Chapter 18- What Once Was Lost
I'd looked away from Inja the moment I asked that of her. I didn't feel comfortable with it, and I knew she would feel the same way, but I didn't have a choice. The others I could have asked would have told me no. That wasn't an option for me. Even with the darkness, I could see there were ominous looking clouds starting to roll in, though slowed, as if deliberate. The stars disappeared behind them as both of us could hear distant rumbles of thunder. Considering the increasing threat of a drought the Pridelands had been experiencing, it was actually a welcome sound, although it made the whole scene darker in front of Inja. She kept her voice low, still looking around as she spoke, in case we got caught by any of the hyenas. "What do you mean? You're leaving to go to a desert? Tishala, I don't understand." She shook her head, concern etched on her face, waiting for any answer I would give.
I could feel her stare on me, it was intense. With much trepidation, I looked back to her, hoping that I would be able to face the lioness for longer than a few seconds. The concern she was showing for me gave the strength I needed. "I need to get away from here. I'm sorry to spring this on you without any notice. I don't feel safe here though. I don't feel safe when Scar is around, when the hyenas are around, even if I have everyone else looking out for me." I explained, forcing a sad expression to come from the other lioness. It pained me to see her like that, "I realised it today, when I met all those other lions. They cared for their heirs. I didn't feel that same care. All I could be told by Scar was that he didn't care about my choice, that I was going to have a certain lion as my king and that would be the end of the discussion. I know that in an arranged marriage I wouldn't have complete control anyway, but when I decided to go against his words, I felt more threatened than I ever had before. Inja, I thought that he was going to hurt me at first. For a while, I've been scared of him, but I never thought he would actually do me serious harm…until I told him no." I stepped closer, frowning at her with my best attempt at a hurt face. I had felt many things with Scar, but in reality, I knew he couldn't harm me too much if I were to go through with his plan of making me his heir. I didn't want to be married to that detestable lion prince, Fedha. Even after all the other meetings with other heirs of varying degrees of unpleasantness, he was still stuck on that one, about the only one that would see me as nothing but an object. I supposed I shouldn't have expected anything more, but through the time I had been learning with Scar and Sarabi, I'd learned to stand up for myself more. I couldn't deny that some of their lessons in showing authority had been drilled into me, but with Scar's reaction to my rejection, I just knew I couldn't stay there any longer.
Although she didn't lighten up, her considered sigh telling me that she was going to help me with this. However, I didn't expect to hear a further argument that would put me in an awkward position. "I still don't understand though. You haven't said this to anyone before. We've seen you upset, seen you vacant in thought, but you never told us why. If we had known, then we might have been able to help you before it got this far." I kept our eye contact and just shook my head, telling the older lioness that it wouldn't have made a difference. I think she knew it too, but with what we were about to do, she had to find as many things to say as she could to try and change my mind, "I don't want to see you go. Because of the lessons our queen was giving you, you were giving our pride hope that things would get better. We know that Scar's reign won't last forever, every reign must come to an end. We figured that when yours starts that we would start to see everything get better again. Sarabi and everyone believed in you. She worked so hard to make sure you would bring a better future. And now…now you're just running away from that? I know you have your reasons, Tishala, but maybe you could stay here with us. I'll tell the lionesses. We will all be here to help you, protect you. We don't know what other chance we might get at a better future. I don't know if the queen could take losing another cub." Her head dropped down as she seemed to give in, defeated by my own stubbornness.
I could feel the tears forming in my eyes as another roll of thunder reached our ears, this time louder, showing it was coming closer to where we were. I tried to look up at the stars to compose myself, finding my vision blurred by the tears I had. "I know. I know it will be upsetting, but you have to believe me. I can't stay here. Even if I did find a way to make things better. How much worse would things get before I was able to make that change?" I couldn't help but start sobbing, "I don't think I could handle all that pressure by myself."
She stepped closer to me and offered a supportive smile "That's why you will have a king alongside you. Even without a king, you'd have the rest of the pride. No one should be expected to rule by themselves. Even Scar doesn't. He has the hyenas to help." She reminded me, trying to provide any positive energy she could.
It could do nothing to shake my tears though, feeling them soak into my fur, "With the one he likes, it'll be like I'm doing it myself anyway. Please, Inja, I need your help to get away. I promise I will come back." I pleaded, just wishing my sight was clear to look back at her with the same care she was giving to me. "I don't want to. I really like it here, but I know that I need to go if I am able to do anything worthwhile with my life here. It hurts, because I know that it will upset the others. I am crying a lot right now, and most of it is because I'm picturing their faces when they find out I'm gone. I don't want to hurt anyone like that, but please, you have to believe me when I tell you that I need to go. I will come back and make things right. I don't know how, but somehow, I will. I have to do it for all of you." I held back another bout of sobbing, trying to manage my volume as neither of us were sure if we could be heard. Inhaling was difficult, shaky for me at best. I shook my head to try and break from it, but it was no use.
Finally, Inja relented, leaning into me to comfort with a nuzzle, our cheeks rubbing together for a moment. She lingered with our foreheads touching "Okay, I will help. You'll have to follow me and be very quiet. I don't know how many hyenas are around, but no doubt if they spot us, then Scar will know and then there's no chance you'll be able to get away." She took in a deep breath, "I hope you've been practicing your hunting skills. We're going to have to sneak past a lot." Another clap of thunder made its presence know. The two of us gave each other knowing looks, a smile starting to grow on Inja's face "I think we have a way to make this easier though." She chanced moving away from me to scan around for a moment. When she returned, her smile hadn't faded, "Okay, so it looks like there are a lot of hyenas, but I think I know a way we can get to the gorge without being spotted." The lioness frowned for a second before looking to me to explain, "I don't know where Scar is though. It may be more difficult to get past him…but, we will do our best." She tried her best to be enthusiastic about her plan, keeping energy high between the two of us.
"Follow me." She gestured as she started to walk away, though taking a different route than the traditional one down pride rock. She led me around to the other side, where we started to climb up. She was aware of my confusion and came to a stop once. "You'll have to trust me on this. It's the only way we can get past all of those hyenas. Of course, I'll have to get back as well, but don't worry, I can manage it." She winked. The lioness then looked at the descent she was suggesting we make. It was steep, but on the way down, it would be quite straight forward as long as I didn't overcomplicate it. "I'll go first and then make sure you get down safely, okay?" I nodded in response before she started to make her slide down.
