A/N: Hey Hey! Been a while, but I wanted to update this chapter. I've been having a difficult time trying to figure out how I wanted to incorporate the story-telling aspect, so I thought I would place it at the end of this chapter so I can start a new chapter with a different goal in mind! Anyways, hope you enjoy the update! Hoping to post the next chapter sooner rather than later. XD
"He who tells a lie is not sensible of how great a task he undertakes; for he must be forced to invent twenty more to maintain the one."
- Alexander Pope.
The trek back to the Outlander dens took longer than Kiara had expected. Rough, dry terrain mixed with the softness of her paw-pads made for an uncomfortable combination, but she found herself unable to voice her discomfort. Something wasn't sitting well within her as she followed close behind the two Outlanders. The only problem was she couldn't decide exactly what she was feeling. Perhaps it was the odd smile Zira had given when she had agreed to come along. But at the same time, maybe it was all in her head. Kovu hadn't given her any reason to doubt, so why should his mother be untrustworthy? Afterall, she wouldn't be alive if it hadn't been for her daring rescue, and that was reason enough to give her the benefit of the doubt. For all she knew, these were respectable lions.
"Hey, Kiara, how are you holding up?"
Kiara blinked and shook her head, clearing away the suspicious thoughts and turned her attention to the other cub. It was clear just by looking at his figure that he was still suffering from the vicious crocodile experience merely moments ago. His deep brown fur was caked with mud and river muck, his tuft of mane was pressed in odd places as it was still drying, and his green eyes were a bit dulled. If anything, she should be the one asking if he was alright. But this ordeal had been just as traumatic, if not more, for her. She had never feared for her life in such a way. Not once. Back in the Pridelands her life was sheltered and, as much as she was loath to admit it, privileged. Not every cub could be born into a lush paradise, and, on top of that, the daughter of a King.
She couldn't even imagine what it must be like for Kovu in the Outlands. While his mother seemed formidable enough, it was clear they were struggling. Both of their pelts were dull and unkempt, and if Kiara looked hard enough, she could see the outline of their ribs and the ridges of their spines. She, on the other hand, was well fed and beneath all the mud her pelt was shiny and tangle-free.
"I think I'm okay," She responded after a moment. "Just a bit shaken up is all."
"Yeah, we would have been goners for sure if my mother hadn't shown up."
Kiara couldn't have agreed more. The snapping jaws and reptilian roars would haunt her for the rest of her life, but she would gladly deal with that then be a meal in some other predator's belly.
"Where did she learn to fight like that? I've never seen anything like it."
"Oh that?" Kovu grinned. "Pretty good, huh?"
Kiara suppressed a giggle as Kovu launched into a long-winded story concerning another of his mother's feats. She didn't really understand much of it, but she was just happy he was smiling and the glow in his eyes was slowly returning.
As he spoke, her mind began to wander. His voice still swirled around in her ears and she managed to grasp something about a hippo, but her eyes had other plans as they landed on the lioness leading them.
Despite her earlier observation of their apparent malnourishment, she could tell Zira was a strong lioness. If the way she handled those crocodiles hadn't been proof enough, the sinewy muscles that rippled under her fur were a clear sign. And her claws, sharp, ebony, and unsheathed, pierced through the sand and dirt with each step. Kiara made a mental note to never get on her bad side. Just thinking of the reprimand from earlier sent a shiver down her spine. She had never seen such disappointment in another creature's eye. Nor had she ever been yelled at in such a manner. Not even by her father. While he was a constant stern presence, he rarely raised his voice. At most he would gently cuff her over the ears. She could imagine the exact words he'd say to her if he was here at this moment. Straying from the marked path was one thing, but crossing the border entirely? It would mean being subjected to nothing but the bleak walls of the main den and the dry humorings of the majordomo for the foreseeable future. And what would her own mother think?
Another bout of discomfort ebbed through her small frame as she thought of the way Nala's eyes revealed exactly what she was thinking, and how her blood nearly ran cold whenever her disapproving gaze locked with her own childish one.
Needless to say, she would be in deep trouble.
"Hey Kovu?" She interrupted. "How much longer until we reach your pride?"
Kovu rolled his eyes and opened his maw to reply, but Zira beat him to it.
