Mufasa cast his eye over the area being prepared for the feast. There wasn't much in the way of decoration – just a large stone slab which had been steadily collecting a growing pile of food. A few lionesses lay scattered around, tired from the hunting which had been sprung on them suddenly.
The king finished his inspection and smiled warmly. "Good work, everyone," he grinned. "From the looks of things, we'll have put together quite a meal for our guests."
Sarabi came up to her husband, and lightly nudged him. "How are things progressing?"
Mufasa turned to his wife. "Excellently! Everything is coming along very nicely."
Sarabi nodded somewhat tersely. "Good, good..."
Mufasa raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong, dear?"
"I co-ordinated the hunts, as usual. Every lioness was accounted for, except Zira. In fact, I haven't seen her for some time."
"I wouldn't be too concerned," replied the king loftily.
"And why is that?"
"Because," said Mufasa, gesturing to his left, "she's hiding in that bush."
Sarabi looked severely at the bush in question, and sheepishly, the younger lioness came out into the open.
"Care to explain yourself?" asked the queen darkly, while her husband worked hard to stifle his laughter.
"I, um, missed the start of the hunt, and... didn't know how to join it again without drawing attention to myself."
Sarabi's gaze remained hard for a short while, but softened after a time. It was hard to be too harsh on Zira; as far as the queen could see, she exuded a pitiful aura of ineptness. Sarabi was just glad she wasn't in a position of power. "Alright," the queen sighed. "But next time, just join the hunt, and don't over-think matters like that." Zira nodded quickly, and turned it leave.
"Just a moment," called Mufasa cordially. "May I ask why exactly you missed the beginning of the hunt?"
Zira went to answer, but before she could speak another voice cut across her.
"She was with me. Sarabi, please accept my sincerest apologies for depriving you of one of your finest hunters."
Scar approached the assembly, and bizarrely, he seemed genuinely happy. He swaggered up, sat next to Zira, and smiled at his brother.
"What has you so cheerful?" asked Mufasa, a mix of surprise, mirth, and even a hint of worry in his voice.
"As it happens, I've made a new friend," replied Scar, giving a meaningful glance to Zira, who blushed.
Mufasa, already in a very good mood, was pleased even further by this statement. "Well, that's fantastic. For the both of you." Scar's smirk widened, and Zira's blush deepened.
"I had better find out where our three visitors have gotten to," continued the king, "so I shall leave you two to... socialize." With that, Mufasa turned and began to pad away, Sarabi following him. Behind them, Scar and Zira began to talk animatedly.
"How nice the two of them found each other," remarked Mufasa, glancing back at his brother. "It'll be good for Scar to talk to someone non-sarcastically for once."
"He and Zira suit each other. Still, I have to say I'm a little surprised. I was beginning to wonder about that brother of yours," responded Sarabi.
Mufasa didn't quite grasp what she was implying, but before he could ask he caught sight of three silhouettes moving towards Pride Rock. He approached them in order to welcome them to the feast.
One of the silhouettes twitched slightly, and remarked to another: "Uh, Shenzi, I think that's the king who's walking up to us." It then twitched a lot more when the second silhouette smacked it in the face.
A spider scuttled excitedly around the stone floor, staring around the room with wide, purple eyes. Rafiki's eyes followed its careening path, boredom struggling with fear in his brain. On the other side of the cave, the elderly hyena slept deeply, barely stirring.
After satisfying itself that it was, indeed, a spider, the arachnid came to a sudden stop, its legs completely stiff. It focussed on the hyena for a few long seconds, and then it lost its balance, falling over. At the same time, the hyena opened its eyes and Wazimu grinned at Rafiki.
"Haha, excellent!" it wheezed, pulling Ed's body into something resembling a sitting position. "I knew we'd get it eventually. Many thanks, shaman."
"Believe me, I'm overjoyed that I could be of service," replied Rafiki tersely. Wazimu laughed off his sarcasm.
"Whatever, you withered sack of bones!" it responded cheerfully. "What's done is done. Now all I have to do is find a better body." It shot the baboon a skeptical look. "Consider yourself lucky. I want something younger than this, not even older." It kicked itself in the leg to emphasise its point, as well as to show it suddenly cared a lot less about maintaining the hyena's body.
"And where exactly are you going to find that?" asked Rafiki, before realizing that encouraging the monster might be a bad idea.
Wazimu thought for a second. It watched the spider clamber to its feet and woozily flee the scene. Then, Ed's features twisted into a wicked grin. "Say, here's an idea! Three people in one head was fun, but now I have an opportunity to take things even further!"
The baboon raised a worried eyebrow. "You don't mean...?"
"Precisely! Get up, shaman. I want you to be on hand when myself and Scar get... reacquainted."
Meanwhile, if indeed such a word is applicable in this peculiar case, a lion was returning to his home.
When he had woken up yesterday morning, he had been enjoying the same happy life he had been granted just a few short weeks ago. But somehow since then there had been a terrible, inexplicable tragedy. Some of the people he held dearest had disappeared into thin air, leaving no trace. He had searched the furthest reaches of the kingdom in a desperate attempt to find them, and didn't find so much as a paw-print for his efforts.
The lion let out a shuddering sigh. He probably would have continued searching throughout the night, but he was exhausted. He had also agreed to meet his mate back in their home if neither of them had had any progress by sunset. While he hoped she had found something, deep down he knew that if she did, he would have been told by now.
Breathing heavily, he approached the cave in which he slept. A nervous group of animals hung around it, whispering in clusters. He nodded to the ones who caught his eye, but didn't break his stride, making it clear he didn't intend to stay and chat. Some of those assembled gave him sympathetic looks – others glanced at him, and their whispering became more vicious.
The lion didn't blame them. The whole situation was suspicious – hell, he was suspicious. The king was among the group who had disappeared, and that meant he was likely to get the crown. And as far as some of the animals were concerned, he still wasn't worthy of their trust.
He entered the cave and collapsed next to his mate, who was facing the wall.
"No luck?" she said. She tried to keep her voice level, but the lion noticed that it was shaking. It was hard to expect her to take the sudden loss of her parents well, but he could tell she was doing her best. He shook his head, and nuzzled her gently.
"Not yet. But don't worry, Kiara. We'll find them," Kovu answered.