Disclaimer: I don't own Lion King.

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Chapter 22: Recruits

South of the Pride Lands everything seemed somewhat better – the rivers were wetter, the herds were more numerous and even the grass looked greener. The closer to the cape, the more of a paradise it appeared. Shenzi gazed around with awe, feeling, as if she died and wandered straight to a hyena heaven. Ed hid his tongue, being serious for a while, what made him look a bit dignified.

"That's what I call territory!" Banzai nodded with approval.

"Shush!" Shenzi gagged him with her paw. "It's not ours. Don't you remember what happened the last time you were yelling?"

Ed giggled quietly, although being chased by lions, almost eaten by a pair of leopards and having Shenzi lose a duel with a leader of a local hyena pack wasn't amusing then. Oh, and once Banzai managed to outrun a pissed cheetah – that was quite a notable achievement.

The journey in search of their own place in the savannah was filled of adventures, but perilous. Nonetheless, they enjoyed a moderate peace for several days now. They even had their bellies full, what was a nice thing.

"Ah, so peaceful." With a wide, happy grin, Banzai collapsed on the ground and laid in the tall grass, enjoying the moment.

Shenzi was about to berate her buddy for being so reckless, when she saw Ed doing the same. She sighed rolling her eyes and laid down too. For a while, all three of them were splayed on their backs, with all fours in the air, gazing at the clouds lazily traveling across the sky. Somehow, this reminded Shenzi of their puphood, the times long gone. The only difference was that at one point they had a four member of the group tagging along…

"Oh no," Shenzi muttered, smacking her paw against her forehead. "Where's the kid?"

Banzai and Ed exchanged startled glances.

"Oops." Banzai commented, and Ed burst into apologetic laugher.

"Get moving, bums!" Shenzi berated her buddies, springing to her paws. "We need to find her before someone eats her!"

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Uchao, the hyena pup was joyfully prancing across the savannah, admiring the breathtaking views. The grass was swaying in the rhythm of the wind and the wonderful sounds of nature were surrounding Uchao. As she noticed a lone flower, she immediately raced to it to sniff its enticing scent.

"Hello birdies!" she exclaimed, when she saw a group of vultures hanging out on the branches of an old acacia. They exchanged baffled looks and shrugged their wings, looking rather grim. Perhaps they just had a bad day or something.

Uchao gasped, covering her mouth with her paw politely. A young gazelle fell into a ditch – it wasn't deep, but the little calf couldn't climb out on its own.

"Hold on, I'm coming!" Uchao called, running to help out. The gazelle shrieked, widening her eyes, as she noticed the little hyena speeding toward her. She desperately tried to climb up, but her hooves couldn't reach the edge. Uchao, of course, circled the hole in the ground. She leaned over and snatched the gazelle's leg with her paw. "I've got you!"

For some reason, the gazelle wasn't cooperating. Instead she trashed, as if she wanted to get away from Uchao. The hyena completely didn't understand why – after all, she came to rescue. Fortunately, auntie Shenzi and the uncles fed her well, so Uchao was really strong for her age. She clenched her teeth and pulled the gazelle up, dragging her out of the ditch. As soon as the calf was in safety, though, she darted off, much to Uchao's disappointment.

"Don't mention it!" The hyena called after her new friend and skipped forward, refusing to feel disheartened even for a moment. She beamed with joy and optimism, spreading great mood across the grasslands. How fantastic it was to wander off away from her auntie and uncles – she had an opportunity to make a lot of new friends!

"Hello, Mr. Rhino!" Uchao called. "Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Baboons! What a wonderful weather we have today, Mr. Lion!"

Mr. Lion looked grumpy like the vultures though. Maybe he had a tummy ache – such ailment made even uncle Ed cranky sometimes. Uchao flashed a polite smile at the lion before her and turned left, to continue her carefree stroll. The feline leapt to block her path. His green eyes stared at her so intensely, as if he wanted something from the hyena. She tilted her head wondering what it could be.

