A Moment For Two

The trip outside the safety of her home was not one of Ari's best ideas. Yes, it had been for innocent reasons, simple bonding with her sister! She didn't mean for it to get out of hand, and she had no intention of actually leaving Pride Rock, but freedom was indeed a great temptation, and one the small cub could not resist.

Her father stood at the peak of the rock, eyeing the cub as she neared him. She tried to walk with an air of confidence, a posture fit for a queen, showing no weakness or fear, but it seemed to come off more as an awkward trudge than anything else. She certainly was not looking forward to what her father had to say.

In her mind, Scar was her idol, someone she only wanted to please and obey. And now, she might have well thrown it all down the drain. It was hard for Ari not to beat herself up about this mater. She was the eldest, she was the most responsible of the littler, and what did she do? Soil her whole reputation that's what!

Standing there in front of her father was, arguably, the hardest thing she had ever done. A strong urge to flee bubbled inside of her, causing her to fidget slightly under his strong gaze.

"I'm...I'm sorry father. I disobeyed the rules and strayed from the cave. It was my fault, not Giza's. We just wanted to get some flowers, and I thought you and Mom and the others would like to see something pretty...and, and it was wrong of me I shouldn't have done it, I know. B-but we aren't hurt! We made it back safely without a scratch! I made sure of that! And I know that doesn't change anything but-" Ari sighed, realizing she was now rambling excuses to save her tail, and that would do nothing to help. "...And nothing. I disobeyed and deserve...whatever punishment you have in mind for me father. I hope you accept my flower regardless of how bad I acted..." She said mournfully, and laid down the striking purple flower down at her fathers feet and took a step back.

Ari looked directly at her father, her eyes glimmering with fear and regret, but also swirling deep beneath was a sense of pride, for today she did something that she would never regret, no matter the cost.

The dark king stood, watching and waiting for the adventurous cubs to return from their short journey away from Pride Rock. From the tip of the huge stone monument, it was possible to see most of the kingdom, so he had been watching them race back for some time before they realized the jig was up. Indeed, Scar had noticed their absence -- namely, Ari's. It wasn't like her to run off like this, and for a brief time, he was sick with worry for her. Now he could see them both, and he had to hold back his anger.

They had disobeyed the rules. Both of the russet cubs cowered as they approached Pride Rock, and Giza disappeared within the den, unwilling to face the punishment or her father's angry glared. She knew that Ari would have an easier time dealing with Scar anyway, since he had always favored her over her other siblings. It had been Giza's original plan to get Ari into trouble, but she felt guilty now for it, upon their return.

While Scar's expression remained stern as Ari approached, his expression did lighten considerably as Ari rambled on and on before presenting the flower at his feet. A brow arched, but the russet lion didn't say a word. Scar was always too lost in his own mind and his plots to notice the beauty of nature, but now it was being thrust under his nose. He looked down at the violet bloom thoughtfully before plucking it off the ground between two sharp, jet black claws. Lifting the flower up to his face, he took a moment to examine it more closely, and noticed for the first time the tear-shaped amethyst stain that decorated each petal.

Some sense of paternal instinct seemed to have flicked in the dark king's mind, for his harsh expression quickly softened at the sight of his remorseful daughter. Her venture out hadn't been a cry for attention, like most of her other siblings. Curisoity had lured Ari away from the safety of the den, she wouldn't normally dream of being naughty like the others. "You already know what you did was wrong, Ari. I trust that you will not try such a stunt again."

One last disapproving look was cast down to the cub before he finally broke a toothy grin. There was such a sad look in her violet eyes that made it difficult to stay angry. The older Ari got, the more she resembled Scar's mother, in his eyes. It was as if Uru had been reborn into this new, little body. Ari's brief absence had worried the king more than he would admit. "Will you promise not to run off again? You must give me your word, as a princess of the Pridelands."

