Lion King III: The Chosen Ones

Tanabi's Arc

Chapter Twenty Three: Whatever It Takes

Intense rain clouds swelled around in the sky high above the Pride lands. Despite the calmness of the grassland; heat of war was tearing apart the heart of the kingdom.

Rafiki had been there before; he had seen the ancient land through three generations of strife. He had lived through a famine; he had lived through the lion prides tearing each other apart. Now he had to bare witness to the harrowing roars and dying screams of two very different species fighting to the death.

Each generation had been thrown out of balance somehow and through the watchful guidance of the kings of the past, the Pride lands would eventually come back to peace. This generation was no different, the old mandrill was sure of it. He served the old kings and each time, through miraculous hard work, he helped gently guide the young monarch to be back to their paws and see their way. No matter how long it took for the kings of the past to answer, they always did. Sometimes the ideas that the kings had were...unique, crazy even and it made Rafiki wonder if staying up in the stars for all eternity could make one lose their sanity. But that was what faith and trust was for.

As he stood outside his makeshift home, a wide smile came to him as he felt a familiar presence all around him.

The spirit belonging to this king had a playful manner about it and used that to his advantage in order to scare the wits out of Rafiki. None of the former kings had used continuous visions while Rafiki had been awake, but he did it. They were scary frightening visions of the future of the pride lands and Rafiki truly thought he had eaten a bad herb from the surreal trip he was having, until he heard that playful laugh. Leave it to Simba to make his dramatic entrance.

"You're right ol friend…one's eyes are important," Rafiki remarked up at the sky thoughtfully, feeling a drop of rain plop against his face."They help you see the world around you. They help you remember de experiences you have lived through. Sometimes there are wonderful, marvelous things and other times there can be bad ones…They help form your identity. It would be amazin to see thru another's eyes, to share that connection wit someone and get another view...But do you dink they are ready..?"

No answer, unless you counted a few more raindrops.

"It's your fault; those grandcubs of yours are stubborn, that they are," Rafiki said, sighing playfully."Running away from home, one decides to destroy herself wit self hatred and guilt while de other completely refuses to acknowledge his identity. If they weren't so far apart, ol' Rafiki would beat them with the stick…"

The old mandrill stopped for a moment and added mischievously,"…That sounds familiar, ay?"

Suddenly the sound of thunder exploded from the sky, unleashing a downpour of rain on the old monkey, soaking him. He cackled in satisfaction as it continued to rain harder.

"Okay, okay. It's a shame we couldn't use de little one but he has his own path ahead of him. We've never used an outsider from beyond our kingdom before but I guess the times are changing. You can't fool ol Rafiki; you just wanted some romance to happen. You really are Mufasa's boy!"

The sound of thunder continued to grow louder and Rafiki shook his head in amusement. It was time for the prince and princess to finally face up and take their place in the circle of life.

OooO

How disgusting.

These two words were the only way to describe what happened that night. They were the same words that seemed to have locked themselves into Ayira's mind, cruelly replaying themselves over and over in order to remind her of what she had done.

Ayira had never been with anyone in her entire life, she had no idea how to react or what to do. All she knew was the overwhelming feelings of anxiety and fear that she held with the lion she was with. She hated the touch of his paws roaming on her body, tracing along everything that Ayira thought she had kept to herself. Every insecurity, every flaw, that the lioness wouldn't have told a soul about was bared to Tsawa though his own thoughts of lust made them almost invisible. He continued to whisper sweet twisted fabrications about how perfect her body was, how he wanted to hold her close against him and never let go. Each word that Ayira heard cut into her. She didn't understand how anyone could use such loving words and turn them into empty contradictions. To him, Ayira was nothing more than a perverse fantasy that he could manipulate and act out.

