"The Pride That Never Was"

[Akril]

[quote="YFWE"]OMG, I was actually right on a theory for once! Timira was being kept in the Outlands! The reason I said earlier that I thought I was wrong was because I thought she might make an initial appearance during the battles and didn't.[/quote]
Neat! Congrats on guessing that part of the plot correctly.

[quote]But wow... Shetani?! Now THAT was something I didn't see coming. I figured Bianca was holding her hostage, but... Shetani?! I wonder why! As with before, I have a few theories... we'll see if I'm right there.[/quote]
Indeeeed... ; )

[ograndebatata]

Well, I still wonder how Timira ended up on the Outlands - and why Shetani didn't kill her when she had the chance, instead of keeping her hostage. Not that I blame Shetani, but, no offense meant, they already had enough Outlander mouths to feed without needing an extra one.

Like I said, though, I have nothing to complain about in regards to that. I still wonder what will happen next.

[Akril]

Chapter Nineteen:

Bianca glared at her daughter, just as confused as she was furious. Shetani tried her best to appear unmoved and indifferent, but despite her years of discipline, the sea of eyes focused accusingly on her was too much for her to bear.

"Look," she said in the steadiest voice she could manage, "It was an accident. I thought she was -- "

"Are you saying that you actually saved that Pridelander's life?" Bianca snarled.

She then glared at Timira.

"You must be lying," she spat. "My Shetani would never do something as foolish as that!"

"I'm not lying," Timira said. "If that blue-eyed lioness wasn't Shetani, then who was it?"

"Enough of your deceit, Pridelander!" Bianca growled. "Don't you dare try to corrupt my daughter like your murderer of a king corrupted -- "

"She's not lying."

Bianca whirled around. Shetani was hanging her head, and those words had come from her. Bianca stared at her daughter in disbelief as she slowly lifted her head, gazing at Bianca solemnly out of her azure eyes, which glowed warmly in the light of the approaching morning.

"What did you say?" Bianca slowly hissed.

"She's not lying," Shetani said. "I did save her."

A flurry of confused whispers swept through the Outsiders, and Simba looked at Shetani in astonishment. This lioness had saved the life of Chaka's future mate?

Chaka himself gaped speechlessly at Shetani for a moment, then managed to stammer:

"But...but how? Why?"

"I found her lying unconscious at the edge of a stream as I was running away from the fire," Shetani said dully, without looking up. "I thought she was dead at first, but when I saw that she was still alive..."

She grimaced and shut her eyes, then looked up at her mother.

"I thought she was one of us at first!" she blurted out. "When I first saw her, the only thought in my mind was that I needed to save her, that I couldn't let her die..."

She turned away and stared pensively at the ground.

"But when I realized she was a Pridelander...that thought just wouldn't leave. I know you've told us how the Pridelanders are our enemy, but...but the only one you wanted dead was Simba. I didn't think anyone else in his pride was going to die by our paws...and when I saw that Pridelander lying there and realized that I had started the fire that almost killed her..."

She shuddered slightly and several of the Pridelanders gasped in shock at this new information.

"It didn't feel like killing a bat or a mouse," Shetani said quietly. "Knowing that that lioness was almost dead because of me made me feel so...so wrong. To think that she was going to die for no reason...I just couldn't leave her there. I pulled her onto my back and took her into one of the harder-to-find dens while the rest of the pride was out hunting. I honestly didn't know what I was going to do with her later on...all that mattered at that moment was not letting her die. I just couldn't see her as the enemy, Mother...I just saw her as another lioness that needed help."

Simba stared at Shetani, feeling just as confused as Bianca was angry. This lioness had intentionally started the fire that put his daughter in peril, then rescued Timira just because she was one of her kind? Was this really the daughter of Scar and Bianca...or was this yet another trick being played by the Outsiders?

Shetani then looked deeply into her mother's eyes, and her own eyes were suddenly filled with sadness.

"Mother...why?" she asked.

"Why?" Bianca growled, trembling with fury at her daughter's words. "What do you mean, 'why?'"

