"The Pride That Never Was"

[KiarasMate]

Nice new chapters you added here Akril. ^^ Thanks for posting two of them, as like you did mention, they are a tad bit short but still, very nicely written in my opinion. Looking forward to more and keep up the fantastic work my friend. ^^

[YFWE]

Amusing chapter. Not very exciting, but one's gonna have these "talk" chapters from time to time with any story, I think. Gotta set oneself up for some greatness later on.

Not much else to say. The prospect of dialogue between the now-adolescents is intriguing, namely to see how they've matured. Here's hoping too that we'll see a reunion between Shani and Kovu shortly. In the meantime, I'm curious to see how Chaka and Timira are now taking their betrothal and whether or not there's any sparks between them whatsoever.

I'll be excited when this gets to the point where we're starting to see some newer ideas flowing in. Right now it's more of a rehash of SP, though I'm sure that'll change once Chaka and Kovu's quest for the throne begin to intertwine.

[Akril]

Chapter Eight:


Simba, Nala, Zazu, Timon, Pumbaa, and nearly all the members of the pride had gathered at the base of Pride Rock. Today was a very important day. Princess Shani was about to embark on her first hunt. It was one of the most pivotal moments in the life of a lioness, especially for one who happened to be the king's daughter.

Shani wasn't going to hunt alone, however. She and Timira had asked Simba to let them hunt together, and Simba saw no reason to turn down their request. Though she hadn't yet participated in any formal hunts, Timira had become quite a proficient hunter, even if her prey consisted mostly of mice, ground squirrels and small birds.

The pride suddenly began talking excitedly, and Simba looked up to see Shani and Timira descending the slope that led to the main level of Pride Rock. They walked side by side, looking excited, but nervous as well.

Simba marveled at the young lioness his daughter had become. Her pale gold fur shone like the sun, and her bright eyes sparkled with life. She delicately padded down the slope, smiling warmly at the lionesses of the pride as they praised her and offered her words of encouragement.

Timira's demeanor was somewhat more reserved than her friend's. She nodded and smiled in response to the lionesses' words, but it was apparent that she was taking this affair very seriously. She seemed determined to live up to her role as future queen and make her first hunt a success.

As Timira neared her mother Masika, they nuzzled fondly and Masika whispered something to her that Shani couldn't hear. Then they approached Simba and Nala, who smiled lovingly at them.

"Are you ready, you two?" Simba asked.

"You bet," Shani grinned.

Timira nodded, but then frowned and glanced around the crowd of lionesses surrounding them.

"Where's Chaka?" she asked. "I thought he'd be here today."

Simba glanced worriedly at Timira. As she and Chaka had started entering adolescence, a small but definite rift had started to grow between them. Though he still spent time with Shani, Chaka talked to Timira less and less, and consequently Timira became more and more uncomfortable around him. Part of Simba felt that this was simply some of the normal moodiness that all young lions went through, but part of him worried that perhaps Chaka and Timira's friendship was fading -- and if they weren't even friends anymore, how were they going to get along once they were married and ruling the kingdom?

Perhaps Simba should have done away with the whole betrothal tradition like he claimed he was going to do when he was a cub, but once again, it seemed too late for anything to be done. As he was trying to come up with a suitable answer to Timira's question, Nala suddenly spoke up:

"Chaka said he wanted to be alone for a while," she explained. "I'm sure he wanted to come, but was too nervous to. You know how shy he can be at times."

Timira looked down dejectedly. Nala gently nuzzled her.

"Don't worry, Timira," she said soothingly. "He won't be away for long, and I'm sure he'll be there when you and Shani return."

Timira smiled a forced smile and nodded.

"I hope so," she said quietly. Then she turned to Shani.

"Well, let's go."

Shani grinned excitedly, then turned to say good-bye to her parents.

"Be careful, Shani," Simba said, rubbing his head against hers.

"I will," she replied.

"Good luck," Nala said.

"Thanks, Mom."

