a smile and a little chuckle that was soon cut short when Kiara started moaning uncomfortably.

"What is it, Kiara?" Nala asked.

"Um... Take a guess mom." Kiara said.

"Oh my." Zazu exclaimed. "Are you certain?"

"Yes, I'm certain." Kiara said amongst the other little pains and twinges that were beginning to worsen.

Nala bent down and got under Kiara. She then hoisted her up so she was half carrying her.

"OK. We'll go to Rafiki right away." Nala told Kiara.

"Alright. Thanks mom. Try and hurry though." Kiara huffed.

"I'll send word to him that you're coming." Zazu announced as he took off and flew in the direction of the tallest tree in the Pridelands.

Nala helped Kiara as they started to make their way there too. The time they'd been waiting for had finally come.

Simba marched Kovu on ahead of him. Never before had the young lion seen the king in such a bad mood that he'd do this. This truly was the worst thing that had ever happened to him.

Kovu was still rather tired as well, which didn't help. And on top of that another scar had started to form where Simba hit him last night. Not a friendly reminder at all. In fact it only seemed to make Simba even more callous towards him.

They were going to Rafiki to seek help in regard to Kovu's murderous outburst yesterday. Yesterday, which right now seemed like a lifetime ago. The cosy, safe life that they had enjoyed for about a year now seemed so distant, and this terror and distrust was the only thing they'd known for a long time.

They continued on, the tree now in sight. Kovu glanced back occasionally only to see Simba glaring at him every time. Was he staring at him constantly? Every second? It felt like it. Perhaps mercifully Simba's view suddenly turned towards something else when Zazu came and swooped down beside them. He landed next to Simba and both lions could see the facial expression he was displaying, one of panic.

"Sire!" He squawked.

"What is it, Zazu?" Simba demanded.

"The princess, Kiara, is in labour! She's being attended to by Rafiki now!"

"What!?" Both lions went in unison.

"Take us there now!" Simba instructed.

"Kiara. I can't believe it." Kovu muttered to himself.

The three animals went as fast as they could toward their destination. Kovu was filled with both excitement and fear. His cubs were about to be born, but with the current situation with Simba there was no telling what could happen later on. Nevertheless they carried on their way.

Once outside Simba stopped the dark lion with him and Zazu remained hovering just above their heads. Zazu was about to head in.

"In here, your majesty. Nala is already inside."

"Thanks, Zazu."

Simba was about to follow Zazu inside when Kovu stepped forward.

"Simba." He said.

Simba turned around with a scowl. "What?"

"Please. Let me go in as well. I know you don't trust me right now but you can't deny me this."

Simba didn't reply as he thought it through. Right now he wasn't sure what to make of the young lion. He knew there was something not right surrounding him. Then again he still had some feeling in him that Kovu was innocent in some way. The conflict was complex, but eventually Simba came to the conclusion that Kovu did indeed deserve to see this. It was something that no lion should have to miss witnessing and no matter what he'd done, intentionally or not, Kovu was no exception in that regard.

"Alright. Come in then. I'm keeping an eye on you though." He answered.

"Thank you." Kovu thanked Simba with relief and joy.

Simba, Kovu and Zazu all entered at once, eager to see if they had missed the big moment yet. What they saw upon entering was Kiara on the floor with Nala beside her, the youngest of the pair appearing to be hiding something by the way she was lying with her back to them.

"Kiara." Kovu called.

Kiara and her mother both turned their heads to see the males standing in suspense.

"Kovu!" Kiara cheered out.

Kovu ran to Kiara as quick as he could and nuzzled her while Simba walked to Nala's side.

"So what's the result?" He asked his mate.

"Good news, Simba. Their healthy and fine."

"Their? There's two of them after all then?"

"Well..."

Kiara shifted herself to reveal two cubs. One was the same colour as Kiara with dark brown rings around his eyes and the same underbelly and paws as its mother, while the other was all brown like Kovu with an underbelly of a slightly lighter shade to the rest of its fur. Both were males.

"He came first." Kiara told her mate, pointing to the lighter cub, the one that bore resemblance to her. "And he came a couple minutes later." She moved her point to the darker cub.

"Their beautiful." Said Kovu.

"And that's not all." Nala announced.

Nala moved her front paws to the side to reveal yet another two cubs. This time both female and both with much lighter fur than both their parents.

"Quadruplets?" Simba exclaimed.

"Yeah. Didn't expect that." Nala responded.

"Do you have names for them yet?" Kovu asked.

"Not yet. But I'm sure we'll come up with some suitable names soon. Together."

None of them had foreseen that there would be four cubs, a shock to them all. But now that they were here all four of the lions couldn't be happier. It was enough to even make Simba temporally forget what he came here for originally, much to Kovu's delight. They all savoured the warm feeling that always came with the birth of new pride members, and the new heir in the first born of the four cubs.

No doubt Simba and Kovu would still have their meeting with Rafiki afterwards, but right now that was put to the side in favour of this happy time.