Chapter 9 is here. I decided to multi-task and work on both the remake and sequel. And to the people who think that Simba and Nala are going to end up together because of Kiara, you might wanna know that I hate Kiara. Lol. I thought she was really annoying in TLK2. I wanted to strangle her like the entire movie. Lol. Sorry to all the Kiara lovers out there. Well anywho...
Disclaimer: The characters and places from The Lion King belong to the Walt Disney Company. Some characters are mine; if you wanna use them email me.
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Chapter 9
Adaeze crept slowly towards Simba who was sleeping under the acacia tree. The moonlight was shining bright on his muscular golden body. She was only inches from him now.
"Do it and I will kill you." Simba muttered, not opening his eyes.
"No fair! It used to be so easy to sneak up on you!" Adaeze said pinning her ears back and laying down in front of him.
"Exactly. You've done it so many times that it's extremely easy to tell when you're coming." Simba chuckled, still not opening his eyes. After a few moments he let out a yawn that had a hint of a roar in it.
"Awe. Poor king. Is being a daddy taking its toll on you?" Adaeze giggled.
"Yes actually. Kopa's only a month old and he's already impossible to keep track of." Simba said, finally opening his eyes to see Adaeze's amethyst orbs only a few inches from his chocolate orbs.
"He's cute though. Looks just like you. Well except that brown tuft of fur on his head. I wonder where he got that." Adaeze said rolling over on her back.
"Yeah I asked Nala about that. She said it might be because my grandfather Ahadi had a brown mane." Simba explained.
"Is it normal for it to skip 2 generations? Cause didn't your father have a red mane like you?"
"Yeah he did. And I'm not quite sure if it's normal. But oh well, there isn't really any other possibility."
--
"See? I told you that they've been sneaking out to be alone!!" Desta whispered to Nala and Zander.
Desta had realized that Adaeze and Simba both disappeared at night or randomly during the day. She soon started following them. She waited a few weeks and finally decided to tell Nala and Zander. At the moment they were hiding behind a nearby thorn bush.
"I can't believe it. But wait...they're just talking. They're friends and they're both really busy during the day. Maybe this is the only time they can talk." Zander whispered.
"Yeah Desta. You need to relax. They aren't doing anything wrong. Talking is just fine." Nala whispered.
"Why would they come all the way out here to talk?" Desta hissed.
"Maybe they didn't wanna take the chance of waking anyone up. Desta, you need to..." Zander trailed off as Simba and Adaeze started talking again.
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"I'm just sayin, it's not normal for a cub to get a brown mane from their great grandfather." Adaeze said.
"Well Scar's son, Nuka has a brown mane." Simba said, shrugging his shoulders.
"Well did Nala's father have a brown mane?" Adaeze inquired.
"Well...I don't know. I'd have to ask her or her mother."
"You never knew him?" Adaeze tipped a brow at him.
"Nope. I'm not even sure if Nala ever knew him."
"That's weird. Oh well." Adaeze said, rolling over onto her stomach.
--
A tear slid down Nala's pale cheek.
"Nala? Are you ok?" Zander asked quietly.
"Yeah I'm fine. Let's get back to Pride Rock. I hate leaving Kopa alone." Nala whispered as she began crawling through the tall golden grass.
"Damn it!! You 2 are so blind! Don't you see? They're cheating on you!!" Desta hissed.
"Shut up Desta." Zander growled baring his teeth and following Nala. After a few moments, Desta began her walk back to Pride Rock with a scowl on her face.
--
"Did you hear something?" Simba asked standing up. Adaeze's ears twitched and she stood up next to Simba.
"Yeah. It's coming from over there." She nodded towards the thorn bush.
"It's probably nothing. Let's get back to Pride Rock." Simba suggested.
"Yeah you're probably right. Let's go. I'm really tired from the hunt today. I'm not sure why but I get really tired really easy lately." Adaeze said walking beside Simba.
"You're probably just stressed out. The wedding's coming up soon right?"
"Yeah." Adaeze muttered.
"Well you don't seem very enthused." Simba said looking over at her.
"I am…it's just…I'm scared." She confessed.
"Of what?" Simba inquired.
"Marriage. What if he changes his mind about me? Or what if I change my mind about him?" Adaeze rushed her words in a panic.
"I highly doubt that he'll change his mind. And you changing your mind…very unlikely." He said, seeing her uneasy look. "Unless you're already having 2nd thoughts."
"No…I don't think…" Adaeze stuttered.
