Circle of Life (Resubmit)
**Resumitted because the original had a large chunk cut out of the middle that I had to recombine the files to put in place.**
// All right... This is my half of a trade with Kettamine on deviantArt... She did a beautiful picture of one of my characters, Rex(which can be seen on my FA account), and requested I write something I'd never heard of: SimbaxKula, for her. She told me I could add any non-vore-related fetish I enjoyed, so I hope I did a satisfactory job with only a very minor idea of Kula's character... I'll be getting back to my own series eventually, but I'd like to mention, right now, that I don't know these characters very well. I've only ever seen the original Lion King movie, so errors in character behavior I apologize for.
Story contains: Timeline disruption, tragedy, death, (implied)rape, violence, slash pairings, M/F, and a few minor things. //
The story begins after Simba and Nala have been reunited, at about the point where they begin to talk about the Pridelands.... (It's in two pieces on FurAffinity, I know. I lumped them together so that the whole story could be posted here, since the first half is... well, completely PG-13. The second half contains a large amount of spiced-up paraphrasing before the 'fun' part. )
"...what's it been like since I've been gone?" Simba asked softly, finally meeting Nala's eyes.
"...horrible," she breathed, craning her neck to brush her nose under his chin. "Scar and his hyenas have destroyed the Pridelands... We've all just about lost hope..." her face became forlorn for a moment, but then it brightened and she hopped up to plant her paws on his shoulders and push him over, leaning in so they were nose-to-nose. "But now I've found you! You can come back, and take the throne from Scar, and--"
"Wait, what?" the lion responded, mouth dropping open slightly. He raised a paw and lightly pushed her away, climbing to his feet. "I can't do that..." He turned around, head low, and began to walk away.
Nala furrowed her brows and hopped in front of him.
"Why not? You're the king! Scar can't--"
"Enough with my uncle!" Simba huffed, glaring at her. Then his head dropped once more, and the outcast prince slipped around the lioness, mumbling lowly, "Besides... I'm not good enough to be anyone's king..."
He heard her protests as he continued to walk.
"Simba! What happened to you out here? You have to go back!"
Was she following him?
"He destroyed everything Mufasa worked so hard for! He's ruined our home!"
"Your home you mean..." Simba mumbled, still moving, her voice growing more faint as he walked.
"He killed Sarabi!"
The prince froze, eyes wide. His head flew up, and he turned to regard the lioness with horror in his eyes. She had to mean someone else...
Nala padded over to him, ears flicked back balefully. She licked his cheek, and planted herself in a sitting position beside him with her tail curled around her legs.
"My...mother?" Simba breathed, not wanting to believe it.
She looked up at him sadly, "Yes..."
"How?"
"Scar... he's had his way with whoever he pleases... Sarabi... she... she told him in front of everyone that he could do what he pleased with her body... because her heart would always be with Mufasa, and he would never force her to love him..."
"BASTARD," Simba roared, his claws sliding out as he slashed the earth. Several birds scattered from the treetops, awakened and frightened away by the anguished sound. Tears rolled down his face, and he fell on his side in the grass. "Bastard..." his voice had grown weak, and it became a sob as he cried out lowly, "Mother..."
Nala stood, stepping over to his side so that she could nuzzle into his thick mane. Their eyes met again, and she glanced aside respectfully. "This... this is why you need to come back with me... you can make this RIGHT..."
"I'm not going back," the prince replied glumly, resting his head on his paws.
Her mouth dropped open. "WHAT? How can you SAY THAT?"
He looked up at her with an unreadable expression, replying in a monotone, "If Scar killed my mother, and you're here... there's nothing there for me." The male rolled over to look up at the sky through a break in the trees. "I was so happy here, Nala... Timon and Pumbaa taught me how to live. Hakuna matata. No worries. I just want to forget about Pride Rock... I might have belonged there once, but I don't anymore... and nothing will change that..."
"COWARD," the lioness spat, voice cracking as she began to cry as well. With a growl, she swatted him so hard across the face he felt cuts open up across his nose. "I can't believe you! You're not the Simba I used to know..." She jumped back, and started to run, pausing for just a moment to shriek back at him, "If your father was alive, he'd die all over again of shame to see what his son has become!"
Simba lay there until he could no longer hear her movement, one paw resting over his bloodied nose. A moment later, the bushes rustled, and Timon and Pumbaa stepped out next to him.
"Oy, harsh," the meerket sighed, patting the lion on the shoulder. "It'll be okay, big guy. Don't worry about it."
