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"I've gathered the pride, my liege. All lionesses not currently hunting are accounted for. Nuka is here as well." came Balondemu's gruff voice from behind.

Scar flicked his ear back to acknowledge his bodyguard, majordomo, and secret lover, but kept his gaze forward towards the gathering members of his pride from his perch on Pride Rock. He noticed that the lionesses Zira brought with her when she rejoined the pride still sat away from Sarabi and her group, both groups sending wary glances towards one another.

On the side of Zira's lionesses, the identical twins Arafa and Arifa were there, along with Mawingu and Usiku's mother, Hidaya, with her cubs huddled by her feet. Zira's sister Chuki was also among them, she and her teenaged daughter Kaweria being the only lionesses from Sarabi's group to "switch sides," so to speak. Zira stood in the back of the group with their scrawny son, Nuka, who was sitting by her paws looking up at him with curiosity in his red eyes. On Sarabi's side was Sarabi herself, her sisters Diku and Dwala, Sarafina and her sister Bititi, Diku's daughter Kula, and his and Sarafina's daughter, Nala. He'd have prefered more of the pride, but with the Pride Lands in the grip of a fierce drought, prey was scarce, and the lionesses needed to hunt as much as they could from the retreating herds for both the pride and the hyenas. And speaking of the hyenas, Shenzi's clan was no where to be seen.

"The hyenas?" Scar inquired emotionlessly.

"Patroling the boarders, my King. Shall I fetch them as well?"

"No. I'm tired of waiting. They, along with the lionesses out hunting, can learn what I have said today through those who were here. I shall begin now."

"As you wish, King Scar." Balondemu said, bowing his head to the older lion. He then walked up to the edge of edge of Pride Rock and let out a fearsome roar, grabbing the attention of the chattering lionesses below. "QUIET! The King has an important announcement to make!"

"Thank you, Balondemu." Scar purred, walking up to stand next to the large lion. The Dark King then once again cast his gaze out to the pride below. "As you are aware, my son, Crowned Prince Mheetu, has been missing for a few days now."

"As has my daughter, Shani." Sarabi added swiftly, interupting Scar. Balondemu growled softly, but Scar flicked his side gently with his tail, silencing him.

"...Yes, as has Sarabi's daughter, Shani." Scar continued with a twinge of annoyance in his voice. "Yesterday I sent out Balondemu to find them."

"Have they been found? Where are they? Where's my baby?" Sarafina demanded, her voice boardering frantic.

"Be quiet while your King is speaking and perhaps you'll get your answers without actually having to ask!" Balondemu barked, glaring at Sarafina. The cream lioness silenced, but she fidgeted in her spot.

"Thank you once again, Balondemu." Scar said, giving the body guard a brief smile before returning to a neutral expression. "Balondemu searched all over the territory for them, and even beyond, but the only sign of them that was found was some fur and puddles of blood just outside the western boarder." Gasps echoed throughout the pride from both groups. "So, it is with a heavy heart that I must declair them both deceased."

"NO!!! Not Mheetu and Shani, too!" came a wail from Sarabi's group's side. Scar's eyes wandered to the owner, Nala. She fell silent and gazed out into nothingness, tears falling from her eyes. Sarafina, though remaining silent, looked no better, also crying.

"How can you be sure, Scar?" Sarabi growled, barely holding back tears of her own. "You said no bodies were found. They could still be alive!"

"We should be out searching for them, not sitting here listening to you give a speach!" Diku added.

"Though no bodies were found, if Prince Mheetu and Shani were still alive, they would have returned by now. They have not." Scar said matter-of-factly. "Thus it is safe to assume they are dead."

"But what if they can't return? What if they are too hurt to come home on their own, or have fallen ill from a wound gone bad? " Diku challanged. "You're giving up on them far too quickly!"

"Silence!" Scar snapped, narrowing his eyes into slits. "I will not waste precious rescources searching for lions that are no longer among the living! Prince Mheetu and Shani are dead, so you'd best get used to it! Now, that brings me to my second announcement."

Diku went silent, but if looks could kill, Scar would have been a dead lion long ago. However, he ignored her. He glanced back briefly towards Zira and Nuka. Zira had a triumphant look on her face; it was obvious she knew what was coming next. Nuka, on the other hand, looked more confused than ever.

