(YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS)
Kion sighed as he padded through the Pridelands, trailing along behind Bunga as the honey badger leaped ahead, chattering on and on about no particular subject, commenting on and on about the sky or the birds or the grass or the trees or fighting or the hyenas or the Outlands while Kion nodded along absently, padding behind him quietly. Normally he'd be leading, but he was kind of distracted today. Mostly because lastnight he'd had a nightmare. And it wasn't about Lucifer, surprisingly. No, the tiger was absent from his dreams much to his delight and confusion. Instead there was fire. Everywhere, all over the Pridelands, burning down everything. And everybody was dead. Everybody except Kion. Thing was, it wasn't the fire that killed them. While the flames lapped at everything, burning everything to the ground, surrounding Pride Rock, Kion stood over his family, claws unsheathed, blood staining his fur--

The cub visibly shuddered, his fur prickling uneasily. It wasn't rare for him to have dreams like this, but the Lucifer-nightmares had made him forget all about them. So when this one hit, it was unexpected and downright terrifying. But it was just a nightmare. And it didn't mean anything. But still.... It unnerved him. Why would he have such vivid, horrifying dreams anyway? The golden cub sighed and shook his head, forcing himself to at least try to focus on Bunga, who was still chatting about nonsense.

##

Claire didn't think she'd ever been so angry in her life, but right then? Right then Claire was beyond furious. Within a day her whole life, her job, everything she'd worked for, it was all gone. All of it. Destroyed. Thrown away. Killed along with Lucifer. The brown lioness cub snarled to herself, tail whipping back and forth as she stalked through the desert toward the border. She hardly noticed she was crossing into the Pridelands, but honestly she didn't even care. She wanted to yell. Shout. Claw something. Bite something. Set something on fire. Blow something up.

Back in the desert she could've handled the anger by building, adding onto the Sabers camp, or yelling at a few incompetent, ignorant, arrogant slaves who thought fighting back was a way to go. Some of them reminded her of Kion. Kion, who had done just as much, if not more, for the Sabers as Claire had. And for a second, a split second, she wondered what he'd think, how he'd feel about knowing Lucifer was dead. Knowing everything they'd worked for was gone.

Narrowing her eyes, Claire straightened and forced her fur to flatten, finally focusing ahead. Man, she needed to break something.

##

Kila sighed to herself as she padded through the Outlands, flicking dust and pebbles up as she went, her head tilting and her amber eyes narrowing down toward the ground. The golden cub's nose twitched as she lowered her head, pressing her nose to the ground and giving a quick sniff, wanting to see if she could scent any hyenas. Bad idea. Dust flew up into her nose instantly, and with a surprised yelp, she jerked her head up and gave a loud, powerful sneeze that sent her stumbling back, falling back onto her rump. She shook her head, eyes going wide as she rubbed at her nose, grumbling. "Stupid Outlands..."

There was a low chuckle and suddenly a tail was wrapped around her shoulders, a nose pressed to her head, and Kila instantly pushed herself up, a low purr beginning to rumble in her chest. There was a louder purr in response, and a soft voice that cooed; "Sweetheart, it's just nature. It's just the earth, how it is. Besides," The voice took on a playful tone. "You should know better than to breathe in dust."

"I wanted to see if I could scent any hyenas, my bad," Kila said musingly, tipping her head back to look up. A white-furred lioness with jet black paws and ears stood there, bright green eyes filled with pure affection staring down into hers. Kila just smiled, but it wavered, turning into a frown as her gaze fixed onto the lionesses shoulder. There was a wound where a bullet had grazed her, with dried blood around it, but it didn't seem to be bleeding anymore. It wasn't deep, but it was bad. "Are you okay, Kiyu?"

"I'm quite alright, dear." Kiyu paused, her green gaze shifting toward her shoulder for a moment. Then she shrugged, ignoring the sting, and lowered her head to rasp her tongue over Kila's ears gently. "Are you okay, Angel? You were very brave back there."

"I'm fine." Kila's gaze stayed fixed intently on the wound for a very long time before she reluctantly looked back up at Kiyu, shuffling a little closer to rub her head against the older lionesses chest. "I wasn't that brave. I was terrified.."

