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things easier for him to understand once he became King. “He chants to give the cub good luck for the rest of its life and to tell the great kings that watch over us that a new circle has begun. I myself don’t understand why it’s done, but I guess it’s just tradition, that’s all. Father told me that the presentation of newly-born kings and queens has been done for many generations of royals.”
“Come on, you two,” Simba murmured as he began to follow Rafiki out to the edge of Pride Rock. “The presentation is about to begin.”
“Simba!” Nala scolded her mate with a stern look of concern for her daughter. “Our daughter’s just given birth! She’s still quite weak after delivering her cub, so don’t rush her!” Simba nuzzled his Queen and gave her a smile as an apology; Nala only offered a simple command to her daughter and her mate. “Just take your time, Kiara dear. The presentation won’t begin until all the animals are present, and I don’t want you to hurt yourself as you make your way out to see your subjects.”
“Okay, Mom,” Kiara began to lift herself from the ground, weakly groaning and nearly collapsing onto her belly. “I’ll be fine – whoa!” Her paws and legs, weakened by the strain of delivering her first cub, couldn’t hold her weight until she was able to fully recover.
Nala gasped as Kiara struggled. “Oh, Kiara! Do you need any help?”
“I’ve got her, Nala,” Kovu told her. “You go ahead and catch up with the others.” Nala nodded slightly as she continued to make her way to her mate. “Kiara, lean on me. I’ll help you up.”
“Thanks, Kovu. You’re such a gentle-lion,” Kiara placed her shoulder against his own and groaned as she lifted her up to her own four feet. “Come now, let’s see our cub presented to the kingdom . . . together.”
“Yes. Let’s see our son,” Kovu smiled as slowly but surely, he walked close beside his mate, and the two of them made their way out into the open where a celebrating crowd awaited the royal lions of Pride Rock.
The sky was blue and brighter than ever as the golden lioness and the reddish-brown lion made their way to the edge of the overhang where the current King and Queen awaited them. Kiara weakly nuzzled her parents while Kovu nodded gently to each of them. The four of them looked out upon those that had replied to the mandrill’s call and felt the warmth of the sun against their skin. The other lionesses made their way to the sides of Pride Rock, eagerly awaiting the ceremony to begin. Even Simba’s best friends and loyal companions, a thin meerkat named Timon and a warthog named Pumbaa, joined Zazu in the rear and stood in wait of the wonderful event; they couldn’t wait to have another cub to watch over and play with.
Being the King, Simba let out the first roar once Rafiki allowed him to begin the ceremony. The roar was followed by a cry from Nala, who signaled the other lionesses to roar with her. Both a recovering Kiara and a very proud Kovu joined the roaring chorus, creating a storm of yowls. This was to give the other animals, all herds that lived and strived amongst the safety of the Pridelands and its surrounding savanna, welcome to the base of Pride Rock. At last, the baboon, still cradling the lightly-colored cub in his arms, smiled and raised the child above the point’s edge for all to gaze upon with joyful eyes.
The animals began to bleat and bray, crying out their songs and blessings onto the newborn lion that was shown to them. The sky even gave its blessing to the child, recognizing the babe as one of them – a newborn heir to the throne of Pride Rock – by showering the tip of the cliff with a light golden beam from the sun. If one looked hard enough, you could see the face of the great Mufasa smiling down upon the child with loving eyes, and his descendants and ancestors that were of his blood returned their gaze onto the lifting form of the cub. A slight breath of wind blew some seeds and leaves towards the majestic lions, sending Mufasa’s praises to his beloved son, granddaughter and newest child. With those signs from above, every animal below fell onto one knee, bowing before the future ruler of their kingdom. Rafiki smiled as the cub began to squirm slightly at the leaves surrounding it and try to grab some with its tiny paws.
Once the ray of light dispersed, Rafiki returned the cub to the safety of his arms, rocking it to sleep. “Sleep, future ruler,” the mandrill chanted, once more in the language of the native people. “The kingdom waits for your time of destiny . . .” With a nod, he gave a little chuckle and gazed back at the proud new parents. “Kovu, Kiara . . .” Rafiki handed the cub back to its parents, allowing Kiara to grab it by the scruff of its neck as it slept.
Kovu still couldn’t believe that he had helped create this new life. “He’s a chip off the old block, huh, Kiara?”
Kiara looked down at the cub in her jaws and nodded with a happy smile.
