"Chaka's plan worked out perfectly," Kiara scoffed once she had stomped out of earshot from the River Pride lions, Suki trailing quickly behind her. With little notice that morning, Chaka had ordered the two lionesses to visit the River Pride, and they had spent most of the day trying to find them. It had taken very little time for the pride's two patriarchs to send Kiara and Suki on their way with no more than an implied apology.

"They knew what you were up to, didn't they?"

Kiara nodded. "One after another, the three nearby prides have refused Chaka's request. He thought by sending two helpless lionesses to beg for his army he'd get his way. I'm uncertain if they were warned or if they just don't mind the thought of what could happen to the Pride Lands."

"Nobody is left?"

Kiara shook her head.

She suspected that Chaka was becoming increasingly reluctant to leave Pride Rock, another reason she thought he sent them in his place. The moon had almost completed half a cycle since the three young heirs had vanished, and the entire pride was trying desperately to prepare themselves for an attack by Kovu and his rogues.

And the longer I wait and suffer, the more fearful I become that I will never find out what has happened to my children... but a part of me hopes that Kovu won't show...

"My queen... may I ask you a question?"

Too frustrated to talk before, Kiara had been surprised when Suki had spoken. She perked her ears. "Yes, Suki, what is it?"

"Warn me if I'm being too bold, and please don't feel like you need to answer this, but..." Suki began. Her voice then went down to almost a whisper when she said, "What will you do if... if Kovu returns?"

All at once Kiara felt her body drain of energy, and suddenly the horribly long trek back to Pride Rock made every muscle ache from toe to tail.

"Kiara? Please, like I said, you don't... if you don't wan-"

"I know what will be done if Kovu comes home and provokes a war."

Suki waited a beat. "And if Chaka fails?"

Kiara closed her eyes. "Then I'll have to make the decision to fight until my dying breath... or give up my family's lands to Kovu."

"We won't let him," Suki blurted.

Kiara cocked her head to the side and hesitated a step as she looked at Suki.

"I-I'll fight with you. We all will."

"That's sweet Suki, but-"

"Don't give up!" Suki urged, "I mean... not now. Not after what you did for us all. You and Vitani were so brave."

Kiara's jaw tensed. I don't feel so brave anymore... and even that day when I was brave I did it because Kovu was at my side... and I ended up trusting the wrong lion... now how will I have the strength to fight Kovu, especially if I know that he's killed our children?

"I believe you'll make the right decision."

For Suki's sake, Kiara tried to smile, but guessed when Suki made a face that she'd only managed to grimace.

"I hope so, too."

8888888

With enough rest and care, his sister had been back on her paws quicker than they'd expected. He'd counted them all, and they had been away from the pride for roughly eleven days. They'd had more than plenty enough time to observe Kovu, and Asuma knew it was time to start serious plans for Kovu's removal. That morning Asuma had reminded Natin that they couldn't afford to wait any longer.

"If his reluctance to meet you two at first is any indication to his deterioration, then we'll have to be very careful."

"I noticed that," Tanga remarked quietly.

"But he seems to trust us now. He wants to engage us in his and Sauda's plans," Asuma said, looking around carefully as he sat down with his sister and cousin. They had put at least a mile between them and the camp that morning, after announcing Natin was taking them out to do battle training, and were surrounded by short grass, but the light-furred lion was still nervous that one of Kovu's lionesses would pop up and surprise them.

"Seems being the key word?"

Asuma narrowed his eyes at Natin. "It's as good as it's gonna get after all the time we've spent with him. We shouldn't have waited this long to talk about our plans. He wants to relocate again in a day or two, three at the maximum. He doesn't have to say it out loud. I didn't think you'd ever want to start planning."

"We were waiting for Tanga to recover."

"Yes, but that's come and gone. She's been on her paws for days now. I hope at least you were occupying your time thinking up a plan."

Natin frowned. "We're here now. I think we can manage."

"Do you have anything?"

Natin made a face. "I have a few ideas."

