Here Comes a Lion, Father

“Babies?”

Waffle, as if he sensed a disturbance in the Force, was instantly aware and honed in on the center of the commotion.

“Who’s having babies?” he asked.

One might be forgiven if they thought the red-eyed hyena was a touch… creepy. However, Waffle didn’t have any intentions of bringing harm. Even if such a thought were to cross his mind, he wouldn’t be so stupid as to attempt to hurt the children of the king and queen – especially not right in front of them. Waffle was fond of children and would have had kids of his own if he was even the slightest bit attractive to prospective females. Foremost in his mind was the overwhelming desire to see the cubs. The fact that, to many a hyena, such a small and vulnerable creature would invoke instincts of aggression was all but lost on Waffle. Natural instincts were hardly present in the wacky hyena.

Self-control was also something Waffle had no intention of displaying. He pushed his way as close to the front as he could manage. Even when he was finished with that, he hopped up-and-down in place.

“Where are they? Where are the little ankle-biters?”

~*~

Anyone close enough to the large hyena female, Haki, might have been able to hear an utterance along the lines of “dammit Waffle”. Being a hyena far further up the chain of command, Haki’s mind went to what the birth of these cubs meant for her clan. The clan was of upmost importance to her. Not that she would ever say so out loud, but Haki protected the needs of the clan before those of the army as a whole. She wondered if these lion cubs would be raised to be as resentful of her kind as most lions. The fact that most of the big felines, for some reason, saw themselves as above hyenas was present in Haki’s mind.

This was a trait she was not eager to see appear in these children. If she was to continue serving in this army under the command of either – or both – of these heirs, she wanted their respect. That was what Haki expected out of them. Maybe, she pondered, if she was going to have a positive relationship with the heirs, it might be easier to do it while they were young. That was, if she was allowed close enough to them.

Haki stood from where she was sitting and strode a bit closer so she could be in view. She sat once more, giving the king and queen ample space. New mothers could be protective after all. Haki wanted to give Zira and Scar the kindness of not crowding them at least. Although her larger-than-average hyena form wasn’t difficult to pick out.

Now that Scar's perseverance had finally paid off, it was time to announce the good news. After briefing Kerchak, Scar happily padded to the top of the ledge that protruded from his den, blissfully unaware of the brewing discontent among the animals. His green eyes pivoted skyward and sparkled with anticipation. Time to make history! The diabolical king gave a thundering roar, putting the previous Lion Kings and their cruddy Roar of the Elders to shame.

"Outlanders!" Scar ejaculated. "Lend me your ears! The revered, indomitable Sun God has blessed us! For now on, we bask in prosperity! Together, we shall rise to greet the dawning of a new era!" Jeez, he was laying it on thick! The cub's uncommon color was merely caused by a recessive trait derived from a less-severe mutation in the same gene that caused albinism. But as far as the king was concerned, the unpigmented fur asserted the cubs were subject to no earthly authority, deriving the right to rule directly from the will of the Sun God.

Scar motioned to Kerchak. "So, without further ado, meet the future kings, Prince Jua, and Prince Nyeupe!"

"Uncles..." Kuzimu growled under her breath "We're older than them. We should be able to boss them around."

"Outlanders!"

Dotty looked up at the thunderous roar and saw Scar and his gorilla high above them all. It was time. She'd never seen a presentation of a future ruler but she knew how it went. They would all finally lay eyes on Scar's heir and the ruin of her family's future. Then the two princes were thrust into the sky and Dotty could feel the hush that fell over the crowd. White...they're white? Dotty was only barely listening to Scar's speech, her attention was so focused on the newborns being held aloft for all to see.

White lions...

"They're white!" Nia said in astonishment, mirroring Dotty's own thoughts "I thought that white lions didn't exist!"

"Me too." Dotty replied quietly, her dread growing every second. This was worse than she feared. Not only were Scar's new cubs male but now they were an almost mystical animal: white lions. If there was even the smallest chance for her and Nuka to escape a gruesome fate with Nia and Kuzimu, it had vanished. No, Scar would be even more willing to see any threats to his new heirs eradicated. Even if that "threat" was her and her cubs.

Excitement chilled the female's bones. Excitement, wonder and finally, a sense of tranquility. She'd pleased him, praise the skies, she'd pleased him. Her claws dug into the dirt, the pain subsiding finally. Her tail twitched as she lay on her side, pressing her face into the cool ground. Perhaps now these squirming little sun princes would bring back the light. Bring back the heat and the sun. She would have purred if she could. There were her babies. Her little white princes.

Finally, though, she rose to stand beside Scar. She couldn't help but grin evilly down at Dotty. Poor little girl, so concerned about her fate. Zira could not have cared less about her and her granddaughters now. The little brats would now just be around for her amusement. Nuka's become less of a pest now so she didn't care. They could die or live, she did not care. All she cared about were her little creme babies.

She pressed her head softly against Scar's fur and inhaled deeply. This was perfect...just perfect...

The sound of someone sniffing was the first thing to alert anyone to 627's presence.

He had heard the call, yes, but he hadn't known what it was about and thus had decided not to come at first. However, intrigue built up in the one-eyed Experiment and he decided to come check out the apparent state of affairs. 627 strode in, hardly paying any mind to the others present, and soon found himself looking at Zira and Scar. It wasn't just them, though. There were two white balls of fluff with Zira. Now, honestly speaking, babies were still a concept that mystified 627 to some degree. He remembered Dixie having puppies, but he hadn't interacted with them and didn't really know if he cared to. These cubs, though, appeared different. They were small and very much resembled the lions 627 had been thinking of as allies during the war. Were they Zira's? They had to be. They were with her, after all.

627 sniffed a bit more and moved a couple of steps closer. Anyone who knew him might have thought he would react badly around the cubs, but not so. He and Zira were more or less equals, and he was honestly curious about the babies in question. He looked from the two balls of fluff to Zira and then back again, clearly in awe of what he was seeing. This was something he didn't get to see every day, after all. He wanted to know more.

"Small lions," 627 said after a good, lengthy pause. "They so... Fluffy. And little."

He honestly didn't know what else to say to them apart from that. He could have thrown in a couple of 'evils' or something along those lines, but 627 honestly was at a loss. Maybe because the cubs were potentially Zira's, he just didn't have the words to describe them. They could be shaped into whatever anyone wanted them to be. Maybe he could teach them... He could show them how to fight like a monster and make them strong. Maybe not as strong as him, but they would still be strong little lions. He liked this idea.

"They yours?" He turned his attention to Zira when asking this. He was almost certain that was the case, but he wanted to make sure. If nothing else, it would give him more confirmation of what he needed to do in relation to them.