"There's nothing wrong with backing out now." Simba said slowly.
"What?! I can't back out!! I won't!!" She exclaimed.
"Relax. It was just a thought. You shouldn't do something when you're not comfortable." The king reassured her as they made their way back to Pride Rock.
--
Zuberi sighed. He had also been watching the king and Adaeze. He had also been aware of Nala's, Desta's, and Zander's presence.
"I'll win back your heart my dear Adaeze…you wait…I'll have you as my queen soon enough." He whispered to himself as he began walking back to the Outlands.
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Adaeze awoke to see the spot next to her bare. She stretched her still sleepy muscles and walked slowly out of the den. She was greeted by a dim sky. The sun was beginning to rise above the horizon to make its daily trip across the savannah. She sighed as she made her way to the water hole.
When she arrived she bent her head towards the pond of water that had a few colorful fish swimming just beneath the surface. Adaeze let the cool water refresh her dry mouth. When she lifted her head she jumped back in shock. On the opposite side of the pond was Zuberi. He was facing her with a devilish smile.
"Hello my darling. Did you miss me?" He asked as he began walking around the pool of water. Adaeze couldn't move. She was paralyzed with fear.
'Move!! Are you stupid?! Move!!' She screamed in her head. She attempted to obey but was unable. In a matter of seconds Zuberi had his face just inches from her own.
"Wh-what do you want?" Her voice cracked. 'Oh, you can talk but you can't move your freaking feet?! Seriously?!' She screamed at herself mentally.
"Well I thought it would be pretty obvious." Zuberi said, giving her a quick lick on the cheek which made her growl. He circled her slowly. And again. And again. "I want you." He said finally.
"Well you can't have me." She said plainly.
"No? Are you sure? Because in case you haven't noticed…nobody's around. I could simply take you to the Outlands…where nobody would hear you scream." Her jaw dropped.
"Y-you're going to k-kill me?" She asked weakly.
"No. Of course not. That would be pointless. I'm simply going to make sure you never forget me. And that's a promise." He hissed the last part in her ear. He wasn't going to kill her…he was going to torture her. Suddenly she got the feeling back in her legs and she used them.
Zuberi scoffed at the speeding lioness and turned towards the Outlands. He wasn't going to make his move then and there. He was much smarter than that. He simply wanted to scare her. Fear. That was her biggest weakness. And he knew it.
--
Adaeze didn't stop running until she was safely in the den again. She noticed that most of the lionesses were already gone.
'Oh well. Nala will understand if I miss hunting for one day.' Adaeze thought to herself. She scanned the den and still there was no sight of Zander. The only other beings in the den were Sarabi, Sarafina, a field mouse, and Timon and Pumbaa who were visiting again. They had arrived a few days ago. She had come to love their visits. They were very amusing to her.
"Hey Adaeze!!" Timon shouted in his very annoying loud voice.
"Timon I swear, if I have to tell you to lower your voice one more time I will eat you and blame it on a cheetah. Got it?" Sarafina growled at Timon who now looked extremely terrified.
"Y-yes m-miss S-Saraf-fina." The meerkat slunk back towards Pumbaa who was excitedly trying to catch a potato bug. Adaeze giggled at the sight.
"Hey Timon. Hey Pumbaa." She said, padding towards them.
"Hello Adaeze. How are you today?" Pumbaa asked. He was always very polite to everyone he came in contact with.
"Do you 2 know where Simba is? I have an urgent problem that he needs to know about." She said, the worried look returning to her face.
"Simba? Why Adaeze, if you have an 'urgent problem,' shouldn't you talk to your fiancé about it?" Adaeze whirled around to see Desta padding towards her. She had been acting very strange ever since Adaeze told her that Zander proposed.
"It's something that deals with the king. But do you know where Zander is? I woke up and he was gone." Adaeze received a scowl in response. And with that Desta walked out of the den towards the hunting grounds.
"Oook." Timon said a few moments after Desta had left. "What's her problem?"
"I don't know." Adaeze answered truthfully. "But anyways, have you 2 seen Simba?"
"Nope. We just woke up like…a few minutes ago." Timon explained shrugging his shoulders.
"Ok. Thanks anyway." She said with a small smile. Adaeze decided to stay in the den and wait for the king.
"Are you ok Adaeze? You seem distracted." Pumbaa asked as he trotted over to her.
