Chapter 3
Alright everyone, here you are with chapter 3 of the story, enjoy.
Everyone said a few final farewells to the others who were staying in the Pride Lands before they began to head off, as they were though, they suddenly heard the distinct cackling of hyenas and it was from Jasiri, Madoa, Cheezi or Chungu. Then suddenly, rocks were pushed into the area behind them that led back into the Pride Lands.
"Huh? What's going on?" Baliyo unnervingly asked.
It was than that in front of everyone, came a bunch of hyenas, at least twenty of them, blocking their path. When Gozi looked, he recognized some of them from Hatari's clan. Gozi spotted Kamari and Azizi, Hatari's brothers, Nyoka and Gombo, and in front of them was…
"Janja!" Kion snarled.
"Hola!" Janja announced, cackling evilly.
Everyone tensed up, ready for a fight if Janja and the hyenas behind him were stupid enough to attack. As Janja and the hyenas behind him creeped up towards them, Janja took the time to look at everyone who was there.
"And what do you know, all the Pride Landers and even some of the Outlanders that I bloody hate the most all in the same place." Janja said, taking a moment to laugh. "This will only make things easier."
As Janja got closer, everyone noticed a few differences from the last time they saw him nearly two weeks ago. He was missing more of his right ear to the point where there was barely any of it left and was missing part of his left ear where the notch it had in it had ended. Janja was missing a small chunk of his left nostril, but his nose was overall still intact. Janja seemed to be missing some toes on a paw or two and the tip of his tail, leaving only a small stub of what it once was, and was also missing a small section of the right side of his upper lip, showing a couple teeth. Other than all that and some bite and slash marks that seemed to still be healing all over his body, Janja still seemed pretty much the same from when he returned.
"What happened to you?" Kion asked.
Janja's evil smile turned to a look of anger and hate.
"Hatari and her clan did this to me after you and junior there tried to super roar at me!" Janja yelled.
"Oh, you mean when you ran crying for your mommy?" Mbio mocked, which got laughs of ridicule towards Janja from his clan.
Janja angrily growled towards Mbio, promising himself to make his death just as slow and as painful as he was going to make Kion's. While he was in the middle of his thoughts, Kamari, Azizi, and Hatari's brothers shoved past him.
"Oh, and that reminds us." Kamari said. "Hatari and us didn't just beat you up for lying to her and endangering the clan, your also back down to dangling at the bottom of the bottom OF THE BOTTOM of the food chain."
"Yeah, so we should be in the front and you in the back, staring at our backsides, that actually have tails." Azizi said, whipping his tail in Janja's face to mock him.
"No." Janja angrily growled.
"Yes." Nyoka said, grinning. "You should count yourself lucky that we even decided to at least hear out the idea of the lowest ranking member of the clan."
Janja was about to shout back at Nyoka that he and the rest wouldn't have thought about using the rocks to trap them if not for him, but Nyoka just continued before he could.
"So, giving credit where credit is due at least, the clan and I thank you for your idea, but now you've done all your useful to us for at the moment." Nyoka said.
"Huh?" Janja exclaimed.
Nyoka grinned even wider, showing Janja his teeth.
"We don't need a screw up while trying to kill Pride Landers, especially a crippled screw up who can't fight. So, now we'd like you to go to the back and cheer us on like a good little crippled cheerleader." Nyoka belittled Janja.
Nyoka then chuckled to himself amusingly while Janja angrily growled down at the smaller hyena. Back when he ran his old clan, Janja would have savagely beaten or even killed anyone in his clan who talked to him like that, but he couldn't do that to Nyoka. Nyoka as Hatari's brother had special protection from her even though Hatari pretty much didn't care about anyone in her clan, even if they were family as evidenced by Gombo having no tongue. Gombo just grunted at the whole scene between his brother, Kamari, Azizi and Janja. Back with everyone else, they all looked at each other a little confused as Janja and Nyoka argued.
Kamari, Azizi, Nyoka, and Gombo resumed their advance on everyone, leading the clan, but Janja soon shoved them aside, taking the lead again.
"NO! THIS IS MY REVENGE, SO I'M TAKING THE LEAD! YOU HEAR ME? THE LEAD IS MINE! MINE!" Janja angrily shouted.
As Janja stared ahead, growling at all the animals he hated, he suddenly caught sight of Baliyo. He had seen him earlier, but at first glance had mistaken him for Kovu.
