boundaries end. You should know very well Siri" he growled. She looked away and then I raised my voice, "It was my fault"

"What?" Simba now faced me and I found myself the most scared I'd ever been. He was huge and strong with eyes that seemed red when he was upset.

"I wanted to cross the ridge" I answered quickly.

Simba just shook his head with a long, exsasperated sigh, "You four are the only cubs this pride has left to carry it. Our future leaders, yet you're shaping out to be pretty bad rulers. As a king, if you made a false deciscion you'd put your entire pride in danger, " he made sure he glared at each one of us and then finished, "Tomorrow your lesson will be from sunrise to sunset, going back over the basics of the territory"

We all complained but Simba's snarl hushed us, "Don't complain, you obvisouly need more help in that area"

 

 

 

 

Part 2

 

A Grateful Visitor

The morning after our day long lesson made me sore and unhappy to get up, yet I knew if I wanted to have any fun I'd need to get up. Luckily Simba had given us one day off due to our very long lesson and he admitted he needed to calm down after our little adventure to the outlands. I opened my eyes and stood up, yawning, I looked around to see if any of my friends were awake. They were all asleep so I decided to go ahead and sneak out. Besides me waking up first, that never happened.

I trotted out onto pride rock where Simba sat at the edge, speaking to Zazu, I sat there attempting to listen for a moment but I couldn't catch anything they said. Finally I just gave up and decided to leave so he wouldn't spot me. I tip-toed down the staircase of rocks until I reached the end where I dove down into the tall grass, creeping along the dirt until I reached the waterhole.

It was empty now, most of the early-risers had already had their share and the later animals had yet to come for their taste, so now I took my own sip of the cool water and sat by the edge, staring out over the horizon. I could see the tip of the land where the grass and landscape got darker, the outlands, I looked away out of shame and looked at my reflection.

Same brown eyes, messy mane, and big ears that didn't seem worthy enough of anything, especially being king. Then the water ripples, I look up and see a small shadow, a cub like me. Except his scent is different. He appears in full light and I see he's the cub from yesterday, he eyes me wearily as I just gaze at him with one eyebrow raised.

He bent down as if preparing to run or growl but I intercept his decision, "I'm not going to do anything" I admitted, meeting his green eyes.

He sat down on his hunches and watched me for a moment, my front paws in the water, the back two resting on land, "Sorry about yesterday, I was probably a little rude" I told him and I cursed myself for being so open with an outsider.

The cub finally smiled than, "Don't worry about it, I can only imagine how scared you were. That was very brave...you know, coming to the outlands" he said.

I smiled, "Not really...it was stupid. Not brave"

The cub laughed and made his way around the waterhole as I watched him, "So why are you here anyway?" I asked as he kept walking closer to me.

"Truth is I'm too afraid to drink the water in the outlands. It's dark and murky and last time we were drinking it a lioness got attacked by a crocodile" he admitted.

"That's a good reason than" I replied with a warm grin.

He'd gotten close to me now, so close that he sat down beside me and our back legs touched, "Why are you here? There's that river that runs closer to pride rock. Why not drink there?" he questions.

I smirk, "Things always taste better when they're forbidden"

"Why do you say that?" he asks, eyeing me with a slight look of amusement in his green eyes.

"Simba hates when I wonder off, he hates when I get so close to the outlands, " I look up again so I could see the tip of the outland territory, "And everytime he tells me he hates when I do this, I have such a strange feeling, like I have to" I answer.

The cub nods, "Me too, Zira has so many rules, she's so strict and I can't stand it"

"I guess leaders are too power crazy...I don't think I'd want to be one" I said, feeling slightly off as the words left my mouth.

"So what's your name pridelander?" he asked.

"Perseus but everyone calls me Percy," I replied, "And you?"

"Melvin but I go by Mel" he answers.

"Well it's nice to meet you Mel" I told him as he laughed and did the same to me.

I looked back at the sky, the sun was creeping over the landscape now so the heat hit my back, "I should probably get going" I said as Mel nodded.

