[2] TCoL – dawn

 

 

Above all else

 

“Almost there now… just a tiny bit more…”

 

Not.

 

 Kiruhu had been repeating himself for hours on end now it seemed, but the more he tried to talk courage into her, the longer it began to take Vitani to advance yet another step towards the shrouded peaks emerging in front of her. And the surroundings didn’t really help a lot either: gray rocks, gray clouds, gray shadows… even the already scare vegetation seemed to be turning gray as well. Reminded her a bit of the wastelands where she had first encountered Vincent, save for the steep slope she was on now of course, which made each lifting of the paw an endeavor on its own. Not to mention the cold winds which seemed to be slicing through her like burning claws, nor the ever blackening clouds in front of her which enshrouded the White-pass peaks. She didn’t like the regular clouds to start with, but the thought of having to pass under those near-black abominations was almost unbearable. But strangely enough, Vitani seemed to be the only one to appreciate the grimness all around them, as both Kiruhu and Vincent were only focused on racing to the actual White Pass, much to Vitani’s annoyance.

 

“Y… You guys… I-I can’t keep this up, slow down, will ya…”

 

Vincent halted almost immediately upon hearing Vitani’s voice, as her talking finally ended an awkward silence which had lasted for hours it seemed (though it was actually more a matter of minutes). He immediately retraced his steps towards Vitani, who was sitting down by now.

 

“Hey, are you okay?” he considerately asked.

 

“What do you think? I’m exhausted and I’m freezing… And I’m pretty sure you are too.”

 

“Who wouldn’t be… but the sooner we get to the pass, the sooner we’re rid of all this.”

 

“I don’t know… I'm getting the feeling that crossing this damn pass ain’t working, coming here might have been a mistake… Can’t we just turn back?” Vitani complained.

 

“No!” both Vincent and Kiruhu suddenly shouted, be it for different reasons. Vincent still hoped crossing the passes would give him enough time to confront his sister before she went and did whatever it was she planned on doing when she had started plotting against him (if she had indeed been the one behind the thwarted assassination attempt at Vincent's life, which Vincent deemed likely). Too bad he still thought he could not mention it to Vitani, for her hearing what Vincent's sister might have been up to could render Vitani reckless, though Vincent began to realize that was just an excuse he made to fool himself himself. The truth was he just didn't have the guts to explain to Vitani how he himself had in fact been the one to prepare the clan for a confrontation with the lions, both mentally and physically. Indeed, before Vincent had met Vitani, the only thing stopping him from leading an attack against the lions himself had been the prospect of a possible defeat! But having to confess that would of course put a real damper on his developing relationship with Vitani.
Kiruhu, on the other hand, was not just willing to let the lioness turn back, not now that she had followed him this far onto his road towards personal redemption already, a road which would finally lead him away from a past that would otherwise continue to stalk him for the rest of his days.

Both males contemplated on a way to persuades… I-I can’t keep this up, slow down, will ya…”

 

Vincent halted almost immediately upon hearing Vitani’s voice, as her talking finally ended an awkward silence which had lasted for hours it seemed (though it was actually more a matter of minutes). He immediately retraced his steps towards Vitani, who was sitting down by now.

 

“Hey, are you okay?” he considerately asked.

 

“What do you think? I’m exhausted and I’m freezing… And I’m pretty sure you are too.”

 

“Who wouldn’t be… but the sooner we get to the pass, the sooner we’re rid of all this.”

 

“I don’t know… I'm getting the feeling that crossing this damn pass ain’t working, coming here might have been a mistake… Can’t we just turn back?” Vitani complained.

 

“No!” both Vincent and Kiruhu suddenly shouted, be it for different reasons. Vincent still hoped crossing the passes would give him enough time to confront his sister before she went and did whatever it was she planned on doing when she had started plotting against him (if she had indeed been the one behind the thwarted assassination attempt at Vincent's life, which Vincent deemed likely). Too bad he still thought he could not mention it to Vitani, for her hearing what Vincent's sister might have been up to could render Vitani reckless, though Vincent began to realize that was just an excuse he made to fool himself himself. The truth was he just didn't have the guts to explain to Vitani how he himself had in fact been the one to prepare the clan for a confrontation with the lions, both mentally and physically. Indeed, before Vincent had met Vitani, the only thing stopping him from leading an attack against the lions himself had been the prospect of a possible defeat! But having to confess that would of course put a real damper on his developing relationship with Vitani.
Kiruhu, on the other hand, was not just willing to let the lioness turn back, not now that she had followed him this far onto his road towards personal redemption already, a road which would finally lead him Vitani to stay the course, and it seemed Kiruhu was the better liar, as he spoke up first (to Vincent's relief). First, the cheetah turned back and approached Vitani.

