As Kion and the Lion Guard reached the watering hole on their way home to Pride Rock, a hissing sound reached the lion cub's ears.

"Psst!"

Kion looked around, and saw a small paw with extended claws waving from the bush. He rolled his eyes and turned towards his friends. "Why don't you guys go on ahead, I'll have a drink." he said.

Fuli, Ono and Jasiri shared concerned glances, making Kion chuckle. "Come on, you guys could catch me if I made a break for it. I'll be with you in a minute."

"Okay, Kion." Ono said and took to the skies.

"Don't get lost!" Fuli added, but with a bemused smile to let Kion know she wasn't serious.

Soon enough, the Lion Guard had gotten out of sight and an exasperated Vitani emerged, brushing thorns off of her messy fur. "Your pride are like a horde of babysitters!" she complained.

Kion frowned. "Vitani, what are you doing here?! What happens if somebody sees you?"

Vitani proudly puffed her chest. "Nobody's good enough to find me. I managed to follow the Guard all the way out here without being spotted. I was actually kind of hoping you would, but then, clearly you need more training."

The lion prince shook his head. "You must be crazy."

"Crazy good, you mean!" Vitani laughed. She didn't often get the chance to show off, and now relished every second of it. "But you're off to go get brainwashed into hating me." she finished with a cynical shrug.

"That's not what it's like!" Kion protested. However, an idea quickly sprang to his mind. "Why don't you come with me and talk to my dad?"

For the first time since Kion met her, Vitani seemed to be thrown off her guard. "M-me? Talk to Simba? Why would he want to talk to me?" she asked nervously.

"Because he'd want to see that not everyone in your pride is evil like Scar. Come, I'll introduce you." Kion said reassuringly and began to walk towards Pride Rock, but Vitani didn't follow, an argument going through her head. She wasn't really sure how far her mother wanted her to go, but meeting Simba was probably not part of the plan. Maybe she could kill him somehow there and then? It would be hard, but not impossible, she still had her claws after all.

"Vitani?"

The lioness looked up and grinned. "Alrighty then."

Simba looked stoic as Kion and Vitani entered the Pride Rock den together. Jasiri was there as well, nervously sitting next to the King. Vitani's training told her to look around and analyse the surrounding area to work out a plan of attack, but she was completely captivated by the Lion King. It's not every day that you get to meet your pride's mortal enemy. As they got closer to the towering figure with a fearsome mass of red mane, she quickly forgot her entire purpose here.

Kion cleared his throat. "Hi, dad."

"Kion. Who's the cub?" Simba asked, not recognising the little female at all.

"My name's Vitani." Vitani interjected bravely before Kion could say anything and walked in front of the King, looking up. "I'm Zira's daughter."

Simba paused, the shock evident on his face.
"You're a long way from home." he finally said. Kion gave his father a pleading gaze.

"Dad, please hear us out!"

"Speaking of being too far away from home..." Simba's voice rose and he gave Kion a firm look. "Your friends told me about your misadventures in the Outlands, and your decision to favor Zira and her exiles over Jasiri's clan."
"They won the territory fair and square." Kion insisted. "And they're lions! I thought we were kind of in charge."

A scowl formed on Simba's lips and he began to wonder... "Tell me, Kion, why did you bring this cub with you?"

"This cub has a name!" Vitani snarled. "And nobody brought me here, I came here on my own to see Kion!" Her initial awe began to subside and once again, dark thoughts took over.

"You're not the first child of Zira to cross over." Simba told her. "I would've thought your mother had learned from that occasion. You can go safely this time. Go home, and ask your brother Kovu to tell you about his own adventure."

Seeing that neither Kion nor Simba were willing to argue in front of her, Vitani decided it was best to take Simba's advice before he changes his mind. As she walked out however, something pulled her back and Vitani lost her balance and fell onto the stone floor. Turning around, she realised to her humiliation that her tail had gotten entangled with Kion's without either of them noticing. The two nervously laughed and freed one another. "See ya around, Kion!" Vitani coyly said, daring Simba's patience.

Despite this charming farewell, Kion practically glowered as he confronted his father once more. "Dad..."

"No. This will be the end of it!" Simba snapped. Even now, the memories of Scar's terrible rule haunted him and he had no patience for anything that would remind him of that. This relationship between Kion and the Outsiders had to be snuffed out before it could take root. "I will send your mother's huntresses to ensure that Zira keeps her bloody claws away from the hyenas' territory. Until then, you're not allowed to leave Pride Rock."

"That was MY decision, not yours!" Kion lashed out. "You don't have the right to mess with animals outside of the Pride Lands anyway!"

"Oh, like you just did, my son?" Simba pointed out his hypocrisy. "What I'm doing is no different than what you did, except I actually know who I'm dealing with!" His voice softened. "You've already accomplished far more than I ever did at your age. But don't forget, you're still a cub. Trust me."

Kion frowned, but came to a realisation... "Alright." he said and melted his father's heart with the cheeky family grin. As the two hugged, Kion took in the ingenuity of his plan: I can trust him to let the hyenas keep their stupid waterhole... but as soon as I'm out of here, I can go see the other pride again.

Author's Note: Is anyone else really excited about the next season of The Lion Guard? Apparently, it's going to be a lot darker and set during the dry season of the Pride Lands. Seems like they're planning to take the show to another level. Maybe even a two-parter episode? I'd love that.

I'd like to give a shout-out to Lionesscreator's "You, Me and Ingine", a fantastic romantic tale where Simba and Nala's upcoming marriage is interfered by a jealous lioness... it gave me the inspiration for this comeback. It hasn't got nearly enough reviews so go check it out and give her some praise, she's way better than I am(*covers mouth quickly not to lose all readers*).

*All Hail King Scar - ... and if he does?

*FanficFan920 - I know, I know, but I just like having everyone from the same world. The animal community, and how it's translated in the LK universe fascinates me.

*Faith - To be honest, I've sort of forgotten that Nuka isn't officially Scar's son. It's one of those things(like the Kopa-Vitani love story) that just sort of solidifies into the canon over time.

*nightmaster000 - I hope I'm on a roll!

*CandyCane21 - Seems like you got exactly what you wanted... well, half of it anyway, but the other half is sure to come too. :D

*dale . cameronii . 9 - Done!

*DreamOfHell - Patience you must have...

*Flyg0n - I had the same idea after seeing the episode and I was so sure somebody would have written this kind of story, but nope! If you need something done, just do it yourself, I suppose.

*SirBan - Oh yes...

*The Open Writer - I'm loving your enthusiasm. YES, this story will continue!

*kingscar4 - They most certainly are.

*TiifuxKion FAN - I kind of ship Vitani with everybody... she used to be my crush. :)

*Korrasami 88 - The story description kind of gives that one away lol...

*Gracekim1 - I do love interacting with my reviewers! I'll remember your offer if I should run into a writer's block. I do have an endgoal planned out for this story, but the middle part is always the hardest.

*Guest - We shall see, won't we?