"Hay, I recognize you. You're one of the lions from the Tree of Life." Janja said.
Baliyo looked towards Janja, barley recognizing him because of his new appearance from when he last saw him at the Tree of Life nearly two years ago. Janja grinned as he looked at Baliyo.
"What was your name, Bethany." Janja asked.
"Baliyo!" Baliyo corrected, insulted, knowing Janja purposely got his name wrong.
"Oh, that's right. Anyway, hay, ho, how's your sister?" Janja asked, grinning.
Baliyo gasped and stepped back a bit at Janja saying that.
"Hay, I asked how's your sister?" Janja asked.
Kion stepped in front of Baliyo and took a few threatening steps towards Janja.
"I'm warning you Janja, you'd better shut up." Kion growled.
"Ooohhh. Now that's interesting, you of all lions coming to the defense of a Night Prider after they wronged you." Janja mocked.
"Rani was the only one who wronged me, but it doesn't matter now." Kion said.
"It doesn't, and why's that? You forgiven her or something? What are you all doing here anyone, I get wanting to see Baliyo off back home, but this seems like a little much? You going to see her after all this time Kion?" Janja asked, still grinning.
"It's none of your concern Janja! Now you and your friends get out of our way before I make you!" Kion warned.
"Janja ain't our friend, lion!" Kamari shouted.
Kion snarled at Kamari as a warning for him to be silent.
"Come on Kion, tell me and maybe I'll decide to leave all of yous alone." Janja said.
Kion was about to give Janja one last chance to leave until Bunga spoke up.
"Rani's dead. Baliyo came and told us a week ago and he asked us to come to the funeral." Bunga said.
"Rani's dead." Janja asked in slight surprise before softly chuckling and looking over at Kion. "Oh, I bet you were happy to hear about that Kion. I mean, after what she did to you, you should be."
Kion angrily growled at Janja for making such an assumption and in front of Baliyo, who was being comforted by Jasiri. Kion would never wish death on somebody, even on Rani despite what she did, no matter how much it had hurt him.
"Hay, can I come with you all to the funeral? I oh so love funerals… at least ones that have a celebration of life party afterwards with lots of food with exotic animals on the menu afterwards." Janja said, licking his lips with an obnoxiously loud slurp afterwards.
"Not even in your dreams." Kion growled.
"Oh, then I guess I'm just gonna have to make another visit there myself. I don't need to go there for a funeral just to get some food anyways." Janja said.
"You'll never eat or hurt anyone from the Tree of Life, Janja. I'll personally make sure of it." Kion stated.
"Oh, really? Then come on Kion, come at me a make sure I never will hurt anyone from the Tree of Life." Janja grinned. "But I doubt you'll succeed in doing so, seeing as how I've alread…"
Before Janja could finish whatever, he was about to say however, he and his clan mates were suddenly sent flying with a Roar of the Elders. Kion hadn't done so and looked back, thinking that it was Vitani who roared at Janja, but saw that it had been Gozi who roared at Janja and his clan. As they flew through the air, Janja couldn't help but complain.
"Oh, c'mon, won't I ever catch a break!?" Janja said.
"Given your track record, I'd say it's less than likely." Kamari said.
"If that's so, then someone from on high must really hate him." Azizi said.
"If he had just stayed behind like we told him to or paid attention to the cub, we might have avoided getting roared at." Azizi said.
Gombo grunted, mentally thinking 'If we had just taken them by surprise instead of having to make a show of everything, we might have actually been able to kill a few of them.'
"Team Janja's blasting off again!" Janja shouted.
"Team Janja!?" Kamari shouted before he and the rest of the clan became just a twinkle in the sky.
Meanwhile, back on the ground, everyone was thanking Gozi for getting rid of Janja.
"Thanks, Gozi, there's no telling what I would have done if I had to hear another word of whatever Janja was gonna say." Kion said.
"Well, we got a place to be and he was being a major dick." Gozi said. "Besides, I guess I can now join the club of those who have blasted Janja with the roar."
Everyone began laughing.
"Yeah, he never saw it coming." Fuli said.
"Not as funny as him running and shouting for mommy, but still one of the funniest things I've ever seen." Jasiri said.
Vitani came up next to Gozi and mock glared down at him.