Inja moved down with ease, having the perfect combination of balance, grip and speed as she made her way down. With a bit of an extra flourish, she leapt off at the end, leaving me at the start, unsure of my chances at replicating that flawless performance. I'd never seen Inja do anything too physical, but that told me just how strong and skilled she was. Before I started, I wondered if I was being fair on her. She and I weren't as close as Nala and I were. Definitely not as close as Sarabi and I were. Yet there I was, asking her to risk herself for me. She was going along with it, but if I thought for long enough, it didn't feel like I had been fair in dragging her into it. I noted to myself I would need to thank her before I left into the desert. She gave me the signal to follow her down, so after looking at the distance I would have to control a fall, I took a deep breath and extended my claws out to grip as my front paws made it over the edge.
I could feel the full force of gravity as I started leaning over the edge, though I made an effort not to fight it too much, keeping as relaxed as I could. The moment I let my hind legs go over, I tensed up to the point where I held myself still on the rock face. My claws were able to give me enough grip, but I could tell if I tried to slow myself with them, then it would probably hurt. I took a few more deep breaths as I received silent encouragement from Inja, then letting my claws retreat back a little bit. Even after my claws had retracted, I didn't move. Knowing I'd just have to start it myself, I shifted my weight forwards, allowing it to work with gravity, starting to push me down. In an instant, I could feel the wind rushing past me as the ground came closer by the second. I forced my claws out again to try and give me traction, but if it had an effect, I couldn't feel it. I knew if I landed too hard, there was a good chance I would be heard. I winced as the friction started grinding away at my claws, forcing me to retract them again. I saw the faint look of worry in Inja's eyes, but rather than panic, I waited until I was close enough to push off with my legs, letting instinct take over until I had landed with only a small thud. As if it had been placed to cover my sound, a rumble of thunder sounded around the Pridelands.
With that small victory out of the way, neither of us had time to celebrate. The older lioness walked ahead of me, keeping her body low as she stalked into the grass. I followed, making sure to mimic her movements as best I could. I watched my paws for just a moment before I bumped into her back legs. I made no sound and she didn't flinch. I looked past her, seeing through the grass that there was movement. It wasn't long before we heard the tell-tale signs of laughter. I could feel my heart in my mouth as a few hyenas strolled by the two of us, unaware of our presence. I knew that if we made any sound that would be it. My escape plan would be lost and no doubt I would feel the wrath of Scar, or even worse, Inja would feel it for me. We waited until their movement wasn't visible anymore, sensing that it was safer to go at that point. I knew that it wouldn't be the last of the hyenas we would have to get past, but knowing I had Inja with me helped. I knew she was practiced enough to manage my mistakes. I nudged at her as the movement came from behind, suggesting the same three were making their way back. This time though, they were so close, I could actually see them through the grass as they went past. I could tell that Inja was as on edge as I was. After they had gone again, we made our way to a small gap where the grass wasn't tall enough to creep through. Poking our head out the edge, we couldn't see any hyenas on their way. "I go first and will tell you when to follow, okay?" I nodded and she crossed the bare stretch with ease.
What we didn't notice though, was the incoming hyena, sauntering through the bare strip of land. Knowing I was at risk of being spotted with my face out of the grass. I retracted, but didn't think of my movements, making more noise than I should have. My heart stopped as I realised the hyena had heard something and was heading over to me. I stayed still, but knew I was going to be found at that rate. Images ran through my head. I could see the anger in Scar's poisonous green eyes, the hurt expression from Sarabi when she finds out I tried to run away. Those things combined were enough to make me shake, fearing each of those, but for the moment, the hyena was my biggest fear. Inja couldn't risk herself for me, or at least, I didn't want her to do that. Fate seemed to intervene at that moment. Just before I could be spotted, a loud crash of thunder hit around the Pridelands. It just so happened this hyena wasn't a fan of thunder, so jumped up and scampered away to get back home, hoping to avoid the thunder. As it continued to roll, I made my dash to the other side of the long grass, joining Inja. Both of us let out a long exhale, thanking the kings of the past for their impeccable timing with the forces of nature. That was some handy thunder. I just hoped there wouldn't be tense moments like that again.
We powered on, little interruptions being the only thing to slow us down. The two of us were careful to avoid a similar event happening, the older lioness ensuring I made any crosses at the same time as her. She admitted it may have been a mistake to have me try and judge the situation by myself. We were fortunate to avoid spotting many more hyenas, finding only a few more were in our path. Once we were past them though, we started speeding up, making sure we could get away from sight. However, before we could get free entirely, a familiar voice forced us to stop. I could feel my fur stand on edge as we listened, waiting for the voice to go distant. Judging from the volume remaining the same, it sounded as if there was no movement. "No doubt when the prince arrives, it will be simple enough to mould him into the king I will need him to be. With the princess seen as my daughter, there will be a clear line established and my legacy will be remembered. Of course, I will make sure that you and your hyenas are kept within the Pridelands to feast on whatever you can get those teeth into." I peered over to see he was talking to Shenzi, of all hyenas. "By the time I am finished with my rule, it is unlikely another can match. The prince, Fedha, is simply a pawn to my plans to expand our kingdom. The more land, the more you can fill your stomachs. This will only work with your assistance though." He tried to reason, getting a quizzical frown from the lead hyena.
"How do you expect me to keep all those hyenas hidden from this prince for an entire moon? You have seen how many there are, right? It's like asking to hide a zebra corpse in the savanna…from hyenas. There's no way you can hide that many." He lowered his gaze to her, a brow raised as if he didn't see what the problem was. In fact, without speaking, Shenzi had worked out his solution "You can't really be suggesting we go back to the elephant graveyard, can you? The number of angry hyenas I'd have to deal with…I don't think I would be very popular. In fact, I would probably be less popular than you are with your own lionesses." She cackled, grinning at her little dig.
It didn't last though, as Scar had pressed his paw up to her throat, baring his teeth down at her as she was pinned. "If you aren't able to do it, I'm sure I can find a hyena who can." He sighed after calming his voice down some, "It would be a pity for them to lose a leader like you. Remind me again, how do hyenas make sure their old leader doesn't try to come back again?" He grinned, seeing Shenzi writhe beneath him. I raised a brow as he suggested that her life may be at stake if she stepped down as their leader. I didn't know if that was true or not, but I figured it may not just have been the hyenas involved in committing that act. I had the feeling Scar would also join in, relishing the opportunity.
She shook her head "Okay, okay, I'll do it. I'll get them to move." He took his paw off her throat, getting off her as the hyena leader gasped for breath, wheezing after she got to her feet. "I'll need you to be there and reason with them though. If you're there telling them it's a small time to wait for a better future, then I reckon they will go, even if they aren't happy about it." She grumbled the last little part.
