Long live the King
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"Happy Mufasa day kids!"
The classroom burst into cheers and clapping as the day began. They all loved it, and for great reason. The greatest story in Zootopia was of Mufasa Pride, first king of the Pridelands and writer of the first constitution in mammal history.
The children loved it too. One in particular more than any other. Mufasa Delgato. The little lion cub was giddy with excitement as his namesake, his hero, was talked about. Heck, he went to Mufasa Pride school! Well, Mufasa Pride V school, but it was still a Mufasa Pride. The little lion cub always wished to live up to be like his hero, the brave, noble, wise Lion. Well, almost. He wasn't going to be killed by a treacherous brother, was he? (It kind of helped that he only had sisters).
Of course, with the day came many great learning opportunities. First though was the play! His whole pride was putting it on again for the school, as they always did. He watched the great unveiling of little Simba, who he'd wished to play himself! He hadn't got the part though, and instead watched as the great tale went on. Simba grew, only for the evil Scar to trick him, luring out of the Pridelands and into the dark Elephants Graveyard. He held his breath.
"HWAHWAHWA…"
He scowled before stamping his feet along with every other lion. "BOOOO!"
"HWAHWAHWA… HWAHWAHWA…" Three lions, dressed in grey rags and with hyena masks on their heads burst out. They laughed and cackled evilly, despite all the loud booing, and circled around poor little Simba. "I am Shenzi! Evil queen of the hyena's, and I'm gonna eat you."
"But you said that you'd share with me!" her companion protested.
"Uhhhh… I tink you'll find dat she was gonna share with me," the other said, sending the audience into a fit of laughter.
"No, me."
"No, me."
"No, me."
"No, me."
"Right, with none of you!" Shenzi barked, knocking their heads together, much to the audience's joy. Mufasa burst into laughter, and then roared as the real Mufasa jumped in. The scared hyena's ran off, though it wasn't to last. Soon the evil King Scar the Usurper was back, rallying them on. They went on a raiding party, creating a stampede of terrified wildebeest (or lions dressed as such) that almost killed Prince Simba, tricked into acting as bait. The Great King Mufasa saved his son but was betrayed and thrown off by his brother, killed. Off poor Simba fled, as evil Scar stood tall over the lions, bringing up his hyenas to scare them straight. And so Prince Simba left and grew up, while Scar's hyenas caused the great famine, acting like monsters to all the poor innocent mammals and destroying the circle of life. In the end though, Simba returned! Scar was killed, his hyenas betraying him.
"And so," Simba said, as he threw the hyenas off the stage to applause and cheers. "The natural order was returned! The rains returned, the circle of life was fixed, and good beat evil. The end!"
Mufasa Delgato leapt up and cheered, clapping as hard as he could. "Long live the King. Long live the king!"
Of course, he was still at school, and back to lessons they went. Still, Mufasa day was full of great learning opportunities. He eagerly looked on as the first little sheet was put forward, showing a circle with lots of different boxes around it. He knew what it was!
"Now children," Mrs Kara, the ferret teaching them, said, looking around. "Who can guess what this is?"
Mufasa's paw was up and his voice shouting out. "Circle of Life! Circle of Life! Circle of Life!"
She rolled her eyes. "No shouting out Mufasa," she warned, as his paw went down. "But yes, it's the Circle of Life. But, -no shouting Mufasa, can you tell me what it is?"
Mufasa's paw shot up, but it was Alex, a sheep student, who got picked. "It's a constitution."
"That's right, the very first. But, can you tell me what a constitution is?"
Mufasa had a rough idea. It was a set of rules that told everyone how to work together in peace and harmony. He didn't get asked though. Instead it was Jay, a gazelle, who answered. "It's a bit of paper that tells mammals how to act and who gets to control who. And back then it put Lions on top."
Well duh, Mufasa thought. Lions were the king! You needed a king, didn't you? You'd need to be stupid or a hyena to think otherwise.
"It's a bit more than that," Mrs Kara explained. "You see, back then, there were all kinds of different species living in the Pridelands. Now, put your paw or hoof up if you're one of them."