"Why do we have to kill Simba? You say he killed our father, but we never even knew him...and if what Kovu told us is true -- "

Bianca suddenly lunged angrily at her daughter, stopping a few feet in front of her. Shetani pulled back from her, but still held her ground.

"Don't tell me you've let those Pridelanders' lies get to you, too!" she snapped.

Shetani said nothing for a moment. Instead, she turned her gaze to the many badly injured lionesses that had dragged themselves away from the fight and were now lying sprawled on the hard, rocky ground several yards away, their fur soaked with rain, the Pridelanders looking just as dirty and bedraggled as the Outsiders.

"Look how many Pridelanders are wounded because of us," she said. "And look how many of us have gotten hurt because of this battle...is this really worth it, Mother? To come close to ending so many lives just for the sake of a father that Kovu and I never knew?"

Bianca bared her teeth, and for one frightening moment, it looked as if she was about to go for Shetani's throat. Instead, she bellowed:

"Anything is worth reclaiming Scar's lands for! You didn't think this war would be won without a few casualties, did you, Shetani?"

She whirled around to face Simba.

"Now!" she commanded. "Get him!"

"No, Mother," Shetani said slowly, turning to look at Shani, Chaka and Timira. "Shani was right."

She then turned towards Simba and Nala, then slowly walked towards them. Several of the Pridelanders growled warningly, but Shetani continued approaching them. Then, when she had reached the Pridelander side of the fight, she turned around to face her mother, as her brother had done before.

"Enough," she pleaded.

Bianca's face twisted into a sinister leer as her red eyes burned into Shetani's blue ones.

"If you don't fight with your pride," she growled, "Then you will die like the enemy!"

The Pridelanders weren't the only ones to recoil in shock at this merciless declaration. The Outsiders looked just as shocked by Bianca's words as Simba's pride was. They gazed concernedly at each other, and without speaking a word, they all seemed to come to one conclusion: Bianca's obsession had completely robbed her of her sanity. She didn't want to reclaim the Pride Lands just because they were their rightful home -- she wanted to cause Simba's pride a hundred times more pain and sorrow than Simba had ever caused her, and if that meant the death of a few dozen members of both the enemy's side and their side, then so be it.

Though many of them had had doubts about Bianca's plan over the course of their lives, what Kovu had told them that afternoon in the gorge had raised their skepticism significantly, what Shetani had revealed had made them wonder about Bianca's motives even more, but it was Bianca's threat to kill her own daughter had truly made them change their minds.

Slowly, the rest of the Outsiders began leaving Bianca's side and walking across the battlefield to Simba's side. Bianca stared at them in alarm, yelling at them to come back, furious at first, but as her pride continued to leave her, panic started to creep into her voice.

Simba looked at the Outsiders that were now standing with his pride facing Bianca -- Bianca, who was now completely alone. Her son, her daughter, and now her entire pride had abandoned her. Simba quietly reflected on his daughter's words and Shetani's as well. He also remembered what he had said to Kovu the previous day, about how good could still spring up in the wake of evil, if given the chance. Perhaps this had come to pass after all. If Kovu was truly out to kill Simba, why would he take a stand against his own pride? As for Shetani, regardless of how difficult life was for her in the Outlands, she had saved the life of a Pridelander, not in order to deceive Simba into accepting her into his pride, but because she felt pity for one of her own kind.

As for the rest of the Outsiders, many of them were looking at Simba not with hate or disgust, but with concerned, longing expressions. Simba felt a great pain fill his heart as he realized just how scrawny and haggard the Outsiders looked. They were gaunt, scruffy creatures that resembled lions but had been stripped of their dignity, their strength, their power...the very things that make lions lions.

Simba sighed. Though it was far too late to undo what had been done, hopefully it wasn't too late to repair the damage. He turned back to Bianca.

"Let it go, Bianca," he said gently. "It's time to put the past behind us."

Bianca was crouched low to the ground as if she had been backed into a corner.

"I'll never let it go!" she snarled furiously.

From the nearby gorge came a loud creaking sound. It came from of the tall dam formed out of logs. The rain had greatly raised the level of the river it was blocking, and the water was now pushing against the dam with the might of a thousand elephants.

