Title: The Kimbilio Chronicles

Author: RoseEatsChips aka Taryn

Disclaimer: TLK canon characters © Disney; all original characters © me.

Rating: T for mature themes and moments of violence.

Summary: Mohatu's exiled brother Wakati starts up his own pride separate from the Pride Lands, paving the way for events that will affect canon characters from the Lion King universe.

Author's note: This took long to upload only because of, y'know, holiday cheer and all that good stuff. Hopefully I'll get to work on this story more now that I have a month off. Cheers!

An unfortunate surprise was in store for Paka the next morning: the lioness had slept over. Paka found herself under Uzuri's forearm, while Wakati slept on the other side of Uzuri, snuggled up to her close. The cub intentionally pushed Uzuri's arm roughly off of her, hoping to wake up the lioness. Instead, Uzuri remained in a deep sleep, which frustrated Paka even more. She huffed as she went outside the den to get away from her jealousy.

Outside, she found Gathii just dragging in a small antelope for lunch. He noticed Paka looking down at him, dropped the antelope's leg from his mouth, and greeted her with a shy smile.

"Wanna come eat?" he politely inquired.

"Sure. What else am I gonna do?" Paka snapped. Her snide behavior did not even phase Gathii's pleasant mood as he brought the carcass closer to Paka.

She sat down and started ravenously tugging at her food, ignoring Gathii's laughter.

"Someone's hungry today," he chuckled.

"Someone's going to get beat up today," Paka fired back, food hanging out of her mouth. She couldn't understand why Gathii was so ridiculously happy when before he mused somberly over his misfortunes in life.

Gathii took her irritation lightly and joined in on eating lunch. When Paka had her fill, she let out a loud belch and curled up into a tight ball next to a pile of pale bones. Gathii finished off his scraps and, as a joke, burped as well.

Paka glanced over at him and stifled a laugh at his ridiculousness. "What is with you today?" she finally laughed.

Gathii positioned himself comfortably next to Paka and shrugged. "Seeing you were down about something, I figured if there was anything I could do to get a smile out of you, I would do it," he replied.

"You're not as bad as I thought," Paka thought out loud. She gasped and turned away embarrassed.

Gathii blushed at her compliment and turned his head away as well. "Well, um, thanks…The same could be said for you."

Awkward silence resumed: Paka fiddled with a small rib bone in front of her while Gathii rested uncomfortably next to Paka, gazing out into the jungle. A loud yawn from the den both startled the two; Wakati had just woken up with Uzuri by his side. Paka remembered her reason of annoyance, and proceeded back to her immature jealousy. Gathii immediately took note of Paka's change in behavior and took up his solemn personality once more.

"Good morning, everyone," Wakati cheerfully greeted the two. Uzuri remained at his side, greeting Gathii and Paka with placid smiles.

"Sorry. We already ate," Gathii murmured apologetically, hanging his head low.

"Ah, don't worry about it. Uzuri and I will go out to hunt," exchanged Wakati.

Paka stuttered incoherent words as Uzuri lead Wakati out to the plains. The cub's eyes darkened then filled with tears as they playfully disappeared behind the tall brush.

Gathii awkwardly stood behind her, unsure of what to do as Paka broke down into heavy sobs.

"Y-ya know what? I liked him. I really did," Paka cried, facing Gathii. "Now he's…he's acting as if I don't exist."

"Uuhhhhhhh…he saved you last night, Paka," Gathii consoled, rolling his eyes after realizing he had given Wakati more credit.

Paka eased her crying into little hiccups, wiping away her tears with her paw. Gathii remained where he was, unable to move or advance towards her. Now the truth was out from Paka. Gathii had known all along, but this confession was more than enough to know that her mind was unchangeable. All the times he had talked to her, made him feel appreciated and understood, she had been thinking of Wakati more.

"Yea…that's true…" Paka mused. She headed back to the den muttering to herself, leaving Gathii by the gazelle carcass.

Uzuri led the way, sneaking through the brush toward an unsuspecting gazelle grazing in the field. Wakati watched her as she showed off her prowess, the way she placed one paw in front of the other displayed such intricacy that Uzuri appeared to be walking on air. She was heavenly, not anything less than that. When she was resting next to him the previous night, it was purely sweet bliss. Her heartbeat pulsated against his body and soon pumped in rhythm with his, the slightest touch of her body heat warmed his soul, and how she smiled in her sleep was anything but a dream.

The patter of lightweight hooves shook Wakati from his reminiscing, and he saw Uzuri dart out after the fleeing gazelle, closing in fast onto the poor prey's hindquarters. It was only a matter of seconds before Uzuri leapt out and brought the meal to the ground. The love-struck lion approached Uzuri, her maw miraculously clean despite the fact that the gazelle's neck had been broken and torn in a bloody mess. She casually licked her paws and gave Wakati such a seductive look that struck his heart in two.

