Darkness. The only thing that Jia ever knew was an impentrable darkness. Being blind, she was used to it. It was all she had ever known and therefore it was safe. Although this also meant that she couldn't fend for herself like any normal lioness would. She couldn't hunt, couldn't stray very far alone and she didn't know what her parents, siblings and friends looked like.

The darkness was a curse but she didn't know whether she wanted to breach the world outside. It could be brutal and painful, she knew this and she didn't have to witness the horrors that everyone around her did. She was safe in her own little world. That was, until now.

***

It was the period just after the wet season but not quite the dry season either. Some called it 'spring', when all the calves were young before they left for greener pastures. At night, a rare sight graced the skies of the Pridelands.

The Great Spirits, as they were known. All the cubs gathered outside the den and marvelled at the colourful display that danced amongst the stars. Some of the adults had seen it before but basked in the rare light show.

"They're beautiful." Enzi declared but a side-long glance at Jia prompted him to add "But they're not all that great."

Jia said nothing. Even though her head was turned skyward she saw nothing, only darkness. She knew Enzi would often forget that she couldn't see and would often marvel at a sight and then lie to her that it wasn't as impressive as he had made it out to be so her feelings would be spared. Jia knew there was no harm intended, Enzi was her best friend, but sometimes it hurt to know that there was something 'beautiful' out there and she was missing out on the experience.

Enzi grimaced at her silence and rapidly changed the subject. "My mom said that the Spirits grant wishes." he stated.

"Really?"

"Yeah...what do you wish for?" he asked.

Jia fell silent for a moment, she could wish for many things...love, a family, her sight...anything she wanted. Of course, wishing for her sight had crossed her mind but was she really prepared for that to happen? To suddenly be granted something you had no experience of? Jia decided in the end that ignorance was bliss.

"Um...I dunno." Jia answered truthfully.

Enzi was silent for a minute before he turned his head skyward and called "I wish that Jia could see."

***

Soon all the cubs were ushered to sleep by the adults. Jia tucked herself into her usual spot in her mother's protective grasp. Safe and warm.

"Night Mom." Jia said

"Goodnight Jia, see you in the morning." her mother's voice answered as it usually did. Jia closed her eyes and lay her head on her mother's leg and slowly she drifted off into sleep.

Jia didn't dream, normally it was as if she had fallen asleep then woke a few minutes later but tonight it was different. The first thing she truly 'saw' was light. Of course, she did not know what light was, so at first it terrified her. She covered her eyes with her paws and squeezed them shut so she was enveloped in her familiar darkness.

"Jia..." a voice called out. She knew the voice, it was one she hadn't heard in a long long time.

"G-Grandpa?" Jia asked tentitively "A-Are you there?"

"Yes. Open your eyes. Nothing will hurt you, I promise."

Jia obeyed and uncovered her eyes. She was somewhat reluctant to leave the safe normality of her darkness and let in the light but her grandfather promised nothing would harm her so, after a minute, she opened her eyes.

The light nearly blinded her once more and she gave a small yelp but in a few minutes her eyes adjusted and she got her first 'view' of the world. Although she didn't know it, she was in the den and it was deserted save for one lion.

"G-Grandpa?" Jia asked the strange lion "Is...Is that you?"

Jia didn't know that the lion standing before her was her grandfather Simba. She had never seen him, only heard his voice. The lion smiled at her and nodded his head.

"Yes, I am." he replied "I am here because you have been given the gift of sight." "

You mean...Enzi's wish came true?" Jia asked, it was almost too good to be true. A simple wish from her best friend had given her the best gift she could have ever gotten. Her sight.

Simba nodded again "Yes and when you wake up soon you will be able to see...it won't happen immediately but you will get your sight." Almost as soon as it was said, Jia's dream world began to dissolve around her.

***

Jia woke with a sudden start, darkness as usual. Her heart sank somewhat. She wanted her dream to be real so very badly. She felt the hot sting of tears in the back of her eyes and she buried her head in her mother's leg.