Stupid boy. Scar sneered in his head. If I didn't know any better, I'd have thought Zira had cheated on me with a rogue to have birthed that little termite.

"With Prince Mheetu dead, I have been left without an heir." Scar began, returning his gaze to the rest of the pride. "Thus, until a more...suitable heir is found, my second born son with Zira shall be my new heir." Shocked murmuring rippled through the pride. It wasn't a secret that Scar despised Nuka, so everyone was surprised that Scar would even consider making him his heir, even if it was only temporary. "Nuka will be presented to the kingdom tomorrow as my heir. Attendance to the ceremony is manditory. That is all."

~*~*~*~

"Perfect!" Zira hissed with glee, a malicious grin making it's way onto her face. "Now that Sarafina's spawn is out of the way, only the perfect son of my beloved and I shall sit on the throne. No longer will the throne be threatened by Sarafina's tainted blood."

"Mother, what are you talking about? Why are you smiling? Are you happy that big brother Mheetu is dead?" young Nuka asked, looking up at his mother with pure innocence in his eyes.

"Mheetu is not your brother!" Zira snarled, eyes flashing with anger. Nuka shrunk back, but kept eye contact.

"B-But isn't his father my father, making him my half-brother...?" he mewled.

"Sarafina and her brood are not related to you in any way, no matter who their father is. Anyone who shares that weak, pathetic bitch's blood is not worthy to be called an heir of Scar, and you'd do best to remember that, Nuka. Got it?"

"Yes Mother, I'll remember."

"Good." Zira said, content with her son's answer.

"So what does Father mean when he says I will be presented to the kingdom tomorrow?" Nuka asked.

"It means that you will become your father's heir in Mheetu's place, as you are your father's only remaining son." For now. She added silently.

"His heir? Wow! Does that mean I'll get to be king after Father?"

"Of course not, fool!" Zira snapped. "You're only temporary. Once your father and I have another, less pathetic son, he'll be the true heir to your father's throne and you'll go back to being a simple prince."

"What!? But why? Why would you two ever need another son when you have me?" Nuka asked, heartbroken. "Aren't I good enough? I could be a good king! I could be a great king!"

"Yes. A great weakling of a king." Zira snorted. "Look how scrawny you are. All skin and bones. And you're not exactly smart either. With no brains or brawns, you'd make a terrible king."

"That's not true, Mother! I'm strong! And smart! Just give me a chance, Mother, and you'll see."

"It's not me you have to impress." Zira said, rolling her eyes. "After the ceremony tomorrow you'll have your first lessons with your father. You'll have to impress him, not me, if you want to remain heir to the throne."

"First lessons? You mean, I get to spend time with Father? Alone?" Nuka asked, a smile making it's way onto his face.

"That's right. Try not to disappoint him too much, will you?"

"I won't Mother, I promise! I'll show Father that I can be the best Crowned Prince ever! And that when he dies, I can become the best King ever! Well, after him, of course. You'll see, Mother. After tomorrow, you and Father won't need to have another son!"

~*~*~*~

At King Scar's announcement of Mheetu and Shani's deaths, everyone was shocked. No one could believe that another Crowned Prince was dead, and those on Sarabi's side couldn't believe that the last of Mufasa's line was gone as well along with Mheetu. Both had been taken far too soon.

And yet, one lioness was not quite as surprised as the rest of the pride. Chuki narrowed her blue eyes ever so slightly, shifting her suspicious gaze towards her fraternal twin sister Zira. As she suspected, there was nothing but malicious glee on the lioness's face, and Chuki could only assume why.

"Mom," came her daughter's, Kaweria's, voice from beside her, her gaze following her mother's. "You don't think Aunt Zira had anything to do with the deaths of Prince Mheetu and Shani, do you?"

"It wouldn't surprise me in the least. In fact, I would bet you a whole month's worth of prey that she was the one who killed them."

"But why?" Hidaya, Mawingu and Usiku's mother asked. "Why would our Queen do such a thing? Crowned Prince Mheetu was King Scar's heir, and she absolutely adores the King! She'd never do anything to upset him."