Uzuri giggled at Wakati, who was standing with his mouth agape from the hunt. "You want some?" she inquired.

"Uh, sure. I mean, you take first bite, it's yours."

"Suite yourself." Uzuri clamped away at a large piece and swallowed it effortlessly in seconds. Again, Wakati stood still with his jaw hanging. "What? Didn't expect that, did you?" Uzuri said, closing Wakati's mouth shut. "It's rude to gawk in front of a lady."

"Who cares about manners, huh?" Wakati teased. "I would never…never imagine a lioness as…" He swallowed his words back into his dry throat with obvious difficulty.

"A lioness as…what?" Uzuri implored, moving closer to Wakati.

"This can't be happening," the bashful lion whispered. "I was going to say, a lioness as—hey!"

Behind the young lovers, a dark leopard was dragging away the gazelle down to the jungle. The scavenger opened his mouth wide, picked up the carcass in one bite, and ran at full speed with the gazelle's legs swinging in the air towards a large tree. In three graceful steps, the leopard was out of sight with his meal in the leaves.

Wakati approached the base of the tree, preparing to climb. Uzuri ran in front and stopped his ascent.

"You don't want to do it. Forget it. It was just one gazelle. I can get another one," she offered hastily.

Wakati glared up at the hidden menace and retreated back to the fields with Uzuri once more. They were able to ambush another young gazelle and instead of eating it on the spot, they dragged their meal somewhat closer to the den. In a shady spot by a small pond, Wakati stubbornly kept watch as Uzuri ate her share.

"Are you sure you don't want some? You're being ridiculous right now," she said.

"Just let me keep watch, alright? I didn't know there were other carnivores around here," Wakati said gruffly, scanning the savannah.

"Oh, there are lots of leopards here. I've probably encountered them all by now," Uzuri explained, taking another bite of the gazelle.

"If there are lots of them and four of us…" Wakati thought out loud.

"We won't have any trouble with them if we stay out of their way. That's how I kept the peace with them," Uzuri reassured him.

Wakati glanced over at Uzuri with sincere interest, almost bashful at the thought of asking and for not have asking it before. "Do you…do you have family. Like uh, like…a mate, or parents?"

"Parents…huh," the lioness huffed to herself. She stretched out her limbs and looked up at Wakati. "I did have parents, but then…heh, ironically the leopards got them. I don't know how, but one day, they just never returned from a hunt. The leopards also attempted to attack me after that, so I knew they had something to do with it. I was old enough to take care of myself by then. Not too long ago, actually. Seemed like years, though…" she drifted off.

"I'm sorry…" Wakati said, shifting from foot to foot.

"It's alright, don't be," Uzuri shook her head. "They don't bother me now, that's all that matters."

High in the tree, the leopard Siri feasted on his fresh meal. It was his first full meal in days, thanks to these rogue lions. He bit excitedly into the gazelle, already thinking how his mate and brother will be thrilled to know there were more lions, and young ones at that, in the area to catch their food. It would be easy to team up against the lions once a meal was caught and just steal it away from them; these young lions had little power against the swift and cunning leopards.

Once Siri had finished just about all of the gazelle, he dropped heavily from the tree and ran through the jungle to where his family was hiding. He pranced over to his wife, Ubazazi, who was a shade lighter than her mate. She was greeted by Siri with a passionate lick to her speckled brow.

"What did you find?" she asked anxiously.

"More lions. Young ones, too. Old enough to hunt effectively, but not strong enough for an ambush," Siri explained.

Siri's brother, Chui, struggled to his feet. Slightly younger than Siri, he had a large gash running down his front left leg, the result of a vicious fight between a strong beige lion over a small water buffalo; Chui was grateful enough to have his older brother engage in the fight and drive away the attackers. Now, his wound had become infected, despite its progressive healing, and his voice was croaked, his fur was tainted with dirt and falling out in small clumps, and his eyesight was failing.

"Did you bring any back for us?" Chui wheezed.

Siri stared blankly at his sick brother, then at Ubazazi, who scorned him with her yellow eyes.

"You brought backnothing?" she screamed in disbelief. "Are you turning your back on us, Siri?"

"It wasn't enough to feed all of us—"

"But enough to fill you up, huh?" Chui interrupted, coughing heavily afterwards.

"Look. I promise the next time I find a kill I'll bring it back to you both. It'll be easy," Siri told his family reassuringly. He rubbed up against a reluctant Ubazazi and stared into her eyes. "You're all I've got, and you need me as much as I need you. Why would I betray you two?"