"If there is a blasting Janja with the roar club, then it was my turn to enter, I got the roar before you." Vitani said.
"Well, then it appears Gozi is a faster roar slinger than you. He was quicker on the draw there Vitani" Bunga teased.
"Don't worry Vitani, I'm sure you'll get a chance if Janja is stupid enough to go into the Pride Lands while were gone." Jasiri assured.
Kion nodded, agreeing with Jasiri.
"Well, now that that little delay is out of the way, let's continue on everyone." Kion said.
"But Kion, uh, you know, the boulders?" Kweli pointed out.
"Oh." Kion realized, looking back.
"Don't worry Kion, we're on it." Beshte said as he and Mtoto went to clear the rocks.
They two did so easily and did another snout and trunk bump at a heavy lifting job well done. Everyone said a final, final farewell to everyone and set off for the Tree of Life finally. As they did, Busara jumped onto Mbio's back, tilting her leaf cowboy hat a little.
"Alright everyone, to the Tree of Life. Hiya!" Busara shouted, lightly kicking Mbio's sides with her heals.
Mbio grunted in annoyance and flipped Busara off his back.
"Hay, other than battles during our future Lion Guard duties and games of bad hyena attack, I don't give free rides." Mbio said.
Fuli couldn't help but smirk at seeing that, truly a son after her own heart, not liking to be ridden on among other things. Busara instead got on her Uncle Pumbaa's back and lightly kicked his sides with her heels and then Pumbaa charged forward while Busara shouted yeehaw much to everyone's amusement. Everyone made their way through the Backlands, encountering Dhahabu and her herd and Badili, all of whom greeted and told them about some 'flying hyenas' they saw earlier. Kion took a moment to laugh with everyone before informing them about Janja and some of Hatari's clan, telling them to be careful. Dhahabu and her herd and Badili thanked them for doing so and wished them safe passage on their journey to the Tree of Life for the funeral, having known about it.
Everyone thanked them back before continuing their journey. They walked on for a while until they got to the foot of the snowy mountains. Kion looked and saw that the sun would be starting to set soon and decided that they'd all rest here for tonight and continue in the morning. As everyone settled down, Jasiri formed a hunting party consisting of herself, Nala, Kiara, Tiifu, and oddly, Busara, who was wielding her vine lasso.
"Come on, you four can use my help, see." Busara said, who twirled her lasso and threw it, getting it around both Kiara and Nala's necks. "I can help you catch it easier, just get be close enough and I'll throw this."
The four-hunter team all looked at each other amused and agreed. Busara shouted for joy and jumped onto Nala's back.
"Alright Queen Nala, let's bring home the bacon." Busara said, twirling her hat before suddenly stopping herself. "Wait, what did I just say?"
Busara turned her head and looked back at Pumbaa.
"Uh, haha, sorry Uncle Pumbaa." Busara apologized sheepishly. "Alright, correction Queen Nala, let's bring home the beef… or venison… or whatever other times of meet there are."
Nala and the rest of the hunting party laughed before heading out to get some food for the others. As they waited, everyone either hung around in silence or just talked. Asante was looking up at the mountains they would be climbing tomorrow and saw all the snow up there. She had seen and played in snow once before from having visited the mountains where the gorillas lived and loved it. Kion came and sat next to her.
"Hay, Asante, what are you looking at?" Kion asked.
"Oh, just at the mountains." Asante said. "Hay dad, when we get up there tomorrow, can me and my friends play in the snow. I haven't done so since I was four months old."
"Sure, you can play as we travel as long as you stay with us and you'll love the hot spring." Kion said.
Asante looked back up at the mountain, more excited at the opportunity to see and jump in a hot spring for the first time.
"I can't wait to see the Tree of Life and all the animals there, but I also can't wait to see all the sites you saw on the journey you took there." Asante said.
"Yes Asante, you'll love those sites… or at least some of them. Like the bamboo forest, the great watering hole, which doesn't taste good, so don't drink it. There's also where Fuli and Azaad met and a couple other places that have their moments." Kion explained.
"Well, that'll do until we get to the Tree of Life." Asante said.
"Well Asante, there are just as many interesting animals we'll see along the way. There's clouded leopards, like the one who saved my life despite me growling at them. There's also red pandas, like those who worshipped Bunga, dolphins, peacocks, an many others." Kion said.
