Simba was placed onto a small ledge, the wildebeast's hooves battering his eardrums. His Dad opened his mouth to say something but he was knocked down, vanishing from view.

"Dad!" little Simba screamed in terror. For a few terrifying moments, he thought his father was lost but then a terrific roar swelled inside the gorge. Mufasa had leapt onto a steep incline with amazing strenght.

Simba smiled proudly and he almost felt like shouting to the panicked stampede, "That's my Dad up there!" But he had to reach Mufasa so he started to climb up some feeble rocks.

When he reached yet another ledge, his happiness was shattered when he heard a horrible scream. He looked down just in time to see his Dad disappear beneath the wildebeast.

"NO!..."

***

   The adult Simba opened his eyes, gasping with fear. Terrific. Another nightmare. When where they going to end...?

He stood up and silently made his way to the opening of Pride Rock.

"Simba!"

Nala had woken up and blocked his path. "Where are you going?"

Simba exhaled a breath slowly. "A walk," he eventually replied.

"Why?" Nala demanded.

Simba was too tired to argue. "To...clear my head?"

Nala backed down. "Oh-" She looked awkward. "I'm sorry, Simba. I know how difficult this must be for you."

Simba bit his lip. The last thing he needed was sympathy he felt he didn't deserve.

"Mmm..." was all he could say without betraying his emotions before heading outside.

***

   Simba descended from Pride Rock and ran, hoping he could chase his troubles away. He flitted past the basking area, where he saw Nala as a cub with her mother before going to the Elephant's Graveyard.

   He sprinted through some long, thick grass, not knowing where he was going when he suddenly felt his paw slip deeper into the ground.

   Simba glanced down and started with shock. His father's pawprint. It was still there!

Wow, I don't even fit it now He thought amusedly. But he was overwhelmed with memories at that moment. He and Mufasa, walking home after the Elephant's Graveyard incident, Mufasa scolding him, Mufasa revelaing that he could get scared too, playing with his father, Mufasa telling him about the Great Kings of the Past in the stars. The stars.

   Simba looked up at the inky black sky, the reassuring silver dots twinkling at him.

"Er..." he said. This is so stupid! Simba thought but he continued anyway. "Hi, fath-Dad. I just want to say- I'm so sorry. More than ever. I know what really happened during the st-stampede but I'll always feel responsible for it. Silly, right?"

Simba tried to laugh light heartedly but it came out all wrong. "I-I just wish..." Stop it, Simba, his brain told him. Wishing never gets you anywhere.

"Oh, Dad," Simba sighed mournfully, flopping onto the cool grass, still touching his father's pawprint.

He closed his eyes. I'll just rest for one minute he decided. One minute...

***

   Mufasa looked down at his son and felt a huge pang of guilt and remorse. Simba still felt responsible for the stampede. He hadn't realized that, until now, when it had to be spelled out for him. Honestly!

He had to go to him. Right now. But once again, he was blocked by that invisible wall in the sky, the thing that had been the bane of his life- well, afterlife.

"Let me go to him!" Mufasa shouted, pushing and pushing in vain. "I need to!"

It was no use. The simple fact was that he couldn't get to Simba when he needed him. He never could.

"Please," Mufasa pleaded, more to himself that anything. "He's fam-"

Suddenly Mufasa realised that he wasn't in the stars. He was on the grass, beside his sleeping son. He looked down and saw that he looked exactly as he had been when he was alive.

Mufasa watched over his son. Even though Simba was fast asleep, it was apparant that he wasn't getting any peace of mind. His body shook, his closed eyes twitched and a frequent moaning could be heard from him. Seeing Simba like this, made Mufasa feel even more guilty. He should have been right beside him, through all of the troubled years but he wasn't.

"Simba?" Mufasa asked tentatively. He gently nudged the sleeping lion's paw and was suddenly sucked into a totally different surrounding.

Mufasa surveyed the area and with a sickening jolt, realized that it was the gorge. Could it be possible that he had somehow been transported into Simba's dream? Mufasa didn't know.

Then, he heard something that he thought he would never be able to hear again; Simba's voice as a cub.

"Dad!" he called and suddenly Simba was right in front of his father. But his eyes moved past him and Mufasa knew why: he was merely invisible in the dream. He still followed every move that Simba made, despite the known fact.

The thick dust clouded around Simba and the tiny cub coughed twice. "Dad!" he yelled again.

Mufasa heard movements, an encouraging rustling. Simba's ears perked hopefully. "Dad?"

A confused wildebeast appeared, who quickly ran away. But the thing that Mufasa was next to see never ran away. From his mind, anyway.