"Just don't hog out on a full meal by yourself and leave us hungrier than before," Ubazazi growled, shoving Siri out of her way. She leaped up into a tree into solitude, leaving Chui grimacing at his older brother.

"I could be better by now. I could be as healthy as you. But you didn't aid me in any way to make me healthier. Now I'm dying because of you," he accused his brother.

Siri whipped around and snarled at his ill sibling. "The point you keep forgetting is that I saved you from being mauled into pieces. Be grateful for that, Chui."

Siri looked out from the jungle to the open plains, seeing the two lions lazing in the shade of a tree, miles away. He sat patiently, waiting for them to move anywhere. He hated relying on others, but he had to. Even though it portrayed him as a weakling to his wife and brother, it was all he could do at the moment; he couldn't hunt to save his life, despite his ruthless nature. But these lions would prove extremely useful in the future, and thoughts of an alliance between the two species began to swim through his head as he kept staring at the teenage lion, with his reddish mane and ear tufts. Crazy, but it might save him and his family.

Wakati and Uzuri returned to the den that night, where Gathii was keeping watch on the ledge of the rock formation.

"You know, we need a name for this place. It wouldn't be a home without a name," Gathii said, almost as if to himself.

"How about…Kimbilio? That could be Kimbilio Rock," suggested Wakati.

"Kimbilio? Like, 'haven'?" Gathii chortled. "So far, this place has been but a haven."

"Oh, come on. Just last night was probably the worst it is ever gonna get around here," Wakati dismissed Gathii. He didn't notice Gathii's look of contempt after that statement; it was too soon for the topic to be discussed casually.

Uzuri noticed Gathii's glare and nudged Wakati hard. "Uhm, maybe things shouldn't be taken for granted just yet."

"What is with you two? This place is great, isn't it?" He motioned to the blue plains illuminated by the moon. "We have all this land to ourselves, all the food we need, this shelter here…we've been blessed."

"No, Wakati," Gathii murmured. "We haven't been blessed. My haunting past resurrected last night, and I am scarred by it all."

"My family died here," Uzuri added.

"We need time of grieving, not 'joyful bliss' as you have been acting lately," Gathii grumbled.

Wakati stared at his friends frustrated. With everything in the world, why couldn't they be happy? What about the time he's spent with his friends? What about last night, how he defended his friends and was there to console Gathii over his loss? Why did they have to be so selfish?

"You know what? Fine. I'll just go and enjoy my 'joyful bliss' without you two. Apparently you two need more attention and grieving time than I thought," Wakati scoffed. He turned away and went back out to the fields angrily.

Wakati wandered far from Kimbilio Rock, past the watering hole, the sleeping herds of herbivores, until he came upon a decadent spot in the middle of the vast plains. A large fallen tree, rotting from months of decay, was propped up by a large boulder in the middle of the spot. Wakati leaped on top of the tree and spread out, exhaling deeply.

In the dark, Siri creeped over to Wakati and spoke in a hiss-like whisper.

"Excuse me."

Wakati did not budge, nor did he respond.

"Excuse me," Siri tried again, a little more forceful.

Wakati spun around and snarled at the leopard. "What do you want?" he demanded.

Siri cowered in front of Wakati, apparently putting on a show, and bowed his head before the lion. "Please forgive me for having disturbed you. I have come to apologize for my behavior this afternoon, for stealing your meal. The truth is, I am rather desperate."
Wakati rolled his eyes at the beggar. "Yea. Sure," he scoffed.

"No, wait. You see, I am very weak, and I have a family to provide for back in the jungle, who are starving. Please, I only ask that we may come to some agreement here. Maybe an alliance if—"

"An alliance?" Wakati interrupted furiously. "Two such animals of the savannah have never formed an alliance. It has never been done before, and it never will be."

"Perhaps we could start a new foot by forming one now. Gain some benefit from this change, yes?" Siri hissed.

"How can I trust you?" Wakati asked lowly.

"You can be assured that the only meals you capture will be yours. You will assist me in hunting my own, in the slightest way possible, and therefore in return I will leave you and your…pride alone."

"What kind of 'bargain' is this? Are you threatening me if I don't?" Wakati snarled.

"I'm only saying if you don't help me, things might be difficult in the long run. Meaning you may not get as much food as you'd like," Siri flatly stated. "So what do you say?"

Wakati paused and examined the desperate leopard. He was thin, and did look like he was about to fall ill at any moment. Sympathy trickled through Wakati's thoughts as he continued to look over Siri.

"What is your name?" he finally asked after a while.

"Siri," the leopard responded.

"Siri, I am going to consort with my friends first, if you don't mind. By tomorrow, when the sun's at its highest point in the sky, I will meet you here and let you know. Deal?"

The leopard smiled, his large fangs glistening in the moonlight. "Deal," he said.