Mufasa threw up his paw, as did plenty other mammals. Others, including foxes, badgers, sheep and all sorts, kept their paws down. Mrs Kara looked around, smiling, pausing as she spotted Adhira the elephant. "Ah, not you."
"But I'm an elephant."
"But you're an Indian elephant," she said smiling, twiddling her ears. "Do your ears look like India or Africa?"
"Uhhhh…"
Mrs Kara stepped back and pointed at the two places on a map.
"-India!"
"Yup," she chirped, pointing to the east of Africa. "Now the Pridelands were here. So, while there were plenty of Elephants in the Pridelands, they weren't your type."
"Okay," she said, as Mrs Kara turned around.
"Anyway, I -Oh, Shenzi?"
Mufasa's ears rose and he turned to look at the corner of the room.
"-You can put your paw up too; you came from there as well."
Mufasa didn't agree. That wasn't how it was! Still, he watched as the hyena girl in the corner slowly stuck her paw up too. The lion cub kept an eye on her, after all she was called Shenzi!
"-Anyhow," Mrs Kara continued. "Back in the Pridelands, all the mammals there lived in tribes. All the tribes had different names, so Lions were…"
"-Prides!" Mufasa shot out, starting a wave of voices.
"Herds!"
"Packs!"
"Leaps!"
"Towers!"
"Yes, yes, lots of those," she said, glancing over at Shenzi with a smile. "Cackles too."
There were a set of giggles from the class, even Mufasa. Laughing hyenas…
"I think that's my favourite," the ferret continued, looking over. Shenzi smiled slightly, looking happier, though Mufasa disagreed. A cackle of hyenas was his least favourite thing.
"Anyway," she said, "those tribes were all independent and fought each other, predators especially needing to hunt and kill prey mammals to get food. But Mufasa Pride felt that it was wrong. On Pride Rock, he came up with a new idea. No mammals would need to be killed again. Instead, the constitution, or circle of life, was put in. He believed that every mammal could be helped by another kind of mammal, and could help another in return. Cooperating, instead of fighting. Prey would give predators their milk and their dead for food, help dig up termite mounds for their food and even carry in fish from the sea and lakes. Predators in return wouldn't eat them, and they'd both defend them and use their nimble paws to craft tools, clothes, weapons and build houses. The circle of life, the idea that all mammals help each other and the killing of mammals for food ended, was the first rule of the constitution. The second was that each tribe sent forth a leader, their alpha male, to hold council on Pride Rock. Now, Mufasa was king and what he said was ultimately law. BUT he did listen to other species as well. In time, those tribe alphas would get votes, which let them make and decide their own laws. Eventually all mammals got the vote, just like all mammals can live in peace and prosperity and with all others, all started by Mufasa Pride!"
There was a round of cheering and clapping, from little Mufasa especially. "Long live the king! Long live the king! Long… -Mrs! Shenzi isn't clapping! Shenzi isn't clapping!"
"She doesn't have to clap if she doesn't want to," she dismissed, cutting Mufasa off. Others stopped clapping, turning to the ungrateful hyena.
"But she should clap," Mufasa said.
"Well, in the story…" Mrs Kara began.
"-I know that evil hyenas led by a Shenzi helped kill good King Mufasa!" he claimed. "She should still clap!"
"Mufasa," she cut off.
"He's her king."
"Mufasa!"
"They should show they're not traitors!"
"MUFASA!" she screamed, causing him to go quiet. "Go to the Principal's office."
"But…"
"Do you want detention for speaking out of turn again?" she asked, paws on hips.
"But it's Mufasa day…" he mumbled, sniffing. "And she should…"
"It's no excuse for interrupting the class," she said, pointing him about. Sobbing and sniffing, the little lion cub began to walk out. It wasn't fair! He turned, spotting the teacher telling Shenzi to calm down and wipe herself up… She should be coming with him! She wasn't clapping for King Mufasa the Great! The greatest king there ever was.
