The Great Kings of the Past looked down on the Serengeti in the misty morning, countless in number. Belly to the ground and eyes on the prey, young Nala crept up on a small herd of springbok grazing on the tough grass. She lifted her front paw slowly and put it down in front of her. Silent.
Her target was an old springbok with a broken horn and a slight limp in his front leg. The limp was unnoticeable to her, but her mother spotted it straight away. To Nala this springbok might as well have been a gemsbok. As she closed in on the herd, heart fluttering in her chest, she repeated a little poem in her head:
My name is Crocodile.
The grass is my pond
and I am only a log.
Sarafina taught her that poem on the week of her first hunting lesson with Binti, which had been taught to her by her mother Queen Mto of the Marshlands, and to Queen Mto by Sarafina's grandmother, and so on. All Marshlander cubs learned this poem to teach them how to stalk like crocodiles. There was nothing like it in the Pridelands; Binti taught by literal instruction and example, but Nala learned better by imagination. She helped the other cubs in her class learn to stalk like her but never shared her mother's poem, the key to her success. It was a secret that belonged only to mother and daughter, her special connection to a home she never knew.
My name is Crocodile.
The grass is my pond
and I am only a log.
Crackle. Her paw crushed a blade of brittle grass. A few of the springboks twitched but not the old one, whose hearing must be going bad. Nala's lungs expanded – it's now or never!
She sprang from cover and charged at the herd, letting out the loudest roar she could bellow. The springboks leapt into the air, darting like butterflies, so graceful she almost lost track of her goal. Putting herself between the old springbok and his herd she chased him toward the watering hole. Almost out of breath now. Just a little further. The old springbok flew away from her, far out of reach. He never saw the adult lioness lying in wait behind the large boulder ahead of them.
Sarafina leapt from cover and caught the old springbok's neck in her jaws. By the time they hit the ground the springbok was already dead, his neck snapped. She dropped the dead animal and turned to her daughter with a smile.
"We did it! That was incredible!" Nala screamed in joy. She bounded up to her mother and threw her forelegs around her neck. Her first real hunt was an enormous success, all thanks to her mother.
They had set out before sunrise to spend the morning together, before the hyenas started pestering Sarafina to hunt. Though she normally hated waking up so early once her mother told her plan for the hunt she dragged herself out of the den as quickly and gracefully as she could while half-asleep. It was the first time in weeks they managed to spend any quality time together. Nala ate most of the springbok, but after much insisting and waving around a springbok leg she finally convinced her mother to share a little of her kill. When the bones were picked clean they cuddled in a nest of tall grass and Sarafina pointed out King Zimwi's star, which she had never seen before.
Nala knew the story of King Zimwi by heart: the Marshlanders were dying of a terrible plague and King Zimwi was gravely ill, so he sent his eldest son Baako for help. Baako found Ahadi and the young king sent his shaman Rafiki to create a cure, ultimately saving the Marshlanders pride from destruction and creating a friendship that would last generations. In celebration of their new alliance Ahadi sent his daughter Thema to marry Baako in the Marshlands. Meanwhile Zimwi sent his daughter Sarafina, along with his nieces Eupe and Buibui, the three most promising young huntresses in the Marshland, to live in the Pridelands. Everyone in the Pridelands knew this story, but Nala knew it better than most because her mother had been telling it to her as a bedtime story since she was a cub. After hearing the same story so many times it got a little boring, even the part about the lionesses racing to find the right herbs for Rafiki's cure.
She asked her mother to tell a different story, something about when she was a cub. Sarafina thought for a little while and started to tell a story about the time she frightened her father by bringing a baby crocodile into her father's den to keep as a pet. Nala slept through the ending, but her mother promised to tell her again on another day. By the time she opened her eyes the sun was climbing over the horizon. It was time to go home.
As they neared Pride Rock Nala yawned and closed her eyes. If only she was still little enough for her mother to carry in her mouth she could go back to sleep right now. Suddenly her mother murmured, "What in the world…?"
She opened her eyes and started at the sight of the entire pride gathered out in front of Pride Rock. Hyenas paced and huddled close together in small groups along the fringes of the pride, ignoring the lionesses gathered haphazardly in the middle and talking passionately amongst themselves. Nala frantically scanned the scene. No, not the entire pride; Scar was missing along with Sarabi and Nana Uru. The last time the whole pride gathered together like this… she tried not to think about it… "Mom?"
"I don't know…" said Sarafina, her lips parted. Her ears lowered and she adopted a more cautious pace.