The passionate he became, the more Ayira lost. Despite the countless times she convinced herself that she was doing it for her family, it couldn't stop the guilt and worthlessness. It didn't stop the scary newfound feelings of pleasure and eventually, Ayira gave into the pressure of giving back to Tsawa. The nuzzling and licking that she gave back to him fed deeper into her loss of self-respect. What was going on between them had become nothing more than a mindless, vicious game that Ayira felt that there was no point in escaping. The boundaries between her self-respect and going too far was had become blurred beyond recognition.

Just a little while longer. You've already given in, it's almost over, Ayira had told herself.

She had no idea how wrong she was.

By the time she realized that he was starting to hurt her, by the time the deep-seated fear of a stranger controlling her kicked in, it was too late.

After the act was done, Ayira felt empty. It was like Tsawa had stolen something precious from her, something that was a part of her that she had realized for if only a fleeting moment. The ochre lioness had allowed a lion…a complete stranger taint what was everyone told her was supposed to be pure and only done out of love. Now instead of a good moment, she was frightened and in pain, thoroughly ashamed of what she did.

Eventually the two monarchs left their spot at the plateau. Ayira's ravaged mind left her body to follow after the red lion out of instinct, not caring if he could hurt her again or not. The tense awkward silence had hung in the air like a void, fathomless. It was only after they had made some significant progress that Tsawa started talking again.

"Princess Ayira," she heard Tsawa say to her. When she didn't react in the way he wanted, he half-heartedly nudged the ochre-colored lioness, trying to bring her out of her of her daze. A cold wave of revulsion went down Ayira's spine.

"We're back at the guelta…This is about as far as we need to go," he said softly. Tsawa then turned to her and gave her a weak attempt at smiling. "You should try and get as much rest as you can. We have a lot of planning to do tomorrow."

Ayira didn't respond; she continued to stare lifelessly at her paws.

Tsawa shifted very uneasily and cleared his throat. "You haven't said a single word since we stopped..."

Can't you understand you've done enough damage? What else do you want from me?

Visibly disturbed at the sight of her, Tsawa drew closer to Ayira. He nuzzled the limp princess a in a comforting manner, "I'm sorry."

"No, you're not."

"What?" The red lion asked taken aback.

"You're not sorry." Ayira spoke up hollowly, finding the strength in her voice again. She clawed at the ground. "Just… leave me alone Tsawa…"

"Princess…"

"Can't you hear? Leave me alone!" Ayira yelled at him, incensed, shattering the false calm. Tsawa's face morphed from semi-sympathetic to surprise at the lioness' sudden outburst in an instant. The sudden change didn't go by unnoticed by Ayira, who snarled darkly. "You sick bastard, how dare you apologize now? If you had any remorse, you wouldn't've made me go through with it in the first place!"

Tsawa drew away from her, total disbelief at her words sinking in. He shook his head at her slowly, frowning defensively. "Don't push this all on me. You had a choice; I didn't force you to doanything."

"No I didn't. You were my only option!" Ayira spat back at him, eyes flaring. She hated how he just brushed everything aside with his callous words, each one of them tapping off more into her rage. Though there was a part of her that knew she was in control of her own actions, she refused to let it go. "There are so many lives depending on me and Kutu right now. I can't afford to waste time on something that's right in front of me!"

"Then why the hell are you complaining? You got what you wanted didn't you?" Tsawa countered in a heated roar. Ayira snarled lividly, but the red lion ignored her and continued on out of impulse.

"All this talk about how I'm your only option, don't make me laugh! There are plenty of animals out there who would probably be more than willing to help out, but you didn't stop to think about that! Oh no. You jumped at me and you deserve exactly what you got!"

An enraged cry came from the lioness within moments of his statement and without either realizing it; Ayira had tackled Tsawa hard to the ground. The red lion wrestled under her frantically but she had managed to pin him. The princess snarled down at him, her green eyes burning into his, hatred and fury controlling her actions. Ayira raised her paw against Tsawa in an attempt to throttle him but the red lion caught her. To his surprise, harsh heartbreaking sobs started to shake her body causing Ayira to break down.

