Note: Hey, hey, hey! I hope you're excited for another chapter. Please let me know if you would like to see more. I'm not sure how active this fandom is these days, but I'm happy to keep sharing if there's interest!

Where's Kovu?

By midday, the morning patrol had returned hours ago. Without him.

Kiara found Vitani stretched out like royalty on a sun-warmed rock, lazily grooming a paw.

"Hey," she called, padding up to her. "Are you sure Kovu went on patrol?"

Vitani yawned. "Yeah. Said so this morning."

Kiara frowned. "Well, he never showed up."

Vitani paused mid-lick, one eye cracking open. "Huh."

Kiara sighed, plopping down next to her.

"Since you're free, and Kovu bailed on me, wanna do something fun?"

"Like what?" Vitani really didn't seem in the mood to move.

Kiara shrugged, her shoulders hanging low. Kovu's absence seemed to greatly affect her. Sighing softly, Vitani sat up. Her brother was a dick, she decided. At least he could have waited for Kiara to wake up to have an adventure together.

"You wanna hear embarrassing Kovu stories?"

Kiara cracked a smile. "Tell me everything."

"Okay, picture this: we're cubs, and Kovu decides he's the greatest hunter to ever live."

Kiara snorted. "That tracks."

"Oh, it gets better. One day, he sees this tiny little lizard. And of course, he has to prove himself by catching it. So he chases it, right into a hollow log."

Kiara leaned in anticipation.

"And because he's Kovu, he doesn't stop to think. He just shoves his head in."

"No way."

"And what a surprise, he gets stuck."

"Please tell me you helped him."

Vitani waved a paw. "Eventually."

"Vitani!"

"What? I was laughing too hard at first."

Kiara chuckled. "You evil sister."

Vitani grinned proudly. "I regret nothing."

Kiara's laughter died out. Her expression softened. "You know, Kovu never talks about his cubhood much."

Vitani glanced at her, then gave a shrug. "We had some moments. Like the log incident. Or wrestling, we did that a lot. But mostly it was about survival. And about proving ourselves. Especially for him."

Kiara bit her lip. "To Zira?"

Vitani flicked her tail, nodding. "She was our mother. And she loved us." A pause. "In her own way."

After a moment, Kiara asked, "Do you miss her?"

Vitani was quiet for a long time. Then, finally, she sighed. "Sometimes."

The golden afternoon stretched lazily across the sky as Kiara and Vitani lay sprawled beneath the shade of a wide acacia tree, still chuckling from their last round of stories.

Kiara wiped a tear from her eye. "You're lying. I can't believe Kovu actually thought he could talk to bugs."

"Oh, you should've seen his face when the cricket hopped away mid-conversation. He was devastated. I swear, he looked like he just lost a royal advisor."

Kiara giggled.

"I told him the cricket understood him, but had to return to his people to deliver an important message. And he actually sat there, all noble, and nodded like he respected the cricket's decision."

Kiara fell into another fit of laughter, rolling onto her side. Her shining eyes wandered to the Pride Rock as she brushed her eyes.

"I wonder if he is back."

Vitani followed her gaze. "He would have found us by now."

Kiara sighed. "I don't understand him. And honestly, I'm a little crossed. Why would he tell you he'd join the patrol if he didn't. And then just disappear for the rest of the day."

"He probably got distracted on the way to find them."

Kiara snorted. "Vitani. He's not a butterfly."

"No, but he's a former Outlander. Maybe he smelled something."

That made sense. Kovu was always extra alert.

Kiara rose to her paws and Vitani followed. "Then let's check if he's back and ask him."

Nala had been enjoying a rare moment of peace today. She had been lounging while conversing with the older lionesses for most part. Before finding a solitary spot she could nap in. That was when Kiara appeared with Vitani.

"Mom? Have you seen Kovu?"

Nala stretched out her arms, yawning.

"Not since this morning."

