Book 1: Chapter 19

"You sure you don't wanna try this, Kion?" Bunga called, "it's un-Bunga-lievable."

"No thanks, Bunga."

Bunga shrugged, glancing back at Dalia. "What about you, Dalia?"

Dalia glanced at the others who were seated in the mud. At some point within the "Girls' Day Away", the group decided to shift from mudball fights to a more relaxing stay that consisted of mud masks with baobab eye coverings. Around this shift, Dalia had left the mud and resorted to lounging on an overlooking boulder and she was soon followed by Kion.

She looked at the others who were still in the mud. Although Kiara was also beckoning her to join them, Zuri and Tiifu gave her a look of disdain. Dalia guessed there were still hard feelings over what happened the last time she saw them.

"Er, no thanks," Dalia answered, adverting her gaze quickly.

As she answered, a sudden chill fell over her and the paranoia returned. The feeling of being watched, which had subsided a little while ago, was now back with vengeance. Kion apparently felt the same shift, for he suddenly stiffened from beside her.

"Did you hear that?" he asked, straining his ears towards the sky.

Bunga, who was still lounging in the mud, paid no attention to Kion's concern. "Nope," he said, waving it off, "Didn't hear anything."

Still, neither lion's concern was quelled. "Something isn't right," Dalia murmured, trying to stifle the chills running up her spine.

Kion tipped his head into a nod of agreement. "I think we should go," he said, turning to those still in the mud.

Zuri, whose eyes were still closed and covered by a pair of leaves, did not seem bothered by Kion's insistence. "But we can't go until the mud masks dry properly," she informed, waving her paw dismissively, "Spa rules."

Kiara and Tiifu both nodded, and Bunga lifted up a hand in agreement.

"Spa rule, Kion," he said knowingly. "Nothin' we can do."

Kion exchanged a worried glance with Dalia, whose heart was now beating against her chest all over again. The cut against her neck, which was now a scar, felt fresh all over again. She could almost feel imaginary claws digging into her throat, trying to claim her life. She looked up to the dark gray sky, and her heart dropped to her stomach at what she saw.

Overhead, she saw Mzingo and two other vultures circling them. Ordinarily, this may have not been as unnerving had it not been for the flaming branches clutched in their talons.

"Guys!" she shouted, her eyes wide. "We've got to go! Now!" She looked back up to the sky, seeing Mzingo's cruel smirk as he prepared to drop a flaming branch directly above her. "Fire!"

The panic in her voice caused everyone to actually look at her with concern. But by the time everyone was starting to leave the hot mud, the branch had dropped, narrowly missing Dalia and landing on the dry grass.

Kion immediately lept into action, his eyebrows knitted in concern. "Everyone, out!" he shouted. "Now!"

In a split second, everyone abandoned what they were doing and immediately began searching for a safe exit.

"Over there!" Dalia called, spotting an open space.

But as soon as everyone began trying to escape through the opening, another flaming branch is quickly dropped. Within seconds, a circle of fire formed around the group, filling the air with thick, unbreathable smoke. Dalia looked at Kiara and her friends, and she saw their eyes wide with terror.

"Move!" Kion ordered. "To the center, away from the smoke!"

Tiifu looked at Kiara, the fire behind her making her glow. "What do we do?" she asked, whimpering, "We're surrounded."

"We need to make a fire break," said Dalia, trying to quell the feeling of fear at the rising flames around them.

Kion tipped his head into a nod. "Bunga—"

"On it," Bunga answered before darting away to where the fire was rampaging.

Kiara's eyes bore a light of determination. "I'm going too," she stated, quickly following the honey badger.

Once they were gone, Kion turned to Zuri, Tiifu, and Dalia. "And you three," he said, glancing at Dalia, "take cover in the mud."

Dalia at first felt a flash of irritation at being negated to sitting in mud. After what she'd done, spying on Scar for weeks, she thought she'd be considered competent enough to help with a fire break. But the irritation was quickly replaced with a dawning horror when she looked back at the mud pool and realized that the entire place, including the trees around it, was already scorched.

"It's too late, Kion," Dalia said.

Kiara, from where she is beside Bunga, took a break from the fire break. "Kion," she said, panting, "the embers are already jumping the break. It's no use."

For a moment, Dalia saw pure and unadulterated fear in Kion's eyes. He took frenzied glances around the clearing, trying to find another way when his eyes widened in realization. "Look, a burrow!" Kion called, spotting an aardvark den a few feet away, "Quick, everyone into the aardvark hole!"