Just then the golden twins, Binti and Chibi, came bounding out of the crowd towards them. With vibrant golden fur, red-orange eyes, and tufts of unruly fur on the tops of their heads they resembled their lost little brother in appearance and spirit. Simba used to have a knack for telling them apart, despite doing his best to avoid their company. They were bratty teenagers then, spoiled princesses who would never carry the burdens of their mother and father, loving nothing more than to butt in on Simba and Nala's games (or so it seemed to her).
She only warmed up to the twins after Simba's death. All her old grudges vanished on the day of Simba's funeral when she found herself comforted in the twins' arms. Now that she had hunting lessons with Binti she liked them even more, even if she still couldn't tell them apart.
"Sarafina!" one of the twins called.
"Zazu's looking for you!" called the other, who might have been Binti. "He says he needs to give you a special message."
"Where is he? And what's going on?"
"He just flew out over the grassland. I'll go get him!" said the twin that might have been Chibi. She raced off.
Maybe-Binti continued at a manic pace, "You'll never guess what happened! Mom just had another cub!"
"What?" Sarafina's mouth fell open.
Of course Nala already knew about the birds-and-the-bees. Her mother explained it to her months ago, although even if she hadn't the hyenas were so indecent that she could have pieced the mystery together on her own. Did that mean Scar was the father?
She didn't know what to think of Scar. All she knew was that he was Mufasa's younger brother, an intelligent but cold lion with a reputation for being eccentric who for some reason sympathized with hyenas, which might have been his strangest and most off-putting quirk. She never understood why Sarabi chose to marry Scar in the first place other than the Queen's vague reply about 'duty', let alone why she decided to have another cub so soon. Maybe this cub was an accident. That should have made sense, but then why did Sarabi seem so pleased when she spoke to her in the cave? Was she simply relieved?
The conversation went on ahead of Nala's thoughts. Maybe-Binti explained, "Nobody knew she was pregnant, not even us. Now that the news is out everybody is talking about it. She must have been hiding it for weeks."
"Why would she hide it from us?" Sarafina frowned and shook her head with a snort. "Something's not right here. She would have told me if she was pregnant."
"Duzi thinks she hid it because uncle Scar isn't really the father and now that the truth is out they're making up a story to make it seem like the cub really is his. That makes me sad, you know. I don't think Sarabi would cheat on him like that."
"Oh please," Sarafina groaned, rolling her eyes. Duzi, the pride gossip, could always be relied on to make up outrageous stories and spin rumors at the drop of a leaf. Stepping out of her mother's shadow, Nala stood between them to join the conversation. "I saw Sarabi last night, she said she was working on something special. There's no way she would have said that if she was trying to hide something." Sarafina nodded in agreement.
As she thought about their conversation in the cave she realized Sarabi seemed more comfortable with her decision than she thought at first. Or at least it looked that way. Her mother explained that lionesses usually take three months to give birth, so she must have had time to accept her cub even if it was unexpected. There had also been time for Nala to accept Sarabi's marriage to Scar. When their marriage was announced she felt confused and angry, but after four months their marriage became another unfortunate fact of life like having to leave a warm den in the middle of a chilly night because your bladder is full. She realized a long time ago that feeling angry about it wouldn't do any good. Sarabi was still Sarabi no matter what.
"Have you seen her, Binti?" Sarafina asked. Despite knowing better than to believe in Duzi's rumors she still sounded suspicious.
Binti shook her head sadly. "No, mom's resting. The nursing den is scary, there are hyenas everywhere. I think Uncle Scar's down there, too."
Sarafina growled, "He shouldn't be down there. Males aren't supposed to intrude on a female after she's given birth."
"Well you know Uncle Scar. He's so unconventional." After everything Scar did to change things she was a little surprised to see Binti fondly mocking him as though he was still nothing more than her funny uncle.
Her mother's ears flattened and she scoffed, "That's putting it lightly."
Taking advantage of the lull, Nala asked, "How do you know Scar's the father?" Her mother's suspicions made her think there must be more to this than she knew.
Binti replied, "That's what Zazu said."
"Zazu only says what the King tells him to say," said Sarafina harshly. "Since Scar took over I haven't trusted one word out of that little hornbill's mouth until I've seen the truth with my own eyes. You should be wary too, Binti. Just because he's your uncle…"
She frowned. "You don't know him, Sara. Uncle Scar's always taken care of us."