In the end he got a lecture about talking out of turn. Yes, Shenzi should have clapped, but she didn't have to if she didn't want to and that was no excuse to disrupt the class for everyone. In the end, he was let out and, thankfully, had only missed the more boring class work. There was still plenty of fun stuff, and in the end he went home, having had a happy Mufasa day.
…
"Mufasa?"
"Yes Mom?"
"Your teacher said you interrupted her today."
His eyes went wide. "But it was because there was this hyena, and she was called Shenzi, and she wasn't clapping when it came to King Mufasa."
"Well," his mother said, rolling her eyes as she bent forward and wrapped an arm around him, hoisting him up. "She's a hyena called Shenzi," she sassed. "What did you expect?"
"I…" he began, before nodding.
"Listen," she said, booping his nose. "It may be a long time ago, but some mammals can't get over being the bad guys in the stories, and hyenas were the worst guys, weren't they?"
Mufasa giggled.
"Except maybe Scar the Usurper. And he was a Lion, wasn't he?"
"Yeah, but a bad lion."
"A very bad lion. Now come on, let's get dinner."
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Mufasa day wasn't really a day of joy for Mufasa Delgato anymore. But it was still a day of pride. Lion Pride! He was too cool to be one of those flag wavers, he was a sixteen-year-old high schooler, not a little cub anymore. But that didn't mean that he'd abandoned King Mufasa. That mammal was still cool in his own way, a hero to Zootopia. It was why he'd chosen to give his speech to history class on him.
"-To sum up, King Mufasa the Great laid the foundations for what would become Zootopia. Of democracy, of equal rights, of justice. He built a nation and defended it from those who wished to tear it down in its infancy, standing up and showing no mercy as he dealt with the barbarians who, if they had their way, would still have us living in anarchy today. Thank you."
He bowed to a round of applause, his teacher nodding along appreciatively. "A traditional choice, but a very good execution of it," the deer said. "Any questions?"
The classroom of apathetic teenagers barely responded, bar one mammal who was eager to respond. Mufasa groaned a little as he saw a dark brown paw raised above an ugly face, a shock of a mohican spiking out from her head. He looked around, before picking the mammal behind Shenzi. The wolf stood up. "You claim that Mufasa Pride was instrumental in founding democracy, but what about the wolf tribes? For thousands of years, our species had pack systems that slowly expanded, incorporating new mammal species. While what Mufasa founded was notable, surely it wasn't the only case?"
Bit of a spotlight stealer, Mufasa thought. Still, valid question. "Well, maybe they were founded independently, though those wolf tribes were similar to the existing packs in the Pridelands. It's well known that Mufasa Pride was a major admirer of the African Wild Dogs, who had a similar proto-democracy in their packs, and it was a key inspiration for his vision. Ultimately, Lupine culture did have major influences on future developments, but the core it bolted on to was still the work of Mufasa the Great."
New question. Shenzi's paw was still up, the hyena glaring at him. Well, she wouldn't be getting it then. A curious deer and pig were answered, before he stepped down to applause.
Up went Shenzi, Mufasa looking to his friend, a llama, as she went. "Let's see what the barbarian has to say," he whispered. His friend giggled as she stood up.
"It's fitting that our last talk was about Mufasa the Great," she said, the room going quiet. "This is a speech about an unsung hero of history, one who stood up and fought for her people against that speciesist, genocidal tyrant. My namesake, Shenzi Kalani."
The room was lit with simmering whispers, mammals turning to each other and asking if they'd heard that right. She was really going to call that barbarian the hero and the founder of Pred-Prey cooperation a tyrant? Mufasa shook his head, this was going to be stupid. At first, he paid little attention, but as time went on he couldn't help but listen closer and get angrier.
