THE LION KING 3, PART II: DIFFERENCES

Intro:

Kovu and Kiara are very worried about their cubs. Not only can they not decide on an heir right away, but both Epesi and Giza seem to be ruining their lives in some way, shape or form. I tried to get my mom to write this story but she never got around to it. This story is told from Kiara’s perspective. The following characters belong to Disney: Simba, Nala, Sarabi, Sarafina, Kovu, Kiara. The following characters are mine: Epesi, Giza, Imara, Hofu, Hatari, Huzuni, Zuri and Rogar and cannot be used without my permission. Send feedback or any other mumbo jumbo to the6silent6one6@yahoo.com.

Note:

You could read any part of this story first, it doesn’t matter. All of them have secrets that are revealed in another segment. You do not have to read this story chronologically if you don’t want to.

Characters:

From Disney:

Simba (8 Years)

Nala (8 Years)

Kiara (4 Years)

Kovu (4 Years)

Sarabi (15 Years)

Sarafina (12 Years)

My Original Characters:

Epesi (1 Year)

Giza (1 Year)

Veni (15 Years)

Ouilee (12 Years)

Mopa (9 Years)

Jujuhara (7 Years)

Imara (1 Year)

Hofu (2 Years)

Royal Family Tree (simplified):

Mohatu

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Igunoi + Frehda Ahadi + Uru

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Sarafina + Xygolapo Sarabi + Mufasa Scar + Zira Veni + Trapa

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Nala + Simba Kimba Nuka Vitani ?

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------------ Phantooh + Kura

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Kopa Kiara + Kovu

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Giza Epesi

Perspective C: Wrought With Worry

Chapter 1: Alienated Son

Chapter 2: Time Rolls on By

Chapter 3: Loss

Chapter 4: Stepping Down

Chapter 5: My Son

Chapter 1: Alienated Son

Hello everyone, it’s me Kiara. My cubs… neither one of them turned out how I would’ve planned. Giza… why did you have to die? And Epesi… I love you, but, but, you turned out to be a monster… why? Now I’m left without a cub and without a mate; I’m so sad; I’m lost and I don’t know which way to go next.

I guess the whole ordeal started with my son Epesi; maybe I shouldn’t have made such a big deal about him going outside. I didn’t know what was wrong with him. Maybe he’s being teased by the other cubs? Maybe he’s sick? Maybe he’s unhappy? Maybe he doesn’t like the other cubs? It really worried me, not knowing what was wrong; so I decided to ask him about it. I chose as good a moment as any to approach him about the matter. After he got into an argument with his sister I told them to run off and play with their friends. Epesi decided to stay at Pride Rock, sitting outside; just sitting there, who does that? Who just sits and thinks all day, staying away from others, shunning the sunlight of the savannah? I was very scared; I headed to the den and sat down beside my family. As I talked to them about it they said that it was probably nothing, but I didn’t want to take that chance; not with my cub. I called him into the den, and when he came in everybody was watching him. I could tell that he was uncomfortable but I don’t think that any of the ladies could help themselves, he was their prince and they all needed to do their best to make sure that he’s all right. I asked him if everything was all right but he just stared at me, puzzled. He started thinking again; he wouldn’t answer my question. I couldn’t help but start to cry; he wasn’t answering, so there must be something that he’s not telling me. I don’t want my own son keeping secrets from me; if he’s sad then I want him to say so. When I finally urged him to continue he just yelled at me. He yelled saying that he was happy and he didn’t know why I was making such a big deal about this. He said that he just didn’t know, he was happy doing what he did. I must’ve looked intimidating to him because after that he just ran right out of the cave bawling his eyes out.

It was all my fault, he ran off because of me. I tried to run after him but by the time I could react he was already too far ahead. I was confused; there’s no way that he was happy if he went and did something like that. Still, I’ve never seen him like that before; I didn’t know what to do, what could I do but wait and hope for him to return or hope that dad and Kovu find him on their way back home (they’re on some kind of official business). I was helpless, I didn’t know what to do; he was gone and I was responsible. Mom was trying to tell me that everything would be alright; but what if Epesi didn’t come back? What if I never got to see him again? What if he dies while he’s out there? It’s a big, cruel world; anything could happen. Finally mom offered to go out and look for him; several others went with her. About four or so lionesses stayed with me trying to help me feel better. They tried telling jokes, they tried saying that everything would be all right, they kept saying how smart Epesi was and how he’d stay out of trouble, they kept going on and on about everything; but all that I could think about was my dear son, I wanted him back. I couldn’t think of anything besides his cute little voice, his unique color scheme, his mature attitude, and his kindness. Also there’s the cocky little way that he stood, the way he would scamper off, his smile, what if I was never blessed with any of these again?

