***Chapter 4***
***Needs over Desires***
For something good a price must be paid,
whether or not the prize is worth it is up to you.
An eye for an eye, a permanent trade,
Pure love is to be given to give love that's true.
Break one persons heart for another to renew.
-Sacrifice, by Edward Day
The days melded into weeks as the pride moved on from the rainy season into the dry season. The rivers shrunk to their lowest point since Alex had arrived. The massive thunderheads that had dotted the African sky gave way to an unmarred sapphire sky. The Hyenas were a continued nuisance to the hunters despite their attempts to get Scar to intervene. Alex was surprised at the durability of the herds. The hunters brought in at least one carcass a day to feed the pride, but the herds showed no sign of thinning. It seemed that there were an infinite number of animals, and Scar seemed to be banking on that. Most of the lionesses who were paying attention understood that this period of surplus food could not go on forever.
After their talk, Nala had really come around. She became more active in the Pride's daily life and she held her head high most of the time. In no time she had returned to her normal self, although there were periodic times of grief that were to be expected.
It was getting later in the afternoon and Alex was sitting in the shade provided under a medium sized acacia outside his cave. His skin had become far tanner than he was used to and his palms had gained a rough texture from the constant use. His cave was as furnished as he was going to make it; it had a bed, a fire pit for cooking, a bench for tool-making, and a storage area for the plants that he collected. The whole layout made him proud, it was quite an achievement.
"Ha! I found you!" Nala approached the tree that shaded the human. The small lioness had grown remarkably in just a few weeks and now Alex was at a loss to describe her. She was too large to be called a cub, but still far too young to be an adult.
"I didn't know you were looking." He stated flatly.
"My mom said you went with the hunt, so I caught up with them, but they told me that some new girl was replacing you today and that you were with Zazu talking about the hunts, but then he said you left before I showed up and that you went this way." She took a deep breath, replacing the massive amount of air she had expended. Alex smiled at how she just blurted everything out in one sentence.
"Yea, they figured that they should get some of the newer hunters some more experience working with the group." He shifted his weight so as to better see Nala. "Besides, I've been on almost every hunt for the past week since Denvi hurt her leg."
"I think she's faking" said Nala as she sat down in the shade.
"She was definitely hurt at first, but yea, she's taking her sweet time recovering." Nala nodded and rested her head on her paws for a moment before immediately raising her eyes back to Alex.
"I want to hunt!" she reminded him.
"Trust me," he said, "enjoy the time you have now."
"I'm getting bigger! It won't be long now!" Alex smiled meekly at her enthusiasm. The exhilaration that he found on his first hunt had disappeared. Now each outing was just a reminder of how they were being forced to abuse the Pridelands. It was demoralizing and saddening, but he didn't want to ruin Nala's idealism so he just smiled and nodded.
"Soon." He said, then suddenly remembering her entrance. "Why were you looking for me in the first place?" Nala's head shot up, eyes wide.
"Oh yea! Scar wanted to talk you about the hyenas!" Alex sat up upon hearing this.
"What? Why me? And since when does he care what we think about the hyenas?"
"I don't know, but you have kind of been a spokesman for the hunters." She responded, rising to walk with Alex back toward the main cave.
"What?" Alex exclaimed in disbelief. "I talked to Scar once about how we needed more hunters. That hardly makes me a spokesman."
"Well I guess he sees it differently."
"I guess, bu- OOOF! Alex's foot had caught on a protruding root and he fell flat on his face. Nala laughed hysterically as he recovered himself. He glared at the root, angrier at himself than at the inanimate object. It was strange, he thought, that root had always been there, and he hadn't tripped until today. He smiled in amusement. Three weeks without practicing his kung fu stuff and he was already a clumsy fool. He looked over at Nala, who was still laughing her head off. Alex waited patiently for her to lose energy, which she did in several moments.
"HAhaha! That was sooooo funny!"
