I.

Simba sleepily opened his eyes and let out a wide yawn. Feeling a heavy object on him, the lion rose up on his paws and stretched so that it had to fall off his back. The air was warm, his paw pads were comfortably roasting and his father was lying two feet from him. Simba immediately started doubting his father was there as he lowered down on his hunches and observed that his dad looked just as he had that day in the gorge; Simba's heart froze up.

Shakily, he reached out and tapped his father's chin.

The big lion stirred with a grunt and the ice in Simba's chest melted. He smiled wide at the thought of the two of them spending time together again and jumped atop his slumbering dad. Simba realized humorously that he had been a lot smaller the last time he'd done this.

"Hmm..." Mufasa mumbled, his eyes opening.

"Still pals, Dad?" Simba asked innocently from where he was perched on the lion's mane.

His father's eyes snapped open fully then and he reacted violently, slamming his son into the ground with a frightening roar. Simba was petrified, Mufasa was shocked. Their eyes didn't leave one another's for a few seconds. While Mufasa was sadly relieved he hadn't injuried his son, again, Simba glanced away with resentment. His father took a breath and nudged the lion's chin so that he had to look at him. Simba did but waited a few nervous seconds.

"I'm sorry, son." Mufasa said gently.

The tension melted as Simba smiled without saying anything.

Offering his paw, Mufasa smiled back happily as he helped his son up, paused briefly, and then took his son in his arms; who just as happily went into his father's arms as well. Tears tricked down Simba's cheeks. When his father moved back he noticed this and thumbed at them, still holding Simba at arm's length and on the brink of crying himself. His son noticed.

"I missed you, Dad."

Mufasa's spare paw went to Simba's other shoulder. "I missed you too, son."

There was moment of sinking in.

"Where do we go from here?" His son braved.

Mufasa was a little more optimistic for once. "I was hoping you would stay," he smiled.

Simba smiled back again and turned to sit beside his father, looking out at the many miles of semi-desert. The unspoken truth was that Simba was not going to leave his father and Mufasa could not in turn leave his son. There was many questions, yes, but for some odd reason Simba could not ask them. Mufasa had his, but his first one was the most important.

"Are you well, son?" His father was concerned. "Aside from me, have you been taken care of?" He placed his paw on his son's shoulder. Simba looked down, uneasy with answering.

"Dad... Dad, I-I have friends." Mufasa seemed to not know of them. "They mean a lot to me and... and, I want to bring them along sometime. Can't, can't things go back to the way they were before?" he nearly pled now. Mufasa looked down in thought, Simba could not believe he had this chance; he didn't blow it. "Dad, I love you. I love our family. But, we..."

"Son," Mufasa met his eyes. "Things can never go back to the way they truly were before. I can't reveal the specifics right now." His paw dropped, he looked out onto the horizon of the scrub land. "As much as I want to tell you, I can't talk about Haki and my plans." he let his eyes fall back to Simba, his arm went around his son. The lion looked up, watery-eyed.

"Dad?" He sounded like his old self.

"I never stopped loving you son," Mufasa hugged him again. The younger lion buried his face in between his father's mane and arm. "And I will never stop loving you." he forced Simba to look at him. "But you need to understand things are different now, I'm-, hmm..."

He looked away. "I'm not as you remember." his eyes snapped back. "But I'm still your father and I still love you." Mufasa had Simba's face between his big paws. His son took them between his own and lowered them down. He was rendered incredulous by all this.

"What happened to you, Dad? It's... it's like seeing a ghost!"

The look on his father's face was surprising. "Truthfully, I don't know." Mufasa stared out at nothing. "I remember saving you... and then, and then nothing. Son, I don't remember anything." he met Simba's eyes hopefully. Mufasa scruntinized him. "What happened, son?"

He trembled, looking down. "I don't wanna talk about it." His voice quivered.

Mufasa touched his arm. He looked up. "We have a lot to work on, son."

Simba was still unsure.