"Princess Ayira…" Tsawa murmured as he watched the wretched lioness lose her will to fight him and break further, her body becoming limp as stronger waves of tears hit. Sliding up from under her, he could only watch as Ayira continued to cry, the poor lioness burying her head into her paws, gripping her head as if to silence her humiliation and pain.

He watched the princess who tried so hard to become a strong lioness fall apart into the scared cub she truly was throughout the rest of the night.

OooO

The next morning brought no solace to Ayira. Her tired restless eyes had been jolted awake from the hot rays of the bright sun beating down over her and she found herself unable to return to sleep. She couldn't remember falling asleep in the first place, the emotional stress she had been under the night before was the only thing that came to mind. At first, just being awake renewed the heavy feelings of sadness to the young lioness and though she tried to banish them away, the tears started to come back. It took her awhile to collect her thoughts and her composure again, but even after all of that, Ayira still felt lower than she ever did.

Prince Tsawa was there with her. Images of his cold face took over any other thought that she might have had, whenever she tried to close her eyes, his smooth voice whispered to her and crept deep into her insides, twisting them with filth and reawakening thoughts of pain, ones that were so clear that she swore she was still physically lying with him. Ayira was suffocated with the vivid smell of his stench crawling all over her body; it was one thing that wouldn't go away even after endless times of rinsing herself off in the guelta. The red lion had dug himself so far into Ayira's mind that she couldn't rip him out, he was there and he wasn't going anywhere.

She had no one to blame but herself after all, she was the one who agreed to go through with it…but she had never been so desperate and scared in her whole life. Her family was fighting in hopes that she would come back with help, there was no time to hesitate and she panicked. Tsawa was the easiest way out of things, if she and Kutu had left the Air pride, who knew how far or how long their journey would take them. I did the right thing, didn't I? Didn't I?

No, she knew she didn't. Tsawa literally screamed it at her that she had been wrong, she had other options. He manipulated her into believing that she didn't, took advantage of her vulnerability. But didn't that mean that she could have changed her mind? He knew she never want to be with him. She didn't want the pain that came with it, how many times did she tell him that?

Ayira buried her head underneath her paws again, trying to hide from the thoughts of her own screams and his moans. It was too much. Ayira wanted for someone, anyone, to help her out and tell her it was going to be alright. Where was Kutu? Didn't she even worry about her or even care that Ayira had been gone the whole night? Ayira stubbornly told herself to shut up right then, it wasn't fair to start getting angry at Kutu for something she had no idea about.

The lioness abruptly sat up from her spot outside of the entrance of the guelta and got to her paws, her eyes widening as his stench returned, filling her nostrils. Her anxiety exploded as she watched in the distance, Prince Tsawa approaching her with a small smile. Ayira drew closer to the wall she had been sleeping against and got to her paws, trying to keep a calm look on her face that she hope looked a hell of a lot natural than she felt.

"Good morning, Princess," The red lion greeted her as plainly as he could.

"Don't start," Ayira said every muscle and sense on red alert.

"I was only trying to be polite, Princess Ayira," Prince Tsawa remarked in a neutral voice.

Ayira tensed more. "I could give a rat's ass about what you're pretending to be. What do you want?"

"To talk about my half of the deal," he said coolly. "I thought it'd be easier to discuss our plan earlier in the morning before I get called off."

"So you decided to talk to someone who physically attacked you. That's smart."

"Just as smart as attacking the lion who is try to help her," Prince Tsawa retorted bluntly as Ayira snorted. "I admire your attempts at trying to put me down, but shouldn't you be more worried about what we're going to do about saving your kingdom?"

"The words 'we are' shouldn't even be in your mouth. You have your own damn kingdom to run," the princess cut across harshly, "All you need to do is get me the help I need and I'll do the rest. I want nothing more to do with you."