With that, Shani and Timira left the large gathering of animals, heading out into the vast plains of the Pride Lands. Everyone watched the two young lionesses until they were lost among the tall, golden grasses.

"Wow," Pumbaa said, sounding genuinely touched. "That sure was special."

"Yeah," Timon agreed, leaning against the warthog's leathery side. "Now why can't us meerkats and warthogs have things like this to celebrate when we've dug up our first bugs on our own?"


Meanwhile, miles away from Pride Rock, Shetani stealthily crept through a dark, gloomy place littered with the countless bones of beasts that had died many lifetimes before. Many geysers adorned the land as well, and would often spew out scalding steam or fiery jets.

Shetani moved slowly, warily glancing from side to side and sniffing the air. In some ways, she thought to herself, this place was even worse than the Outlands. At least in the Outlands, there weren't many places that were truly dangerous. Here, however, there was the constant danger of getting badly burnt by one of those geysers, getting badly cut on a sharp sliver of bone, getting hopelessly lost amongst the many caverns...

...Or getting attacked by hyenas.

Even though her mother had said that hyenas no longer inhabited this desolate place where ancient elephants went to die, the smell of the scavengers still hung heavily in the air. As tough as she was, Shetani was still frightened. She had never been away from her pride for this long, and being in this bone-strewn wasteland wasn't a pleasant place to be alone. Still, she had a mission to carry out...and for the sake of herself, Kovu and the rest of her pride, she had to accomplish it.

In her mouth she carried a long, dry branch. She rolled it back and forth between her teeth as she walked, warily glancing about. It wasn't just hyenas she was on the lookout for, however, and after exploring the graveyard for some time, she found exactly what she was looking for.

It was a small geyser with a thick rim around it. As Shetani watched, a tall plume of flame shot out of it, then disappeared. She cautiously approached it, placed the branch on the rim of the geyser, then stepped back. She had her doubts that this particular part of the plan would work, but she trusted her mother's judgment.

After a minute or two, the geyser erupted again, and to Shetani's delight, she saw that the tip of the branch had caught fire. She carefully picked it up and began to retrace her steps. The Pride Lands were just a short distance away, but she still had to make it there as quickly as possible.


"Don't be so hard on yourself, Shani," Timira said. "Even the best hunters lose their prey two times out of three."

"But we were so close," Shani moaned.

"Well, believe me, it could have been worse," Timira said. "At least neither of us got kicked in the head. What do you think we should go for next?"

Shani sighed. She and Timira had attempted to make a kill three times, and each time had been a complete failure. Still, they still had plenty of energy and hadn't given up completely yet. They just had to find the right prey to attack...

"Well...how about those zebras over there?" Shani asked.

Timira squinted at the distant black and white specks.

"They seem pretty far away," she remarked. "Are you sure you want to go for them?"

"Sure," said Shani. "They can't be any more difficult than those wildebeest were."

Timira nodded. She stepped down from the large rock she and Shani were using to survey the land and began walking in the direction of the zebra herd. Shani leapt off the rock and bounded up to Timira's side. They walked along in silence for several minutes until Shani spoke again:

"Maybe we should try taking down a young one this time," she suggested.

Timira nodded.

"Or maybe one of the old ones. A big one would be better than a small one, wouldn't it?"

Timira said nothing. Shani stared questioningly at her.

"Uh...Timira?" she asked quietly.

Timira stopped walking and glared at her.

"What?" she snapped.

"I'm sorry," said Shani meekly. "You just seem angry all of a sudden."

Timira glanced down.

"I'm not angry," she said dully. "I'm just...thinking."

Shani suddenly realized what was going on.

"It's about Chaka, isn't it?"

Timira's orange eyes stared deeply into Shani's. Then she cast them down again.

"Yes," she sighed.

"Oh," Shani said. "I see...I wish he had been there too, but what Mom said about him just being shy...I think she was right."

"You think so?" Timira asked.

"Yeah. Chaka's always been like that, you know."

"Well...I hope you're right," Timira said, slowly looking up at Shani.

Shani nodded, then grinned and nudged Timira playfully.