Bianca crouched even lower, and her lips twisted into an insane grin.

"This is for you, Scar!" she snarled.

Before Simba could react, Bianca leapt towards him with all her claws exposed. However, just as quickly, a golden blur flashed through the air, intercepting Bianca in mid-jump. It was Shani. Her momentum caused her and Bianca to hit the ground several feet away from Simba, then rapidly roll towards the edge of the gorge. Simba tried to get to them in time, but it was too late. Bianca and Shani had gone flying over the edge, and the bottom of the gorge was many hundreds of feet below them.

[YFWE]

Alright! That was a good read. Shetani's motives were certainly interesting to say the least, but not completely unfounded. As for the rest of the chapter, it was of course what we already knew was going to happen, so there isn't much to say. Can't wait to see the finale though!

[Akril]

Chapter Twenty:


Simba, Nala, Kovu, Shetani, Chaka and Timira stared in horror at the two lionesses falling into the gorge. Without thinking of anything but his daughter's life, Simba leapt over the cliff after them, grabbing onto a steep incline with his claws, then leaping onto a nearby rock ledge, and from there to another lower one.

As Shani fell, she scrabbled wildly at the rocks, trying desperately to grab hold of them with her claws. As she rolled down a bumpy slope and was about to go flying off the edge of a small precipice, she was just able to grab onto the edge of it. As she dug her claws into the rock, she heard a horrible rumbling noise. She cautiously turned her head and stared in horror at the source of it: the river bursting through the dam. It came rushing through the logs with a deafening roar punctuated by the sound of the logs getting smashed against the walls of the gorge. Shani trembled and tried to keep her grip on the precipice and ignore the sound of the wild rapids now churning below her.

High above her, Simba continued his descent of the gorge wall as quickly as he was able. He knew that what he was doing was incredibly dangerous, if not incredibly stupid, but his daughter's life was in danger. Simba's father had put his own life in danger in order to save Simba when he was in mortal peril, and now that he was a father himself, Simba felt it was his duty to do the same, no matter what the risks were.


Shani felt her grip starting to falter and she struggled to hold on to the precipice. Then, from below her, she heard a low voice:

"Well, well, Princess...so this is how it ends, is it?"

Shani turned her head as much as she dared. Out of the corner of her eye, she could just see Bianca clinging to a rock wall several feet beneath her. The river roared along the gorge, its waters a mesmerizing swirl of blue and white. Shani turned away, fearful of becoming dizzy and falling. Still, Bianca continued to speak to her:

"Both of us hanging here with death below us, and no way of escaping it."

Her voice had a distant, unnerving quality to it that made Shani's skin crawl. Her tone was so penetrating that Shani could hear her clearly even above the rumble of the river.

"And to think that my last chance to avenge my Scar's death would thwarted by you -- Simba's naïve little princess. Say...was it you that filled my Kovu's head with all those stories about my Scar being a murderer? If so, that was a very clever trick you pulled, my dear...more conniving than anything I might have thought of..."

Shani was almost crying with fear at the aged lioness's insane ramblings. She gripped the rock wall with all her might, silently begging for Bianca to stop talking.

"Well, I hope you and Kovu will be very happy together," Bianca continued. "I never thought about choosing a mate for him...but the son of Scar is certainly deserving of a mate..."

She paused, and when she spoke again, it was in a much lower, more ominous voice:

"As for Scar himself...I will be with him again soon."

The fear that Shani had experienced at Bianca's other words was nothing compared to what she felt at this statement. Without thinking, she whirled around just in time to see Bianca let go of the rock face and fall into the river below her, laughing maniacally. Terrified, Shani shut her eyes and turned away, tears streaming down her face.


It might have been moments or minutes later before Shani heard her father's voice calling her name. She opened her eyes and looked up to see Simba perched precariously on the precipice she was hanging from.

"Dad..." Shani gasped, still shaking with fear.

"Don't worry, Shani," Simba panted. "I'll get you out of here."