By bringing Tanga with them, they had felt Kovu's suspicions would be less aroused. Asuma glanced at his grim-faced sister, regretting doing so. "Fine. Let's begin then. What are these ideas?"

Clearing his throat, Natin said, "We know it has to be an ambush when the lionesses aren't around. We can handle a couple apiece, but that's if we escape without injury."

"What if we ask Kovu to have a private conversation? The odds would be in our favor."

"Sauda is often present. She'd want to be around."

"He trusts us now. If we told him to ditch her he would."

"She listens in on everything. Especially when they're so close to battle."

She wasn't with you two the day we arrived. Why didn't you kill him then, cousin? It wasn't just because of Tanga. Why haven't you killed him in his sleep yet? Why'd you even bother worrying about whether the lionesses killed you or not?

Asuma forced himself to not call his cousin out in front of Tanga. He didn't want to alarm her. Ever since Natin had proposed his supposed suicide mission, Asuma had been carrying with him the voice in the back of his head that doubted Natin's commitment to killing Kovu. He wasn't sure if he cared that much about whether or not Natin was just being a coward. What mattered to him was that their mission was accomplished.

"What if..."

Tanga's voice broke through his dark thoughts.

"What did you say?" he asked.

She fidgeted. "Well... I was just thinking... What if... during a hunt..."

Both young males looked at Tanga, their eyes widening.

She glanced down at the ground. "It's just an idea... but... what if I were to..." But she trailed off, a wrinkle forming between her eyes. "No, it's stupid..."

"Tanga, tell us your idea," Asuma asked eagerly.

His sister pulled a face and she looked up guiltily at them. "We need a distraction, right? Well... I can pretend to get hurt during a hunt. Wouldn't Father come to help me?"

Natin frowned. "But Sauda's lionesses, they'll be there and see what is happening a mile off."

"No, no." Tanga shook her head. "It would just be a hunt for Asuma and I, like a hunt dedicated to Father to show him how we've grown... or something like that. Like a last feast before the big battle."

"Tanga, be less vague than 'something like that'," Asuma said.

"Excuse me," Tanga snapped, her ears going back, "but I don't especially like giving you two tips on how to get rid of my father."

"Well if you're going to tease me with an option, at least give me a better idea of 'how to get rid' of him. How will a hunt do that?"

Tanga's eyes narrowed, but she didn't speak or move.

"Go on, Tanga," he pressed, "tell us what your big plan is. What? Do you think he'll just lie down under some zebra and wait to be trampled?"

"That's not-"

"Then leave. We're looking for help, not for you to get in the way."

"I..."

"Asuma..."

Asuma growled softly at Natin, who had spoken his name in a low, tense warning.

"There's no need for that, so don't bully her. We're in this together."

"Either we get it right or we don't," Asuma snapped. He then shook his head, closing his eyes in irritation. "This is absolutely pointless. We're arguing too much."

Why didn't Natin just do this before, then we wouldn't have this problem...

Their silence was all the agreement he needed. When he glanced up, Tanga and Natin were staring miserably down at their paws.

It was then he realized they were way in over their heads, and for a brief moment-

No! No, I won't give up like this. And I won't let Natin give up either. We haven't come all this way to fail. We'll succeed...

He cleared his throat when he could not longer wait them out. They looked up and frowned at him as he said curtly, "Please elaborate, Tanga."

Tanga exchanged an uncertain look with Natin. Their cousin nodded to her as she began.

"We tell him we want a hunt for just you and me," she told Asuma. "Sauda, Natin, Kovu, and the lionesses can be on the sidelines. In the middle of it all... I could pretend my paw is hurting me again. Like I needed help."

Natin furrowed his brow in thought. "...Kovu would come for you then?"

Tanga made a face. "Exactly."

For as much as she protested, Asuma thought her idea had potential. Natin certainly had little to suggest. "He could be drawn to the center of the stampede," he said, "But is there a herd that's big enough? The timing will need to be correct."

