Lion King III: The Chosen Ones

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Chapter Ten: Letting go

The look on his dad's face would haunt Tanabi forever.

Tanabi thought it would be the tears streaming down his father's face when he came upon the dead bodies of Simba, the two cheetahs, and the half dead body of his own daughter. He thought would be the roar that his father let out in sadness as he checked for survivors. When he found Tanabi crying softly underneath his grandfather's paw; Kovu made a face of absolute hopeless. It was almost as if something had died in him. He swiftly turned away from Tanabi's pleading eyes and gently scooped his slowly dying daughter in his mouth.

"We have to get out of here Tanabi," Kovu murmured softly; his voice on the edge of breaking.

No, are you doing okay son? Or any questions of what happened here? Just an empty order that Tanabi knew not to argue with. The brown cub grunted as he sat up, a sharp pain shot through his hind leg from where one of the cheetahs had bitten him. More cuts and lacerations that Tanabi didn't know where there started to flare up as well and he felt the overwhelming urge to pass out. But he continued to follow after his Dad despite the intense pain he was under.

The way his father carried himself as they walked back home was unnerving to Tanabi. His dad wasn't crying anymore, there was no emotion on his face. Kovu kept on moving like it was his sole duty in life, not even acknowledging his son who was sobbing his eyes out in silence. The young prince started to feel more light headed and exhausted. Everything became such a blur to him that he couldn't even remember making it back to Pride Rock.

()o()o()

"Kovu!"

Kiara was the first to run out of the mouth of Pride Rock, bounding towards her mate out of worry. The rest of the lionesses hung around apprehensively in the opening of the cave, waiting for their King to return.

"Did you find Tanabi?" Kiara gasped out in relief at first. Then she caught the pitiful bloody thing lodged in Kovu's mouth, unmoving. It was the shape of a cub.

It was a cub. It was her daughter.

"OH MY GOD!" Kiara screamed in absolute horror, the only thing she could think of doing. She couldn't even form cohereant thoughts and the Queen looked at Kovu with wide, terrified eyes. "WHAT HAPPENED?"

Kovu didn't react to Kiara's outburst. He silently moved past her and the others into the den, putting down their daughter in the middle of the ground. The brown lion ignored the collective gasps of horror from the other lionesses, too wrapped up in his own daughter's survival to care.

"Where's Rafiki?" Kovu roared urgently.

"He's….he's coming…Timon and Pumbaa went after him!" Kiara cried out, her voice bordering on total hysteria as frustrated tears came to her hazel eyes. The Queen's mind and heart was in a total lockdown of panic. How did this happen? Oh god, Ayira, please, please, baby hang on!

It wasn't long until Timon, Pumbaa and Rafiki came scrambling into the cave. The old shaman instantly cleared a path from everyone to the swallowly breathing Ayira. Ayira was a writhling mess, dark red blood coated her whole right side of her face and collected with the blood seeping from her neck. The incision around her right ear was so deep that soft tissue could be seen. The mandrill quickly began working on her by murmuring a few prayers for the young cub, praying desperately to soothe her agonizing pain and hoping that the great spirits above wouldn't take her as one of their own. He immediately cracked a gourd open from his staff and rubbed the clear juice on Ayira's inflictions, igniting pain laced shrieks from her.

Kiara started to sob heavily and loudly as she heard Ayira suffering, frightening the other lionesses around her and possibly Ayira herself. Kovu pulled his mate into a tight embrace, allowing her to bury her head into his dark mane. He didn't want Kiara to have to see anymore of it and the young King couldn't think he could handle anymore. The dark lion murmured a few words in Kiara's ear to which she looked up at him hesitantly before nodding. The two monarchs left the cave to go sit outside, unable to control their emotions any longer and the rest of the pride quickly followed suit.

Tanabi was the only one who remained in the cave, with a very dazed look on his face. His mind and the whole world around him in a whirl. All he knew was the painful screams of his twin sister struggling to live.

"Get out of there Tanabi," Kovu called out to his son.

Upon hearing his father calling him, Tanabishook his head, trying to clear the fuzziness of his vision. His head was pounding as he tried to walk outside, but suddenly everything sounded very muted and every color blurred into each other. His legs locked up and he fell over, blackness taking over everything. With a resounding thud, he fell on his side, unconscious.

The last thing he heard was a frantic female scream of "TANABI!!" and the sound of movement towards him.