Now, when you look at Scar and how he reacts to most situations, especially ones that contain those who broke the rules, you would expect him to blow up, glare, yell, threaten, and perhaps even set his hyenas out to finish the job. Ari knew ( more of hoped) that he wouldn't go to that extant of pure vexing anger, but what she didn't expect was how, dare she say, nice he was acting. She had at least expected a punishment of some kind, like the others would get after venturing out. But, Ari wasn't complaining. She loved her father and was glad that he understood.

"I-I promise I will never to it again Father. I give you my word as the eldest Princess of the Pride-lands to never disobey my father, the rightful and gracious king of Pride Rock, ever again."

Ari spoke from her heart, those purple eyes that had brought her so much favor in the kings eyes, glimmered with pride and loyalty. Most would see her speech as sucking up, but Ari disagreed. No, each and every word she spoke to her father was the absolute truth.

Unlike the other cubs, Ari had this intense glorified image of her dear father. While Tasa saw him as a cruel unloving father, Giza saw him as one to never care an ounce about her actions, and Kifu, well, Kifu must have thought something along the lines that he was a father that had rejected him not only from the litter but from being a male lion itself. But Ari? Ari saw him as the strongest Lion around. One who would fight, one who cared for the Pride lands, one that ruled with an iron claw and a loving heart. Sad to say that almost none of those statements were true, but if you asked Ari, they might as well have been law.

"So, you're not mad father? A-and you really like the flower? Because if not I have a few other colors, and I saw some more back in the cave! So I could get you a red one, or a blue, one, or a really pretty yellow one! Their was even this really white one back there too and...I...should stop talking." Ari said, wincing as she realized she had started to ramble. Again. Taking a step back she bowed in front of her father, giving him the respect a king deserved. "I am sorry father. I hope you can forgive me."

Scar's leniency in the case of Ari could easily be attributed to the fact that the cub had never tried to get into any trouble before, unlike so many of her siblings. But would Giza, who had never strayed before either, get off so easy? Perhaps their father believed she really would never pull such a stunt again, and he seemed thoroughly pleased by his daughter's assurance that she would never break the rules again. When she said it, with innocence in her sweet violet eyes, Scar could only accept it with a nod.

"I am mad. Imagine if something had happened to you out there?" The thought was upsetting to Scar, and his eyes narrowed instinctually as he looked out into the Pridelands again. The once great kingdom, said to be the best of them all, the territory claimed by his ancestors and ruled for generations by kings -- his ancestors.

This was not the first drought to have hit the Pridelands. When Scar was an adolescent himself, his own father had dealt with the very same problem. No one had ever blamed the great King Ahadi for the problems that followed: little water, animals growing increasingly tense and violent. It was during those times that young Taka became Scar, under the twisted horns of a water buffalo.

How could the lionesses imply that the current desperate state of the lands were Scar's own doing? They were careful to never voice their opinions outright, but he just knew they all must be discussing it when he was not present. He ruled no differently than his brother -- No, his leadership and firm paw were an improvement over the old days of Mufasa's reign. Now they were allied with the hyenas, who did nearly anything the dark king asked them to do. He wished that Ari had been alive to see his kingdom in its former glory, and he still hoped that somehow, someway, things would change.

Hope for the future was all that he had, and it was embodied by the little russet female cub who so resembled the grandmother she would never meet. No one else ever paid Scar those types of compliments, not even Zira, who seemed more preoccupied in her son Nuka than Scar and his business. His paw raised to pat Ari on the head. As much affection as he felt for her, he was still not one to nuzzle, and had never done so before. "Now, now. I don't care if the flowers have stripes like a zebra, you are not to return to collect more. Understood?"

Ari hesitated momentarily, realizing that her father was right. What if something HAD happened to her while she was away? Sure, that idea passed through her mind a few times between Pride Rock and the open plains, but she didn't really expect anything to happen. She hung her head, ashamed that she didn't think it through.
"I wasn't thinking father...I am sorry."

