"I-I'm s-st-starting t-to g-get d-di-dizzy." Ruka spun and spun.

"Animals of the Pridelands, King Kubwa orders you to jump up and down!"

Ruka and Haraka did so.

"Stomp twice!"

Ruka and Haraka began to do so, but after one stomp then they stopped and a realizing look spread across both of their faces. "Aww. We lost," Haraka said.

"Let's play it again!" Ruka suggested.

But just before Kubwa could agree, a voice shouted; "Kubwa!" Kubwa, Ruka, and Haraka turned around. It was Kovu rushing towards them. "Don't run off like that if I'm not following you!"

"Sorry Dad! We thought you were," Kubwa answered honestly. "But then we turned around and you weren't there."

"That's exactly my point," Kovu told them.

"Can we go back to the watering hole again?" Ruka asked.

"But we were just there," Kovu said.

"Yeah but then we got distracted and went back to Pride Rock. We still wanna play there," Ruka told him.

Kovu sighed. "Fine. Let's go." Kovu sighed again and led the way back to the watering hole. Kubwa, Ruka, and Haraka trotted happily behind. "These three seriously need a babysitter," Kovu muttered.

"What's a babysitter?" Ruka asked.

"Never mind," Kovu sighed.

"But what is it?" Ruka repeated.

"I wish Bunga was here. Kiara told me he was great at that," Kovu said to himself, ignoring their question.

"What is it?" Ruka asked again.

"A babysitter is someone who will watch you guys whenever me and Kubwa's mother are not here," Kovu explained, his voice sounding a little tired. It wasn't long before they arrived at the watering hole. Kubwa, Ruka, and Haraka dashed straight for the shallow water. They ran and splashed.

Suddenly, an argument began breaking out.

"This is our drinking space!" cried a gazelle.

"No, it's ours!" cried a wildebeest. They began to stomp.

The gazelles stomped too, rippling the shallow water Kubwa and his friends were playing in. They all rushed back to Kovu. "What's going on? Why are they fighting?" Kubwa asked.

"I need to go sort this out." Kovu scanned the area.

"What are you looking at?" Kubwa asked.

Kovu walked up to a teenage elephant with blue eyes, a bluish hide, and a couple of spots. "Aren't you Mtoto?"

"King Kovu." The elephant bowed. "Yes."

"No need for that," Kovu told him. "Could you watch my son Kubwa and his friends for a minute?" Kovu angled his head over to where Kubwa and his friends were standing, then to the arguing gazelles and wildebeests. "I need to settle this."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Mtoto walked over to Kubwa, Ruka, and Haraka.

Kubwa looked up at Mtoto who towered way above him. He's so big!

"How did you grow that big?" Ruka was clearly in amazement at the size of this animal.

"Well I am an elephant," Mtoto chuckled.

"You must see beyond the Outlands from up there," Haraka breathed.

"I can't see beyond the Outlands." Mtoto told them. "Little falcon, when you're old enough to fly, you'll see much farther than I ever could."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Kubwa wondered what it was like being that big. "If you can't see beyond the Outlands, how far do you see?"

"Not too much farther than your average ground animal," Mtoto told them.

"Can you pick me up so I can see what you see?" Ruka asked eagerly.

"Okay!" Mtoto wrapped his trunk around Ruka and hoisted him to the top of his head.

Once he was up, Ruka's jaw dropped. "It's so cool up here! Kubwa, Haraka, you gotta try this!"

Mtoto wrapped his trunk around Haraka and lifted her up. "Oh my- this is amazing!"

"Once you fly, you'll be even higher than this," Mtoto told the peregrine falcon as he wrapped his trunk around Kubwa and lifted him up.

Kubwa was stunned. It's so high!

"Isn't it awesome?" Ruka asked.

Kubwa nodded, although the height made him a little frightened. But this isn't as high as the ledge on Pride Rock and I'm not scared there, he told himself.

"Hey kids, I'm back!" Kovu walked up to them. He looked at Kubwa, Ruka, and Haraka and their thrilled faces. "Looks like you guys are having fun."

"I wish I was this tall!" Ruka exclaimed.

"Mtoto says I'll be higher than this when I'm old enough to fly," Haraka chirped.