"We're already here, dear princess." She announced with a lavish sweep of her tail. "Welcome to the Outlands."
o - o - o - o - o
Kiara observed a pair of lionesses tussling with each other as she resided underneath the shade of a small termite mound. Zira had asked her to wait there while she and her son attended some pride business taking place elsewhere, but that had been when the sun was at its peak in the sky. Now the bright circle was halfway to the ground and she was growing increasingly impatient.
A sharp cry from one of the lionesses pulled back her attention. The smaller of the two; an ochre pelted lioness with multiple scars and a missing ear, had a foreleg curled up under her chest, a few drops of blood running down and then falling off her paw to splash onto the cracked earth. The second; tall, skinny of frame, and tawny colored, hesitated for a beat before relaunching herself at her opponent. They grappled and rolled around, each emitting a series of growls. The smaller lioness was quick. Her attacks came seemingly from nowhere, even with her wounded appendage. One of her strikes caught the tawny across the muzzle, eliciting a scream of pain and more blood. It was at that moment Kiara looked away.
The sight of so much blood made her stomach churn. The Outlanders were much different than her pride-sisters. For one, they rarely participated in any sort of fighting. And they definitely didn't purposely draw each others' blood.
Shifting into a more comfortable position, Kiara surveyed the surrounding territory. There wasn't much to see. Numerous termite mounds, much like the one behind her, rose from the ground, their misshapen forms stretching ominously towards the darkening sky. The land was just as bare as when she was traveling to their main dens. Grass was among the only foliage to be seen growing. A few blades poked through some of the cracks, but it was brown and dying. Several of the Outlanders could be seen as well. Some were resting in the shade, while others were scrounging for the last few morsels clinging to the bones from their previous meal. One pride-member in particular caught her eye. It was another cub. One of the first Kiara had seen save for Kovu.
The cub seemed to be no older than herself, and a female too judging by her stature. She was occupied by a dried out twig of a tree. Kiara watched as the cub struck out with unsheathed claws and raked them down the bark, shredding bits here and there. Her limbs were taught with determination. Looking down at her own claws, Kiara noticed how dull and weak they appeared. It was clear she rarely put them to use.
When she sheathed them and returned to admiring the other cub, Kiara was shocked to see she was staring straight at her. A smug smirk crossed the cub's face and she began to trot towards her, tail flicking back and forth.
"So, you're the Pridelander Kovu was talking about." The cub remarked, blowing strands of mane from her face. "I'm Vitani. What's your name?"
"Kiara."
"Well Kiara," She said, blue eyes glinting mischievously. "Now that we're acquainted, wanna fight?"
For the second time that day Kiara found herself pinned underneath another lion. Only this time it didn't come as quite a shock. Grinning with delight, she began to initiate her own response, but a voice carrying a sour disposition stopped her mid-attack.
"Wow 'Tani. Not even five minutes and you're already acting like a am I not surprised?"
A highly malnourished and downright scruffy looking lion slunk out from the depths of a termite mound. His inky black mane, or, lack thereof, stuck up in every direction and his crimson eyes passed over Kiara in a lazy fashion. His dust gray pelt was just as shaggy. There was something strange about him, but she couldn't tell exactly what.
"Oh, be quiet Nuka." Vitani snapped, forgetting about Kiara and stomping over to the older lion. "At least I'm not the one with a burr stuck in his butt."
"Can it, termite. I'm older and stronger than you, so watch out."
"Yeah, but I'm still growing." She retorted. "I'll be better than you'll ever be. And besides," She swept a paw across the ground and sent a cloud of dust straight into Nuka's muzzle. "I'm clearly smarter, considering I can come up with a better insult than termite."
Nuka growled and shook his head to clear away the offending dirt particles stuck to his fur. His lips peeled back to show crooked, but sharp teeth. Kiara shrunk back, thinking that another fight was imminent, but seconds later he rolled his eyes and sat back on his haunches.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He mumbled, twisting his neck to gnaw on his shoulder in a frenzied manner. "Where's the other termite? That brat can't have gone far."
Vitani padded over and flopped down next to the skinny lion.
"He's off with mother. You're lucky she came back in such a good mood. She would have had your pelt otherwise." She emphasized with a swat of her tail. "I mean, it was your fault he got lost."
"He's the 'chosen one'. He should be just fine on his own."
The two continued on like that, bantering back and forth, while Kiara just sat off to the side. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she wasn't about to get in the middle. What she did notice however, was the sibling-like attitude between the two, which led to the conclusion that they must be related. It was almost amusing. Kiara had no siblings of her own, so it had always been a distant, unattainable dream.
