I'm back at this fanfic deal! Man, I love writing these! Anyhow, this a sequel to two of my stories, 'Scars of Redemption, and 'One Last Try.' The events of both shall be explored further here. But if you didn't read any of them, it doesn't matter, because anything relevant shall be explained.
If you see this: ()()()()()()()() it means the POV is changing. Don't worry, I'll say to whose POV it's changing to. Fun facts: Shenzi's name means pagan or uncouth, Banzai's name means to lurk, Ed's name means…. Well…. Ed, Macho's name (pronounced Maco, don't pronounce the ch sound) means vigilant or loyal, and Nafasi's name means chance. All these are in swahili.
Well, on with the fanfic! And please, do leave this humble author a review.
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Scar's POV
You mean she's dead?!" Whispered Scar, horrified.
"It looks that way, yeah." Gulped Nafasi, trying not to meet Scar's eyes. There was an uncomfortable pause.
"How?" He asked.
"I don't know, perhaps the condition in her lungs got worse, and she wasn't able to get enough air. Or maybe she simply just lost too much blood, and it finally got to her." She explained. Scar simply stared at her deceased body, unmoving. Then, he approached her, a blank look of hopelessness on his face.
"This isn't… Shenzi. I…. It's all my fault. Forgive me." He whispered, looking distraught.
"Scar…. I didn't know Shenzi at all… But I'm sorry." Said Nafasi.
"I killed her… Why did I kill her?" Whispered Scar.
"It wasn't your fault." Said Nafasi.
"I lost control. It's all my fault. I couldn't stay calm. If I had just stayed myself…. It could have been stopped."
"Don't say things like that." Suggested Nafasi, putting her paw onto his shoulder.
"I was the one that cut her open! I was the one that crushed her ribcage, and made her scream! And her screams! Oh, Nafasi, her screams!, she was trying to beg me to stop, but I didn't, and I couldn't even understand her, that's how much she was hurting! It was all garbled, she knew she was doomed from the start! But she tried, she tried to escape, desperately trying to get away, but I didn't let her go! Completely helpless, she couldn't even run properly! She was crippled! How much pain had she been forced to endure before I put her through the ultimate hell?.
"Scar…. We can talk about this, if you want." Offered Nafasi.
"Talk?" He said, his voice barely a wisp in the air.
"Yes. It wasn't your fault. So you mustn't get disheartened by it." Said Nafasi.
"Nafasi…. It was my fault, I killed her!" He said, starting to breathe harder.
"Scar, please. Listen to me! Calm down, and just listen to me." She pleaded.
"Calm down… Calm down? I…. I'm plenty calm, Nafasi! I'm not upset!" He said, eyes wide.
"Then listen to me. We can bury Shenzi in a few hours, before she…. ahem, Starts to rot. And if you want, we can put her next to the cubs, and we can remember her as well along with the cubs every time we visit them." Said Nafasi. Scar stared down at Shenzi's body, looking helpless.
"All right…. Let's go dig the grave. But…..leave her body here, I can't….. I can't look at it." Whispered Scar. Then, he got up, and walked out of the cave, and disappeared into the darkness. Nafasi, steeling herself for the walk, got up, and followed him.
Hopefully all this drama would fade quickly, she was very, very close. The cub wouldn't wait, when it wanted out, it came out. And hopefully, it would survive being born.
Up above, the stars shone coldly down, glinting in the dark canvass that was the night sky.
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Banzai's POV
Banzai paced back and forth in the sand, muttering anxiously to himself. Ed stood by, keeping quiet, and watching Banzai. It had been a few hours since Fahama's departure, and he was getting worried.
Not about Fahama by any means, she wouldn't arrive for quite awhile yet. He had given Fahama until dawn, but he now realized that was completely unrealistic. Unfortunately for him, an arrival before noon wouldn't happen.
Ed have a little whimper,
"I know Ed! I know!" Yelled Banzai, unable to contain his frustration. Ed whimpered again, changing his tone to signify what he meant. It was a series of a strange language indecipherable to all but he and Macho.
"I know she's in danger, all right? It's just…. I don't know what to do!" Said Banzai, kneading the sand between his paws. Ed growled.
"We need to wait for more hyenas to arrive, I certainly can't win against two lions! And if there's more than two lions, I might not even be able to outrun them. If I went alone, I'd be screwed." Replied Banzai. In response, Ed whimpered again.