"Come on, let's grab one of those zebras before they all run away," she laughed.

Timira couldn't help but be touched by Shani's words. She smiled gently and the two of them once more began making their way towards the unsuspecting herd that lay before them.


Shetani stood on a small bluff near the edge of the Pride Lands. Her stick was burning up rapidly and she didn't know how much longer it would last. She eyed the plains intently, waiting for her target to appear. When it did, she would have to act quickly but carefully. The slightest mistake on her part could spell disaster...but there was no way of knowing how the fire would behave once it was set free. Still, the wind seemed to be just right, and she knew that her target would be close by...

...And then suddenly, she spotted it: a pale speck of gold on a distant hill, slowly but surely headed her way. Now it was time. Shetani leapt down from the bluff and began running through the tall grasses, brushing them with the flaming tip of her branch. The dry grasses burst into flames, crackling noisily. The heat was terrible, and Shetani was afraid that her fur would catch on fire, but she reminded herself again and again that she couldn't fail in her mission.

She ran as fast as she could through the grasses, creating a towering wall of flames. When this was done, she paused and looked back to examine her handiwork. Yes, she told herself, this was enough. Her part of the plan was over. She dropped the burning branch and sped away as the fire grew larger and larger, the wind sweeping it across the plains towards the two young lionesses that were slowly approaching a small herd of zebras.

[ograndebatata]

Well, I never thought Timiria and Shani would be going together on the hunt - or that Chaka and Timira would drift apart - but about that... well, if the tradition goes back generations, there have to be some generations in the between where it doesn't work, mainly with the cubs being betrothed at such a young age.

I'm not sure if I already told you this, but either I've been reading this very badly, or there's no equivalent to Nuka in this story. Why have you dropped him? Sure, he could be somewhat of an idiot, but he was funny... and well, he did account for some of the tragedy in the movie.

I do wonder how both Timira and Shani will be saved though... Kovu can't carry two of them!

[KiarasMate]

lol, I'm probably one of the only ones here who don't mind how closely your story is following that of TLK2SP's original storyline, as I honestly never felt as though it was as flawed as most people think it to be, so I'm still thoroughly enjoying your Fan Fic thus far Akril. ^^ You add enough little twists and alterations to the plot to make it your own and again, your attention to detail is what really makes this story enjoyable for me as it paints a very vivid picture of what's happening within the story, even if I could already have imagined it from knowing TLK2SP so well, your version just seems to have more life to it, but that's probably just because it's new to me. Anyways, as always, keep up the marvelous work my friend and looking forward to the next chapter.

[Akril]

Well, I never thought Timiria and Shani would be going together on the hunt - or that Chaka and Timira would drift apart - but about that... well, if the tradition goes back generations, there have to be some generations in the between where it doesn't work, mainly with the cubs being betrothed at such a young age.

Yep, that's what I thought too...there had to be some betrothed pairs that refused to marry each other, or others that endured some very unhappy marriages.

I'm not sure if I already told you this, but either I've been reading this very badly, or there's no equivalent to Nuka in this story. Why have you dropped him? Sure, he could be somewhat of an idiot, but he was funny... and well, he did account for some of the tragedy in the movie.

Yes, I have dropped Nuka. I was reluctant to do so, but I felt that the story was getting pretty crowded with all the new characters plus the other characters' SP equivalents as well as the characters from TLK. I wanted to focus more on Kovu, Simba and Shani, and I honestly wasn't sure how I was going to fit Nuka into the story without bogging the story down even more.

I do wonder how both Timira and Shani will be saved though... Kovu can't carry two of them!

Just wait another day...you'll see...

[Akril]

Chapter Nine:


Concerned that her darker coat would be noticed by the zebras, Timira had been approaching them with her body flattened against the ground for some time now. However, she and Shani were finally growing close to the zebras, and now Shani dropped into a crouch beside her. From now on, they both had to move as silently and discreetly as they could.

