I opened my eyes brightly. I looked around my den. I shivered. I walked outside and saw some other lion cubs playing together. I ran up to them and tried to join the fun. "What are you doing here KOVU?" She cried out rudely. "I want to play." I explained. The lion cubs shook their heads. "Well we don't want you to play." Then they walked away. I sighed. I knew I didn't have any friends and that was probably they way it was going to be.

I walked back into my den. "Kovu." I turned around as I heard my name. The lioness that took care of me walked in. "Zira." I said. Zira walked up to me and asked, "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be finding us some food?" I sighed. Zira thought she was the boss of me since I was little and she was not. "Yes Zira." I stalked out of the den. Rustle. I heard a rustle in the bush behind me. "Who's there?" I cried out. I turned around and suddenly, "OOF!" A lion cub had jumped on me and made me tumble to the ground.

"Hey!" I cried. "Why'd you do that for?" I cried. The lion cub cried in delight, "You wanna play?" I didn't need to think. This cub asked me to play and I wasn't about to turn down THAT offer. "Sure." I replied. I found my way out from underneath her and then I said, "The name's Kovu." The cub smiled at me. "Kiara." She said. I smiled back at her. Then carefully, I stuck out my paw and tagged her. "You're it." I said. Kiara laughed and ran after me.

She jumped on me and said, "You're it." I laughed and ran after her. The game continued on before we heard someone yell, "Kiara!" We both turned around and saw a bigger lion walk up. "Kiara?" He asked, staring curiously at me. I also got a close look at him. He was the normal lion colour with a red mane. Not much detail to him. I thought. Then the lion continued, "Kiara. Who is this?" I noticed Kiara's ears drooped. She bowed in front of him. "Sorry father. This is Kovu." She explained.

"Uh.. Hi?" I said to the lion. "What are you doing in the outlands?" The lion boomed. "Playing with Kovu." Kiara explained. The lion eyed me again. The lion shook his head fiercly. "No. I forbid it! Come home now!" Then the lion turned on his heel and walked back to his den. I noticed that he walked to Pride Rock. "That's your dad. Your dad is King Simba!?" I cried. Kiara nodded. I noticed that tears were going down her face. "Bye Kovu." She said.

I sighed. As soon as I had gotten a friend, she had to go! Her father wouldn't let her play with me!!! I growled to myself. Then I remembered that if I didn't go home with food, Zira would be really mad at me. I just looked around for something that was dead all ready. I found nothing. I didn't even see an animal that was alive. Feeling let down, I walked back home. I was ready for a real beating!

"Kovu? Where's dinner?" Zira growled at me. "I couldn't find anything." I told her. Zira snapped at me. "I don't want to hear that! Go find something to eat or you won't see light again!" I took this like an order, and ran out of there quickly. "She thinks she can tell me what to do?" I screamed silently. "Well, she's wrong. The only reason I do it is because I don't want to get hurt or anything." I continued walking and finally saw a hurt antelope. I struck at it. I made sure it was dead and dragged it back to the den.

The next morning, I woke up feeling happy. I had a full stomach and decided to go back to sleep. Zira walked up to me. "Kovu wake up." I got up quickly, angry for being disturbed. "Go outside NOW!" I went outside and lay on the ground. "OOF!" I screamed. I looked up. There was a familier face staring down at me. "Kiara!" I screamed. I kicked Kiara off and she landed on her back. "Kovu." She screamed. We both laughed and played tag again. Then Simba walked up again, "Kiara! I thought I told you not to play with this...this...outlander!"

Kiara nodded her head and cast a sorrowy glance at me. I returned the glance and watched as Simba took Kiara away. I couldn't believe that Kiara wasn't allowed to play with me just because I lived in the outlands. I sighed and walked into the cave. Zira spotted me and growled. "Kovu." "I know I know." I said. I remembered that before I went to bed, I was supposed to get dinner. I hunted for about an hour then fell asleep.

It had been a long time since I last seen Kiara. I was also now a fully grown lion. And a handsome one I have to say. I walked out of my cave and saw Zira. She motioned for me to go over. I walked over to her and she gave me a look saying, "Where's breakfast?" I groaned. I walked over to the edge of the pridelands. I saw a very plump wart hog. "Yumm." I whispered to myself. "That would make a nice breakfast." I crouched down in the grass and only moved when the wart hog fed. I got closer and closer. Finally, I pounced. The wart hog cried out in surprise, "Hey!" I sank my teeth into his flesh. I could taste his blood. It tasted rich in my mouth.

I sank my teeth in farther when I felt a different object fling onto me. It sang ITS teeth into my throat. I roared in pain. I felt the warm blood running down the side of my neck. I flung the object off easily. I heard it crack against a rock. I turned and saw that I had been fighting another lion. "Weakling." I laughed. Then I saw that the lion didn't have a mane. No wonder the lion was so weak. I fought a girl! I ran over to her. "Oh my god! Miss are you okay?" I asked concerned. Then I saw she was laughing.

"Gotcha good didn't I?" She said. "No. I knew you were faking the whole time." I lied. "Sure." The lioness said. She rolled her eyes. I studied her. She looked very familier. I saw that she was studying me too. "Kovu?" She asked. I wondered how she knew my name. Before I answered, I studied her some more. Then it struck me. "Kiara?" She nodded. "Yes yes! It's me! Oh Kovu it's been so long." And it has been long. The last time we have seen eachother was when we were cubs.

We nuzzled (a friendship nuzzle). "I've missed you. Oh! I have great news! I am queen!" I stared at her. "You are the new queen of Pride Rock? So that must mean you gotta mate?" I asked. Kiara shook her head fiercly. "No no. I mean once I find a mate than I will be queen. Dad says that in 3 days, unless I find a mate, then I won't be queen and he will have to find someone else. And the mate I choose has to be eligible, cute, nice, and a pridelander." I noticed that when Kiara said "pridelander" she looked sad.

"Well, I guess we will need to find you a mate then huh?" I said. Kiara looked at me. I saw a twinkle in her eye. "Me?" I asked. Kiara nodded vigorisly. "Yea. You're eligible, cute, nice. But just one problem. Dad says it has to be a pridelander. I guess we will need to make you a pridelander." I smiled at her confidence. And since then, we were mates. The only problem was, was that we still had to tell Simba.

So that night, instead of going back to the outlands, we went to Pride Rock. I have to admit that I had never been there before. It was all very new to me. I followed Kiara and she entered her den in no time. I was not pleased to see her mother, Nala, was there. "Hey mom. I want you too meet Kovu. He is my mate." I noticed that Nala studied me and that she looked alittle tired. "Hello Kovu. I think you will make a fine king. Kiara? Have you told your father about Kovu yet?"

I knew that this was a question that Kiara did not want to answer. Nala looked at Kiara and asked, "Kiara? Have you?" Kiara looked at me then I gave her a nudge telling her to tell Nala the truth. "No." She finally said. I seen Nala gasp and quickly, she said, "Kovu. I need to take Kiara to tell her father RIGHT now!!" Before I could say anything, Nala and Kiara disappeared into a different den.  

A few minutes later, they walked back in. I seen that Kiara looked happy and sparkly. "Kovu!" She exclaimed. "Daddy's letting me be your mate!!!" I cried out in happiness, "What made him let an outsider be your mate?!?" Kiara looked at Nala. "My mom persuaded him.!!! Kovu!!! You are the new king of the pridelands!!!!"