Chronicles of the Pride Lands cotpl-1

by John H. Burkitt

  They wouldn't speak above a whisper from this point on, and words were few. They fanned out to form a clamshell formation in the tall grass.

  Indeed, there was no need to discuss the angle of attack, for Uzuri's quick, subtle gestures of ears, head and tail spoke volumes. She headed the group toward the watering hole from the grassy side, heading into the wind. It was a simple enough plan, one more geared toward easy, small prey than the large animals needed to satisfy the Pride's hunger. It was meant to be Misha's moment, a passing on of the heritage that had gone down endless generations, and would go to her daughters as well.

  Something had always been missing from Misha's life. For her many friends, she still had no idea what happened when the hunting party left. Even in the enforced quiet of the stalk, there was a feeling of sisterhood and singleness of purpose that she would not--and could not--find anywhere else. Not a lioness breathes that cannot recall their first kill as if it were yesterday. The only thing that changes over the years is the size and swiftness of the prey. First kills often get better with age.

  In the quiet, calculated tread of stalking, they heard the buzzing of insects, the singing of birds, and only the faintest folding of grass blades beneath padded feet. Misha had used her skills in play, stalking and wrestling Tanabi in laughter-filled bouts beneath the acacias. It was now put to serious use. Sometimes she would let Tanabi win, because she loved him. Now she must win at all costs because she loved him. And yet as much as she loved Tanabi, she resented the pressure that her feelings were putting on her first hunt. "I must win, " she thought. "Concentrate! "

  Through the grass, Misha could barely make out the Thompsons Gazelles they were stalking. What luck! The same species she'd been shown by her mother! She knew where to strike and what to do. The gods were with her!

  The watering hole was the great common denominator. The tall and the small, the weak and the strong all had to drink. Some creatures, like lions, took the water for granted. Others treated it like a prize which must be stolen by a skillful thief. The gazelles were among the best thieves, but they were not infallible. And that evening they were letting their guard down ever so slightly.

  Uzuri played a cagey game. From time to time one of the gazelles would look up nervously, scanning the horizon for signs of trouble. At that moment, all the lionesses would stop without need to say a word. They were approaching from downwind so they could not be smelled. They would succeed if they took as much time as they needed to do a good job. Too much time, and the Gazelles would finish and be gone--they didn't hang around watering holes longer than necessary. Uzuri could size up that window of opportunity like no other, and she was exploiting it well.

  The tension was great. Misha held herself in check. There could be no sudden movements until the signal, and no sounds. Even the charge had to be silent, for that extra fraction of a second, or maybe a precious whole second, before they were spotted may make the critical difference. Misha watched the head lioness' ears and tail tip, waiting for the signal.

  Suddenly, the ears went up and the tail lashed. At once several missiles of golden fur sprang toward the herd which hovered in a moment of disbelief, then blossomed like a tan flower in all directions. The earth rumbled like a living thing.

  The party turned to the right. For a moment the gazelles acted as one large beast, keeping in tight formation like a single life. However, one of the gazelles fell behind the rest, and Uzuri headed for him, sparing Misha the decision. The other lionesses began to focus on the hapless tommie as the distance quickly narrowed. Then the others fell back and Uzuri said, "Misha, take him! "

  Her heart pounding, her nerves strained to the limit, she closed the distance. The gazelle turned, which slowed him for a half second. Misha's gut reaction paid off, for she had expected the turn.

  Misha sprang. Her powerful arm reached over the neck, and with an electric tingle her paw gripped the heaving, furry target, bringing her snapping jaws to--empty air. She fell back, and got a vicious kick in her shoulder from the fleeing antelope.

  She rolled over twice, but she quickly recovered and started to run again. By then he was far away.

  "Misha, come back! Stop! "

  She obeyed Uzuri, but looked back crossly. "I need this kill."

  "You lost this one, " Uzuri said. "That's life." She came to Misha and looked at her shoulder. "Can you walk?"

  "I'm fine, " Misha said, bitterly disappointed. She walked about. "I'm just a little sore."

  "You're not bleeding, " Uzuri said. "You'll be all right, but we should head back now."

