Princess Nala was frozen in place as two lionesses ran past her, aiming for the zebra. Rhea aimed for the back, while Sherise went for the throat. The zebra never stood a chance, and the sound of it hitting the ground jolted her out of her shock.

Nala hurried to her mother, who was curled up, groaning. "Mom! Are you okay?"

Eshe groaned again, grimacing in pain.

Auri and the others had become aware of the situation. They made their way over to where the queen had fallen, visibly concerned for her well-being. Sherise bit the zebra's throat again to make sure it was dead before approaching the group.

Auri quickly stepped in after gaining a better understanding of the situation. Nala was shaken and concerned about her mother, and Sherise hadn't yet gained the confidence to command the Pride Landers.

"I don't think we should move her, not until Rafiki has seen her." the pale gold lioness looked at her light gold pelted daughter. "Kopa, could you please go get the mjuzi?"

The young light gold lioness nodded and ran off without a word of protest.

Auri shifted her gaze to her step-son's daughter, Tiifu. "Go to Pride Rock and tell Askari. He can figure out how to inform his father and brother."

The light cream lioness nodded and quickly ran off.

Auri noticed several lionesses tending to Eshe and turned to Nala, who had retreated a short distance away, shaking.

"This is my fault," the princess whimpered, her eyes wide and brimming with tears.

Auri sighed and nuzzled her gently. "It is not your fault. Your mother was well aware of the risks of hunting in her condition," she stated emphatically. "She shouldn't have sent you after that zebra alone either. You're improving, but you aren't quite ready for that yet."

Nala didn't look convinced. It was a sensitive subject for her. Her mother was regarded as one of the pride's best huntresses. Nala, on the other paw, had barely passed her hunting test and was still struggling with it.

As they waited for the others to return, Auri continued to try to console her. Tiifu was the first to respond, stating that she had relayed the message to Prince Askari. Not long after, Kopa returned with Rafiki.

The mjuzi hurried over to the queen's side, shooing the others away. "Rafiki needs space to work!" He scolded. As he began to tend to Eshe, he muttered, "You and your son, you're too alike. You are both far too stubborn for your own good!"

Eshe grimaced, but she couldn't argue with that. "The cub?"

Rafiki looked at the queen's abdomen wit concern. A bruise was forming where the zebra had kicked her. He placed a gentle hand on her stomach and began to press and feel around. His heart was sinking as he felt no movement until a light, almost imperceptible kick hit his palm. He smiled.

"You are very lucky, my queen. De cub is still moving." Rafiki paused for a moment before continuing, "Rafiki does not know if de cub suffered any ill effects from de kick. But de cub still lives."

The group felt a wave of relief wash over them. The cub was still moving. It didn't mean they were alright, but the cub was alive, and that was what mattered.

Rafiki began tending Eshe's bruises, and there was silence until a roar announced the arrival of Sarabi, Mheetu, Jashua and Askari. All of them wide-eyed and frantic.

Auri stepped away from Nala and quickly approached them. Her gold eyes on the tawny pelted Prince-Consort. "She's alright, your grace. She's just very bruised and sore, and the cub is still moving around," she explained quickly.

"What happened?" Jashua asked as Sarabi and Mheetu lay next to Eshe, nuzzling her.

"Mom encouraged me to go after one of the zebras on my own. I couldn't take it down, and when she tried to help, she got kicked," Nala said softly, her ears pressed against her skull.

Jashua sighed, seeing how guilty his sister felt. "Hey, it's not your fault. "Mom should've let one of the others help instead," he said, embracing her. "The important thing is that none of you got seriously hurt."

Nala sighed and pressed closer to her older brother. It was difficult to accept that it wasn't her fault.

It wasn't fair to the light beige lioness. Jashua had stepped into his role as future king with ease, never appearing to struggle with anything. Even rebelling against their mother seemed to work out for him. Meanwhile, she couldn't even hunt.

Their grandmother's words drew their attention. "You realize this means I'm confining you to Pride Rock until the cub's born, right?"

Kopa and Kiara both pinned their ears. Their mother was not going to take that well. She hated being ordered around.

Mheetu looked at Auri and asked, "Auri, could you see to getting the zebras back to Pride Rock?"

