***Chapter 6***

***A Turn of Events***

"Is this where you have been living?" Mela asked as the trio entered into a small clearing in the savannah.

The grass was trampled in the surrounding area and the remnants of an antelope carcass lay farther off, partially hidden by a small bush. A heavily worn spot of dirt signified Pandi's sleeping arrangement. The clumps of dirt and surrounding bushes matched the debris in the rogue's fur. Scattered plants and roots lay about the ground in groups based on vague similarities, but not much else. It struck Amari as a bit revolting; but then again, it was sort of an improvised home. He couldn't blame the lion for being a bit disorganized.

"Yes, indeed. Just for the last couple of weeks though."

"You travel a lot?" Mela asked, eying the carcass with distaste.

"It is how I make my living in this world."

"And what exactly do you do?" Amari asked slowly. "Tulon mentioned that you were helping one of his lionesses with an infected cut or something?"

Pandi nodded. "You are a bit correct my dear. Some fancy me something of a shaman for the surrounding prides, and I suppose I fit the description well." He wandered over to a small flat rock and laid the vine leaves down on the ground next to it. Amari and Mela did the same with their own mouthfuls. "After all, most of what I do is helping with medical problems. Herbs, poultices, and bandages. Speaking of which, why don't you come over here, Amari."

The young lion nodded in compliance and approached Pandi as the rouge looked over a large assortment of items.

"What are you planning on doing with my arm?" he asked unsurely. Mela's treatment had been quite effective, even if it was a bit uncomfortable. He was a bit wary of trading his current fix for a new one of unknown quality.

Pandi just smiled. "Don't you worry, young sir! I have quite the skills, knowledge, and the materials to fix you up properly. Now place your paw up here and hold still."

Amari obeyed reluctantly, but eyed Mela with nervousness.

With a comforting smile, she walked up next to him. "Relax". She whispered silently so only he could hear.

Her words calmed him slightly, but it was still a bit nerve racking for him to watch the so-called shaman browse through his collection of sharp sticks and other tools. He examined gourds half-filled with various liquids and multi colored plants, dried to a leathery texture.

"Don't worry," he assured the nervous lion. "Most of this stuff is for much more serious wounds than yours. I'm just looking fo- Ah! Here it is." He proclaimed as he snatched up a small and dull stick from the pile of items. "Now hold still."

Amari nodded slowly as Pandi bent down to his wrapped arm. With the careful precision, the rogue gently slid the smooth and dull stick under the leaves that Mela had stuck to his arm. He kept expecting to experience a sudden twinge of pain from the stick touching his wound too sharply, but it never came. Pandi was quite skilled and his movements were steady.

"There it is." He said to himself as he carefully peeled the leaves back with a stable claw. The wound he revealed was better than it had been before, but it was still quite ugly. Dried blood was mixed with Mela's painkiller paste in a strange yellowish-red mixture that looked nauseatingly like pus. Amari knew that it wasn't, (in fact the wound looked very healthy) but he still felt a bit uneasy nevertheless.

The first thing that Pandi did was wash the wound. He used a very soft and wet moss to moisten the dried residue and allow it to rub off with as little irritation to the already sealed gash. In no time, his fur was its usual tan color and the lines of the wound were plainly visible to them all.

"Well that isn't so bad." Pandi remarked as he reached for a small gourd and the clear liquid inside. He poured it over Amari's injury slowly, making sure that it got full coverage. "This will help the flesh heal faster." He explained softly as he applied a fresh set of leaves to the slightly sticky substance. They stuck well, and a soft moss cushioned his arm from the splint that was applied next.

"That should do it quite nicely, my good sir." Pandi declared as he stepped back.

Amari eyed the job carefully as he set his wounded limb down on the ground. To his surprise, it felt quite a bit better than before. Mela had done a good job, but her work had been itchy and irritating. Pandi's felt much more comfortable and for lack of a better word, professional. It seemed to almost be a part of his leg and hardly hindered his movement at all. The split immobilized only the wounded part of his arm and left his elbow and wrist alone to move freely.

"Wow." he said in slight amazement. "This feels great!"

Pandi smiled at the remark as he began to remove the old dressings from the area. He tossed them off into some nearby bushes before turning back to the Pridelanders. "Yes, well. Plenty of practice."

Mela stepped forward and examined the work closely. "I'll bet. So you are a shaman?"

The rogue's eyes lit up. "Oh yes, I forgot. Continuing what we were saying from before, many in the area consider me to be a shaman of sorts."

"But you don't?" Amari guessed, looking up from his arm.

Pandi shrugged. "I consider myself many things, and I suppose that shaman fits as well as some other words."