Scar agreed, practically beaming at Shenzi as he nodded his head with clear enthusiasm. "It is for a better future. I just need that teensy bit of cooperation from the hyenas, and then once we have everything in place, not only will we have the Pridelands, but our glorious kingdom will take root in the Ubatili lands, until it is ours as well. Double the land. And that is just the beginning, my dear hyena." He started laughing to himself as they started to walk away. His tone sounded very condescending towards Shenzi, but she didn't seem to notice his subtle act, or care. I hadn't noticed Inja's reaction until they were leaving. Her straight expression didn't tell me much, but it appeared as if she was trying to process everything she heard. I guessed she had taken particular note to Scar's mention of me. Despite this, she kept her mind on her task, waiting until the lion king and his companion were out of earshot. We made our break for it, headed towards the spot Sarabi and I had visited often enough for me to make sure we were on the right path, even in the darkness. In a rather ominous moment, a small patch of cloud broke enough for the moon to shine over a little bit, accompanied by a roar of thunder, making me flinch enough I started running faster from an instinctive fear.
Once we reached the same place I had reflected on many thoughts, we stopped, both of us looking out to the desert. The drop was steep, but I knew it was something I had to do. Inja turned to me, her downtrodden expression returning as she pulled me in for an embrace. Even if we weren't as close as others, I still considered her a friend. The longer we held in place, the less I wanted to commit to leaving. However, Inja wasn't about to try and change my mind for me. "Please come back. If you can, please come back with help." She sniffled a little bit, fighting her own tears back to an extent, "I don't even care what that help might be, as long as it helps the Pridelands get back to the way they were. I'm sure you'll find someone who can help. Tishala, remember, you are never alone. You will always have someone backing. I will always back you, even if this isn't what the queen would want you to do." She squeezed, finding it hard to let go of me, using it as a way to hold back any tears she had.
I responded with a similar tone. I knew it would be a long time before I would see any of those friendly faces again, and it pained me. "Please, when you tell Sarabi, Nala and Sarafina, just tell them that I won't stop thinking of them. You too, Inja. I don't even know how to thank you properly for doing this for me. I know it isn't what anyone would want me to do, but I just know I have to do it. I don't think I can ever repay you for this." I shook my head, unable to hold back my own tears as they soaked into her fur.
We let go of each other to look into our eyes, misty as they were at that point, "You can thank me…thank all of us by bringing back that help, okay?" She sniffed, offering a smile as she encouraged me not to lose faith.
Whilst still sobbing, I returned the smile to her, nodding, "Okay, I'll come back with help. I promise. Tell Sarabi and the others that I will come back with help. Then we can make sure the Pridelands gets back to full health. I promise to do it, Inja, I really do." I rambled on, finding that when I spoke, I was able to hold back my tears better.
The lioness was wise to this though, nudging me backwards, "I know you will, but saying it isn't going to get you going. Come on, we can try and find a way down that isn't going to kill you." Her weak chuckle was enough to bring my mood and focus back up. I nodded and let her lead the way as we scanned the ledge for any easier descent. It didn't take long before she was pointing out a spot that wasn't as steep as the rest. "Okay, Tishala, this is about as easy as it's going to get. Maybe if you try edging your way down, facing the opposite way, it'll be easier. Oh, be careful of the shrubs at the bottom. It looks like they have a lot of thorns on them." I nodded and got to where she was referring.
I steadied myself and found that the position was easier than leaning over with my head down. I would have to go slow, but at least It would feel safer when I went down. As I started to make my way down, Inja popped her head over the edge. "Okay, Tishala, once, you're down, I'm going to go back to pride rock. Good luck. May the great kings of the past watch over you." She smiled, not even flinching when another rumble of thunder went off over her. I nodded, keeping my focus on making it down to the bottom. There were only a few moments where I felt I might start to lose control and slip down the rest of the face I was crawling down. Once it evened out, I could turn around and see a small jump I would have to make into the only area that didn't seem overgrown with thorns. I made the jump and looked for the clearest path, spotting one that would require some delicate movements, but was a pretty straight forward path to getting out there. I looked back up to see Inja still watching, waiting for me to make it in the clear.
I manoeuvred through the field of thorns, only getting pricked by a few of them. Even if it was only a few, they still hurt a lot, but I'd gotten so used to keeping quiet, I didn't make any noise in response. Once out, I sat down and took the thorns out, spitting them to the ground each time. I took a moment to glance back to Inja, both of us nodding to each other as she turned around to get back to her home. Hopefully she wouldn't get caught out. It did make me feel a bit better to know that she was going to tell others about why I was leaving and that it wouldn't be forever. With that sorted, I stood up and looked ahead again, almost overcome by the sheer size of the desert before me. I shuddered, but took my first few steps ahead, the solid ground turning to sand as my solo journey started. I took a look to the skies to see that it was quite clear above, a stark contrast to the Pridelands I had just left. I just hoped that I would be able to make it through, figuring crossing a desert at night would be easier than during the day.
Darkness still resided over the land, though the stars provided some company for me. I had to keep reminding myself to keep going. I knew I was going the same way I had been shown by the king of the past. The direction wasn't what concerned me. I knew that even in deserts, there were predators, and I didn't have a grown lion to protect me. I just had to hope for some more divine intervention keeping me alive. I knew that there were likely scorpions, snakes, even some type of cheetah that could roam the desert and hunt at night. Precisely the time I was trudging through there. I made the effort to stay on high up ridges in the dunes. Being there, I could at least see if anything was approaching, so it gave me the benefit I needed to keep myself alive. Whilst continuing my wander through, I couldn't help but think of what I would have to do if one of those cheetahs made chase for me. There was no way I was fast enough to evade them. I knew they were agile, so there was no dodging away from them either. I would probably make quite a nice meal for a cheetah. An easy one too. I was a defenceless target compared to some prey it might seek out, being just a cub. I had grown since arriving, but I was not ready to deal with a cheetah attacking. I could maybe get one strike in before I would be defeated. Being defeated would mean the worst, which wasn't what I was aiming for. The best chance I had of making it through was by avoiding any conflict.
The part that I found to be getting worse though, was how cold the desert was getting. I knew this would happen, having learned about desert biomes before, but I'd never experienced this drop in temperature before. Even with my fur, I felt like I was going to shiver before too long. There was no breeze to make it worse, but because of how dry this desert was, the chance of it getting any warmer before sunrise was impossible. I gritted my teeth, closing my eyes for a few steps as I pushed on, hoping there wasn't too far to go. Of course, when I opened my eyes, there was still the same image I had seen before; sand, sand everywhere. It seemed like an endless stretch ahead of me. The thought I would have to cross beyond all of that before I might see anything, it was draining, taking what remaining energy I had. The sand underneath my paws sapped more energy from me, the coolness of it slowing me down further. I decided to stop for a moment, try to regroup my efforts, boost myself with the power of positive thought. I believed it would help, but I didn't think it would give a significant boost. I had been traversing the sandy landscape for hours and didn't know if I was closer to the Pridelands or the land I was seeking. If I turned back, I figured I would get lost as well. I did not want to get lost in a desert, especially once the sun was up. The cold was draining, but the intense heat would be deadly in a number of ways. I could already picture myself falling over from exhaustion and dehydration. The thought of having a drink made me lick my lips, forcing me to try and shove the thought away. I could only afford the luxury of that thought once I knew there was going to be water available.