Truthfully, he just didn't want the others to see the argument that was likely to ensue between his mate and mother-in-law.

Auri nodded, clearly understanding. Though some of the lionesses were reluctant to leave, she soon had them on their way, dragging their prey with them and leaving the royal family and Rafiki alone.

Sherise had given Jashua a quick nuzzle before joining the others as they left.

Eshe was glaring at her mother. "Mother, I'm fine. And need I remind you I am the queen?"

Sarabi nodded her head. "True as it may be, but I am the Queen Mother, Eshe!" the dark beige lioness narrowed her orange eyes at her daughter. "You say you're okay but the cub almost wasn't. Eshe, you fought in a war, and now this. Please. It's not just yourself you have to worry about right now,"

After a moment Sarabi bent down and nuzzled her daughter. "I just don't want to lose either of you. I have lost so much," she mumbled.

Jashua, Nala and Askari remained silent, their eyes averted, to give their mother and grandmother some semblance of privacy. It was rare they saw their grandmother being so vulnerable.

Not for the first time, Nala wondered what might've happened if Simba or Sherise had succeeded in taking out her mother. Nothing good, she answered herself silently. She doubted even Jashua would've been able to stop their father or grandmother if the queen had died in the battle.

Sometimes, it was difficult to reconcile the awkwardly uncertain Simba she was getting to know with the battle-hardened warrior she'd seen that day.

Rafiki's voice drew her out of her musings, and she shifted her attention to the mandrill as he added, "It would be wise for you to rest, my queen. Rafiki is not sure if the cub would survive a third incident of dis kind."

Eshe grimaced. She hated being passive and dependent on others. But her mother was right. She touched a paw to her stomach, and feeling the soft movements beneath, she sighed.

"Alright."

Mheetu sighed in relief. She'd given in relatively easily. He'd learned early on in their relationship that Eshe despised being ordered around. In this case, however, she had endangered not only herself but also their unborn cub. "Is it safe for her to walk now?" the Prince-Consort asked Rafiki.

Rafiki nodded. "Yes, the queen should be able to make it to Pride Rock. Just go at her pace." He stood. "Rafiki will come and check her again in de morning."

Mheetu nodded. "Thank you, Rafiki." He helped Eshe to her paws. The queen groaned. She was much more sore than she had anticipated. Even if her mother hadn't confined her to Pride Rock, she wasn't likely to be up for hunting any time soon. "Would you like an escort back to your tree?"

"No, no, Rafiki will manage," the mandrill said. "You just worry about getting de queen back to Pride Rock."

~TLK~

It was a slow walk, and Mheetu hadn't even let Eshe attempt the steps, instead carrying her up on his back, but the royal family eventually returned to Pride Rock.

Mheetu had placed Eshe on the royal platform before going out to assure the pride that the queen was fine, just bruised, sore, and shaken.

"Because of this, Eshe will be confined to Pride Rock until the cub is born. Sherise will take over the role of lead huntress. Auri, I'd like you and Rhea to take over Eshe's supervision role in the hunting party and help Sherise out if it's necessary," Mheetu said firmly. "And I'd also like to thank you for your quick thinking during today's incident." He smiled at the pale gold lioness, truly grateful.

Auri dipped her head in acknowledgment of his words. "I only did what needed to be done."

Mheetu chuckled before he flicked his tail. "You're dismissed," he told the assembled pride as he returned to the main den to be by his mate's side, and Jashua and Sherise vanished to spend some time alone.

Several of the lionesses seemed unimpressed by Kiara's actions during the hunt. They gathered in groups, whispering among themselves.

Nala's ears flattened, and she quietly snuck away to find a quiet place, shame and guilt bubbling up within her. If she were a better huntress, none of this would've happened.

She never noticed the pair of orange eyes that watched her leave.

As she picked up pace over the plains, Nala felt some tears stream down her cheeks. She needed a place to think quietly, but Pride Rock was the last place she wanted to be right now. She eventually came across a small cove and entered it. Her mind was a jumble of thoughts mixed with guilt and self-doubt as she lay down with her head in her paws.

"Is everything okay?"