"Isn't it obvious?" Chuki said. "Prince Mheetu wasn't of her blood; Sarafina, Scar's former mate and the mate he had before her, was his mother. She wants the next king to be of both her's and her beloved King Scar's blood. That, and Mheetu probably represents the past love between Scar and Sarafina, at least in her head."

"And Shani?"

"She probably was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Still, to go so low as to kill two innocent lions, barely adolescents...Zira, my dear sister, look how far you have fallen..."

Arafa and Arifa glanced at each other in a knowing manner, then nodded to each other before looking at Chuki.

"Are you going to report..." Arafa began.

"...Queen Zira's crimes to the King?" Arifa finished.

Chuki looked over at the twins briefly before returning her gaze to her sister. She knew the twins were very loyal to Zira, ever since she and their brother, Kulaani, took them in as starving adolescents back when they were starting their own pride together.

"No, of course not." Chuki sighed. "Zira is still my sister, regardless of her crimes. I would never betray her like that, especially since telling would most likely mean my sister's death, or exile at the very least. Besides, what's done is done. Tattling on her to Scar will not bring back Mheetu and Shani."

The twins nodded in agreement, content with Chuki's answer. But Kaweria was not so content.

"But Mom, she killed two lions, one of which was the Crowned Prince! What's to say she won't do it again? And what about Nala, Mheetu's sister? Won't she be in danger, too?"

"As long as no one gets in her way, then everyone should be fine. Zira wouldn't go out of her way to cause trouble for herself, especially now that everything seems to be going for her." the striped lionesses said to her daughter. "And as for Nala, I doubt Zira would try to kill her. Scar only wants a male heir, so she won't be seen as a threat."

"But it still feels wrong not to do anything."

"I know, Kaweria, I know. But right now, the best thing for us to do is to sit back and watch from a distance, and be the support she so desperately needs now. After all, I've tried the frontal approach before, and it's done nothing but push her farther away from me. So let's just hang back and keep an eye on her. Hopefully, over time with our loving support, she'll return to being the brooding but caring lioness she once was in the past, before my brother's untimely demise..."

"Do you really think that sitting back and doing nothing is going to work? Do you really think she can return to the way she was after she just murdered two lions?" Hidaya asked with a frown on her face.

"I hope so." Chuki whispered. "Great Spirit above I do hope so...Before it's too late."

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

NOTE: Just a small little comic-ish thing about what happened after Mheetu and Shani disappear. And no, they aren't really dead, but they are presumed to be, since they never come back to the Pride Lands. And yes, Zira does, in fact, have something to do with their disappearance. In the first panel, that is NOT Kovu, but Kovu's father, Balondemu, also known as Cub C from here ---> rarsa.deviantart.com/art/Possi… . In the second panel, from left to right, we have Sarabi, Diku, Sarafina, Nala, Kula, Bititi (the "My, how you've grown!" lioness from TLK 2), and Dwala. Third panel is Zira and cubby Nuka (isn't he adorable? ), and forth panel, from left to right, are the identical twins Arifa and Arafa (based on the two lionesses who flank Zira in the final battle scene), Kaweria (a.k.a "Digger"), Chuki (Zira's sister and based off of Zira and her wonky colors in the story book version of TLK 2), and Hidaya, who is the mother of Mawingu ("Spotty") and Usiku ("Dotty"). Chuki's head looks weird in this, but oh well. I tried to edit it to make it look more like her head (in the base it was originally Vitani), but after a while I got frustrated and just settled for this. Looks like shit, but oh well. At that point I had been working on this for three days, so I was getting annoyed with the whole project in general. I'll do better next time. Also, yes, Balondemu and Scar are lovers. In my TLK-verse, Scar is bisexual. If you do not like this, then do not look. Any negative comments towards the LBTG community will be ignored and removed.

Base(s): darthrhoadie.deviantart.com/ar… , mystiasakurazaki.deviantart.co… , xbox-ds-gameboy.deviantart.com… , horse-power.deviantart.com/art… , wolvesanddogs23.deviantart.com… , delita-1.deviantart.com/art/Nu…
Bases (c) , , , , , , , , Disney
TLK (c) Disney

Description
"I've gathered the pride, my liege. All lionesses not currently hunting are accounted for. Nuka is here as well." came Balondemu's gruff voice from behind.