He reached out to Shani with his paw, trying to get close enough for her to grab onto it with her claws. Unfortunately, Shani wasn't within easy reach, and Simba was starting to worry if he would be able to reach her at all. He crouched down and stretched his foreleg out as far as he could, then suddenly felt himself starting to lose his balance. In a flash, he withdrew his foreleg and backed against the cliff wall, his heart pounding.

The grave reality of the situation came trickling into Simba's mind: Shani was too far away for him to reach without him falling off the ledge, and even if he could reach her, the ledge was too narrow for him to get enough leverage to help lift her up. He stared helplessly at his daughter and the wild river beneath her, then suddenly, he heard a voice calling to him from above. He looked over his shoulder to see Kovu sitting on a ledge just a few feet above the one he was perched on, his green eyes wide with fear as he looked down at Simba.

"Simba!" Kovu cried. "Let me help you!"

Simba stared blankly at Kovu, whose face became even more desperate.

"Please!" he begged. "Trust me!"

All of a sudden, the memory of the horrible dream where Simba had heard those words came flooding back. The dream where he had seen his father dying in the gorge again, with Scar standing over them. Scar, who told Simba to trust him and prevented him from saving his father, then transformed into Kovu and threw Simba to his death as well.

And now here Simba was in a different gorge, but it wasn't his father in need of his help, but his daughter, and it wasn't a herd of wildebeests stampeding hundreds of feet below them, but a massive torrent of water...and just like in the dream, there was Kovu standing above them, with the same scar over his eye as he had had in the dream...

Trust me.

Trust the lion who has been trained nearly his entire life to kill you? Trust the lion whose mother tried to murder you and whose father killed your father?

"Kovu!"

Shani screamed out the name, causing Simba to look back at her. Her forelegs were trembling as she tried to keep a grip on the rock, and it was clear that she wouldn't be able to hang on for much longer. Simba glanced back at Kovu, then realized that he had no choice.

"All right," he said to Kovu. "I trust you."

In a flash, Kovu crouched down and grabbed hold of Simba by what would be the scruff of his neck if he lacked a mane.

"Okay," Kovu said in a muffled voice, trying to speak as clearly as he could around the mane in his mouth. "Now help her up! Hurry!"

Simba cautiously leaned over the edge of the precipice. Kovu dug his claws into his ledge, his jaws clamped around Simba's mane with all his strength. Simba reached out to Shani, and with Kovu preventing him from falling, was just able to get within reach of her paws.

"Shani, grab my paw and climb up!" he yelled. "Don't worry about hurting me, just climb!"

Shani nodded nervously, hesitated a moment, then dug the claws of her right paw into Simba's foreleg. Simba cringed in pain, but said nothing. Shani then grabbed him further up the leg with her left paw, then quickly grabbed onto his shoulder with her right. It wasn't long before Shani had clambered up over her father's body and leapt onto the ledge that Kovu was crouched on. Simba heaved a sigh of relief as Kovu released his grip on his mane. The king then turned to see Kovu and his daughter nuzzling each other affectionately.

Several days before, Simba might have become alarmed, disgusted or even downright outraged at this sight, but now, all he could feel was happiness. Pumbaa had been right about Shani being smart. She had known that Kovu wasn't bad and that his feelings for her were true. He had just risked his life to save her a second time -- and this time his only motive was his love for her. As for the Outsiders, Shani had been right about them as well. All they really wanted was to live in a land where they didn't have to eat mice and ground squirrels to survive, a land full of green grass and tall trees...a land that they should never have been cast out of in the first place.

Simba gazed contemplatively at his daughter and the young lion she had fallen in love with as they continued to tenderly rub their heads together. Then they slowly parted and looked down at Simba, who smiled warmly at them. The young couple smiled as well, then turned and began their climb back to the top of the gorge. Simba followed them at a discreet distance.

[YFWE]

That was great! I think it was totally something I could've foreseen happening in, you know, the original film. Bianca/Zira's suicide, of course, was something that unfortunately did not make the final cut of the film, and probably for good reason, but hearing about it having been a possibility after the fact provides depth into the storyline, and I think your fanfic finally portrayed just that. And even more, the scene where Simba has his flashbacks to his dreams when Kovu is trying to help him... great job there. That is actually something that I think would have been cool to see in the film as well.