"It is well known from their oral history and texts that the lions of Priderock had long had enemies in the hyena clans. I am not judging them for this, it was the time of tooth and fang, as our stories call them. Every tribe for themselves. But ancient cave paintings, from the earliest days of unification tell a story very different to the one that his ilk and decedents have told you all your lives." She brought up a picture, showing the cave artwork. "As you can see here, a circle of different species, both pred and prey are given. Hundreds of these are found across the lands, the early recording of histories by various tribesmammals. ALL contain hyenas in them, part of the circle, bar two." She flipped to a new one. "This one here, according to experts, was made by Mufasa the Great himself, or at least dictated to a scribe. Evidence suggests that this was the advisor Zazu." There was a long pause. "Hyena's are not in the circle. Instead, they are over here."
She showed a display, various caricatures of her kind drawn on. Mufasa shook his head. What was she getting on at, it was just old cave art. Just because they painted the kind that murdered the greatest king of all time ugly didn't mean they had a right to do what they did.
"The other is by the Painted Dog tribes, which Mufasa Pride supposedly admired so much." There was a long pause, as she revealed a set of intricate paintings. "They show what my kind have known for years. The warring tribes. The initial alliance, us as one of the circle. Then a great pestilence." She leant over and pointed at pictures of mammals lying down and wasting away. "These black spots here," she said, "are characteristic of anthrax. Bone tests at the same time suggest that there was a major outbreak, likely caused by the coming together of many species for the first time. In the animal kingdom, there is only one set of species immune to that terrible disease, hyenids."
Boring… Mufasa thought.
"Here we are shown caring for the mammals," she continued. "This figure here is believed to be Shenzi Kalani herself." Various mammals were shown looking around the leader of the helpers, a large hyena. "But her good deeds did not go unpunished." A new set of figures showing… Mufasa saw lions, a big one among them, seeming to say that the hyenas were creating the black spots. "Seeing her gaining popularity, Mufasa Pride, already shown to hate our kind, started a smear campaign. We weren't immune to it, we were the spreaders! And so he riled up hate and banished us into the wastes."
There was a long pause, Mufasa's eyes narrowing. This was stupid, why wasn't she being called out on her slander! The hyena's, caring? Almost being more popular than the lions who brought peace?
"The oral history of my kind recounts how our villages were burned, our people massacred, and how we were thrown away and excluded from the new society. Forced to live off of meagre bugs and fish from a few small pools." There was a long pause. "Three quarters of my species STARVED TO DEATH at the paws of Mufasa Pride! The proof of it is in these genetic tests." She handed out some nonsense bits of paper, as if that was meant to prove anything. "They show that we were decimated. Whatever your views of King Scar, our kind, our noble leader Shenzi, supported him as he offered to right the terrible wrong done to us. A wrong that was airbrushed into history. Instead we were just the barbarians in the elephant graveyard, not wanting to be part of the system, even though evidence from two dozen species shows that we were there from the beginning! That in a great time of need we, the so called evil, cackling, brutish barbarians, supported and cared our fellow mammals. And in response Mufasa Pride massacred us, and then rewrote history. Airbrushing his great crime out of it, and setting up my kind as evil. In the end, Shenzi's daughter, Jasiri, prostrated herself and paid penance for our 'sins' to Mufasa's grandchild, King Kion. But the evil story, written from the victors with us as the evil, has carried on ever since, telling everyone since the day we were born that we were the bad guys. But we have always known the truth and it is there and proven, and I wear the name of Queen Shenzi with pride!"
"Booooo!" Mufasa shouted. Who the hell did she think she was? But he was broken off, shocked, as others clapped hard. They were turning to each other, talking and whispering, and the lion turned to his friend. "How dare she say that!"
"Hey, it's the most interesting thing I've heard today," she said.
"Yeah, because it's lies."
"I…"
"Come on, Mufasa the Great, evil?"
He nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Wrong, but interesting."
Mufasa looked on as the teacher applauded, having the gall to call it thought provoking and praising her for her sources! Was she in it too? Questions were opened, and he raised his paw, ramrod straight. The lying hyena looked straight into her eyes and then narrowed them, before picking the mammal behind him. He had to bite his lip. The coward! Just like the real Shenzi, unable to stand up against a lion with right on his side.