Scar flicked his ear back to acknowledge his bodyguard, majordomo, and secret lover, but kept his gaze forward towards the gathering members of his pride from his perch on Pride Rock. He noticed that the lionesses Zira brought with her when she rejoined the pride still sat away from Sarabi and her group, both groups sending wary glances towards one another.

On the side of Zira's lionesses, the identical twins Arafa and Arifa were there, along with Mawingu and Usiku's mother, Hidaya, with her cubs huddled by her feet. Zira's sister Chuki was also among them, she and her teenaged daughter Kaweria being the only lionesses from Sarabi's group to "switch sides," so to speak. Zira stood in the back of the group with their scrawny son, Nuka, who was sitting by her paws looking up at him with curiosity in his red eyes. On Sarabi's side was Sarabi herself, her sisters Diku and Dwala, Sarafina and her sister Bititi, Diku's daughter Kula, and his and Sarafina's daughter, Nala. He'd have prefered more of the pride, but with the Pride Lands in the grip of a fierce drought, prey was scarce, and the lionesses needed to hunt as much as they could from the retreating herds for both the pride and the hyenas. And speaking of the hyenas, Shenzi's clan was no where to be seen.

"The hyenas?" Scar inquired emotionlessly.

"Patroling the boarders, my King. Shall I fetch them as well?"

"No. I'm tired of waiting. They, along with the lionesses out hunting, can learn what I have said today through those who were here. I shall begin now."

"As you wish, King Scar." Balondemu said, bowing his head to the older lion. He then walked up to the edge of edge of Pride Rock and let out a fearsome roar, grabbing the attention of the chattering lionesses below. "QUIET! The King has an important announcement to make!"

"Thank you, Balondemu." Scar purred, walking up to stand next to the large lion. The Dark King then once again cast his gaze out to the pride below. "As you are aware, my son, Crowned Prince Mheetu, has been missing for a few days now."

"As has my daughter, Shani." Sarabi added swiftly, interupting Scar. Balondemu growled softly, but Scar flicked his side gently with his tail, silencing him.

"...Yes, as has Sarabi's daughter, Shani." Scar continued with a twinge of annoyance in his voice. "Yesterday I sent out Balondemu to find them."

"Have they been found? Where are they? Where's my baby?" Sarafina demanded, her voice boardering frantic.

"Be quiet while your King is speaking and perhaps you'll get your answers without actually having to ask!" Balondemu barked, glaring at Sarafina. The cream lioness silenced, but she fidgeted in her spot.

"Thank you once again, Balondemu." Scar said, giving the body guard a brief smile before returning to a neutral expression. "Balondemu searched all over the territory for them, and even beyond, but the only sign of them that was found was some fur and puddles of blood just outside the western boarder." Gasps echoed throughout the pride from both groups. "So, it is with a heavy heart that I must declair them both deceased."

"NO!!! Not Mheetu and Shani, too!" came a wail from Sarabi's group's side. Scar's eyes wandered to the owner, Nala. She fell silent and gazed out into nothingness, tears falling from her eyes. Sarafina, though remaining silent, looked no better, also crying.

"How can you be sure, Scar?" Sarabi growled, barely holding back tears of her own. "You said no bodies were found. They could still be alive!"

"We should be out searching for them, not sitting here listening to you give a speach!" Diku added.

"Though no bodies were found, if Prince Mheetu and Shani were still alive, they would have returned by now. They have not." Scar said matter-of-factly. "Thus it is safe to assume they are dead."

"But what if they can't return? What if they are too hurt to come home on their own, or have fallen ill from a wound gone bad? " Diku challanged. "You're giving up on them far too quickly!"

"Silence!" Scar snapped, narrowing his eyes into slits. "I will not waste precious rescources searching for lions that are no longer among the living! Prince Mheetu and Shani are dead, so you'd best get used to it! Now, that brings me to my second announcement."

Diku went silent, but if looks could kill, Scar would have been a dead lion long ago. However, he ignored her. He glanced back briefly towards Zira and Nuka. Zira had a triumphant look on her face; it was obvious she knew what was coming next. Nuka, on the other hand, looked more confused than ever.