As I was alone with my thoughts a ray of hope shined through. Kovu came in! I knew that he’d find him; I could hear those scampering footsteps coming up to the den. Just as I was about to rush up to them I saw that he brought Giza with him; Epesi was nowhere in sight. I laid down, sadness overwhelming me, tears streaming down my face, sobs escaping with every breath that I took. I closed my eyes, the tears had blurred my vision too much anyway, I had never lost anyone before; no parent should ever outlive their cub. Although I was sad I couldn’t help but feel a little more relaxed at the sound of Kovu’s voice. When he asked me what was going on I shot right up and nuzzled my way through his chest. He placed a foreleg around me trying to help me feel better. I told him that I made Epesi run away; despite many “No you didn’t’s.” from the girls I knew that this was the truth. It’s all my fault that he’s gone now. I told Kovu everything; he said that dad was taking care of the situation. Apparently Giza saw him running off and chased after him, Timon and Pumbaa wouldn’t allow her to go any further so Imara (Giza’s friend) took off after him. Dad knew that the pride Epesi ran off towards is an enemy pride.

I had to tell Giza of why we were enemies with the pride. It all started five generations ago. Our pride was ruled by three brothers; everybody (even out of the three brothers) unanimously decided that Rogar would be the one true king. He would be the one to carry on the bloodline that eventually led down to us. So, my great-great-great-grandpa had chosen who he wanted to be his mate. They had four wonderful cubs together; but it was later discovered that these cubs were not the king’s, they were his youngest brother’s. Great-great-great-grandpa was understandably outraged and had his brother exiled from the Pride Lands. However, he exiled his other brother as well so that he couldn’t try the same thing. Unfortunately the queen left with the youngest brother and all of the cubs with her; they began the pride that started up north. Ever since then, we’ve been enemies.

Now I was very worried; what would they do to him if they caught him? They might raise him to hate us, or they might just kill him there. Now I didn’t want to talk to anybody. I didn’t even want to think about what they were doing to my poor, sweet, innocent Epesi.

Chapter 2: Time Rolls on By

The seconds became minutes, the minutes became hours, the hours started rolling by double-speed. The sun began to set; dusk had filled the sky with many hues and mixtures of blues and purples and pinks and oranges and yellows and reds. What if dad was too late? What if they got him too? I was very scared now. I couldn’t sit still anymore; I began to pace around the den, my breathing became heavier, my heart beat faster, I started getting angry. My blood started to boil at the thought of that horrible pride torturing my son and my father. My anger would jump from that pride to myself; I was angry at myself for causing this whole ordeal, then I’d feel bad because it was all my fault and I’d start crying again. Epesi, he was only a cub; he shouldn’t have to go through all of this. I’m his mother and I did this to him; I caused him to run away, I caused him to encounter our enemies, I caused Imara to run after him, I caused him to endure pain… and in the long run I caused him to become a monster.

I thought that I’d dry up, that no more tears could escape my body, but I never seemed to run out of fluids. My eyes burned, my chest ached, my head felt like someone jammed their claw into it, my face felt horribly stretched, and I felt exhausted. There were more footsteps; footsteps of an adult… and footsteps of a cub; they were headed towards the den. My ears perked right up and I stayed quiet; then came a voice… HIS voice!!! He gave out a weak cry of ‘…mom.’ My cub was safe and sound!!! He ran off shortly after sunrise, he had been gone the entire day; but now he was back, I was so happy that I cried tears of joy. I embraced him and didn’t ever want to let him go; but he squirmed away from my grip and gave me an annoyed ‘mom!’ which made me laugh; I never thought I’d hear that voice again. I could tell that he was very sorry; he actually wanted to make it up to me. All that I wanted was his safe return; but he still insisted, so Kovu and I gave him the night to think about how he wanted to make it up to us.

Kovu left the den later than night. He always went outside when something was troubling him; I would try to talk to him but he always said that he needed to be alone. I knew that he would be willing to talk as soon as he came back inside; besides, I had Giza and Epesi snuggled up beside me, I couldn’t just leave them there to freeze. Kovu was out longer than usual, I had actually fallen asleep before he came back inside. He sat down next to me which woke me up. I asked him what was wrong. He had a lot on his mind; he was too worried about Epesi all day. But it wasn’t just Epesi, it was his walk with dad as well. I listened and we talked about it for a few hours. We were actually talking as we were half-asleep, not even fully understanding what the other was saying or even what we were saying. Eventually I drifted off into sleep; he was either already asleep or too tired to wake me up, it was a long day.

