"Kion! Wait up!"

The lion cub didn't slow down, and hadn't slowed his pace ever since they walked away from the elephants. "We don't need to slow down," he said, not looking back to his friends. "If Janja and the others try and attack, they won't slow down, so we shouldn't either."

"But if they do attack, we need to have our heads straight!" Ono reasoned.

"Come on, Kion! Let's just talk!" Beshte pleaded, and when Kion eventually slowed to a stop, he walked up to him. "What happened back there? You never usually… snap like that."

"I'm aware, Beshte."

His voice was heavy, some of that anger from before still there. "So, why did you?" Bunga asked. "Why now?"

Kion sharply turned his head to his friends, that anger in his eyes not directed at them but still scaring them slightly nonetheless. "I'm not just going to stand there and let him talk bad about my friend, no matter the circumstance."

Beshte gave a frown to his friend. "Kion, I doubt he really meant what he said. He was just trying to take in the fact that Fuli…"

The pause the hippo gave only made Kion narrow his eyes. "Go on, say it. She's gone. There's no point trying to say otherwise, it's true." He saw his friends all bow their heads slightly, and though part of him wanted to cry, he refused to let any tears break out. "She had two options: stay with us and watch her mother walk out of her life, or go with her and leave the Pride Lands behind. We have to respect her choice, whether we like it or not."

"You're right, Kion. You're right…" The egret then gave a sigh. "I just didn't think Kasi would have asked Fuli that."

"… it wasn't Kasi who asked her. It was me."

The rest of the Guard widened their eyes at this revelation. "You… you asked her?" Bunga asked, to which Kion simply nodded his head. "Why would you do that?"

"Because Fuli meant a lot to me, and she still does!" The usually brash and confident member of the guard had to step back from his best friend, due to how fierce the response was. "I wanted to know what would make her happy, and that was the only thing I could think of! And yeah, part of me hates myself for doing that! I never wanted her to leave, and I don't think I really believed she would either… but I knew I would hate myself even more, if I didn't at least give her the chance." His voice was starting to break once again. "You all saw how heartbroken she was… how devastated she became upon hearing that their tribe couldn't join the Pride Lands. We've faced a lot of different enemies, but nothing they did ever hurt as much as hearing the pain in her voice, from knowing that she would have to say goodbye to her mother again." The tears that were fighting to break through were on the verge of brimming in his eyes, so he blinked them back and shook his head. "So, yeah. I wish things hadn't turned out like that, and I don't know how much this is going to hurt us, but if Fuli is happy where she is now, then I can at least be thankful that she's where she is supposed to be."

The others looked at their leader, surprised and disheartened by the sight of him acting so… heartbroken. None of them knew quite how to react to his confession, just looking at each other with sympathetic frowns as they tried to find the words. Just as Ono opened his beak, however, he saw someone coming towards them. One by one, the others followed his gaze, with Kion being the last to turn his head and see his parents heading towards them.

"Kion? Is everything alright?" Nala asked, sensing that her son was upset, try as he might to hide it.

"I'm fine, Mom."

"We heard a storm picking up," Simba explained. "We thought you were about to use the Roar, but then it died down."

"Yeah, there was a… false alarm. Nothing to worry about."

"I see. Well, I'm glad to hear everything is all-"

"Where's Fuli?" Nala asked, interrupting her husband and unintentionally causing frowns to spread on the younger animals' faces. "Is… she alright?"

"Yeah," Kion eventually spoke, breaking the tense silence. "She… she's decided to go with her mother and her tribe."

The queen's eyes initially showed her shock, before she gave a sympathetic frown. "I see… I'm sorry to hear that."

Simba nodded, quietly adding, "this is… surprising news."

Their son nodded, doing his best to keep his feelings on the matter from resurfacing. "It was her decision to go with them, and though we are… unhappy with that, we respect her choice, and we said farewell on good terms."

Nala didn't hesitate to approach her son and give him a hug. "You've been very mature about this, Kion. I know she meant a lot to you." She continued to embrace him, even if he didn't return it, before she looked up at the others. "All of you."

"Thank you, your majesty," Ono answered, with Beshte and Bunga giving a nod too.

"So… with Fuli no longer able to represent the Lion Guard, I take it you will be in need of someone else to fill her position."

"Simba!" Nala finally released the hug, giving her mate a stern look. "Do you not think that-"

"It's okay, mom," Kion insisted, before turning to his father. "We haven't made an official decision yet, but…" he was trying to find the right words, but before they came to him, something caught his eye. "What the?"

Hearing this, everyone followed his gaze and saw a familiar figure flying towards them. "LION GUARD!" they all heard Mjumbe call out. "LION GUARD!"

"I thought that they had left the Pride Lands," Simba recalled.

"They did." Kion walked forward to meet the raven as he descended from the sky. "What's going on?"

"It's Makucha! His leopards have teamed up with Hofu and Mjinga's pack, and they ambushed us near the border!"