"It's not fair." she sniffed, her body shook with silent sobs and soon her mother awoke from feeling her leg getting wet from Jia's tears.

"Jia, what's wrong?" she asked, immediately concerned "Did you hurt yourself?"

"N-No." Jia felt her mother pull her closer to her chest and when she opened her eyes again she noticed something. It was blurry and it was only a small pinprick in he darkness, but she thought she saw a glimpse of light before she was pulled against her mother.

"It's ok...shush...everything is alright." her mother's voice soothed her.

"M-Mom?" Jia's voice spoke up. "Yes dear?" "Is that 'light'?" she asked turning her head and motioning in the direction of the breaking dawn.

Kiara's expression was one of utter confusion. "Y-Yes...it is...Jia...can you...see something?" her voice had an edge of hope in it. She had alway prayed that her youngest daughter would eventually see, even though Rafiki had confirmed that she never would.

"I...think so. It's not as dark when I look that way." Jia commented.

***

"Now, princess, tell me...what do you see?" Jia was sat up on the peak of Priderock, she knew the voice beside her as Rafiki, she had met him several times as a result of her blindness. Her parenst were sitting somewhere in the vicinity and her head was being directed towards the sun.

"I...don't know." Jia replied honestly "It's not as dark as it usually is when I look that way...is that normal?" She recieved no responce from the shaman/healer but he had shared a stunned look with Kiara and Kovu.

"No...princess it isn't. Are you sure dat yesterday you did not see anything? Even when you looked hard?"

"Yes." Jia replied, her hopes increasing by the second until she excitedly burst out "Does this mean I'll be able to see?"

"I don't know about dat, princess. You might be getting a little ahead of yourself...Now let me look at your eyes."

Jia stayed absolutely still as the mandrill pulled her eyelids open further and peered into her eyes. He had studied the youngest princess's eyes closely for a long time but now he had spotted a change. Her eyes were normally a very grey shade of green, now they were beginning to change colour, into a shade of green identical to her elder sister Kala's. Also, at the very centre of her pupil, he could spot that it was starting to turn black.

To say the mandrill was shocked would have been an understatement.

"Dat is all, princess." Rafiki declared "I just need to talk wid your parents for a minute." The mandrill hobbled over to Kovu and Kiara who were waiting anxiously for the mandrill's news on their daughter's latest development.

"Well?" Kovu pressed "Is she alright?"

"It is a miracle." Rafiki declared "De princess is beginning to get her sight. Ol' Rafiki thought dat it is his eyes dat need checking!"

"Will she be able to see normally?" Kiara asked

"In time. Her eyes are only beginning to heal demselves. It will take a while but I tink she will have normal sight."

***

To say Jia was happy was the understatement of the century. The princess's mood was bordering on euphoric.

"Enzi!" she called into the den "Enzi! Enzi!"

The other cub looked up as his friend rushed into the den, followed by her parents and waited for him to respond, otherwise she would not know where he was.

"I'm over here, Jia!" he called. Jia turned her head in the direction Enzi's voice had come from and eagerly rushed over to him to tell her news.

"I love you, Enzi!" she shouted happily with a wide grin on her face.

"W-What?" Enzi replied, shocked by her outburst.

"Your wish came true! I can see! Rafiki said that in a few weeks I'll be able to see just like everyone else!" Jia was practically buzzing with happiness. It was like a dream had come true "Thank you so much, Enzi, if it weren't for you I'd still be blind!"

Enzi stared at his friend in utter shock, he had never expected his wish to be granted...it was kind of surreal but he soon broke into a huge grin of his own.

"You don't have to thank me...you're my friend. You deserve it."

***

"So...I have gold eyes and...uh...green fur?" Enzi resisted the urge to laugh at Jia getting her colours mixed up. It had been two weeks since Jia's 'miracle recovery' and she was starting to get the hang of moving around by herself. Her vision wasn't perfect yet, she still had an edge of black to her vision but she was improving. So today Enzi