Her eyes flicked from Kiara to Vitani who were exchanging a meaningful look.

She furrowed her eyebrows. "What is it?"

Kiara's jaw tensed. "We don't know where he is. He told Vitani he'd join the morning patrol, but the lionesses said he never went. I didn't see him during my patrol either. It's like no one has seen him the whole day."

That got Nala's full attention. She rose smoothly to her paws.

Simba had been nearby, speaking with Zazu, but now he turned toward them. His ears perked.

"What's wrong?" His eyes moved to Kiara. His body quickly switched to alertness when he saw her troubled expression.

"Kovu's missing," she said quietly, offering an unsure grin. Why? Because she already knew her father would overreact.

Simba's expression darkened. "Missing? What do you mean, missing?"

Vitani rolled her eyes. "Not really missing, he's simply been gone since the morning."

"Since the morning? It's going to be dark soon." Simba exhaled deeply, his stance shifting. "Did anyone see him leave?"

"Yes, but no one knows where to," Kiara said with a soft sigh.

"He didn't tell anyone where he was going?" Simba asked, his voice raising a notch.

Silence stretched between them. Neither Kiara or Vitani wanted to snitch more than they already had.

Nala sighed. "Apparently not."

Then Simba scoffed, shaking his head. "Unbelievable."

His tail lashed and his muscles tightened as he took a few pacing steps.

Nala gave him a look.

Simba stopped. Breathed.

Nala knew what he was thinking. He worried the worst. He always did. And when he worried, it always came out first as anger.

She stepped closer, brushing his side with a grounding touch.

"We'll track him," she said. "He couldn't have gone far."

Simba's chest rose and fell with a deep sigh. Then, with a curt nod, he turned toward Zazu.

"Fly ahead. Search the western border. If you spot anything, return immediately."

The hornbill dipped his beak. "Right away, sire."

With a sharp flap of his wings, he was gone.

Simba turned back to Kiara and Vitani. "Notify the others. Your mother and I will start looking for his tracks."

Kiara nodded quickly and took off, Vitani right behind her.

Nala joined Simba on the way down the Pride Rock.

"He's reckless," Simba hissed.

Nala sighed. "He's young."

"He has responsibilities now."

"I know."

"He should know better."

"He's still learning."

Simba huffed, his eyes locked ahead. "What was he thinking, not telling anyone where he was heading?"

Nala glanced at him. His jaw was tight.

"That sounds familiar," she said, smiling softly.

Simba shot her a look, but there was no real bite in it. Just something resigned.

"Everything is going to be okay," she told him, and he nodded, yet they picked up their speed.

They reached the edge of the Pride Lands, where faint paw prints trailed toward the distant hills. Nala stopped, looking at them.

"These are his."

Simba stepped forward, inspecting the tracks. His brow furrowed.

"They're alone," he said.

Nala's gaze followed the trail. They led outward, away from the kingdom.

Her stomach tightened. She tried her best not to show it.

Simba's ears pinned back. "Why would he go there alone?"

His tail flicked sharply, and he turned away, pacing a short distance before stopping.

"This is so reckless," he muttered in frustration.

Nala stepped closer. "Simba. He's lived his whole life in the Outlands."

He didn't look at her. "He is supposed to stay in the Pride Lands. Like all of our newcomers. Because if everyone is here, that over there is no longer their territory. Why is he the only one who can't understand me?"

Nala felt it. The moment when worry became fear.

So she softened her own voice. "Okay, we don't know what made him go there. Let's find him and he'll explain what happened."

Simba exhaled, rolling his shoulders. Another grounding breath.

He looked back. Still not in view, but the others wouldn't be long.

"Okay, let's follow the trail."

Nala gave a small nod.

The sun was setting lower in the horizon. So they quickened their pace, following the faint scent left by the trail of paw prints, leading them to the abandoned desert they called the Outlands.

Note: I don't know about you but I wouldn't want to be Kovu!