A Change of Plans [PRIVATE: AC & The Whistlerify]

[AustralianChaos]

Scar nodded. "See what you can do about that tomorrow, Zira. I am disappointed in your failure, and I'm sure you will take steps in the future to ensure that this does not happen again. Leave us...I have to discuss a few things with Sarafina."

[TheWhistlerify]

Zira nodded and left. By tomorrow morning she would assemble the lionesses to patrol the borders.
Sarafina then turned to Scar, waiting for the punishment he was about to give her

[AustralianChaos]

Scar waited a few moments, his gaze turned away from Sarafina as he thought about everything...the mission, the failure, and Sarafina shouldering all the blame, which Scar could tell, from the information given, was rightfully hers to carry.

His paw came up hard and fast, the back of it striking Sarafina solidly across the muzzle. "Tonight has been a big waste of my time, Sarafina. You have let your affection for Nala cloud your better judgement, and let two traitors who are conspiring against us escape because of your foolish decision. I understand you care for your daughter, as any self-respecting mother would...but we are dealing with a group of lions who are conspiring against us...we must be decisive in our strikes...we cannot give them any chances. Any sign of weakness from us, and they will attack swiftly."

Scar then gripped Sarafina's muzzle with his paw, forcing her to look into his eyes, so he could get a better reading of her. "But I will admit, the way you shouldered the blame yourself, when you have remained silent and left Zira to take the punishment, was a noble act. You have honest and loyal to me since you dealt with Simba, and I find myself admiring those qualities..." He paused deliberately at this point, drawing out his next comment for extra effect.

"Honestly, loyalty, nobility...those good values to have in a queen, are they not?" he said with deliberate softness, a small smile crossing his face...he knew Sarafina would put that comment into context, and realise what he was insinuating very quickly.

[TheWhistlerify]

Sarafina was expecting a strike. She rubbed her muzzle as she fell aside, but then when he picked her up she tried not to show anything that might look suspicious. She then realised where he was going with this, she always hoped this would never happen. She couldn't let that happen to her. "I guess so..." she said, but quickly regretted that, she shouldn't have responded this way.

[AustralianChaos]

Scar smiled. He could tell that Sarafina was hesitant, despite her loyalty to him...but did not mind, really. "Just...think about it, Sarafina. You could be a magnificent queen...the biggest queen in all the history of the Pridelands, perhaps."

Without waiting for an answer from her, he stalked off, smiling to himself. He had caught her off-guard with that comment, but was confident that her loyalty would allow him to win her over soon enough.

He went back to the den in Pride Rock, quickly settling on the comfortable raised slab of stone that was essentially his 'throne', the king's personal sleeping space, raised up above all the others. His smile turned into a grin as he settled down. Zira would set up her border patrols tomorrow, and Sarafina was well on her way to becoming his queen. The only problem right now was the way the land was beginning to suffer, but Scar dismissed that...they had been through a time of dry weather, and Scar was certain that was the cause, meaning it would all pass in time.

[TheWhistlerify]

Sarafina couldn't believe this was happening to her. How could she have been so stupid? She should have seen this coming and maybe just say no right away, but she let her nervousness take over instead. She felt like turning her back on Pride Rock and running away, but knew that she couldn't. But she still couldn't let this happen to her, at least no without trying to prevent it. Nala would be devestated if Scar got what he was trying to achieve. After realising she's been sitting there for a few minutes already, she got back to her feet and walked slowly back to their den. Everyone were asleep already, but she was sure Scar was still awake. She tried not to look at him as she settled down at the far side of the den, trying to calm down by telling herself that she would deal with this problem in the morning.

[AustralianChaos]

"There it is!" Nala cried, pointing a paw through the faint pre-dawn light towards a small, lone hill, dotted his trees, cliffs and small canyons, and surrounded by open plains, where she could see various creatures wandering, many of which they could use for food.

Sarabi followed Nala's gaze, panting slightly after a long night, most of which she ahd spent with Tanga sleeping on her back. He was still there, still dozing quietly, but she did not mind...the young lion needed all the rest he could get right now.

But as Sarabi looked at the hill, she could see movement, and the unmistakable, if distant, shape of a lion wandering around the hill, obviously surveying the land on an early morning walk. "Looks like those lions haven't left," she commented neutrally, unsure of how to feel about it.

[TheWhistlerify]

Marini's heart lifted at this and one word ran through her mind; 'finally'!. They have been walking all night, all she could think about is where could she lay her head down and get some sleep. But that was going to have to wait for now. Looking at Sarabi's back, she noticed Tanga was still asleep.
Simba then noticed the lion in the distance, unable to tell for sure wether it was a male or a female, but he needed someone from this pride to talk to. He then looked at Sarabi, she said she would come with him when he talked to those lions. Hopefully, they'd let them stay.

[AustralianChaos]

Sarabi lay down, shuffling slightly to try and wake Tanga up. "Tanga?" she called. "Tanga, wake up...we're here."

She then turned to Simba. "Alright, Simba...you ready to meet this new group?"

----------

Tanga slowly pulled himself from his sleep as Sarabi called to him. "What...we're here already?" he asked, having gone through a dreamless sleep, and believing it was still the middle of the night

When he finally did realise that it was dawn, he jumped off Sarabi's back, nearly collapsing as he was painfully reminded of his wounds. Showing his pace, although finding he could now walk on his injured leg with only a mild limp, he wandered over to Marini's side. "I didn't realise I fell asleep," he said as sat beside Simba and Nala. "What did I miss?"

[TheWhistlerify]

Simba nodded at Sarabi, better now than never. "Yeah, let's go." he said and began slowly walking. He hoped those lions were friendly and that they would allow them to stay.

Marini yawned, barely noticing Tanga next to her, "Nothing special really..." she said and sighed