"I found him!" The three lionesses turned around, hearing Chibi racing up the path with Zazu flying behind her. She sat down beside them as Zazu came in for a graceful landing.
"Well it's about time! I've been looking for you two all morning," he squawked.
"Good morning to you, too," grumbled Sarafina. When Zazu wasn't looking Nala stuck out her tongue a little bit, causing Chibi to giggle. Zazu looked less than amused.
"Lady Sarafina, sarcasm is most unbecoming of you. I understand you wished to have an early morning outing with your daughter but as the King's Majordomo I would appreciate it if you let me know in advance, should anything come up."
"I'll be sure to do that. You had a message for us?"
"Indeed." He took a deep breath and spread his wings with a pompous flourish of blue feathers. "Lady Sarafina and Daughter Nala, Jewels of the Marshland, the Great King Scar cordially invites you to be his guests of honor at the Royal Presentation of Prince Kivuli. He wishes you to be seated beside members of the royal bloodline on the Throne of Pride Rock. The ceremony is to take place approximately one week from now or as soon as the Prince's eyes have opened. Please RSVP, The Great King Scar: dictated but not read."
Nala stared at him in blank bemusement. Once the message sank in she started to smile. The grown-ups used to gush about the Royal Presentation of Simba, an event they described with such vivid praise that even now she could scarcely imagine its beauty. Besides, she felt immensely curious about the new born cub – and even about Scar, only knowing him from the humorous stories Simba used to tell. Like Binti and Chibi Simba always seemed fond of his uncle, in spite of his strangeness. After Scar let the hyenas into the Pridelands her vision of him as a goofy old lion was shaken but she knew there had to be something positive about him. Or at least he had to be a very good liar.
Sarafina still had that suspicious look in her eyes. "Why us?"
"I'm sorry, he didn't say. If I had to guess I would surmise that you were invited because of your longstanding friendship with the royal family. After all you were invited as the Queen's guest of honor at the Royal Presentation of Binti and Chibi as well as the Royal Presentation of Simba."
"Yes, but those invitations came from Sarabi and while I was grateful for the gesture I declined both times. She knows how I feel about that."
"Oh, don't be so serious all the time! We'd love to have you there on the Throne with us, right Binti?"
She nodded enthusiastically. "And mom's going to love having you there, really!"
"Indeed, her Majesty would be delighted. Sarabi is no longer the shy young lady you met when you came to the Pridelands. There was a time when many of us believed you were better suited to the throne, but although you are indeed a capable leader the time of doubt has passed. One need not be born a princess to be a queen and her Majesty is living proof."
Sarafina was silent, but Nala was determined not to let this opportunity pass her by. If the bravest huntress in the Pridelands felt anxious about something that was usually enough for her, except that this time Binti and Chibi seemed perfectly fine with the idea. Whatever bug got under her mother's skin this morning Nala felt sure it was just fatigue from waking up so early in the morning. "I think it sounds like fun," she said a little defiantly.
Still uneasy, her mother turned to Zazu. "Will the hyenas be there?"
"But of course! The three Captains of the Guard are his Majesty's closest comrades."
Nala felt her excitement wane. "I don't care, I just want to meet Sarabi's new cub," she exclaimed, covering up her fear with bravado.
"As a matter of fact, Sarafina," said Zazu, "her Majesty would like to speak to you personally as soon as she is rested. If you wish, you may think it over until tomorrow morning." His tone suggested that the meeting would be important. Sarafina raised her eyebrows.
"Is something the matter?"
"Not at all! At least not that I know of… All I can say for certain is that her Majesty wishes to see you as soon as possible."
"Can I come, too?" Nala asked. She was eager to talk to Sarabi after everything that happened, but Zazu seemed hesitant.
"Well, I… I suppose so… But the conversation may be a bit boring for you. Lots of politics and that."
"That's okay!" she exclaimed happily. With her mother there to help maybe she could finally learn something interesting about her pride, something to make her feel like an adult. Maybe she could even figure out a way to help make things better for everyone. "Please mom! I'll be good, I promise."
Sarafina's eyes warmed lovingly, yet her expression only lasted for a short time before her face clouded with worry. Like all the adults in the pride her mother seemed increasingly worried about everything. Listening to the older lionesses talk about their problems with the hyenas and Scar was what inspired Nala to take an interest in the goings on about the pride, in the hope that she could find some way to contribute. Initially she only wanted their praise but as time went on she found herself thinking more and more about others and less about herself.
Finally her mother sighed. "Alright, you can come. Tell Sarabi we'll see her tomorrow morning."