A glimpse of irritation seemed to wash over Tsawa's features briefly, showing the first real emotion Ayira had seen him show. The red lion growled softly and lowly at her, "Fine. Have it your way, Princess. Follow me."

"You must've lost your mind if you think I'm following you anywhere," Ayira spat.

"Shut up and stop acting like a cub," Prince Tsawa stared at her with veiled anger," Do you honestly think it'd look good for you to talk to a group of lionesses within this pride out in the open? My father clearly expressed he didn't want anyone involved in your war; if he caught you here and now, you would be good as dead. I shouldn't have to tell you this."

The orange lioness snarled openly at his words but inwardly ran what he said through her mind. She was allowing him gain control again. The princess had to keep herself desensitized; everything Tsawa did was blocking her better judgment.

Ayira felt a frustrated scowl curl her upper lip and her tail lashed behind her wildly as she watched the red lion walk off. She didn't want to follow him but Ayira knew that nothing would change if she stood there brewing in her anger.

It can't matter; it can't ever matter about how I'm feeling. Everyone at home's waiting for me, I can't afford to be selfish or make any mistakes, Ayira pounded into her head mentally as she caught up with Tsawa when the red lion decided to walk off. She continued to push that reason and herself as she followed the prince's lead.

Tsawa led Ayira deeper into the red plains of the desert, taking her back to the familiar plateau that sent waves of anxiety down Ayira's spine as they passed by it on one of the lower routes. The crimson landmark swamped the land beneath it with its own massive dark shadow, almost dark as night itself, making it hard to see anything in the distance. High rock walls extended towards the sky on either side of the two lions allowed some sliver of light to filter through, casting off an eerie ethereal glimmer on to the otherwise invisible pathway.

Ayira breathed in and out audibly from the deafening lack of sound. The only thing that kept her from shaking was the faint sound of Tsawa's paws.

The red lion suddenly slipped into one of the walls of shadow, Ayira quickly followed after him and found herself standing in a cave. A figure of a lioness got up and made her way slowly to them, the lioness' bright mustard colored fur stood out the most amongst the darkness. When she came face to face with Ayira, a wry smile formed on her mussle.

"Why…you didn't tell me she was nothing more than a cub, Tsa," the lioness spoke, though not unkindly as she bowed. Her voice was sweet and cub like but yet carried a level of maturity that Ayira picked up on. "Don't worry, honey. I promise no one's going to hurt you."

"Hazike, how many of the lionesses have you told?" Prince Tsawa asked. Hazike made a face and shook her head at him.

"Tsa, at least act like you have some heart. Can't you tell she's a nervous wreck? All that serious stuff can wait for a while."

"We don't have that kind of time."

"I'm well aware, you've told me. But a bit of kindness goes a long way and it doesn't take that long."

Hazike then sighed lightly, giving Ayira an amused yet embarrassed grin. "Sorry, honey. Tsa here's a prince in all except attitude. You'll have to forgive me for tryin'."

"It's fine," Ayira replied. She gave her own respectful bow in return," Thank you for allowing me to speak with you, Hazike. I really appreciate it."

"Now, now, get up," the yellow lioness said, smiling. "It isn't right; you're a princess, aren't you? If anythin, I should be bowing to you again. All you have to call me is Hazike and I think that'll be alright with me."

While she knew the lioness was trying to be friendly, Ayira couldn't quite return her smile or warmth. She didn't want to be in the same cave with Tsawa anymore than she had to and her drive of wanting to get everything over with screamed at her to get a move on. The orange princess paused and chose her words slowly and deliberately.

"Hazike, I know that Prince Tsawa must've already told you the situation I am in. Since I've been led to believe that you are the one who has the answers or at least a plan…"

"The preparations have already started, Princess Ayira," Hazike cut her off. Noticing the look of surprise on Ayira's face, the golden lioness continued."I have already talked to the other lionesses in question and we have already rallied six in total. That's includes my mate, Biyyaya."

