[Closed] Little Stranger (Taraji Chapter 1)

[Lodrill]

Rahina put her head on Kopas neck in a protective way and observed the lioness and the lion who were also snuggling against each other at the water hole.

She would stand guard as long as Kopa would be in slumber and she would not let anything disturb his sleep.

[Mike]

Vitani mentally winced when Simba asked if she was hiding anything, but her reasons to keep Nala's confidence were just as strong this morning as they were last night. Anyway, the suggestion that Vitani wanted to replace Nala was one that she was far more able to rectify.

"Oh I wouldn't ever suggest replacing Nala!" Vitani hastened to assure him, slightly scandalized at the suggestion. "Nala's a legend, and there's no finer huntress in the world in my opinion. That's why she's the queen after all. All I was asking," she continued doggedly "was for a smaller group of lionesses; one that could take care of snack-sized meals while Nala's huntresses keep on bringing in the dinner-caliber meals for the whole pride. I'm sorry if I misspoke."

-------------------------

In his den Kovu woke up to a calm atmosphere. Kiara and Taraji were still asleep, but Kovu resolved not to waste another day lying around. Maybe Taraji needed sixteen hours of sleep, but he could get some scouting done while his mate and the little one snoozed. He stood up, trying not to wake Taraji, then walked around to Kiara. He licked her cheek to let her know he was already up, hopefully without waking her up entirely. He then left the den and yawned with a big stretch as he stepped into the morning's light. Still lightly drowsy, Kovu decided to pass by the waterhole before making his way to Pride Rock.

[KiarasMate]

Looking a bit more convinced this time around after hearing Vitani’s clarification of her former statement, Simba nodded understandingly as he spoke.

”Oh, that makes sense then. Well, if that’s really what you want, than perhaps you could do me a favor too then Vitani. I was planning on having Mila do her first Solo Hunt here very soon, which I’m sure you’re familiar with by now, right? Well, I think that practicing with you might be quite beneficial for her.” Thinking for a moment, Simba added in. ”And come to think of it, Laini might actually be useful in this case too, so if you would like to take both of those youngsters under your wing, so to say, and train them, I think that would work out nicely. You wouldn’t be taking down any serious prey, so I think there’s no harm in that, do you?” Simba asked as he took a seat now.

It was about this time that Nala had finally made her way back towards Pride Rock. She had tried to be as stealthy as possible, being quite unsure if her mate had even wondered about her whereabouts. As the cream colored queen crept up the promontory of the majestic structure, she took a quick peak inside the dark den, spotting both her mate and Vitani, who seemed to be deep in conversation. Fortunately enough for Nala, Simba’s back was towards the entranceway of the den, so her presence wasn’t known yet by him visually at least. Signaling a quick nod to Vitani, Nala waited motionless at the entrance of the den, not wishing to barge in on the current situation, just in case she happened to be the subject to which her fellow pride members were speaking of.

[Mike]

To Vitani's relief Simba seemed moderately interested in her proposal now. Helping Mila get up to solo-hunt calibur should be a breeze if Vitani's impression of Mila as a strong-but silent, almost motherly lioness was approaching the real thing. "Gladly." She replied when Simba paused, but she listened to Simba's next words with slight trepidation However she felt that she could still handle the task, considering that Laini had at least tolerated her presence the last time they met, when Simba judged Daxis. Vitani assumed that Laini's feelings stemmed from a prejudice and irrational fear of former-outsiders, and she felt that she could work through this with some time together on the hunt.

Vitani would have had more to say, but at that moment she noticed Nala over Simba's shoulder who was trying to make eye contact. Simba wouldn't remain ignorant of his mate's presence for much longer, so Vitani chose then to take her leave.

"I'll get started right away Simba if that's all right with you. Don't worry, I won't let you down."

Lowering her head in respect, Vitani proceeded to exit the den. She winked at Nala on her way out, figuring it would be safer than a whispered conversation to assure her that her secret was safe. Vitani did hope however that either Nala would be able to come up with a fantastic excuse or let out her big secret before it became unreasonable to hide.

-----------------

Without knowing exactly why, Kovu passed up the path that lead to the waterhole, and instead went directly to Pride Rock. Just outside he found Vitani who was staring out at the lands, as though looking for something. She noticed Kovu approaching, and nodded in a friendly greeting.

"Hey sis," Kovu said in good spirits. "What are you looking for out there?"

"Nothing anymore. Mila's just down there at the waterhole, and that's Kivuli with her. They seem to really be getting on if they've been together all night. Hmm," she continued, staring again at the waterhole below. "This could be awkward. Simba asked me to give Mila some hunting pointers, but after the way I treated Kivuli last night he probably won't welcome me with open arms."