Mela stole a glance at Amari unsurely before pressing Pandi deeper. "What other words would you use to describe yourself?"

"I choose not to limit myself to the verbal language. True description can only be felt." Pandi stared up into the sky for several moments in silence.

"Ummm… okay." Amari responded slowly.

"I'm just a lone lion who is just trying to make this world a better place."

"Soooo…" Mela asked further. "What else do you do?"

"Mostly medical aid, but occasionally more. A few months ago I helped to find a missing cub, before that I guided some lost travelers through some treacherous terrain."

"So you just help people?"

"I help those that need it."

Mela nodded approvingly. Pandi may have been a bit weird, but his adamant determination to help was enough for her. "Well you're very brave for offering to fight for us."

Pandi blinked in mild confusion. "Who said anything about fighting? I won't fight anyone."

Amari felt his gut drop in dread. "What are you talking about? That's why we asked for your help. What do you mean you won't fight?"

Pandi chuckled slightly to himself as he began to organize his belongings. "Oh dear, perhaps we have had something of a misunderstanding. I am a pacifist."

"What?" both Pridelanders exclaimed in unison. "You mean you won't fight ever?"

Pandi shook his head. "Violence is the essence of evil, young ones. To use it would only perpetuate it deeper into this world."

"But you said you would help us!" Mela cried.

"And help you I will!" He retorted adamantly. "I will treat your pride to the best of my abilities and perhaps they will be more comfortable while they are sick."

Amari was livid. "The sickness isn't our concern! There's a gang of rogues that are coming to force us out of our lands!" He shook his head in irritation. "And I assure you, they will do it VIOLENTLY!"

"Then I shall reason with them." Pandi replied stubbornly.

"To what ends?" By now, Amari was pacing back and forth with anger. "Do you really think that you can just convince them to leave when we're defenseless and they have so much to gain from our loss?"

"Violence is not the answer."

Amari stared at Pandi for a long moment of silence. "So you would never fight?"

"Never."

"Even if you were attacked?"

"No."

He growled irritably. "I don't get it! You can't just not fight!"

Pandi seemed to be enjoying Amari's frustration quite deeply, because he began to smirk. "This world is full of killers and fighters. There aren't enough pacifists."

"Yea, because everyone would get killed the minute that one of the Killers and fighters decided that they didn't like them!"

"Amari." Mela said quietly, placing a paw on his shoulder.

Her stare calmed him slightly, but not completely. With a growl, he pulled away and began to pace around the clearing. What kind of fool refused to fight? It was a natural part of life that they all had to deal with!

Mela was equally distraught over this new revelation, but she controlled herself well. "I don't understand. How can you just ignore the fact that violence surrounds us?"

"It doesn't surround me." Pandi replied simply.

"What about food? That antelope was killed pretty violently!"

"I didn't kill it; I don't kill anything. One of Tulon's lionesses caught it for me."

Mela was getting frustrated. "It was killed by somebody! You're still part of it!"

Pandi shifted his weight uncomfortably. "That's different."

"No it isn't; you're still the cause of it!"

"Listen you two," the rogue began with a heavy sigh. "I can't help it if you were raised by parents who thought that it was good to fight, but I assure you that it is wrong."

Amari was speechless at his sheer arrogance. Who was he to judge his parents? Hell, his mother had been a complete worry wart when she was still around. Always warning him not to do anything dangerous and to stick with his good friends. She had always forbade fighting, even play fighting! Now Pandi was accusing her of raining him poorly?

"I think that there's a difference between mindless violence and self defense!" Amari declared strongly. "I'm not going to sit idly by while my friends and family die in the wilderness just because nobody could stand up to a bunch of THUGS!" His anger surprised even himself. Normally he just went off by himself when he was frustrated, but this was different. He was furious with this lion for his deception. He had led them on with false hope when it was clear that they were looking for a fighter.

"Look, Pandi." Mela said quietly. "We don't need a shaman; we already have one. What we need is someone who can protect the sick from the gang that wants to kill them. Is that really so wrong? We just want help."

Pandi shrugged. "There are no exceptions for the rule. All violence is wrong."

She sighed irritably; it was clear that they were getting nowhere with him. "Well thank you anyways… but we should keep looking." With that, she turned towards Amari who was still pacing angrily. "Come on, we should go."

He nodded, and reluctantly followed her back the way they had come. "Thanks for the treatment." He said over his shoulder. It wasn't as if he felt that he really even deserved it, but he owed the shaman that much at least.

"You're welcome Amari." He replied calmly. "I hope that you will someday understand what I am saying."

"Come on!" Mela insisted, physically grabbing his good arm and pulling him forward and out of the clearing.

