A pale lioness jogged towards Guardian Cliff, her aqua eyes shrouded in worry. As she approached, she slowed slightly and scanned the area, her gaze finally resting on the only male of the pride, who was walking amidst the other pride members as they gathered together to sleep. She sped up again, heading for him.
"Maliki!" she called as she slowed to a stop in front of him.
Her mate looked up at her, concern dancing across his young face. "Sarafina?"
"You'd better come see," Sarafina urged him, turning anxiously towards the north.
Looking perplexed, Maliki nodded hastily to the two lionesses he had begun chatting with and followed his queen. "What is it?" he inquired as they sped into a jog.
"I saw a strange lioness," she informed him.
"Where?"
"Near the border. At the battlefield."
Maliki fell silent for a moment. "What was she doing?" he asked.
"She…wasn't really doing anything," Sarafina murmured. "I mean, she wasn't moving. I don't think she even noticed I was there."
"What did you see?" Maliki tried again, with more urgency.
"She was next to one of the corpses," Sarafina said carefully.
"Which one?" Maliki prodded, though he had a feeling he knew already.
"Ahadi's," Sarafina confirmed.
"Yes," Maliki sighed. "I'll bet you anything that that was his queen, too late to properly say farewell. The poor thing."
Sarafina said nothing as they sped through the grass.
The two monarchs lost track of the time as the evening savannah rushed past. The sky was darkening quickly. Maliki shuddered. Yesterday, under this sky, at this time, he'd been running at this speed along this very route. The sensation was extremely eerie. "Talk about déjà vu," he muttered.
"Sorry?"
"Nothing."
It was clear now that they were close. Maliki could smell it: the lingering, haunting smell of dead things that sent a chill up his spine. They slowed and finally stopped. Shaking, the king gingerly parted the tall grass to look upon the clearing.
"That's her," Sarafina whispered, leaning near him.
King Ahadi's body lay where it had fallen, but now there was another mass of fur lying against it. One could tell immediately that this creature was a living one, the only thing that still breathed in that haunted clearing. The animal was slightly smaller than Ahadi and lacked a mane, marking her a female. Her pelt was darker than his, a warm, earthy brown. Her body was fairly still; every once in a while she shook with a fresh sob.
Maliki's expression became soft. He stepped into the clearing and cautiously approached the lioness. "Milady?" he prodded.
The lioness' ears twitched involuntarily, but she did not look up.
Maliki came a step closer and tried again. "Milady, can I help you with anything?"
The dark lioness raised her head slowly. Her cheeks were tear-stained. Maliki was surprised to see a bright white patch of fur upon her brow. Her eyelids slid open and she looked upon him with dull, unfocused-seeming ocher eyes. "There is nothing to help," she said simply.
"What is your name?" Maliki asked her.
"Uru," she told him unenthusiastically.
"Uru." A hint of a smile appeared on his face for the briefest moment. "That's a beautiful name. It means 'diamond.'" His eyes darted back to the white mark on her forehead before meeting her gaze again. "It suits you."
The lioness closed her eyes again as she appeared to sink into deep thought. Maliki held his breath as he waited. Many moments later, Uru once again opened her eyes and looked at him. "What about yours?" she inquired.
"Maliki," he sighed. "Not the most interesting name, I know. It means 'king.' Very unimaginative."
"May I ask you one favor, King Maliki?"
"Um…sure, whatever you'd like," he acquiesced.
"If my name were not Uru—say a lioness like me were your cub—what name would you give me?"
Maliki was taken aback. This was without a doubt the weirdest favor he had ever had to grant somebody.
"Hey, no flirting with my husband," Sarafina said from her position at the edge of the field. Maliki couldn't tell if she was joking or not; it was hard to sound humorous in this setting.
"Well, Uru," he began, "I suppose I would name you…well…" He paused to think. "It's hard to come up with a name. Uru fits you so well."
"Please, sire, take your time. I'm merely trying to figure something out, and I need a secondary source. I'm out of ideas."
"Okay, okay. Let me think." Maliki sat down and puzzled for a while. Of course, it would have to be a name that reflected her, in mind and body. He didn't know her very well yet, so he could only work off of her appearance. That white patch. He couldn't stop thinking about it. It gleamed like a diamond, truly. But she was already named Uru. What about Johari, meaning "jewel"? Naw, he didn't really like the way that one sounded. What else gleamed? Of course. Stars gleamed. That was what her mark was: a star, shining against her dark pelt.
"I believe I have your answer, milady," Maliki said with finality, looking back at her. "I would name you Nyota. It means 'star.'"
Uru's expression had been relatively stony this entire time, but her face shifted at what Maliki had told her. She seemed puzzled. She raised her head up to the night sky. The moon was a fat crescent, waning, and the stars shone clearly.
"Star," she breathed in awe and vague confusion.
Maliki waited a moment before speaking again. "Can I help you with anything else, milady? Maybe I could bring you something to eat."
Uru looked back at him. "No," she answered. "You have done plenty already, King Maliki." She lowered her head to where it had been, in her curled position at the side of Ahadi's corpse.
"As you wish, Queen Mother Uru," Maliki said softly. He reluctantly tore his gaze from the lioness and returned to his mate. "Let's go, honey," he said to Sarafina, who followed him out of the clearing.