Simba, with terrified innocent eyes was cautiously approaching his own body with tiny steps. Mufasa followed reluctantly, grimacing with indescision.

"Dad?" Simba asked.

"Simba," Mufasa replied, though he knew that no-one could hear him.

"Dad?" Simba repeated. "Dad, come on," and Mufasa groaned in emotional pain as Simba nudged his immobile head.

"You've got to get up," Simba tried but the head fell limp. "Dad!"

Mufasa resisted the urge to turn away when Simba pushed his other self with his small paws.

"We've got to go home." Simba tugged at his ears in a kind of desperate attempt of affection.

"I knew we had to go home, Simba. I just couldn't," Mufasa said, his voice scratchy. This was awful.

Then, Simba ran past the two Mufasas. "Help!" he screamed. Mufasa had never seen his son as a cub this frightened. "Somebody!" Simba called. "Anybody."

And Mufasa ran to his son, wanting to be the one who helped him, even though he knew it was no good.

"H-help," Simba wept.

"Oh, Simba," Mufasa whispered. "I'm so sorry."

***

   Simba started as he woke. I'm so pathetic he thought, as the details of the new nightmare came flooding back.

It was a few moments later, that Simba realized he was being watched. And somehow, he knew this person was no enemy to him.

Simba stood up and came face to face with the lion he had dreamed about for the whole of his life but had thought he would never see him like this again.

"Father!" he exclaimed and a sudden urge to run to him was in his brain but he didn't. The look on Mufasa's face stopped him. It was filled with remorse, grief, guilt and a thousand other emotions that were too complicated for Simba to explain.

"Simba..." he started and then the two relations both said the same thing at exactly the same time: "I'm sorry."

They both stepped backwards and in unison, stated in disbelief,"You're sorry?!"

Simba laughed awkwardly. A siren inside him screamed, What? What?! Why are you laughing? Your Dad's just come back from the afterlife and you're laughing?! Get a grip, you fool!

Reamerging from his self conflict, Simba managed to say, "Why are you sorry? I should be sorry."

Mufasa stared at his son and said slowly," Simba, for once, living or dead, I honestly have no idea what you are talking about."

Simba laughed again. Stop it! he told himself.

"Of course I'm sorry, Fa- Dad," he said. "It was all of my fault."

"What do you-"

"You know," Simba mumbled. "The... the-" In horror, Simba realized that he couldn't even bring himself to say it again.

He saw Mufasa click his tongue in understanding. "The stampede," he finished for him.

"Yes."

Mufasa walked towards Simba until they were almost touching. "It wasn't your fault, Simba," he said seriously.

"It was, it-"

"Don't!"

Simba opened his mouth to protest but Mufasa cut across him. "Don't believe it, Simba, don't you believe it for one moment. Promise me."

"I-"

"Promise me, Simba."

Simba paused, then- "I promise."

To him, it sounded weak but his father seemed satisfied. There was a long silence before Simba dared himself to ask, "So, what were you sorry about then?"

Mufasa looked at him sharply but it wasn't an accusing sort of look. It seemed to Simba that he was thinking very hard. Finally, he said quietly,"I'm sorry that I wasn't there for you when you were growing up."

Simba was taken aback. He hadn't the faintest idea what his Dad was going to say but he definately wasn't expecting that.

"You were there for me, Dad, I just-" he sighed sadly, "- couldn't see you." Simba murmered a soft growl in frustration. "It wasn't your time to go."

Mufasa took a deep breath. "Simba, you have to understand that in this world things happen for a reason."

Simba was gobsmacked. "But-"

"What's happened to you has made you who you are today." Mufasa then straightened up and said, amber eyes blazing fiercly, "And I have never been more proud of you."

This was too much for Simba. He quickly hung his head, so that his father wouldn't see the droplets of water that were now falling to the ground.

***

   Mufasa cocked his head to one side, surveying Simba anxiously.  His son had bent his head, so that his red mane that looked so scarily like his own, flopped over his face.

"Simba. Look at me. Please," Mufasa said, getting more worried.

Simba shook his head pleadingly and Mufasa saw the splashes of liquid sprinkle over the grass. He put his head over Simba's and nuzzled him for the last time. "It'll be okay," Mufasa promised. "It'll be okay. No more nightma-"

"Wait." Simba looked up, face still shining with tears but his voice was steady. "How do you know I've been having nightmares?"

Mufasa smiled and looked up, indicating the sparkly stars. No words needed to be said.

Simba chuckled softly and with a feeling of joy, Mufasa knew it wasn't fake. It was, finally, real.

"Mmm..." he said. "I'll probably have to go now."

His son faltered but his reply was, "I know.