[Closed] Shattered Hearts, Broken Minds

[KingKivuli]

In the several months that past since Zira's defeat, the Pridelands was finally restored to its full peaceful state. The followers of Zira had seen the error of there ways and King Simba accepted them back into their old home. With all things finally settled, life was back to normal as it was in Mufasa's rule of the kingdom.

It was early afternoon in the African plains. The sun was shining high in the clear blue sky. There wasn't a cloud to be seen for miles. The empty space of the air was filled with bird song. Down on the ground, the light shone off the golden grass. It had been quite warm the past few days and it had caused the earth to golden or even die. Never the less, life went on, and a lot of the animals were crowded round the waterhole for a fresh drink. Anything from antelope to elephants to cheetahs were gathered for their afternoon pit stop

The only animal missing was lion. But they were closer than the others thought, and some of them were going to like. Sarabi was on the prowl, and on a hunt with Nala, Sarafina, Kiara and Vitani. Kiara was has the least experience and was in the centre with Sarabi and Nala on one side, and Sarafina and Vitani on the other. Kiara had gotten alot better recently and today was a chance to prove herself. Sarabi looked over at the group. She might have been old but was still a fine huntress, and still knew how to lead. She gave the group and gentle nod, as herself and Nala split off heading to the left. They were going for a pincer move on a small Zebra group. The two pair would come from the sides and Kiara would cover any that got away. As Sarabi got into position she waited for the others I hope your daughter is up to this Nala, we can't afford any mistakes this time

[SinChei]

The sun was shining on everything and bathed the lands in a golden color. Espacially the grass were the group of lionesses were sneaking in and even one of them were gleaming in that light. It was the Kings daughter Kiara it was one of her biggest chances to become a full member of the hunting party. Watching every of her own, her mothers and her grandmothers steps Kiara breathed low to stay concentrated. The Queens daughter was nervous and it felt like a fire was burning in her belly as if it wasn't enough of it the fire seemed to turn into a big explosion as the two other females of the hunting party made their way to the left side. Kiara needed to concentrate more she tried not to make a wrong step. She knew they would need the food of the hunt this morning, Kiara had totally screwed up the previous hunts.

The golden furred Princess were watching the others until they disappeared in the long grass waiting for the sounds which would tell her to prepare. She would have to get these ones tried to get away. It was an important duty and she knew that, her mother had told her the whole night only making her more nervous then she already was.

Simba was one of the lions she wanted to impress the most. As she moved a few more steps closer to the zebras she almost tripped over her own paw but could avoid it at the last few seconds.

[TheGunner18]

A few rays from the morning sun had managed to filter through the tiny gaps and cracks that were present in the roof of a medium sized cave, although that cave was still big enough to house at least three fully grown lions. This was exactly what the cave was doing. Housing a fully grown lion from the harsh, bitter cold that took over at night from the sweltering heat in the daytime. Although the cave probably shouldn't be used as a permanent living space. The small amount of light that was let through by the tiny gaps in the roof of the cave were still enough to wake up the certain lion who had taken refuge inside the cave for the night.

This lion was a pretty light sleeper, which meant he was also very likely to wake up at unusual noises, especially if they were near him, as he was quite paranoid. This lion's name was Vahvuus, or, if you rather, Vah for short. Vah preffered the shorter version of his name, but then again, he didn't really care if people decided to call him by his longer name. As he awoke, Vah slowly and groggily opened his eyes, and quickly adjusted to the sudden change in light contrast. Once he had opened his eyes slightly, Vah had a good mind just to close them again and go back to sleep, but he resisted that thought, and eventually got up, stretching and yawning at the same time.

Vah began plodding his way out of the cave and into the direct sunlight, glad to warm up in it after being slightly exposed to the freezing night. He knew soon, though that he would be wishing it was night again, due to the heat, especially at midday. After looking around for a bit, he started to walk in the direction of a very strange rock formation that he had been heading towards for the last few days. He was now very close to it. Perhaps he could seek shelter there, and possibly even hunt something.

[AustralianChaos]

Long after the hunting party had left, Simba continued to sit at the very tip of Pride Rock's promontory, looking out over the plains, bathed in the early afternoon light that made the grasslands seem to almost glow golden. Simba sighed lightly as he continued to observed the land he had inherited to lead and watch over from his late father. For the first few months after the integration of the Outlanders into the Pridelands, Simba's abilities as a ruler had been tested as he tried to manage the sudden increase in his pride's population. But now things had settled down, and for the last few months, the Pridelands had been in a state of peace that had not been seen since before Mufasa's death, allowing Simba to finally settle down and handle nothing more than the day-to-day affairs of ruling the Pridelands, while having plenty of time to spend with his family.