The herd continued grazing placidly as the two lionesses drew closer. Shani spotted a sickly looking one near the edge of the herd. She gently nudged Timira and gestured towards it. Timira gazed thoughtfully at the zebra, then nodded to Shani.

As the lionesses began approaching their target, however, some of the other zebras suddenly lifted their heads and began glancing about nervously. Shani and Timira froze. Had the zebras seen them?

They had no time to contemplate this question, since the entire herd of zebras began galloping away from them. Timira looked aghast for a moment, but then enraged. With a frustrated snarl, she bolted after the retreating zebras. Startled and confused, Shani took off after her.

"Timira, it's no use!" Shani panted. "There's no way we can catch up with them when they're this far ahead of us!"

"I can catch up with them, and I will," Timira growled. "These stupid animals have gotten away from me too many times now, and they're not getting away from me..."

Her words trailed off into silence, and her run suddenly slowed into a walk. Shani's pace slowed as well until they had both come to a complete stop. The zebras had all disappeared over a high hill, but Timira's interest in them seemed to have suddenly vanished. She frowned and sniffed the air.

"What is that?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.

Shani took a few tentative breaths through her nostrils and smelled something strong and acrid that seemed to be coming from somewhere ahead of them. She then glanced upward and gasped. Timira looked up as well and her eyes grew wide with fear.

A huge cloud of smoke was rapidly rising over the crest of the hill, and the zebras that were running away from them minutes ago were now running towards them. Behind them, tall, orange flames flickered fiercely, consuming the dry grasses that lay before them and coming closer by the second.

No more words needed to be spoken between Shani and Timira. They turned and ran, followed closely by the herd of zebras as well as a vast swarm of other animals who were also trying to escape the merciless fire.


As the blaze spread, two lions sat and watched it from a high rock near the border of the Pride Lands. One was a pale, elderly female with reddish eyes: Bianca. The other was a young male with dark fur and a black mane. The years of training his mother had given him had changed him into a strong, skilled fighter. He had never killed one of his own kind, but he certainly could if he had a reason to.

There was only one lion Kovu had a reason to kill, however: Simba. The one who had usurped the throne that had rightfully belonged to Kovu's father, then killed him and banished all who were loyal to him to the Outlands. As his mother had told him time and time again, killing Simba was the only way to reclaim Kovu's rightful place as king of the Pride Lands.

Bianca smiled fondly at her son. How much like Scar he now looked: the same dark pelt, the same black mane, even the same green eyes that glowed in the light of the fire. He even had the same cunning mind and sharp wit that Scar had, and Bianca knew that Kovu would not fail in avenging her mate's death.

"The plan is in motion," she whispered to him, watching the roaring flames that danced around them. "Go!"

Kovu leapt from the rock and into the fire, making his way through the twisted, blazing labyrinth that stood between him and his goal. Bianca felt a twinge of fear as he disappeared amongst the flames, but it quickly passed. He is Scar's son, she reminded herself. He won't fail.


Shani ran through the smoky fields, her heart thundering in her chest. The fire had spread so rapidly that had surrounded her almost completely, and every opening she bolted for became engulfed in flames almost instantly.

Suddenly she realized that Timira was gone. In her blind panic, she hadn't realized she was alone until now. She glanced wildly about, trying to find her. How long had they been separated? Had Timira escaped the fire? Was she still close by?

The smoke started to sting Shani's eyes and she took off running again. She had to find a way out, and quickly. She was even more terrified now that she knew Timira was gone. With her, she might not have been so afraid, but now she was completely alone and at the mercy of the fire. Timira couldn't save her, Chaka couldn't save her, her parents couldn't save her, no one could --

Suddenly a dark shape loomed out of the smoke ahead of her. It was difficult to make out at first, but then Shani realized that it was a lion. Thinking it to be her brother or her father, Shani ran toward it, but then skidded to a halt when she came close enough to see him clearly.

It was indeed a lion, but not one that Shani had ever seen before. This one had a smooth, dark mane and a pelt even darker than the smoke that billowed around him. His green eyes glared at Shani, and she trembled with fear.