"What if I went secretly? Like, on a scouting trip? That's a horrible idea Ed! What if a lion saw me?" Retorted Banzai. Ed giggled.
"You mean the lions are sleeping? Well…. Actually, the lions are sleeping! You're right Ed, they would be asleep! I could go there, and me and Shenzi could sneak away! Yeah…. I could do that!" Said Banzai, realizing he suddenly had a plan. Ed giggled in agreement.
"All right, I'll be back soon, and if Fahama arrives, she'll surely have brought Macho as well, right? Tell him what I'm doing. And tell them to wait a bit for me, if I'm not back yet. Cya soon!" Said Banzai, as he ran off down the river, fast as he could. However, he still could not ignore the gnawing feeling of worry in his stomach.
Oh god, he had better not be too late.
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Shenzi's POV
Shenzi walked out of the trees, frowning sadly.
Banzai wasn't here.
Ed, Fahama, and Macho weren't here.
None of her friends were.
She really was dead.
"Oh, why did this have to happen to me?" She muttered, as she went up to the water hole. Of course, she was careful to avoid the part filled with Ahadi's vomit. She had no desire to drink any of that, no sir.
She bent down, and lapped up the coolest, clearest water she had ever tasted. She hadn't been thirsty, and she doubted she ever would be, but the water felt so good. It was of a quality she could never have hoped for from the puddles they drank from in the graveyard.
Everything here did seem a lot better than it did on the earth. But it also felt hollow somehow, as if she was missing something, something rather important. Shenzi got up, and walked away from the water hole. Behind her, she could hear her mother's voice, piercing the tranquility of the area, as she looked for Shenzi.
"Has anyone seen my daughter, Shenzi?" Hatari asked lionesses and hyenas that sat around in groups. Of course, none of them answered yes, none of them would be able to recognize her. She was, after all, a new arrival.
She walked up onto a deserted hill, parting the grass in front of her as she moved. When she reached the top, she looked around at all that lay in front of her, a seemingly endless stretch of savannah that spread out as a home for all the creatures who had moved on.
But if Shenzi had moved on, why did she feel none of the peace everyone else seemed to have? Everyone else had truly moved on, in mind as well as spirit. But here sat Shenzi, hating her situation even more with every second that went by.
"Damn this entire place!" She yelled, her anger suddenly getting the best of her. "And who runs it anyways?" She demanded into the air, venting her steam.
As she uttered her second sentence though, a whirling cloud appeared in front of her. Eyes wide, Shenzi stepped back, taken by surprise at the appearance of the shining forms. As the cloud dissipated, littler parts took form into animals, most of which she didn't recognize at all. But she certainly recognized the lions, who stood at the front of the entire procession.
After a few more moments, the cloud animals stopped whirling, and took on a more solid, glowing shape. Shenzi looked, and saw some hyenas next to the lions, all females compared the male felines.
Silence reigned.
"So…. Are the great Kings of the Past here as well?" She asked, making the first move. She was also a little taken aback, their appearance was a little worrying.
And since they did seem to be the leaders of the afterlife, perhaps she should tread….
Carefully.
"Go fuck yourselves!" She yelled, unable to take the silence.
Shenzi could almost feel the concentrated glare of the cloud animals.
She gulped.
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Banzai's POV
What couldn't have been more than a half hour or so later, Banzai stumbled upon Shenzi's scent.
It was a little old, perhaps a day or so. But still recent. It meant he was close, very close. Banzai looked around, staying vigilant for any signs of lions. But so far he had gotten lucky. Other than their foul smelling scent, there was no physical signs of his enemy.
He advanced forward slowly, taking care to be quiet. If the lions were asleep, the last thing he wanted was to wake them up. Stealth would be paramount for this mission. He walked over the sand, glad that the grains muffled his pawsteps.
Following the trail, Banzai came upon a den, in which both Shenzi's scent and the lion's grew stronger. Strangely, one of the smells was rather familiar, it was something Banzai recognized. But he didn't expend any energy on pondering it, what he was doing now was far more important.
Entering the den, Banzai checked for sleeping bodies. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the den, Banzai felt his heart leap with joy. There were no lions in the den, but there, in front of him, was Shenzi!
"Shenzi!" He cried as loudly as he dare whisper, as he lept forward wake her up. Skidding to halt next to her, he reached out his paw, and shook her, grinning as he did so.
She didn't move.