Simba smiled at the thought. This had given him plenty of time to start being a proper father to Kiara, rather than the overbearing, fanatically protective father he had been as she had grown up. Looking back on his actions regarding her life, and Kovu, he realised the error of his ways, and felt terrible for refusing to see Kiara's side of the story...he was supposed to be following in his father's paw-prints as a ruler, and instead had started acting more like his late, tyrannical uncle, Scar. He had done his best to try and rectify his mistakes, and make it up to both Kiara and Kovu, and even though he had moved on from that time in his rather eventful life, on the odd occasion his actions still haunted him.

But right now, his thoughts were focused on one lion in particular; Kovu. The young ex-Outlander had actually become Kiara's mate in the intervening time since the integration of the Outlanders, and for Simba, that meant quite a few things, one of which he had put off...until now. Looking out over the Pridelands one last time, Simba steeled himself, before turning and padding softly down the promontory, towards the cave in Pride Rock, which served as the den for the Pridelanders. Heading inside, he quickly sought out the young lion, resting in the corner reserved for him and Kiara, close to the king's own sleeping spot. Simba was amazed when he remembered how much of a threat he had seen Kovu as before...just because he looked remarkably like Scar. Now he had lived with the young lion for some months, he had seen him for the kind, considerate lion he truly was, and was finally accepting him as his son-in-law.

"Hey, Kovu," Simba greeted softly, not wanting to startle his daughter's mate with his sudden interruption of whatever was going through Kovu's mind. He stood there for a moment, before nodding his head towards the cave mouth. "Do you mind if I talk with you for a bit?" he asked, his earlier gesture indicating this was to be a walk-and-talk session. "I have something I need to tell you." As he waited for Kovu's response, Simba thought on the fact that it had taken this long to tell Kovu about the fact that his relationship with Kiara meant he was to be the next king of the Pridelands. Simba guessed part of it was denial, part of it was natural nerves, and part of him was selfishly trying to find some way to stop it from happening. But he had put it off too long, and Kovu had the right to know, so he could start preparing himself for the responsibility.

[Buffy]

It was yet another hot day in the Pridelands. The sun was shining down on just about anything in a beautiful golden color. This caused the grass to be golden and the water to be a fresh color of blue. The air was sweet and the animals seemed content. The Pridelands were finally back to what they once were.

Nala was out hunting with the rest of the group. She had tried to ignore it when Sarabi had commented on Kiara and her hunting, but Nala knew that Kiara could screw up. She had confidence in her daughter, though. She knew Kiara could pull this off somehow.
Nala leaned down as low as she could and didn't take her eyes off the zebra. She slowly put one paw in front of the other and got into a position so she was ready to go when needed. She knew that when the time came she would leap as far as she could and run as fast as she could. She was hungry, and she wanted to fill her stomach.

In another part of the Pridelands, was Buffy. A young lioness that you could expect anything from. She lay underneath a tree and rubbed her belly against the cool sand beneath it. Her fur coat was black like ebony, which made the heat more of a problem. But she had survived this before, and she was positive that a little sunshine wouldn't bring her down.

[YFWE]

Food had been relatively plentiful since the Pridelands had returned to its former splendor, and as such, Vitani did not mind the occasional hunt with the rest of the more able-bodied lionesses of Simba's Pride. It had been a fruitful bounty up to then and showed no signs of letting up. Of course, training certain members of the hunting party had been necessary, particularly the teaching of Kiara -- after all, the future queen would one day need to virtually oversee the party's activities and actions.

Vitani had fallen into line alongside Kiara, Nala's mother Sarafina also immediately nearby. The lioness perked up her ears at a low voice nearby and swiveled her head to the side. Sarabi was whispering to Nala, something about making sure Kiara did not fail on this hunt, or something to that effect. Vitani figured they had nothing to fear since there was, after all, five of them -- even if for whatever reason Kiara could not perform her given duties as a member of the hunting party, surely the other four would be more than enough to nab enough succulent meat to add to the pride's rations.

That said, the lioness never was one to miss an opportunity to get in a tiny jab or two.

