Simba ran down the slope of Pride Rock towards the small area of trees where the lionesses hung out. He found his mother and Sarafina, who was sitting with Nala. Nala, along with her mother, who was giving her a tongue bath.
"Hey Nala," Simba said with a smile, placing both of his paws onto the ledge of the rock that Nala was sitting on.
"Hi Simba," replied Nala as her mother licked the top of her head.
"Come on, I know this really cool place."
"Simba, I'm kinda in the middle of a bath."
Sarabi looked down at her son with a grin. "And it's time for yours."
Sarabi lifted her right paw and picked up her struggling son, who was trying to get out of her grip. After she got her son in the position that she wanted him, and holding him against her chest, she began licking his back and hair, giving him a slobbery bath.
"Moom!" Simba shouted, and he tried to escape her grasp. Simba pouted and finally gave up, but he looked at Sarabi with a disgusted look on his face. Simba glared and managed to pull himself free from his mother, fixing his 'mane' that was his small tufft of hair. "Okay Okay, I'm clean! Can I go now?"
"So where are you going?" Nala asked, tilting her eyebrow as she watched Simba try to get away from his mother as far as he can, to the point where he was standing next to Nala. "It better not be any place dumb!"
"It's really cool…" Simba replied.
"Where is this reallycool place?" Sarabi asked. Simba flinched, and turned around to look at his mother with a grin on his face.
"Ummm…" Simba thought for a moment. "Down by the water hole!"
"The water hole!" Nala pulled her head back and made a harsh look on her face, "What's so great about the water hole?"
Simba glared at Nala, and he would've said something to help cover up his alibi, but he decided against it and looked up at his mother with a grin on his face. "Can I go, mom? Pleeeeeasseeeeeeeee?" He half asked, half begged, grinning so wide that his smile looked like it was going to pop right off his face.
Sarabi nodded. "It's alright with me." She would've continued, but Simba had already took off running as soon as he heard those words. Nala stood up to follow, and she ran off after him, and the two jumped around each other happily and playfully.
"All right!" He screamed with excitement in his voice, bounding off when Nala jumped over him, but stopped when he heard his mother say and call after him:
"As long as Zazu goes with you!"
Simba stopped, sighed, and looked at Nala. "Oh no, not Zazu."
The cubs walked through the savanna, with Zazu flying over them. Zazu called down to them. "Step lively. The sooner we get to the water hole, the sooner we can leave."
"So where are we really going?." Nala whispered.
"An elephant graveyard," Simbai whispered back, and shushed Nala before she could scream with excitement.
"So how are wegonna ditch the dodo?" Nala asked. While Simba replied , Zazu looked down and noticed that the two cubs were talking about something, and he felt his heart bubble with excitement. With a low chuckle, Zazu hovered over them and landed a few feet in front of them, stopping in front of the two cubs.
Zazu landed in front of the cubs, and Simba gave him an annoyed look, but the hornbill didn't seem to notice. "Just look at you two. Little seeds of romance blossoming in the savannah… your parents will be thrilled! What with your being betrothed and all."
Simba looked at the small, blue bird with a blank stare. "Be-what?"
"Betrothed. Intended. Affianced."
Nala looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "Meaning?"
"One day, you two are going to be married!" Zazu said excitedly.
Simba gasped. "What!" he shouted, sticking out his tongue in disgust. "No way! I'm not marrying her, She's my friend." He said, as he looked at Nala.
Nala nodded in agreement and looked down at Zazu. "Yeah, it would be so weird."
"Well, sorry to bust your bubble, but you two turtle-doves have no choice. It's a tradition…" Zazu said, but he wasn't heard. Simba mimicked Zazu's last three words as he said this: "going back generations." and Nala giggled as she watched him.
Just then Simba spotted a lone rhino eating some grass. He walked over, whispered something into the rhino's ear, then walked back. He was planning something. "Well when I'm king that will be the first thing to go." Simba said as Zazu finished.
"Not so long as I'm around." Zazu replied, waving his wings at Simba as if to shoo him off, like what he just said didn't mean anything to him.
"In that case you're fired." Simba said, approaching him closely.
"Nice try, but only the King can do that." Zazu said as he poked Simba in the nose.
"Well, he's the future king!" Nala said, backing her best-friend up.
"Yeah, so that means you hafta do whatever I tell ya!" Simba shoved Zazu so hard that the force caused him to fall over to his side. Somewhat angrily, Zazu righted his balance and glared at Simba as he turned around to look at the cub behind him.
"Not yet I don't, and with an attitude like that, I'm afraid you're shaping up to be a pretty pathetic king indeed." Zazu remarked, folding his arms and turning his back on Simba. Just then the rhino that Simba whispered to earlier walked up and suddenly sat on the poor bird, thus giving the cubs enough time to run as far as possible.
Later, Zazu finally escaped the confines of the rhino's back side. Zazu glanced about, and suddenly realized the cubs were gone. In a panic, he flew about, unable to find them, and zoomed back to Pride Rock, trying to find Panaka. Mufasa would surely make sure there were dire consequences if he found out about this.
Captain Panaka was walking about when he spied Zazu flying toward him. "Zazu?" he asked. "What's the matter?"
Zazu shouted into thin air, "Captain! It's a disaster! The cubs! Simba! Nala! They ran away from me! They dropped a rhino on me and now I can't find them! You must get them back before the king finds out about this!"
"Zazu, Zazu, calm down. I'll go find them, ok?"
"I can't calm down! Not until they're back home safely! Hurry!" then Zazu flew away back into the air.
Panaka started walking towards the savannah and muttered to himself, "I'm getting too old for this."