When Simba looked up from his sleep to where Ruendi had been across the way, he saw that his miniscule monkey acquaintance had deserted him. The lion felt like flopping out of the tree from the worry he was experiencing. Gripping his fangs together, he made his way down the branches in sloppy, half-dazed bounds and raced towards the waterfall.

"Ruendi!" His voice rang up into the balmy foliage. "Ruendi, this isn't the time for hide and seek! We have to get you home, remember?" He slowed his pace as he saw that the breakfast table was occupied. "Ruendi," Simba huffed out in between breaths. "You're-."

"Going home today," Timon quickly inserted for him. "And we'll all miss him, right?"

"Yeah." Pumbaa sniffed sadly and rubbed his leg against his snout, smiling meekly for the orange-black monkey's sakes. "But who's gonna help me in the kitchen anymore?"

"Aw, Pumbaa," Sympathy filled Ruendi's dark brown eyes. "I'll visit sometime."

"They're right, though." Simba said as he approached them. "I need to help you find out where your family is, and that's going to involve going to the craftiest cat that I know…"

"Simba!" Timon jutted his lower mouth in shock. "But he---, that is---, you don't mean."

"I do." The lion smiled slightly. "Kurou."


A skin of silky black spots that had been introduced to this strange land at childhood now prowled through all of the vine-strewn and moss webbing of the jungle tree tops. The cat purred to himself as a set of spots on the ground rose him on his toes. He slanted his large amber eyes at the potential mate, and moved down quietly to get a better assessment of it.

"Looks like Cool Cat's gonna get his heapin' helpin' tonight." He said under his voice as he was sneaking up behind the unsuspecting feline. But as he was approaching further, he saw the distinct legs of a thin-legged animal. "Oh," Kurou stood up straight. "A cheetah."


After having a well-rounded feeding and grooming, the lion and monkey lion made their departure from their friends on the brink of hysterics. Simba smiled lopsidedly at this and looked up on his head to see Ruendi was pleased at the attention as he bid them goodbye.

"You have a nice family, Simba." He mentioned.

"Don't you?"

"Well, yes," Ruendi started to say hesitantly. "But everything's so fuzzy to me."

Simba breathed in and out deeply. "I know how that is, I have a blurred memory of my-."

"Simba." The small primate clutched onto his mane and swept down to meet his eyes. "I don't want to go home," he declared openly. "I want to stay here in the jungle with you."

"W-what?"

"Pumbaa was telling me all about it," Ruendi went on to explain, "And he said you're the master of Hakuna Matata." Simba flinched at his friend's newfound enthusiasm. "Well?"

"Pumbaa said that." He stated knowingly.

"Yep!"

"You have a family, Ruendi," Simba argued levelly. "It would be wrong to keep you."

"I'd keep me." The monkey argued back cheekily, but then pouted. "At least show me."

He turned his hazel-red eyes on Ruendi's bright-eyed expression. "Teach you what?"

"Hakuna Matata."

To be continued…