They walked in silence for a minute, but once they were out of earshot, Sarafina began to speak. "I could have sworn she was flirting with you."
"Honey…" Maliki warned.
"You like her, don't you?" Sarafina went on playfully, ignoring Maliki's tone.
"For pity's sake, Saffy. She's old enough to be my mother."
"I'm just teasing you," Sarafina joked.
"Sorry, but I don't think I'm much in the mood for teasing," Maliki informed her wearily.
She didn't know when she drifted between sleep and wakefulness, or how many times. She looked at the sky a lot, and she looked at Ahadi's face a lot. Sometimes she tried to imagine that it was a living, breathing face, but it was impossible. Then she would weep for a while longer, her tears soaking into his fur.
The pain's intensity level constantly fluctuated, but it was never gone. It was the horrible, horrible price of the Circle of Life. Ahadi, her king, her beloved. Her heart had belonged to him, it always had. And now, by leaving, he had ripped it out. It was still with him, but it hurt her so badly at times, like claws, like fire, only a thousand times worse. What was there now?
Her hunger grew and made its presence known, but she wasn't in the mood to silence it. Even when day came and the sun heated her dangerously, she did not move. Here was her place, beside what was now nothing but the lifeless body of her mate. She wasn't much more than a dead body herself now. The only way an observer could have been able to tell the difference was when a new wave of tears came and the sobs shook her ever more frail body.
Each night the moon shrank and the stars grew brighter. She stared at them for hours at a time. What did it all mean?
It was the day after the third night that Mufasa returned to her.
"Mother!" he cried in shock when he saw her. "What are you doing?"
"Mourning," she rasped through her parched throat.
"Mother, have you been sitting here the past three nights in a row?" He sounded so incredulous.
"Yes."
"You haven't been eating, or anything?"
"No."
"Not even a drink of water? Your voice sounds horrible!"
"No."
There was a slight pause as Mufasa struggled to take it all in. "Mother, please. This is ridiculous. We need you back with us. You need us. Please."
"You make it sound so easy," she groaned. "I can no longer make the return journey."
"Then…then I'll carry you," Mufasa announced, coming towards her.
"Do what you please," she sighed. "It will be in vain." Her eyes squeezed shut for a moment. "I'm touched that you came to say goodbye, son. I really am." She sniffed as the tears began again.
"G-g-goodbye?" Mufasa stuttered, halting.
"Let's face it. I won't last much longer."
"I s-suppose so," Mufasa managed to say.
"Mufasa?" It took a lot of strength, but she turned her head towards him. "I just remembered. I needed to ask you something."
"A-a-anything, Mother," he stammered, on the verge of tears.
"When your father was dying," she asked him quietly, "didn't he say something to you?"
"Y-yes."
"What were his last words, again?"
"He said he wanted to look at the stars," Mufasa told her as a tear ran down his cheek. "He said that my g-grandfather Mohatu was up there. He said maybe he would join Mohatu, but…he wasn't sure. And then…" Mufasa broke off, eyes wide in shock. "Taka! I totally forgot! He said to tell Taka he was sorry about something. And then…then…" He couldn't finish.
"And then he stopped breathing," Uru concluded.
"Yes," Mufasa whispered.
"Well, tell everyone back home that I'm going to miss them," Uru said weakly. "Give my best regards to dear Zuzu. And tell Taka…tell Taka that I love him so much."
"I will, Mother," Mufasa confirmed. He leaned down to her and pressed his face to hers. Their tears mingled. "I love you, Mom," he sniffled, his voice growing high, like a child's. "I hope you made the right decision."
"Thanks," she replied, her voice equally shrill and pained. "I love you too, Muffy."
Mother and son stayed that way for many long moments. After an eternity the son pulled away and silently walked home.
Another night and another day came and went. By the next night after that, the moon had disappeared completely. The stars were the brightest they had ever been. The stars, the stars, the stars. Apparently Ahadi had been fascinated with the stars. She had almost forgotten that he'd been so fond of the nighttime. When they were young and in love, they'd spent many a night under the stars. And the brightest star of them all was that of his father, Mohatu.
But then there was that tale that her mother had told her, the tale about Mohatu selecting her to be Ahadi's future queen. The tale of how it seemed that such a choice was connected to her mark.
And what Maliki had said! She had asked him what he thought of her, in a roundabout way, and he had told her that she reminded him of the stars. Such a name choice was clearly connected to her mark. She'd never realized it before. It wasn't a diamond; it was a star.
Mohatu, Ahadi, herself. What did it all mean? What?
Uru's long-empty stomach growled in pain. Her throat was as dry as desert sand. But none of it mattered.
She needed to know. She didn't know why, but she needed to know. Had Mohatu connected her with the stars, and chosen her based off of that? But then how did he know that his then-newborn son would eventually fall in love with the night sky?
Fall in love…with the night sky? The words had come into her mind unbidden. Was that why Ahadi had fallen in love with her, because she had reminded him of the stars?
What did it mean?
Uru's vision was dimming as her eyelids began to flicker closed.
Why?
Her thoughts were growing weary.
What…why…
Blackness.