"I'm glad you enjoyed it." he replied sarcastically as he continued down the trail. She followed behind him, chuckling to herself every now and then. They entered the common area which was filled with hyenas as usual. Nala plastered her ears to the side of her head, instantly aggravated.
"I hate them," she muttered, "especially that group over there." she gestured to a small bunch of about four of the creatures. "They always make fun of me when I go by."
Alex sighed. Nala had done a fantastic job of ignoring the hyenas, but she was getting bigger and becoming more noticeable to the brutes. "I know it's tough, but try to ignore them. Nothing they say is important."
"I know, but they're just soooooo annoying! Could you beat them up for me?" Alex laughed at this.
"I don't think that's such a great idea, but tell you what; when I talk to scar, I'll bring it up and see if he can reel them back a bit."
"Fine." she grumbled, "But I still say they just need a good beating."
"Go find your mom; I'll talk to you after this thing with scar."
"Ok, bye." Alex watched the kid go, amazed at how much she had grown in such a short time. He turned towards the main cave and walked up the ramp.
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"Ah, Alex; It's so good to see you." Alex walked towards the slimy voice, bowing to the seated king. Scar had mounted himself on a large slab of rock, which put him slightly above the eye level of any lion that addressed him. At his right was Zira, a frightening lioness that Scar had made his queen. Surrounding them were the bones of at least ten different animals.
"I was told you wanted to speak with me, Scar?" Alex kept his voice neutral and his vocabulary polite; Scar was known to be easily aggravated.
"Yes, it seems that the lionesses are having some trouble… acclimating… to the hyena's presence." The king spoke with a bored tone, as if he really couldn't care less about the whole matter. "I've received several complaints that the lionesses, specifically the hunters, are often very rude to our new family."
Alex was dumbfounded. The aggressors were complaining about the victims, and the king was listening to them! "Sir, I think that the hyenas may have been the instigators with most of those incidents."
"That's no excuse!" replied Scar adamantly. "I will not allow the lionesses to treat our friends like this." The injustice of the whole situation was too much for Alex, but he held his tongue. Getting angry would not help the situation.
"Why are you telling this to me?" he asked.
"You are an unbiased source; you are not a hyena, or a lioness. The others will take your word as the truth." Alex almost laughed out loud.
"I'm a hunter; I'm always around the lionesses. I don't think I'm really that unbiased."
Scar sneered "You may think of yourself as one of them, but they do not think the same of you. You will never be a part of the Pride."
Scar's words fell on Alex like physical blows. The more he thought about it, the more it seemed to be true. The king was probably right, even if he was a jerk about it. Alex was human, and try as he might, he would never be a lion.
"But don't let it get you down." continued Scar, "I still have plenty of uses for you."
"I'll tell them the message." Alex said quietly. He turned to leave, but remembered Nala's request. "Oh, one last thing Scar. The huntresses may be bothering the hyenas, but there are several Hyenas that are harassing the younger lionesses."
Zira smiled cruelly. "You mean Nala don't you? That cub probably deserved it."
Alex was angered at the queen's assumption, but was careful not to show it. "Actually yes, there's a group of our friends that have been really upsetting her, and I doubt she's the only one that are being bothered by them."
"I'll mention it the next time I see them." Scar replied coldly, obviously bothered by Alex's sarcastic use of the word friend. "You are dismissed, have a good evening."
"And to you as well." Alex said coolly, the words tasted bitter in his mouth. He almost forgot to bow to the king and queen before he exited through the mouth of the cave.
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The sun temporarily blinded the young man as he walked into the sun. He blinked away the pain and surveyed the area. Few of the hyenas had moved since he last observed them. The lionesses that were not hunting were lying farther away from Priderock in a small grove of trees. He started off towards the others, moving quickly so as not to get caught up in the Hyenas' jabber. Alex scanned the faces in the shade and quickly located Nala and Sarafina who were deep in conversation. As he approached, he noticed that Nala seemed to have a concerned expression on her face. Sarafina looked up and stopped talking as Alex closed the distance between them.
"What did scar want?" asked Sarafina curiously.
