Nala's day away

[zerodix]

[i]Nala is tired of helping out at Pride Rock and decides to give herself a little break. But when she returns to the Pridelands, her home, things have changed..[/i]

Day 1.
Nala wakes up, happy and with Simba by her side. A new day full of royal duties and a long meeting at the waterhole is planned for today. Zazu had told the royal couple the day before, there has been a dispute between some zebras and the antelope about the waterhole, in the dry season water is scarce, and Prideland animals need Simba and Nala to help them make decisions about these things.
Good morning Nala, I'll meet up with the lionesses for the morning hunt, Simba says.
Nala follows him. I'll hear what we will do today.

Day 2.
Nala wakes up, tired this time. The morning hunt of yesterday was a hard one, a struggle. Nala feels scratches on her leg of a zebra defending itself. Simba is awake and calls Nala. Come on, we have a ceremony at the rhinos today! Nala hesitates. She feels her leg aching. Simba can I rest for a while? She asks. Nala you are the queen, the Pridelanders need you and you can rest after the rhino ceremony, Simba answers.
Nala murbles and follows her king. After the ceremony, Zazu calls Nala and Simba. There are hyenas in the Pridelands, hunting at the wildebeest grazing grounds. Nala and her hunting party are needed to chase them off the borders. Nalas leg starts to stingy feel, but she ignores it and does her duty. Later the hyenas are gone and she falls asleep, now all her legs are sore, the hyenas weren't leaving without defending themselves.

Day 3
Nala wakes up early. Simba is still asleep. Yesterday evening Zazu told them about their programme for today. A visit to the crocodile pool and a meeting with the leader of a nearby pride. Nala sighs. Her life is all planned out for her. Beeing a queen is taking its toll, and in a split second, Nala decides to give herself some time off. Just the morning, by noon she would be back with some made up reason for her few hours of dissapearance. What could go wrong on a day like this with no big deals on schedule? Nala sneaks out via the back of pride rock, not waking up Simba or the lionesses. Now what, she thinks. It is almost sunrise and she must be quick before the prideland animals spot her and swarm around her, asking her to fix their wishes for the kingdom. Nala runs, and keeps running. At sunrise, she has reached the elephant graveyard. It worked. Nala screams as loud as she can. A few hours all to herself, doing what she wants and not beeing told what to do by king Simba.

Day 4.
Simba wakes up.
He hasn't slept well, yesterday he spent all evening looking for Nala. When he woke up she was gone. Nobody in the Pridelands has seen her leaving. What has happened? Simba wakes up the lionesses. All of them are worried. Where is queen Nala, she needs to lead our hunts! Not today, I cleared out my agenda. I need you lionesses to look for Nala. She must be somewhere, what if something bad happened? The lionesses spread through the savannah. Simba orders Zazu to fly over the kingdom and ask the leaders of the antelopes, zebras, crocodiles and rhinos to gather. They will surely help to search for their queen. Zazu tells Simba not to ask the baboons for help. Nala bit a baby baboons head off one time, and now she isn't loved so well by them anymore, even after admitting it was a joke. At the end of the day, most of the Pridelanders are aware their queen is missing. Many helped in the search. Simba is devastated. tomorrow we will make a plan to find Nala! He screams towards the Pridelanders that gathered around Pride rock. Meet up here tomorrow at sunrise!

day 5.
Sunrise. Still no sign of Nala. Simba awakes and walkes out of his den. The first Pridelanders have arrived to help for the search. Simba screams to them. Thank you for coming! The plan is to search in and out of our territories! A bird screams back at Simba: me and my bird friends will fly over the borders to check if Nala might be stuck on a rock formation! Simba screams back: good plan, now go! The tasks for the search get divided, the lionesses also help again. Simba thinks out loud after all the lionesses and other Pridelanders left to search. If Nala doesnt return today, i have a big problem. The Pridelands need a queen. I give her till dawn to arrive. Then he takes a nap. Kings need rest too.

day 6.
Simba wakes up. Nala hasn't returned. Simba made up his mind. Nala might havent survived on her own for these days. Simba calls out Tama. Tama! A beautifull lioness looks up. She is second in command of the hunting party. Tama summons the rest of the lionesses to leave.
Tama, Simba says, I have a feeling Nala won't be back. I need you to take her place. As my queen, and provide me a heir when I am ready for that. Tama understands. This afternoon we will have a ceremony for the Pridelanders. Simba explains. Life will go on as usual in my kingdom! Zazu is called in to inform everybody in the pridelands. A moment of grief is held for Nala, after that, Tama is installed as the new queen.
Simba calls her into his den. You sleep by my side now, my beautiful queen! Tama smiles. She is so happy. That night they fall in love, and happily asleep.

day 7.
Sunrise, Nala is wounded. She doesn't rest, she needs to move on. If she reaches the Pridelands, she will be safe. She pants, she needs water. I will not give up, almost home! She recognizes the smell of fresh green grass and shady trees. Home! Nala starts to run. I survived, I am save now!