"Huh? Yeah yeah. I'm fine." Adaeze answered with a reassuring grin. After a few minutes Adaeze felt a strange pressure on her back and the feeling of little claws digging into her skin.
"I got you Adaeze!!" A little voice squealed. Adaeze giggled and shifted her body so Kopa slid off and hit the ground with a gentle thud. He was still very small and weak so she could only drop him about 3 inches.
Kopa giggled as he stood up and started playfully swatting at Adaeze's muzzle. They continued playing until Simba finally walked into the den a few hours later.
"Hey Adaeze. What's up?" The golden lion asked.
"Daddy!!" Kopa squealed as he rushed to his father. Simba chuckled at his son's still wobbly form.
"Hi Kopa." Simba replied, he leaned down and nuzzled the golden cub. Adaeze then remembered that she had been waiting for Simba.
"I need to talk to you." She said in an urgent voice. Simba immediately got a serious look on his face.
"What? What is it?" Simba asked quickly.
Adaeze glanced at Kopa and whispered in Simba's ear, "Let's go outside. I don't want to frighten anybody." Simba nodded and they walked outside. Kopa tried to follow but Simba shot him a look that he already knew meant for him to stay where he was. When they were sure that nobody could hear them Simba broke the silence.
"Ok. What's going on?"
"Zuberi. He never left. And he told me…he told me…" Adaeze stuttered, tears began forming in her amethyst orbs.
"Adaeze?! What did he tell you?!" Simba exclaimed.
"He told me that he was going to make sure I never forget him. He said he was going to take me into the Outlands so no one would hear me scream." Adaeze sobbed.
"Relax. He's not going to get the chance to hurt you." Simba said trying to soothe the sobbing lioness.
"Maybe…maybe I should just go back with him. I hate causing problems." She whispered.
"NO!!" Simba roared. "No. You're not going back with him."
"But-"
"I said…no." Simba stated firmly.
"Ok. Then what am I going to do?" She asked as a few tears escaped her eyes.
"I'm not sure. But we'll figure something out. I promise." He gave her a reassuring smile and a small nuzzle before he walked towards his mother.
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"There's no reason to worry. They were talking. I trust them. She's my fiancée...and he's my friend." Zander muttered to himself. He woke before Adaeze that morning and decided that a walk would help clear his head.
"Besides...if they were doing anything...we would have seen them kiss or something. But they didn't. There's absolutely nothing going on. There's nothing going on. I can trust them. I can trust them. I can trust them. I can trust her. If we're going to be married then I have to trust her. I love her. And Simba...well...he's a good friend. They wouldn't betray me like that." Zander continued muttering, trying to convince himself that Adaeze and Simba didn't like each other as more than friends. But he still had something tugging at him telling that he was wrong.
"Who wouldn't betray you like what?" Zander whirled around to face the source of the voice.
"Oh hey Adaeze." He muttered looking at his paws.
"Who wouldn't betray you like what?" She asked again.
"Nothing…how…how much did you hear?" Zander stuttered.
"Eh. Only the very last part. Ya know, the part about someone betraying you about something." Adaeze said casually, sitting down.
"Adaeze…are you ok?" He asked, noticing her eyes darting around every few seconds.
"No. I saw Zuberi this morning." Adaeze stated, still looking around to make sure the brown lion was nowhere in sight.
"Wow. I'm reeeaaally surprised. First meeting with Simba and now Zuberi. Shocker." Zander muttered to himself.
"Excuse me?" Adaeze asked with an angry scowl on her face and her ears pinned back.
"Nothing." He muttered under his breath.
"No no no. If you have something to say, then say it." She growled low in her throat. Zander jumped from his sitting position and got in her face.
"Why have you been meeting with Simba in the middle of the night?!" He roared making her wince.
"W-what?" Adaeze asked, stunned.
"Why…have you…been meeting…with Simba…in the middle…of the night?" He broke down the sentence.
"First off, don't you ever treat me like a cub again. And second, it's none of your damn business. I'm not cheating on you and that's all that matters." She spoke in a low voice that would make a full grown lion shiver…which it did. She stood up and walked away leaving Zander baffled. He had never seen Adaeze like that before. And he didn't like it.
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Well Nala, Zander, and Desta have figured out Simba and Adaeze's little secret. I thought this chapter was gonna be majorly dramatic, but I decided that this would just have Zuberi coming back into the picture. Confrontaaatiiiooon will be happening in the next chapter. Lol. Well thanks again to all my lovely reviewers. And don't forget to continue reviewing. Bye loves!!
