Memories never to be forgotten: Cinder

 Out on the plains, far away from pride rock, a storm brewed around a mother and her cub. The mother’s name was Kujali and she was nearing the end of her strength, she had worked for the night giving birth to her cub and was now exhausted, hungry and freezing cold.  She nuzzled her baby closer to escape the biting wind, to take her mind off the cold; she tried to think of what to call her baby. It kept her occupied for a while but her mind always managed to trail off and think only about going to sleep, she tried to resist, but the feelings were too great. Her eyes closed and never opened again.

The tiny female cub, of which the mother had been to late to choose a name for, started to cry, it cried for warm milk and the comfort of its mother’s embrace. The tiny cries echoed around the plains and attracted a lone male lion.

His name was Kisani; he had no pride of his own and was looking for a place to shelter from the wind when he heard the cub’s cry. He went over to investigate and found Kujali’s body and the cub nestled in her cold arms, he dragged the cub into the open and examined it. He had no love for cubs, especially ones that weren’t his, but he didn’t want to kill it either.

He cautiously picked it up and started carrying it away, if the cub had been male he would’ve kept it, but seeing as it was female it wasn’t worth his bother, someone else could have it. Inhaling deeply, he caught the scent of a pride and headed toward it.

The pride he was heading for was called the Kiliaman pride, it was on the border to the pride lands and was lead by a male lion called Zurei and he was a good leader as far as Kisani knew and cared. Kisani trotted down a narrow path and around a water hole, the storm was still raging above him and raindrops the size of bullets were falling heavily now. He turned a corner and came face to face with a young lioness; she was as surprised as he was. Her sapphire blue eyes wide in shock, he placed the cub at her feet and said “I found this cub, her mother’s dead, she’s yours now”

And with that he turned and walked away. The lioness, whose name was Tari, stared at the figure disappearing into the rain, the cub at her feet mewled and Tari’s heart went out to it. She turned it over and licked the cub’s back, soothing it; she then gently picked it up and turned for her pride. She arrived back at her pride’s lodgings and went into the main cave; she lay down and cupped the cub in her paws, marvelling how tiny she was. Tari wondered what the cub’s name could be; she never asked the male lion, who’d given her the cub. Suddenly a shadow fell over her and she looked up, it was the leader of the pride Raj, he stared down at her and then his eyes flickered to the cub in her paws.

“It seems we have a new member of my pride” he said, his voice was neither angry or threatening but it echoed power, Tari replied “I was given her, she has no parents to be found here, she is alone” Raj bent his head down and she saw pity in his eyes, “then she is welcome here” He turned and called to the other lions to enter the cave, they came in and examined the new member with interest, then they lay down and went to sleep. Tari licked the cub’s fur, she was sleeping peacefully now and Tari studied the cub and noted the light fur and small arrow-like stripe down its forehead. She smiled as the perfect name came to her, Cinder. Tari closed her eyes and drifted off, her arms cupping Cinder as though she was her own cub.

“Hey, wake up! You said we would go hunting today! You promised!”

It had been a few years since Cinder had arrived at the Kiliaman pride and she had grown into a fine young cub. She was thoughtful, kind, curious...but very excitable! She pounced on Tari’s head and patted her face with her over-sized paws, Tari woke with a jump.

“Huh? What?” Tari’s confusion didn’t last long, for Cinder pounced again and then rolled over and looked Tari dead in the eye.

“We are going hunting today, aren’t we?” She said her eyes wide and pleading. Tari couldn’t ignore her.

“Yes, of course” She stretched luxuriously and said “race you!”

The cub and adult lioness raced out of the cave and out into plains, Cinder hid behind a rock and leaped out at Tari and she went by, Tari pretended to fall and they rolled, giggling, down a small slope and came to land near the waterhole. This was one of their favourite places to go and play when no one else was around and the morning was clear and bright. But this time they weren’t alone. A long tail was just visible sticking out of a small bush; it was tipped with black fur and was dark brown. Recognising it, Cinder approached and patted it; a dark cub let out a cry and leaped high in the air in shock. Cinder shook with laughter.