"Hear that, Kiara?" asked Vitani, a sly grin spread across her muzzle. "Better not mess up. Better not embarrass mommy..."

She chuckled to herself.

--------

Kovu's sleep had initially been interrupted by his mate's leaving that morning for the hunting party's departure, and he had not been able to fall back asleep fully since that moment. Thus, when King Simba approached him that same morning, Kovu sensed his arrival, so he certainly was not startled when his mate's father whispered to him.

Slowly Kovu stirred, allowing his eyes to open and fix on Simba's. Giving his body one long, satisfying stretch, the young lion cracked his neck before responding, albeit only slightly groggily. "Good morning, Simba."

"I suppose I could spare a few minutes," said Kovu with a grin, acknowledging the fact that he, truthfully, had nothing else better to do, so of course he would be able to accompany Simba to wherever he planned on heading. Either way, Kovu discerned that the king merely wanted to walk... perhaps talk, too. This was confirmed when Simba spoke to him again.

Rising to all fours, Kovu walked over to Simba, glancing out the mouth of the cave before returning his attention to Simba. "Something to tell me, hm? And what might that be?" he asked curiously.

[SinChei]

Kiara was still to concentrated to hear the silent whispers of Sarabi. Her breath was low and calm and she just starred straight forward into the long grass until she could hear Vitanis voice entering her ears. Maybe it would have been better Vitani had been quiet or Kiara would have better not understand it but she did and saw her sly grin upon her mates sisters muzzle. Kiaras fur stood on it's end as she heard her last comment and she got more nervous again. Even if Vitani belonged to them now she was still mean to her sometimes.

Shut up Vitani...

She just let escape her muzzle trying to speak quietly not to scare of some of the zebras. But she scarred of herself as Kiara noticed she almost underestimate the value of her voice and caused a low growl come up her throught. But she forced herself to calm down and looked forward again.

[KingKivuli]

The zebra looked up and scanned the area, sure that they heard something. It took a good few minutes for them to calm down and return to grazing. Sarabi breathed a sign of relief. It was a close call, but thankfully dinner was still one. Once everything was settled, she looked over at Vitani and Sarafina, and gave them the signal to move on up, and attack from the left. Then to Kiara, the kings mother gave a little nod, making sure Kiara knew her place. Finally she turned to Nala Ok we better move up, and come from the right. we should get a good few that way With that, Sarabi moved up, being careful so not to make any noise

[AustralianChaos]

Simba returned Kovu's humourous grin as the young lion said he could spare a few minutes, understanding the joke behind it. "I'll try to make it quick, then, if you're busy," he replied, giving Kovu a taste of his own humour as he kept his grin, before dropping the humourous demeanour, becoming much more serious as Kovu enquired about the nature of the talk. Rather than answering directly, he turned and exited the den, looking back to make sure Kovu was following him. "Come on...I'll tell you while we walk...there's a few things I need to show you as well," he said mysteriously, before leaving the den.

For a brief moment, Simba hesitated, wondering whether he should lead Kovu up to Pride Rock's summit, and show him the sweeping view of the entire Pridelands one could get from up there. After a few moments, though, he decided to show his new heir that particular feature of Pride Rock another time...at sunrise, when it would have the greatest impact, as it had on him when Mufasa had shown him. For a brief moment, a flash of grief and longing pulsed through Simba's consciousness, reminding him of the father he had lossed, and missed terribly. Sighing in sad nostalgia, Simba quickly pushed the old memories aside, before nodding to Kovu to follow him, as he lead them down from Pride Rock and out into the grasslands, following exactly the same path Mufasa had lead him on that day.

"Kovu..." Simba started slowly, figuring out how he could best break this news to Kovu. "I brought you out here, in a way, because of you and Kiara. Don't get me wrong, I have long since accepted your relationship, and I am happy for the two of you...I don't think I could have asked for a kinder, more considerate mate for my daughter. But there is something you need to understand...something you may not have considered in all this."

He paused, before leading Kovu to the top of a small rise, sitting amongst a scattered cluster of rocks, the exact same place Mufasa had given him his 'pouncing lesson' on Zazu that day his father had shown him the land. Once again pushing the memories to the back of his mind, Simba looked up at Kovu, before gesturing all around him, inviting Kovu to take in the view they had of the lands around them. "This is my land, Kovu. Every day I have to watch and protect it, and keep all its inhabitants in line, whilst maintaining the delicate balance that makes up the Great Circle of Life. But I can't do this forever, Kovu. One day I will either die, or become too old and weak to continue my duties as king. When that day comes...those powers, and those responsibilities, will all be passed on to you. As the mate of my daughter, the future queen, you have become the future king, Kovu."

