Chapter 6 – Small Talk

It was around sunset when Doug was busy escorting the naughty and mischievous cubs home and Jack was slowly yet gently gliding above the lions as the young ones were reluctantly trudging onward with downtrodden and disenchanted faces, fearful of what was to come. Lee then gazed over at Rod as they looked into each other's eyes and they could see the fear and uncertainty lingering in their hearts as they continued on their evening stroll.

Doug then stopped at a spot and sat down as he was gazing out into the dusky night with a blank yet stoic expression on his face. "Jack, take Lee home. I would like a word with my son," he ordered him sternly as Jack nodded earnestly. "Yes, sir," was all he said as he then turned to Rod and placed his wings on his shoulders with a sigh. "Good luck," he muttered to him as he took into the skies and accompanied Lee home as the young lioness cub glanced back at her friend sadly.

"Rod!" Doug shouted in a thundering voice as Rod winced at the sound of his father's harsh voice and he reluctantly turned around to go to him. As he was walking towards his father, he stepped onto a large paw print mark on the ground and he glanced down to see how small his paw was in comparison to his father's; he then took in a deep breath as he trudged over to his father as he sat down on his haunches and glanced around nervously in anticipation of what he would say.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Rod," Doug whispered sharply at Rod as he lowered his head down further in pure shame. "I know," he mumble. "You deliberately disobeyed me! You could have been seriously killed and I would never forgive myself if anything were to happen to you or to Lee! You are my only son and you are very precious to me," Doug roared at Rod infuriatingly as his voice rose to a higher inflection as Rod bowed his head while trying to avoid tears from falling from his eyes as he stuttered in a cracking voice, "B-B-But I was t-trying to b-be b-brave like y-you Dad; I didn't want to grow up to be a coward when I'm king."

"Being brave does not mean that you have to recklessly get yourself into danger; you have to be smart to know what you're doing but being brave also means you have to endure something even though you are afraid. Being king is not all fun and games you know; it takes a lot of responsibility and a lot of hard work and you have to be competent to know what you're doing."

"Really, Dad?" Rod perked his head up as Doug turned to face him and smiled at him with a nod. "Yes, really, Rod," was his answer. Rod then peered at his father quizzically while narrowing his eyes at him. "Hey, Dad; can I ask you something?" he inquired him curiously. "Yes, son; ask me anything," said Doug with a firm nod.

"Were you scared out there when you were fighting the hyenas in the graveyard?" Rod queried him inquisitively as Doug sighed while brushing his paw through his mane before speaking. "You see, son; the truth was that I was afraid of losing you; I was afraid that the hyenas were going to eat you alive and I would never see you again. You mean so much to your mother and I since we have been trying so hard to have a cub of our own for many years and it has been extremely difficult for your mother due to her multiple miscarriages," was his grim and somber answer as he lowered his head down sadly at the horrific memories.

"Miscarriages? What are those, Dad?" Rod persisted with his questioning as Doug exhaled loudly through his nostrils before gathering up the courage to speak. "A miscarriage is when a woman loses her baby when it is in her womb, usually around the 7th week, sometimes even later, as in two months; this kind of event can be potentially emotionally and psychologically traumatizing on a woman since she tends to form a very strong and close bond with the fetus from the moment it is first conceived," he replied to Rod as he nodded understandingly.

"Do you wish you've had more kids so Lee and I could play with them?" Rod piped in curiously towards his father as he inhaled deeply. "Well, yes; your mother and I have thought about it sometimes, but we both feel it is highly unlikely since we are both getting old and we may not be around much longer due to our old age; besides, Julie is supposed to have stopped bearing cubs by now and you are more than enough for us anyway," he answered his son as he turned to him with a gentle and soft smile on his face.

Rod laughed and grinned deviously as he leaned over to his father. "Hey, you know what, Dad?" he whispered softly to him as Doug nodded. "I think those stupid mangy hyenas did not know what hit them when you first showed up," Rod snickered as Doug burst out laughing at his son's comment. "Come here you," he chuckled as he pulled his son into a hug and started rubbing his head playfully as Rod laughed hysterically while trying to squirm out of his arms.

It was then that he leaped at his father as they rolled over each other and Doug started laughing as he raced off into the grass with his son tagging after him; for a few minutes, they dashed around the area as Rod galloped after his father while trying to keep up with him with the two of them laughing gaily and joyously.

Finally Rod tackled his father as he tugged on his ear and Doug fell down on his back as he rolled up on his chest and he chuckled at the sight of Rod nestled in his thick, enormous, silky white mane.

"We'll always be together, right Dad?" Rod smiled as Doug laughed and he glanced up at the sky with his son following suit as he was about to tell him something important. "Rod, listen carefully, for this is something my father-in-law Tom Horton once told me: when you look up at the stars, there are ancestors looking down at us from the heavens; the Great Kings are the ones that watch over us from above, so whenever you feel alone, you can look up at them and they will be watching over you, and so will I."

"So, you will always be with me, Dad?" Rod asked Doug as he nodded. "Even if I'm not around to protect you, I will always live in your heart and just as long as you remember the things I've taught you and as long as you remember the good times we've had together, you will never be alone and I'll always be with you."

Rod then smiled as he snuggled in his father's fur and they spent the rest of the night in each other's company; what they did not know was that their time together was to be short-lived because there would come a tragedy that no one would see coming and it was going to change the entire course of Rod's life forever.