Amari nodded with annoyance, but didn't say a word. Mela seemed to sense his distaste, and subsequently kept her silence for a while. However, she eventually had to speak her mind.

"Don't let him get to you, Amari."

The young lion growled. "I know, I know! It's just! He's so-"

"I know, it doesn't make sense and I agree." She said in an attempt to calm him. "But we can't do anything about that. He is who he is, and it isn't our job to change him."

"I guess…" He started thinking; Pandi had probably never had to protect himself. He didn't know what it was like to risk losing everything! "I hope he gets attacked." He said darkly.

Mela blinked in surprise at his sudden animosity. "Amari!" she exclaimed. "That's a horrible thing to wish for!"

"It would serve him right, and maybe even teach him a lesson."

She shook her head and opened her mouth to speak. "I know that you don-"

She never finished her sentence, she was cut off. "BOO!" a dark form cried as it burst from the brush. Amari yelped in shock while Mela squealed in fear. The creature lunged at them aggressively, and Amari felt his heart nearly stop. He winced his eyes shut for fear of the incoming attack, but it never came. Instead, a deep laughter rumbled out from the beast's throat.

"Did I scare you?"

Amari looked up from his fearful cringe to see a lion, moderate in size, but nasty looking all the same. He was a dark tan color with narrow shoulders. On his face he wore a toothy and intimidating grin.

"W-who are you?" Mela stuttered from the shock. "Why did you scare us?"

"I was just having a little fun is all." The lion replied with a sneer. "As for my name, that's none of your business."

"Jerk." Amari muttered under his breath, causing the instigator's eyes to narrow.

"Quiet, you. I could have really attacked you for trespassing, but I didn't; I have a different target today. You should be grateful."

"Grateful?" Mela cried. "We weren't trespassing; we have permission from King Tulon!"

The lion only smiled at her rage. "Yes, yes, I tremble at the mention of the mighty Tulon."

"Why are you here?" Amari said daringly.

He eyed Amari's well dressed arm with some interest. "I'm looking for someone… and perhaps you two can help me."

"Forget it." Mela said stubbornly. "Come on, Amari, let's go."

Before they could take a step, the intruder cut them off. "Then how about a deal." He said sinisterly. "I'll let you two walk free, providing that you tell me if he is in the area."

Mela blinked in confusion. "Who? Pandi?"

He grinned mischievously. "I'll take that as a yes. Thank you very much, and have a great day." With that, he ran off towards Pandi's temporary camp, quickly disappearing into the brush.

The two Pridelanders stared at each other in mild shock. Mela quickly realized her mistake.

"Mela!" Amari groaned. "Why did you say that?"

"I didn't mean to make it that obvious!" She cried. "It just happened!"

He shook his head despairingly. "What do you think he wanted with Pandi?"

"I think it was pretty clear that he wanted to fight."

"But Pandi won't fight…" Amari thought aloud. "He'll be killed!"

Mela's eyes widened. "We need to go tell Tulon."

"There's no time! By the time we get back, he'll be dead and that jerk will be long gone!"

Mela looked dumbfounded. "So what do we do?"

Amari thought as fast as he could, but he didn't see what they could do; there just wasn't enough time! "Uh… Ummm…" He looked around frantically as if the answer was hidden in the landscape. "You go get Tulon, and I'll try to stop them from fighting!" he blurted. "If you can get Tulon here fast enough, we can stop anything bad from happening."

Mela looked surprised. "You can't fight him, Amari!" she exclaimed. "You'll get yourself killed!" She shook her head with confusion. "Wait, a minute, weren't you just saying how you wanted him to get attacked? Why are you willing to risk your life for him now?"

Amari blinked in surprise, he had completely forgotten his previous anger towards the rogue shaman. It had all been lost in the threat of the nasty lion. "I don't know…" He replied slowly. "I guess I didn't really mean it. Besides, he helped me, I owe him at least this much."

"You can't fight that creep!"

"I won't, I'll just stall him for as long as I can while you get Tulon! Now stop arguing and just go; we're losing time!"

Mela swore bitterly. "FINE!" she shouted angrily before her expression softened, her eyes expressing her deep concern. "Just be careful."

Amari just smiled. "Hurry."

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He raced through the vaguely familiar brush with purpose. Thanks to Pandi's expert care, he could run without any hindrance from his bandaged arm. He went as fast as he could, giving special attention to the ground in order to avoid obstacles. He dealt with them as they came; ducking under vines or leaping over logs. His focus was intensified with purpose, aiding him greatly in the short run.

