"It must be almost dawn!"
"Look at the sky, silly! See where the stars are. It's hours till morning."
Kovu sighed. "I'm bored. And cold. And hungry." He lay with his head on his paws, sulking.
"You want to go home?" Kiara asked.
"No way! Vitani'll think we got scared and ran away." He put on his most obstinate look, brows knitted over his green eyes.
Kiara sighed and curled up in a tight ball, conserving heat. She clasped her tail in her forelegs and put the end of it in her mouth. Despite the cold and Kovu's grumbling to himself, she soon drifted off to sleep.
Simba paced across the desert. He was not as massive as his father Mufasa, but he was strong and confident, and his great stride covered the distance quickly. He longed to break into a run, but knew he would soon tire and gain nothing by his sprint. At a steady tread he was more likely to spot any clues to his daughter's whereabouts than if he dashed about like a frightened antelope.
All his senses were active as he went. His eyes, gleaming in the dark, constantly scanned the surroundings; like all the hunting animals he was quick to spot movement even at the very edges of his vision, though stationary objects were less clear. His mouth hung slightly open as his tongue aided his nostrils in seeking the scent of Kiara. His rounded, fuzzy ears swivelled to trap the noises of the night in their curving folds, and he even seemed more aware than usual of the way the earth felt beneath his toes.
In his heart, he was sure he knew where the Princess had gone. She was his daughter, after all. She had the same curiosity and foolhardy daring that he had had at that age. The urge to learn and explore was strong in her, and she had a rebellious nature that reacted fiercely against anyone telling her what she couldn't, shouldn't or mustn't do. Unless some predator had snatched her away - and none of the pride had noticed an intruder on their land in weeks - Kiara was without a doubt exploring. And unless Simba was much mistaken, she had gone to the most forbidden place of all: the Outlands.
The two prides, Simba's and the offshoot Outlanders, endured an uneasy coexistence. The border of the two territories was sharply marked, and any lion who found himself on the wrong side was inviting death. Simba had pronounced that he and his would kill any Outland lion, from newborn cub to hoary elder, they encountered in the Pridelands. Zira had swiftly issued her reply: any Pride Rock animal caught beyond their boundary would meet the same fate.
Now Simba realised just how much Mufasa must have worried about his precious only son. Without realising what he was doing, he began to growl deep in his chest.
"Keep her safe, Father. Father, help me find her," he prayed.
Immediately the light wind shifted, and on it Simba smelled the odour of lions.
"If Kovu is lost, all my hopes for the future are gone," Zira muttered, her paws thumping the ground as she stalked. "Scar's heir. Destined to take on Simba. He must be kept safe."
Nuka, several paces behind her, rolled his eyes. His jaws snapped as he mimicked his mother's words.
"Did you say something?" Zira demanded, swinging round.
"N-no, Mother!"
"Good! Now keep up. We must find the boy."
Zira was not only worried about Kovu for the sake of the Pride Rock throne. He was her favourite son, her favourite of all her cubs. She might bully him, moulding him by force into the wicked fighter she needed, she might push him to the limit of his small frame with her strict training, but she loved him dearly. There were times, looking into his innocent green eyes, when the taut coil of hatred and rage within her was loosened briefly, her madness subsided, and she was simply a lioness, a female whose cubs were her whole reason for existence. Sometimes he was the only thing in the world that made her life bearable. If she lost Kovu, she felt she would sink down into despair and insanity forever.
"Mother..."
"What?"
"We're heading towards the Pridelands."
"I know that, idiot! If that's where Kovu is, that's where we must go. Unless you're afraid?"
Nuka shook his head doubtfully. Zira tensed and broke into a run.
"I heard something! Come on!"
Cowering, Nuka followed.
"No, no, go west! West!" Vitani muttered under her breath as she trotted silently after her mother and brother. "Oh, this is going to be the best. What a showdown! We'll see who's the favourite cub when Mother finds out Kovu's run off with the Princess!"
Her eyes glowed with malice. Fond as she was of her twin, she recognised and resented her mother's favouritism. Kovu had always been able to get away with anything, while Vitani felt Zira's hard paw whenever she stepped out of line. Which was often. She angered easily and her tongue sometimes ran away with her. Besides, she loved to make trouble and mischief for its own sake. Chaos and confusion were what she liked. Being such a small creature, and overshadowed by Scar's heir, it was the only way she could wield power over other lions.
But above all she liked to watch from out of harm's way as whatever she had started escalated into panic and misunderstanding, with the pride roaring and snapping at each other. And this would be a good one, she thought as she watched Zira searching wildly while Nuka complained and quivered behind. Safe in the shadows, Vitani grinned with glee and capered like a monkey.
Though they were nearly at the Outland border, Vitani knew this area well - far better than her mother suspected. She skipped confidently along, not as afraid in the darkness as a small cub should be. Hugging her cunning plot to herself, chuckling under her breath, her eyes and ears were closed to the sounds and sights around her - signals that should have acted as a warning.
Then it was too late. Vitani's ear twitched as a sound hit it, and she half-turned. As she did, something rushed past her close and quick enough to ruffle the fur along her side. She dodged away and instantly broke into a run.
She had only seen her attacker for a moment, just long enough to get the impression of a blunt muzzle full of teeth and two ears like round leaves. An African wild dog. And there were more behind her - she could sense them now, hear their footfalls and ragged breathing. They hunted in groups, like the lions, and could bring down a buffalo.
All this information came to her in a second, her brain processing it while her muscles moved her in an adrenaline-spurred burst. No need to look back; she knew what was behind her.
Vitani ran. It was an instinctive flight born of terror. A nightmare run in which her short legs could never drive her fast enough to get away. Her quick dodge threw the clumsy creatures for a minute, for they were many and took a while to change direction. But in a few long strides the dogs surrounded her, three or four on each side. Although the nearest occasionally reached out to snap at her, they made no attempt to bring her down. They would bound effortlessly on those long legs until the cub fell exhausted, as if she were some silly deer or zebra.
No way! Vitani wasn't going to go out like that. Hadn't her mother always told her hyenas and wild dogs didn't have a scrap of brain in their heads? Whereas she, she knew, was a smart little cub. Zira had told her that too, not always approvingly.
Her eye caught a slight movement off to the left, and she spared a quick glance. It was a stunted tree, poking up from the soil. The shifting wind had whipped the branches for a moment. Could dogs climb? She thought not. Could Vitani gain the tree? This seemed doubtful too.
At once Vitani dropped to the ground. It was a technique she often used in play with Kovu. When he was about to catch her, she would suddenly stop. More often than not her brother flew right over her and went head over heels in the dirt.
It worked on this occasion too. The dogs had been expecting a gradual slowing, a few stumbles, and the inevitable collapse. Vitani's halt took them by surprise. The huge wild dog which had been on her tail tried to stop, skidded, and fell over the cub, clipping her with its paw in passing. It fell into one of the others and the two rolled, snapping and growling. Now there was an opening to her left, and Vitani leaped up and towards her goal.
She sprinted towards the tree, the dog pack already recovered and gaining fast. Head high, mouth wide, she ran so hard that her back feet hit the ground in the prints of her forepaws. Shrieks and snarls of fury followed her, but Vitani wasted no energy in crying out. Just as the leading dog made a grab for her tail she sprang for the tree trunk and scrambled up it, her frantic claws dislodging bark and insects onto the dogs below.
Ha! Dumb dogs! she thought. Then: I'm trapped.