The goat behind him asked about the famed famine and destruction during Scar's rein, and she pointed to a study saying that Mt Kilimanjaro had 'catastrophic' eruptions during that time. She waved off the great famine as 'a terrible coincidence' and left it at that.
More questions about proof, with stuff about great graveyards that were found in the alkali flats bordering the pride lands, along with stuff about their traditions. Mufasa scowled more and more, she was making it up as she went along! That or the hyenas did, trying to hide their old evil ways. Stuff about songs, poems, tales. Even a song about 'the gift of pink among salt', or how they'd resorted to hunting flamingos on the caustic lakes. Seriously, trying to make yourself sound good by saying you killed and ate flamingos. Had he been given a chance, he could have torn into her. But the coward didn't pick him. Eventually, she was left to sit down, shockingly complimented by the teacher!
He fumed, and it came to a head afterwards. "You!"
"Oh," she snarled, turning to face him. Mammals stepped back, sensing that something was coming on. "You."
"Yes, me."
"I could figure that you couldn't handle the truth, Mufasa."
"No! You can't handle the truth! Look at the history, you're just trying to undermine a hero! THE hero! You owe him! You owe the mammal your kind murdered…"
"-HE MURDERED US! HE WAS A GENNOCIDAL TYRANT!"
"YOU PIECE OF FILTH HYENA!"
"OH YEAH, JUST LIKE HIM!"
"YOUR KIND ARE SCUM!"
Dammit, he growled, before roaring. Out came his claws and he swiped, the lying hyena ducking down and twisting away. He charged forward, her arm caught his and the began brawling, battling, claw on claw and snarl against snarl. Mammals all around them were throwing them in as their brawl continued. They kept hurling insults and trading blows, until the teachers came in and tore them apart.
.
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Despite getting suspended that day, Mufasa Delgato grew tall and joined the police. Pride, respect, equality, peace and law. That was what Mufasa Pride had stood for. What he would stand for, today, as part of the ZPD. He stood tall in Mufasa Plaza, standing under his great statue, as he walked out on his first patrol. Patrolling around, looking over the parapets, out at the great city built on his principals as it spread out beneath them. He glanced back at the great lion; he'd do him proud. He took a quick selfie, both him and it in view, and sent it on to his mate. She sent one back, smiling, paw over her growing belly.
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"See him there little Simba?"
The tiny lion cub gargled and looked up in wide eyes.
"He's a great King, called Mufasa. You're named after his son, who avenged him. His evil Uncle and some evil hyenas killed him, but he got them in the end."
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"Stand clear! I said STAND CLEAR!"
Officer Delgato pushed the protesters away as they charged forward. Dammit, didn't they see that fire engine? Didn't they see the burning building!? Paws out, he pushed hard as the red truck moved past, the crew jumping out and starting to affix the hoses. Thankfully the mammals were backing off. Sighing, Delgato turned, only to freeze. It was her, that hyena Shenzi. He recognised the face immediately, along with the fact that she was on this side! "You!" he shouted. Just like her namesake! He ran in and grabbed her, thrusting against the engine hard as she screamed. Here he was, protecting the innocent from her, just like the old Mufasa had done in the past. She fought back, he grabbed his pepper spray, only to be bowled over onto the floor. He hit the ground hard, his world going dizzy, and as he refocussed he saw McHorn holding him down. "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING?"
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!"
"STOPPING YOU FROM ATTACKING A FIREMAMMAL!"
"I wasn't! That Hyena was…"
"Is a firemammal you idiot!"
He glanced over and saw her, suited up, in the arms of the other firemammals. "Dammit, I missed the suit."
"Missed the… Just shut up and get up. And leave her alone!"
"Her name is Shenzi," he retorted, paws up. "And she likes to act like her namesake."
"Just shut up and go over there!"
The rhino shoved him, the lion snarling. Seriously, it was an honest mistake, one that hyena had certainly invited on herself.
.