 

“Ma'am I know you're tired. I know you're cold. We all are, I'm just better at pretending I'm not, and the hyena just doesn't want to look weak in front of you,” Kiruku spoke in his most compassionate manner, whilst still retaining his characterizing cool.

 

“Don't ma'am me...” Vitani mumbled.
Vincent was a bit embarrassed at Kiruhu's sharp observations, but did not protest. Kiruhu continued.

 

“Look, miss, I'm trying to help you here. We're just minutes away from the Pass, turning back now would mean that all the cold, exhaustion and hardship we're enduring now would have been in vain. And once we get over the Pass,  you'll have nothing to worry about anymore, it'll all be over before sundown.”

 

“Come on, Sunshine, you heard the man, just a bit further and you'll have seen the last of these bloody passes.”

 

Kiruhu suddenly giggled at Vincent's comment, and both Vincent and Vitani stared at him, a bit confused, as for all they knew Kiruhu usually wasn't the giggling type. And although he felt a bit like he'd been caught of guard, the cheetah was able to ignored their stares and quickly addressed Vitani once more before any annoying questions could arise.

 

But as the sun rose, Kovu realized those thoughts would have to wait ‘till a more appropriate moment, as he now still had an obligation to his sister Vitani; he wasn’t about to give up on her yet. Of course, he couldn’t go looking for her himself, as that would lead to a whole lot of annoying questions from the part of Simba as to the actual nature of Vitani’s little quest. But he could send Enyi, the other conspirator. That suddenly reminded Kovu: Kiara was in on his plan to cut some dealings with the hyenas as well!

 

Oops. Should have remembered that before I started yelling at her... Kovu, imbecile! This complicates things… If she tells Simba, things could go awkward… especially since that little talk I had with the king just now.

 

The subtle father-son-in law talk he had had only moments earlier had indeed not really been that productive, unless Kovu’s aim would have been to annoy, confuse and overly upset Simba (which were exactly the things Kovu was hoping to avoid).

 

*

 

“Kovu, slow down. We need a word…”

 

Kovu reluctantly slowed his pace, letting Simba gain on him.

 

“Yeah, I figured as much,” he mumbled. From look Kovu straight in the eyes.

 

“Son, is there something you need to tell me?”

 

“Why would there be?”

 

Simba sighed at Kovu’s feeble attempt to avoid conversation. It annoyed him.

 

“Look here, son, I might not be as young as I used to be, but don’t take me for a fool. I’ve been a king for long enough now to see when something off. We need a word about what you said to Kiara the other night.”

 

“Apparently…”

 

“Please Kovu, don’t make me drag it out of you. What was it you said to Kiara?”

 

“I just told her what I thought about your little soirée after the anniversary of the reunion…”

 

“That’s not all you said. You were talking about them.”

 

“And who might ‘them’ be?” Kovu sneered with sudden viciousness, surprising both himself and Simba. But much to Kovu’s own stupefaction, he didn’t just stop there. As Simba stared at him with certain indignation, clearly signaling it was pretty obvious who ‘them’ were, Kovu snapped at Simba again.

 

“And what do you know,  let this be exactly what I was talking about! Am I really the only one who is able to mention their names without acting like it somehow hurts my throat? To everyone else it's just 'they', 'them', 'him', 'her'... Them who should not be named! Come on, dad, let those names pass your lips too, for a change; amaze me!”

 

Simba started to grimace even further, now looking genuinely upset, even a bit angry.

 

“I don’t like that tone your taking there…”

 

But in stead of backing down, Kovu just grinned malignly: he had descended into the same mind state he had

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