Bunga and Kiara both abandon the fire break and dart towards the newfound sanctuary, and the rest of the group is close behind them. Bunga leaped in first, declaring the space safe, and he is quickly followed by Zuri (after initial complaints of uncleanliness on her part). But when Tiifu approached the hole, she immediately stopped dead in her tracks, a look of fear plastered on her face.

"What's the matter?" Kiara asked, noticing her friend's apprehension.

Tiifu's face turned pale. "It's dark down there," she said quietly, her voice trembling.

"C'mon, Tiifu," called Zuri from inside the hole, "It's not that bad, I promise."

Kiara gave her a small smile. "Look, I'll go in first," she said before hopping into the hole, "See?"

Tiifu still didn't look convinced. "Do I have to?"

In answer, an overlooking tree branch suddenly caught fire and fell almost directly on top of the lionesses. Thankfully, both Dalia and Tiifu were able to dodge it in time.

"Get in, Tiifu," said Dalia tersely, sweat already beading on her forehead, "Before another tree falls and we can't dodge it."

"Tiifu! Dalia!" Kion shouted, running towards the hole, "Get in, now!"

"If it's any solace to you, I'll be right behind you," said Dalia, trying her best at a comforting smile. Though from the look on Tiifu's face, she suspected it came across as mocking.

Still reluctant, Tiifu nodded. "Okay..." she murmured before hopping in.

In the next few seconds, Kion and Dalia both followed suit. And not a moment too soon. A millisecond after Kion jumped in, another tree fell — effectively sealing up the aardvark hole and submerging them in partial darkness.

There were a few coughs and dry heaves sounding through the tunnel.

"Is everyone okay?" called Kion into the dimness.

Kiara's voice answered. "I think so," she said, her face a little visible.

Dalia groaned as realization dawned on her. "Not another tunnel," she muttered, remembering her rescue of Kijana.

"You've been here before?" a scared Tiifu asked, her body pressed against a nearby wall.

"Not here, per se," replied Dalia, "But I was in a similar tunnel not too long ago."

Tiifu's ears flattened. "How was it?"

"Not ideal. It was hot, easy to get lost in, dark..." Dalia said, ticking off her claws.

"Did you say dark?" Tiifu asked, her voice bearing a frantic edge.

Dalia tilted her head, dumbfounded. "...Well, yes. It was a tunnel, after all..."

Tiifu whimpered. "Kion, how long do we have to stay here?"

Kion glanced at the little light filtering through the fallen tree. He frowned when he saw peeks of the fire still raging on outside the hole. "I don't know," he said after a moment, "Maybe a few hours, or maybe even a few days—"

"Days?!" Tiifu shrieked, "No! I can't stay here for days!"

Before anyone could stop her, Tiifu was suddenly making a dash for the exit of the aardvark hole. She ran past Kion and started clawing her way up the wall to escape.

"Tiifu, stop!" Kion shouted after her, "You can't go back up there — the fire's still burning!"

Kion's words only strengthened her resolve. "I have to!" Tiifu shrieked, "I can't stay here!"

"Get down!" Dalia hissed once she saw the rocks crumbling with Tiifu's jerky movement. "You're going to cause a cave-in!"

As if on cue, the ground at Tiifu's paws began sliding towards them. Dalia vaguely heard Kion telling her to get back, but before she knew it, she was lunging out to pull Tiifu out of the rubble. A second later, Zuri was also leaping towards her friend crying, "Tiifu!"

Unfortunately, Dalia didn't have enough time to make it back to the safe zone, so she, Tiifu, and Zuri all found themselves trapped under a thick layer of rubble that Tiifu unearthed. After a few moments of struggling, Dalia managed to pull herself out to safety, and she was quickly followed by Zuri.

Zuri then spotted Tiifu's tail sticking out of the rubble, and she pulled her friend out as well.

"Tiifu, what were you thinking?" Zuri snapped, "You could've gotten us all killed!"

Tiifu looked miserable, her face red and splotchy and her eyes downcast. "I-I know, I'm sorry," she whispered.

Dalia coughed, straining her eyes against the now darker aardvark hole. "Where is everyone else?" she asked.

"Hello?" Kion's voice called, sounding strangely distant, "Is everyone okay?"

Dalia nodded, glancing at Tiifu and Zuri who both looked unharmed. "Yeah, we are —just startled." She squinted against the darkness and saw a solid mass that wasn't there before Tiifu's incident. She stepped forward to it, realizing it was a wall of rubble that had formed — separating herself, Zuri, and Tiifu from the rest of the group. "But it looks like a barrier formed between us in the cave-in. Are Kiara and Bunga with you?"

"Yeah, we are," called Kiara's voice, quickly followed by a 'me too!' from Bunga. "So how are we going to get out?"