"Six..?" Ayira's mind swam in slight hope with that number. That should be plenty of backup! We'll be able to fight Sheikh back easily!

Prince Tsawa interjected, "There is, however, one more thing I must ask of you." The pridelands' princess snapped her attention back to the red lion, glaring expectantly at him. Her whiskers twitching in barely restrained irritation as he spoke plainly, "If we leave these lands, my pride would need some sort of restitution or at least a haven until we settled again after the war is over. Surely you can understand that."

Ayira stiffened, saying thoughtfully, "…You mean you want acceptance into the pride back home?"

"Just until we can find our own place to call our own," the yellow lioness spoke up politely and gently. "But I have already explained several times to Tsawa here an' the sisters that you all might not be able to support everyone. It's no fur off our back to leave the Air pride, half of us were strays taken in by King Jarumi so we feel we don't belong here."

The princess ran the scenario through her mind; there were so many unknowns to worry about. Would her father even agree to any of those terms? Ayira remembered a long time ago; as a cub, her mother and father sat her and Tanabi down to tell them about splitting their inheritance equally. Ayira would rule as Queen over the northern part of the pridelands while Tanabi would take the south, that way there would be no jealousy between siblings in the royal family again.

Maybe I can talk Dad into allowing me to be Queen early and split the land…oh, who am I kidding? I don't want to be. Ayira thought stressfully. I've already screwed everything up once and I'm putting everyone's lives at risk because of me. I'm not worthy of it.

"I can't promise anything," Ayira finally admitted. She felt inexplicably dizzy as she backtracked. "But my dad, he's not ungrateful, he's a great King. He'll reward you for your bravery somehow."

"Then we'll just have to play it day by day an' see what happens," Hazike replied neutrally before letting out a light laugh to clear the air. "I don't know about you, Princess Ayira, but I hate all of this seriousness. Whadd'ya say we go down to the guelta later this afternoon, I'll catch you up on the latest gossip about Tsa' here."

Ayira cut her eyes at the filth by her side, suppressing the urge to snarl. "Maybe…"

"We'll see you tonight then, Hazike," Prince Tsawa smiled at her before turning to Ayira. "Let's go before my dad gets suspicious."

"Bye 'Tsa. It was nice meetin' you, Princess Ayira."

After they said their goodbyes, Ayira followed Tsawa out of the cave, her mind still in jumbles over everything she agreed to. Her companion smirked a little. "See, princess? I'm keeping my word."

"The sight of your vile, disgusting, smug face makes me sick," the lioness sneered at him hatefully. "How can you even live with yourself?"

"Oh, I have my ways," he told her smoothly."So I'll see you tonight then? We have plans to do, Hazike'll have everyone gathered."

"Where is this we stuff coming from? I don't need you anymore, you're done!"

"But I'm not, I'm coming with you. The pride won't listen to you without their prince, we go way back. So that means I'll see you tonight."

Just shut up already, damn! Ayira shouted at him in her mind as she shoved as hard as she could past the lion, ignoring every word he said to her afterwards.

Her heart ached desperately to find Kutu, the only one in the world that could make her not feel as worthless as she really was. As she continued to walk back to guelta, the sound of Tsawa behind her made Ayira's whole face and body burn with anxiety and humiliation. She wanted to get away from him. She needed to get away from him. The lioness stomped off, trembling in a mess of nerves, pointedly ignoring the red lion for her own sanity. Ayira could still feel his firm paws travelling all over her body, his smell, the way he spoke to her rang in her ears. Her living nightmare wouldn't stop.

Yeah, that's about as far as this chapter goes because I'm stuck :D. I'm looking for any type of crictism here, bad or good so it can hopefully help me jump start the next part or give me a better idea of where to guide this chapter... if that makes any sense. Thanks to all of y'all who stuck with me and reviewed or pm'd, I really apprieciate it :P.