"It was not what she expected, why was she here, was this a trap", thought Lana. "Hello Lana", said Nala again, jarring her right back into the real world. "I am here to talk with you and you are going to listen to what I have to say; hold whatever comment you have until it is over." Nala said with authority, and for a moment Lana felt a twinge of anger. You think you can command me!? If I wanted to, I could get the Lion Guard and some of Scar's hyenas to eat you and your brother right now! And then Lana closed her eyes, as though they betrayed her innermost thoughts.
Did I… Did I just think that?! Lana thought as she took a deep breath to reroute her thoughts.
"Ok this is very civilized of you. No screaming or snarling; so I won't do the same to you this time." Lana said, perhaps sounding more like a cub than a young adult at this moment. Nala heard this; however she did not care. It was time for the truth.
"Look, I don't hate you Lana. In fact, maybe in another life we could have been friends. But I just don't trust you. Rather I can't trust you. I want you gone before you hurt those I care about." Lana narrowed her purple eyes, but remembered that she agreed to hold all of her comments and remarks until the end. "Before you came fully into our lives, I was friends with all of the other cubs, even Tama, Tojo and Chumvi. There was a reason we were referred to as 'The Friendly Five'." Lana froze; for she had heard that term being used amongst the older lionesses. "That's right. That was just how close our friendship truly was. After… my first love, they were my closest friends. However, then we grew up, and that's when you came back fully. The day you showed your new, beautiful face around here again, was the day I saw myself in you." Answered Nala, taking the darker lioness by surprise.
"Yes, we are both beautiful, nearly invaluable additions to any Pride. For that exact reason, we are both the greatest danger to any Pride we are a part of, for any male that sees us will be taken by our beauty and will do almost anything to be with us. I know this to be the truth, and I fear that power. But you… You choose to abuse this power and flaunt it readily. I had a true love once. His fur was golden, and he had those ruby red eyes. He made me feel alive; he had a heart of gold and as a cub I tried to hide the fact that I loved him. However, the day he died, I was forced to realize that I was now alone in this world." Lana couldn't argue that feeling, for she felt that exact way when Sefu was ripped away from this world. Nala continued.
"Soon after, Chumvi and Tojo had fallen to Scar's side, with Kula and Tama soon to follow. I grew up and, in hopes of regaining what we once had, I had set my eyes on the kind, caring and lovable Tojo. I had tried to make him Simba's replacement, as he became my closest friend. Someone I bared my soul too, for he's the keeper of my secrets. However, as days past I realized that I would never love someone like I did Simba. I was using Tojo to feel good; no matter what I told myself, he would never be Simba. And it made me realize just how selfish I could be if I let myself." Nala said, taking a breath to calm herself.
"Me and you, we are the same. We mourn our lost loves (our one true loves), and try to hide the fact that we can never fully love anyone like I did Simba, and like you did Sefu. I knew that you would destroy the hearts of my friends, because your love, just as mine was, is a facade. I tried to warn them, and they excommunicated me for it. And now, they can't even see that this is exactly what is coming to pass. Tell me, do you believe I have said anything wrong?" Asked Nala. Lana sneered, stifling a growl of contempt.
"You just showed exactly how little you truly know about me. Yes, we both lost our true loves to senseless slaughter. But that is the extent of our similarities. Despite that brilliant speech, you and I both know that you're just angry that your group replaced you and was able to move on from your wrongdoings." Growled Lana. Nala, however, was unmoved.
"My brother… Mheetu was a good lion, he was trained to lead the Lion Guard because the former queen trusted my mother to teach him well. But now? That promising young lion is dead. You killed him Lana. He was forced to go against his own moral code and it destroyed his mind. He was crying like a cub when I found him, the only thing I could do was console him, repeating all night long that he is not an evil lion. He thinks of himself as garbage; that he should be dead. Yet you still deny your involvement in this." Nala accused, which earned a roar from Lana.
"He is a self-serving pervert!" Lana said through her roar. However, Nala did nothing but simply recite a past memory. "'Hey, sis I met this beautiful lioness today. She was very different, and I like her. I just don't know what to do. She's very nice to me and gave me a nuzzle and I think her eyes are pretty and I told her so and she giggled. She said her name was Lana, and that we had met before as cubs. I need to get stronger! One day me and her are going to meet again and I can't wait to tell her how I feel.' Those were Mheetu's words. He truly loved you, even with the knowledge of how you looked and acted as a cub." Said Nala, and now it was Lana's turn to be unmoved.
"It's not my fault that he fell that hard for me, even after I made it clear he didn't stand a chance." Lana coldly explained, earning a growl from Nala. "So arrogant. That is why I don't like you. You don't care that you damaged my brother. And now you're going to do the same thing to Mtoto and Chumvi. You saw what Chumvi's roar did in the Outlands. When you leave him because you can't truly love him, because you will always love Sefu… Chumvi could end all life in the Pridelands with his rage. You still refuse to care about the consequences, so this is goodbye for now" Nala concluded.
Oh, how she thought this would be the way this night would end. And oh how she would be wrong, because she was now face-to-face with a golden-furred lioness about her age. Even Lana was surprised at first, for she swore Nala was simply looking into a mirror before realizing that this lioness did in fact have some subtle differences. First, she noticed that this lioness was thinner and built for speed as opposed to her and Nala, and the fur on her tail was blood red as opposed to the light brown fur on Nala's tail. Lana smiled, a genuine and heartfelt smile, when she noticed that Nala's teal eyes differed from the icy blue eyes of what she could now confirm as her former best friend.
"Jezebel?" Lana said, and the nod of confirmation made her squeal in delight as she ran to embrace her. Once she did, Lana took another look at her childhood best friend.
"Jezebel?" Lana repeated, this time with much more concern in her voice.