"Aren'tcha gonna go after her though? I thought she was your friend," Pumbaa asked, staring off in the direction the lioness had disappeared.
Their maned companion shook his head and rolled to the side so that his back was to the pair. "No," he told them. "And Pumbaa... if she's really my friend, she'll come back..."
The warthog didn't look convinced.
Several days later, Simba was lying by the river, finally recovering from the shock Nala had given him. Timon and Pumbaa were off somewhere, and he was almost asleep, eyes mostly shut when all of a sudden a voice broke the tranquility he felt.
"Simba, it's really you!" cried a female he didn't recognize. A moment later, the wind was knocked out of him as he was rolled over in the grass to wind up on his back. Panting, he opened his eyes and the distraught face of the lioness. Her fur was dark, not quite like Scar's, but more so than his own pelt, and her eyes were wide and wet, with tears streaming from them.
"What...who?" he croaked. She looked familiar... dimly.
"Kula," she breathed, slipping off of him and collapsing on the grass. A moment later she shuddered and let out a sob as she covered her face with a paw. Simba thought hard, and then remembered the (no-longer) cub. She had been one of Nala's best friends when they were children, though he hadn't personally known her. Back then she had been heavier, though. Now... he looked her over without meaning to. Her body was beautifully filled out, enough to make him arch a brow, but on the lean side if anything. It was apparent she hadn't been getting enough to eat.
"I... I remember you," he replied, reached over and gently nudging her with one paw. "What happened? Why are you here?"
"Nala told me to come," she sobbed, rolling over to face away from him and letting out another anguished cry.
"Why--"
"She's DEAD, Simba!" Kula cried wretchedly.
A chill ran through him, and his mouth dropped open. "Wh-what...? no... she... HOW?"
"She took... her own..."
"NO!" he gasped, eyes wide. "Why would she..." the tears were building up.
"She t-told me... wh-when she c-came back... she wouldn't g-g-go through with everything al-alone... and you... you wouldn't come back... and... and..." her voice degenerated into more blubbering.
"I don't understand," the prince replied breathlessly.
"Scar RAPED her," Kula turned and cried at him, reaching up and pawing at him pathetically. "A w-w-week ago... when she left to c-c-come here she was trying to... to find food... because there's... there's NOTHING at Pride Rock..." the lioness looked about to quiver to pieces. "And she... she needed to eat... because... the cubs--"
"She was PREGNANT?!?!" the horror and shock must have been evident on his face, because Kula finally met eyes with him.
"You... -sniff- didn't know...?"
"She didn't TELL ME!" he responded, feeling sick.
"Ohh, Simba..." Kula moaned, breaking down again and unconsciously burying her face in his mane. The prince stared straight ahead, unable to get the thought out of his head.
"How... how did she...?"
"She j-jumped... off of the ravine... where Mufasa died..."
That sent another powerful pang through his heart. His mother... Scar had killed his mother... and now he'd killed his childhood friend... his first love...
"I'LL KILL HIM," he roared suddenly.
Kula jumped back, doe-eyed. "Simba... what are--"
"Scar," the prince growled lowly, with narrowed eyes.
After a second, the bushes shook, and a certain meerkat-warthog pair had come running over.
"We heard ya roar there, Simba, what's-- ANOTHER ONE?" Timon groaned at the sight of Kula, rubbing at the bridge of his nose, "Listen, lady, our pal Simba here--"
"Timon, hush," the lion said stoically.
The meerkat looked incredulous.
"...what's going on, Simba?" Pumbaa dared to ask, ears flicking back.
"I'm going back to Pride Rock with Kula..." he replied, holding his head high, a fire blazing in his eyes. "There's something I have to do there... something that I have to make right... I have to face my past..."
"Are you CRAZY, kid?" Timon gasped, waving his arms frantically. "After everything we heard about that place you wanna go BACK there? You gotta--" a hoof was planted over his mouth, and he continued to struggle for a few minutes before he realized his friend's strength was greater than his own, and quieted.
"If that's what you want to do, Simba, we'll be right behind you!" the warthog encouraged, nodding.
The prince smiled sadly at the pair, tilting his head to them, "Thanks, you two... you've been great friends to me..."
Kula nervously nosed at the male's shoulder, her sob having quieted down . "Simba... if we're going... the others are there, still..."
"Right," he breathed. For a moment, he closed his eyes. When he opened them... he took off running. The three left behind all jumped, but Kula tore off after him with startling speed, leaving the other males in the dust.