Dalia frowned, glancing around her. "It... it looks like a new tunnel opened up on our side," she said, "Do you see any on yours?"

Kion's voice answered her. "Yeah, there's a few on our side. Do you think we should follow the tunnels and try meeting up above ground?"

Dalia sucked a breath between her teeth, blocking out the whimpering noises that Tiifu is trying hard to stifle. Glancing back at the other two lionesses, Dalia raised a brow at them. "Is that okay with you two?" she asked them.

Tiifu didn't answer, but Zuri rolled her eyes at the question. "Do we have a choice?" she drawled slowly — as if Dalia was the dumbest lioness on the face of the earth.

"Right." Dalia felt her cheeks flush at the patronization on Zuri's part, but she ignored it. Turning back to the wall separating the group, Dalia answered Kion. "Yeah, it seems like the only option at this point. I'm just worried about you guys getting lost."

"Don't worry about it!" called Bunga's distant voice from the other side of the wall. "My uncle's kinda an expert in tunnels, so I picked up a thing or two from him. I can get Kion and Kiara outta here safe."

"More importantly," said Kiara, her voice sounding strained, "Will you be able to get Tiifu and Zuri out safely? They're not really used to this kind of stuff."

"Yeah, I gathered that," Dalia murmured under her breath. Speaking in a louder voice, she spoke to Kiara once more. "I'll try."

She looked back at Zuri and Tiifu. Zuri seemed more concerned in picking out the dirt under her claws, and Tiifu was cowering in the corner, her paws over her ears and eyes. Neither seemed particularly eager to decide which tunnel to use. Dalia exhaled sharply and felt an incoming headache.

This is going to be a long day.

. . .

After wasting a lot of time figuring out which tunnel to take (Zuri wanted to take the cleanest one and Tiifu the brightest one), the three lionesses finally began embarking into one of the tunnels. It's a tight squeeze with Zuri and Dalia bumping shoulders, and Tiifu bringing up the rear.

An awkward silence stretched out between them, only broken by occasional whimpers courtesy of Tiifu.

"So... you two have lived in the Pridelands your entire life?" asked Dalia, breaking the silence.

"Yeah." Was Zuri's clipped response. Dalia didn't need to look at her to know the other lioness was glaring at her.

Dalia chuckled awkwardly. "Wow. Cool."

"Not really," said Zuri, rolling her eyes.

She had spoken so lowly, that Dalia hadn't caught it.

"Huh?"

Zuri's eyes flashed with impatience. "I said it's not really that cool to live in one place for your entire life. It's literally the exact opposite of cool." She sniffed. "But I'm sure you wouldn't know what that's like, would you?" she murmured under her breath.

"What're you trying to imply?" Dalia asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Guys..." warned Tiifu, as if sensing the shift in the mood.

Zuri, apparently brazened by her friend's warning, only continued. "Oh, I wasn't implying anything, Dalia," she snapped, "I'm stating it. Everyone else around here seems to fawn over you - ooh, Dalia this, Dalia that - but you know what I think? I think you're nothing special at all."

Dalia felt indignant. "Are you serious?" she demanded, halting in her step. "I put my neck on the line — quite literally, in fact — to help you and your Pride!"

"Yeah, and why? You're not even a Pridelander!" Zuri snapped.

Dalia halted. She already explained herself to Fuli, she would not be explaining her personal reason to an entitled brat.

"None of your business!"

"It is my business if I'm the Princess' advisor!" snapped Zuri, her eyes narrowed in disdain.

"My apologies, oh Wise One, but I don't feel the need to explain myself to you of all lions!"

"This is all just another great, fun adventure for you, isn't it?" seethed Zuri. "You spying on Scar's Army and battling Outlanders — all of this is just a game to you."

"No, it's not!"

"Oh, yes it is! You travel all over the place, and you just happened upon the Pridelands, and now you're sticking your paws in everything? For what other reason could it be other than fun, Dalia? Either that or trying to win Kion over!"

Dalia was indignant. "How dare you?!"

"And once you've had your fun and your flirting," Zuri continued, "You're just gonna pick and leave to the next place. Well the rest of us don't have that luxury; it's not just a game to us who actually live here!"

"Zuri..." warned Tiifu in a soft voice.

Again, she doesn't heed her friend's advice. "Everyone treats you like a hero, but what they don't realize is that you're just gonna abandon everyone as soon as you decide your fun is over."

"Stop," Tiifu cried, stepping forward.

Zuri didn't even look at her. "When things get difficult," she continued, her voice breaking but her eyes fixed on Dalia, "and when you find yourself surrounded by bad memories, you don't have to just stick it out like we do. You don't have anyone you care about, or anyone who cares about you, so all you have to do when things get painful is just leave."