Kovu grinned, imagining what Vitani must have said to Kivuli. "You'll figure something out." he said "You always do." Kovu moved to pass Vitani on the way to the den, but Vitani stopped him momentarily.

"I'd wait outside for a minute if I were you. Nala's just going in."

Kovu nodded understandingly and flopped down where he stood. "Good hunting sis!" he called to Vitani's back as the lioness headed off to the waterhole.

[KiarasMate]

Sighing in relief to herself as she spotted Vitani’s subtle wink, smiling in response, the cream colored queen disappeared inside the den to speak privately with her mate. Turning to watch Vitani leave, Simba’s eyes fell upon his beloved mate, making him feel a bit more at ease as he moved in close to her, giving her a loving nuzzle as he spoke in a gentle manner.

”So, long night out Love?”

Shrugging her shoulder’s in a carefree way, Nala replied in her typical soft voice.

”You could say that Sweetie. There’s something I have to talk to you about though.”

==========

Kiara was sleeping peacefully, her adopted daughter tucked snugly next to her. The mid morning sun was starting to flood into the den however, shining its not so welcome self upon the dozy princess as her eyes slowly flickered open. Lifting her head from where she was laying, Kiara took a quick glance around, not spotting her mate’s presence. Figuring that he had gone off to get a drink or some breakfast, as he sometimes did, Kiara paid this no mind as she gently leaned down to give her adorable daughter a gentle wake up nuzzle, licking lightly over her sleepy looking face as she spoke quietly.

”Good morning Cutie. Time to face another day.”

Yawning and moving her hind legs slightly to bring a bit more feeling back into them, as the stiffness of the previous night’s sleep still lingered there, Kiara purred softly as she continued to coax Taraji awake.

==========

A short while later, Simba emerged from the main den, a curious look upon his muzzle as he started to make his way down the slope, leading into The Grasslands. Upon spotting Kovu, Simba paused in mid stride momentarily as he addressed his son-in-law.

"Interesting place to pick for a rest there Kovu. Is there something I can help you with?”

Having other matters to attend to, Simba waited with a slightly impatient stare as his tail flicked from side to side.

[Mike]

Kovu started at Simba's voice. His mind had been wandering. He hastily picked himself up.

"Ah, yea Simba. I'd like to apologize for missing yesterday's scouting I hope Vitani delivered my message? I haven't had the chance to see you in a while, and I'm slightly out of touch with all these newcomers to the pridelands. I thought I'd check in with you before I left to scout today, learn who's supposed to be here and who isn't."

Kovu stood looking up at Simba, who was still farther up the path. His tail flicked nervously and he sensed that something was on Simba's mind.

[KiarasMate]

Nodding to what Kovu had stated, Simba replied in an understanding voice.

”No need to apologize Kovu. I’ve been a father twice now, three times if you count Mila, but yeah, I understand how busy caring for a cub can be. Think nothing of your scouting duties though. I’ve taken the liberty of patrolling our boundaries on your behalf.” Pausing for a second, Simba continued, his tone altering slightly. ”As for the new comers to our pride, there has been quite a few it seems. I know you’ve already met Gumu and Daxis. The others would be Kivuli, who has a bit of history with our pride, although it’s not very pleasant. There’s a new pair of lions in our midst as well, and that’s actually what I’m about to go deal with now in fact. One of these lions is apparently named Kopa, erm, I guess I haven’t told you about that part of my past, but perhaps Kiara has informed you about that topic. If I had time to explain it to you in greater detail, I would, but I really must attend to this issue. He has a mate named Rahina, who from what I hear, takes a slight resemblance to your sister from a distance, or so says Nala but I’ll be the judge of that I suppose when I see these two for myself.”

Making his way down the rest of the slope, Simba passed by Kovu as he called back over his shoulder.

”Go home and spend time with your family Kovu. Leave the scouting duties to me. I insist. Family is the most important thing in life you know.”

With this said, Simba darted off, on a straight path towards The Private Waterhole.

Moments after Simba had left, Nala emerged from the main den, her cheeks still damp with obvious signs that she had been crying. Spotting Kovu’s presence, the cream colored queen hastily averted her eyes as she thought about retreating back into the den, not wanting Kovu to see her in such an unstable condition.

=========

It didn’t take Simba very long to reach the Private Waterhole, but upon arrival, his original plans were once again, set aside, due to the sight that met his eyes. Standing before him, his eyes locked upon the sight of Mila, who seemed to be openly flirting with Kivuli, bringing out a low, menacing growl to leave his throat as he advanced upon the unsuspecting pair, calling out in a shrill voice.