"Being brave doesn't mean you don't get scared, my sweet," Kiyu let out a soft chuckle, shaking her head affectionately as she smiled down at the cub, her bright green eyes glowing with warmth. "It just means you have the courage to face whatever it is you are afraid of. And you," Her tail tip flicked under Kila's chin, causing the cub to giggle. "Are very brave, darling."

Kila responded with a purr, closing her eyes in content for a while, inhaling the older lionesses sweet scent before finally pulling away with a shrug. Her gaze turned toward the Pridelands briefly, and a small ache went through her chest. "Well," She murmured, looking uncertain, but her gaze didn't move from the Pridelands. "Let's keep going."
(Yep. I went a different route with Kiyu this time ;3)
(So whoooooooooooooo's ready to meet the new side of Kila?!)

(Well, we'll see! I was planning on having Kion actually explore his relationships a little more. Like, with Bunga, Chaka, Taz, hell, maybe even Claire. Just wanna go ahead and explore the choices a bit :3)

"And you know, I really like the Utamu, but the green-f--" Bunga cut off with a surprised shriek when he was suddenly lunged at, his first instinct being to guard his throat. He flinched when he felt teeth sink down into his arm, kicking and trying to push the lioness cub off, to no avail. "Hey, come on--" He protested, gasping when he was pinned down, his wide teal eyes staring up at Atazi. He didn't look afraid, just shocked as his gaze quickly flickered over her pelt. Outlander. He thought, noticing how fragile and skinny she was. The struggling stopped only briefly before he continued to try to push her off. "Hey, hey, I'm not food!"

Kion skidded to a sharp stop, his amber eyes going wide with shock when Atazi suddenly launched out of nowhere, tackling his best friend to the ground. His mind was whirling as the other cub pinned Bunga, and he didn't think when he saw her rear up, he just reacted. He lunged, claws still sheathed, not trying to hurt her, just trying to get her off of Bunga, first. He managed to tackle her, sending them both rolling, and it didn't take the cub very long to pin Atazi to the ground. "What do you think you're doing?" He asked, kind of sharply, staring down at Atazi before turning his head toward Bunga. "You okay?" He checked, ears flicking faintly as he got a nod in response. "Good." Kion then turned back and his amber gaze darted back down to Atazi, one paw planted firmly on her chest, the other beside the other cub's head, staring down at her with a stern look on his face. "Who are you?"

Kion's eyebrows pinched together, eyes narrowing faintly down at the lioness cub. She's got snark. He thought, watching carefully, seeing the annoyance flare up in Atazi's eyes. Her first words made his ears flick, but his gaze didn't waver. "Don't call me--" He started to speak, but cut off when he heard Atazi's next words, eyes narrowing faintly. He didn't say anything, but raised one eyebrow when Atazi introduced herself, and he grimaced when she called him "your highness". "Don't call me that." He muttered, staring down at her almost blankly. His eyes narrowed faintly at her next words, but the look wasn't exactly hostile, more thoughtful than anything. He felt her tense to surge upwards, and leaped off before she had the chance to throw him off, landing easily on all fours and shaking his fur out, watching as she quickly leapt to her paws and backed away. He didn't move, just stared at her, thinking over his next moves carefully.

"Alright, Outlander," Bunga grumbled, dusting himself off. He was kind of upset - Okay, really upset - That she'd tried to eat him. Him. But, better him than someone else. Then again, this lioness was starving. The honey badger shook the thought off and headed forward. "You can't j--"

"Bunga." Kion's tail flicked out in front of his best friend, stopping him and pushing him back a little bit. "Hang on a sec." His amber gaze flickered back toward Atazi, wary, thinking, assessing. He had few choices here - One would be sending her back to the Outlands. She was quite obviously an Outlander, but she wasn't causing trouble or doing anything worthy of being sent back. Option two - Let her continue on to hunt, because he honestly felt bad for her. She was obviously hungry. But Kion didn't know if she would disrupt the Circle of Life or not, though he highly doubted she'd want to take more than her share. Option three was take her back to Pride Rock. They had food there and Atazi looked exhausted so she could rest there, too. Again, she hadn't been causing any trouble, so Kion didn't see anything wrong with that option. Besides the fact that Atazi already seemed to hate him, and they didn't even know eachother. Kion was silent as he considered his options, tail flicking back and forth, his tail tuft brushing gently across the ground as he thought it over.