Natin nodded. "The closer we've gotten to the Pride Lands, the bigger the herds are getting. There's one a good day's run from here. If we suggest this idea to Kovu, Sauda and her lionesses will have no objections to tracking it."

"It'll be like the hunts he never took us on, especially the day he killed Simba."

"Right."

Natin then gave Asuma a sort of sideways glance of unease that caused the pale-furred lion's body to flush with irritation.

"What now?"

"Excuse me, but... how am I supposed to help with the... situation... if I'm on the sidelines."

"Just follow him when he goes to help her," Asuma explained with a shrug. "You can quietly draw his attention to her distress, otherwise he would probably miss it. Distract him so he won't think to call on Sauda to help. Once he gets to Tanga, he can be ambushed. That way, once he's dead we can make an easy getaway without much detection."

"Right, that's what I was thinking," Tanga said. "The herd would cover our trail. It's gonna confuse Sauda and the lionesses... hopefully long enough for..."

Natin sighed loudly. "You'll run as soon as Kovu has seen you, Tanga," Natin told her. "Asuma and I can leave once it's over. It shouldn't take long between the two of us. Distance will be crucial. We'll need as much of it as we can get before the lionesses start trying to hunt us down."

"Can we lose them completely?" Tanga asked.

"If we take off in three separate directions it will help," Natin replied. "We can establish a place to meet, then we may have to split up again. There was a river I had to cross to get to the Pride Lands. The large herd I saw probably likes to stick around it. I took Asuma and you on a different route on the way here to avoid crossing it, though it added almost a day of travel when I did. The river is a little rough, but we can do it and it'll slow the lionesses down at the very least."

It's almost like opportunity is staring us in the face...

"Asuma, when are we gonna propose this? When we get back to camp?"

He nodded to his cousin. "The sooner the better."

"Will you two have enough time to prepare? How many days are you gonna wait?"

"Two, maybe three at the max, if everything works out," Asuma explained.

"But," Natin stood and stretched, yawning, "in the mean time, could I offer battle lessons to anyone?"

Asuma found it very hard to miss the pointed look that Natin shot him when he said this.

"Well, you know," he remarked, "Like I said, the sooner the better. We should get back to camp to give Pop the great news."

There was something that passed over Natin's face, but it was gone before Asuma realized he had seen it. The dark-furred lion shrugged and looked away.

"Tanga?"

"Huh? Oh, no, I think I'll pass, Natin," she replied tiredly. Her body seemed to sag as she stood up. "Maybe later, okay?"

"Alright then... Are you sure Asuma?"

The pale-furred lion nodded and started to lead the way back to camp.

"Yes, I'm sure, Natin. Not today."

8888888

"Well?"

He put little effort into concealing his impatience when he went to meet Kiara and Suki at the base of Pride Rock. It was late afternoon by the time they returned, the land already growing increasingly tinged with the orange light of a sun that planned on setting soon. Kiara was practically dragging her dusty paws while Suki plodded along with her head down below the line of her shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Chaka." Kiara's voice was bitter and exhausted. "We're on our own."

He let out a throaty snarl. "Why didn't you try harder?"

Kiara's mouth was set into a hard line as her eyes narrowed.

"Your mate will be here any day. We need all the help we can get. Unless of course you want him to win."

"I'd like to see my entire family killed just as much as you, Chaka," Kiara snapped. "They refused to listen to me, simple as that. You're on our own. Be my guest if you wish to try forcing any of them into fighting for you." The lioness's voice cracked. "Just remember to bat your eyelashes more than I did, and it may also help if you flip your mane a little, too."

He tried to block Kiara from running off, but she dodged past him with a hiss. He roared and called her name, but she continued up the side to Pride Rock, leaving Suki behind.

"I'm... I-I'm sorry, Chaka... she's right... We did try..."

He turned and frowned at the lioness as she stared back at him, wide-eyed. At this, she shrank back from him, her ears lowering. He eyed her until she was sitting there looking miserable, her eyes connecting with the ground where her claws scratched lightly at the ground. She glanced up at him once or twice.