"What?! Is everyone okay?!"

"They hadn't attacked when I left, but they were outnumbered considerably."

"Kion," Simba spoke as he stepped forward, "they're no longer in the Pride Lands, so-"

"So, that means we shouldn't help them?!" Simba didn't step back, but he was surprised by his son's outburst. "After everything Fuli has done for the Pride Lands, you expect us to just leave her and her tribe to die?!"

"I understand your anger, Kion, but-"

"But nothing! We are going to help them, because even if they aren't part of the Pride Lands, they are still our allies, and part of the Circle of Life!" He turned to his team. "Are you with me?" They all nodded together, so Kion looked to Mjumbe with determination. "Lead the way."

"Don't have to tell me twice! Follow me!"

Once the raven took flight, the Lion Guard sprinted after him, leaving the king and queen behind. "Kion!" Simba tried calling, though it was ultimately futile, so he sighed and shook his head. "Well, that happened."

"Can you really blame him?" Nala asked, her tone giving away that it was rhetorical. "She means more to him that he let's on. Besides, he was right about two things: they are our allies… and we do owe her."


The gazelles were all peacefully grazing on the grass near the Backlands, minding their own business and enjoying the calm the day had brought. As she looked up, Swala noticed that one of the members of her herd was starting to wander off towards the Backlands. "Raziya?" Wondering where the gazelle was going, she followed after her, crossing over into the Backlands. As she walked through a bush, she saw her friend, seemingly just staring into space. "There you are, Raziya. What are you doing?"

"Look at this!" Swala looked past her to see a couple of vividly coloured butterflies, resting on the leaves of a flower and fluttering their wings. "Aren't they beautiful? I've never seen butterflies like this in my life!"

The herd leader merely rolled her eyes. "Raziya, as beautiful as they are, we're in the Backlands. That means we won't be able to call for help if anything happens, so let's head back before that happens."

"Oh, come on, Swala! We'll be fine, we're right by our grazing grounds. Nothing will happen."

As if fate itself had heard her, both gazelles were startled when they saw a wild dog get knocked through the nearby bushes, grumbling as he got to his feet. As he shook his head clear, he saw the two gazelles, and a grin came to his face that made them grow fearful. "I'm sure the others have got this," he said aloud. "I could use a lunch break."

"Raziya!" Swala said, firmly yet somewhat fearfully. "Get behind me, now!"

Raziya did just that, standing behind her leader as the wild dog approached with hunger in his eyes, licking his lips. Fortunately for them, he didn't get too far before they saw Kasi run through the bushes and tackle him to the ground. "Get away from them!" she snapped, biting hard into his shoulder before he tried to kick her away. She got off him and kicked him away as he got to his feet, before turning to the two gazelles, both still watching in shock. "Swala! Get her back to the Pride Lands, now!"

This snapped her out of her stunned status, turning to her follower. "Come on, let's move!"

Raziya nodded, and the two of them ran back to their herd, leaving Kasi to return her attention to the fight at hand. She saw the wild dog running back the way it came, so she followed after him. It didn't take long for her to follow him back to where the fighting broke out. She saw the rest of her tribe doing their best to fight off the leopards and wild dogs, some having to deal with more than one at once. While they were holding their own, she knew that it might just be a matter of time before they were taken down, even though they were capable of defending themselves in normal circumstances.

'But, these aren't normal circumstances,' she thought to herself. As her eyes followed the wild dog from before, she saw that he was heading towards Fuli, making her eyes widen as she realised her daughter was currently unaware of the approaching assailant. 'Not on my watch.' Turning her run into a sprint, she leapt onto the canine, pinning him to the ground. She looked ahead and saw Fuli swipe away one of Makucha's leopards, not noticing that another wild dog was trying to sneak up on her. "Fuli! Behind you!"

The younger cheetah heeded the warning, ducking just as the canine tried to leap at her. She turned around once he had passed her head and used her hind legs to send him into the leopard she had just been facing. She then turned to thank her mother, but instead saw Hofu running towards her. "Look out, Mama!" The leader of the tribe turned, but Hofu was quick enough to tackle her to one side, the two scrapping once more. "No!"

She tried to help her, but felt someone else pin her down first, her eyes eventually looking up to see the twisted grin of Makucha. "Looks like it's game over, kitten," he taunted, prompting her to try and bite at him, only for him to pull his face back. "Still fighting, huh? Any last words before you can't use that mouth anymore?"

"MUACHE!"

Both the leopard and the cheetah blinked, their respective grin and scowl dropping from their expressions when they heard the distant yet ferociously loud yell. "Was that…" He wasn't able to finish that sentence, before a force crashed into his side at a speed that challenged Fuli's, the Backlander's body skidding through the dirt, causing more and more pain in his body. When he finally stopped, he groaned from the impact, before looking up at who had caused it. "Of course it's you."