Stupid boy. Scar sneered in his head. If I didn't know any better, I'd have thought Zira had cheated on me with a rogue to have birthed that little termite.

"With Prince Mheetu dead, I have been left without an heir." Scar began, returning his gaze to the rest of the pride. "Thus, until a more...suitable heir is found, my second born son with Zira shall be my new heir." Shocked murmuring rippled through the pride. It wasn't a secret that Scar despised Nuka, so everyone was surprised that Scar would even consider making him his heir, even if it was only temporary. "Nuka will be presented to the kingdom tomorrow as my heir. Attendance to the ceremony is manditory. That is all."

~*~*~*~

"Perfect!" Zira hissed with glee, a malicious grin making it's way onto her face. "Now that Sarafina's spawn is out of the way, only the perfect son of my beloved and I shall sit on the throne. No longer will the throne be threatened by Sarafina's tainted blood."

"Mother, what are you talking about? Why are you smiling? Are you happy that big brother Mheetu is dead?" young Nuka asked, looking up at his mother with pure innocence in his eyes.

"Mheetu is not your brother!" Zira snarled, eyes flashing with anger. Nuka shrunk back, but kept eye contact.

"B-But isn't his father my father, making him my half-brother...?" he mewled.

"Sarafina and her brood are not related to you in any way, no matter who their father is. Anyone who shares that weak, pathetic bitch's blood is not worthy to be called an heir of Scar, and you'd do best to remember that, Nuka. Got it?"

"Yes Mother, I'll remember."

"Good." Zira said, content with her son's answer.

"So what does Father mean when he says I will be presented to the kingdom tomorrow?" Nuka asked.

"It means that you will become your father's heir in Mheetu's place, as you are your father's only remaining son." For now. She added silently.

"His heir? Wow! Does that mean I'll get to be king after Father?"

"Of course not, fool!" Zira snapped. "You're only temporary. Once your father and I have another, less pathetic son, he'll be the true heir to your father's throne and you'll go back to being a simple prince."

"What!? But why? Why would you two ever need another son when you have me?" Nuka asked, heartbroken. "Aren't I good enough? I could be a good king! I could be a great king!"

"Yes. A great weakling of a king." Zira snorted. "Look how scrawny you are. All skin and bones. And you're not exactly smart either. With no brains or brawns, you'd make a terrible king."

"That's not true, Mother! I'm strong! And smart! Just give me a chance, Mother, and you'll see."

"It's not me you have to impress." Zira said, rolling her eyes. "After the ceremony tomorrow you'll have your first lessons with your father. You'll have to impress him, not me, if you want to remain heir to the throne."

"First lessons? You mean, I get to spend time with Father? Alone?" Nuka asked, a smile making it's way onto his face.

"That's right. Try not to disappoint him too much, will you?"

"I won't Mother, I promise! I'll show Father that I can be the best Crowned Prince ever! And that when he dies, I can become the best King ever! Well, after him, of course. You'll see, Mother. After tomorrow, you and Father won't need to have another son!"

~*~*~*~

At King Scar's announcement of Mheetu and Shani's deaths, everyone was shocked. No one could believe that another Crowned Prince was dead, and those on Sarabi's side couldn't believe that the last of Mufasa's line was gone as well along with Mheetu. Both had been taken far too soon.

And yet, one lioness was not quite as surprised as the rest of the pride. Chuki narrowed her blue eyes ever so slightly, shifting her suspicious gaze towards her fraternal twin sister Zira. As she suspected, there was nothing but malicious glee on the lioness's face, and Chuki could only assume why.

"Mom," came her daughter's, Kaweria's, voice from beside her, her gaze following her mother's. "You don't think Aunt Zira had anything to do with the deaths of Prince Mheetu and Shani, do you?"

"It wouldn't surprise me in the least. In fact, I would bet you a whole month's worth of prey that she was the one who killed them."

"But why?" Hidaya, Mawingu and Usiku's mother asked. "Why would our Queen do such a thing? Crowned Prince Mheetu was King Scar's heir, and she absolutely adores the King! She'd never do anything to upset him."