"You have a very pretty mane, Mr. Lion." Uchao complimented his thick, black mane that neatly matched the dark pelt. "It's really stylish."

Mr. Lion kept glaring at her though. Uchao's instincts told her that it was a good time for a race, but her brain couldn't comprehend why. The whole time smiling nicely, she slowly tried to circle the feline, but he kept interrupting her.

"I would love to stay for a friendly chat, but my guardians will be worried. I need to find them." Uchao explained.

The lion smiled and she breathed out with relief – he understood! How kind of him.

"Let's look for your family together." He proposed, making Uchao squeal in delight. His grin grew. "I'd love to invite you all for a dinner."

"Really? That's so nice!" The little hyena had tears of emotion in the corners of her eyes. Quickly, she wiped them with her paw. It was true – being a kind and gentle girl really did gain her friends. "I can't express how grateful I am."

"The pleasure's all mine." The lion answered, licking his lips.

Uchao followed him eagerly, as they strolled near the herds of zebras, cape buffalos and various kinds of gazelles. She craned her neck, searching her beloved guardians and her new companion did the same, eagerly helping her out.

"My name is Uchao." The hyena pup introduced herself – she had heard from a wise, old elephant that it's rude not do so. "But auntie and uncles call me Kid. What's your name?"

"Vunda," the lion said.

"Do you have any family?" Uchao inquired delicately, thinking that small-talk would help the two of them to know each other better.

"Two brothers." Vunda looked around cautiously around, distracted. Uchao wasn't bothered by it one bit though – the ever present smile never left her lips.

Shenzi thought her heart stopped, when she noticed the kid. Banzai and Ed stiffened too, fixing their gazes on a large male lion accompanying their little princess. The trio exchanged panicked glances, before they dared to perform a bold charge onto a top predator of the savannah. Baring their teeth and cackling maniacally, they stormed to swoop Uchao away from the danger, like they always did.

"Get away from her, you ugly lion!" Shenzi yelled, leading the assault.

"Yeah, don't eat her!" Banzai added.

Ed only laughed harder, as if to repel lion by his display of insanity. Fast like lightning, Shenzi snatched the kid, dragging her away from the lion.

"Auntie!" Uchao protested meekly, but Shenzi ignored her, busy carrying her troublesome ward into safety. In the meantime, Ed and Banzai covered her rear, in case the lion would want to make a snack out of them.

"Damu! Chonga!" the lion roared.

Suddenly, two other males jumped out, emerging from the hideouts, that the tall grass provided. Just like the third one, they had dark pelts and thick, black manes. Snarling and growling, they made Shenzi dig her paws into the ground to stop. She opened her jaws, dropping Uchao. Ed and Banzai rammed into her, making Shenzi topple over the kid.

"Four plump hyenas for the lunch." The green-eyed leader of the lions commented, strolling forward. Damu and Chonga approached as well, making sure that neither of the main courses wouldn't escape.

Shenzi let out a nervous giggle, shivering.

"Why won't you eat someone tastier?" She suggested. Craning her neck, she pointed at the herd of zebras, peacefully devouring grass not far away behind the lions' backs. "They look positively delicious."

The lions didn't look interested in the zebras though. Instead, all their attention was focused on the hyenas. Shenzi instantly regretted having all those filling dinners – maybe if she and her buddies were only a bunch of bones in a hyena-shaped sack, they wouldn't be much of a tasty chomp. The felines bared their teeth, preparing to rip them apart.

"Hey, Vunda!" Suddenly, the one called Chonga called – he had yellow eyes.

"What?" Vunda growled.

Chonga eyed the trembling hyenas.

"Shouldn't we… you know, intestinate them first?" he asked.

"Interrogate." Damu corrected him, demonstratively rolling his eyes.

"Pfft!" Vunda dismissively waved his paw. "No need for that. We need to watch out for strong soldiers and specialists. They're obviously just a dinner."

