Scar x Zira: The Lost Heir

Chapter Twenty-Three

Zira passed Kito to Shani and roared back to Scar.
It's true! Scar is King!
She walked briskly towards Pride Rock with the Outsiders following close behind.

The first thing she saw was the mass of hyenas surrounding the huge rock, their laughter echoing through the night. Then she saw Scar's lean silhouette against the dark night sky, the moon lending a soft glow to highlight his features.
The Outsiders drew closer and closer until their paws hit the rock and they could see the horrified Pridelander lionesses within the mass of hyenas.
Zira met Sarabi's gaze, but there wasn't as much fiery, burning hate as there usually was when they were together. Instead there was a deep, painful sorrow that made Zira's fur stand on end.
"What are you doing here!?" Zazu squawked, hopping up in front of Zira, "you're not allowed to be in the Pridelands!"
Zira's upper lip curled into an impatient snarl.
"Who are you to tell me what I'm allowed to do and where I'm allowed to be?!"
Zazu puffed out his chest indignantly.
"I'm the Majordomo! And I can tell you exactly what..."
"Silence, Zazu!"
Everyone looked up to see Scar climbing down Pride Rock, his eyes locked on Zira.
She grinned at him and bowed low to the ground, never taking her eyes off of his.
He continued towards her until he was between her and Zazu.
"Zira and the rest of the Outlanders are no longer exiled. This will be under effect immediately."
He said this without looking at Zazu or the Pridelanders, and Zira could see Zazu's beak open and close in complete shock.
Zira stretched out of her bow and continued to look him straight in the eye.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
He leaned in close and whispered,
"It is my pleasure."
Then he turned to look at Sarabi and the rest of the Pridelanders.
"I am also obliged to choose a Queen, now that I am King."
Sarabi and Sarafina down cast their eyes so they wouldn't meet his gaze. The other lionesses looked at him in sheer horror as he turned back to Zira.
"So I choose Zira as my Queen."
Zira smirked and bumped her head against his.
"And I accept," she growled.
She drew away from him and turned to face the Outsiders.
They all roared for the new King and Queen, but the Pridelanders stayed eerily silent.
Zira turned her head slightly to look at Sarabi, and immediately she saw that the burning hate for her was back.
I'm Queen now, Sarabi. Deal with it.
Sarabi turned her head away from her as if to say,
You will never be Queen to me.
Zira tried not to lose her temper and she glanced back at the Outsiders.
Scar put his paw on hers and she welcomed it, moving her head over to nuzzle the side of his face.
Then she felt small paws on her leg, scrabbling to get her attention.
She looked down to see Kito with his front paws on her leg and his wide green eyes blinking up at her anxiously.
"What is it, my little Prince?" she whispered.
"There's another cub, mother! Can I go play with her?"
Zira shifted her gaze to where he was looking. There she saw a young female cub crying on Sarafina's leg.
Zira grinned down at Kito.
"Of course, my child."
He smiled up at her before bouncing off to play.
"This is perfect," Scar growled quietly, " Our heir can be betrothed! She is not much older than him, and he is already trying to be her friend. You're brilliant, my love."
Zira's grin widened, and her tail twisted around his.
"I think we can trust Shani and Asilia to look after Kito for now. We have some catching up to do."
With that, she nodded at Shani and Asilia before walking off with Scar trailing behind.
"Where are you two going?" Sarabi growled.
Zira didn't bother to look over at Sarabi, and she didn't stop walking, either.
"We need some time alone," she said simply in an irritated tone.
Sarabi's lip curled, but she didn't say anything with Scar around. She knew that they could easily best her with their combined strength, if they wanted to.
Zira and Scar continued back to Scar's old cave, leaving the rest of the pride behind.

Kito trotted up to the other cub, his bright eyes gleaming with excitement.
"Hi," he said, "I'm Kito! What's your name?"
The cub looked up at him through tear-filled eyes.
"Nala," she murmured.
"Nala... that's a cool name. Do you want to play?"
He waited patiently for an answer as Nala looked up at the lioness towering over her. The lioness looked down at him curiously.
"You're Scar and Zira's son?" the lioness asked.
"Yes."
Suddenly the lioness looked back up and he heard someone else approaching.
Another lioness, this one very proud-looking with a sturdy build and a sad expression, was padding over to the other lioness.
"What is Zira's cub trying to do, Sarafina? Or, at least, I assume he's Zira's," the lioness growled.
The lioness over Nala slowly replied to her.
"He's looking to play with Nala, Sarabi. I don't know what to make of it."
The lioness, Sarabi, looked down at him, and her expression suddenly turned soft and gentle.
"What is your name, young one?"
"Kito," he whispered, not knowing what to think of this lioness.
She smiled a little and looked over at Sarafina.
"He's just an innocent cub, Sarafina. He may be Scar and Zira's cub, but they haven't gotten to him yet."
Then he saw her tense up and he heard two lionesses approach from behind.
Immediately he was picked up by what he believed to be Shani's jaws and he saw Asilia standing right beside them out of the corner of his eye.
"Come on Kito," Asilia growled, "we can go play somewhere else. The Pridelanders need time to adjust."
He saw her glare at Sarabi and Sarafina before she turned and walked away. Shani followed after her and he was taken away from the other cub, back to the Outlanders.
Why can't I play with her?
He looked back one more time, but no one would look at him. Nala stared at the ground as his eyes tried desperately to meet hers.
They don't want to play. Maybe they don't like to play at all.
He hung his head as Shani carried him back to the others.