pride | the lion king

Ch. 19

Three years later

"Nala. Come. Sit with us."

Nala, who was looking over the kingdom, gladly turned away. Since Nzuri's banishment, things had taken a turn for the worse. The last of the herds had fled. The waterholes were all nearly dry. Hyenas were killing everything in their paths without restraint. Nala hadn't seen rain in years. The lands were black and the sky was grey. It was as though there had been a fire and nothing grew in its place.

Nala sighed and sat beside Sarabi, her true queen. Zira did nothing for them but goad the hyenas on and make a mockery of the starving lionesses.

A flutter drew Nala's attention; Zazu had finally arrived. "Zazu, where have you been?"

"I'm sorry, Nala," said Zazu. "I came as soon as I could."

"The morning report, Zazu," Sarabi ordered.

"Your Majesty, the Pride Lands are in imminent danger. The hyenas are chasing off the last of the herds."

Before Sarabi could reply, two hyenas appeared around the corner. "The bird's back," said Kamari. He and his partner, Azizi, were particularly annoying hyenas.

"Get him!"

Zazu made a break for it just as Kamari opened his jaws, forcing both Nala and Halia to jump backwards to avoid his teeth.

"Don't come here again, unless you want to be eaten!" Shouted Kamari.

Nala stood as soon as they were out of earshot. "We have to do something, Sarabi!" She pleaded. "We have to fight!"

"Nala, Scar is the king."

"But you are our queen. We should leave before it's too late!"

"I agree," Halia added. "How can our pride possibly survive? There's no food, no water. If we don't do something soon, everyone will starve!"

"We must all stay together and protect the Pride Lands. This is our home. We must never abandon it," said Sarabi in a firm tone, staring between the two young lionesses.

Nala scoffed. "This isn't the home I remember."

Sarabi sighed. "Our time will come, Nala. Be patient."

Low growls drew away from the conversation. Nala looked up, finding Shenzi coming towards them, back arched. Nala clenched her teeth. Shenzi, Banzai and Ed had always been thorns in her paw but Shenzi was, by far, the sharpest.

"Sarafina, the king wishes to see you," she said stiffly.

Nala's eyes widened as they all turned to her mother who sat on a low rock, tense. "Don't go," Nala begged.

However, Sarafina did not waver. "I'm not afraid of him," she declared as she stood, following Shenzi to the top of Pride Rock.

Scar was feasting on the kill of the day, Nuka at his side, chewing on a smaller piece of meat. Zira was nowhere in sight. Nuka was still a cub —a very skinny and malnourished cub, obviously a runt— with sunken eyes and an air of fear. Sarafina couldn't help but feel sorry for the boy; no cub deserves to be brought up in such an environment.

"Won't you join me, Sarafina?" Scar asked casually, as though speaking to a friend. In reality, Sarafina hadn't spoken to Taka in years, not one-on-one. "There's plenty to go around."

"You're overhunting, Scar," Sarafina said bravely.

"I've simply perfected the kill with the help of my army," he said.

"You're killing everything!"

"Don't you see? There is nobody to challenge me. We can finally take whatever we want!"

"We?" Sarafina asked skeptically.

Scar paused his eating, looking out over the kingdom. Nuka held still as well, watching. "Long ago, you chose Ishara over me, but now he is gone, so stop being so selfish."

Sarafina drew a deep breath, trying to contain her fury. "You are the selfish one."

Scar ignored her. "As long as you resist, the others will reject me. Take your place by my side, and we will feast together— all of us! It will keep your daughter safe."

"I will never be your queen. Besides," she added pointedly, "you already have one."

Scar stood, towering over her, but Sarafina didn't flinch. Zira was not mentioned again. "Then from now on, the lions will eat after the hyenas. And they don't leave much behind," he declared.

***

That night, Nala decided she had had enough. Seeing Scar threaten her mother and take his anger at her rejection out on the pride, she had no choice. In the dead of night, once everyone was asleep in the lower den, Nala scooted over to where Halia and Nuri slept a foot apart, tails locked together. She nudged Halia's shoulder gently, trying to wake her.

"Bugger off," Halia murmured sleepily.

"Halia!" Nala hissed. "Get up! We're leaving."

Halia blinked her eyes open, confused, to face her friend. "We're leaving... what?!"

"Sh!" Nala snapped. "We can't sit around and do nothing anymore. We're going to find help."

"W-wait," Halia said quickly. "Nala, I can't! Nuri and my mother— I can't leave."

"But—"

"Nala."

The young lioness sighed. "Fine. I understand. Tell my mother where I've gone, okay? I'll be back as soon as I can, I promise."

Halia nodded. "You better, or I'll have to come after you."

Nala chuckled. "Gotcha."

The two bumped their heads together affectionately before Nala stood, slinking out the cavern into the night, leaving Halia to watch, afraid of the news the morning would bring.

Nala barely made it ten feet before a flutter of wings intercepted her path. "Just what do you think you are doing, young lady?" Zazu demanded in an angry whisper.

"Go away, Zazu," Nala said, "I'm going to find help."

"I will very much not go away. I am sworn to protect you and must order you back to bed!"

"I don't need protecting anymore."

However, at those words, Nala heard a rustle, followed by a bellow.

Scar.

He came down from his cave, a low growl in his then and Zira on his tail.

"There's nothing here, my love," Zira said. "Come back to bed."

Scar continued. Nala climbed up a small ledge, only just out of sight. Scar was nearing... closer and closer...

"Uh, Scar," Zazu interrupted. "Uh, wonderful to see you. Uh, sorry to drop in like this. Ah. Have I ever told you about my brother who thought he was a woodpecker?"

Nala, and later everyone else, would forever be grateful for distracting Scar that night, allowing Nala to leave.

First, she decided, I will find the jungle prides.