Nala turned with a soft gasp. She hadn't expected to be followed. When she saw the dark gold lion, she sighed, her pounding heart beginning to calm. "Oh! Simba! You startled me."

Simba mumbled, "Heh, sorry." He took a closer look at her face, noticing her distress. "Is this about what happened to your mother?"

Nala turned away, mumbling, "It's my fault she got hurt. I couldn't take down the zebra on my own."

"I see," Simba said as he sat down next to her. "I guess we all have to start somewhere." He smirked slightly before saying, "But if it helps, I could help you with those hunting skills."

Nala turned and looked at him. She considered his offer for a moment, but she still didn't seem convinced. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'd be better off leaving hunting to the others."

"Maybe. Or maybe you simply need a different approach. After all, your mother didn't get as good as she did by giving up." Simba smirked.

The light beige lioness bit her lip.

"Look, there's no shame in being bad at something," the dark gold lion continued, sensing her hesitation. "And accidents happen. All you can do is improve where you went wrong. I'm willing to help you with that,"

Princess Nala sighed. "You really think you can help me?"

"I'm willing to give it a try if you are," Simba affirmed with a smile.

Really, what did Nala have to lose? "Alright then," she said, wiping her stray tears away. "When do we start?"

"Whenever you're ready."

Ready? Will I ever be ready? Nala contemplated it. She knew she needed to improve, but she wasn't sure how. However, Simba's offer was better than nothing, and she believed it'd be better to begin sooner rather than later.

"I can start right away." the light beige stood up, eager to get started.

Simba stood as well. "Well, first I need to see where you're at, so I can figure out how to best help you." He led her to an area filled with tall grass and motioned to a patch of dirt. "I'll go lie down there. I want you to stalk me and see if you can catch me off guard."

Nala nodded and watched as Simba moved through the grass and settled down on the patch of dirt. She studied the grass before she began to move through it.

...

Simba crossed his forelegs and waited. He wasn't sure why he'd followed Nala or why he'd offered to help her. But something about her had caught his interest, and seeing her upset had stirred something in him.

As he waited, he could hear her muttering as the stalks of grass rustled. He sighed, rolling his eyes as he counted down,

"Three...two...one." He ducked as Nala pounced.

"Gotcha!" Nala exclaimed. She went over him, rolling in the dirt, until she landed on her back with a grunt. Looking up, she could see Simba standing over her. "You could hear me, huh?" She said, grinning sheepishly.

"Only a lot," Simba replied dryly as he stepped back to allow Kiara to stand. "You're too tense when you're stalking. You need to keep your body steady but loose enough to move quickly when you need to." He smiled encouragingly before looking down and flexing his claws into the dirt. "Relax. Feel the earth under your paws, so it doesn't shift and make noise."

Nala observed him before imitating him and flexing her own claws.

Simba stood there watching until he noticed some movement out of the corner of his eye. It was a herd of impalas. "Why don't you try hunting one of those? They're smaller than a zebra, so you should be fine."

Nala looked doubtful.

"You've gotta start somewhere. And I'll be here."

Somehow, that filled Nala with the resolve she needed. She took a deep breath and nodded before shifting into a hunting stance and stalking toward the herd, keeping his advice in mind.

Simba observed her before turning his gaze to the impalas. He looked at them for a few moments before noticing one with an injury on one of its forelegs. That would make escape difficult. Returning his gaze to Nala, he was pleased to see that she had also noticed as she locked onto her target. He watched as she stalked as close to the injured impala as she dared, then pounced, easily clamping onto the neck as the other impala scattered and fled.

As he ran to her, Simba let out a triumphant shout. "That was perfect!" He exclaimed as he came to a halt next to Nala and her prey.

Nala bit the impala's neck one more time to ensure it was dead before meeting his gaze, her eyes sparkling. "I can't believe I actually did it!"

"You just needed some direction, that is all. We'll gradually work our way up to larger prey, but I think you're off to a good start," Simba said with a smile.

Nala wasn't that bad, and with a little more training, she could be a fearsome huntress.

Nala smiled back at him. It was nice to know that someone believed in her when even her own pride didn't.

Both of them sensed that this was a turning point in their tentative friendship, a shift to more solid ground.