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This time he was suspended. A two week suspension. He complained and moaned to his wife and his little cub, who was happy to support him. "She is a bad mammal… Just like the old Shenzi…"
"Yup," he said. "And I'm Mufasa. Now, Mufasa had to suffer to support what was right. And so must I."
Still, it wasn't all bad. While without pay, it meant he had Mufasa day off. They sat down and watched the old rerun of the film together, taking solace in the depiction of the real Mufasa and Shenzi, as it always was. But then came a new show. 'The Real Mufasa'. He felt his anger grow as so called scientists began repeating all of her old talking points. Nonsense about the anthrax plagues, made up reports and histories about how he'd banished the hyenas. They said that it was probably an honest mistake, they didn't understand disease and he had no way of knowing that hyenas were immune to anthrax, misinterpreting it as proof of poisoning. Okay then… if they really had to push it, fair enough. It wasn't his fault like it wasn't his own that he'd made the error with the modern Shenzi.
-But then another began spreading the idea that their banishment was a power play by King Mufasa, who hated the hyenas. Of course he did. They were wicked at the time! Murderers, not ready for civilization yet. He was so mad that, afterwards, he called up and left a complaint. He was named after the greatest hero in mammal history, end of.
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Not long after, it was his son's school's turn to put on a Mufasa day performance. His son was Simba! He sat down, giddy, and watched as it went on. Simba being revealed, Scar tricking him into going out, then the hyenas. He was stomping his feet, along with a fair few others. Still, seemed like it was a tough crowd. Never you mind, here came the best part, where the…
"-Who steps into our kingdom?"
That wasn't Shenzi and her gang!
"I am Queen Shenzi Kalani, who your father banished for a false accusation. These are the meagre lands we are left to survive on, and you come to take even that."
"I…"
And so it came on, weakly. They were presenting the hyenas as tragic victims!? Of course, Scar was still his evil self, but naturally they'd keep the evil lion and 'sanitise' the hyenas. It was nonsense, they were changing the greatest story there was. A perfect story! They didn't threaten Simba, they took him prisoner until Mufasa came and got their 'hostage' back. She called them trespassers, claimed that they were innocent. And then when back in the Pridelands he confessed he didn't know! Of course he knew what they were. He said he'd review it, while Scar used the promise of food for her new baby and justice to lure the hyenas to his side. Oh, the rest of it went on like normal, except for the fact that the famine was gone. They just showed Scar as a nasty leader by himself, never mind his allies who ate the land clean. And then it was over, and it was said that years later, King Kion apologised for the way they'd treated the hyenas to Queen Jasiri and forgave her kind… No! Lions had never forgiven hyenas for what they did, and he told his son as much as they marched out later.
Who did these teachers and mammals think they were, changing history just because one species was the bad guy in it. Huh, just because they couldn't take the truth. The world was going mad. After all, he'd just heard that a bunny was getting into the ZPD.
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.
"Our first Fox…"
Eh, no issue there. The bunny had proved herself, the fox would too. After all, that stuff about them being dishonest and untrustworthy was nonsense. Stupid too. Especially as those same mammals seemed to have nothing against hyenas.
He was in a bad mood lately. That hyena, Shenzi Sakari, was standing to be the new mayor! It wasn't going to succeed, thankfully, but the gall of standing in Mufasa the Great's spiritual achievements, all while slandering him… Uhhhh, it made him growl!
What was worse was that it was catching on. There were mammals going around honestly talking about renaming Mufasa Day Constitution Day. NO! You did not get to change something so sacred due to a bunch of sore losers! Others started vandalising his statue. There was even a protest outside a new building named after him. She stood there tall, proud, angry, trying to besmirch the name of a defeater of the tyrant that she was named after. And all those stupid scientists now, going over to her side and saying, 'oh, she has a point.' 'Oh, it's a controversial subject.' 'Oh, he certainly did do some bad.' She herself claimed that while he certainly did a lot of good, she'd never forget or forgive what he did to her species, and that all mammals should know 'the truth'.
The wicked liar.
She was trying to take the joy and magic out of life.
It made him angry.
Didn't anyone remember the stories?