Alex sighed. He did want to tell her what he said, but he knew he had to. "Scar said that the lionesses, specifically the huntresses, need to treat the hyenas better."
"What?" exclaimed both Nala and Sarafina simultaneously.
"I know, I tried to explain to him that they usually start it…. But I don't know. He didn't listen to me." Sarafina's expression darkened.
"He would choose them over us any day…" she said under her breath.
"He can't do this!" stated Nala. "We're the ones that do all the work! How can he say that?"
"He's the king." Replied Alex
"Well he's not a very good one."
"Careful Nala," reminded her mother. "Like it or not, he is the King. And he takes criticism very personally." Nala sighed an irritated sigh, but stayed quiet.
"Alex stood to leave. "I guess I'm going to head back to my place now, seeya later." Nala nodded and rested her head on her paws.
Sarafina looked at him, as if she wanted ask him something, but all she said was "Alright, we'll see you tonight."
Alex walked off toward his cave, thinking over the events of the afternoon. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that Scar was right. He wasn't really part of the pride; in fact he was more like the Hyenas than the lionesses. He was only another mouth to feed, sure he hunted, but he rarely caught anything and there were other lionesses that were willing to take his place. No, he was not an important part of Priderock, and probably never would be. So what was he to do about this? He could take Scar up on his offer and become his mediator between the hyenas and the lionesses.
"That's not going to happen." He mumbled to himself. He wasn't going to be Scar's little helper any time soon.
"Alex?" called a voice from behind him.
He turned to face the owner of the voice and saw Sarafina walking up alongside him.
"Hey, what's up?" Alex asked.
Sarafina looked at him awkwardly, as if unsure how to word her next sentence. "I'm sure you know by now that the river has shrunk," she began. "If you wanted, you could cross now and head towards the human settlement."
Alex nodded and looked away. Of course, it was time for him to leave; this was the answer to his problem. He knew from the beginning that this would not be a permanent stay for him, but still. He had gotten to be really good friends with the Pride. He wanted to help them in their time of need, but he realized that the best way to help them was to leave. One less mouth to feed, one less human to get in the way of the hunt.
"I think you're right, it is time for me to go." He answered solemnly.
"You don't have to; I was just saying if you want to…"
Alex appreciated her politeness, but understood that she was asking him to leave. "No, it's time. I'll be ready to leave by morning."
"Alright... I already told Nala that you might be wanting to leave. I think she understands, but she'll probably come to see you tonight."
Alex nodded, turned away from the lioness and headed toward his cave. Sarafina watched him leave, an expression of regret on her face.
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Darkness was falling and Alex was packing his backpack with the necessary items. He had his knife, water, and a lot of dried meat. He was deep in thought when Nala entered his cave. He didn't notice her until she was directly in front of him.
"Oh! I didn't hear you come in Nala."
"Yea, I guess." She said bitterly.
"What's wrong?" he asked, taking note of her bad mood.
"You're leaving us." she said simply.
He supposed that her bluntness was to be expected. "I have to Nala. I don't belong here." He hoped she would understand, but she clearly didn't.
"Why not?" she demanded. "You've been around forever; you can't just head out toward some village that might not even exist anymore!
"This isn't about me it's about all of you. You don't have enough for both me and yourselves. I take up too many resources and it isn't fair to you." He explained calmly.
"NO!" Nala yelled. It's not fair! I don't want you to go; you're part of the pride!"
This surprised Alex and made him to stop for a moment. He looked into Nala's now teary eyes and tried to soothe her. "I'm glad you think that Nala, but I'm not part of the pride, and I never could be. I'm a human; I'm no more a part of this pride than the hyenas are." He pulled her into a hug and she returned it. "But that doesn't change the fact that I'll miss you… a lot."
"I'm gonna miss you too." She said into his shoulder.