[Akril]

[quote="YFWE"]That was great! I think it was totally something I could've foreseen happening in, you know, the original film. Bianca/Zira's suicide, of course, was something that unfortunately did not make the final cut of the film, and probably for good reason, but hearing about it having been a possibility after the fact provides depth into the storyline, and I think your fanfic finally portrayed just that.[/quote]
Thank you. Out of all the cut scenes from SP, the suicide scene has more remnants of it in the movie than any of the others (especially Zira smiling as she falls to her death), so naturally, I included an altered version of it in this story.

[quote]And even more, the scene where Simba has his flashbacks to his dreams when Kovu is trying to help him... great job there. That is actually something that I think would have been cool to see in the film as well.[/quote]
Yes -- I can't take credit for coming up with this idea, though. Somebody on Lilymud came up with it many years ago, and though I don't remember who it was, I always thought it was a great idea. It would make that scene even more dramatic, have Kovu be a hero instead of just standing on top of the gorge yelling "Kiara!", and reflect Simba's nightmare all at the same time.

[ograndebatata]

Whew! When I read these two chapters, I nearly thought that Shani wasn't going to make it as well. Fortunately, she did, and with Kovu's help. It was quite a bit step for Simba, to trust Kovu after the nightmare he had.

I wonder what will happen next.

[Akril]

Chapter Twenty-One:


It took some time for the Outsiders to adapt not only to living in a new land, but living under a new leader as well. Some of the younger ones were still quite shaken over the loss of Bianca, but the older ones who had lived during Scar's reign had seen the metamorphosis from a lioness that idolized Scar to one that was insanely obsessed with him, and realized that this obsession must have been what led to her downfall.

Some of the older Outsiders sadly related how though Bianca was madly in love with Scar, Scar had seen her as no more as the bearer of his heirs, and had no real feelings for her at all.

"It was so terrible," said one Outsider with dark markings under one of her eyes, "How she did everything to try to please him, and never saw how he simply wasn't interested in her. Even though her love for him was true, the love he had for her was all in her mind...and when he died, it was as if part of Bianca died as well."

As Simba listened to this, Chaka's unusual behavior over the past few weeks suddenly began to make sense to him. When Timira had disappeared and Chaka thought she was dead, he had become a completely different lion. It was as if part of him had disappeared as well, leaving a bitter, cold shell in its place.

However, now that Timira was back, Chaka's shy, gentle personality had returned, and he was at her side nearly every minute of the day. They would often spend time together away from the rest of the pride, talking to each other in low voices and laughing a lot. Simba's heart was filled with joy to see that Chaka had truly fallen in love with Timira, just as Timira had become enamored with him. To them, it didn't matter at all that they were betrothed. All that mattered to them now was that they were together again and were going to stay together for as long as they lived.

Ironically, though it had only taken a few weeks without Timira to make Chaka realize that he really loved her, it had only taken a few weeks with Shani to make Kovu realize that he loved her. When Bianca and Shani had fallen into the gorge, it was only Shani that had driven Kovu to leap in after them. Oddly, Simba learned about this not from Kovu, but from Chaka.

"He was standing on the cliff, looking down at you and Shani," Chaka explained. "And I could tell he was preparing to jump...but just before he did, he turned and looked at me, like he was expecting me to leap on him again.

"Then he asked -- no, begged me to allow him to help you, and despite all I knew about him and his mother's plan for him..."

Chaka trailed off and glanced away briefly before resuming his story.

"When I looked in his eyes...I saw what I felt for Timira. That was when I knew that he really did love Shani, and was willing to risk his life to save her. Still, even after I gave him permission to follow you, for a moment I was afraid that I had done the wrong thing, that he might have somehow been tricking me and I should have stopped him and tried to rescue Shani myself..."

He stared worriedly into his father's eyes.

"I didn't do the wrong thing, did I, Father?"

Simba pondered this question for a moment, then shook his head with a warm smile.

