Hey you guys, this is Shembre! First off, I'd like to thank those who have been reading along, and those who have been reviewing, too. I really appreciate it, and I'm very glad that the emotions that I intended to come through are being noticed, and this gives me confidence.

I'll try to keep up on regular updates. I had planned to upload this chapter on Friday, but alas, the internet decided to fail me. For the foreseeable future, updates are planned for Fridays, Tuesdays, or both depending on the pace of the chapters.

Now, I present to you the next chapter :)

"Doesn't that cloud look like an elephant?"

"I guess. Don't they all sort of look like elephants?"

"Hmmm, I s'pose you're right. But that there… a giraffe for sure! Look at the thin neck."

Vitani had asked Natin to follow her shortly after Kovu and Simba had left, leaving Tanga and Asuma to watch clouds in order to pass the time. Nala and Kiara had gone off to organize a hunt for much later in the afternoon, leaving the bored cubs to their own devices. Tanga prayed she would be included in the hunt.

A shadow was cast over Tanga's face and she tilted her head back to find Natin looking down upon her. "Oh, hi, Natin," she piped, grinning.

"Cloud watching? You can't be serious, Lewa," Natin laughed, calling Tanga by his nickname for her, which meant beautiful.

"Well, there's nothing to do around here, Natin," Asuma spoke up, rolling over onto his belly. "Where did your mother take you?"

Natin's muzzle broke into a toothy, pleased grin. "While you were here, my mother was showing me how to stalk," he boasted. "She says I have promising talent."

Tanga and Asuma both wilted. "Our father was supposed to take us to do that four days ago," Tanga told their cousin as she stood up and stretched before going down into a crouch. She lightly pounced on Natin and they began to play-fight.

"Maybe he will tomorrow…" added Asuma.

Natin quickly pinned Tanga. "But what if he doesn't tomorrow… again," he remarked. "Why can't it be today?"

"What do you mean?" Asuma asked, suspicious. He watched as Tanga struggled beneath Natin's paws. She knocked him off and he went tumbling acrobatically to the side. "What do you mean by 'today'?"

"What do I mean?" Natin cried, smiling. "We're big enough right? Who says we can't go ourselves? C'mon be a bit more adventurous, you guys! Puh… cloud watching!"

The brother and sister looked at each other. "Well, er… I'm not so sure… our parents wouldn't want-" Asuma began.

"-You to have fun?"

"Er, no-"

"To be independent?"

"Natin!" Tanga spat. "Stop it. Our parents told us to not go without an escort. It's dangerous."

"I'll be your escort! I know what I'm doing. I've seen my mother hunt dozens of times," he reasoned. "We'll be fi-ine."

"They'll notice that we're gone, Natin," Asuma reminded their cousin.

Natin sniffed. "Stick in the mud, Asuma," he muttered. He smiled. "They won't be none the wiser. Trust me, we'll be back long before they realize we've disappeared."

"And if they do?" Asuma asked. "They'll be mighty cross."

"If we catch anything, they won't have to worry about hunting later. They'll forgive us."

"I prefer to not have a reason to beg forgiveness. They will take us later."

Tanga then looked at her brother. She realized she was fed up. "But he is right. What if they choose not to take us with them, Asuma?" she pointed out. "We'll still be bored. We have to prove to them that they can't push us around and forget their lousy promises."

"I think they'll still be mad…"

"Betcha scared!" Natin mocked. "C'mon, scaredy cub, live a little. I know you're just as tough as your daddy."

"I am of course, don't you ever doubt that!"

"Then why don't you, Asuma, prove it as fact?"

Asuma contemplated the pros and cons for a moment. He looked uncertainly from one face to the other. "…Maybe…" he muttered.

"That's a good boy," Natin laughed, taking this for an answer. He then moved to lead the way. "I'll be creating so much fun for you, you guys won't even realize it when the day is through."

"What did your mother teach you out there?" Tanga asked as she leaped to his side eagerly.

"The beginnings of what I'll need, one day, to be the best of the best-with help from her I'll be the best I can be," he replied, his head held high. "Your parents say we're all gonna rule together right?"

"But that's years away," Asuma remarked, joining them. "I think-"

Rolling his blue eyes, Natin broke in, "This can't wait another day. We'll rot away up here."

"-and with that, I'm perfectly fine," said Asuma.

"C'mon, brother, I know you're so much more fun than this." Tanga smiled, poking Asuma with a paw in the chest. "Sometimes I think, though, you'll sprout feathers and then wings and then a beak. You're a regular Zazu in the making."

"Am not!"

"Yes, you are!" both Tanga and Natin cried.

"Am not!"

"Yes!"

Asuma glared at them both. "Fine, if this is what you want, I'll prove it to you both, I'll play your stupid, silly little game, and make you eat your words!"

"Then do it, come with us!" Natin said.

"I think I will!"

"Fine!"

"Lead the way!"

Natin couldn't help but laugh. "This way then, my darlings," he cried triumphantly, as he jumped away and began running. "We must go before he changes his mind. The king has spoken!"

As his sister and his cousin raced away, Asuma paused before joining them to glance over his shoulder at the behemoth of Pride Rock just behind him. He saw his parents' glaring features in the patterns the rocks made. "… We're going to get in a lot of trouble for this…" he said quietly to himself.