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Alex awoke later than usual the next morning. He wanted to avoid the morning hunting party; they would all want to say goodbye to be polite, but he understood that they didn't think of him the way he did of them. To them he was just a bad hunter, a burden on the team. The sun was already up, so he wasted no time gathering his belongings. He grabbed his spear, put his knife on his belt, and shouldered his backpack. He looked over his cave on last time before he headed out. He would miss it.
He walked through the common area, trying to attract as little attention as possible. Despite his efforts at invisibility, he was bid farewell by several lionesses whom he knew from the hunting party. Scar was perched on the peak of Priderock, watching his procession. Sarafina told him that Nala was around the area, she would find him before he left. Alex hoped so; he wanted to see the young lioness one last time, even if it would be awkward.
He started walking towards one of her favorite spots, when he heard some talking off in the distance. He approached the noises and saw Nala down in a ravine sided with boulders. She was arguing with the pack of Hyenas she had pointed out the day before.
"Just leave me alone!" she demanded in an annoyed tone.
"Oooh the girl wants us to leave her alone, I think we should listen." the apparent leader said mockingly. "I think we should listen guys!" His cronies cackled as Alex climbed down the boulders as quickly as he could, to where they were standing.
"She's just so much fun to bother! Just like that little brat she used to hang out with."
Nala's head snapped to the last speaker. "What did you say?" she asked dangerously.
"He said that that brat prince had it coming!" responded the other crony.
Alex was almost to them, when he saw Nala, still barely more than a cub, tackle the fully grown hyena. They went tumbling off to the side, just as he jumped off the last rock. He ran to the rolling combatants and struck the hyena as hard as he could before pulling Nala off. The young lioness had patches of upset fur that were quickly becoming stained with her own blood from the injuries underneath. Despite her injuries, she continued to growl, hiss, and kick against Alex's force.
"Oh," said the hyena angrily as he rose. "You want to fight huh?"
Alex turned sharply to the speaker. "Back off, it's over!"
"Oh no it's not; she attacked us, now it's our turn to attack her!" The other hyenas smiled cruelly as they approached.
"Nala, go get your mom." Alex said slowly. Nala had ceased her thrashing and hunkered down low to the ground, the rage in her eyes had been replaced with fear as she realized the gravity of the situation.
The apparent leader took a step forward. "If you're gonna stop us, you're gonna get hurt."
"Go Nala, now." Alex told the frightened kid. She obeyed and took off toward Priderock. The human shifted his footing, taking up his usual combat stance. It felt foreign. He looked down at his feet to see if there was something he was standing on, but there wasn't. He returned his focus to the animals, only to see a flying mass heading toward his head. His spear went up out of instinct, not quick enough to hurt the attacker, but enough to stop it from ripping out his throat. Alex was thrown to the ground by the hyena's sheer weight, which was a lot more than he originally had anticipated.
He kicked the beast off of him and tried to stand, only to be tackled by one of the cronies from the side. Jagged claws tore at his shoulder, releasing a stream of blood; but Alex's adrenaline was pumping too hard for him to really care. He rolled to the side, effectively escaping from underneath the hyena, but was stopped by another two of the creatures. The human gripped his spear, jabbed it at the two, forcing them to back up. He got to his feet, and prepared for another assault. It came without hesitation. One hyena came in low to the ground and another leapt high from the right. Alex stabbed the ground beast with the spear point, causing a cry of pain as it rolled to the side. The airborne creature narrowly missed his head and landed directly behind him. As soon as it touched down it immediately leapt at his back, sending Alex sprawling from the force. His spear flew from his grip and landed far out of reach.
Now he was surrounded, on the ground, and wounded. The hyenas all paused for a moment, enjoying the situation. The leader snarled and struck out with his jaws, catching Alex on his forearm. The other animals attacked together, scraping, clawing, and biting at the struggling teenager. Alex kicked, punched, and even head butted the attackers, but to no avail. He felt their teeth sink into his limbs, their claws puncture his side. Blood ran into his eyes, tinting his surroundings red. The pain dulled and Alex felt his arms and legs weakening.