"Under the circumstances, I doubt I could have made a better decision," he said. "In fact, since the day Kovu asked to join the pride, except for one or two mistakes, you always did the right thing. You kept an eye on him all the time, making sure that he had no chance to harm me. If it weren't for you, Kovu might have carried out his mother's plans before he learned the truth about his father."

Chaka glanced pensively at the ground, then looked at his father and smiled, though there was still a hint of nervousness in his eyes.

"Don't worry, Chaka," Simba said, nuzzling his head gently. "I know you'll be a wonderful king one day."


As cruel a parent as she had been, Bianca was still Kovu and Shetani's mother, and the loss of her had affected them the most. Nearly everyone in the pride tried to comfort them, especially Nala. The siblings had lived lives of hardship without any loving parents, and Nala felt great pity for them because of this.

However, Kovu and Shetani would often ask to spend time alone. The only others that they would let near them were Shani, would accompany Kovu, and Timira, who would accompany Shetani whenever Chaka was willing to temporarily leave her side. Kovu would tell Shani everything his mother had put him through as he had grown up, and Shani would solemnly listen to every word. Shetani, meanwhile, would tell Timira what it was like being trained to be a fighter, and how she had kept Timira's presence in the Outsiders' lair a secret, an endeavor that had even involved risking nighttime excursions into the Pride Lands so she could catch something substantial for both herself and Timira to eat. However, one of the first private conversations between the two lionesses began with a question not from Timira, but Shetani.

"Why did you lie to them?" she asked.

"About what?" Timira responded.

"About me," Shetani said. "When you showed up when Chaka attacked my brother, Shani asked you if I had told you your name while you were in our lair, and you said I hadn't...but I did tell you my name, Timira. After you told me yours, you wouldn't stop bothering me until I told you mine. Did you forget that that happened or something?"

"No," Timira said quietly.

"Then why did you tell everyone you didn't know my name?"

Timira paused.

"Because I didn't want anything to happen to you," she said softly. "Shetani, you saved my life. Not only that but you kept me alive, even though you knew I was on your enemy's side. I know I'd only known you a short time and hardly knew anything about you except your name and the color of your eyes...but after just a few days in that dark cave, I really started to see you as a friend..."

Timira looked deeply into Shetani's eyes.

"...And I would never tell on one of my friends."



With no more barriers between their prides, there were no more secrets or deceptions between the Pridelanders and the former Outsiders. Kovu and Shetani held nothing back from Shani and Timira, and the two lionesses kept nothing from them either. As they talked, the bond between Kovu and Shani became even stronger, and Shetani began to see Timira as a friend as well.

As well as the two prides seemed to be getting along, however, there was another problem that was resting on Simba's mind. It stewed within him for several days, until one day he decided that he couldn't keep it to himself any longer. He asked Nala, Kovu, Shani, Chaka, Timira and Shetani to come into the central cave with him, where he posed the problem to all of them:

"It concerns who is going to be the next king," he said. "Now, Chaka, I know that I've been training you to be the next king, but Kovu is also of royal blood, and a little older than you as well. I've been trying to decide which of you would be the most worthy heir, but I felt that I had to ask you who you thought would be the best choice as well."

There were many more things that Simba could have added to this statement, but since most of them were already in the minds of everyone present, he didn't mention them. One such thing was the fact that although he might have changed his ways, Kovu had been raised to be a merciless killer, and considering what a poor king Scar was, Simba doubted that Bianca had passed any of Scar's knowledge regarding ruling a kingdom on to her son. And what was to be Kovu's fate if Chaka became the next king? Would he have to leave the Pridelands along with Shani, or would he be allowed to stay? The latter option made Simba feel uneasy as memories of his father and Scar came drifting into his mind.

The lions assembled in front of Simba looked concernedly at each other for a few moments, with Kovu and Chaka looking especially quizzical. Finally, Chaka spoke up:

"What if Kovu and I ruled together?" he asked.

Simba blinked and stared at his son.

"Together?" he repeated after a moment.

"Yes," Chaka said. "Father, you've taught me a lot about negotiating disputes, making wise decisions and maintaining order, but when it comes to things like fighting and brute force..."