As he made this revelation, Simba stopped his talk there, giving Kovu time to digest everything he had just said, and fully expecting a raft of questions to come his way. even for a fully grown lion, this was a lot to take in, and Simba was fully prepared to patiently wait as long as necessary for the lion. As he waited, the thought of the rather odd irony of the situation. Kovu had been raised ruthlessly by Zira to one day kill him and take Pride Rock for himself, as the delusional lioness had believed Scar, and through him Kovu, despite having no blood relation to Simba's uncle, was the rightful king. And yet, after defying Zira's plans, here Kovu was, being told he was next in line for the throne of Pride Rock anyway.

[YFWE]

Vitani grinned, pleased with herself upon witnessing Kiara's rather shaky stance and attempts to brush off the lioness's comments. "Awww, did I hit a nerve?"' she whispered under her breath before being forced to quiet herself by Sarabi, as the time to hunt was near.

Glancing over at the older lioness, Vitani gave a quick, affirmative nod toward Sarabi once she had completed her instructions. She trusted and respected Sarabi, possibly more than any other lioness in the pride. Further, the prospect of food was involved, and this was downright appetizing to Vitani. Though food had not been scarce, a good meal would be much appreciated.

She allowed for her gaze to be caught by Sarafina's, her eyes locking with the lioness's, before moving away from the small group of huntresses. Trotting ahead, Vitani began to move to the left of their suspected prey, still taking care to make no sound whatsoever. She darted her eyes to her right, attempting to find where the other lionesses' positions were at that point. She did not, after all, want to attack too early before the rest were even ready. She could quite possibly bring one zebra down by herself, but more than one? That was nigh impossible.

--------

Yawning once more and shaking out the lingering kinks that had persisted within his joints after his previous stretches, Kovu followed Simba out of the den and into the bright sunlight. He winced at first, allowing his eyes to become used to the sun's rays after having been cooped up in the darkness all evening and morning up to that point.

As he followed behind Simba off of Pride Rock and into the grasslands surrounding it, Kovu could not help but notice that the King of Pride Rock seemed slightly distant, as if something was troubling him. Whether or not it was something inherently negative remained to be seen. Nonetheless, whatever the reason Simba had brought him out there, Kovu felt, it was certainly not a lighthearted matter.

Kovu had just been about to say something offpaw to break the silence that had persisted since they had left the den, but was stopped before he could even start by Simba's eloquent speaking. The lion wrinkled his nose and grinned only slightly as Simba began, having heard mention of his relationship with the King's daughter, Kiara. A pang of worry hit Kovu shortly after -- was this Simba expressing his disapproval of the union? Had this been why he seemed so fluttered? As he heard more, however, Kovu came to realize that, at least for the time being, he and Kiara's relationship was not in jeopardy; Simba seemed to approve. Then what was the matter?

Once the two lions had taken a spot upon a small rise, Kovu was able to interject a few words: "Well, Simba, that's... good to hear, I think. I mean, I appreciate your blessing. Kiara and I... we really do love each other, that's for sure. But what could I not have considered? Is there something I don't know about her?"

Sealing his muzzle and taking a turn to listen, Kovu's eyes widened at each notion Simba conveyed to him. Of course, though it did not seem to him that this had occurred to Simba, Kovu had figured this would be the case. After all, why wouldn't it be? -- if Kiara was to be the future Queen, and he was to be her mate, it was only logical. That said, it felt reassuring to finally hear it from the mouth of the then-King. And though Kovu did not think himself ready for such a thing just yet, he had at least been aware of its imminence somewhere down the path of life.

Grinning at Simba, Kovu spoke, "Well... right, Simba, I had a feeling. Knew you obviously wouldn't always be around and if Kiara was already in line for the throne, well... I just had a feeling. But," he paused and gave Simba a slight bow, "I am honored to finally hear it from you, Simba. It's reassuring, at best. And it makes me realize that I won't be alone in this. Which is something I'm extremely thankful for."

He sighed. "But... for all of our sakes, Simba, please don't die anytime soon. I'm in no way ready. Not yet. So, yeah, don't die." He sent his elder a small grin.