A massive roar erupted from behind the violence and the Hyenas looked up from their victim as a large lioness leapt down the rocks towards them with unexpected speed. Sarafina clubbed one of the animals away with a powerful blow, and raked her claws across the face of another. The creatures scattered into the foliage, leaving the lioness alone with the battered human.
"Alex!" she cried, dropping to his level. "Are you alright!"
"I'm fine", said Alex tiredly, spitting blood as he tried to stand. His obvious lie became even more obvious as his arm collapsed under his weight and he hit the ground again.
"Stay here! I'll go get help!" she told him before sprinting back in the direction she came from.
Alex almost smiled. What else was he going to do other than stay there? He shifted his weight to his back, immediately regretting it. Pain shot through his entire body as his injuries made their existence known. He lay there for what seemed like forever, though he knew it was probably less than two minutes. His blood continued to flow out of his body, making him a bit dizzy and short of breath. It was frightening and he had to fight the panic that his body wanted to succumb to.
Sarafina soon arrived with Sarabi and several other lionesses. They lifted him onto their backs, careful not to cause too much pain. The return to Priderock passed in a blur to Alex. He was set down on a rock slab, and his wounds were cleaned by some unseen figure. Alex lay on the rock, exhausted and in pain. The lionesses that had been talking quietly around him had left, giving him much desired peace. He hoped Nala was okay.
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Alex awoke alone to the empty cave. He had probably slept for hours, but he was still exhausted. His body ached. All his joints were as stiff as the stone he now lay on. He turned his head to survey his surroundings and received stiff protest from his muscles. He didn't recognize the cave, but heard voices from down a nearby tunnel. He assumed he must be near the main cave. He analyzed his injuries, finding deep gashes along his ribs and arms, torn flesh on his limbs, and many bruises and small cuts everywhere. Well, he figured, if he was trying to be less of a burden on the Pride, he was pretty much failing.
There was a small wooden bowl on a rock next to him. It was filled with water, and its presence made him suddenly aware of his crippling thirst. He slowly reached for it, ignoring the pain and willing his stubborn muscles to move. He closed his fingers around the sides of the bowl and lifted it to his mouth. Most of the water flowed into his throat, but a decent amount ran down the corners of his mouth. He set the bowl back where he had found it and did all he really could do. He stayed on the rock.
"Can I see him now?" came a muffled voice from around the corner.
"No Nala, he's still sleeping." Alex easily recognized the voice as Sarabi's. "You're just going to have to be patient."
"But he's okay isn't he?"
"He should be fine, now go run along." the former queen told her.
A disappointed sigh signaled Nala's departure from the tunnel and Alex breathed his own sigh of relief. As much as he wanted to see Nala, he didn't want her to see him. It was embarrassing; he was mauled by the stupid beasts that were too poorly coordinated to hunt for themselves. Only a month earlier he had faced off against hyenas and received only a minor arm wound from it. His skills had deteriorated and he knew it. Alex looked up as he heard footsteps approached. Sarabi entered the cave and approached his side.
"You're awake." She observed. "How do you feel?"
"Like I got chewed up by a crocodile and spit out." he answered, trying to say it with a light attitude.
"Well you definitely took a beating. Thank you."
Alex looked at her, unsure of what she meant. "Why are you thanking me?"
"The hyenas were looking for a fight; they would have done this to Nala if you hadn't been there." she said bluntly.
"I guess."
"You saved her, and we are all very thankful for that. Especially Sarafina."
Alex was surprised at her statement. "What? Sarafina saved me! I would be dead if she didn't show up!"
"And Nala would be dead if you hadn't intervened." The lioness countered. "Don't try to undermine what you did, you deserve the thanks." Even though she was no longer queen, Sarabi maintained a definite tone of authority.
Alex sighed and stared at the cave's ceiling, unsure of what to say.
"Nala has been dying to see you for the past two days." She said softly.
Alex's eyes opened wide at this comment. "What?" he asked. "How long was I asleep?"
"Two days." repeated Sarabi.
Alex shook his head in amazement. He had thought it had only been a half-day at the most.