  "We can't head back, " Misha said, horrified. "We just can't! Please, I'm fine! Really! "

  "We will hunt again two nights from now. If you are fine then, you will be welcome to come. It was my fault, really. I should have reviewed your training and helped you more. I know you have a male waiting for you, and I'm sorry."

  Just then from the bush, a young rabbit that couldn't take the suspense anymore darted toward his hole. An alert lioness sprang for him and tore him in her teeth.

  "You should have let Misha try, " the Uzuri said crossly. Then she changed her expression. "Sisters, perhaps it is not too late." She dipped her paw in the blood and said, "Misha, come here."

  Misha obeyed, and the head lioness tried to touch her cheek with the blood.

  "Please don't, " Misha said, backing back.

  "They won't tell, " Uzuri said, glaring at the others. "Will you?"

  "No, " the others replied. "Certainly not."

  "But I will know, " Misha replied. "Every time my husband touches me, I will think of this. They say you never forget your first kill, and I'd have to live with this for the rest of my life. Please, Uzuri, don't tempt me."

  Uzuri gravely nodded. "Wisely spoken." She nuzzled Misha affectionately. "You have honor, like your mother."

  SCENE: THE SCORE IS ANNOUNCED

  For the tenth time that hour, Tanabi asked his father if he'd caught sight of the returning hunting party. He wished that he could sit out on the point of Pride Rock, but he was being coached on what to do by Rafiki in the quiet of the cave where he was born. Zazu could not see well at night, and only Simba had time to scan the horizon for the flakes of tan.

  "Do you think they will be back soon?" Tanabi asked.

  Simba came down off the point and went to his son. "Look here, Tanabi. I tell you what I'll do. You let me sit out there and watch in peace without one more word, and when I see her, I'll arrange a quick, private ceremony as soon as she comes in. It will be our secret. There will still be a public ceremony tomorrow, but by then you should be in a very good mood. You understand?"

  Simba went back to the point on the rock and sat back on the warm spot he'd made. It was still rather comfortable.

  "Dad?"

  "What is it now, son?"

  "Thank you."

  Simba smiled. "You're quite welcome." He wanted his son's mantlement to be everything that his was not. Timon and Pumbaa had been the only ones to witness Simba's coming of age, and they did what they could to make it a happy time for their young friend. The Pride Lands had not seen a real royal mantlement ceremony conducted the way they should be done for years, since Ahadi had first sprouted that ruff of fur. The blessing was not just on the lion being honored. It was a blessing on all who flew, walked or swam. It was the reason why those who fear lions still loved and venerated the Lion King. He was the one through whom the blessings of the gods came to all. Those who came to the mantlement ceremony would crowd around hoping to touch that mane and derive strength from it, strength they would pass on to their own offspring.

  Perhaps Simba was anxious to make sure this would make the gods happy and make up for all the years missed. But he was also anxious that his son be happy. He spotted the lionesses returning from the hunt. "Look, it's them! " Simba said, prancing like a cub. "Tanabi, did you hear??"

  Tanabi came bounding out of the cave. The two lions met in the middle of Pride Rock and wrestled like a couple of kit
tens. "Getting to big for your mother's milk, eh?"

  "You're just jealous."

  "I could still make you wait till tomorrow."

  "Father! "

  "Go greet her, my son. Bring her here. Remember, I get to kiss her first."

  Tanabi got off, shook the dust off what mane he had, and headed quickly down the side of Pride Rock. "Just wait till I tell her, " Tanabi thought as he forded through the grassland like a ship on silver seas. Their eyes shone green and gold in the moonlight. Two were the lights of his beloved. "Misha! Misha, dearest! It's me! "

  Uzuri passed him without looking up, a glum expression on her face. Isha shook her head as if to say "Don't ask." Then came Misha behind her, her head bowed, and a dusty footprint on her swollen shoulder.

  "Misha?"

  Misha looked at him silently, then burst into tears.

  "It is better you go now, " Uzuri counseled. "She will hunt again soon."