"Oh, at least I won't have to wait very long to see at least some amazing and exotic animals you can't see anywhere else." Asante said.
"Yes, but hopefully we won't run into any mean snow leopards, Komodo dragons, or binturongs again." Kion said.
"Hay dad, can I ask you a question?" Asante asked.
"Sure Asante, what is it?" Kion asked.
"Ever since you left, did you ever miss the Tree of Life and think of going back?" Asante asked.
Kion closed his eyes and sighed.
"Yes, many times Asante. I always felt bad about the way we all left and wanted to go back and apologize for it. If I could go back and change it, I would have had us leave more peacefully than we did. No fight between Rani, your mother, and my friends and not clawing Rani over the eye." Kion said. "In truth, I even wish I hadn't ever gotten into that fight with Janja back in that cave."
"But why, you always told me that he said horrible things to you." Asante said.
"Yes, but I was the one who started it. After hearing that Rani never truly loved me, everything bad that has ever happened to me just came crashing down on top of me and I let all my emotions get the best of me and was looking for someone to blame and Janja was just the easiest candidate. As much as I hate him, I feel sorry for him because of what I did. The actions he made are his own, but what I did that night, starting the fight with him, that's what drove him to do what he did months later." Kion explained. "Before our fight in the lair of the Lion Guard ended, Janja said the real reason he did everything he did was because I've always had everything he wanted, everyone's praise, respect, and everyone's love, especially your mother's and all because I was born a royal lion with the Roar of Elders."
Asante just sat there in silence listening to her father.
"I feel like if only I had been older and wiser back then, back to the point where I decided to marry Rani, I would have chosen better and none of this might have happened." Kion sadly said. "I wouldn't have married Rani, Rani might have come to realize what she wanted to do was wrong, I wouldn't have gotten into a fight with Janja, maybe your mother and I still could have gotten together and Janja might have taken it better and he'd still have a happy life in the Pride Lands, and maybe Rani wouldn't have died. What she did to me was bad and even now, I don't know if I can ever fully forgive her, but she didn't deserve to die. I actually wanted her to learn what she did was bad and hopefully somehow, she and I could have at least tried to still be friends."
"Well, I guess as Rafiki said to grandpa before he went back to overthrow Scar and become king, none of it matters now since it's in the past and the only thing we can do is move on and learn from it." Asante said, not sure what to tell her father.
Kion just smiled down at Asante and gently nuzzled her cheek.
"You're a good girl." Kion said and then kissed his daughter's cheek. "Now, why don't you go play with your friends until your mom and the others get back."
"Okay." Asante said, running over to her friends.
Soon after Asante ran off and played with her friends, Baliyo came and sat next to Kion.
"Hay Kion." Baliyo greeted.
"Hay Baliyo." Kion greeted back.
Both lions sat in silence before Kion spoke up again.
"Hay, sorry you had to hear Janja say all those things earlier." Kion apologized.
"It's alright, you've told me what he can be like. Just, thanks for standing up for me and for Rani in a way, I think she would have appreciated it." Baliyo said.
Kion just nodded, not sure how to respond to that.
"What Janja said, about him saying that you should have been happy to hear that Rani is dead, I was afraid you were and I came up to you to ask you that, but after your conversation with Asante, you gave me my answer." Baliyo said, sounding relieved.
"I would never say that I'm glad she's dead, I'd never say that about someone, no matter how bad they've wronged me." Kion said. "In fact, somehow in some small way, I do miss Rani and always have or at least, the lioness I thought she was. It's just sad that I don't know exactly how much of it was genuine, if any at all."
"Yeah, it is. When she revealed the truth to me, I felt like I didn't know my own sister anymore or if any of the lioness I knew long before you even arrived was even genuine." Baliyo said.
"The roar hadn't even returned they're with me yet, so I'm sure the sister you knew before I arrived was genuine." Kion said.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Baliyo said, finding some comfort in that.
"I'm sorry I took your sister away from you." Kion apologized.
Baliyo looked at Kion, shocked that he thought that.
"No, it's not your fault, you didn't take my sister away from me. Whoever killed her is the one who took my sister away from me." Baliyo argued. "I feel like with just some more time, if we had talked to her more, we could have gotten the Rani, I knew back."
Baliyo sighed.
