Six months after I was born came the day I would meet Scar. My mother didn't want to introduce me too early so that I had a bigger chance of escaping should Scar have the hyenas kill me. But my mother knew she couldn't wait too long.

That morning, I was sleeping in the hole, despite feeling rather restless. I had never seen the outside world further than the view from the mouth of the cave and it was a rather dismal one.

My mother approached me and nuzzled me awake.

"Wake up, Shani," she whispered. "Let's get this done before the hyenas are fully awake."

I opened my eyes and stretched as much as the hole would allow me and climbed out. I had been waiting forever for this day, but, now that it was here, the reality of the danger sunk in.

Mother looked as nervous as I did, though she was trying not to show it.

Despite being small for my age, I had grown into a scruffy young cub. My fur was a golden brown colour, like my father's, but slightly more dull in colour. Most of my features I had gotten from my mother, including the stripe in my ear. But the ruby-red eyes were my father's. Mother had told me that my brother had the same eyes too.

My fur was unkempt at the time. Mother had wanted me to fit in the role I would now play; a rogue cub with no memory of her past life.

"Now, if Scar asks you anything, act like you don't remember," mother warned me. "Just let me do the talking."

"Do you think he would really kill me?" I asked. "He is my uncle after all."

"I'm not taking any chances," mother sighed. "I'm too afraid that the love he has for the throne might drive him to kill any potential challengers. Even of his own blood."

I nodded. If the thought of Scar hadn't terrified me already, it definitely did then.

Mother put a comforting paw around me. "Don't worry, darling," she said. "Everything will be alright. I won't let them hurt you."

Mother stuck her head out of the cave and checked to see if the coast was clear. As soon as she felt comfortable enough, she left the cave and motioned with her tail for me to follow.

As quiet as stalking hunters, we snuck up to the den without being bothered by hyenas, which was a relief.

Slowly, mother entered the den with me right behind her front legs. She stopped not far in and I cautiously peered around her legs to look at the lion standing in the middle of the den.

Scar was standing there looking more frightening than I had imagined. The scar across his left eye definitely didn't help and I couldn't help wondering whether it was a coincidence or he had changed his name to sound more frightening.

"Well," he snapped. "What reason had you come barging this early in the morning? And you had better make it snappy, Sarabi. Yesterday's meal was not satisfactory and the hyenas might be a bit hard to control when they don't have breakfast. They've had a taste for cubs, lately."

I gulped, trembling slightly.

Mother took a deep breath. "I was taking an early morning walk and I came across this lone cub." She pushed me forward, slightly. "It looks like she'd been alone for a while."

Scar glared down at me.

"She doesn't concern me," Scar replied. "She'd probably do well as a snack for the hyenas."

Mother tensed. "She could be a valuable addition to the pride." She said. "You would have an extra lioness to hunt for you. I will train her well."

"Or she could just be another mouth to feed," growled Scar.

By then, hyenas had entered the den and were eyeing me hungrily.

"However," Scar continued. "I'm feeling pretty generous today, so I will let her live."

Mother breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Scar," she said and turned to leave.

"But," Scar snarled. "Should she be a nuisance, the hyenas' hunger might get the better of them."

Mother and I left the den and went back to the cave. Many of the lionesses had already come out and were just hanging around at the entrance.

Mother entered the cave, but I stayed outside and looked around me. The view wasn't much, but it still was an upgrade of what I was used to. I tried to imagine what the lands could have looked like during my father's reign, but I had never seen a live animal that wasn't a hyena, lion or mouse.

"Shani!"

Hearing my name being called from behind me took me out of my musing and I turned around to see a light-tan juvenile lioness approaching me.