Chapter 3: Loss

Both of my grandmothers died over the course of the next year and a half. They had just been around for too long, not many lions make it to the age of fifteen. It was heartbreaking to lose them; they had done so much for me, they were always there to help me out. Sarabi was one of the most intelligent lionesses that our pride had ever seen, Sarafina was one of the kindest lionesses that our pride had ever seen; and now they were both gone. It really wasn’t fair, we’d be much better off now if they had been around during Epesi’s fourth birthday. But, they were gone, their time had come, the Circle of Life needed to continue. For our pride it was a major loss; it was always a major loss to lose someone, but to lose these two… it was hard to recover from.

Both of my grandma’s… so kind, so gentle, so loving to everyone, always putting others before themselves. Giza was sad, Epesi didn’t seem to mind; that worried me beyond words. Things seemed to get really bad over the course of the next few months. Epesi was completely socially withdrawn from everybody and Giza ended up getting pregnant with Imara’s cubs. Giza wasn’t old enough to mate, but, maybe it was just her way of grieving. She decided to do the kindest thing and give them up for adoption to a couple of the other lionesses. All five cubs were split up between the two lionesses. I was a grandmother, I was the youngest grandmother in generations. Epesi and Giza stopped talking to each other, I never discovered why they stopped talking; to tell the truth I never did bother to ask, but now Giza’s dead and Epesi’s gone. [sniff] giza… epesi…

Things continued to get even wackier; apparently my grandfather had a sister who ran off when she was very young. She returned to us, introducing herself as Veni the youngest sister of Mufasa and Scar. We didn’t get to know her that well; she only told of her past and how she met Ouilee. She didn’t wake up the next morning. The two lions that she brought with her; Ouilee, her mate, and Trapa, her son, stayed with us since they had nowhere else to go.

Chapter 4: Stepping Down

Kovu and I had to decide; we needed to choose one of them to be the ruler; we chose Giza. Although Epesi was more intelligent he just, he wasn’t qualified for the job. Giza already had a mate (against our will) and everybody liked her, Epesi was too distant and he was never even around. Things were beginning to look up, now that Giza and Imara were three they were finally ready to start running things around here. Kovu and I are middle aged now, we need our rest. Soon Giza and Imara will have cubs, again, and the Circle of Life can continue; but fate had other things in store for us. For now, Kovu and I would enjoy retirement. No longer would we have to worry about taking care of the kingdom’s problems, no longer would we have to get involved in every little dispute, no longer would we be pestered by other animals all day long, now it was just Kovu and I with the den’s lionesses.

Giza and Imara were actually running the kingdom very well; with their younger, indefatigable bodies they could do more physically than Kovu and I. If there was an argument a long ways away they could easily make the trip in a few hours. I’m so proud of Giza, she’s a great queen. She’s a great queen in every aspect; she takes good care of the kingdom, she entertains the cubs, she’s always there for everyone, she’s always willing to do whatever it takes to help another… and she does it with a smile on her face the whole time. Kovu and I watched things flourish throughout the Pride Lands; even more so than when mom and dad were in charge. The grass was fresher and greener which allowed the savannah to hold more trees, the trees attracted herbivores, which kept us well fed. There was much sunshine under their rule; it seemed almost… perpetual. Giza couldn’t have done any better even if she tried.

I was enjoying having all day to spend with my friends and family (except for Epesi). You tend to miss a lot of things when you’re trying to run a kingdom all day. I noticed how bitter Epesi became towards everything, I noticed how mom and dad were showing signs of their age; but most of all, I noticed how much I was actually gone just by watching Giza run off to take care of something everyday. Once she had cubs she’d have to settle down in here with them, maybe that’s why things are running so smooth; no cubs yet. I loved it; I could relax, sleep in, talk without being interrupted, spend alone time around the savannah with my friends and Kovu, and enjoy the day as it was meant to be enjoyed. Things were so calm and serene; not hectic like they were when I was the queen. Of course, that’s not to say that Giza and Imara were doing perfect jobs. They got tired; and Kovu and I would take over once every other week to help them out. All in all things were going smoothly; Epesi didn’t even really live with us anymore, he was always out and about; I honestly wonder if he started a family somewhere, he never talked to me anymore, all that I wanted was to hear from him now and then.