  By the time they got back to Pride Rock, there was no need to tell Simba what had happened. "I have given Zazu clear orders, " Simba softly purred to his son. "He is to be your chaperone till Misha makes her first kill. I trust you, but we must silence the gossip before it starts."

  SCENE: THE CEREMONY

  "I speak the words of Aiheu the Beautiful who breathed into our nostrils the breath of life: Come, let my children grow in grace and stature, and let my gift of life endure from generation to generation as long as the sun shall rise and set. And I place a sign among you that my favor endures forever."

  -- THE LEONINE STORY OF BEGINNINGS, Variation D-4-A

  It was to be a mantlement ceremony as held in the days of old. All of the celebrations would be strictly observed, including the one day moratorium on hunting that allows the animals of the Pride Lands to celebrate the prince's good fortune. Even the cheetahs and leopards were expected to abstain from blood, something that was probably unpopular with them, but they carried themselves with too much dignity and too little strength to complain. Misha was depressed. There would be no hunt that night for her to prove herself. Indeed, after a careful examination, Rafiki told her she would be off the hunt for at least a week.

  To lift her flagging spirits, Nala asked her to sit with her during the mantlement ceremony. It was a place reserved for a sister or, had things gone well, an announced mate. Nala knew what Simba would never know--she had turned down the gift of another's blood. Nala respected her, and even considered pleading for an exemption so she could be wed on what should have been her son's perfect day. But as Simba reminded her, it was not just a custom, but a religious custom designed to protect the young and inexperienced.

  The morning of the ceremony, space close to the rock was at a premium. The elephants and zebras came in close, followed shortly by the buffaloes and gazelles. The giraffes said they didn't mind being in the back because they were tall, but it was clearly noted that they fought their way forward over the course of a quarter hour until they were almost to the elephants.

  Zazu stood on the tip of Pride Rock and looked over the huge assemblage. The speech he'd planned to make once for Mufasa came to mind the way Ahadi and Makedde had taught him and Rafiki had rehearsed him. He spread his wings, and the crowd came to a startlingly quick hush. Such was the power of the King and his representatives.

  "I speak the words of Aiheu the Beautiful who breathed into our nostrils the breath of life: Come, let my children grow in grace and stature, and let my gift of life endure from generation to generation as long as the sun shall rise and set. And I place a sign among you that my favor endures forever."

  Zazu, deeply moved, added, "Listen well, all of you. The sign has appeared once more on Prince Tanabi, the true son of the King. The gods have remembered us through him."

  Tanabi came forward. At the sight of his new mane, short as it was, the crowd bowed deeply in silence. The sight of so many standing so quietly was unnerving. For a moment, he forgot about his troubles and straightened with pride.

  Simba stood beside him to give the blessing. "Great are you Aiheu, father of all races. Anoint Tanabi, your chosen servant with the blood of mercy and rain of love. Fill him with the wind of freedom. Stand his feet on the soil of faith. Shine upon him with the light of knowledge. And through him, bless all flesh that holds you dear."

  Quietly, Misha whispered, "And let him know how much I love him."

  Nala touched her cheek with her tongue. "He knows, Honey Tree. He knows."

  The ceremony, and Tanabi's speech, was not rushed. There was no need. And for those who would read the Chronicles of the Pride, the particulars are worth the effort. But Misha did not pay much attention. She was depressed, and after all the grand speeches and blessings were over, she slunk away silently to mope. Tanabi started to follow her, but was advised to give her some time alone.

  That night, when the crowds were gone and quiet reigned once more, Tanabi looked out across the Pride Lands. "It is peaceful. Just for tonight there is no fear in any heart." He looked at Simba with a half smile. A zebra colt walked right up to me. He asked me what I was. Can you believe he didn't know what a lion was?"

  "He came to you in his innocence. Remember that moment, " Simba said. "They have thoughts and feelings too. You must remember that zebra and never hunt for sport or kill cruelly. Son, I might have been born a Zebra, or an antelope. I would have loved my child no less than I love you here and now."

  "So after all is said and done, it's all a matter of luck, isn't it?"