As he neared Pandi's camp, the sounds of angry lions made their way to his ears. He could hear arguing and loud shouts, but little more. He burst from the foliage to see a surprised pair of lions staring back at him. Pandi looked quite frightened with a fresh cut on his cheek, while the aggressor looked just mildly amused.

"YOU!" They both shouted simultaneously.

A dead silence fell over the three lions due to the unexpected arrival of Amari. It was broken by Pandi.

"What are you doing here, Amari?" he demanded. "You need to go!"

The unnamed assailant laughed aloud, making Pandi flinch. "He's probably here in some delusion that he's going to somehow protect you, Pandi."

"Leave him alone!" Amari said as strongly as he could, though the presence of the violent lion was more than enough to make him wish that he was elsewhere. His black eyes seemed to penetrate deep into his soul, making him small and weak before this task.

"Amari, you need to leave NOW!" Pandi said again with increased intensity.

The dark-tan lion shook his head irritably. "I'm going to ignore you for the moment." He told Amari with a grin before turning back to Pandi. "And I'll ask again, where did that leopard go?"

Pand stood a little straighter. "I told you before, I will not tell you. He came to me for help, and I helped him. I will not betray his location to you simply because you were offended by his actions."

A deep growl rumbled through the attacker's throat. "He passed through our lands without permission! He WILL be punished, and you WILL tell me where he went!"

"No."

Amari watched in horror as the tan lion roared in fury and lunged out at Pandi. The shaman just closed his eyes and braced for the impact. The two connected with a dull thud and went rolling across the ground littered with various plants and tools. Pandi grunted in pain as he struck the ground with his assailant pressing down onto his chest.

"STOP!" Amari cried, making the lion look up at him with an evil grin.

"What? You want me to stop this?" As if to antagonize the younger lion, he unsheathed his claws, and dug them into the flesh of the poor shaman. Though Amari was much more concerned with the rogue's safety, he couldn't help but notice that Pandi stayed true to what he preached. He didn't struggle at all against the violence; he only clenched his paws into tight balls in an attempt to alleviate some of the pain. He truly was a Pacifist.

"LET HIM GO!"

The lion paused to consider it for a short, if sarcastic, moment. "Um… No. I don't think that I will." He tensed his claws even more as Pandi squirmed under him. "Now tell me, Pandi." He hissed dangerously, his eyes just daring Pandi to refuse.

Amari was frozen at the sight of the events before him. He had come here to try to stop a fight from happening, but this crazy jerk simply didn't care! How could get him to stop hurting Pandi if the lion was simply ignoring him?

He looked frantically back to the trail, hoping desperately to see Mela with Tulon following close behind, but they weren't there. He knew that they would be a few minutes still, even they were sprinting. For now, it was clear that he was on his own with the two older lions… and he had no idea what to do.

He looked back to the cruel attacker to see that Pandi was still refusing to speak despite the increased pressure that the tan lion was applying. The shaman was already having difficulty breathing, and Amari knew that it was only a matter of time before the violence became too much for the poor rogue to remain conscious.

"GET OFF; YOU'RE HURTING HIM!" He shouted again.

"Ayep." He replied with a cruel grin. "That's the idea."

Amari wasn't usually a very angry person, but this day had been a bad one. First Mela had ignored his profession of love, then another king had refused to help, then the one lion who would help, turned out to be a useless pacifist. Now this. He wasn't normally a very angry lion, but this display of sheer and complete disregard for basic humanity and respect; it just pushed him over the edge. A fire was lit, and he could feel the burn.

With as loud of a roar as he could muster (which turned out to be quite loud) Amari threw himself at the cruel lion. A look of surprise crossed his face as the younger lion smashed into his side, knocking him from atop of Pandi. He had clearly not expected him to do anything about the apparent injustice.

The two of them went sprawling across the ground, knocking over various piles of herbs and tools that would surely be difficult to replace, but it didn't matter now. Amari was furious, and this bastard was going to pay. He rose to his feet and faced the attacker as quickly as he could, not even noticing the pain that was coming from his treated arm.

Likewise, his opponent rose from the ground as well, the expression of pure hatred on his face. "You shouldn't have done that..." he began sinisterly as he started to circle Amari slowly. "I was going to leave you alone, but this changes things a little bit."

Amari's felt a small twinge of fear from deep within his gut at the thought that he had made a mistake. He quickly recovered from his momentary regret as his anger resurfaced. This lion was undoubtedly a dangerous creature and Amari was definitely going to lose, but he didn't care. This wasn't about winning; it was about buying time and making the jerk pay for his cruelty. If he could occupy enough time, then Tulon and Mela would be able to intervene. He hoped.

