After their rest Nala and Roho followed the river back to Pride Rock. They arrived at midday, just as the heat was growing unbearable. There seemed to be two suns; one spouting fire from above, the other gushing lava beneath their paws. I hope the huntresses are alright, Nala thought to herself. Her mother always said that heatstroke was the third greatest danger on a hunt. The second was careless thinking and the first was being a show-off.

They carried smooth stones in their mouths. These smooth stones they found on the banks of the river where they had been baking in the sun for months. Too hot to carry, they kicked them half-way back to Pride Rock. Unlike the other smooth stones they dug up, which were colorful and came in many different shapes, these stones were speckled, flat and grey. Without digging they were the best the two cubs could find. Unfortunately after their last encounter with a hyena neither of them could work up the nerve to go down into the river and dig.

As Nala and Roho rounded the pillars of Pride Rock they passed lumps of hyenas taking refuge in the shadows. They guarded their shade with jealous growls and high pitched yips. The hyenas always fought the lionesses for the best places to wait out the noon heat. Nala and Roho hurried past.

For the past two weeks Sarabi had been absent from her usual place in the communal den, as had Scar. Lately she even stopped going on her morning walks through Pride Rock. The pride missed her calming presence. Even Nala's headstrong mother seemed lighter after her morning talks with Sarabi, whereas without her she stomped around like a rhinoceros. Sarafina and Sarabi had been best friends for as long as Nala could remember and even though they were not related Sarabi always felt like an aunt to her. She even called her auntie from time to time. Once when they were cubs Roho got upset over Nala calling the queen Auntie because he thought she was trying to steal his aunt away from him, so she never called her auntie in front of him again. Her mother said it probably had something to do with Roho having so many sisters to compete with. Being an only cub, Nala never understood the rivalry between siblings.

The den were Sarabi had secluded herself was located under a pile of boulders behind Pride Rock. Captain Banzai paced outside, grumbling to himself. When he spotted the two of them he spun around with his tail high up in the air and snapped, "Hey, you two! Identify yourselves!"

Nala dropped her stone on the ground. "You know who we are," she snapped, moistening her lips. While Captain Shenzi was sent out on more exciting tasks such as patrolling the boarders of the Pridelands and maintaining order, Captain Banzai was always stuck sulking around Pride Rock where there was nothing for him to do except act meaner and more important than he was. Nala crossed paths with him often enough to know his bark was worse than his bite.

"Don't get smart with me, missy! You know the drill. I can't let you pass until you identify yourselves and state your business."

"Nala and Roho. We're here to visit the Queen."

"A likely story."

"You've seen us with her a million times. My mom is her best friend, Roho is her nephew."

Banzai shook his head. "Mm-mm, not good enough! How do I know you're not just spies who look like Roho and Nala? Nope, you two will have to give me the password."

Nala groaned loudly, "Ugh, come on! I don't want to say it again. We're not spies."

"I don't hear any password," Captain Banzai sang.

Nala sighed heavily. She glanced at Roho, who looked just as exasperated as she felt. They each took a deep breath and said in unison: "Captain Banzai is the toughest, smartest, and best looking animal in the Pridelands."

"Annnnnd?"

"We love him."

Captain Banzai glowed like a dung beetle rolling around the biggest turd on the savannah. "He he he, aw gee, you kids are too kind. Go right ahead."

Nala and Roho picked up their stones and bounded into the den. They entered through a cramped tunnel that descended about two yards into the earth, leading to a cozy den wrapped in earth and soothing darkness. Down here the air tasted cool and almost moist. There was something familiar about this place, about the smells and the way Sarabi's breath filled the chamber with every exhale. Somehow, being down here, Nala felt protected and loved. Sarabi lifted her head and smiled, though Nala thought her smile looked tired. In the darkness her eyes gleamed. "Oh, hello children. What brings you down here?"

"We brought you smooth stones," Nala said, nudging her stone toward Sarabi. Roho did the same. She watched anxiously, afraid Sarabi would hate them for being so plain and dry. Standing so close to her Nala noticed that she seemed to have put on some weight from staying underground for so long.

"Thank you, Nala. And you too, Roho." Sarabi cradled the stones to her chest and sniffed them. "These are lovely. Mmm, they smell like water."

Having carried her stone half-way back to Pride Rock in her mouth Nala was quite sure they smelled nothing like water but felt grateful for Sarabi's kind words. Roho piped up, "There were more. We dug up a whole bunch from the river bed but one of Scar's hyenas found us and chased us away. He said we were too little to be out there by ourselves and he was gonna report us to Captain Shenzi if we didn't do what he said."

"I'm sorry about that," Sarabi said sadly. "Scar's hyenas aren't very good at telling the difference between a cub and a juvenile. I'll make sure Captain Shenzi knows you two are old enough to be on your own, as long as you stay within sight of Pride Rock. Don't worry about the missing stones. I'm just glad to know you two are still thinking of me."

These words warmed Nala's heart. Although everyone respected Mufasa few Pridelanders loved him the way they loved Sarabi. "We miss you a lot. Everyone does."

"Auntie, how come you don't come out anymore?"

Sarabi rested her head on her forearm and gazed at them with her warm, ruby eyes half-closed. "I'm just tired."

This caused Roho to look alarmed. "Are you sick?"

Sarabi softly smiled. "No, dear."

"Are you hurt?"

The Queen chuckled. "I'm fine, Roho. Being Queen of the Pridelands is very stressful… especially with such a stubborn King." Nala and Roho stifled a pair of nervous smiles. "I'll be back to my old routine soon, I promise. Now let's talk. Roho, how you've grown!"

