It was three days after Tojo, Mheetu, and Chumvi left the Pride. King Scar had said very little about the whole affair, remarking only that the three would face death if they ever set paw over his borders again.

Zira was by now heavily pregnant. She spent most of her time with Scar, roaming the Pride Lands with him. They spoke at length about growing up in the Pride Lands, things they had encountered since she had left, and what the future might hold. Scar told her about Mufasa and Simba's deaths in the stampede, and Ahadi's lonely death of some illness. She felt sympathy for all his losses, but somehow, she felt as though he didn't feel too much grief over any of it.

The King seemed different to her from the gentle cub she'd once known, or even the bitter adolescent she'd last seen. He was distant, even with her, and seemed loathe to talk about Mufasa or Simba. When once he had been angry and bitter, now he was cool and reserved, his eyes hinting at some darker emotion. The only lion he was ever kind or even polite around was generally Zira, although he treated her sisters and Sarafina with a grudging respect.

Zira was glad to be able to spend time with her friend once more, but something had clearly changed about Sarafina. She seemed wiser now, having cast off the carefree attitude of her youth. The treachery of Runju had not embittered her, but rather made her calmer, warier. She also spent an annoying amount of time with Sarabi, the one who had taunted Zira numerous times. She complained a few times to Sarafina about it, but soon stopped, realizing her friend would not be swayed.

Scar was the only one who seemed to truly understand her. If ever she felt the need to rant about the cruelty of Khali, Scar was the one she turned to. Sarafina and her sisters expressed sympathy, but offered nothing but empty words of comfort, telling her that it was over now, that it was in the past. Sarafina gently reprimanded the princess whenever she hinted at revenge. Only Scar truly understood the fury that boiled in her blood whenever Khali's name was spoken, the hatred in her heart whenever she saw Nuka, or the unsatisfied urge for revenge.

Little by little, Zira realized that she was falling in love with the King. Sarafina's words returned to her. "Oh come on, Zira. It's perfectly obvious that he's completely in love with you!"Was it true? Could it be possible that the scarred lion loved her as well? Her own love for him frightened her. She had loved another once, and he had betrayed her. But Scar had saved her life. She wrestled with these tormenting thoughts day and night, unsure of what to do.

The day came when she was relaxing in the cave with Kuuma, Vunja, and Sarafina. She had been listening to them speak with detached attention when a fierce pain gripped her stomach. She let out a gasp of pain, her claws digging into the ground. The three lionesses looked at her, startled. "What's wrong?" Vunja asked worriedly.

Zira realized immediately what was happening. "The cubs." She managed to gasp. "The cubs are coming."

Vunja's eyes widened slightly. "I'll go get Rafiki." She bounded quickly out of the cave. The baboon had been staying fairly close to Pride Rock during the last few weeks of Zira's pregnancy.

Vunja soon returned, with both Rafiki and King Scar in tow. The King rushed to Zira's side, fear dancing in his brilliant green eyes. "You're going to be fine." He said in a weak voice, obviously trying to convince himself as much as her. "Don't worry, I'm here."

This birth was different from Nuka's birth. Back then, she had been completely alone, with no one to help her through the pain and the fear. Now she was surrounded by friends, who all loved her.

At the end of it, there were two cubs lying by Zira's side, both bigger and plumper than Nuka had been at his birth. The firstborn was a female, who looked stunningly like Dania. The tuft of fur on her head was bigger, her nose was shaped like Zira's, and her eyes were blue instead of gold, but those were the only differences. Zira felt love well up in her heart at the sight of this cub. I'll make sure you won't meet Dania's fate.

The second one was a dark brown male. He had a darker version of Shari's green eyes, and he had Nyeusi's face and mane. But his coloring was strange; she had not seen it in her family before. Perhaps it came from Mohatu, or some relative of Khali's.

Scar looked down at the cubs withal gentle gaze. "You see? They aren't Khali's cubs at all." The King hesitated, then said in a quiet voice, "If you would allow it, I would like to name one of them my heir."

Zira gaped at the King, stunned. "H-heir? Over any cubs you will have?"

Scar nodded. "It is your bloodlines which is royal, not mine. Besides, I know you will raise them to be great rulers. Now, which one do you want to be my heir? The firstborn?"

After scrambling to collect her scattered thoughts, Zira shook her head. "No, make it the male. He is the lastborn, like you. You can name him if you want."

King Scar looked down at the male thoughtfully. "What do you think of Kovu?"

Zira smiled fondly at her son. "I like it. And Vitani for the female."

Sarafina smiled down at her friend. "They're beautiful, my friend."

Zira nodded distractedly, her happiness melting away. Thoughts of the trials she had suffered, and that Sarafina and Scar had suffered, raced suddenly through her mind. She realized how utterly helpless age was to defend her cubs. Wild panic seized her in her exhausted state.

She lifted her head, swinging it to look at Kuuma, Vunja, Sarafina, and Scar in turn. "Please." She begged in a hoarse whisper. "Please protect my cubs. W-whatever happens to me, don't let my cubs suffer. Protect then from harm. Please promise me now that you'll do all in your power to defend them."

All four of them looked startled by her sudden change in mood. Kuuma was the first to speak. She laid a comforting paw on Zira's shoulder and told her simply, "I promise." Vunja and Sarafina echoed her promise with equal sincerity.

Scar told the exhausted princess in a low voice, "I would die for them."

Zira felt relief crash over her. All was well. Her cubs were safe. She murmured a soft, "Thank you." then laid her head on the ground once more, falling prey to a heavy sleep. As the four lions stood protectively over the mother and her cubs, no one noticed Nuka sitting in a far corner of the den, watching the scene with jealousy burning in his eyes.

Now we know that Khali is the father of all three of Zira's children. I know I probably could have been a bit more creative than that, but whatever, it works. Besides, who says I don't have something else up my sleeve? Oh, and that promise to keep Zira's cubs safe? You might wanna remember that; it's kind of important. (and I just stole that from Tangled.)

Zira, Sarafina, Scar, Chumvi, Tojo, Mheetu, Mufasa, Ahadi, Simba, Sarabi, Kovu, Vitani, Nuka, Rafiki (c) Disney

Vunja, Kuuma, Khali (c) Me