"Follow me," the lion growled. "Hurry, we don't have much time left."

Before Shani could respond, the lion turned and started loping away, then stopped and looked over his shoulder when he realized that Shani hadn't moved.

"Come on!" he roared. "Unless you want to die here!"

Shani didn't. She hurried after the stranger, who ran so quickly that she had difficulty keeping up with him. The smoke was getting thicker and Shani was having trouble breathing. Once a blazing tree fell across their path. Shani jumped at the sight of this, but the stranger merely snarled angrily and ran around it.

They kept on running until they came to the top of a steep incline overlooking a small stream, one of the tributaries of the Zuberi River. The stranger leapt off the ledge and into the stream, swimming for the opposite side. Shani hesitated, then jumped as well, paddling through the still water as competently as she could. The stranger was already waiting for her on the far bank.

Shani dragged herself out of the water and shook herself dry. She looked behind her to see that the fire was starting to grow smaller. With no more grass to feed it, it was slowly but surely dying. Shani sighed with relief, then turned to face the dark stranger, who was standing expectantly in front of her.

"Who are you?" she asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

"I think I'm the one who just saved your life," the stranger said.

"Hey, I could've gotten out of that fire just fine," Shani shot back, her pride a little bruised.

"It sure didn't look like that when I found you...Pridelander."

"Pridelander?" Shani tried to remember where she had heard that word before. Suddenly she remembered that strange cub she had met when she was exploring the Outlands...

"Kovu?" she asked in disbelief.

Kovu grinned smugly. Suddenly, Shani heard her father's voice calling her. She turned just in time to see Simba come running her way. He had seen the fire from Pride Rock and had taken off for it right away, sending Zazu ahead to search for Shani. When Zazu came back to Simba to report that he had seen Shani in the company of a strange lion, Simba hurried even faster, even more fearful for Shani's safety than he had been before.

"Shani," Simba gasped, coming to a halt beside her. Then he turned and snarled angrily at
Kovu, who instinctively backed away.

"Shani!" another voice called. "You're all right!"

It was Nala. Behind her were Chaka, Masika and Zazu. Zazu landed on a nearby rock while Nala ran up to Shani's side and rubbed her head against hers. Chaka was about to do the same when he noticed Kovu. He stopped and glared suspiciously at the intruder. When Kovu saw Chaka, he was even more shocked than he had been when Simba appeared. Bianca hadn't told him that Simba had a son...would he have to kill him as well?

"Who are you?" Simba growled at Kovu. "And what are you doing here?"

Kovu cowered a little before Simba, yet still managed to maintain his dignity.

"My name is Kovu," he said. "And I -- "

"Kovu?" Simba repeated. He bared his teeth and snarled at the intruder again, though inside he was terrified. Kovu looked even more like Scar now that he was an adult. Even though his mane was still very small, the similarity was unmistakable. The only thing that truly set them apart was Kovu's lack of a scar over his left eye.

"May I finish what I was about to say, Your Highness?" Kovu said quietly when Simba had finished snarling. Simba's whiskers tensed, but then his face grew calmer and he slowly nodded, though he was still glaring at Kovu.

"As I was saying," Kovu said calmly, "I left the Outsiders. My mother was formulating some kind of insane plan for invading the Pride Lands, and I didn't want to be part of it. I never did. I've tried to escape them before, but I've always failed until today."

Kovu slowly took a step forward.

"I humbly ask to join your pride," he said.

Simba stared in astonishment at him. An Outsider, not only boldly venturing into the Pride Lands, but asking to be accepted into the pride? This lion was either very foolish...or had some other motive.

"No," Simba said in a low voice. "Leave your pride if you want, but these lands are still off limits to you and every other Outsider."

"But Dad -- " Shani interrupted.

"Shani, be quiet," Simba ordered.

"But Dad," Shani protested. "He...he saved my life."

Simba stared in disbelief in Shani, then back at Kovu.

"Is this true?" he asked Shani.

"Yes," Shani nodded. "I got trapped in the fire and he led me out. If he hadn't found me..."