Once I had stopped, I knew getting up would be an issue, even if I was motivating myself. I was reminded of what Inja told me; the great kings of the past would be watching over me. Seeing as I'd convinced myself that they did exist after a couple of run-ins with them, I decided to look up to the star filled skies, clearing my throat, "Your majesties," I bowed, smiling to myself. If nothing, this was going to amuse me, "I think I have to thank you for the thunder earlier with the hyena about to have themselves a midnight snack…or whatever time it is. So, thank you for not letting me die. Well played on knowing that hyena's fear of thunderstorms. If I wasn't escaping for my life, I might have laughed. Just know I was close to laughing." I offered an apologetic smile, feeling a bit silly if there was no one listening. "I'm guessing this is what you meant when you said I would know when I have to go. I don't want to seem ungrateful, but next time you send someone in to do something like this, let them know from the start. Also, it wouldn't hurt to give them less of a distance to travel. I know that it's quite cold here and so I'm not overheating, but I can still feel my legs and everything aching. It might be quite nice to place a convenient pool of water somewhere as well. Like I said, it's cold, but the lack of water is a bit of a pain." I continued to ramble, "I really don't mean to be a bother though. I think so far you guys have done a great job. I couldn't have done what you did, so y'know, props to you." I chuckled again, starting to shiver as my lack of movement had only made me feel colder.
I stopped for a moment to think of what else I could say. "This next bit is more for Mufasa, so sorry in advance for all the others. You're all cool, but I only really knew Mufasa. Sorry. I just want you to know, Mufasa, that I will find Simba. If the others have told me he's alive, then I will find him. I just hope that he's okay right now. That would be one thing to find him but imagine if I found him with a broken leg or something. I don't have anything to help him properly, unless the place you're going to happens to have some orthopaedic knowledge in treatments, or maybe something I could use. I'm going off topic a little bit, but it's just that a lot of this worries me. I have a feeling that when she wakes up, Sarabi is going to be very upset. I know she wouldn't have come with me. She would have stopped me from going too. Please don't judge me too much for leaving your queen behind. If you are watching, you will have seen that we are close. So, leaving her isn't fun, but how can I say no to a bunch of dead lions telling me I have to retrieve your son? I don't actually think there's a handbook for this, but I think if I was able to get Simba back to the Pridelands, then she'll get both of us back. That's the plan anyway. I hope you'll help him out too. I'm sure he's thinking about you all the time." I huffed.
I felt a little livelier after letting all that out, "Right, now I just want to ask one favour from you guys, all of you. It may be selfish of me to ask, but do you think you could send some help over for me. I remember reading about the different predators in deserts. Whilst some of them are on different continents, some aren't, and I don't really want to encounter any of them. Yes, I'm a lion, but I don't think it's unfair of me to say I'm not full grown or at full strength. It might be a little bit impossible for me to find Simba if I've been poisoned or constricted or just eaten. I'm sure you understand, right? So, if you're willing, or even listening, then help a lioness out, okay? If you understand, I dunno…twinkle those few stars brighter." I pointed at a small cluster of stars. I sat and waited, watching only those stars for what felt like a long time, "Take your time, I can wait." I said, my patience starting to break. I continued to stare for a while longer and nothing happened. I dropped my head down and sighed, "Well, thanks for the help." My tone was sarcastic as I laid down, curling up as tight as I could, shivering still, "I'm just going to have a little nap…let my legs rest." I didn't even know why I was talking. It was clear to me at that point that no one was listening.
With my eyes closed, I felt my slumber creeping up on me. Before it could get close though, I felt a rush of wind against me. Looking at the direction of it, I had to recoil as some sand was sent into my eyes. I groaned, laying on my back to look up to the skies once more, "Why has it always got to be wind? What's wrong with twinkling a few stars? Stars don't get sand in my eyes." The wind continued to press onto me, like it wasn't moving beyond. "Okay, I'm getting up, your highnesses." I grunted before getting to my paws, allowing the wind to circle around my body, going underneath me as it swirled, "For great kings, you sure are pushy." I quipped, feeling the wind behind me again, as if pushing me forward. At the same time, I noticed that some of the gust that had picked up sand was travelling ahead. The sand made it visible. It was all I needed to see to know that I was getting the help I asked for. "Would it help if I ran?" I asked the breeze behind me. Of course, I got no answer, because it was wind. However, the event had enthused me enough that I felt energy in my body again. I started running after the leading breeze, chasing it as it moved away in a very controlled manner. The lion part of me saw that as a challenge to push harder, closing the gap, only for it to get away again. This repeated for a while until I settled on a steady pace. With this guide, I finally felt like I was making progress, a determined smile growing on my face. It was nice to feel the wind rush past me as I sprinted along the dunes, unfazed by the cool air and the feeling of the cold grains of sand on my paws.
The sun had started to rise, but that didn't bother me, because just a minute before, I could see there were lush green colours, telling me that my trip across the desert was finishing before it could get really difficult. The guiding wind that had been with me disappeared once I could see the place I was being sent to. Seeing the wonderful colours of life and health made me giddy, laughing out loud as I cheered up to the sky, "Thank you!" I beamed, hoping that the kings of the past would appreciate my thanks. Once I had gotten to the start of the lush greens, I took a moment to check out the rest of what I could see. It was a jungle, no doubt. It struck me as a little strange to see a jungle next to a desert. I reminded myself it was likely a water source, most likely a basin, would be responsible for one land's growth and the other's famine.
My ears perked as I heard the distinctive, subtle sound of flowing water. I looked to it and thought I was imagining things. A small pool was present, with an equally slight stream feeding into it. I wasn't going to waste the opportunity, almost going feral as I started to lap at the water, not wanting to stop. Having hydrated myself, I felt the need to lay down, all the running finally hitting my legs with a wave of aching that swept across my body. I gave myself the luxury of shade, finding a spot underneath a tree. I yawned and stretched out as I laid down, closing my eyes to get a well-earned snooze.