He had to count on Kula to lead him through the ruined Pridelands. Though exhausted by the strain of such a long journey, they had made it in a night and a day. The sun seemed to be dipping low as they reached the outskirts, and Simba stared in abhorrence at the way the land had been desecrated. His father's beautiful, sunlit kingdom... darkened by the clouds of an ominously-gathering storm, it looked as though the wretchedness had seeped from the elephant graveyard far to the east to taint the earth.
"It's awful..." the lioness at his side whispered, nudging his shoulder, ready to begin crying once more. The prince unthinkingly nuzzled her in return to halt the tears.
"I'm so sorry..." Simba breathed to her, feeling the ache in his heart. This is the place his mother and love had died... this... was the last thing they saw, their home reduced to ruin... and he had turned his back on them... the thought made him want to run once again, but when he looked up at the sky a glimmer of stars suddenly breached the clouds, and the distraught brute huffed in a deep breath of air that stank of death, and steeled himself. When he glanced down, he saw Kula looking up at them as well, her face lit in the minimal light they offered, brown eyes glistening wetly. Unconsciously he leaned in and brushed his cheek against hers.
"Go, Kula... rally the lionesses... Tell them..." his eyes closed, but he could feel the starlight beaming down on him. Was Mufasa watching him from up there, with the other great kings?
"Tell them their king has returned..."
A hot tongue slid across his nose, and he opened his eyes to see Kula smiling brightly, tears rolling down her face. The starlight vanished as the clouds overtook the sky once more, but he found the shimmer in her eyes was close enough.
"All right... Simb-- ...Sire," she replied breathlessly, turning and breaking into a run for Pride Rock.
A cold wind whipped through, stirring up dust that coated his fur. He shook, and his mane whirled and danced around in the breeze as he began to tread onward, staring down at the earth. He padded over a puddle, and gasped at first at what he genuinely mistook to somehow be his father... when he realized it was his own reflection, his eyes went wide, and a sense of pride that he hadn't felt since he was a cub surged through him.
Simba lit to a sprint, no longer caring who saw him, though somewhere, shouts echoed, and he encountered no one as he tore up to the base of Pride Rock. He couldn't go up the main path; the hyenas lined it. Instead, he bolted along the back way, leaping to haul himself up the rocks, coming onto the other side in time to see Scar, standing there, bring his paw down to knock Kula into the dirt. Unable to control himself, he let out a vicious snarl and hopped out to fully expose himself.
Scar blanched and looked up.
"Mufasa" he stuttered, "No. You're dead."
The old lion backed away, face a mask of fear, but Simba wasn't listening. He leaped down lightly to Kula's side, nuzzling against her neck. She let out a soft moan, but looked up at him.
"Simba," she whispered. "You really came..."
"Yes..." he told her, giving her shoulder one last nudge. He found himself worried for her, having been handled so brutishly. He glanced around, and the other lionesses were staring, wide-eyed, at him. That was when Scar spoke again.
"Simba?" he stammered. Then a simpering smile broke out on his face, "Oh, Simba! I'm surprised to see you... this way..." his eyes shot in the direction of the hyenas, and the prince realized the truth now. It made a blaze of hatred run through his heart that burned through in his eyes and his voice as he began to advance upon his uncle.
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't rip you apart..."
Scar staggered back a few steps before he was able to turn, babbling all the while some excuse or another that only served to enrage the prince further.
"Step down," Simba finally interrupted him, commanding softly. "Or fight."
Kula, by now, had joined the other lionesses, and they had formed a wall opposite the hyenas.
"Ah, violence..." Scar replied coolly, stalking past Simba, who shot him a growl, "Must it end this way? I would hate to cause the death of my own flesh and blood... wouldn't you agree, Simba?"
"...what?" he heard one of the lionesses ask.
"Don't play games, Scar," the prince spat, "They won't work. I've made my peace."
"Ahhhh... but have they?" one dark paw gestured at the gathered hunting party.
"Simba...?" this time it was Kula's voice.
"Well, Simba? Aren't you going to tell them how Mufasa died? Who is at fault for his death?"
The prince sputtered for a few moments, and then, with a ragged sigh, hung his head and mumbled, "I am..."
Looks of horror crossed the faces of each and every lioness, but Simba refused to recoil until Scar began to speak again.
"So, you admit it. You killed your father, and you ran away. You're nothing but a murderer."
"NO! I--"
"Did you not cause your father's death?" the elder was advancing upon him, now.