He and the other lions certainly did, and they met up. It was a small club at first, but it began growing fast. The MDS, or 'Mufasa Defence Society'. Their king had given his life in the pursuit of freedom, and they would defend his legacy and honour in kind. He, his son and his wife were soon marching, protesting, campaigning. Making sure mammals remembered who the real Shenzi was, what the real history was, and even making sure those hyenas knew that their latest evil plot to destroy it would be opposed. Long picnics and recitals of the songs of his honour in Hyenahurst, letter writing campaigns to newspapers, funding for new statues.
Naturally Shenzi lost the election, of course she would. Most mammals still loved King Mufasa, they knew the truth, they didn't want to bow to her revisionist history and political correctness.
Or so he thought…
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"Major new texts have been translated, not only revealing records of the Circle of Life constitution, but containing the actual words of King Mufasa the Great himself. Shockingly, they contain numerous references to his 'disgust' at Hyena's, with early poems talking about his wish to punish them and establish lion dominance, and how he could deliberately use the anthrax outbreak to rally his nation against them."
Delgato snarled. Lies.
"Another ancient hyena tomb has been exposed. Once more, records show horrific traces of both wounds and starvation…"
Fake news!
"ZBC has announced that it will not be showing any old productions of The Lion King anymore… Talks are in place to remove Mufasa's name from street signs and a petition has been launched to take down his statue."
VANDALS! Mufasa was mad, he was busy rallying up the MDS! The hyenas could not be allowed to win again! The last time under Scar, they'd brought in a dark age, tearing up the land after bullying and manipulating that lion into letting them. They were going to do it again. The stinking mammals were everywhere, in groups and holding banners, gathered in a crowd around his statue which they dared to defile!
And then, to top it off, they renamed his old school to King Kion school
IT WASN'T EVEN THE SAME MUFASA!
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…
"A hyena pup, Banzai Ituli, has been found dead in what appears to be a racially motivated attack. Graffiti scrawled by him read 'Long live King Mufasa. Keep the hyenas out!'
Honestly, they'd brought it on themselves. Kicking and kicking the hornets nest, destroying the heart and soul of the city, defiling the greatest mammal in all of history. Surely they expected some blowback?
They needed to be put in their place, and so he smiled as got into the riot van. They were going up the Mufasa plaza, to keep an eye on the massive crowd there. Good, he could clear them away from the good king before they could hurt him anymore. Get the out, stop this nonsense, and he really would be like Mufasa. Keeping the peace, dealing with those barbarians, he…
"Woah, they've toppled the statue…"
"WHAT!?" he asked, turning forward. Officer Wilde looked back.
"Don't take it personally Mufasa, but they've pulled down Mufasa."
They ground to a halt, orders being shouted but he didn't listen. Out into the air and he saw the plinth, his home, his pride rock EMPTY! And there, a crowd of this filthy mammals, giving out their wicked cackles, dragging it along towards the…
"NO!" he yelled, running forward. It was too late.
There we was. Mufasa the Great, the wise, the good, the protector of the innocent and just. Torn down from his plinth, bits of his mane and tail broken in or off, graffiti and slander scrawled over him by those ungrateful traitors… how did Kion ever think they could be let in again, the betrayer… They were screaming as they pulled it towards the cliff edge. "LONG LIVE THE KING! LONG LIVE THE KING! LONG LIVE THE KING!"
He was hauled over, his kind benevolent face met his for a second; Mufasa to Mufasa, eye to eye, and he tumbled down, the bronze splitting in two and breaking upon a rock as the hyenas cheered. Laughing, whooping, cackling. That horrible, horrible, horrible whooping laugh of theirs. Mufasa trembled, they would pay!
And then he saw her, right at the front. Of course, none other than that disgusting, evil, conniving monster Shenzi, paw up in a fist but her expression fading as she stared into the eyes of righteous justice.
The original Shenzi got away. This one would receive justice. Holding his truncheon out large, Mufasa Delgato roared and charged. "LONG LIVE THE KING!"