Roho blinked and looked at his paws as if Sarabi had said something startling. He awkwardly shuffled his feet and Nala giggled. Satisfied at having embarrassed her young nephew, Sarabi continued kindly, "Are you getting along with your sisters?"

He sighed glumly, "No. Mea gets all the attention and Bombu won't stop teasing me about my mane. I mean, not having one. She says I look like a girl."

"Nonsense. You're a handsome young lion."

Roho smiled modestly for a moment. "Plus, Ruka keeps scaring me."

Sarabi slightly raised her eyebrows. "Scaring you?"

"Yeah. Whenever I'm trying to relax or take a nap or – or do anything at all she sneaks up behind me and roars into my ear as loud as she can. I tell her and tell her to cut it out but she won't listen. She just laughs at me. That's why I hang out with Nala all the time. She's the only one who understands me."

"I'm sure they love you," Sarabi said unaffectedly.

Roho pawed at the earth. "No, just my mom, only half the time she's too busy with Mea and my sisters to notice me. And whenever I try and tell on them for picking on me they gang up and say I'm making up lies. It's not fair."

Sarabi listened attentively and Nala felt amazed by her ability to be sincerely sympathetic. Whenever she tried to show her friends sympathy she came off either patronizing or callous and sometimes needed to apologize for giving the wrong impression. After Roho finished talking she sat quietly for a moment, her eyes turned to distant plains, yet she never lost sight of the troubled cub in front of her. Finally, with an air of decisiveness, she spoke in gentle tones, "Nyonda tries her best. It's hard raising just one cub, let alone four. Siblings don't always get along but they always care for each other even if they have a funny way of showing it. It was always that way with Scar and Mufasa. In fact I believe that deep down inside he's still grieving."

"Then why did he make that stupid law?" Nala heard herself say. One month after Simba and Mufasa's death, shortly after his marriage to Sarabi, Scar created a new law that made it illegal to say Mufasa's name in his presence.

Sarabi sighed and flicked her tail. "Brothers are complicated. Scar is complicated. I don't know why he made that law, but he was very insistent upon it. Our pride has been critical of him ever since he welcomed the hyenas into our dens. Maybe he's afraid they'll compare him to his brother." She was about to add something else then seemed to give up. "But that's for another day. Now then, Nala, how have you been? Is Sarafina alright?"

Nala almost raised the subject of the hyenas. On second thought she decided to save it for another visit. The subject of Scar's hyenas seemed to depress her. "I'm doing fine. Mom misses you. If Scar's hyenas didn't make her hunt all the time she would come visit more often."

"I hope she doesn't mind leading the hunt without me." Leading the hunt was usually Sarabi's duty. Sarafina was second in command.

"Oh no, she loves bossing the other lionesses around," Nala exclaimed.

This lifted Sarabi's spirits and she chuckled, "Ah, that sounds like her. I miss her, too. Tell her I'll see her soon, okay?"

Nala beamed. "Of course! When will you be back?"

"Soon, I think," she answered vaguely. "I've been working on something these past few months. You'll have to wait and see what it is. By the way, how are your hunting lessons with Binti going?"

A surprise? Nala loved surprises. She hoped it was something for her mother, to make hunting easier. "Great, I caught my first rabbit yesterday! It almost tricked me but I outsmarted it."

"Wait until your first gazelle. They're clever. Did I ever tell you…"

At that moment another lioness crept down into Sarabi's den. Her dark pelt blended in with the earth, save for the white patches around her muzzle and eyes. She was long and lanky and her fur pock marked with the battle scars of a seasoned huntress. When she walked her body flowed out behind her like an ancient and powerful river. Sarabi and the two cubs all smiled at her presence and Roho gasped for joy, "Nana!"

"I thought I smelled cubs down here," Nana Uru cooed in her deep, rough voice. The two young lions bounded up to her and rubbed against her legs and she stroked them with her paw. "Nala and Roho, it's good to see you again. You're both looking fine and healthy."

"Thank you, Nana!" Roho and Nala said in unison.

Nala asked, "Nana, did you come to visit Sarabi, too?"

"More or less. We have important matters to discuss."

Nala gazed at Uru wondrously. All Nala's life Nana Uru had watched after the cubs of Pride Rock while their mothers went out hunting. When the hunting was done and every mouth fed she retreated from the pride to lie alone beneath the shade of an old boab tree. Sometimes she slept there, but just as often Nala caught a glimpse of her staring off into the horizon as if reminiscing about the wonders at the edge of the world. Perhaps she had been there once, for she seemed to know everything. On certain nights of the year the pride would gather around her under Pride Rock to hear her tell stories of the Kings of the Past: Ahadi, Mohatu, Zimwi, and others. There were other stories she told too, such as Anansi the Spider, a clever little spider who tricked everybody from lions to the sun and the moon and sometimes got away with it. Nala never thought of her as a lioness who would discuss 'important matters' with the Queen. Nana Uru always stayed out of politics, as far as she knew.

Before she could ask what she meant Uru gently shooed her and Roho away. Nala paused to glance over her shoulder as Nana Uru turned to Sarabi, but then Roho called to her and she scampered up the tunnel.

...

"How are you feeling today, my Queen?"

"Restless."

"Good, that's normal. Have your contractions started yet?"

"No, not yet. I hope they will start soon, they've never taken this long before. Will my cubs be alright?"

"Yes. Hopefully this delay won't last much longer."

"I'm worried, Uru."

"That's alright. You had nerves when you had Binti and Chibi, too."

"They were my first litter. This is different. Giving birth is the least of my troubles. Will the pride accept them?"

"Of course they will, your cubs bring us joy. I believe you're doing the right thing."