"We're sorry..." she told him meekly. "They couldn't spare anyone..."

Chaka just stood there, mulling over his situation. While Suki and Kiara had been away, he had organized the rest of the pride to practice battle techniques. If anything, the lionesses who had once followed Zira and Kovu would be their best advantage, but even then he wanted to be utterly certain of his defeat over Kovu.

"Huh? What was that Suki?"

"I said..." the small lioness began, "Maybe... Asuma and Natin will succeed..."

He sighed and shook his head. "Suki? Do you believe in miracles?"

She frowned. She glanced up at him like he'd spoken a foreign language. "Chaka, I don't know what you mean."

"It's simple- do you believe in miracles?"

Her voice was soft when she replied after a moment. "I suppose I do... believe in them."

"Because it's gonna take a miracle for Natin and Asuma to succeed at killing Kovu. Agent or a coward, Natin is taking his sweet time. Now, Asuma... well... Well, you know."

"What about Tanga?"

Chaka pulled a face and felt a small ache in his chest. To him, Tanga had been as close to a daughter as he'd ever had, and he'd been genuinely disappointed in her behavior. "I have little faith she'll return home in one piece. I don't care what Kiara or Tswane have said- it was irresponsible."

Suki lowered her head and went back to pawing at the dirt. She glanced around, and he wondered if she was struggling to find an excuse to follow after Kiara. She murmured, "I suppose you're right..."

"Every breath in my body will be used to ensure Kovu's death, and it's a shame they'll die because of him."

"Chaka... you talk as if they're already dead."

Without realizing it, Chaka had started to pace. He paused and glanced over at a doe-eyed Suki, clearing his throat. "Like I said... it'll take a miracle for my niece and nephew to return to us undamaged, if they return alive at all after what Natin will put them through."

"Oh..."

He felt like he was on the brink of madness as he continued to pace. Kiara's hardly-rational behavior would drive him there in itself. I wish I knew the exact size of his force... when he exactly plans on attacking... the amount of determination he has to take the Pride Lands... All the things that Natin has reported back to the enemy and more. He knew it was all in bad planning, but he had counted on the help of at least one of the other prides, and time was running out to procure the aid of any additional force. His pride of nearly thirty could only be so prepared, and he very well couldn't train his lionesses into exhaustion- not to mention that nearly half of the lionesses were advanced in their age, were too young to fight, or were carrying a litter. He had thought he could send the weakest members away to safety with an ally pride, but now he doubted he could spare the battle power.

He closed his eyes and stopped pacing.

The pride that had raised him had been prone to the nature of warrior lions, he recalled, but he had never been directly involved, and in fact, he had been discouraged from fighting beside lions who considered him little more than a parasite which they reluctantly fed and protected at the benefit of his age. As a young adult, he'd tried to show them his strength, his brutality, but it was overshadowed by the lack of respectability he held amongst the rest of the close family. And when he forced himself to think about it, he found it debilitating to imagine how his own father would've handled the situation- how the lion he had barely known had both taken his rightful place by siege from Scar, and had defended his land from the Outsiders.

But when he thought about it a little more, to his regret he remembered that Simba had fought the battle against the Outsiders... but my sister was the one who helped him win the war...

"You're excused Suki."

He watched her leap to her feet and quickly dip her head to him. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

"Oh, and when you find Kiara," he added, "Tell her I need to speak with her about my battle plans- hopefully more civilly this time."

"You wish me to send her to you?"

He shook his head. "I'll come find her. She'll refuse to come to me."

Again, Suki dipped her head before running up the side of Pride Rock. His eyes following her, Chaka saw that Neo and Isabis had been waiting patiently for their mother's return, and she greeted them with kisses to their foreheads before they followed her out of sight. Isabis lingered just long enough to wave her paw at the big lion, who couldn't even muster more than a small tug at the corner of his mouth.

Let's hope for a miracle...