The APPLAUSE sign lit up and the theme music played, sending the audience into a raucous ovation as Alex strode to the podiums. "Beast is a prince and ballroom dancer from Bourgade-en-Provence. Before I get to what's on the card, I have to ask you a question. Once upon a time, you were cursed to look like a beast, but the curse was broken by true love. Why are you looking like a beast again?"

Beast shrugged. "It's my game face." He gave a slight smile, and a wave of awkward laughs filled the hall.

"I think we'll leave it at that," Alex said. "A few years ago, you were putting in computers, getting Internet—but that wasn't the only change you made."

"That's right. I have hundreds of books that don't exist anywhere else in the world, and I wanted to digitize so that everyone could read them. The staff and I have been scanning them and putting them online so people can translate them. All the audience needs to do is go to my Twitter, BêteLittéraire, and they'll find the links at the top of the feed."

"And for those of you watching at home, you can see the Twitter handle at the bottom of your screen.

"Max Goof is a retired athlete from Spoonerville, USA. You said you auditioned for Jeopardy! because of your dad and a broken leg. Tell us about that."

"Yeah, back in '03, I was trying to pull a 900˚ off a ramp; as soon as I was airborne, I knew I came off it wrong. Next thing I know, I'm on the pavement, holding my leg and screaming in pain. The orthopedic surgeon said my career was over, so I retired early. I was in a pretty bad funk after that, and nothing was snapping me out of it, so I started reading, hoping I found something so boring that it would knock me out. Instead, I realized how much I enjoyed reading without having to do any homework, and within two months, I was reading hours a day. Then Tod was having his big run on Jeopardy!, and I walked into the room and blurted off the top of my head: 'Dad, that's gonna be me someday.' My dad and I have been studying together ever since."

"Simba, you're our 79-day champion and a musician from the Pride Lands. You've won a Grammy for your album Echoes from the Dawn of Time. You sang an operatic version of 'Ave Maria' and it's gone viral on YouTube. You're a grandpa to three more cubs. But people keep talking about your performance on Jeopardy!. You've beaten Ken Jennings's records, you've set a one-day record four times—it now stands at $84,800—and your accuracy rate is 98%. Everybody who's watching you wants to know: How can they do as well as you?"

"They've gotta give up the Hakuna Matata life," Simba said. "When I became king, I had to learn about politics, diplomacy, the environment—anything to keep from looking like a fool. Besides, we live on an amazing planet; we ought to look out the window and learn about it. And now that we have the Internet, it's easier than ever to get on Jeopardy! and do well. Sure, you may not give Ken Jennings someone to look up to, but...you never know."

Alex gave an awkward smile to hide the distaste in his eyes. "Let's get back into the round. Simba, you're in control of the board."

"United, $1000."

And the clue rushed up to fill the screen.

"'When two atoms are joined by oppositely charged particles, it's called an ionic bond; when they're joined by pairs of electrons, it's called this.'

"Simba?"

"What's a covalent bond?"

"Right."

"States, $1000."

"'Nearly 700 people died on March 18, 1925, when a tornado plowed through these three states.'

"Beast?"

"What are Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana?"

"And that's why it's called the Tri-State Tornado."

"States for $800."

"'The only state in the Lower 48 to have two official languages—one is English, and the other is Sioux.'

"Max?"

"What's South Dakota?"

"Right."

"States for $600, please."

"'The two US states that aren't divided into counties; you can visit North Slope Borough in one and Plaquemines Parish in the other.'

"Simba?"

"What are Alaska and Louisiana?"

"You're at $8,000."

"States, $400."

"'At 3,000 miles, the Rockies are the longest mountain chain in North America, starting in western Canada and ending in this state.'

"Max?"

"What's New Mexico?"

"Right."

"Let's wrap up the category."

"'It's the last state to join the Union before the end of the Civil War; appropriately, its motto is 'Battle Born.'"

"Simba?"

"What's Nevada?"

"Good for $200."

"United, $800."

"'The small town of Union City, Michigan, was Station No. 2 on this 19-century network.'

"Simba?"

"What's the Underground Railroad?"

"Correct."

"United, $600."

"'This country on the Persian Gulf is a union of seven kingdoms, all in the same borders and with the same federal capital.'

"Simba again."

"What are the United Arab Emirates?"

"Yep, and the capital is Abu Dhabi."

"United, $400."

"Players, take a look at the screen.

"'When both circles in a Venn diagram is shaded, it's called a union. When just the overlap is shaded, it's called this.'

"Max?"

"What's an intersection?"

"That's it."

"United for $200, please."

"'On 9/11, this United Airlines flight didn't reach its target; the passengers tried to take it back, and the hijackers crashed it in a field.'