Instead of waiting to be attacked, Amari decided to draw first blood, or at least try to. He lunged out with a growl at the older lion and began a barrage of awkward swings and slashes of his claws. Amari had never really been in a fight before, and really didn't know what he was doing. Nevertheless, he struck out at the lion with all his might. His aggressiveness must have surprised the assailant, because he landed the first few, drawing shallow lines in his shoulder.

The minor wound didn't even make him blink. Instead, he only grinned and threw Amari off of him, sending the younger lion stumbling backwards. Before he could even regain his balance, the attacker was upon him. He tried to lean out of the way, but the first blow caught him square in the jaw while another caught him in the gut a moment later. Amari fell to the ground, the wind knocked violently and painfully from his lungs. He opened his eyes, expecting to see the attacker over him, ready to rip his throat out. But instead, he was farther away and sitting; patiently waiting for him to rise.

"You're pathetic." He sneered. "Get up."

Amari didn't need another suggestion; he shook off the pain and climbed back to his feet with anger in his eyes, he wasn't done just yet.

The other lion smiled at his resilience. Then rushed him again. Amari's eyes widened as a paw rushed towards him with its claws unsheathed; he tried to dodge, but he was too slow. He screamed in pain as a shallow cut was ripped horizontally across his face. He tried to fight back, but he just couldn't keep up with his faster opponent. He threw out a strike every so often, but never hit anything. Instead, he only received a variety of small cuts, gashes, and other injuries on the rest of his body. It wasn't anything too serious, (even if it was painful); it was clear that the tan lion was enjoying himself.

A solid blow took out his good leg, and Amari fell to the ground again. This time he wasn't sure if he could get up; his body ached all over from his attacker's blows and the many cuts on his torso stung from dirt and sweat. He was tired, and demoralized. His rage was diminishing though he fought to keep it going. He wanted to be angry; it gave him strength. But he just couldn't.

"Get up." Came the nasty voice again. "Get up or I'll kill you now."

"Leave him alone!" a ragged voice called from not too far away. Amari recognized it as Pandi; he was still lying on the ground where he had fallen.

"Shut up, Pandi. I'll be right back with you in a moment." He turned back to Amari with a casual smile. "I was hoping that you would be a little more fun, but I guess your time is at an end if you can't even stand."

Amari's heart filled with dread at the statement. He struggled to get to his feet, but his legs wouldn't support him, the blow to his leg was apparently worse than he had thought. They collapsed from exhaustion and injury, landing him back down to the ground with a dull and painful thud. His anger was gone. Now only sheer despair filled him.

A shadow fell over him. Was this really how he was going to die? At the hands of this unnamed assailant? Suddenly it all seemed so pointless; he was giving his life (albeit begrudgingly) for life of a lion that he had only just met. Hell, Pandi would probably still die if Tulon didn't show up in time. Then again, maybe he wouldn't show up at all. After all, he had already declined to help them once today, why would he help Pandi?

His thoughts turned to Mela. How she didn't like him in the way that he did. It seemed rather trivial now, but Amari couldn't blame her. She had said that he simply wasn't "Wasn't what she was looking for." She could have anyone she wanted; she was smart enough, strong enough, and definitely had a good enough heart. She deserved better than him, and he just hoped that she would find someone that could be the one she was looking for.

He analyzed the ground; it would probably be the last thing he would see. The shadow of the cruel lion darkened the ground. He had failed. Simba, Nala, and everyone else had put faith in him and he had blown it just like he always did. He cursed himself for thinking that he would somehow be more successful out in the wilderness than he was at Priderock. All he could hope for was for someone to come to the rescue; maybe Mela would find someone before it was too late.

He blinked with a mix of surprise and confusion; the shadow was gone. The ground shone with the brilliant radiance of the sun, something that he had doubted ever seeing again. In his near-delusional state due to pain and exhaustion, he vaguely became aware of voices. With all his strength, he lifted his head, only to see a pair of dark eyes gazing deeply into his with fear and concern.

"Mela." He whispered with relief.

"Hold on Amari, We're gonna get you out of here!"

She managed to help him to his feet, and after a few awkward struggles the lioness managed to heave him onto her back as she would with a hunted animal. He didn't mind, it was more comfortable than being dragged. She carried him swiftly through the foliage, following a larger lion whom Amari assumed to be Tulon. It was nice to know that there were still some who would go out of their way to help a stranger.

***Author's Note***

This chapter took me quite a long time to write, and now that I look at its length, I'm not really surprised. Thank you for reading, and I hope that you comment (I was a little disappointed with the number of reviews last chapter, but I am not complaining). My time here is nearing its end, and I hope that this story will keep your interest long enough to finish it.

-Ben