"Isn't it obvious?" Chuki said. "Prince Mheetu wasn't of her blood; Sarafina, Scar's former mate and the mate he had before her, was his mother. She wants the next king to be of both her's and her beloved King Scar's blood. That, and Mheetu probably represents the past love between Scar and Sarafina, at least in her head."

"And Shani?"

"She probably was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Still, to go so low as to kill two innocent lions, barely adolescents...Zira, my dear sister, look how far you have fallen..."

Arafa and Arifa glanced at each other in a knowing manner, then nodded to each other before looking at Chuki.

"Are you going to report..." Arafa began.

"...Queen Zira's crimes to the King?" Arifa finished.

Chuki looked over at the twins briefly before returning her gaze to her sister. She knew the twins were very loyal to Zira, ever since she and their brother, Kulaani, took them in as starving adolescents back when they were starting their own pride together.

"No, of course not." Chuki sighed. "Zira is still my sister, regardless of her crimes. I would never betray her like that, especially since telling would most likely mean my sister's death, or exile at the very least. Besides, what's done is done. Tattling on her to Scar will not bring back Mheetu and Shani."

The twins nodded in agreement, content with Chuki's answer. But Kaweria was not so content.

"But Mom, she killed two lions, one of which was the Crowned Prince! What's to say she won't do it again? And what about Nala, Mheetu's sister? Won't she be in danger, too?"

"As long as no one gets in her way, then everyone should be fine. Zira wouldn't go out of her way to cause trouble for herself, especially now that everything seems to be going for her." the striped lionesses said to her daughter. "And as for Nala, I doubt Zira would try to kill her. Scar only wants a male heir, so she won't be seen as a threat."

"But it still feels wrong not to do anything."

"I know, Kaweria, I know. But right now, the best thing for us to do is to sit back and watch from a distance, and be the support she so desperately needs now. After all, I've tried the frontal approach before, and it's done nothing but push her farther away from me. So let's just hang back and keep an eye on her. Hopefully, over time with our loving support, she'll return to being the brooding but caring lioness she once was in the past, before my brother's untimely demise..."

"Do you really think that sitting back and doing nothing is going to work? Do you really think she can return to the way she was after she just murdered two lions?" Hidaya asked with a frown on her face.

"I hope so." Chuki whispered. "Great Spirit above I do hope so...Before it's too late."

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

NOTE: Just a small little comic-ish thing about what happened after Mheetu and Shani disappear. And no, they aren't really dead, but they are presumed to be, since they never come back to the Pride Lands. And yes, Zira does, in fact, have something to do with their disappearance. In the first panel, that is NOT Kovu, but Kovu's father, Balondemu, also known as Cub C from here ---> rarsa.deviantart.com/art/Possi… . In the second panel, from left to right, we have Sarabi, Diku, Sarafina, Nala, Kula, Bititi (the "My, how you've grown!" lioness from TLK 2), and Dwala. Third panel is Zira and cubby Nuka (isn't he adorable? ), and forth panel, from left to right, are the identical twins Arifa and Arafa (based on the two lionesses who flank Zira in the final battle scene), Kaweria (a.k.a "Digger"), Chuki (Zira's sister and based off of Zira and her wonky colors in the story book version of TLK 2), and Hidaya, who is the mother of Mawingu ("Spotty") and Usiku ("Dotty"). Chuki's head looks weird in this, but oh well. I tried to edit it to make it look more like her head (in the base it was originally Vitani), but after a while I got frustrated and just settled for this. Looks like shit, but oh well. At that point I had been working on this for three days, so I was getting annoyed with the whole project in general. I'll do better next time. Also, yes, Balondemu and Scar are lovers. In my TLK-verse, Scar is bisexual. If you do not like this, then do not look. Any negative comments towards the LBTG community will be ignored and removed.

Base(s): darthrhoadie.deviantart.com/ar… , mystiasakurazaki.deviantart.co… , xbox-ds-gameboy.deviantart.com… , horse-power.deviantart.com/art… , wolvesanddogs23.deviantart.com… , delita-1.deviantart.com/art/Nu…
Bases (c) , , , , , , , , Disney
TLK (c) Disney