Timon, riding atop of his much larger warthog companion, added his own criticism of the new cub. “Of course he is, kid! He’s got your hairstyle and his mother’s sleek coat . . .” His next few words were a mutter. “ . . . and maybe he’ll be fun to play with unlike Miss Prissy-Pants there . . .” Kiara lowered her eyebrows slightly as she heard the sneaky comment, but she said nothing to throw back her fury. The meerkat’s next words were normal-voiced. “ . . . but I’m sure he’ll be raised with the best care.”
“Yeah, and he’ll have the best royal baby-sitters around!” Pumbaa added in with a belly laugh.
“He’ll be a great king one day,” Simba peered at the cub himself, smiling at the sight of his first grandson. “A perfect mix of both of his families, a sign of the union of both of his father’s Outlander pride and the royal family of Pride Rock. So, have you thought of a name for him yet?”
“Not at the moment,” Kovu replied, but he was quickly interrupted by a laugh by Rafiki.
“Again, you seem to be mistaken, yet no one seems to notice,” the baboon’s comment confused the lions as he laughed again.
“Huh?” Kovu and Kiara gasped, along with Simba and Nala.
Rafiki began to once again take the cub from the princess’s mouth and back into his cradling arms. “Not a future king you see, but an elegant queen-to-be.”
“Huh?” The duo of meerkat and warthog repeated the gasp.
“It is a girl,” Rafiki told them with a normal tone, clarifying his previous words.
The two looked at the mandrill, then the cub, then each other in shock. “A GIRL? AGAIN?” After Rafiki nodded, the two friends fainted in a dramatic matter, collapsing at the feet of the lions and the primate.
“A . . . daughter?” Kovu heard Kiara’s soft voice from beside him. When Rafiki nodded once again, tears of joy were in her eyes. “Oh, a daughter . . . another princess to the throne . . .” She continued to sniffle and weep happily; her father and mother nuzzled her and licked away her tears.
“I guess that dark patch of hair confused me,” Kovu admitted, lowering his head in embarrassment. “I’m so sorry to mistaking my daughter for a son. I . . . I thought I would finally have a son to teach things to . . . and pass on my strength and wisdom . . .”
“Oh, everyone makes mistakes sometime,” Rafiki patted the future king’s back in forgiveness. “but this is your daughter. She can still learn so much from the both of you and your predecessors, but before that, she must be named.”
“But what do we name such a child?” Kovu muttered with a slight tinge of worry. “I’ve never had such a responsibility before.”
Simba approached him. “Don’t worry so much about it, Kovu. I’m sure a name will come to you.”
Suddenly, Kiara’s face brightened with a newfound joy as she let out a gasp. She pranced carefully towards Kovu and whispered something in his ear. He smiled and approached Rafiki and the sleeping child in his arms.
“Payena . . .” Kovu announced in a soothing voice to his daughter then he turned to the glowing grin of his mate. “We choose to name our daughter, the future princess . . . Payena.”
“Payena?” Simba turned to his daughter with shock. “Why . . . what was the inspiration for that name, Kiara?”
“I’m not really sure, Daddy,” the red-eyed lioness replied. “I . . . I think I heard a voice telling it to me in my head, and . . .” She let out a light-hearted giggle. “I guess you could say that it just came to me.”
Simba gave Kiara a forced smile, but he o:p>
“Again, you seem to be mistaken, yet no one seems to notice,” the baboon’s comment confused the lions as he laughed again.
“Huh?” Kovu and Kiara gasped, along with Simba and Nala.
Rafiki began to once again take the cub from the princess’s mouth and back into his cradling arms. “Not a future king you see, but an elegant queen-to-be.”
“Huh?” The duo of meerkat and warthog repeated the gasp.
“It is a girl,” Rafiki told them with a normal tone, clarifying his previous words.
The two looked at the mandrill, then the cub, then each other in shock. “A GIRL? AGAIN?” After Rafiki nodded, the two friends fainted in a dramatic matter, collapsing at the feet of the lions and the primate.
“A . . . daughter?” Kovu heard Kiara’s soft voice from beside him. When Rafiki nodded once again, tears of joy were in her eyes. “Oh, a daughter . . . another princess to the throne . . .” She continued to sniffle and weep happily; her father and mother nuzzled her and licked away her tears.
“I guess that dark patch of hair confused me,” Kovu admitted, lowering his head in embarrassment. “I’m so sorry to mistaking my daughter for a son. I . . . I thought I would finally have a son to teach things to . . . and pass on my strength and wisdom . . .”
“Oh, everyone makes mistakes sometime,”
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