"I don't really like to think about what ifs." Baliyo said. "Just, thank you again so much for coming to the funeral even though you had every right not to."
"I just wish the reason I'm coming back wasn't because Rani's dead." Kion said.
Kion was coming back to the Tree of Life to support his extended family in one of the darkest moments of their life, it wasn't because Rani was dead, but Kion felt like it was and that it made him a bad person and Baliyo could sense this.
"Hay, you're not coming back just because she's dead and you're not a bad person, you're a good one. The best I've ever known." Baliyo said.
Kion smiled at Baliyo, truly grateful to hear that.
"Thank you, Baliyo." Kion said.
Baliyo smiled back and both he and Kion nuzzled each other. The two lions then sat there in silence and looked over at Asante as she played with her friends. Baliyo smiled at the sight of the young stripped hyena playing with her friends.
"She's a good kid. I knew you and Jasiri would be good parents to her and raise her right." Baliyo said.
"You promised her mother we would, so of course we did." Kion said. "Even if we were able to, I don't think Jasiri and I could have had a kid as perfect as her."
"Well, she's lucky to have you two." Baliyo said.
"And Jasiri and I are lucky to have her." Kion said.
"And I'm glad to hear so." Baliyo said.
Kion and Baliyo waited around silence until the hunting party finally got back over half an hour later. Jasiri and Tiifu dragging an antelope and another one by Kiara and Nala, who had Busara still riding on her back. When they dropped their catches, Nala told everyone about how Busara used her vine lasso to help catch the antelope quicker than it would have usually taken. Busara proudly proclaimed that vine lassoing was now the new way of hunting and that now, she'd joining bringing home the food, everyone laughing along with her. Everyone then began to eat from the antelopes and afterward everyone began to turn in for the night.
Asante began to lay with her parents against a boulder, but then suddenly remembered what Madoa and Vitani had asked of her. As she got up, they thought Asante was going to begin with them, but she didn't. They watched Asante as she went over to Beshte since he was the closest and kissed both the hippo's cheeks on Madoa's behalf. Beshte hooked his large snout under Asante's chin and smiled down at her. Beshte than rubbed his snout against Asante's face, who soon started giggling due to the whiskers of his snout tickling her.
Asante than gave Beshte's snout a punch on Vitani's behalf, putting more force into it than she was going to everyone else, knowing to Beshte a punch from her would just be a little tickle.
"Ow, hay." Beshte teased.
Asante and Beshte both laughed before she moved onto everyone else, kissing their cheeks for her Aunt Madoa and then lightly punching them in the mouth for her Aunt Vitani. Bunga, being, well, Bunga, asked Asante to punch him as hard as she could in the mouth, which she did. Binga, deciding to make it one of the many competitions she and Bunga always challenged each other to, told Asante to punch her in the mouth as hard as she could to. Like always, Binga out preformed Bunga, when she was still standing on her feet while the force from Asante's punch, sent Bunga falling on his butt and Binga teasing him by saying she won again, Asante laughing in amusement. When she was finished, she returned to her parents and Baliyo who was near them.
"And the best for last." Asante declared.
Asante than kissed her parents and Baliyo on the cheek and then punched them in the mouth, putting in more force than she did most the others with her parents just because they were her parents. Kion and Jasiri while rubbing their mouths along and Baliyo all laughed in amusement and nuzzled Asante before the four began to fall asleep, wishing each other good night.
And there you are with chapter three of four everyone. Sorry to those who were expecting that there might be more with Janja, it was meant to be a small interaction with him and it's probably also the fact that this entire chapter was supposed to be the ending of chapter two instead of it ending with a cliff hanger, but it got too long, resulting in all this becoming it's own separate chapter. Also, the plan is for the characters to deduce that it was Janja who killed Rani not for him to flat out tell them, which he would of if Gozi hadn't roared at him when he did. Everyone will figure out it was Janja next chapter though, with the hints he said in this chapter coming back into play to help them figure it out along with some other small things.
Anyway everyone, see you all next chapter to end this short story off, but until than, have a good day/night, please leave a review to tell me what you thought of this chapter and maybe even leave some suggestions for some new animals for everyone to meet at the Tree of Life, I've already got one in mind myself, please read my other stories and review them to when you can if you haven't done so already, continue to stay healthy out there, enjoy the 4th of July, don't accidently blow your fingers off kids, and God bless.