Sleeping for too long wasn't possible though, my ears twitching as some voices were coming close. I was too relaxed to worry about them though, so I tried keeping my eyes closed and hoping they would go the other way. I started to frown when the voices got closer. I couldn't make out what they were talking about, but from the different tones I heard, there were two of them. It may have been some kind of dispute between them, but from their words being muffled or droned out by my desire to continue sleeping, I wasn't listening to what they said with any real focus. I could feel my tail curling and uncurling with the vague irritation I was building towards those two voices. I could hear some of the shrubbery being pushed to one side as they walked into the same area I was, "I'm telling ya, Pumbaa, there ain't nothin' like a few of those sun baked grubs, straight from the desert. It'll cheer the kid right up!" The louder voice announced in triumph. "Now, use that…" he paused, "Uh Pumbaa, you didn't tell me you had made an order." His tone caused the other voice to sound out their confusion with a grunt, "Your order of another lion!" I could feel both their presence in front of me, though I remained still. "What is it, like a two for one deal?" He asked, sounding less than happy to see me.
The voice that belonged to Pumbaa spoke up, "No, I haven't seen this lion before." He started sounding almost pained, "Oh, Timon, I know you said we can't have a lion, but can we please keep her?" He practically begged. It was then that I noticed there was a somewhat unpleasant smell wafting near.
The louder voice, Timon's, started again, sounding hesitant, but starting with a quip, "What, are you trying to build an army of them? Isn't one enough? Ya can't just take in everything that looks all cute and cuddly, Pumbaa." He groaned, knowing that his friend wouldn't budge on his stance, just waiting for the reply.
"But she's all alone." He whined, even prodding me. It took a lot of strength for me not to react.
Timon sighed, shuffling on the spot as it sounded like he was looking between me and wherever Pumbaa was in relation to where he stood. "Where have I heard that before?" I could almost see his eyes rolling at that. The sarcasm told me it was not a welcome repeat. "Fine." He relented, "But I'm not taking care of this one. That's all your job."
I decided not to take anymore of this, so I opened my eyes, "You don't need to look after me." I said with a rather unassuming expression. The two of them, now identified as a meerkat and a warthog, nearly jumped out of their skin, the meerkat leaping onto the warthog's back. That was quite an odd pairing for me to see. I kept myself non-threatening, my tone staying calm, "Don't worry, I'm not going to attack you…yet." I figured that if Timon had a sense of humour, it might lighten the mood if I tried. It didn't work too well, judging by their unchanged expressions. I sighed, "Seriously, I'm not going to attack you." I saw them relax, "But I did hear pretty much everything you were talking about in front of me." I couldn't help let a smug smile come across my face, forcing the meerkat to give a deadpan expression.
When he started talking, I knew the meerkat was Timon, leaving Pumbaa as the warthog. "Well now, Missy, you gotta understand that when a guy like me sees teeth and claws like yours, we don't tend to assume you're going to walk on by. We assume we're lunch." He gestured as he was speaking, the warthog nodding in agreement with his friend. With the tension brought down, his curiosity was rising, "So, kid, what's the deal, why are ya here? I know for a fact that lions don't like being the lonely type. Especially not the girls." He waved a hand in a flippant manner, looking straight at me. "Or actually wait, ya don't need to tell us. You're here now, and you heard what we said," he pointed to both himself and Pumbaa, "so, hakuna matata. Kid, welcome to our home, we'll show ya around. Then we gotta find you a place to sleep." It looked as if Pumbaa was about to speak, but he was kept silent by Timon putting a hand over his lips, "We all have our own places we go to sleep. No sharing, at all. Free space." He tried emphasising, prompting me to raise a brow at him, though Pumbaa relaxed some, not looking as if he was going to speak again. "Follow us, kid." The meerkat waved for me to follow.
I was little perplexed at just how fast they had invited me, a stranger, in, but thought nothing of it, just happy to meet friendly faces. It was definitely preferable to meeting someone like, Scar, or Fedha for example. Although Fedha was visually appealing. I adjusted my thought, thinking I could meet the prince again if he kept his mouth shut the entire time.
Once we were into the jungle, I was taken aback by just how stunning all the scenery was. There were waterfalls, so many different kinds of bird. Everything had such vibrant colours I couldn't find one thing to focus my sights on. I did catch the triumphant smirk on Timon's face as he saw me gawk at the scene of it all. "So, you guys were talking, and it sounded like I'm not the first lion you've seen here." I commented, finally getting my attention back to the duo.
The meerkat glanced back at me with a brow raised, "You listen to a lot don't ya? We've seen a few lions. We didn't always live here, so I don't think it's unexpected that we would have seen lions before." He reasoned, keeping his answer rather vague.
The nod I gave him was enough to suggest I wasn't finished yet, and I could see his relaxed demeanour shift a little, "Okay, so I guess that means that you and Pumbaa haven't looked after a lion? When he was asking you, I seem to remember you saying something along the lines of 'not again'." I finished with a self-satisfied smirk, knowing I was putting him in a corner. He shook his head, answering the first question, even if I could see he and Pumbaa were squirming in silence.
"Yeesh, you carnivores are so suspicious all the time. We don't have a lion. We had one. Notice the past tense, Missy. It sure was sad to see our little buddy go. It seems like yesterday we were all together under the night sky." He clutched at his chest, where his heart was.
Pumbaa looked up quizzically, "But Timon, we were all under the night sky yesterday. It was just after we opened up that hole hiding all those grubs." He was forced to stop talking when the meerkat shot his buddy an irritated look and started speaking in his place.
He waggled a finger in front of me, though his words weren't all directed at me, "Pumbaa! You're hurting me with how slow you can be." He sighed and leaned over to start whispering into the warthog's ear. I couldn't hear what was being said, but it looked like Timon was explaining something to Pumbaa, judging by the occasional exhales of 'Oh' and a few nods. Once they were done, Timon cleared his throat to start speaking again, "Excuse my poor friend, his memory stinks as much as he does." He deadpanned to me, getting a small huff and frown from the friend he was using as a ride around. "If you can't handle the truth, don't go saying things that prove me right." He shrugged, the two of them letting the topic drop. "Did we ever ask for your name? Or would you rather I call you Missy?" He asked, finding it was his turn to have the smug look on his face.
The expression I fired at him suggested I did not want to have a new name. Not that he knew it, but I didn't want another new name, "I don't think you ever did. Tishala. That's my name."
The meerkat shot me an incredulous look, "Another name ending in aah. Pumbaa, Tishala, Simba. When's the name like Timon gonna come back? Timon, Simone, Pumbon. Now those names have a nice ring to them." He argued, though I couldn't concentrate on most of what he said, having heard one name in particular.