"You'd better believe it, Makucha," Kion spat, staring at his foe with nothing but hatred.

"You're a bit far from home, aren't you? Shouldn't you be looking after your own herds?"

"These cheetahs are our allies. We weren't going to let you attack them like that."

"Well, now you get to go down with them!"

Makucha tried to kick Kion away, but the cub saw it coming and instead jumped away, landing so that he and Fuli were back to back. "You okay?"

"Y-yeah," she replied, keeping her eyes forward in case of any attackers. "I'm surprised you came."

"I'm just thankful that Mjumbe found us when he did. I, uh… I didn't want anything to happen to you."

She couldn't help but smile, her heart feeling warmed by his sentiment. "Thanks, Kion."

"No problem."

He took a swipe at one of the wild dogs that tried to attack him, whilst Fuli did he same to one of the leopards. "So, what's the plan? They still have us outnumbered."

"Not for long."

"What?"

"ZUKA ZAMA!"

Fuli looked up, seeing the familiar honey badger launch himself into the battlefield, jumping on top of Hofu and pulling at the ears of the leopard. This caused Hofu to move crazily as he tried to shake Bunga free, only for the smaller animal to send him crashing into Makucha.

"Watch where you're going, Hofu!" Makucha growled, only for Hofu to growl back.

"Why don't you stay out of my way?!" he growled back, both locking eyes and baring fangs.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Mjinga snapped, interrupting the two and breaking them apart. "Get your act together, you can fight once we're done with them!"

"Hello!" The three of them all turned their heads to see Bunga staring them, a grin on his face and his arms crossed. "We gonna do this or what?" The three leaders all snarled at him as they started to step forward. "That's more like it! Let's go!" Bunga pulled up his fists and began punching the air in front of him, not afraid of the odds against him. "Oh, one more thing. Look behind you."

Though they were confused by what Bunga meant, they all turned around and came face to face with the hippo of the Lion Guard, his familiar cry of "TWINDE KIBOKO" being heard as he charged into them, knocking them all to the side. "Nice distraction, Lil' B."

"What can I say? I know how to gain attention."

As the two of them returned to fighting their opponents, Fuli couldn't help but be amazed. "They came…"

"Of course they came," Kion told her, getting her to look at him. "Despite what's happened, we still care for you. You'll always be a part of the Guard, whether you're with us in the Pride Lands, or if you and your mom went to the other side of Africa."

"Kion… I… I don't know what to-"

"Look out!"

He quickly moved forward, pushing Fuli to the side just as he got tackled by another leopard, pinning him to the ground. The young cheetah quickly saw this and tackled him off of Kion, jumping off before she could get clawed in the face. The two cubs stood side by side as the leopard scrambled to his feet and locked eyes with them. "It's go time, kitties!" However, just as he began running towards them, they were all surprised when they saw Simba leap over the two Guard members, landing on the leopard and flipping so he could kick him away.

"Dad?!" Kion asked, both he and Fuli stunned by the king's sudden arrival. "You came!"

Simba smiled at his son, telling him, "I did indeed."

"He's not the only one!" They heard Nala call out as she ran past, grabbing another leopard by his tail and swinging him away, only adding to the shock the two kids were experiencing.

"I… I can't believe you came!"

The king nodded at Fuli's statement. "We can talk later, but we need to deal with the battle at hand."

Kion looked to Fuli. "What do you say? One last fight?"

A determined smile came to her face as she nodded. "Together."

Kion nodded back, and the two of them continued to fight alongside their friends and families. The numbers had now evened, and the tide was starting to turn. The wild dogs had been relying on the numbers game being in their favour, so they could try and sneak up and take down some of their foes, but they no longer had that luxury, and the strength of the cheetahs allowed them to handle them with more ease than before. While the leopards were as strong as their opponents, some even being stronger, they were now being distracted by the aerial oppression from Mjumbe and Ono, and after a while, they too fell.

As Makucha got thrown into the pile, the battle had now been one. Kion stood firmly in front of the fallen Backlanders and Outsiders, the Lion Guard stood right by him, with Kasi's tribe and the king and queen of Pride Rock backing them up. "It's over, Makucha," Kion affirmed. "You've lost."

"Don't be so sure, Kion," Makucha dared to retort. "We can still fight."

"Perhaps, but I'm ending the fight here and now. Do not come back to the Pride Lands, and leave Kasi and her tribe alone!" Before anything else could be said, Kion summoned his strength and unleashed the Roar of the Elders, those that weren't immediately launched into the distance digging their claws into the ground to try and avoid it, but were ultimately sent far, far away by the sudden gales. Kion waited until every last leopard and wild dog was out of sight before letting the Roar die down, his breathing slowing to steady levels before he turned to the others. "Well, that's that, I gue-"

Fuli cut him off, moving forward to hug her friend. "Thank you, Kion," she told him. "You saved us."

He smiled, nuzzling his head against hers. "Any time, Fuli."