"It was an accident! The ravine--"
"If it weren't for you he would still be alive! You don't deny it."
"...no..."
"Then you're guilty!"
"No, I'm not... It was a--" his foot brushed air. He had been backed all the way to the edge of Pride Rock.
Scar smiled at him. "Well, well... the cub is in trouble again, and this time Daddy's long gone..." he thrust his head forward and snapped at his nephew, and Simba let out a yelp as he jerked back instinctively and slid to the edge. He stared up at his uncle, hind legs scrabbling for a hold that didn't seem to be there.
The dark-pelted male smiled. "Hm... now... this seems oddly familiar..." He paced a little at the edge, watching Simba squirm and writhe below him, trying in vain to pull himself up.
"Ahh," he whispered, leaning in, digging his claws into Simba's paws. "Your father looked exactly the same way... before I killed him."
The prince let out a bellowing roar, rage digging his claws so deeply into the rock face that he was able to leap upward and shove his uncle backwards, the pair rolling over one another until with a THUD they hit the far side.
"Simba!" Kula's voice cried again.
"Bastard! Tell them!" he roared, claws sliding agonizingly slowly into Scar's flesh. "Tell them the truth!"
Scar stammered and sputtered, trying to kick upward and slice at his nephew's stomach, but those talons suddenly found purchase in his neck, and another roar made him flinch and admit with a bitter snarl, "I killed him! I killed Mufasa!"
Chaos was unleashed. Suddenly there were yips and snarls around them, and two waves met in an ocean of snapping jaws and blood and claws. Simba was knocked off of his uncle, and it took him several minutes to pick out the source of his boiling blood trying to slink away. With a roar that actually paused the fighting around him with its intensity, he tore off after the other male, who tried to elude him by sprinting up the stone path towards the summit. Lightning crackled, startling him, and when he looked down he noticed distantly that the entire dried-out underbrush had been set ablaze. Fitting, his mind registered, that he was here to kill a devil and cast him out into his own hellfire.
He leaped with the grace of a gazelle to the summit, and found Scar cowering at the edge, staring at him with horror. The prince bared his teeth and snarled, beginning a slow path over to him.
"Bastard," he breathed, voice barely audible over a rumble of thunder and the approaching crackle of flames. "Murdering bastard... I'll put the flames out with your blood."
"Simba... Simba... we don't need to do this," Scar pleaded, smiling sycophantically, "You can have the throne, fine! Fine! I'll do whatever you want..."
His nephew's voice was cold. "You killed my father... your own brother... you murdered my mother... you raped Nala... you deserve to burn..."
"What... what do I have to do?"
"...run. Run away, and never return... just like you told me."
The former king looked disheartened, mumbling, "Ahh... yes... I... of course... I'll be..."
Simba watched him only for a few moments before he looked down at the writhing tide of bodies below. There was blood shining in the firelight like pools of rain.
Looking away... proved to be a mistake. There was a snarl, and he didn't have time to turn before he was thrown sideways and felt claws digging into his side. With a roar, he jerked free and let his fangs embed themselves in his uncle's flank. They rolled to the very edge, ripping at one another, and then broke apart, both leaping from oblivion to solid ground.
In another moment, they had jumped in again, Simba roaring in pain as Scar's long talons raked through his mane far enough that they bit the flesh of his neck. He retaliated by wrenching his uncle backwards, hard, and they both fell sideways, claws being ripped from one another in the painful process.
The prince wound up on his back, panting heavily. There was blood seeping from wounds opened up on both flanks, and on a scratch across his nose. He groaned, shaking his head. Where was-- Scar was already mid-leap, about to come down on him with fangs bared, when a tan-colored bolt shot from nowhere, another feline snarl echoing through the air. His uncle was knocked sideways, and Simba looked up to see none other than...
"Kula!" he cried, leaping to his feet. Scar was on his side next to her, lying completely still. She had obviously had to fight her way to them; several gashes bled openly across her pelt, and one of her eyes was squinted shut.
"Simba," she panted, looking over at him and offering a weary smile. "Simba, I--"
She was knocked sideways by a dark paw. Simba let out a roar as Scar jumped to his feet and planted his claws on Kula's neck. She looked dazed, unharmed eye hanging half-closed.
"Well, well... look at that... It seems you've truly failed to protect everyone you loved... give up, Simba... go back to where you came from... you only cause pain wherever you go... You're a- HNGH!"
