[Closed] Little Stranger (Taraji Chapter 1)

[KiarasMate]

Nala had just arrived at The Private Waterhole, where she found her mate slumbering peacefully atop one of the flat surfaced rocks near the water’s edge. She was just about to rouse him with a gentle lick over his muzzle, when the faint roars for help reached her ears. The low, yet distinct calls didn’t go unnoticed from Simba either, who was sharply withdrawn from his sleep due to the sounds that flooded his senses.

Snapping his eyes open, spotting his beloved mate, the drowsy king spoke quietly to her.

”What’s going on Love?”

Shrugging, Nala replied in a curious tone.

”I don’t know Sweetie but we better go check it out. Sounds like something’s happened.”

Figuring that he had already lounged the day away, Simba rolled off of the rock he was positioned on, before making his way towards the sound of the cries for help, followed closely by his cream colored mate.

The royal pair arrived on the scene just in time to catch Kovu and Kivuli engaged in a verbal dispute with one another. This fact seemed to go unnoticed however, as Mila’s condition took priority in both felines eyes. Rushing over to Mila’s side, Nala spoke in an urgent voice.

”By the Kings, Mila! What happened.”

Bounding over to where the injured lions were, Simba surveyed the situation, taking note of both Mila’s wounds, as well as Kivuli’s. This instantly made Simba think that either Kivuli had picked a fight with Mila, which was seemingly out of the question, as their past history of being together would say otherwise, or someone or something had attacked the pair of them. Trying to Remain calm, Simba addressed Kivuli in a concerned voice.

”What happened Kivuli?”

[NightmareMoon]

Although Mila had been beaten up, that didn't stop Mila's ability to speak. She was regaining energy fast, considering her wounds were not too deep and too painful for the lioness. She just had to take a breather.

Mila watched as Nala and Simba arrived on the scene after Kivuli and Kovu's little verbal brawl. This is what she didn't want to happen. She didn't want attention being drawn to her. She didn't want the others to see her in such a weak state. She wouldn't let them think she was weak.

Mila watched as Nala came up to her side and spoke in her typical caring motherly tone towards her. She knew she had to explain what happened before Simba came to any assumptions, so she stood up carefully and slowly. She forced herself up and managed to sit down on her own. Still a bit exhausted, Mila spoke to Nala in between breaths. "I was attacked.... by 2 lions... and Kivuli saved me." was what she managed to say.

She knew that Simba would never be able to have Kivuli get into trouble for attacking her now. By telling Nala what happened, if Simba came to any assumptions Nala would help her calm Simba down and tell him the truth. Her goal was accomplished.

Mila just sat there, panting and trying to handle the intense pain she was forced to deal with. She just needed to lie down and get some rest and let the cuts and bruises heal up before she went out again, but with all the commotion revolving around her, it would be a sign of weakness to do so in front of them. There were many things that Mila was. Weak was not one of them.

[KingKivuli]

As Simba and Nala arrived, Kivuli thought to himself Thank the Kings they are here. I dont want to deal with Kovu. Nala had rushed to Mila's side, while Simba came to Kivuli and inquired to what had happened. Kivuli hoped that Simba would believe him. Mila would back him up which was a comforting thought. Hesitating no long Kivui spoke

It seems my past has come to haunt me. I told you over dinner of a war I had with 3 lions out in the wild. It seems me and my old friends did a sloppy job. 2 of them are still alive. I was out on patrol as you asked when the winds carred ther scent to me, along wth Mila's. I knew what those lions wee like. They would have their own way with her given the chance. If she resisted then they ould kill her. Kivuli paused for a moment to catch his breath and continue I sent off to see what was going on. What I saw as i aproached was both lions beating Mila. I jumped in taking them by suprise. Mila had already hurt the main aggressor, Zane. I knocked him out. The other lion, Anga, is not much of a fighter. So he picked but Zane and left

Kivuli turned his attention to Mila and looked at her. She was lucky that Kivuli arrived when he did. Mila will be fine. I cleaned the wounds up. None are serious they will all heal in time. She just needs a good rest and some food Kivul then looke at the claw damage he had across his side before looking back at Simba By the looks of things, I need another bath Kivuli then stood and waited for Simba

[Lodrill]

Taraji smiled happily and her eyes looked up to the grown up lioness. "I want... I want... just to be with you." For Taraji being with Kiara and Kovu was important. Due she never had been with other cubs she also never played with them. Also because of her shy nature she had it pretty hard to even aproach others even if they were cubs.

