CHAPTER 13 – Aftermath

Sarabi felt fear filling her heart with every minute. The last few days have been awful, but this one was just unbearable from the moment she woke up. First of all, Nala was gone. Secondly, the lionesses just informed her, that also Sarafina was nowhere to be found. Torn between organizing a searching team and sending the pride out to get food before the king gets angry, she decided to look for her missing friends herself, sending the others to the hunting grounds. She was now running around every stone and bush around Pride Rock, sniffing and looking for tracks. But the whole area was covered with lion and hyena paw prints. Oh, where could they have gone? The times were so hard, and yet she had to deal with more and more trouble every day. She new that the mother and daughter were very displeased since the attack on Scar, and she was also aware that somehow it was Zira's fault… but that was no reason for them to run away! No, she knew Sarafina too well. It would be impossible for her to abandon her own pride, no matter what. Filled with concern, she swiftly ascended a tall rock in order to take a look around. The bare, scorched Pridelands have never looked more miserable to her than now. She turned her head towards Pride Rock where Scar laid still asleep, luckily. She wondered what he would do if he found out that two lionesses from his pride had disappeared. Would he be angry? Or maybe he wouldn't do anything at all? The only female that ever seemed to catch his attention was Zira. Especially now… Sarabi quickly turned around, waking from her meditations as she heard a silent laughter.

-Hahaha… are you looking for me?

She was shocked to see Sarafina, lying among the dry grass as if nothing at all had happened. She quickly jumped down from the rock and stood in front of her, noticing that for the first time in days her friend was actually quite in a good mood.

-Sarafina! Where were you? Do you have any idea how long we've been looking for you and Nala?

The blue-eyed lioness did not lose her smile.

-Actually yes, I do. You have to excuse me. I was escorting Nala to the borders. She should be far away from the Pridelands by now.

-You what?

Sarabi thought that once she'd found Sarafina, she would also soon see Nala. But she was totally astonished about her friend's announcement, that she actually helped her daughter flee.

-Hm-hm, yes, Sarabi. You should have seen this coming. Please, be calm and let me tell you the truth. You remember Scar's story about two rogues attacking him just a few days ago? It was, actually, me and Nala who convinced them to do that. We thought they would kill him and take over our pride, we thought that they would set us free… But they didn't. And it's all that damned Zira's fault! She saved Scar from being ripped apart by those two males, so now the tyrant made his favorite little lioness his rightful mate and queen! He even agreed to take her cubs in as his own, if they really weren't his own from the beginning. You know how we reacted to that, knowing that now Nala can't even hope to have a chance of inheriting the leadership over the huntresses. Besides, the herds are starting to migrate. There's nothing left for them here in the Pridelands and soon we too will all be left out to starve. You have to understand what I am saying, Sarabi. You were always the more patient one of us, but we just have to take matters into our own paws. We cannot let Scar sentence us to a certain death. I decided to act before, and I failed. But that failure has shown me that the supposed king is not invulnerable, even if he is constantly protected by his sticking mutts or his shrewd new mate. After he nearly got killed, he ordered the hyenas to stick closer to Pride Rock at all times, himself deciding not to leave his layer for better protection. That means that the borders are now left only lightly guarded or even left unwatched. This is what gave me the idea about Nala. I have been very concerned about her, you know that. She is everything to me, and I cannot let her waste her life here. If she stayed in the pride, she would be left a slave, without a mate, without cubs, without a future. So one day I came to her and said- what if there were other lions that would want to help us, beyond the Pride Lands? It would be easy to leave in order to look for salvation. At first I wanted to go with her… But she didn't agree. She said she has to do this alone. She's right, I suppose… I'm old, I would only slow her down. I think the Pridelands are going to become my resting place soon anyway. Nala is strong enough to make it on her own, I'm sure of that… I'm sure that… she's going to make it. Cause if she doesn't… well, I think you are also aware about what is going to happen then. And this is why I prefer to think that my girl's going to succeed.

While speaking, Sarafina observed the changing emotions upon Sarabi's face. At first she was concerned, then she became quite angry, but now both of them were just looking at each other with a gloomy sadness. Sarafina was playing a risky game, but it has already begun and no-one could do anything about it any longer. Sarabi was quite disappointed, seeing how her friend had put her daughter's life at stake. She still believed that she might be able to convince Scar to let the pride move away from Pride Rock for some time when the situation becomes critical… But maybe indeed she was just being naive? Maybe Nala had been the one who was brave enough to truly protect the pride?

Sarabi became depressed with her mixed thoughts. She didn't know how to answer Sarafina, and for the first time in her life, she decided to leave her friend and stay alone for a while. When she was walking away, immersed in her meditations, she hoped this day to end as fast as possible. Then, when the night comes and the stars appear in the sky, maybe the council of the Old Kings will give her an answer. And maybe Mufasa and Simba were going to cheer her up one more time.

AN: Of course we know what's going to happen now. Scar and Zira didn't quite have a lot of time to enjoy being the royal pair of the Pridelands. Soon she's going to give birth to Kovu and Vitani, Scar'll pick the first to be his heir and without having the chance to produce his own offspring, he'll get overthrown by Simba, returning along with Nala. I don't have to write about this- the movie shows us how it happened. So let's say that this story is over. I've already written about what happens earlier and later- go ahead and read my other works if you like. I guess I will now take a little brake from writing, only not to get addicted to it…

I want to express my deep gratitude to everyone who read and reviewed my story! I hope I did not disappoint you. Who knows, I might soon get some more ideas. I think it's time to write something about characters other than Scar for a change… Cheers!