And then, another through peered into the cubs mind. Did this mean...he worried about her? The powerful king of the Pride Lands, cared about her? Now, Ari knew, or more so hoped, that somewhere under those sharp claws and harsh attitude lied a caring father, but she never thought that he would outwardly care about what happened to her!

This caused a small smile to form over her muzzle. Now she understood why her siblings went out to cause mischief, it was to get a reaction out of their father! Though, Ari didn't think she could get past the disproving stare's he gave her, so she would make sure not to make a habit of this. Breaking the rules wasn't something Ari could ever see herself doing.

"Well...A zebra flower would be cool...but I understand father. I wont go back back there ever again...but maybe we can go look for some more flowers, sometime! Or something even better!" Ari then reminded herself how ridiculousness of an idea that was. She laughed awkwardly, and if she could, she would be blushing. "That is...if you weren't busy watching over the Pridelands and everything."


'Don't get carried away Ari!' she thought, mentally chastising herself for letting such a selfish thought escape her lips. Maybe she really had been spending too much time with her siblings! They were rubbing off on her! 'Responsible Ari, BE responsible' "Or...I could go back to the den and make sure the other cubs are out of trouble. And, uh, make sure these flowers don't wilt and everything."

A final look was cast down to the flowers that Ari collected with an amused, half chuckle. He was the king of an expansive territory, in charge of a whole pride, but his little daughter wanted to go and pick flowers with him. The very idea was laughable, especially since Scar had never been the sort to appreciate nature or beauty in general, yet he didn't dismiss the suggestion outright. On the contrary, it sounded rather amusing -- if only to show Ari more of her father's kingdom. He had never attempted to take any of her siblings around on a personal tour, and naturally, never stopped to think how his preferential treatment would affect the others.

"Very well, take them in to your mother. Perhaps if you are good and follow the rules next time, I will take you with me on one of my patrols, and you may hunt for native flora once more." Given that his patrols were really less about keeping the pride safe and more about getting away from them, he could so no harm in bringing the cub along. The hyenas did most of the work when it came to patroling the borders for rogues or trespassers, though they had failed numerous times lately. Mheetu's attacker, then Kuzimu's attack on Heshima... The very nerve of some lions! Most were too fearful of Scar to dare tread in the Pridelands. Did this mean his power was sleeping? Was King Scar no longer a force to be reckoned with on the savanna?

The negative thoughts returned to the dark king as soon as they had vanished, and he turned away from Ari with a weary, dramatic sigh. "Run along, then. I have important business to attend to," he said with great certainty. If 'important business' meant paranoid anxiety and ever-increasing lunacy, then yes, that is exactly what the king had planned for the day. Green eyes scanned the distant horizon, certain he could see foes lurking in the shadows when there was nothing there but dried bones and dead grass.

Ari watched her dad with an intensity that swirled around in her violet eyes. She watched his expression change from one of amusement, to one of... grief? Depression? Anger? Ari wasn't too good at depicting emotions, but she was positive his mood took a turn for the negative. She wondered, for a moment, what he was thinking about. The pride? The Savannah? Perhaps an area fare beyond Aris limited knowledge. Whatever it was though, it was important enough to make the mighty King upset. Also, a sure sign that there brief time together was at its end.

She smiled slightly, her white fangs glimmering in the suns light. "Yes father, of course father." Sure, she was a bit upset that there time had come to an end, but she realized today that, out of all the cubs, she had been the one who spent the most time with him. So it made even a few moments precious in her eyes.

Ari started her decent back to the den, bundling up the leftover flowers in her maw before walking away to the den. She paused for a moment, feeling that something was still unsaid. Sure, Ari could have nuzzled herself against his paws, maybe drone on about how amazing he was and how great a king he was to her, but all of those actions seemed...almost meaningless now. He was not one for affection, and, in her young age, she had come to realize that. So she simply turned her head, shooting one last glance at the great king. "Goodbye Father" she said and hurried off, to talk with him again another day.