Author's note: So, before I start, I would like to answer some comments since I can't reply using the link and I want all my commenters to know that I read and appreciate all your comments. (Apologies in advance if I spelled your username wrong.)
StarGazer7099: I am so happy that you like reading my story! Also, thanks for the many comments you have written.
Kate: I am glad you like it! About the whole Mufasa ghost thing, that got me thinking a little. Won't say anymore now. ;p
Moonrise-set: To be honest, I am not a HUGE fan of Timon and Pumbaa. I don't hate them or anything like that, but I (like you) prefer to focus on the lions (because they are so cute and fluffy!). By the way, in case you haven't noticed already, I am a HUGE lion fan.
Kuriomori: Who doesn't love Simba?
If you are reading this story, please leave a review since I do like reading them. Please no hate, though constructive criticism is welcome (politely with tact). Also, you don't need to tell me that the titles are rubbish.
Later that afternoon, I was walking down the quiet pathways of the Pridelands. I was enjoying my alone time while walking in a direction I had never been before. However, my peaceful walk was soon disturbed as I heard a snapping of twigs behind me. I turned around to see a thin lioness with a stripe from her forehead to her neck walking towards me.
"Hello, Sharon," Zira sneered.
"It's Shani," I replied, a little nervously. Zira gave me the creeps. I had met her a few times before, and they had not been pleasant encounters. Not to mention she was the mate of my murderous uncle. I hadn't seen her since the day before my brother returned. I wondered if she was bothered by Simba returning.
"Whatever," scoffed Zira. "I was just taking a walk when I saw you. What are you doing here and all alone, my dear?"
"Uh..." I took a small step back. "N-nothing, just taking a walk, too."
Zira sat down not far off and inspected her sharp claws. "Haven't had a chance to talk to the new king, yet," she said. She wasn't looking at me and looked more like she was talking to herself. "Been too busy. Although I don't expect our meeting will be pushed off for long." She had an evil smirk etched onto her face. I was really hoping she wasn't going to try anything against my brother.
"I hope you're not threatening him," I growled trying to sound more confident than I felt.
"Me? Threatening him? Where would you get an idea like that?" She turned her head towards me, her blood red eyes glittering dangerously, the same smile still on her face.
"Oh... uh okay then..." I stammered, backing up to Priderock. "Well... um... I... I'll just be going then... uh... have... have a nice day." With that I bounded towards Priderock, leaving Zira sitting there and staring into space.
I arrived back to Priderock slightly out of breath. A few of the lionesses were lounging around while the rest were out hunting. I was relieved to see mother lying underneath a tree at the edge of Priderock.
I went up to her and lay down. Mother smiled at me.
"So," I said stretching comfortably. "What are the plans for today?"
"Many of the lionesses are out scavenging whatever food they can find," she replied. "You can join them if you want."
"Maybe later," I answered. I looked around the area for a moment.
"Where's Simba?" I asked mother.
"He went to the neighbouring prides to see if their king would allow us to hunt on their land until the Pridelands recover. It'll probably be a while until he returns."
"Mmh," I sighed. I lay my head on my paws. "By the way, I saw Zira."
Mother lifted her head off the ground. "Huh," she replied. "No one's seen her or her lionesses in a while. I take it she's not too happy with the new development."
"No," I sighed. "She sounded like she was threatening Simba."
Mother could hear the worry in my voice. "Don't worry about Simba," she said. "He can hold his own. In the worst case, Zira would most probably be banished if she causes too much problems, though I hope it doesn't come to that."
I hoped it didn't have to come to that, too. If Zira got banished, Nuka would also. I didn't think that it was right to take a child away from his mother, though I didn't think Zira was much of a mother anyway. If I wasn't so afraid of her, I would ask her if I could take Nuka in, but unfortunately I was a rather big coward.
Simba returned late that afternoon.
"King Kivuli has given us permission to hunt on his lands," he announced to the joyful cries of the lionesses. "However, he has put strict restrictions on the hunting we are allowed to do. Unfortunately, his land's herds had also been affected and I trust you all not to put the treaty at stake."
We all broke off to get some sleep, all of us greatly relieved that finally we would get some proper meat to eat and we would no longer have to go to sleep hungry.
With hope for a better future, the lionesses were all soon fast asleep. However, I remained awake. Zira's glare kept on swimming in front of my eyes giving me no peace. Although things definitely looked like they were getting better, I still couldn't help but worry. Our pride couldn't handle any more tragedy.
The days passed and so far Zira hadn't shown any sign of rebellion. She and her pride sisters kept themselves to themselves. We only occasionally saw her whilst hunting, but we gave each other no more than a cold glare.
At first, many of us were worried that she might violate the treaty we made with King Kivuli from the Riverlands, but she gave no sign that she even stepped past the border.
My fears slowly detonated as I felt myself relax. The grass and greens were growing rapidly as the herds increased greatly in size. The ribs that used to stick out on every lioness was beginning to disappear until it was no longer seen and the lionesses soon looked healthier and cleaner than I had ever seen them.
Hunting became more frequent but more enjoyable than what used to be. I was small for a lioness due to my malnutrition as a cub, but I put that to use during hunting. I was lighter than the other lionesses, so I was faster. I had never known my true speed because I had always conceived my energy. But when I was able to use up more, I discovered the true joy of galloping at full speed whilst barely touching the ground as the wind blew my fur back. It was a delightful feeling that I craved and so every morning I would go out on a run while everyone was sleeping and thus didn't get in my way. Thanks to my speed, I was able to run to the prey from a long distance and injure its legs before it even processed that I was there and thus making it easier for the stronger lionesses to bring it down.