"Where is Ko... Ko... erm" Taraji did not completely remember the name of Kovu. Also she was not as far as calling them mother and father. Maybe because she was not told to do so or because she was still a bit shy about them.

[hr][/hr]

Laini nudged Daxis and spoke softly. "You shouldn't snuggle against someone if you are dirty. Clean yourself before you aproach someone." Laini continued to bath him and also cleaned herself. It took her some time to finish her work. After she was pleased with the fur of both of them she raised to her paws. "Well, what do you want to do today?" she asked not knowing what to do with the cub. She still did not know if she was doing anything right.

[hr][/hr]

Rahina had now way to awoid the topic anymore. It was clear that she was out of energy. But still she did not want to talk to Kopa about her status. She was not sure what he would do. "Well... I really seem out of shape today. Maybe I am still a bit exhausted from our journey." she smiled and nuzzled Kopa.
"Don't worry about me my love. I just need some rest for now" Rahina lay down on the side letting the sun shine on her belly. She closed her onyx eyes and slowly calmed down her heavy breath.

[SinChei]

Daxis purred and enjoyed the whole bath. He understood and accepted what laini said and replied happy again
"ok mommy understood and thank you for cleaning"
it took some more Time until laini cleaned herself up and her question made daxis Jump up and ran around the Golden furred lioness.
"yeahhh maybe we can go to the big rock where the other lions are its so awesome there please but only if you want to".
His small red mane caressed her chest when He ran through her forelegs. Daxis ran out and stopped. He looked back and waited grining for a reply.

[Mike]

When Simba and Nala arrived on the scene and took Kivuli's concerns seriously Kovu had to admit that it was time to get his rear down where he could be of assistance. By the time he'd arrived at the base of Pride Rock however, He'd gotten the gist of what had happened. It was also clear that no lasting damage had been done to either lion, and that they'd be on their way to recovery with a little rest and care. Still slightly resentful of the fact that Kivuli had disturbed everyone for anything less than a life-threatening situation, Kovu didn't immediately speak up. In that time, another lion arrived on the scene.

-----------

Shani was brought out of his slightly daydreaming plans by a series of roars. He was on the scene a moment later, but didn't reveal his presence there, preferring to watch from a sheltered area. Kovu appeared a moment later, and Shani watched with glee as he immediately began to antagonize the other lion. When Nala and Simba appeared Shani felt that he'd seen enough, and approached as the pridelanders discussed Mila's condition with Kivuli.

"You say these lions left Kivuli?" Shani said by way of introduction. "You can't have followed them to the boundaries of the pridelands. What if they try to cause trouble somewhere else? By your own statement one of the lions escaped relatively unscathed while you made sure Mila was not in danger. That's commendable of course," Shani said with a nod of respect, "but in light of the situation Simba, I put myself at your service to help safeguard the rest of your lands. We might not find anything, but it's a worthy precaution I think. Perhaps Kivuli would be kind enough to accompany me, he knows these lions best after all."

[KingKivuli]

Kivuli and Simba were interupted by Shani, who offered to guard the lands with him. A tempting offer but Kivuli knew those lions better Theres no need to go after them. They were not expecting to find me let alone fight me Kivuli was unawre that it was him they had been tracking for some reason. He continued to speak Those two wont come back if im here. They could never beat me even two on one. Only one lion, Meremeta, their leader. He wasnt there so he must be dead. Kivuli then remembered, Simba had asked Kivuli to get to know Shani better. Kivuli hatched a plan. Shani, i still have my patrol to finish, would you kindly accompany me? My wound isnt helping me much

Kivuli looked straight at Simba and spoke They wont return ever again. I hurt them more than you think. As for Mila she is exhasted and needs a nice long rest Some blood dripped off Kivulis side and then onto the dirt below

[KiarasMate]

Nala listened to what Mila told her, wanting to object when she saw the younger lioness sitting up, as she knew that the best thing for Mila right now, was to relax so she wouldn’t reopen any of her injuries. Knowing that Mila was a proud lioness if there ever was one however, the cream colored queen held her tongue until Mila had finished speaking. Leaning in to give Mila a loving nuzzle and a quick few licks over the visible wounds that she could see, Nala spoke in a downhearted voice.

”Just relax Hun or you’re going to irritate those cuts. You’re safe now and it was a good thing that Kivuli got there when he did.”

While his mate fussed over Mila, Simba took in everything that Kivuli was telling him, looking a bit perplexed by the story, as he recalled the conversation that they had had a few moons ago. Once Kivuli had filled him in on the details about what had happened, Simba spoke in an appreciative tone to the grey furred male.