His father smiled, chuckling. "A lot to catch up on."

This made his son smile.

"I never..." Mufasa composed himself. "I never properly asked."

"For what?"

"Can I have a place in your life, son?"

Simba was flabbergasted.

"Son, after the way you reacted, I thought you'd never... I didn't even know you were alive and seeing you... seeing you so afraid of me. Being so afraid myself... I can't even imagine how horrified you must have been; The hyena attack, nearly getting trampled, watching me get pulled into th-the..." he trailed off just like he had been doing. "Son, I need this chance."

"Dad..." Simba was unsure of what to say.

Mufasa took him by the shoulders. "Let me make things up to you Simba, let me be your father. The father you should have had." Tears filled Simba's eyes again. "I am your father."

"I never said you weren't." Simba said.

His heart was racing fast.

Mufasa hugged him again.

"I know you're scared," he murmured. "But I need you to try and be brave."

"Okay." Simba slipped away, wiping at his eyes. "I wanna stay with you dad."

His father was gently adamant. "Son, that means you have to listen to me again." he was careful to explain. "Now I love you, and I know things are different, but that doesn't mean my parental duty holds any less firm then it did when you were a cub." Simba was uneasy.

"Dad... I've changed."

Mufasa remained uncondensending. "I know, son, and I'm not going to push you away. I want you to understand that the best way this can work is if you lower your defenses and let me assume my role." Simba looked down sideways, starting to understand his meaning.

"I'm a teenager," he almost smiled.

"Yes." Mufasa walked forward and put his paw on Simba's shoulder, drawing his attention back. "I'm sorry if I seemed harsh before, there was no justified cause for hurting you back there." Simba asked if there would be leeway. "Perhaps... if you behave yourself." His son chuckled. "Simba, I'm asking you to give me control again. If you say no that won't change anything, you still have every right to stay with me. But you say yes moving forward will..."

His son grabbed him. "I love you, Dad." he laughed at the idea of his father being so scared of this request. He backed up. "You've been my father for as long as I can remember." The lion was more serious. "I won't be happy about it, but I'll do anything to be with you Dad."

"Even if that means listening to me." Mufasa stated.

Simba smiled a little and nodded fast.

His father smiled as well.

"Hyena training," Haki suddenly appeared, alone for once. "I hope you didn't forget."

Simba felt the hair on his hackles raise, he was both suddenly nervous but on alert.

"No, Haki." Mufasa said to him.

"We had an agreement, Mufasa." Haki was quick to challenge.

"Put Ni out there, he's been anxious since day one. Simba can stand guard with me."

"Ni is a breeder, a watcher... he's not a hunter."

The youngest of the three looked back and forth between the two great lions.

Haki held Mufasa's gaze just as sternly as Mufasa held his.

"Fine, I will go then." He unexpectedly hugged his Simba's shoulders. "Now if you'll excuse us, my son and I have some catching up to do." The lion smiled at his father when he said this, despite the apparently atypical behaviour as evidenced by Haki's deepening glower.

"Mufasa..."

"Not today." The lion commanded. He still held his son securely.

Haki took a step back. "You remember tomorrow..."

"I'll be there. I don't go back on my word, you'll have me..." he stopped to consider Simba standing there, looking uneasy again. "There." The lion nodded for his son to follow him as he moved at a 50˚degree angle away from Haki and back toward the termite mounds. "I'm going to be taking the day off, Haki, I've done you a great service in the past as you have done me."

The lion started to argue.

"You can understand the need I have," he continued, his eyes shifting meaningfully to a curious Simba, "How much spending time with your son can mean." Mufasa meant every word he said.

His son nodded.

Haki didn't speak a moment. "Yes," he amended.

"Than you can understand my need to reesablish myself in my son's eyes." Mufasa turned.

The lion was sober but still without much to say. "Yes."

"Then you'll allow this one brief window of opportunity I have to do so." He finished.

Mufasa was already leading his son away before the Outlander leader could say, "Yes" .

To be continued...