()o()o()

Tanabi slowly and painfully opened his eyes, noticing that it had fallen dark in the cave. He was curled up snugly next to Nala, who was looking intently at the figures of his parents and Rafiki. He wanted to say something or move, but he was afraid to open his mouth of the fear of throwing up. His head was still painfully throbbing like a beaten drum, but it was duller now than before. He only caught parts of the whispered conversation between his parents and Rafiki.

"Dis is all I can do for now,"

"..But, what if she doesn't wake up?"

"Den you hafta let anoder take de drone."

"No! I am not going to let him rule! It's his fault all of this happened!"

"Kovu! How can you even say that? That is your son you're talking about!"

Tanabi coughed as he managed to sit up, his ribcage burning. This caught the attention of his mother who ran to his side in an instant.

"Tanabi!" Kiara exclaimed happily as she nuzzled him, her voice sounded weary and tired but relieved nonetheless, "I thought that we almost lost you. Don't ever scare us like that again!"

Nala licked Tanabi gently on his cheek, "Are you okay? You really scared us."

The white lioness had been studying her grandson while he regained consciousness; aside from some cuts here and there, Tanabi looked physically fine. It was the emotional stress that got her worried. Another thing that had gotten Nala worried was Simba's absence, where could he have gotten off to?

"I'm fine grandma," Tanabi reassured her in a gravelly voice, he had lost most of it from pleading with Masozi earlier and crying when his grandfather died. Inside, he was no where near fine.

He was unbelievably angry and hurt, the brown cub wanted to cry or shout at anyone but was unable to do so. Tanabi realized that his father hadn't said a single word to him, the reddish brown lion had just sat there stubbornly with his back turned to his family, his head bowed. Tanabi blinked, a feeling of complete and utter dread washing over his body. Was his father angry with him? He wouldn't doubt it, but he had to say something. It was eating him up inside that his father wouldn't even look at him.

Putting on the bravest face he could muster, Tanabi took a deep gulp before speaking, Here goes nothing.

"Dad, are you angry with me?" Tanabi questioned with a weak, quivering voice.

"Of course I am angry with you!" Kovu snapped, his voice hard with anger, "Why don't you listen to me Tanabi? Huh? I told you not to be anywhere near that damned rhino and what do you do?"

Kovuroared furiously at his son as he spun around, his green eyes flashing dangerously, making the scar on his eye more threatening. Tanabi jumped at this sudden burst of anger that his father just displayed and Kovu growled even more, "Oh! Now you want to listen after you fucked up!"

"Kovu!" Kiara gasped as she stood protectively in between her mate and her son. She snarled up at Kovu, "Leave him alone! Can't you see he's been through enough?"

"No, Kiara. He has to be punished for his actions," Kovu spat viciously, his eyes burning holes into Tanabi's frightened red ones."You know because of your disobedience, your grandfather is dead and your twin sister is in a coma fighting for her life!"

"Simba's dead?" Nala cried out in utter disbelief, "It can't be true! It just can't be!"

The white lioness walked up to Kovu, searching his face desperately, hoping to find some tell-tale signs that he was lying or at the very least playing a very cruel joke. But when Kovu was unable to meet her gaze and turned his head away; she knew it was true. A soft sob escaped her mussle as warm tears lined her eyes.

It can't be true! Nala tried telling herself before she let out the most heart-wrenching cry that Tanabi had ever heard in his whole entire life. Nala fell to the ground and started sobbing heavily.

No Daddy, Kiara thought sorrowfully as she felt tears trickling down her cheeks.

The sight of her mother who was always so strong, breaking down and crying like a lost cub was heart breaking. Kiara threw her forelegs around her mother, trying to alleviate the pain, but Kiara soon found herself consumed in her own sorrows and she was sobbing heavily as well. Even Rafiki had found himself tearing up. The other lionesses that had just entered the cave after catching the meal for the night looked on in shock, some of them shaking their heads in sadness while most of them were crying. For the pridelanders it was like losing a part of them, the outlandersfound themselves losing a leader and a kind lion. How would they handle losing Simba?

"I'm sorry!" Tanabi cried out, choking on his own sobs. He never felt so low. He had never been so ashamed of himself but he had to let his father know that he was sorry. His father would understand, wouldn't he? Wouldn't he? "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Sorry isn't good enough Tanabi!" Kovu roared again, looking like he was about to smack his son. "Because of you, your grandfather is dead and your sister is dying! No amount of saying sorry will change anything! It's your fault!!"

Tanabi shut his eyes, trying to block out his father's hateful words but he couldn't. Each word cut into him and each one hurt more than the first. He just wanted to shrink and crawl under a rock, never to be seen again.