  "That, yes. But we may go beyond luck through faith and courage, and rise to the challenge. Misha's love is courageous, and in time it will overcome all challenges. All she needs is to build her faith. You must help her believe in herself. You must believe in her."

  "I wasn't talking about her, " Tanabi objected, but then he sighed deeply. "Who am I trying to fool."

  SCENE: THE THREE OF US

  Early the next morning, Tanabi showed up at Misha's den. "Good morning, Misha. It's a fine time for a walk--just the three of us."

  "It IS lovely this time in the morning, " Zazu said in a very upbeat voice. "Misha, you know what Rafiki said about your shoulder. Let's start out with a nice short walk--loosen up the old muscles and put the spring back in your step."

  "Anything to get back in the hunt, " Misha said tiredly. She stretched, wincing briefly as her shoulder pain flared up.

  They walked away from Pride Rock, down the path to the watering hole. Though the ban was lifted, most animals kept only a convenient distance between themselves and a pair of talkative lions on an early morning stroll. Tanabi looked at a herd of skittish zebras, wondering if one of them was the colt he met the day before. "It's a shame we can't have a truce more often."

  "Like today, perhaps?"

  "Heavens, no! " He whispered to her, "Every day without you is an eternity."

  "I think about you all the time, " Misha whispered back.

  "I will wait for you, Misha. As long as it takes, I swear it."

  "Don't make promises you might not be able to keep. I may not be any good at hunting, and you will come to forget me."

  "You only have to be good once. I will never forget you. Your love is in the bones of me."

  "Would you really wait for me, Tanabi?"

  "I've always waited for you, haven't I?"

  "I hear you love birds whispering down there, " Zazu said. "I hope it's not some sort of plan."

  "Matter of fact it is a sort of plan, " Simba said. "A plan to get her well again."

  Zazu fluttered down and lit on Tanabi's backbone. The smooth lion tread swayed Zazu ever so gently as he perched there. "Your Highness, I do sympathize. We hornbills have some rather ridiculous mating rituals too."

  "Are you saying our laws are ridiculous?"

  "Oh no, Your Highness. Just that while I'm not a good judge of lion beauty, I know a natural pair when I see one. When a hornbill and his mate are that struck on each other, all it takes are a few flutters and squawks--no more than a dozen or so--to cinch the deal
."

  "Flutters and squawks?"

  "You know...." Zazu flapped his wings quickly, shook his tail feathers and went, "Squ-WAWK! Squ-WAWK! "

  Misha laughed. "So that's what woke me up this morning! "

  "Heavens, no! " Zazu folded his wings indignantly. "Madam, I am more discrete with my private life than the neighborhood riffraff. Where I come from...."

  Misha's ears snapped to attention. She froze in her tracks.

  "What's up?" Zazu asked.

  "Hssssh! "

  There was a rumbling. The ground tremored expectantly. Seconds later, a group of antelope came bursting from the thicket and charging blindly toward them. Zazu had to fly hard and fast get out of the way. From the air, he could just see the lionesses that started the stampede. "This sort of thing doesn't go on in the morning. What are they trying to do?"

  Misha and Tanabi ran to intercept one of the antelopes. She was so close to one that she could almost touch it, but her shoulder was hurt, and she was in pain. She was beginning to lose ground, and afraid of another injury. "Help me, gods! I need a miracle! "

  Just then, claws and feathers came at the face of the antelope. Panicked, it tried to stop and go back the other way. Again, the hornbill flew right in its face. "Out of my way, fool! "

  Misha's strong jaws closed around its throat. It was soon over.

  Shortly after, the other lionesses arrived. "Well well, look who got her first kill! " Uzuri took some of the blood from the body on her paw and touched her own cheek, then Misha's. "Warn them a lioness is on the prowl! "

  The lionesses roared, sending a flock of flamingos scattering in pink disarray. Elephants trumpeted in surprise and headed back toward the cover of the trees.

  Zazu was walking unsteadily on the ground. "Oh gods, I think I'm going to be sick." There was a sound of hide being stripped from the abdomen. Zazu glanced for an instant at the open hole and turned quickly away. "Yes, I'm sick! "