He shot Kovu a brief look.

"...I'm really not that good at those things -- at least, not yet. But if Kovu and I ruled together, I could teach him what I knew about diplomacy and keeping the kingdom in order..."

"And I could teach you what I knew about fighting?" Kovu interjected.

"Right," Chaka said. "So what do you think, Father? Do you think it could work?"

Simba looked at his son, then at Kovu. He was astonished, not only by Chaka's suggestion that he and his former rival share the duty of kingship, but by how much sense that suggestion made. Two kings could defend the Pride Lands much better than one, and with the two lions possessing the same amount of power, there would be no bitter, jealous relative intent on murdering the king so that he himself could claim the throne. There would certainly be disputes between the two rulers, but with Timira and Shani by their sides, Simba was sure they would be able to resolve them easily.

"Well," Simba smiled. "That is an unusual idea, Chaka, but I think that it just might work. What do the rest of you think, though?"

Kovu shrugged.

"It seems like a good idea to me," he confessed. "The thing is, I'm not sure if I ever actually wanted to be king..."

He glanced down and in a quieter voice, added:

"I just wanted my mother to be happy."

A thick silence filled the cave. The air seemed to grow chilly as Simba suddenly remembered what Bianca had told him on the day he had first met Kovu:

"One day, Simba, we will return to these lands. They are our rightful home...and when that day comes, Kovu will take his place as the rightful king."

In a way, Bianca had been partially right. The Outsiders had returned to the Pride Lands, and now Kovu had been given the opportunity to become the future king. Unfortunately, she hadn't lived to see this come to pass.

"Well, I think you've got great potential," Timira said. "That whole rescuing Simba and Shani thing was really something. I'm sure the Pride Lands could use a king with that kind of bravery."

Chaka placed one of his paws on Kovu's right forepaw.

"You don't have to be king if you don't want to," he said quietly. "I just definitely think you could teach me a thing or two about fighting."

Shani, who was sitting on the other side of Kovu, placed one of her paws on Kovu's left forepaw.

"I think you would make a great king," she said. "You're brave and strong, but you're smart, too. I can tell you everything that Father's taught me, and I'm sure he and Chaka could also help."

Kovu glanced nervously at Shani, then at Chaka. Finally, after a few moments of contemplation, he turned back to Simba.

"All right," Kovu said as confidently as he was able. "I'll do it. I don't know if I'll be that good at it, but...I'll do the best I can."

Chaka grinned. Timira coyly intertwined her tail with his and Shani nuzzled Kovu lovingly. Nala, who was sitting beside Simba, nuzzled him. Shetani, who had been completely silent during the entire discussion, suddenly spoke up:

"Well, this is all great, but what about me? I mean, once Kovu is the king, what does that make me?"

Shani turned to face Shetani. For a moment, she said nothing, then:

"You and I will be the second most important lionesses in the pride. As the king's sister, you will advise him when he is in need of advice, protect him when he is defenseless, and even act as king for him if he is preoccupied elsewhere. Do this, and in a way, you'll be just as powerful as him, Shetani."

Simba was amazed by these words that his daughter had just spoken, then suddenly he realized that aside from a few minor differences, they were the same words he had said to Shani when she was just a cub. It was then that he knew that Chaka and Kovu would be worthy heirs to the throne. With Timira's love to support Chaka and Shani's wisdom to guide Kovu, the Pride Lands would surely prosper.

[YFWE]

Well, I assume this was the final chapter! And wow, did I not want it to end. This was a magnificent story in all respects. There really has not been much better on this site. This was as fitting an ending as I possibly could have foreseen--everything was wrapped up, all characters got their dues, and now everyone pretty much gets to have a paw in the future of the Pride Lands. The reasons behind the motives of the characters for doing what they did, from saving each other to keeping secrets, was an added flair. And seeing so much love going around... well, the hopeless romantic I am is undeniably happy with the ending.

Granted: if this is not the end for whatever reason, a continuation would be cool! If this truly is the end, though, great job. You really did very well with this story. I look forward to any and all future works from you!