"He just needs a few days to rest. He'll be fine."
"Find whoever did this to my son! Now!"
Tau never felt his heart pounding so fast, and Zola had never seen her cousin look like that. The cubs didn't keep their eyes off the Lion Guard leader's son, Tau couldn't keep still and he couldn't keep away from his father. For the next few days, Tau could be found next to him, only getting away to eat and drink, and he would be back at his father's side. Chozi would sometimes be with him, trying his hardest to get his best friend away from the sleeping lion. The girls started to come concern for the cub. Salene didn't know what to say, Mhina always gulped when Tau moved back into the cave, Azizi shared looks with Zola. But none of them spoke out.
Tiifu couldn't even pry her son away from his father, and Tau always listened to his mother, it was one of the things he got from his father, he was a mommy's boy. Nala tried to help but Tau wouldn't listen either. Everyone was starting to become worried for the young prince.
When Kion did wake up, Tau wouldn't let go of his father, laying down in between his forearms like an infant cub, and Kion smiled before licking his son's head. Tiifu came in and laid down next to him, laying her head down on his forearm, and the guard leader never felt more comfortable than with his family. Kiara came in with her son dangling in her mouth and Kion sucked in a breath. He never liked the thought about being an uncle again. Much less to a nephew despite what he said when he learned of Kiara's pregnancy with Zola. Things changed. It was all because of his trauma. Cheka looked up at him, and sniffed him with wonder before Kion gulped and gently pushed his nephew away with his muzzle. Muttering a sorry to his big sister, saying he couldn't handle it right now, not with his trauma up so high. Kiara understood but stayed with her baby brother to make sure he was okay.
Trauma. It was up so high he didn't know when he was going to snap now. But one wrong word, one wrong sentence, and he would explode. He didn't want to yell at his small nephew when he was old enough to walk and talk. He wanted to be his nephew's favorite uncle, and he didn't know what to do anymore. In his mind, Kion could only hear the cries of the dead, the flashes of his friends' dying. It made him close his eyes lightly, and Kiara nuzzled him.
His heart pounded as Cheka moved over to him and sniffed him once more. The small cub gazed at his uncle with wonder before laughing, and Kion gulped before giving out a nervous chuckle. Kiara smiled at her son before noticing how Kion didn't like this at all and her heart twisted. She wanted her brother to be happy by seeing his nephew, but it looked like it was being anything but, and she wanted him to be happy once more.
She hated her brother's trauma, she hated their father for sending her brother to war, and mostly she hated how he was suffering.
If only he hadn't gone to the war, if he hadn't lost his friends, then maybe he would be okay and his old self.
"Kion, you'll be okay around Cheka. He just wants to greet his uncle."
Kion sighed, lowering his gaze to Tau and then to his small nephew. "I can't, Kiara. It's… me in general. I'm different, Kiara. I'm amazed Tiifu stayed with me."
Kiara gave him a sad smile before nuzzling him. "She loves you, everyone does, we want you to be happy again," she replied. Kion's mouth opened slightly, but closed after a few moments of saying nothing.
He couldn't remember the last time he was happy. All his memories just showed the war and he whined, closing his eyes, having Tau shift in his embrace, having fallen asleep along with his mother.
Sensing the guilt, Kiara was quick to lick her brother's face confortinly. "You didn't do anything. The war was started by those lions, and you didn't know about the ambush."
Kion bite his lip, holding back his tears at the statement, he hated hearing about the ambush. "Y'know, before the war, Fuli said she wanted to tell me something important," he paused, sucking in a deep breath. "But after we returned, we were so shaken up, we didn't think about anything but resting. They weren't affected by anything, but I was. All I could hear were screams, and no one could calm me down but Tiifu."
Kiara hummed while she listened, putting Cheka into her forearms before asking, "What do you think Fuli wanted to tell you?"
"I do not know," Kion replied, "She never mentioned it again after we came back. When I asked, she said it was nothing and we left it at that."
"One day, maybe when you see her again, you can ask," Kiara suggested.
"Perhaps."
Kiara took a deep breath as she looked over her brother's wounds. They had formed into scars, giving him a more battle-like figure and stance than anything. No doubt Cheka would be interested in hearing about the battles his uncle faced, as well as other cubs to come, but she knew he hated them.
"I hate father," Kiara said, breaking the silence.
Kion gazed at her, shock written in his eyes. "What? How could you hate father?"
"I hate him for sending you to the war," Kiara went on, "I hate him for suggesting you replace your friends when they died during that event. I hate father."
"Kiara," Kion sighed, "Don't hate father. He didn't know."
"I'll hate him," Kiara told him. "Even mother hates him for that, and that's one thing I didn't think I would ever hear from her."
Kion agreed. "I know."
The two stayed silent. Kion didn't want his sister saying she hated their father, but he could see where she was coming from. If he hadn't accepted it, he wouldn't be like this, but it had given the Pridelands more of an image, and he knew it was important. But he never wanted to fight for the death. He just wanted to stop the war.
Yes, during the war, he used his roar. It gave the Upperlands more of an advantage, as they were the ones who didn't start the war but the Lowerlands. The Upperlands were the good guys, the bad guys were the Lowerlands.
But the question was; how long until the war trauma ended?