Finally, something shut his father up. It was Vitani, who had smacked Kovu clear across the face. Everyone stopped what they were doing and gaped at the two siblings.

"Shut up Kovu! Just shut up!" Vitani demanded scathingly, visibly shaking with anger." What is the matter with you? You know full well that none of this is Tanabi's fault! It was an accident, pure and simple! You're starting to sound just like mother!" Vitani spat as she said those last words, never wavering, her blue eyes daring Kovu to prove her wrong.

The dark brown lion stood in stunned silence. Memories of the confrontation between his mother and her hate filled words echoed throughtout his mind.

You cannot escape it, Nuka's dead because of you!

NO...

You've KILLED your own brother!

NOOOOOO!

Kovu looked down at his whimpering son who looked up at him with so much terror and sadness in his eyes that it broke Kovu's heart. What was he thinking, blaming Tanabi for everything, it wasn't his fault. The sole realization that scared Kovu was that if Vitani hadn't snapped him out of his rage, he would have probably went further and did even more damage to his son. He wanted to hold his son close to him and apologize but he fouund that he couldn't even touch him, he didn't deserve to touch his son after what he did. Pure tears of remorse and shame welled up in his eyes and the next thing everything knew he was whimpering like a broken cub, eventually letting out mournful cries.

Vitani sneered at him, whatever pity she had for him was evaporated that very minute. She then looked at her mate Otien and then to her broken nephew before continuing, "Tanabi, I think it would be better for all of us if you would stay with me and your uncle Otien for tonight." Not waiting for an answer and fully knowing she wasn't going to get one, Vitani gently nudged Tanabi with a warm smile.

Taking a big sniff, Tanabi got to his paws and followed after his aunt. He couldn't bear to look at his dad any longer, the sight of his idol breaking down into sobs was heart wrenching. And it was all his fault. His dad was hurting because of him.

OooO

That night was very rough for Tanabi. His aunt Vitani and Uncle Otien constantly tried to reassure their nephew by telling him that they loved him, very much, and that if he got any nightmares to just wake them. While it made him feel somewhat better, it didn't erase the words Kovu screamed at him. It didn't erase the violent images of the attack imprinted in the young prince's mind. Everyone had drifted off to sleep and Tanabi sat up, staring at the black ceiling while snuggling up next to Vitani and Jelani.

Why are you hurting my friends?

!I'm glad you are okay, huh Tanabi?

I'm glad you are okay. It's okay Tanabi, it's okay.

The last thought made Tanabi break down into more sobbing. He couldn't help himself as he put his paws over his head, letting his emotions out.

It's not okay grandpa! It'll never be okay! Tanabi thought angrily at his grandfather's last words to him. Damn! Why did you have to leave?

Tanabi felt so and utterly alone. Now that the pride knew about his mistake, did they hate him as well? There was no doubt in his mind, if his own Dad hated him, what would stop the pride? He was a murderer even in his mother's eyes.

Tanabi shook his head frantically and then looked into the dim light from the edge of Pride Rock. He knew what he had to do.

Tanabi only took a couple of mintues to say good bye to his aunt, uncle and Jelani, thanking them for their kindness. Next it was his own parents; he gave both of his parents a loving lick good bye. Seeing the sleeping form of his father, sleeping peacefully, brought tears to his eyes again. He never could hate his father for what he said, all he felt was hurt and anger but the strongest emotion of all was love. As he came to his twin sister, who was breathing raggidly and irregualrly, he felt a huge lump was caught in his throat.

You always said my wild ways would be the end of me, Tanabi laughed inwardly as he tenderly rubbed a paw over his sleeping sister. I guess you were right...I'll miss you sis, you have to live, not for me, but for mom and dad. I'm sorry that I put you through all of this.

Tanabi stopped touching his sister and stared out into the bright light of the moon, its welcoming brightness comforting him. After he took his first step out into the night, he never turned back.

Prince Tanabi was no more.

End of Part One

Lion King III: The Chosen Ones

WHOOO! IT's OVA!...well not completely over just part one! I wanna give out a great big thank-you to Prince of Pride, HiddenMusic and Hikari 123 for being so involved in this story! I am touched! Anywho, Part Two will be coming up pretty soon. But I'm not going to spoil anything for you. If you guys want, vote for your favorite cub on my profile and the winning cub will get an extra chapter deticated to just them. Oh yeah, before I forget REVIEW!

Edit: 10/21/10