”First off, I must thank you Kivuli for rescuing Mila. I owe you a huge debt of gratitude for that and I’m sure Mila does too. There is something very important I must ask you though, seeing as what you have told me leads me to believe that perhaps you might have been too late to stop something serious. Did you see anything before you got to where Mila and the two rogues were fighting at?”

Immediately understanding what her mate was getting at, Nala turned back to Mila as she spoke in a low tone, so that only her words would be heard by the injured lioness next to her.

”Mila Hun, did they…?” Nala asked, unable to even bring herself to speak of such a heinous act.

Simba was about to speak up once more, when Shani made his presence known. Letting him and Kivuli speak amongst themselves, Simba turned to Kovu, speaking in a worried voice.

”Can you get a nice sleeping pelt set up in the main den for Mila please Kovu. She’s going to need to relax for a bit. With the way things are turning out, we’re going to be very short pawed on healthy lionesses here. You better keep a close eye on Kiara and Taraji. I doubt that those two rogues will stay away for long. We’re going to have to increase patrols over the lands.”

==========

While the commotion on the other side of Pride Rock took place, on the opposite side, things were a lot more peaceful. Kopa had allowed for Rahina to rest in the sun as he stood close by her, observing the way she was laying and just how out of shape she seemed to be in. Continuing to look rather concerned about his mate’s condition, Kopa spoke softly to her as he moved in and gave her a tender nuzzle.

”Okay, we’ll take it easy for the rest of the day Hina but maybe I should ask Nala to give you an examination since this really doesn’t seem like you. I know that these lands are a bit different from our oasis home but I wouldn’t have expected you to get this tired so quickly. I just care so deeply about you my precious and if there’s anything wrong with you, I want to get it fixed as soon as possible.”

Resting his head atop Rahina’s chest momentarily, listening to her rapid beating heart as he sighed quietly to himself, licking gently over Rahina’s soft belly once, causing something unexpected to happen as a very small amount of milk worked its way upon his tongue.

==========

Back at Kovu and Kiara’s den, the golden furred princess was savoring her time alone with her adorable daughter. Listening to that cute voice of hers, Kiara smiled happily as she politely reminded Taraji of her foster father’s name.

”Kovu Cutie. You can call him Daddy though, if that’s easier for you. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind. He will be back later though. He’s taking care of his sister, who had a little accident, but she’s okay, so don’t worry Cutie.”

Laying herself down in the green grass alongside the crystal eyed cub, Kiara gently reached a fore leg over to bring Taraji nice and close to her as the caring princess nuzzled her precious daughter before she spoke up once more.

”I see Nala gave you a bath, hmm Cutie? Your fur looks really pretty when the sun shines down on it. Did Nala give you something to eat while she was here too?”

[KingKivuli]

Kivuli gave a small bow to Simba after he had finished I know you said stay away from her, but I would sooner see myself beaten and broken than her. I did not see or smell anything more, just the attack. As for them coming back, I assure you they wont. Not if Merementa is gone. He wasnt with them so I beleive he is dead. Keep in mind Simba I know how they think. I spent 6 months fighting them, they will not return cause they know im stronger.

Kivuli took a breath and looked ove rhis shoulder before continuing I will patrol the area just to give you peace of mind, and i would liek Shan to accompany me

[NightmareMoon]

Mila listened to Nala, and although she agreed with her, she still didn't want to be laying on the ground like those two lions had stolen all of her precious energy. She hadn't showed her true strength, but would have if she hadn't been pinned. The lioness didn't want the lions who surrounded her to think she was a weakling. They might have seen her strength once or twice. The reality was they didn't know half of it.

Mila just sat motionless while Simba and Kivuli conversed, barely able to comprehend the words that flew by so fast out of both of their muzzles. Nala began to whisper in her ear shortly after and Mila was able to understand her much better because of how close she was.

Mila knew exactly what she was on about and cut her foster mother off short. "No...." She whispered back with a strong tone to the cream colored queen, pausing for a split second to take a breath before finishing. With a sigh, she finished her thought with a less confident tone as quiet as she could without anyone else hearing. "Almost." And with that said, her eyes fell immediately to the floor, indicating that it was all she was willing to say.

Once again, Mila stopped listening to the lions around her as she just focused on staying upright and hoped she would find the energy to walk back to a den to rest. She became light-headed many times and had to focus on keeping conscious during the entire time she sat there. Hoping things would speed up, Mila waited to be escorted towards the main den.