"Why do we have to leave?" Uzuri sniffed, clutching Hakuna's front leg, her green eyes shining with tears. It broke Hakuna's heart to see the cub like this.
With a sad smiled the lion bent down to look the youngest princess in the eyes, "There's some bad lions that are after us, really bad lions that want nothing more than to kill us."
"Why? What did we do wrong?" Uzuri wiped her eyes, pouting.
Hakuna sighed, "Because you are Queen Kiara's children, and the next rightful rulers."
Uzuri was told a few hours ago the story of her heritage, how she and her siblings fled the Pride Lands, how she was a princess, how her grandfather grew up in this very jungle.
"Besides, sooner or later we would have moved on." Uzuri looked up at her eldest sister, Adilah, who smiled down at her, giving her a comforting nuzzle and lick before laying down next to Hakuna, the twins and Rita lay a few metres away.
Uzuri crawled into her sister's paws, "Adilah?"
"Yes?"
Shifting so she now lay snuggled in her sister's chest, Uzuri looked at her sister who had both her eyes closed, resting on Hakuna's back, "What was mum and dad like?"
Adilah opened an eye, before sighing, "Mother was a kind lioness, with eyes like mine and Kopa's, her fur a little lighter than yours." Adilah smiled, "And father, oh he had fur dark like Imani's with eyes like yours, Kopa looks a lot like him, only with lighter fur, he also has dad's nose, only with mum's nose colour while us girls' have mum's nose."
Uzuri looked down, "I wish I got to meet them, you know?" The cub looked up from her spot, "Just seen what they looked like."
Adilah sighed, "Maybe in another lifetime." The older lioness gazed towards her birthplace, wanting her mother more then ever right now.
Uzuri just snuggled in her sister's paws, letting sleep overtake her.
~O~
"I hope Rita made it safe." A group of lionesses all gathered around the area they used to go and lay about, the moonlight shining on their coats in the night.
"You want to pray she did," A bronze lioness snarled, stepping down from the rocks she was lounging on, her orange eyes narrowed at the lioness who was currently addressing the rest of the lionesses, "Because if I get word that she didn't, Ahadi help me Kiara, I'll tear your throat out."
Another lioness stood up, her two cubs watching with wide eyes as she advanced on the bronze lioness, "You lay a single claw on her, Ahadi help me, I'll rip you to shreds and leave you to the hyenas." The blue eyed lioness snarled, glaring at the bronze lioness who glared back.
"Vitani." The lioness turned to the peach lioness, who gazed out towards the desert, not bothering to look back, "Your cubs."
The blue eyed lioness walked past her cubs, nuzzling them and continuing her walk to the queen, "Kiara, I understand what you are going through-"
"Almost a year ago I lost everyone I loved, my parents, Kovu-" Kiara stopped her self, turning her attention to gazing at the moon, "Do you, Vitani? Do you know what I'm going through? Have you lost as much as me?"
Vitani's eyes flashed with anger, "I lost my both my brothers in two years, my mother gone too! My nieces and nephew gone! My father left before I was born." Vitani snarled, "I don't care if your queen or not, don't you dare ask me how much I lost." Walking towards her cubs, Vitani glanced over her shoulder, "You know my name, not my story, Kiara. Remember that."
The lionesses went quiet, having never seen their queen talk like that, it was almost as if she had given up. "Are we going to die?" A young cub asked her mother.
"Of course not, my sweet. The lands are healthy we have enough food and water." Her mother assured her, a kind smile on her old face.
"Adilah. If your out there, please come home." Kiara whispered, a tear rolling down her face.
"Mummy? Are you ok?" A small peach cub asked from his place between Kiara's paws, his grey eyes concerned, sniffing Kiara nodded.
"Of course, Chaka." Smiling slightly, Kiara stood up, "Let's go. Your father is expecting us, but remember, not a word you hear here is to be repeated."
Chaka nodded, "Yes mummy."
Kiara smiled, "That's my boy."
~O~
Vitani watched Kiara go in the direction of Pride Rock, her second son, Chaka following her. Sighing the ex-outsider grabbed her daughters and followed the queen, the rest of the pride following her.
When Vitani got in the den she frowned at the sight in front of her, Kiara lay on the rock, slightly higher then the den floor, next to Vita who had his head buried in the crook of her neck while Chaka lay curled up between them. At first Vita had his eyes set on her, but then he noticed Kiara and made it offical that she would be his queen, then Sita, his younger brother came and forced himself on her, resulting in her daughters. Of course he didn't have anything to do with them but Vitani was fine with that, in fact she prefered it that way. Glancing sadly at the royal family, the lioness with bangs curled her lips, It's like Kovu never existed, Vitani thought bitterly, choosing a corner she padded over there, placing her two month old daughters, Tanah and Upendi, next to the wall before she curled herself around them protectively.
~O~
Adilah awoke to Hakuna nuzzling her with his nose, trying to wake her up. "Love, get up, we're leaving." Groaning Adilah opened one eye seeing it was still dark she frowned, sitting up.
"Why so early?"
"Because we want to put some distance between us." The lion gently woke Uzuri up, moving on to Kopa, who he roughly shoved awake.
"Wha-? Huh? What's going on?" The prince jerked awake, scanning the cave, before yawning and stretching, "We're leaving I guess?"
"Yep." Hakuna had woken up Almasi and was about to wake Rita up when he saw her wide awake smiling at him.
"Now you can't leave me."
Hakuna scowled before grabbing Uzuri by the scruff, "Ready?"
Adilah glanced at her siblings and cousin, nodding she followed her lover out of the cave and into the sunlight.
~O~
Well? What do you think? I'm the only up and its like one o'clock in the morning so you better like it!
Stay tuned for some more later on... in a few days or next week sometime.