"Me too, " he went to leave but stopped, "Hey Percy?"

"Yeah" I turned to face him as I was in the middle of leaving as well.

"Tomorrow? Same time?" he asks.

I grin, "You bet!"

Everyday we met at that waterhole. We shared stories about our troubles with our leaders and our pride. The more we talked the more trustworthy we became of the other and the more we noted that we weren't that different.

 

 

"Percy!"

"Percy would you pay attention?"

I shake my head and give Siri a sideways glance, she frowns as she looks down at me, I'm laying down on the cool rockbed that was the tip of pride rock. She sits down, "Where have you been going?" she questioned.

I shrugged, laying my head on my paws, "Nowhere. Just the waterhole" I admit, not telling a complete lie.

She sits down beside me, "Simba was furious this morning" she comments, off subject.

I perk up, "What, why?" I ask.

She looks at me, "I'm surprised you didn't hear. He smelled an outlander near the end of the border, " she pauses, realizing something, "...near the waterhole" she murmured.

She glares at me, as if expecting me to be something that I'm not, and I shake my head. "I'm more surprised that I didn't smell them" I lied, Siri raises a brow.

"I guess you're right. It probably smelled you and run off" she concluded. I nodded my head without really meaning to.

Suddenly Arturo jumps onto my back. I laugh as she rolls off and lands on her back, looking up at the sky. Katy trots in behind her. Arturo jumps back to her feet and looks down upon me, "Did you hear Percy?" she asked.

I nodded, "Yeah"

She frowned, "I don't get why Simba's so mad about it though"

Katy intercepts her, "It's an outlander. They killed our queen"

Arturo nods as if she understands but still doesn't seem convinced. I catch Siri's eyes, she looks different, like the comment struck her like lightning on the barren ground. I realize than that she was originally an outlander. Then I picture Mel, handsome, misunderstood Mel.

"That's just Zira. All outlanders aren't murderers" I snapped.

Katy just looked away, her curly hair moving along with her head. Siri gives me a thankful glance as if she knew what I was doing for her. Arturo lays beside me now, we all stare out at the noon sun now, that's when it hits me for the first time.

My mane was getting longer, I was growing bigger, so were my friends. We were the only cubs in the pridelands as of now. After Simba's generation we were all they had left, and there, the four of us sitting on the rock overlooking the pridelands. We were no longer cubs. We were growing up. I felt a new pang of pride for what I was becoming and I smirked, laying my head back on my paws, Simba couldn't tell me what to do anymore. That was my job. Our job.

The noon sun was still high and hot when Simba interupted our sitting, "You ready for your lesson?" he asked, his voice rougher than usual.

We all nodded, standing up from our resting places. Simba started walking off, "Follow me"

We followed him in a line with me at the lead, pacing myself behind Simba's slower, more refined, walk. He leads us off priderock, passed a group of lionesses, I even spot my mother in the group. Simba leads us into the grass and we continue the walk I take every morning to go see Mel.

He leads us passed the waterhole though and stops at the edge of the ridge where I'd crossed a few weeks ago. It felt like ages ago now. There's an old tree sitting at the edge of the territory. It's decaying, the green of its leaves turning dull, I could've sworn there were old paintings on the bark as well. Of lions before and after our time. The tree was covered in history, apparently more than I let on.

Simba walked towards the tree and sat down. His eyes seemed red now, "Do you know what happened here?" he questioned.

No one answered, we all sat, in quiet only our eyes on Simba. He sighed, "Zira killed Nala here. She had help too, it was a team murder, and I couldn't save her" he murmured.

He looked back up at the tree, "Rafiki used to use this tree as a memorial of some type. To show the growing of princes and princesses as they journeyed to the throne. But after the accident he abandoned this tree" Simba explained as my eye caught red dye painting a lioness on the tree.

I saw a lion painted beside her, his mane a red color, his eyes just the same. It was Simba, standing beside his dead queen and unborn cub.

Simba looks at the tree, "Or I thought Rafiki abandoned it..."

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