Chapter 11: Upendi
mimoo01: Thanks! Of course she's a great Mum :)
Lionqueen101: Hahaha yeah :) Thanks!
Guest: Thanks! I'm glad you like this story! :)
Kiki the Cheetah: Thank you! I will kinda miss your old pen name :P
When I woke up neither Kiara or Simba were in the cave. Everyone was awake and talking to each other like just waiting for me.
"Look! She's awake!," Kula whispered.
"What's going on?," I asked suspiciously raising an eyebrow.
"Nothing honey. We are just waiting for you to lead our hunting party," Tama smiled.
"Oh yeah. I totally forgot," I laughed a bit, "Hmm… what are we gonna catch today?,"
"I prefer zebra meat today," Sarabi said and licked her lips.
"Alright. Let's go girls!," I said and went outside.
"Can I kill today?," my mother asked me in a cubby voice.
"Of course Mum. Okay, I see a zebra herd right in front of us! Tama you pick the slowest one and split the herd up, Kula you chase the zebra to me and I'll chase it in my mother's direction. If the plan goes wrong, the lionesses that I didn't mention are for plan B. Let's go!," I whispered and took my position in the tall grass. I was in the middle. Tama picked the victim and Kula successfully sent it in Nala's direction and Nala did the same to her mother's direction. Sarafina jumped on the zebra's back and it collapsed under her weight.
"Well done Mum!," I yelled and ran towards the zebra's lifeless body.
"Look Nala, the rhinos are on the move!," Kula said excitedly.
"That's weird," I said looking down at the moving herd.
"Let's just pray Simba isn't down there," Tama joked.
"Oh come on Tama, he isn't that dumb," all the lionesses including Sarabi laughed at my joke.
"Who's not dumb?," I heard a masculine voice behind me. It was Simba. I turned around and nuzzled him.
"It doesn't matter. Let's carry the zebra to Pride Rock," Sarabi said.
"Alright, I'll help you," he chuckled.
"Of course you will," I winked.
"Oh yeah, has anybody seen Kiara and that Outlander kid somewhere?," he let go of the zebra and raised his head.
"No and that 'Outlander kid' has a name," I said getting serious.
"Whatever," he mumbled under his chin.
We carried the zebra away and ate it in peace. Simba ate first as King, and then the rest of us. I decided to save one part for Kiara and Kovu.
"Why are taking so much meet away?," Simba asked me with his mouth full.
"For Kiara," I said. I knew he wouldn't be happy if I mentioned Kovu. I mean, he would freak out!
"I'm not sure she can eat that much," he said.
"Well yes, she can!," I snapped.
"Alright, fine. No need to yell at me, hon'," he said provocatively and winked. I rolled my eyes and hid the meat in the special part of the cave. I was really tired of everything so I decided to take a rest under the nearest acacia tree. When I lied down I heard some noise in the leaves below.
"Asante sana, squash banana…" someone sang in an African language. I only knew one person who knew how to speak all African languages. Rafiki. I raised my head and realized that he was looking at me.
"Hello Rafiki," he could really creep me out sometimes, but every appearance of his made sense.
"Why hello Queen Nala. Had a rough day?" he smiled widely.
"Well yes, I kinda did," I said.
"What is bothering you?," he asked full of concern and wisdom.
"You know who Kovu is, right?," I asked.
"Yes, of course! Rafiki knows everything!," he smiled.
"Kiara and Kovu are in love, but Simba won't let it be like that. He is against their relationship. This time nobody can help, not even you," I smiled sadly.
"Nothing is impossible!," he raised his finger.
"You mean… you can do something?," I raised my head hopefully at him.
"Remember when I led you two to Upendi?," he said.
"Me and Simba? Oh yeah! The day after his return!," I remembered with a smile on my face. I remembered the whole scene there.
Flashback…
There's a place where the crazy moon
Makes the monkeys sing and the baboons swoon
And the sultry scent of the lotus bloom
Will carry you away
It was beautiful, the monkeys were chanting and singing, baboons were swinging from tree to tree.
"Where are we going?," Simba asked me with a smile.
"I don't know," I smiled back. Our eyes met and at that moment something pushed us together and we locked lips. Oh Rafiki! That crazy monkey! I was grateful for this night. It was beautiful.
Where the hippos swing from the jungle vines
And the rhino rhumba in a conga line
And the pink flamingos are intertwined
As the stars come out to play
In Upendi
Where the passionfruit grows sweet
And it's so divine
That you lose your mind
As it sweeps you off your feet
In Upendi
Without a worry or a care
It just takes two
To make it true
Your heart will lead you there
We landed in a small pool. I hated water. But this time it was warm. Loving warm. A small door opened beneath us and we landed back in our heart shaped leave.
You better watch your step 'cause the path is steep
Better hold your breath cause the water's deep
It's a long way down over Lovers' Leap
But falling's half the fun!
We stayed in the middle of the river and watched the sun rising down. Suddenly water, like exploded, took us up to the clouds. We saw animal pairs marching in a line holding on each other.
"Hey let's join them!," Simba yelled because of the water.
"Alright!," I yelled back.
You can beat the bush like there's no tomorrow
From Tanganyika to Kilimanjaro
But you'll find Upendi wherever you are
Oh underneath the sun
In Upendi
Where the passionfruit grows sweet
And it's so divine
That you lose your mind
As it sweeps you off your feet
In Upendi
Without a worry or a care
It just takes two
To make it true
Your heart will take you there
Upendi!
He gave us some fruit again and we landed on tight water which was carrying us up. We had such a great time. We were singing with the other animals.
Down In Upendi
Way down
In Upendi!
"It was great!," I said and nuzzled his mane.
"Yes it was. Let's head back, before our mums make panic in the pride," he joked and nuzzled me back.
When we got back and lied back down on our platform he kissed me and whispered:
"I love you,"
"I love you, too," I returned the kiss and fell asleep in his warm hug.
End of flashback…
"Queen Nala?," Rafiki asked confused and waved his hand in front of my face.
"Uhmm… I'm here, I'm here! What did you want to ask me?," I shook my head.
"What do you think I do the same to Kovu and Kiara?,"
"That's a great idea!," I said.
"Okay, I'll go search for the two love turtles. Good night!," he smiled.
"Good night," I said. I went to find Simba. I wanted to spend a little time with him. After all we were in love too.
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