Life was becoming like the paradise mother would tell me about when I was a cub. The lionesses were happy under my brother's rule and life couldn't be better.
However, I should've known that it peace doesn't last. And that shatterer of peace was none other than Zira. Surprised? I think not.
It wasn't long before Simba and Nala were officially mated. Everyone was happy that Simba had fallen for Nala since she was everything a queen should be; brave, strong, intelligent, independent etc. Not to mention she was extremely pretty and many of us were excited for the cute cubs to arrive.
But a few of the lionesses were wondering why it had taken Simba so long to announce their union. Mother and I were privileged to know the real reason.
A few days back, mother, Simba and I were resting at Priderock. The rest of the lionesses were either out for a stroll or were resting nearby.
I noticed that my brother kept on looking over at one specific lioness lying near Kula and Tama.
"So, when are you gonna announce it?" I asked Simba.
His eyes, which were focused on Nala snapped to me. "Announce what?"
"You know," I replied. "Your union to Nala."
Simba cleared his throat nervously. "We're... uh... not exactly mates yet."
"How come you're waiting?" I asked.
"Well... umm... there are more important matters to attend to," he answered. I could tell that wasn't the reason.
"Is that the only reason?" I pressed on.
Simba looked over at mother who seemed fast asleep. Then he turned back to me.
"Okay," he said. "You want the real reason..." he hesitated. "I love Nala, I really do. But I'm worried that if she agrees to marry me, she would do it out of obligation rather than love."
I raised an eyebrow. "So you don't want to marry the one you want to marry because you have to marry her?" I exclaimed. "I really don't understand you. I mean, you are literally obligated to marry the lioness you want to marry, so I don't exactly get your problem. In my opinion, it makes things less complicated. You don't have to worry that she might turn you down, since you could just go up to her and be like "Hey Nala, since we are betrothed, you and I have to get married whether we like it or not. So would you like to go on a moonlight walk and do some lovey-dovey kissy stuff?""
"For some reason, that doesn't sound very romantic," Simba mumbled.
"Well, if you are looking for a love expert, don't come to me," I shrugged. "I have little to no experience with males that I am not related to. And all this romance thing is not really for me."
Simba didn't reply and just put his head on his paws.
"You know, Simba, as king you have the authority to call off the betrothal," Simba and I turned around to see mother wide awake.
"I do?" He asked.
"I think you should talk to Nala about it," mother replied.
"Okay, I will," Simba said.
Simba and Nala had come to an agreement that they would still get married, but they would not betroth their cub to another and would encourage him or her to marry out of love.
To this day, I couldn't really understand the whole love department. I often wondered if you loved a mate like you love a parent or sibling, but I suppose that perhaps I would never know or understand.
A few days after the coronation of the new Queen, the Pridelands had just finished a several day rainfall. Hunting and (in Simba's case) patrolling was tricky, but we managed. We were all happy that we could finally get some fresh air without receiving a shower. Most of us didn't like the way water made our fur hang and preferred to stay dry.
My brother, however, did not seem to mind the water so much. It was strange, since mother had told me he had never liked baths as a cub, but lions change I suppose.
The sun was shining bright in the sky, although the ground was quite slippery and muddy. The day was off to a great start.
I spent most of the day lounging around Priderock or talking to the other pride members. Soon, Simba had returned from his daily patrol and had settled comfortably near his mate for a bit of relaxation and lazy talk.
After a while, mother had decided to go for a walk. Simba expressed concern for her being alone, but she laughed it off and told him he worried too much (which I can't argue about). She nuzzled Simba and then me, and went off on her walk.
I wasn't all that worried about her as my brother was. Despite mother being older and weaker than she used to be, I felt that she could take care of herself.
I closed my eyes, hoping for a small nap. I had already been up and active for a while and it was now time for the long sleeping spree that all cats have that takes up a majority of the day.
It was calm and peaceful and the birds were chirping merrily in the trees. The lionesses were chatting lazily and all was at peace.
But the tranquility didn't last long.
All of a sudden, in the distance, there came a loud roar and a scream of pain. Simba sprang to his feet, the laziness leaving his face and changing into one of alertness in the speed only cats could achieve.
I parroted his actions as well as the rest of the pride. Immediately, he took off into the direction of the noise while the rest of us followed closely behind.
We arrived at the scene and my throat began to close up, making it difficult to breath.
Standing in a clearing, claws and muzzle covered in blood, stood Zira. At Zira's paws lay a lioness covered in cuts, bruises and blood with a bite mark on her neck.
Mother.
And this is where I end the chapter. Honestly, I feel bad giving Sarabi such a horrible send off, but... whatever.
Also, about the whole romance thing, romantic stuff is not something I have experience with, nor do I particularly want to. I don't hate romance or stuff like that, but I just don't have experience with it. I'm still young, though so maybe one day.
To be honest, I'm not a big fan of romantic stories. While I don't mind a little side romance (like in TLK), I don't like it being the main theme since I find it a bit boring. I know some people do enjoy romantic movies or books, that is just my preference.
Also, I apologise for the long wait, but I hope you enjoy this.
Also, if you are looking for a romantic story, than this isn't for you, I am letting you know now. However, there will be a few SimbaxNala moments to keep others (and maybe myself happy). And also a bit of KovuxKiara if I get that far.