Kiara twitched her tail, her ocher eyes closed against the bright sun that bathed her in warmth. Not long after, she felt a paw come down on her tail. She could only guess it belonged to her son, Asuma. She flicked it again and smiled. Asuma's gentle teeth eagerly chewed his plaything.

Yawning, the honey-furred lioness rolled over and opened her eyes. She squinted and then sat up. Kovu had returned, his expression unreadable, even as she grinned at him. When he noticed her, however, his muzzle creased in an easy smile.

"Good afternoon, Kovu," her mother, Nala, said in greeting. Nearby, she lay with Tanga draped over the grandmother's back. Kiara watched as Tanga leaped up to meet her father.

Kovu bent slightly to lick his daughter on the cheek. She was nearly half as big as her parents now, Kiara noticed. It was about time for them to start becoming full members of the pride.

"Lovely day, isn't it?" Kovu remarked.

"Lovely enough to go hunting, Father?" Asuma piped, perking up immediately.

Kovu shook his head, much to the disappointment of the cubs. "Not today, I'm afraid. Maybe tomorrow," he told them. To Nala and Kiara he asked, "Where is Simba?"

"He went with Zazu to see Rafiki his afternoon. He'll be back soon," replied Kiara. She frowned as she looked at Kovu harder. "Why, is everything okay?" she asked, concerned.

Instantly, Kovu smiled. "No I just wanted to speak with him about the herds. They look like they will fare well this year."

"Quite," agreed Nala. "And as a matter of fact, Simba was going to have a word with you as well."

"Really, about what?"

Nala just smiled and lifted her chin. "Just speak with him and see."

"Are you certain, Daddy?" Tanga asked. "You did promise us yesterday, and the day before that, too." She tried using her sweetest smile, which Kiara knew worked almost limitlessly on Kovu.

But, to her surprise, Kovu turned away from the dusty-furred cub. As he left, he said over his shoulder, "No, I'm sorry, Tanga. Not today. Maybe tomorrow."

Kiara frowned. "Kovu's up to something," she said quietly to her mother. "He normally stops everything to be with the cubs."

Her own mother nodded her head in agreement. "He did seem a bit distracted," she agreed as she rolled onto her back and groomed Asuma's head. He had gone over to curl up against his grandmother's belly. "He must have found something when he was away patrolling."

Kiara pricked her ears. "You don't think it could be rogues, do you?"

Nala smiled at her daughter. "There is nobody out there that your father and Kovu cannot handle."

"Mother, what's a rogue?" Tanga asked Kiara.

"Come here, little one, and I'll tell you," Nala called her over.

As her mother explained the habits of lions who lived on their own as nomads, Kiara rested her chin on her paws, assuring herself that everything was fine.