His job was to defend the Circle of Life. Outlander or not, Atazi was part of the Circle of Life. And she wasn't like Janja and his hyenas, she wasn't causing trouble aside from the fact that she'd just attacked his best friend but Kion could easily overlook that. She honestly didn't seem very harmful. The cub's shoulders twitched slightly, shifting his paws, thinking, before his amber gaze finally focused on Atazi once more. Option two or option three. Option one was pretty much out of the question, because he saw absolutely no reason to have to send her back. He was a little iffy on option three, though, mainly because he wasn't sure if she would take kindly to accepting help. Then again, he didn't know. She was probably just scared, and obviously hungry. "Alright, well..." He trailed off, eyes narrowing faintly, thinking, and his gaze flickered toward Pride Rock briefly before he looked at Atazi again. "I get that, then. Look," He took a step forward, and dipped his head respectfully. "I'm Kion - But you already know that." His head lifted again. "This here's Bunga," He added, tilting his head briefly toward Bunga, who gave a small wave, still looking a little upset. Kion continued carefully, his gaze not leaving Atazi's, "Atazi, right?" He checked, pausing for a second before continuing. "Look, you seem kind of tired, and..." He trailed off, his gaze flickering over her pelt, thinking his next words over carefully. "Well, obviously starving. If you want, I can take you back to Pride Rock. We have food there, so you can eat, then rest, then be on your way, if you'd like."

Kion gave a relieved smile when Atazi agreed, and opened his mouth to speak, ready to lead the way back to Pride Rock. But the words died on his tongue instantly when Atazi started speaking again. And all it took was for her to say that one name. Lucifer. The tiger that had stripped away his innocence, his defiance, his... Everything, and made him into a broken, hollow, submissive slave. Kion steeled himself. Shoulders locking, ears flattening down against his head, his tail whisking between his legs, curling around one paw. His amber gaze seemed to sharpen, staring at Atazi, yet not really seeing her. It'd been a while since he'd heard his name. He thought it, hell, he couldn't help that. But hearing it out loud sent that familiar, cold fear through him.

Bunga paused, his teal eyes flickering from Kion to Atazi and back again. He blinked when Atazi asked if Kion knew a "Lucifer". Lucifer? That's a weird name. "Who's Lucifer?" He asked curiously. A frightening, awful tiger. That just made him more curious. What was so frightening about a tiger? Pff. His gaze flickered over to Kion, starting to speak again, but paused when he saw his best friend's reaction. Okay, that was definitely weird. "Kion?" He asked carefully, reaching out and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?"

The touch brought Kion out of his trance, jerked him back into reality. It took everything he had not to flinch away, though. He paused, his amber eyes darting warily toward Bunga. "M'fine." He replied carefully, then closed his eyes, taking a deep breath and turning back to Atazi. "Yeah, I... I know M--" He cut off, shoulders tensing again. "Lu--" He couldn't seem to get either name out. He didn't want to call Lucifer "Master", not in front of Bunga. Because Bunga had no idea. And Bunga couldn't have any idea because he'd just go off and tell everybody else and then it'd all go to hell. And he was definitely not saying "Lucifer". He'd learned his lesson with that one. His tail flicked almost irritably, but stayed wrapped around his back paw until he forced himself to whisk it away to stand straight again. "I know him." He finally managed to speak, keeping his voice steady, careful, almost blank. "..Know of him." He corrected himself with a quick glance toward Bunga. Then, his gaze flickered up toward Atazi. She knew him. Hell, from what she said, Lucifer had stripped her innocence away too. And a cub... Kion nearly shuddered at the thought. He didn't know if he would have been able to handle it and he was glad he didn't have to. He just felt really bad for Atazi. A cub. A reminder of... Of that. And Atazi certainly hadn't deserved to go through that, either. The cub stayed silent for a moment, then his gaze flickered away, unconsciously looking toward the desert. He paused, then immediately forced his gaze away, straightening up again, shaking out his fur, and turning away. "Come on."