The hyenas jumped to their paws instantly, all having sensed their chance for prolonging their jolly existence. Only Uchao looked extremely confused, but Shenzi pressed her flat against the ground, preventing the kid from saying something stupid. That was, something even more foolish than Ed or Banzai could come up with.

"Specialists, you say?" Shenzi asked, straightening her back. Dramatically, she pointed her paw at her chest. "So it happens that you're facing a trio of best specialists around!"

"Yes, we're the best!" Banzai instantly caught Shenzi's jib. He nodded eagerly, before he stared at her blankly. "Best at what?"

Ed smacked him in the head, rolling his tongue in and attempting to look like an intellectual. The lions exchanged skeptical looks, clearly not believing that any of the hyenas could master in anything else than making silly grimaces. Vunda was obviously eager to devour them, but the persistent stares of his companions made him sigh in defeat. However, he tried to weasel his way out.

"Really, do we have to ask them?" he muttered.

Damu cleared his throat. In a neurotic gesture, he flattened the front part of his mane with his paw.

"We're contractually obligated to interrogate every individual who shows signs of aptitude." He recited, making Vunda groan.

"Fine!" He glared at Damu, perhaps just in case he would say something annoyingly smart again. His gaze slid over Ed and Banzai after he decided that Shenzi was the least stupid of the pack. "So, specialists, what do you specialize in?"

Shenzi coughed out, preparing to list her qualities, but Banzai cut in.

"In political science," He said confidently. "With lots of practical experience gained by working as core members of executive staff. If you need someone for secret missions, coups, special operations, gathering intelligence or management – we're your guys!"

"We can pull off any scam, carry out even the most daring mission!" Shenzi exclaimed, eagerly advertising the trio's services. "Oh, and Ed is a gifted strategist."

As if to confirm her words, Ed stopped grinning and hid his loose tongue. Wrinkling his forehead, he started sketching some incoherent lines on the grassy ground.

"And who was your employer?" Vunda's eyebrow was twitching at the litany.

"The king of the Pride Lands." Banzai shrugged his shoulders. The green-eyed lion nodded, acknowledging the information.

"Ahadi?" He made sure.

The hyenas looked at each other and burst in laughter. The lions furrowed their brows, displeased by their howling cackle.

"Buddy," Shenzi said, shaking her head with dismay. Fearlessly, she stomped to Vunda and threw her front leg over his neck. "What you need, is someone who knows stuff, someone who used to practically run the Pride Lands. We are your guys, the specialists, you are looking for."

Vunda growled, glaring at her, but he didn't make a move to attack.

"Boss will want to see you." He decided. The unhappy thrown on his face only frowned, when the hyenas started celebration, high-fiving his brother and patting them vigorously. His gaze traveled from the self-proclaimed political scientists to the fourth member of their pack – the little clueless princess. Uchao was smiling dumbly, as if she wasn't quite grasping what was happening around here.

"What about her?" Vunda asked, pointing at Uchao.

The little hyena blinked at him innocently, while her guardians got nervous. The jubilant atmosphere got heavy again.

"She can use…" Shenzi began, frantically thinking how to make the kid look somewhat useful.

"The power of friendship!" Uchao exclaimed enthusiastically, making a beeline to Vunda and performing a charming curtsy.

"She's damn good at confusing the enemy." Banzai pointed out.

"I can see that." Vunda agreed, eying the hyena pup with a mix of wonder and distaste. Finally, he tore his gaze from the freaky kid and addressed the newly recruited experts. "I'll take you to the boss now."

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Author's Note:

Hello, my favorite readers! Thankfully, I managed to scribble the February chapter in time before the Valentine's day. As always, thank you for reading and please share your thoughts in the comments. I try to answer all reviews (unless it's a guest review or you have the PM option turned off).

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The second arc is coming to an end, albeit slowly. There are 3 or 4 more chapters left, I think – someone has yet to write them. I'll do my best to update in March too. Take good care if yourselves and please pamper me with your reviews.

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By the way, are you familiar with an anime called Nurarihyon no Mago? I watched it recently and liked it quite a bit.