The prince stared in awe as he staggered sideways, looking down at where his stomach had been violently sliced open by Kula's hind claws. Loops of intestine sagged free, hitting the ground with a faint squelching sound. The dark lion gasped, flecks of blood flying from his mouth, and rounded on the lioness struggling to get up. Simba jumped up and lunged, catching his flank with both paws, and his momentum was enough to carry them both over the side of the summit. He heard Kula's roar as he tumbled over, gasping as his vision spiraled into darkness.
He felt himself hit several large rocks on the way down, and a few times thudded against something that he was sure was his uncle's body until with a squishy sound he came to rest. His entire body ached and throbbed, and he let out a rough moan. One eye cracked open, and his vision was coated in red. At first he thought it was his own blood, then he looked down and gasped as he realized he was lying in the mushy pile consisting of Scar's organs. Shuddering with disgust, Simba struggled to his feet and staggered away from the corpse, giving a once-over to the scene before him. A few dead lionesses lay scattered around, interspersed among an incredible number of hyenas' bodies. He moaned again and fell against the rocks, using them to support himself as he began to limp along. Looking out, he could see the rest of the hunting party at the foot of Pride Rock, as well as Rafiki, that wise old baboon, and even Timon(who looked disgruntled and was rubbing at his singed rear) and Pumbaa. However, he didn't think he was strong enough to make his way to them...
That was when Kula limped down and brushed against him. He started and turned to her. Rain began to fall as she fell against him, letting out a soft "mmph" and nuzzling against his blood-soaked mane. As the downpour intensified, Simba leaned in and licked across her muzzle, lost in the moment too far to even taste the remnant of Scar's blood.
"Come on," she whispered, voice rough and weary.
He drew in a deep breath, and pushed away from the rocks. The pair leaned on one another as they limped together to the foot of Pride Rock, where Kula broke away after a last gentle nuzzle and sat with the rest of the lionesses. They bowed low, one by one, as Simba limped up the path. Rafiki stood there, smiling, nodding to the prince as he passed him.
The lion's eyes tried to stay set on the clouds at the peak of the rock, but they were drawn downward to the lioness who had, through this struggle, become so close to him. As he reached the top, he reflected briefly on the shame of not being able to save his parents... Nala... but now... he had to move on. Looking up at the sky, he saw the clouds beginning to part, despite the heavy rain that had already completely cleansed the blood from his fur. Staring into the bright patch of sky, a single bright star winked at him, and he thought, just for a moment, he could hear his father's voice encouraging him...
And the king threw his head back and roared.
As he limped back down, later on, he was met with the proud nuzzles of every lioness there, the congratulations of his friends... but there was only one thing that was even on his mind now. He gently brushed past them, as respectfully as he could, and found Kula standing there waiting for him. She flicked her ears back and tucked her nose under his chin.
They stood there that way for a few moments, and then the king turned to regard the gathered assembly.
"I... need to rest..." he stepped back, looking the lioness standing with him in the eye, and added, "We both do..."
They walked, together, back up the path to the lion's den nestled within Pride Rock, and Rafiki caught Simba's eye as they passed him. The baboon winked, and burst into peals of laughter. The lion rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but chuckle as well as he led his new queen into the rocky cavern.
"Mmm... Simba," she sighed softly, dropping her front half down to expose her haunches to him, tail flicking sideways. The male's breath hitched slightly as he looked her over. She looked... pristine. Unbeknownst to him, she was one of the few lionesses to have escaped Scar's violent ministrations. This was likely because of how she blended in with the rest of the pride; after she and Nala had drifted apart she had become just another lioness in the hunting party.
"I... I have... to confess to you..." she murmured, voice resounding in the emptiness of the chamber, "I've... always had feelings for you... but I would never have crossed Nala... and tried to have you for myself... Today, though... when you... and Scar... and--"
"Shh," Simba breathed, sliding up behind her and nuzzling one hip, "Don't even... don't even worry... about the past now... It's done..." His nose quivered and his tongue slid out, slipping back just a bit, not enough to actually brush behind her haunch. His reward was the tiny huff of breath she released.
"Simba..."
"It's all right, Kula..." he cut her off again, lightly nosing back a little further, to where her feminine slit lay. Nervousness froze him, but he glanced up and saw her ear flick backward. An encouraging whine escaped her. He leaned forward just a bit more, and heard another little sound as his whiskers lightly brushed that soft entrance. His tongue slipped out and gently caressed those rapidly dampening folds, making her shudder.