Timon clocked onto the change in my demeanour, raising a brow, "Wait, did you say Simba? You know Simba?" I asked, feeling my heartbeat speed up. Was it these two that the kings of the past told me about? Timon and Pumbaa froze on the spot, looking at each other, debating in silence.
Of course, Timon answered first, shaking his head and waving his arms, "Nope, we don't know a Simba, right Pumbaa?" He asked, earning a similar head shake from the warthog.
I continued, "But you said Simba."
"I know lots of Simbas."
"So, you do know Simba!"
"No, we definitely don't know a lion called Simba."
"I never said lion called Simba."
"Pumbaa!" Timon cried out, slumping over his friend's head, their eyes locked, "What did I tell you, literally about twenty seconds ago? Don't mention Simba!" He shouted.
The warthog spoke up again, "Timon, I think she knows Simba." He looked to me as I watched the scene in front of me. A part of me was confused at their interactions, but for the most part I was excited that I had found the two responsible for looking after Simba. It meant I would actually get to find him. I couldn't figure out why they might have been hiding him from me, but it mattered very little to me at that point. The lion I had gone in search for, he was in the same place I was.
Timon was still in his mini rage but snapped out of it as if he had a great thought, "Pumbaa, she knows Simba. Instead of two fighting lions to raise, we have two friends…you are friends, right?" I nodded at the meerkat, causing his smile to grow further. "Pumbaa, I tell you, who's the brains in this outfit, huh?" Pumbaa seemed to dismiss his friend's gloating, letting him get away with it. "Tell ya what, kid, we'll find you that place to stay now. We'll let ya get some beauty sleep and then we'll let ya see the fuzzball again. You sure you ain't got your lions crossed?" He started laughing, almost falling off Pumbaa as his pun had him in stitches, "Really, nothing? Tough crowd. Alright, come with us little lady." Our pace increased, but even after all the walking I'd done, my steps felt lighter than air, knowing I had found Simba. Unless this was a horrible red herring thrown in, I'd actually done it. Well, I'd found him. Getting him back to be king was the rest of the task, but for sure I thought finding him would be the hardest part.
Because of how long I had been following them and the canopy covering the sun, I didn't realise how much of the day had passed. "So, why were you pretending you didn't know Simba before?" I asked.
Timon looked back as Pumbaa continued leading me to a place to rest, "Ah, hakuna matata."
I was confused, and it showed, "Hakuna matata? Are you sneezing?" I questioned.
His nose wrinkled for a moment as if I had insulted him, "No. it's our motto. You know what a motto is?" I nodded, "Well it's mine, Pumbaa and Simba's. It is two words that helped us when the world was against us. There's nothing to do except say hakuna matata. Bad things happen and there's nothing you can do, so just forget about them and live your best life. Ya know what I mean? All of us have a past we gotta put behind us, so we live by those two, simple words." He smiled.
The frown replaced the confusion on my face. It didn't sound right that Simba would have a past to hide from. He was the prince of the Pridelands. He may have done some dangerous things he shouldn't, but nothing that would force him to run away. With that, I had more questions than answers to anything. "That seems like a good way if you don't want to take responsibility for anything. I like to have something to work towards." I explained, seeing what they would think of that.
Timon shrugged, "Suit yourself. We don't have much ambition. Living here is perfect. Each day is stress free and we're happy. No way to set us up for disappointment, no way to knock us down. To me, there just don't seem to be much point in working so hard all your life, just to then drop dead before you can even reach that goal. Seems like a waste of time if you ask me. Like I said though, suit yourself." He shrugged his shoulders, offering little extra onto that, "Might wanna try our way out for yourself. You go into each day with no expectations, life is just…well it's like a cream filled grub." He laid back on Pumbaa, his hands doing all the gesturing for him, the tone suggesting he was thinking of the grub he mentioned.
I nodded, "I'll give it a try, but I can't promise I will stick to it the whole time." I replied, offering my own shrug back to the meerkat, even if he wasn't looking in my direction.
"As long as you don't try and eat either of us, I'm okay with that. If you do, well, let's just say it's a good job we have Simba with us now." He pointed at me, still laying down, but I could tell with his mention of Simba, he was smiling with victory in his eyes. I rolled my eyes, not even considering eating the two of them. They were helping me out. It didn't seem right that I should do that to them. Especially as they had been looking after Simba.
"I don't think you have to worry about being eaten." I replied.
A few more minutes of following in silence and they stopped, letting me get beside them. Timon hopped off and stood by the side of a tree that was a little hollowed out, with enough room for me to fit inside. "Mademoiselle, your room." He bowed to me as he let me step inside. "You will see this is a one room, spacious property, but as you're a first-time buyer, we'll give ya the hakuna matata deal where all of this is on the house." He started chuckling, looking to Pumbaa, who was joining in this time, "Because it's a house." He explained, letting the warthog nod as they both set their sights back on me. I had turned around and laid down in front of them, my head and forepaws poking out of the hollowed trunk. "So, what do you think, do we have a deal?" He stuck a paw out as he was making his offer, as if waiting for me to shake. I was about to when he pulled himself away, snickering in a somewhat sheepish manner, "Y'know what, I'll take your word. I've seen lion claws." He shuddered. When it seemed like I had settled on resting, they took that as their cue to leave, "We will return with the lion you long for." Timon swaggered away, his words giving a faint tease to me as he hopped onto Pumbaa to retreat into the jungle. I guessed they didn't live much further away.
I managed to get more sleep than before, but I found I had too much energy. The news of Simba's presence meant I didn't need much. I stood out of my new den, looking around as I could pick up on a scent that hadn't been there before. As unpleasant as Pumbaa might have smelled, I knew he couldn't help it and would have his reasons. This smell though, it was familiar, yet something seemed different about it. I felt my energy soar when I realised, I must have caught onto the scent of another lion. The only other lion I had been made aware of was Simba, so I rushed in the direction of the scent, tracking it with relative ease, what with all the practice I'd had at this point. I could feel my heart, it was beating faster the stronger the scent got. What little memories I had of the lion prince; they all came flooding back to me. Though our time together was brief, we had made friends fast. I didn't care if I was making too much noise. I wasn't trying to sneak up on him, I just wanted to see him again.
