Chapter Nine Encounter Under the Stars
The night before her wedding Nala went out to the savannah. She looked up at the stars and asked for help from the Great Kings of the Past. She asked to increase her love for Simba and to send their guidance in helping her become a good ruler. Then she asked that the kings find Mufasa a new mate.
"I love Mufasa so much. He was such a great king and he is such a good friend. Please send him a mate that loves him like Sarabi. He deserves to be happy. "
The winds blew and the clouds grew darker. Then a gentle feminine voice called, "Nala, Nala."
Nala looked up at the sky. A brown lioness with amber eyes appeared in the sky and looked down at her. "Sarabi ?" Nala said.
"No, I am Uru, the former queen of the Pridelands and Mufasa's mother and Simba's grandmother."
"What am I supposed to do, Uru? I am so confused."
"Look inside yourself, Nala. You are more than what you have now all you are doing is trying to be queen. And in doing so, you are breaking the hearts of two lions."
"But whose hearts am I breaking Uru? I am trying to be Simba's queen. Isn't that what everyone wants me to do?"
"You are breaking the heart of my grandson, Nala. You do not love Simba and he does not love you. And the two of you are only getting married because of a thousand year old tradition that needs to be eliminated. Set my grandson free, Nala. He needs a mate who loves and respects him. If you marry him, the two of you will not have a happy union and you will split the whole pride apart. You will bring disaster to the Pridelands because neither of you will be happy. A king and queen must have a good family life. That is the foundation of a successful kingdom. My grandson has another queen that he is starting to turn to. She will make him happy. Let him go to her."
"I will try Uru. But who is the other lion whose heart I am breaking?"
"You are breaking the heart of my son, Mufasa. He is torn between you and Simba. He wants to be loyal to his son but he cares for you deeply. You and he refuse to admit that you care for each other. He needs you as his mate, you set Simba free tomorrow, tell my son Mufasa how you feel. He does not know that he loves you yet but he will. Nala, you must give up being queen of the Pridelands. For the good of the kingdom you must be unselfish. You must let Simba find his true mate and you must tell Mufasa how you feel. After this you will find your place in the Circle of Life." Uru's face disappeared into the clouds.
Nala ran after the clouds. "How will I do this? Uru, please don't leave me.'
The wind blew some leaves and Nala followed them down a hill. She saw Simba and Kanya lying together under the stars. At first they were apart. Then they nuzzled each other and wrapped their forelegs around each toher. Nala turned and ran away. She did not want to see anymore.