"Do you think that you might be ready to have some visitors?" she asked.
Alex thought about it. He couldn't hide from Nala forever, and he really did want to see her. Besides, he needed to thank Sarafina as well. "Yea, I'm ready."
"I'll go get them." She said.
"Thanks." Alex watched Sarabi leave and immediately began dreading the upcoming reunion. He still had to leave, that was an adamant fact. God, he thought, why did everything have to get so convoluted? All he was trying to do was get out of their hair, and all he ended up doing was forcing them to take care of him.
"ALEX!" A small lioness ran into the cave and stopped at his side. Sarafina followed her daughter at a slower pace.
"I'm soooo sorry!" began Nala. "I didn't mean to start fighting with them, it just happened! I…"
"It's okay Nala," Alex interrupted, thrown off guard by her guilt. "I'm fine."
"YOU ARE NOT!" she yelled, making Alex cringe at the verbal assault. "Sorry." she said in a quieter voice. "But you're not!"
"Yes, I am. I'm a little banged up here and there; but really, I'm fine." He turned to Sarafina who was looking at the two with content. "Thank you for coming." He started. "I would have been killed if you hadn't gotten the hyenas away."
But all she said was "Thank you for saving my daughter."
He turned back to Nala and smiled grimly. "Well if you wanted me to hang around a little longer, you sure picked a good way to do it." The kid smiled, but was cut short by her mother.
"Nala, could you give us a minute please?" asked Sarafina.
"Okay…" she answered hesitantly before walking out of the cave.
As she exited, Sarabi reentered the cave and stood beside Sarafina. "Alex," Sarafina began, "about you leaving…"
"I know," Alex answered. "As soon as I can move around I'll be gone, I promise."
The lionesses glanced at each other for a moment before returning their gazes to Alex. "We think you should reconsider leaving, Alex." stated Sarabi.
"What?" he asked, unsure of what they meant.
"You are too important to the Pride; as a hunter, and as a member." Sarafina explained. "There are a lot of us who would really be at a loss without you. Nala especially."
Alex was dumbstruck. They wanted him to stay? He thought they wanted him gone! Alex stared at them; this must be a joke or something.
"Of course, if you really want to leave, we won't stop you." continued Sarafina. "But we would prefer that you stay.
Alex regained control of his mouth before she could add anything more. "But I contribute nothing to the Pride! I'm a mediocre hunter at best."
"You put in more effort into our success than most of the other huntresses. A lot of the younger ones really look up to you. And besides, you're practically family. Like Sarafina said, a lot of us would really miss you."
Sarafina nodded. "You provide more to this pride than just another animal carcass every few weeks."
So they really wanted him to stay. Alex felt his eyes beginning to tear up, but quickly caught himself. He had been wrong. Scar was wrong; Alex was a part of the pride. This was his family. He nodded. "Okay, I'll stay.
The two lionesses smiled. "We'll let you tell Nala." said Sarafina. They thanked him and left. Nala entered the cave, a look of curiosity on her face.
"What were you talking about?" She asked.
"About me leaving." He said as solemnly as he could.
Her face dropped instantly to sadness as she walked slowly to his side. "We'll miss you." she said quietly.
"Well, don't get too depressed just yet. I've got some good news for you."
She looked up hopefully. "What?"
"We decided that now isn't a good time for me to leave." He explained through a smile. "Maybe in a few years or so."
A wide grin erupted across Nala's face and she seemed to lose control of her body. She walked in a tight circle, her tail flicking around sporadically.
Alex laughed at her reaction, despite the pain, and was surprised when she nuzzled his palm. He pulled her into as tight of a hug as he dared and listened to her purr.
"I'm not going anywhere." he said to himself as much as to her. He liked the sound of that sentence. Not going anywhere.
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Author's Note:
Again, thanks for all the reviews and advice. I'm having a ton of fun writing this, so stay tuned for more chapters! Oh, and I don't own anything, not even the song/ poem quotes at the beginning. COMMENT PLEASE!