He swallowed lightly, feeling arousal curling in his belly, and tilted his head to let his tongue slip and probe between them this time. Her muscles tightened lightly around the intrusion. He had to resist the sudden wild urge to leap upon her and ravage her.
"Is... it all right if I...?" he asked in a choked voice. His sheath was swollen, the barbed tip of his member beginning to poke free.
"...yes," came the timid response.
He pressed more forcefully with his tongue, beginning to lap heavily at her inner walls, causing small spasms of pleasure to run through her body. Femcum oozed out around his tongue and even began to trickle down from her vent, the taste of which was enough to bring his erection out in its entirety. When she shuddered once, and he felt her tighten sharply while a light gush of it drooled out over his nose, he let out a moan of his own. He had to take her. Now.
Simba slid his tongue from her entrance, taking a moment to lap at those hot, swollen folds one last time before he reared up and planted his upper body on her back. Her whole body was quivering slightly beneath him, and he wondered if it was the same eagerness he was trying to fight off...
The tip of his member probed her opening; it was going to be a ridiculously tight fit, he realized. Would he even be able to push himself inside? Her hindquarters ground back against him, forcing him in a bit more and he heard her hiss of breath as the whole head slipped within. Now it was his turn to shake; his hips quaked with restraint, and he had to bite back a little growl. Then he heard her voice.
"S-Simba," she huffed, voice choked, "Don't wait for me... do it..."
With her permission, he pulled himself outward a little, so that once more just the tip remained encased in those fleshy folds, and then drove himself to the hilt in one swift motion that made her cry out and dig her claws into the rock.
Around him, her inner walls strained, unaccustomed to holding such a length and girth within them. Her breath was already coming short. A little gasp of his own marked his pulling out, once more leaving himself just enough inside of her to feel the heat, and the drove himself back in. This time there was just a little less resistance, and on the third thrust, a little less still.
The pattern was slow and amateurish at first, sloppily spreading pre down her legs and across his own stomach with the clumsiness of their mating. As they moved on, though, he became more accurate, more rough. Kula cried out several times as he brushed against that spot at the top of her cervix, and when he realized that each delicate grazing of it made her tunnel jerk and spasm around him, began to tease her with it. He pounded into her, feeling a roar of ecstasy building in his throat, and swallow it down again, hitting against that spot until her muscles shook and she moaned and panted for release, only to move his ministrations to a different point on the next thrust and leave her wanting.
Kula groaned and shifted under him, their panting echoing in the empty den. He couldn't hold himself back much longer...
He gave a few more rough thrusts inward, feeling his scrotum tighten as release threatened to overtake him, and with a last powerful thrust forced his length into her so roughly the tip pierced into her womb. A heavy string of seed shot forth, painting her virgin inner chamber white, and they both roared in their violent passion while his balls released their potent load into her.
When they were spent, he pulled out, followed by a gush of their intermingled cum, and the pair collapsed next to one another. Her belly actually bulged slightly with the sheer amount of seed he had deposited into her fertile inner chamber.
Simba moaned. Now that his passion was spent, his wounds were catching up to him. It appeared that Kula's were too, as she made a muffled sound and sidled against him. They fell asleep together that way, tails intertwined, dead to the world.
Reprise:
Months later, long after the green of life had returned to the Pridelands, Simba strolled down along the worn path to the grassland. There was Kula, his queen, stretched out in a patch of shade. The other lionesses lying with her climbed to their feet as he approached. He nodded to each of them, and they stepped away from the pair, giggling.
Kula arched a brow at him, rolling over to gently bat at his chin.
"And you. I was just telling them how my lazy king never brings me anything to eat," she snickered.
"There's a never-ending task," he chided, flopping down next to her and nosing at her neck. They shared a brief moment of silence, snuggling together in the shade that way until there came a cry for the both of them.
"Mommmaaaaa! Daddyyyyyyy! Kiara's being mean again!" a cub cried, dashing over to them and tripping to land on her back. Her fur was a delicate yellowed shade of brown, a perfect mix of her parents' pelts.
Kula chuckled, reaching out and gently pulling their daughter over to her.
"Sarabi, you always say that..."
"I was not!!!" came an offended sounding retaliation as a second cub, this one with a much more yellow pelt bounded over to them.
"Kiara," Simba scolded lightly, laughing a little.
The princesses exchanged a look, and Kiara pulled a face and stuck her tongue out at her sister, drawing another indignant cry from her. Young Sarabi pawed up at Kula.
"Look, look! I told you!"