I came to a clearing in front of a beautiful stream, multiple waterfalls feeding into the pools below until it stretched past into the budding river. I stood there and looked around. The scent of the lion was so strong, but I couldn't see him. I was so confused. Before I could go any further, from above, I heard a loud, "Wooooooohoooooo!" A young lion was leaping from a stone plateau, gripping onto a vine with his teeth. From the looks of it, he was bigger than I was, a steady outcropping of red fur for his growing mane, though it was far from a full mane. I didn't have a long time to take in his appearance though, as he let go and crashed into the water with a mighty splash, catching me as a victim in his fun. He surfaced, his fledgling mane covering his eyes as he laughed, "Ahaaa, wait till I show Timon that splash. It was definitely bigger than Pumbaa's." He chuckled, getting out of the water right in front of me. I stood there in silence, unable to say anything as I was stunned to see this lion again. It was clear he didn't even know I was there, so for a moment, he let the drenched fur stay.
He started shaking his fur of all the water it had taken in with his leap into the water, sitting back as he used a paw to shake out any extra water trapped in his 'mane'. He stayed focused on that, still not noticing that I was stood in front of him. I was staring like I had seen a ghost, just stunned to finally see him again. In the time, he had grown as well, his mane starting, his body growing muscles that were more suited to his changing physique. I had to remind myself not to stare at that though. The longer I looked at him, the more I could see him looking like Mufasa, though the subtle features of Sarabi were still noticeable. Finally, he took notice someone else was there. He stood on edge, forgetting about drying his fur. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" He asked, sounding an equal mixture of concerned and curious. Even when I stepped closer, he didn't budge, or recognise me. I guessed that might have been from the little amount of time we knew each other, or I had changed more than I thought. "I don't want to wait all day for an answer." He growled, sounding more intimidating than any I could remember from him. His voice was still young but was also starting to change a little bit as well.
"Simba?" Was all I could manage to say, my own shock in being reunited with him was enough to freeze my thoughts to the point I couldn't speak full sentences. I was stood there with a smile on my face, my eyes looking all over him and only able to say his name. I couldn't blame him for starting to get a little bit more aggressive. Even like that, I knew he wasn't going to attack.
He frowned at me, lifting himself some, "You know my name?" He approached.
I nodded, only smiling more, "Yes. You. I know you, Simba. I hope you remember me. Tishala. That's, I'm…It's me. I'm Tishala." I hated how poorly the words were coming out but felt a wave of relief once I'd told him.
For a moment he looked at me like I'd done something wrong, but his expression started to shift, his eyes seeming to get larger, a smile growing fast once he realised. "Tishala? You're here? This is amazing! Tishala, it's really you!" he started leaping about the place, prompting me to do the same as we shared the jubilation at reuniting with each other. We bumped heads, keeping them together as we kept rubbing until our cheeks were pressed against one another's. "How did you get here? You…you've grown so much, you look great!" He cheered, leaping back and crouching in front of me.
It didn't take long before my cheeks betrayed me, blushing red at the compliment. "No, you look great!" I tried to cover my own embarrassment by trying to throw the same sentiment back at him. "You actually have the start of a mane! It looks good." I assured, though I found he was looking at me with a proud smile as I showered him with praise, feeling my cheeks burn red again. It was fortunate he appeared to be oblivious.
"I can't wait for it to grow fully though. Then it'll look really good." He grinned, wiggling his eyebrows in front of me. "How come you're here though?" He leaned in close, his voice showing his concern.
With him so close, I could almost feel my silence being forced again. "It's a long story. I don't really want to get into it yet." I explained, looking to the ground as I remembered those who I had left behind. I knew it wasn't for a selfish reason, but it still didn't sit well with me. I left without a goodbye.
Simba got to my side and nudged me with a smile on his face, "It's okay. Hakuna matata." He beamed.
The sigh that came from me probably wasn't what he expected. "That phrase again. Look, Simba, I think you're gonna need to explain to me. Why are you going along with hakuna matata?" I frowned, getting a similar expression from him as he gestured for me to follow.
The two of us walked side by side, glancing to each other every so often as he started to talk, "I'm guessing if you've heard hakuna matata, you've met Timon and Pumbaa?" I nodded in response, "Well, when I arrived here, I was so down on everything. I was about to walk into the desert when they stopped me and taught it to me. It gave me the chance to start over, leave everything behind." He held his look to me, "I'm sorry I never came back though." He looked down at the ground for a moment.
One of my brows lifted, "Uhm, yeah, about that. Why didn't you come back?" I asked, getting a hurt reaction from Simba.
Before I knew it, he was upbeat, laughing off what I said, "Hakuna matata, it doesn't matter now. It's all in the past. I'm alive and living my life to the max. I'm sorry that I didn't come back, but it's better this way." He nodded, a smile on his face, though I could tell there was discomfort in the subject.
Hearing him speak like that about the Pridelands he loved so much when I last saw him, it was jarring. However, I wasn't to be deterred. I stepped ahead of him a little bit, looking back as I asked him another question, "But what about everyone you left behind? If you didn't want to stay, that's your choice, but it would have been nice to know you were alive. Just as he was becoming king, Scar told us that you had died in the stampede. Simba, your mum was devastated." I frowned some at him. Because of the connection I had with Sarabi, I couldn't help but get a little angered, though it was hypocritical at this point.
The prince let his expression become stern when he caught up to me, "You don't think I thought of that?" He growled, "I did. I thought a lot, but I couldn't go back. I can't, ever." He huffed at me, "You wouldn't understand." He remarked, keeping his eyes away from me, trying just to walk ahead, though it didn't take much effort to pace alongside him.
I leaned in, holding my frown at him, "Try me. I'm never going to understand if you don't at least try telling me." I growled back at him, standing up to his show of aggression.
The young male didn't seem to be in the mood though. "Oh, I'm sorry, let's go away from me not understanding and get back to the Scar being king aspect first." I huffed, causing him to glare at me. It was like I was looking at Mufasa, though what I could picture as a younger version of him. "He is nothing like your father, Simba. How does it feel, knowing that your uncle is king when it should be you?" I asked, trying to get some kind of reaction out of him, hoping it would bring him away from the secretive lion he was being at that point.
"Good for him. I'm sure he is a fine king. I'm not meant to be king. Not after the things I've done." He explained but keeping everything vague to me. Only he would know what he was referring to. The way he snapped his response told me I'd really angered him. I didn't realise that in a short space I could go from being super excited to see someone, then go to a near state of rage when they didn't seem to be opening up for whatever reason. I knew I shouldn't force it, but I had to keep trying.
Stepping in his way, I turned to face him, unable to look anything other than angry with him, "A fine king? Simba, he is anything but a fine king. The longer he's been on the throne, the larger number of animals that have moved out of the Pridelands." That news brought a surprised look to his face, "You think that's bad? It's not the only thing that's been happening. Scar has also let the hyenas into the Pridelands. Everyone is starting to get hungry. If you think that's fine for a king, then I hope you do some reconsidering." His surprise turned to anger. I thought to myself perhaps it wasn't the best idea to wind him up that much. I was about to face the repercussions.