"Mtoto, you're good at this," Kovu commented.

"Yeah I get that a lot." He paused, an alarmed look on his face. "Your Majesty," he quickly added, slipping in a brief bow.

"I already told you, no need for that. I'm just like Kiara and Kion were when you knew them when you were little. You don't have to be so formal with me."

"Okay Your Majesty- I mean not Your Majesty- I mean-"

Kovu chuckled at Mtoto's response. "Could you do this all the time?"

"Do what?"

"Watch the kids. Me and Kiara get busy sometimes and it's be great if someone could keep an eye on them. Between the lionesses' pride duties and their personal life it'd be unfair to force them to watch them all the time. So maybe… you could?" Kovu asked, a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Poa! I'd love to." Mtoto wiggled his ears.

"Does this mean we'll get to see Mtoto all the time?"

"Yeah," Kovu said.

Kubwa was thrilled. He's so much fun!

"Anyway, the sun's setting so we should head back," Kovu said. "Ruka, Haraka, I can walk you home."

Mtoto wrapped his trunk around then one by one and lowered them back to the ground.

"See ya later!" Kubwa called as they all walked away, Haraka riding on Kubwa's back.

"Bye Mtoto!" Ruka called.

They all continued to head in the direction of Ruka's den. The vegetation grew thicker as they walked towards the outskirts of Hakuna Matata Falls. Finally, they saw Ruka and his family's den that sloped under large, outstretching tree roots. Haraka hopped off Kubwa. They saw the familiar and welcoming amber and blue gazes of Ruka's parents waiting. Ruka scampered inside the den. "Hey Mom! Hey Dad!" The serval turned back to face Kubwa, Haraka, and Kovu. "Bye guys!"

"Bye!" Kubwa and Haraka said. Kubwa let Haraka jump on his back once more as they all started to follow Kovu who had already started walking in the direction of Haraka's nest, which was located near Ukuni Woods. The sky grew darker. Eventually, they approached Ukuni Woods and Haraka's tree. It wasn't that tall, so Haraka jumped off Kubwa as Kovu lowered his head. She hopped onto it and Kovu, steadying himself by resting his front paws on the tree trunk and sinking his claws in, rose on two legs to lift Haraka back to her nest.

She hopped off of him and to her nest. "Thanks!"

Kovu unsunk his claws from the tree trunk and fell back down to all fours once more. "No problem. Bye!" Kovu began to walk in the direction of Pride Rock. Kubwa followed. They walked and walked as the final rays from the sun started disappearing from the sky.

A flicker caught the corner of Kubwa's eyes. He turned his head. Butterflies! And a lot of them too, a dozen at least and in an assortment of different colors. Even though they didn't generate actual light, they were so beautiful it seemed like they glowed. They were all hovering over a patch of pink and yellow flowers that were low to the ground. "Dad, look!"

Kovu stopped waking and turned. "Would ya look at that. Another great part of the Circle of Life."" After a few moments, Kovu said, "We gotta get going now."

"Okay." Kubwa followed as Kovu resumed their path to Pride Rock.After some more walking, Kubwa finally felt the grass under his paws turn to stone as he walked up the rocks to Pride Rock's den. The gazes of his grandmother, grandfather, and great grandmother were there to greet him. He scampered over to them. "Where's Mom and Mufa and Imani?"

"Your mom is coming back with them soon," Sarabi, Kubwa's great grandmother, explained.

Kubwa curled up next to her and his grandparents. He soon grew bored and his eyes wouldn't close for longer than a blink. "I can't sleep."

Sarabi looked down at him, wise yellow eyes blinking thoughtfully. "I could tell you a story if you'd like."

Kubwa looked up at her. "Yes please!"

"Alright. Come here." Sarabi smiled. Kubwa scampered around his grandparents and into the forepaws of his great grandmother. "Now… when I was a little cub, not much older than you, I wanted to be the bravest cub in the pride. So one day, I decided I should prove it. So I talked to Mufasa, your great grandfather, and we hatched a brilliant plan, at least to us. We wandered off to the elephant graveyard to prove we weren't afraid of anything and bring back a bone to prove it…"

And as Sarabi talked and talked, her voice powerful yet soothing, her story with every word she spoke slowly whisked Kubwa off to sleep.