”What the hell is going on here!”

[Mike]

Vitani had just about reached her destination, the waterhole. She steadied herself for some verbal dancing with Kivuli, but before she could approach, Simba's voice thundered over her shoulder. She jumped, hardly able to believe it was Simba behind her, but looking back she confirmed that it was none other than her King, and he was looking to be very displeased at what he saw. Though she was reluctant to approach Simba in such a state, she felt that her presence was required. She drifted to Simba's side as he advanced, and spoke to him softly as they approached the frozen pair.

"Easy Simba. I didn't know they'd take it this far when I saw them last night, but they have. Don't expect a newly infatuated pair to listen to reason or orders. Kiara showed you that in the past. Let's try and find out what's going on here."

-------------------------

"Thanks Simba, I sure will!" Kovu called to Simba's retreating back. This was a lucky break indeed, time off to spend with his beloved mate and wonderfully cute adopted daughter. Already Kovu's mind was turning to what the day could have in store. He could take Taraji to the very top of Pride Rock, or they could go swimming in any of the waterholes and streams that filled the pridelands. Before he moved to put any of these plans into action however, Nala poked her head out of the den, clearly troubled. Kovu's first thoughts went to her secret pregnancy. Maybe after this meeting with Simba, the secret was out.

Kovu didn't want to impose on Nala, but neither did he think that she should be alone at such a time. His mind raced to come up with a suitable reason to delay her.

"Umm, Hi Nala," he said, failing spectacularly. "How are things going?"

[KiarasMate]

Unfortunately for Vitani, her voice of reason fell upon deaf ears as his previous conversation with his mate had put the king in quite the unruly mood. Adding to his troubles now, was the prospects of Mila falling head over tail for Kivuli and Kivuli, despite Simba’s previous warning, had not done anything to resist her charms. Thinking back to the short conversation that he and the grey furred male had had, knowing that Vitani was present for said conversation, Simba glared back over at her with a displeased stare as he remained quiet, eyes darting back to the scene before him as he waited for a response from either of the guilty party.

=========

Hearing Kovu’s voice calling up to her, Nala turned to face him with a sad expression on her face as she sniffled and replied in a shaky tone.

”By the looks of me, what do you think Kovu?” Trying to compose herself as best she could, wiping a fore paw across her face to rid herself of the salty tears that clung to her fur there, Nala spoke once more. ”I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. It’s just, well, Simba and I were talking about Kopa, who was our first born cub and you remember how I told you that this subject was never something he liked to get into. Well, to make a long story short and before I burst out crying again, I’ll just tell you that I believe that this Kopa that is staying with us right now, is in fact, the same Kopa that Simba and I lost many a season ago. Simba, on the other paw, refuses to believe me and is hell bent on getting rid of both Kopa and Rahina. I tried to talk him out of it but things…got out of paw.”

Unable to bring herself to saying anything else, Nala broke down as fresh tears stained her face, turning around as she retreated back into the main den, unable to stay in the presence of others as her emotions were getting the better of her by this point.

[Lodrill]

Rahina had closed her eyes purring happily as she heard a loud roar of a lion. Rahina opened her eyes to look what was going on.
At the water hole near the couple that still was lying there stood a big lion and a lioness. By all that Kopa and her experienced being mistaken for the King and this lioness called Vitani it was not hard for Rahina to guess who they were.

"This must be the King of this lands." she thought. He resembled Kopa a bit but he was far away from being as handsome as her very own mate. And this lioness... well she was a bit smaller if Rahina's eyes did not deceive her. Also she thought that this Vitani did not look so similar to her. But Rahina had to admit that from behind or far away it had to be easy to mistaken Kopa and her for them.

Rahina moved her head a bit so that she would have a better look at them. Her head was directly on the head of Kopa now.
She did not want to wake up Kopa due he needed to rest and so she just licked him between his ears to signalize him that everything was okay for the case his slumber got disturbed by the roar.

Rahinas onyx eyes observed the big lion that resembled Kopa and how he was rambling about something. The lion looked very angry at the two other lions that were cuddled against each other. Maybe the lioness was his mate... no wait this Nala was his mate or not? But maybe this lioness there was one of his other lionesses? Rahina had heard that some lions got more than one lioness.

"I know that Kopa would not pull something like that off with me." she ensured herself as she pondered about lions having more than one lioness. "Unless he wants me to crush his bones." she continued and chuckled silently. She knew that Kopa would not pull something like that off.