His face went right up to mine, both our eyes meeting in a furious glare, "Stop talking like that. Like you know what's best!" He snarled, coming close to snapping at me.
In that moment, I panicked. I hadn't come all this way, gone without seeing him for all that time, just to fall out with him because of my persistence in searching for answers. I let my instinct take over, bowing my head under his, so he rested his chin at my ears. I felt him tense up, surprised with the move, "We don't have to talk about it." I said in a hushed tone. To my surprise, he was reciprocating the action, the two of us embracing each other, letting our anger and frustration subside. "Not until you're ready. I'm sorry for shouting at you. It's only because seeing you…I got all these memories flooding back to me. I don't know what to do with my emotions so I.."
He shushed me, our roles reversed a little, "It's okay. You don't have to explain yourself. Hakuna matata. It's all forgotten." He started purring as I pressed my head into his neck, up against his chin. I hadn't noticed how a paw of his had stepped in front of mine, like they were the line of defence.
With all the emotions hitting me, I croaked out, "I didn't realise until I was here, seeing you, just how much I had missed you. You were one of the first to welcome me to the Pridelands. When I thought you were dead, I", he shushed me again, the two of us holding the same close embrace we had been after stopping our near fight.
Normally I don't think either of us would have acted like that, but the overdose of all those different emotions meant our minds were prisoners to our bodies, continuing to display affection to one another, "I missed you too. I miss everyone from there." He started squeezing me, pulling me in close, "It's okay now. We're both here. We don't have to miss each other now." He purred, lifting my spirits some. For a while, we said nothing, but it couldn't last forever.
"Oh Simba!" I heard Timon yelling, searching for the lion. Realising the way we were holding onto each other, the two of us froze, feeling the need to break out of it. Before we could though, Timon and Pumbaa arrived, catching us before we could even get ourselves out of it. A second later, we scrambled out, standing side by side, looking as if we hadn't done anything to catch their attention. "Well, that ruins the surprise for you. Simba, it's your friend T…Tish….Tishsal? No, Tishala!" he pointed at me in victory. "I found and helped her." The warthog he stood on snorted with a frown on his face, "Pumbaa helped. Either way, we were gonna surprise you later, but I guess that plan's out. It looks like we didn't need to worry about you two being friends." He snickered, raising his brows and making the two of us go red in the face, looking at each other with knowing smiles. We knew we'd been caught.
Just then, I yawned, the whole day catching up to me. What sleep I managed to get was interrupted, so once everything had calmed down, I felt fatigue hitting my body, as well as putting a strain on me mentally. I was about to speak, but started yawning again, allowing Timon to cut in front of me, "Sheesh, would ya look at those teeth? Simba make sure your girly gets some good sleep. It looks like she could use it." The young prince nodded and nudged for me to follow him. "We'll be waiting for you. That termite mound ain't gonna break itself." He reminded Simba, though the look on their faces told me it wasn't because they needed the food. They just wanted it.
Even if I was starting to look around with drowsy eyes, I could tell this route was different. "Wait, this isn't the way to the place Timon and Pumbaa showed me." I yawned again, leaning against Simba for balance as he took me someplace else. "They gave me a tree." I inhaled before letting the air out with a content laziness.
The prince chuckled, "No, I figured they wouldn't mind if you rested in our bed. They're not using it for a while anyway. Besides, now you know I'm here, how could I leave you out on your own?" He winked at me. When I looked to him, I could picture what he would be like once the mane had grown some more. I thought to myself that he wouldn't look too bad. All the exertions the day had put me through meant that I didn't even care what my thoughts were telling me. "There's definitely space for all of us…it just might be a bit more of a squeeze to all fit." He chuckled again, his head occasionally brushing over the top of mine.
I snickered at the same time as him, making sure I wasn't going to trip over my own paws, "Well okay, but only because you said it's okay. If Pumbaa sits on me though, I am going to bite." I grinned, making the other lion join me in laughter. "I do not want to be the lion that dies from suffocation via warthog." This only caused the two of us to giggle even more, Simba almost losing his footing.
The short trip refocused both of us and it didn't take long to arrive where I could see a distinct bed of leaves that would have been the bed Simba was referring to. Looking at it, I couldn't see how all three of them could fit on there, let alone how he thought all four of us would manage. Simba could read my expression, just smiling as he walked in front of it, "So we might need to make the bed a little bigger, but it isn't anything we can't do. Try it out, it's really comfy." He waited for me to move, looking at me with an encouraging smile. In that moment, I could see shades of his mother about him, emanating the same warmth about him when he offered.
After a few steps, I made it onto the bed and laid down, finding that the leaves piled together did have a softer feeling than the ground, not that I minded the ground much. I knew on that bed of leaves I would get some good sleep. I laid down, looking up at him, already starting to lose my battle to stay awake. "Yeah, okay…that is really good." I purred, laying my head down on my forepaws.
Simba leaned down and gave me a small nuzzle, "I'll let you get some rest then. See you later." He looked back to smile as he was walking away.
Watching him go, I couldn't explain the pang I felt within, I guessed it may have been because I hadn't seen him in so long, I didn't want him to go again. Maybe it was irrational, but seeing his form get smaller felt unfair, like he was being taken from me, "Simba wait." I called out, making him turn to look at me. "I can't sleep…" My cheeks went red, embarrassed, but maybe not for the reason he was thinking. I could tell he was coming in to say how it was okay if I couldn't sleep straight away. I didn't know why, but that wasn't it. "No," I shook my head, keeping my eyes on his, "I mean that…well, when I was back at the Pridelands, I would always have someone there when I fell asleep. Do you think it'd be okay if…?" I didn't say the last part, but even the normally oblivious Simba picked up on it.
He got next to me, turning so we faced the same way, "I can stay with you. I'll be here with you so you can sleep." He assured me. Without realising, the two of us had adjusted so my head rested on his front paws, his head atop mine once again.
I smiled, purring as my eyes closed, feeling like I could finally drift off now I had someone there with me, "Thank you, Simba." I murmured, getting a soft chuckle from the prince, feeling him start to purr as well.
From his voice, I could tell he was starting to fall asleep as well, "It's okay." He sighed as we both went to sleep, remaining in the pose we settled into. "I'm glad you're here."
A/N: There you go! That was a long one, but with so much content, I feel it makes it worth it. Let me know what you think. I had to think for a while and came up with a few ways for Tish and Simba to be reunited. I feel I settled on one that is best. I don't own Lion King, that's all Disney's. Please let me know what you think. Maybe tell me what you think might happen, going forward, I'm curious to see your thoughts! Be sure to leave a review! See you all next time.