"Shenzi! Wake up!" He whispered, as he glanced around for any signs of lions that could be returning to their den.
She still made no movement, nor uttered any sound.
"Shenzi?" He said, redirecting his attention back to his friend. He put his paw on her, and for the first time, an awful, horrible feeling began to congregate in his stomach.
She was cold.
Banzai scowled, and he put his head up to her chest quickly, suddenly seized with the desire to know, to put his questions to rest. Fear rang through him, as he pressed his ear to her ribcage.
She was not breathing.
Her heart as silent.
Banzai drew back, his eyes wide, a cold, clammy fist squeezing his heart. No, what he had just felt was not possible. His sense had to be lying to him, they had to be! What he had just seen was too horrible, too horrific to be true!
Shenzi couldn't be….. Dead, could she?
"Oh god…." Whimpered Banzai, as he put his paw back onto Shenzi's back. She was….. Cold.
No warmth lay in Shenzi's body, she had none to give, and she never again would have any to give. Banzai looked into her eyes, her expression still caught up in a grimace. She had died in awful pain, a death as worse as it could get.
She was… Dead.
"Oh god!" Cried Banzai, tears welling up in his eyes, as the realization came true, hitting him like a wave of hate. Shenzi was dead! Dead! Dead and gone, gone forevermore from Banzai's grasp!
He had never told her so many things, that he loved her, that he loved her ever since he had laid eyes upon her when they were pups! And he had never had the courage to look her in the eye and confess all that he needed to say! A damned coward he was! Why hadn't he told her! Why hadn't he just told her?
"Oh god, Why? Why why why!?" He cried.
Who the hell care if she had rejected him, anything would have been better than this cold feeling of regret, the feeling that clawed him worse than any lion's jaws could do!
"Shenzi! Oh god…. I loved you! I loved you from the start, and I never told you!" He cried, tears flowing freely from his eyes.
It was horrible! Shenzi was cold, and he…. He was still warm! Shenzi was the one who deserved to still have the warmth of life inside of her! She was the one who never gave up! She was the one who had sacrificed so much for hyenas who never truly gave back on the scale she had.
And he….. He was nothing but a pathetic fool who had never achieved anything in his life!
"I'll give you warmth Shenzi… I'll give you what I have….." He sobbed, curling up next to her limp body. His tears were starting to make her fur wet, but she wasn't here to feel it.
Gone!
Gone forever…..
All the things they had done together, all the happy memories of their puphood…. All things he would treasure forever. He would never forget her, never.
As the night wore on, Banzai stayed with his childhood friend, curled up next her, sobbing harder than he had ever done before, his emotions piercing his heart.
Gone!...
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Fahama's POV
Fahama tried to get her stomach under control, which was being mutinous after sprinting nonstop through the night. She had ran faster than ever before, and the sun had only come up a few hours ago. She had stitches in her side, and she was extremely short of breath.
When they had arrived, Ed had explained where Banzai had gone, and what he was trying to do. It was obviously a bit risky, but if it worked, it would be brilliant. There would be no real need for the twenty hyenas Fahama had brought back with her, who were standing around next to the beach.
Ed also took credit for the idea, but Fahama was a bit suspicious as to how true that part was.
As she stood, waiting for something to happen, Banzai suddenly appeared out of the morning fog, walking slowly, plodding towards them with his head down, and his tail hanging between his feet.
Something was wrong.
"Banzai! Banzai, what is it?" She asked, as she ran up to him. Banzai stopped walking, and stood still, his eyes closed.
"Banzai! What happened?" Asked Macho, as he came up next to Fahama. Banzai suddenly looked up at them, his eyes filled with fury, and his teeth bared.
"What happened? You want to know what happened?" He growled, his voice filled with malice.
"Well… Yes." Replied Fahama, a sudden thrill of fear running through her.
"Shenzi is dead. They cut her open, and killed her. And now, her body lies stone cold on the sand, as dead and unmoving as it can get." Growled Banzai.
"Shenzi's…. Dead?" Echoed Fahama and Macho, their eyes wide, completely caught by surprise. They stared at Banzai, demanding further explanation, but unable to say it.
"Wha…. What do we do now?" Whispered Macho.
Banzai suddenly grinned, baring his teeth in a sinister smile, his eyes glinting red. On the whole, his expression made Fahama rather uncomfortable.
"What do we do now?" Chuckled Banzai, sneering evilly, his laughter unnatural.
"We kill the lions."
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