She turned her head away. "You are so lucky," Zuri says in a low voice.

"Zuri, you're not acting like yourself," Tiifu says, pleading, "I know you're still hurt and angry about—"

With fury in her eyes, Zuri turned on her heel at glared daggers at her friend. "Tiifu, don't you dare start," she hissed, "You're sitting here, shivering 'cuz you're afraid of the dark, trying to lecture me?"

A wounded look crossed Tiifu's features, and Dalia could see the tears welling up in her eyes. She could also see the instant regret on Zuri's face.

"Tiifu... I-I'm sorry, I didn't—" Zuri began.

The hurt on Tiifu's face was almost immediately replaced with anger. "Don't even bother," she snapped, rising to her paws, "Sure, I may be scared of the dark, but at least I'm not you. At least I'm not bitter and angry and rude to everyone. You can't deal with the fact your mother left you, so now you're just lashing out at everyone!"

A hurt gasp escaped Zuri's mouth, and her expression was one full of anguish.

Now it was Dalia's turn to de-escalate the situation. "Okay, let's all take a deep breath—"

"But we CAN'T! Because if you haven't noticed, Dalia, we're in a dark, enclosed tunnel that doesn't exactly have enough room for deep breaths!" Tiifu shrieked, a frenzied and panicked look overtaking her features.

Something snapped in Dalia. "Oh, and I suppose that's my fault too, now? Because if I remember correctly, you were the one who got us stuck here in the first place!" She snarled. "I cannot believe that I got stuck with you two out of everyone. When Zuri isn't being rude to me, she's lashing out at you, Tiifu; and when you're not crying about being stuck in the dark, you're blaming me for something you did! This is ridiculous!"

With that last declaration on Dalia's part, the only noise that could be heard was the uneven and ragged breaths that the three lionesses were taking in. It was at that moment Dalia understood the phrase quiet after the storm. The density of the moment was nearly palpable, but it seemed that the fuel - the anger - that was festering between the three lionesses was expelled.

It was like everyone finally took a step back and actually understood what they had said to each other, and were now regretting it.

"I didn't mean that," Dalia said quickly, noting the hurt looks on both Tiifu and Zuri's faces, "I've just had a really tough few days." And it was true. Lately, Dalia feels like she's fighting with everyone. An ache of regret ricochets through her chest as she remembers Tombie.

"Yeah, well, it hasn't been much easier for us too," Zuri said snippishly, though her voice had lost the edge it had bore a few seconds ago. After a few moments, she continued, "I'm sorry for what I said to you, Dalia. You too, Tiifu." Her face scrunched together as if she was trying hard not to cry. "It's just... my mom did leave our Pride when things got rough. It sucks knowing your own mom didn't care about you enough to stay. And I guess you just kinda reminded me of her, Dalia, and I got mad. Still, I'm sorry."

Tiifu looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have brought that up to you, Zuri, and I shouldn't have blamed you, Dalia. And you were right by the way, Dalia. It really is my fault we're stuck here anyway."

"Well, I out of all lions really shouldn't have put you down for being afraid," Dalia pointed out, "I know what that's like personally, and I shouldn't have put you down for it."

"It's still a pretty stupid thing to be afraid of," Tiifu muttered, sniffling.

"Everyone's afraid of their own things, Tiifu," said Zuri in the kindest tone Dalia's heard from her.

Dalia tipped her head into a nod, showing her agreement. "And, for what it's worth, I don't think being afraid of the dark is any more stupid than being scared of water," she said in her attempt at a joke.

Zuri snorted. "Yeah. Now that's pretty stupid."

"Hey!" yelped Dalia, slightly offended but not enough to care — which prompted weak chuckles from everyone.

"Alright, alright," said Zuri, "Enough of this sappy stuff. Let's get out of here."

Tiifu nodded vigorously. "You said it!"

And with that, the girls began trudging their way through the tunnel. And, somehow, it felt brighter with every step. Dalia looked to her newfound - er, she didn't know exactly what to call them. Friends? Non-enemies? Well, she looked at Zuri and Tiifu and felt better than she had in a long time. But being with them only reminded her more of Tombie and how much she valued him as a friend. She knew she couldn't just leave things how it is with him.

She could've very easily died today in that fire, and Tombie would've thought she died hating him. If there was anything she learned today, it was that life is unpredictable. Nothing, not even a day, was guaranteed to her, and she had to start living every day like it was her last.

And so with every step she took towards the tunnel exit, her desire to make things right with Tombie only strengthened.