"When is Kovu coming back?" Kiara inquired after a while. Nuka scoffed and lifted a paw to scratch under his chin.
"Who knows? Mothers' probably got him doing his 'chosen one' duties. It makes me sick just thinking about it." He emphasized by sticking out his tongue. "Why should he be the one to get all the attention?"
"The chosen one? What does that mean?"
This time it was Vitani's turn to scoff, only it was directed at her older brother.
"Don't listen to Nuka. He doesn't know when to quit talking." She shot him a nasty look. "Kovu's just sorta special around here. He was one of the last cubs born before we settled here, that's all."
Kiara frowned. From what she had heard eavesdropping on her own pride-members, she had gathered that the Outsiders had been exiled. What for, she didn't know. Her father had never told her much beyond 'Outsiders are bad' and 'I'll tell you when you're older'. It had never truly satisfied her curiosity and left her with more questions than anything.
"But my father says the Outsiders were banished."
"Banished? Of course Simba told you that!" Nuka barked, ceasing his scratching and fixing her with an intense stare. "But did he tell you why?" Kiara shook her head, surprised at his sudden outburst. "Of course not! I suppose it's your lucky day, princess. I'll tell you all about it."
"Before any of us were born, the Outlanders, as you so lovingly call us, belonged to the Southlands Pride. But life there wasn't exactly a bed of wildflowers. The ruler of the land was a brutish beast of a male, with nothing on his mind other than siring cubs and keeping his subjects subdued under his strong will. The lionesses, including my mother, could stand no more, so those who were willing made haste and left the territory. The going was tough. Prey was scarce and water was even harder to find. There was no shade and nothing to protect them from the harsh elements and other predators that roamed the lands. They traveled for countless days and countless nights, doing what they could to make it even one more day. Mother doesn't speak of it, but there were many who fell before reaching the Pridelands.
When it seemed as though they could travel no further, and they were on the verge of collapse, my father appeared. Scar could see by their bedraggled nature that they were in dire need. He quickly put himself into action, leading them to a safe, secure space and calling on the Royal Mjuzi to tend to their wounds. He bade them free rein of all the prey and water until they could regain their strength. Mother and her pride-sisters were overjoyed by his thoughtful nature and wasted no time in doing just that. What they found barely a few hours later was that not everyone was as welcoming as Scar. While she and Scar were discussing the details of their journey, a booming roar echoed across the lands and the reigning monarch, Mufasa, approached the scene with malice dripping from his very being. He was angered by Scar's generous offer and demanded the Outlanders leave immediately. Thankfully, Scar was able to talk him down and convinced Mufasa to allow them to stay.
Life was relatively peaceful after that. The Outlanders found a new place to call home, Scar and my mother became and pair, and your father, Simba, was born. But an unseen cloud was beginning to darken the Pridelands. One day, Mufasa fell to his death in the Gorge and Simba was nowhere to be found. There was none to blame, simply an unfortunate series of events, but my people were put under heavy suspicion. When Scar assumed the throne, he did his best to put to rest the accusations, but the other Pridelanders couldn't let go. They did everything in their power to send us away, but Scar never gave the command.
While under his Rule, the lands began to suffer. The rainy season had not come and the herds were abandoning their home out of fright. The Pride became anxious, and in their anxiousness, they secretly sent one of their own to look for better prospects. When she returned, she brought back one we all thought to be dead. Like an apparition, your father returned to the Pridelands and murdered my father in cold blood, and when he was done, he sent us to live out our days in this wasteland."
Kiara opened her mouth to speak, but the words just wouldn't form on her tongue. Simba a murderer? It couldn't be. Sure, her father had his moments where his frustrations took hold, but to actually take a life? And a family member no less? It just didn't make sense in her mind.
"My father would never do something like that." She whispered. "I don't believe it."
"Oh, you better believe it princess." Nuka snorted and flexed his claws into the dirt. "Tell me, if it didn't happen, then why are my people living out here, huh? And why haven't you heard about it until now?"
"I-I don't know." Kiara stammered, ears flattening at the elder lion's harsh tone.
"It's because they didn't want you to know." He spat. "If they can hide what they've done, no one will ever be able to challenge them, but what they don't know is that an Outlander never forgets."
Kiara looked between the two lions before her; could see the sincerity behind their eyes and and she couldn't help but think that perhaps she wouldn't forget either.