“Mazai, your face just then” She laughed “it was like you had seen a ghost!”

The dark cub growled and leaped at her throat, but he was just playing, they wrestled in the dirt until Tari came along, accompanied by two males.

“Young cubs these days, it’s all about fighting” said the male on the left, he was old and had a grey mane, his name was Zamani. He said it gruffly enough but he had a twinkle in his eye. The other male was none other than Raj himself, he extended a paw and scooped up his son and placed him on the ground before him.

“I was just giving Mazai a tour around the kingdom, Zamani decided to  join us as well. So young Cinder, how is life treating you here in the pride?” It was a usual question that he asked her nearly every day and so he got the usual answer.

“Life is treating me very well sir” She said, Raj’s eyes twinkled like twin stars; it was beginning to be a joke. “Well don’t let us hold you” said Tari “I’m sure you have a lot to be doing” With that, the small company moved on through the plains.

“Are you still up to hunting today?” Tari asked Cinder innocently, Cinder cried out indignantly.

“Yes! Why wouldn’t I be?” she said and Tari slyly replied. “Well you seemed quite occupied with your boyfriend, maybe-“Tari wasn’t able to finish because of Cinder cannon-balling into her and then climbing on top of her.

“He’s not my boyfriend!” She said sternly but a smile flickered across her face, Tari creased up laughing and they both resumed their play. The small cub, whose parents were unknown, and the young lioness had a strong bond and together they were like sisters. The thing Cinder liked best about Tari was that she never asked Cinder to call her mother; Tari had told Cinder everything she knew about Cinder’s birth and hadn’t claimed the cub as her own.  

Cinder was still keen to be taught how to hunt so the two lionesses set off in search of decent prey. It came in the form of a small lizard, sun-bathing on a rock, Cinder instantly went into a hunter’s crouch, her tail waving like a flag. Tari bent down to whisper.

“Relax, you’re too tense. Crouch right down, that’s it” she said and adjusted her adopted daughter’s stance. “Ok, now focus on your target and don’t make a sound” Tari backed off slightly to give Cinder room to pounce. Cinder looked over her should at the retreating Tari.

“What should I do? Should I-“

Tari cut her off in mid-sentence. “Shh, you’re doing great. Just trust your instincts, go with the flow” Cinder nodded and turned back to her prey, the lizard was oblivious to everything going on around it and just sapped up the sun’s warmth, Cinder swallowed, took one more cautious step and pounced!

She sailed through the air and landed, paws outstretched, on top of the lizard. She felt the lizard twist under her paws and she tightened her hold. She was breathless, her first catch!! She looked around for Tami and saw her proud smile. The lizard suddenly gave Cinder a hard nip on her paw and she cried out in pain, she watched the reptile flee and seek the safety of a nearby bush. She started after it but the wound in her paw was bleeding and she couldn’t walk on it. She staggered and then fell in a heap, Tari rushed over.

“Cinder, are you ok?” Tari asked her face clouded with concern.

“Yeah, I guess so” Cinder replied, she cautiously got onto her feet, her wounded paw lifted high.

“Let me see that” Said Tari and she studied it quietly

“Oh....” she said “oh no....”

Cinder was instantly on high alert “What? What is it?” she lifted her paw and scanned it for anything out of the ordinary.

“I’m afraid...your paw will become infected and eventually...” She paused dramatically “fall off”

Cinder cried aloud “What? No, it can’t just...no! It can’t fall....”

She noticed Tari smirking “you tricked me! Why of all the mean and nasty-“She batted at Tari with her good paw and allowed a smile to slide onto her face.

“Honestly, am I going to be ok?” Cinder asked

“You’ll be fine; it’s just a cut, nothing more. It will be ok tomorrow and you’ll be able to catch that lizard and give him a piece of your mind! But for now let’s go home and have some dinner, I’m starving.”

And with that, the cub and the lioness walked away into the sunset.

Six years later.

Cinder raced along the ground, her coat