Kion went completely silent now as he led the way, his amber gaze fixed ahead to Pride Rock. He felt a little better, his paws sinking into the soft grass below. It was better than sand, at least. The cub's ears twitched silently as he gazed ahead. Now he was thinking. Thinking about Lucifer. About the desert. The Sabers. Claire. Claire. He couldn't help but wonder how she was doing. He hadn't wanted to leave her behind but she absolutely refused to come along with him and Chaka. "My place is here. I have a job to do." She'd said as her cold gaze fixed first on Chaka, then Kion. Then a spark of warmth, and a barely-there smirk as she'd added, "Now you go do yours." And she'd turned and walked away.

Kion's ears twitched faintly, no longer focused on anything except the memory. Claire had wanted to stay behind. She'd wanted to be there, with the Sabers, with Lucifer. But... Why? Kion had never understood it. Never understood how she... Well, Claire never seemed to like the desert. But she said it felt...

"Pure." Claire's nose twitched, the faint smell of blood reaching the two cubs. Her purple eyes fixed on a stray leaf blowing through the air, watching it whiz by her head, before her gaze fixed on the two fighting tigers. Not fighting. Training. "Like this is always where I was supposed to end up. Like... I have some kind of destiny to fulfill. A part to play." Her voice was distant. She didn't sound as if she had just realized this - She sounded like she'd had time to think about this. To understand. "I've been asking myself... Why am I here?" And she paused, her gaze shifting toward Kion. "I think I like the answer I've given myself. Everything happens for a reason, Kion... And we have a job to do."

Kion had stared silently at her, not responding, but he'd felt like he understood. Everything happens for a reason. We have a job to do. That, back then, those words... Were the only thing that kept him going. Claire kept him going. Kept him fighting. Not fighting against the Sabers, not fighting against Lucifer, but fighting against the brokenness. Kion was broken, yes, but he wasn't as broken as he should be after everything he'd been through, everything he'd seen. And he knew he had Claire to thank for that.

Miss you, Claire. Kion thought, ears flicking back, pricking faintly toward the desert, but his gaze didn't move, staring ahead. I hope you figure out what your job is. Kion's thoughts began to trail again, then suddenly focused on Atazi. This new girl... She'd been through Lucifer's torture. She had a cub. A cub. Lucifer's cub - That, apparently, Lucifer had taken from her. Kion couldn't completely be sure, but he felt like Atazi was close to the cub. Who wouldn't be? It was her... Daughter, right? Atazi had said daughter, yes. Kion felt a new rush of sympathy course through him. Atazi most definitely did not deserve the hell Lucifer put her through, and to lose her cub... Kion's teeth clenched, jaw locking. He really wished he could feel some anger toward Lucifer, but he couldn't. He didn't know how. The only thing he felt when he thought of Lucifer was fear. Maybe back when he'd first become a slave, he felt the rage then. He remembered it. Remembered desperately wanting to rip that saber-teeth's throat out. But--

But those feelings had changed in time as the pain and torture continued. Kion had steadily began to cower whenever Lucifer's voice rose, whenever Lucifer stared at him with those dark, angry red eyes, whenever Lucifer gave that sadistic, sinister smirk, whenever he laughed... Cowering turned into submission. The defiance, the fire, the fierceness, it all went numb. And fear, pain and submission replaced it all. Kion had been broken, Kion was still broken.

He'd tried to forget about everything, tried to forget about the desert. He'd wanted to tell his family, but he didn't know what good they would do. Maybe they'd try to stop Lucifer, put an end to his evil ways, but Kion knew that Chaka was already on that path. But Kion didn't know what good it would do. He knew how big Lucifer's army was. He knew how strong they were. He knew that they would outnumber Chaka's empire any day. And they most certainly would outnumber the Pride. Kion wished he could help the other slaves but he also knew that... There was just nothing he could do. Kion was a Prince, he was the Leader of the Lion Guard, but deep down, he knew that he'd always be nothing more than Lucifer's slave. No matter what happened. And, well... What could a slave do against his Master?