"Max."

"What's Flight 93?"

"Yep."

"Books & Authors for $400, please."

"'This author is known for his play about a doctor and the Devil, but he also wrote several novels; one was The Sorrows of Young Werther, a favorite of Napoleon.'

"Simba?"

"Who's Goethe?"

"That takes you to $10,000. Go again."

"Books, $200."

"'Writing under the name Currer Bell, this Brontë sister published the most novels.'"

"Simba?"

"Who's Charlotte?"

"She's the one."

"En-Light-En Me, $600."

"And the answer...is the Daily Double."

The Daily Double sound burst across the house, and the icon tumbled onto the screen. Simba looked even more smug, basking in the audience's ovation.

"You've been building up a big lead, and now you've found it. You have $10,200—what's your wager?"

The lion grinned. "King-sized."

"A true Daily Double," Alex said over the cheers. "For $20,400 if you're correct, here's the clue:

"'It's the phenomenon seen here, where light waves bend as they pass through an opening.'"

Simba grinned. "What's diffraction?"

"You got it."

The ovation was even louder, and Simba gave the camera a cocky smile.

"You're at $20,400," Alex said. "Go again."

"En-Light-En Me, $400."

"'From the Greek for "ball of light," it's the glowing outer shell of a star.'

"Beast?"

"What is the photosphere?"

"Yep, and now the last clue:

"'When red light turns orange, the wavelength decreases and this other quantity—measured in hertz—increases.'

"Max?"

"What's the frequency?"

"Correct, and that takes you to an even $3,000. Beast is in second with $3,600, and Simba's got another big lead with $20,400. But it's anyone's game in Double Jeopardy, with $36,000 on the board and two Daily Doubles hidden in the categories. Stay tuned."

The APPLAUSE sign lit up, but the audience didn't need it. They cheered and roared as the music boomed across the house.

"What an ordeal," Beast rumbled. "To think I was studying for the last two years for this..."

Simba snickered. "I'm confused. Weren't all those books for Belle? Oh, scratch that, they're not anymore."

Max stood up straight and jabbed a finger at Simba. "Is there even the slightest chance you can open your mouth without all your crap spilling out of it?"

Beast sighed. "Max, let it go—"

"Oh, that's just like the French. Peace at any price." Simba turned away and snickered again. "'It's my game face...' What a load of bull."

"This isn't trash talk," Beast said. "This is hostility."

"Hey, I'm trying to make you play better."

"Is that what you were doing this afternoon? At that press conference?!"

"That wasn't trash talk. That was telling it like it is."

"No. You called the president of my country a meerkat."

"Yeah. 'Cause Chirac's burying his head in the sand."

"He is trying to keep his country out of a pointless war. Unlike you, who stick your nose in to be the center of attention."

"My pride and I did a tour in Iraq because it had to be done. Saddam's nephews were threatening the Pride Lands."

"They were blustering and bloviating on camera," Max said. "They didn't threaten the Pride Lands. You just did it to flex your military muscle, to show the world how impressive you think you are."

Simba chuckled. "Boys, there's one thing you ought to know: In the Pride Lands, we don't tiptoe around people's feelings. We tell it like it is. But since I'm in the States, I'll be nice. I won't say anything about how Max is the worst player I've seen, or how parking cars at the House of Mouse was above his pay grade."

An awkward silence filled the hall. A wave of murmurs broke across the House, and Alex lifted his head and stared in open-mouthed alarm.

"Wow, Simba," Max said. "This is what it means to be a Pridelander: trash-talking the competition because you're afraid you'll lose? I swear, your father—"

He caught the rest of the words, but it was too late. Simba's smile was wiped away, and his face went dark. "What about my father?"

Max started to flush and glanced away.

"Come on, what about my father? You start a sentence, be man enough and finish it."

"All right, fine! Whenever you play a game of Jeopardy, your father weeps! You know why? 'Cause he didn't raise you to be a jerk, but that's all you've been ever since you got on this show. I've read the Twitter feeds; I've seen the videos on YouTube. Everyone you've ever gone up against thinks you're a jackass, and who could blame them? You insult them to their face, you make fun of their quirks, you act like you're the greatest thing since Jesus, and you strut around like you own the world. You've thrown everyone else off their game, but you're not gonna do that to me. And if that means I hit you where it hurts, fine—"

"Guys, we're coming back in 30!" Daisy said.

Simba glared at her, then forced a smile and scoffed at Max. "Tell your dad to start writing your eulogy...because I'm gonna bury you."

He swung his muscular bulk away and padded back to his podium, leaving Max to fight a queasy lump in his throat.

What have I done?

To be continued…


A/n: The opinions expressed in this fic do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Disney, Sony Pictures, or the author.