Chapter 5: My Son

Epesi was gone for a whole month; he left one day like he usually did but he didn’t came back for a whole month. It wasn’t like him to stay out that long; but when he came back I was, well, scared for my life. He was angry, pissed, and he showed it at all times. He brought a lioness with him, he didn’t introduce her to us; dad recognized her as the one who hurt Epesi all of those years ago. Epesi just roared at dad; he didn’t even care, he wasn’t himself. His heart was covered in ice, his stare sent daggers through your spine, his breathing was nothing more than a snarling growl, his claws were always outstretched, and his nostrils flared with every breath that he took. I tried to ask him what was going on but he never responded. I started crying, begging, pleading with him to tell me something, anything, but he never spoke a word to me. In fact, I didn’t even hear his voice until the next day; it sent shivers down my spine.

Epesi and that lioness walked into the den without saying a word to anybody, we were all spooked. Giza decided that we should leave him alone for awhile, so we all agreed and split up for the evening. Kovu and I went together, of course, and we were talking about Epesi. We found a spot right by the waterhole, we didn’t know what was going to happen, he just wasn’t the same anymore. I started blaming myself for making him run off that one day. That lioness is probably one that he met that day, she’s probably filling his mind with all kinds of nonsensical thoughts. I started crying, loudly, Kovu was right there beside me to help me feel better; but he too, was crying, I saw the tears stream down his face. Our son was no longer innocent, no longer that little ball of fur that did nothing wrong, no longer that quiet thinker; I didn’t know who he was. I didn’t even feel safe around him, around my own son… Kovu and I were afraid to go back; he could do absolutely anything. We decided to stay out all night, we slept underneath the stars enjoying the tranquility of the night and trying not to think of our son.

As I laid there trying to fall asleep I kept thinking about Epesi and what he’s going through. Only, I had no idea what he was going through; I couldn’t even fathom it. I lost him, we lost him, we failed him… he shunned us and went for that lioness; and now he was back, possibly here to kill us. It was all because of me, I made him run off and meet her, I made him feel weird and alienated, I made him feel unhappy, I made him into what he became, I created a monster.

The sun rose, I felt uneasy; Kovu still slept, I felt unsafe; I thought about Pride Rock, I felt unnerved; I thought about Epesi, I felt unhappy. I tried to wake up Kovu but he wouldn’t budge. We needed to go back and check on the kingdom, I didn’t trust leaving Epesi there all alone for too long. I nudged Kovu’s back but he still didn’t move. Then, I noticed something, something that made me cry, something that made me feel empty, something that was beyond words… Kovu, he wasn’t breathing. I started getting frantic; I panicked, basically. “KOVU!” I cried in futile frustration. “KOVU! KOVU! KOVU!!!” I kept yelling, he didn’t move. I leaned in close to his ear and roared; he didn’t budge. I could see no physical mark on his body, it was enigmatic. I turned him over to his other side; then I wanted to vomit, actually, I did vomit. He was only half a lion, literally. It was like something split him in half perfectly down the middle, but I didn’t see the other half. “No… no… this is a dream.” I kept telling myself. I kept telling myself that it was dream, that he wasn’t really dead, that this wasn’t possible; how could that happen anyway? I stood over what was left of him, crying, desperately hoping for a sign that this was all false; I got no such sign. Then a thought rushed into my head, Epesi and the kingdom; I darted back to Pride Rock as fast as I could, crying desperately, hoping that everything was all right.

What I saw when I got back horrified me. My own son was being exiled by dad; but why was dad doing it? Unless… he’s the only one left who can. Epesi walked away with that lioness by his side, they snickered as they left. I approached my father and nuzzled him, I told him about Kovu. My father turned and said that the den was a complete mess. When he got back last night he found Giza and Imara dead… that broke my heart. First my grandparents, then my cub’s innocence, then my mate, then my daughter; I later found out that mom suffered the same fate. The only difference with mom is that she was torched in a fire started by Epesi, right in front of dad’s eyes. Dad and I sat in the den with the remaining lionesses; we spent the whole day cleaning up the mess left behind. I had no one left but dad, at my age that’s not good enough. Our kingdom was left in fate’s hands, Epesi and that lioness never came back, I don’t know what happened to them. Epesi is my son, I still love him, but I can’t believe that he’d do this to us. My life had no meaning from that day onward; I just… existed, rather than lived.