She trailed off and gazed sympathetically at Kovu. Simba looked at Kovu again. This lion had saved Shani? Why would an Outsider do something like that? Perhaps Simba had judged Kovu too harshly...after all, Kovu had become an Outsider just because he was born in the Outlands. He hadn't supported Scar or tried to kill Simba...why was Simba treating him as if he had?

"Well, Kovu," Simba said slowly. "It looks as if we are in your debt, and it is only fair that we repay you. Come with us."

He turned and started to walk away. Then Masika suddenly spoke in a trembling voice:

"Timira...where's Timira?"

Everyone turned to face her. Shani's heart filled with fear. In the chaos of the fire, she had completely forgotten about Timira. Chaka turned to his sister, his eyes wide.

"Where is she, Shani?" he demanded, a tremor in his voice. "What happened to her?"

"I...I don't know," Shani stammered. "When the fire came, I lost sight of her...but she couldn't have gone far..."

Masika's face became distraught.

"Where is my daughter?" she cried.

"I don't know!" Shani repeated, close to tears. "But she must be all right. She's the fastest lioness in the pride. I know she must've outrun the fire."

A terrible silence fell over the small gathering. Chaka stood motionless, staring straight ahead, yet seeing nothing. Nala rubbed her chin along Masika's neck, trying to calm her. Kovu looked at all of them confusedly, wondering what this latest development meant. Simba turned and gazed at the fading flames of the fire.

"I'm afraid there isn't anything we can do now," he said, trying to sound confident in spite of the anxiety overwhelming him. "It'll be dark soon...but don't worry, Masika. We'll start a search party first thing in the morning. We'll do everything we can to find your daughter."

He glanced at Kovu out of the corner of his eye.

"For now, though, let's lead our newest...'member' home."

With a heavy heart, he turned and began the long walk back to Pride Rock. Zazu sneered disdainfully at Kovu, then took to the air and began following Simba. Masika, Shani and Nala followed him, the dark lioness still mortified at the thought of what might have happened to her daughter. Chaka walked behind them, but when Kovu cautiously began to follow the procession, Chaka suddenly wheeled around to face him. His jade green eyes stared deeply into Kovu's emerald green ones.

"I don't trust you, Outsider," he said in a low voice. "Why would you endanger your life just to save my sister?"

Kovu recoiled a little, but still held his ground.

"She was in danger, I was nearby, I helped her," he replied. "What more can I say?"

Chaka scowled at him.

"I've heard about your mother," he hissed. "And what she has planned for you."

"I wanted nothing to do with her plans," Kovu lied. "That was why I left my pride, remember?"

"That may be true," Chaka said. "But you'd better watch your back, Outsider. If I catch you trying to hurt my father, my sister, or anyone else in my pride..."

Chaka showed Kovu one of his paws, which had all of its claws fully extended. He made a weak swipe towards Kovu to make his point, then turned and continued to follow his family as calmly as if nothing had happened. Kovu eyed Chaka cautiously, waiting until the brown-maned lion was a fair distance ahead of him before he began following him. Perhaps taking out Simba would be a little harder than he originally thought...

[KiarasMate]

Good job on the last two chapters Akril. ^^ Still enjoying your story and looking forward to the next chapter.

[YFWE]

That was a really good pair of chapters, I must say. I think that you captured the emotions of the characters almost devastatingly, especially the emotions of Masika and Chaka when Timira was discovered missing. If I can be perfectly honest, I think Timira's character is my favorite in this story, so I hope she hasn't been killed... though if she has, I commend for that was a plot twist I never saw coming at all.

Here's where I think the story will really get interesting, what with having two younger male lions very close to the throne now. I have a feeling this could get pretty intense depending on where you go with it.

Very captivating chapters, especially the last one. Even though I pretty much already knew how everything was going to turn out, it was still an interesting read.

[Mike]

It's great to have a "big brother" figure in this story =) I always thought that Kiara needed a sibling as Kovu has Vitani ^.^