Hello all, and welcome to the chapter! I apologize for not having updated in quite a while. Life got the better of me, and I've been living in a state of perpetual exhaustion until today. Thanks to all who reviewed the last chapter, and PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO KINDLY LEAVE A REVIEW! Well, I have babbled quite enough, so without any further ado, here is the chapter.
DISCLAIMER: I OWN NOTHING!
Steele lay on his back, watching the bright stars cover the African night sky, marveling in their beauty and majesty. It had been three nights since Justin's attack against Athena. Since then, the former human had been keeping an incredibly close eye on his little sister, watching her every move, and every step.
To speak of the devil, Steele suddenly felt his face meeting the stone ground of Pride Rock, and two small paws pressing down on his back..
"Pinned 'ya!"
Steele chuckled as he shook his little sister off of him before giving her a suspicious expression. "Shouldn't you be sleeping Athena?"
The golden cub blushed before staring at the ground sheepishly. "Maybe."
Steele rolled his eyes before hugging her close. "Don't worry, I'm not going to make you go back. Besides, I had wanted to have a very serious conversation with you."
"About what?"
Steele sighed. "You'll see."
He once again looked up into the stars, and Athena did the very same. Steele began to speak softly, barely more than a whisper.
"Has Kovu ever told you that the stars are the Great Kings of the Past, gallantly watching over us?"
Athena nodded. "Yeah, they're always going on about that. I don't know what to think…"
Steele smiled slightly. "Well, I can tell you for certain that he's incorrect."
"What? How?"
Steele pointed to Alpha Centauri, it's dim red light an oddball among the bright bulbs of blue and white. "Stars are really these massive circles, larger than Earth, very far away, made out of gas and dust."
Athena's sapphire blue eyes widened in absolute wonder at the new information presented to her. "Wow…how do you know all of this Matt?"
Steele grumbled under his breath. "Mrs. Matthew's 6th Grade Science class…which I failed badly."
"What?"
Steele chuckled nervously. "Never mind…you see Athena, a massive explosion is what created the universe, but what has baffled us is how this explosion came to be."
"How did it come to be Matt?"
Steele chuckled again. "I don't think even God knows…"
A puzzled expression appeared on Athena's young face. "Who's God?"
"The one that saved me from myself." Steele leaned down and nuzzled Athena lovingly. "You'll understand more when you are a little bit older."
"Matt?"
"Yes?"
Athena began to shiver. "Who was the wolf that tried to kill me earlier?"
Steele shivered as well before bowing his head regretfully. "That was pure evil, and Justin is his name. We were close friends when the two of us were both human."
"Why would you be friends with someone who is evil?"
Steele sighed. "Athena, you forget that I wasn't all peaches and sunshine either when I was human."
"Oh."
The former human put a paw around his sister's back and held her close. "I love you, you know that?"
Athena giggled softly. "Love you too Matt."
"Come on. You really need your sleep, and I'm starting to get really tired myself."
With that, the two siblings walked quietly back to Pride Rock, being careful not to disturb any of the slumbering adults.
-TLK-
The next morning, Steele was cruelly awoken by a nudge from Kiara, who wore a massive grin on her golden face.
"Good morning Unio. Today is a really big day!"
Steele groaned in response. "I think twenty-four hours is long enough…"
Kiara laughed, and nudged him again, this time a little bit harder. "Get up Unio. Today is the day that you will finally meet your betrothed!"
With that, Steele immediately perked up. "Betrothed?"
Kiara nodded. "Yes! There are no other female cubs in the pride aside from your sister, and the royal line must go on!"
Steele growled angrily in response. "Who?"
"Princess Skye of the Western Savannah. She is the fourth cub, and the only daughter, of their king."
Steele stood up, and narrowed his eyes at his mother. "How dare you?"
Kovu, who had been watching the scene from a hidden corner, now entered the scene. "Excuse me?"
"You couldn't even be bothered to ask me first before you made such a rash decision? You are forcing me to spend the rest of my life with someone that is not of my choosing!"
Kovu narrowed his emerald green eyes, his scar gleaming in the light, his brown fur rustling. "You have no right to be saying this to us! We know what's best for you. The match is perfect, and your personalities are equal! You don't know what's good for you…"
Steele let out an all-out roar at his parents. "I don't know what's good for me? I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOOD FOR ME? I know more than you can possibly imagine, and I am disgusted that you are restricting my life like this!"
Kiara glared at her son. "You WILL marry Skye, and you WILL produce an heir with her. It has been decided for you for the sake of the kingdom."
"And what if I care more about my happiness?"
Kovu snarled at the question. "Then you will make a pretty pathetic king indeed."
Steele sighed in though, before responding, his voice much calmer, but still laced with ice cold venom. "So be it."
Well, that is going to be all that I am going to write for now! Huge props go to Keep Calm and Join Team Loki for letting me use Skye, which is completely her character. As I mentioned above, PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO KINDLY LEAVE ME A REVIEW! Well, I have blabbed far too much, so I think I'm going to call it quits. Take care and thank y'all very much for reading!
-Tex-
