"Yeah," said Aina plainly. "I want to help bring up Akwele."

Tabani was in a state of shock. Who does she think she is? he thought, angry that Aina fancied herself one of Akwele's guardians just because she had seen her.

Kwami looked pretty steamed too. "Aina, a couple of days ago you were happy to make my life miserable, and now you want to help me?"

"Kwami, I am sorry for what I said and did, you know that! And besides, what if for some reason you two can't take care of her? If nobody else knows about her, then she'll inevitably die, right? So I don't have to be on board all the time, I can just be a backup plan."

Aina's plan did seem rather logical once you thought about it. Tabani looked at Kwami.

"Tabani, I'm making this your call," said Kwami. Tabani weighed the situation in his mind.

"Aina, do you promise not to tell anyone about Akwele, or that the dead lioness is her mother?" he asked.

The gray lioness nodded. "Promise, guys. Hey, she fell asleep!"

Akwele had fallen asleep while they talked, cuddled in the warmth of Aina's paws. Aina smiled.

Tabani looked at the looming black shape of Pride Rock in the distance. The sky was turning pink.

Kwami saw it too. "Let's get back before anyone wakes," he suggested.

They left Akwele fast asleep in her hill, and made their way sleepily across the savannah.

Golden clouds had begun to form in the east when they reached their home, and wordlessly they split for their parent's dens.

Tabani slipped up to the royal den, hoping that his early-rising father was not up yet. The prince quietly lay down in between his parents.

Kiara opened one eye, looking at her son. "Tabani, were you outside?" she asked. He froze. "Oh, I just got thirsty, so I went outside to the waterhole. That's all."

The lie stuck in his throat, making his head hurt. It felt terrible to lie to his parents, but keeping Akwele secret was at stake.

"Ok, honey. Just tell me next time," she replied calmly. Then she went back to sleep, oblivious to her son's night trip.Thank Mufasa, thought Tabani.

He went to sleep, only to be woken up minutes later by his father. "Tabani, come on, get up! Remember, we're supposed to do water buffalo hunting today," Kovu said.

Tabani only half heard him. But he slowly got to his feet and stumbled down the tunnels. His father led him out to where all the cubs of the pride were gathered, including Aina, Kwami, and the bullying lionesses.

He went over and sat with his friends. As Kovu prepared the lesson, he noticed her former friends shooting dirty looks at Aina.

She royally ignored them, sitting proudly by Kwami. "Alright, cubs, listen. Water buffalo are some of the most dangerous prey animals we hunt. They are only to be killed in times of extreme hunger. You should always go for the throat, because that will kill them fastest. Does anyone know what the herd will do when you attack one of their own?"

Uzuri raised her paw. "Uzuri, you have the answer?"

"Yes," she said smugly. "The buffalo's herd will often launch a counter-attack by charging at the lions."

"Well put, Uzuri. Another thing to know: You never charge directly at them. Their horns are they're best defense, and we all remember what happened to Jani."

The cubs thought back to the day when the hunting party had brought back the young lioness with her chest torn open.

There was nothing they could do for her.

"Dad, wasn't Jani-" Tabani cut off when his father gave him a warning look. The prince glanced at Uzuri.

He could swear there were tears glittering in her eyes. Tabani hadn't been around long enough to know Jani well, but on the few occasions he had talked to her, she had seemed full of life, and a wonderful lioness.

He vaguely knew about Jani's family, and he was not very sure that she was Uzuri's sister, but he was sure now.

"Moving on," continued Kovu. "When the prey is dead, the herd will give up attempts to drive you away. That's all for today."

The cubs slowly scattered, moving off in small groups. Uzuri, Mwanga and Kutolewa stalked off.

"Are we going to see her again?" Aina asked. "No! Why are you bringing her up now, in broad daylight with people around?!" whispered Tabani, frantically looking around.

"Sorry, I'm just excited!"

"No, we only see her at night, when we can sneak away, said Kwami.

Aina nodded. The three friends split for their parents. Tabani had some training exercises to practice, and Aina and her family were headed somewhere.

"To visit my cousin," she explained. "She's part of a wandering all-girl pride, so we're going to see her. We should be back around noon."

She and her parents left, and Kwami and Tabani wondered what to do.

That's when they spotted Vitani, sniffing along the ground in the direction of Akwele!