##

Claire continued to wander, and her thoughts continued to drift absently through any old subject, trying to distract herself from her rage. But in the end she ended up thinking of the desert. Then Lucifer. Then she remembered that he was dead. Dead and she had no job to do anymore. She had no destiny. She had no part to play. She was alone, she had nothing, and the thought of that scared her. Not that she'd ever admit it. Claire wasn't one to get scared. But right then, realizing she had nobody, nowhere, and nothing at all, as the situation finally sunk in, even she couldn't fight against the fear. What am I supposed to do now?

"Hello?"

Claire's ears perked and her head whirled around. A lioness cub stood there, older than Claire, wide brown eyes staring at Claire, looking concerned and a little bit frightened. Claire almost snorted, thinking of how she might look to the lioness. Her pelt was messed up, muddy, and her paws stained with blood. Not only that, she probably looked exhausted and half-starved. Not that it mattered - She was used to it. Still. Her purple eyes flickered over the cub, eyebrows raising faintly. Well, doesn't she just look like royalty? She couldn't help but think, bringing her eyes back to the lionesses face. "Hi."

"I'm Kiara." The cub introduced herself, head tilting faintly to the side. "Are you.. Lost?" She looked even more concerned, fear slipping away as she began to realize Claire wasn't rabid or something. She looks... Kiara let her thoughts trail off. ...Bad..

"I'm not lost." Claire said calmly, whiskers twitching faintly in amusement at the concern the lioness seemed to be showing. Ah, Kiara. That explains it. Explained why the lioness looked like royalty, anyway. This was Kion's sister. Princess Kiara. Well, whattya know? She mused silently. A smirk tugged at her lips, but it didn't go further than that. "My name is Claire."

(...Should I stop making my posts so long? XDD)

"Mm." Lilliana just stared silently, watching the lioness with silent interest. Her paws shifted slightly, tail curling up beside her and her head tilting at Atazi, watching the lioness eat. Her whiskers quivered faintly when Atazi told her she was about Sari's age, and her eyes sparked with curiosity. "Who's Sari?" She asked politely, ears flicking faintly. Her gaze shifted toward the entrance to the cave, then her eyes drifted around, ears flicking, wondering where her mother was. And her father. And her siblings. Then she just shrugged and turned her attention right back to Atazi, eyebrows raising as the lioness introduced herself. She tilted her head again. "I am Lilliana."


##


Kion didn't say anything, he didn't know what to say, he just watched as Claire came closer. His mouth was suddenly dry. Why was Claire here? Why wasn't she in the desert? His mind spun, coming up with multiple answers to these questions and he didn't know if he liked any of those. Claire wouldn't have left the Sabers. Not on her own accord. Not while Lucifer was still living. The cub silently left Bunga's side to make his way down the slope, meeting Claire halfway. Neither cub spoke as Kion reached her. They'd both grown alot since they'd seen eachother, but one thing that hadn't changed was that they were both literally the same height. Kion simply reached forward to touch his nose to Claire's in a warm greeting. "What are you doing here?"

"I have news. Maybe good, maybe bad, I'll let you decide." Claire replied calmly, touching her nose to his before pulling back. She seemed to relax, alot less wary with Kion around. Her purple eyes stayed fixed intently on his face, before she looked toward Kiara, who was watching and listening quietly, then toward Bunga, who was making his way over to them. Claire raised an eyebrow silently at the honey badger before moving her intense gaze back to Kion's face, tail twitching silently. And for a while, they just stared at eachother, as if in silent conversation, before Claire took a deep breath and spoke up. "Master Lucifer is dead."

Kion's expression shifted instantly. He reeled back, stumbling over his paws to back away, and Claire took a few steps after him, bracing herself to help if he lost his balance. Kion managed to stay upright, however, claws sinking into the ground for support. The words slowly sunk in, and his ears folded back against his head, tensing up, his wide eyes meeting Claire's. He didn't know how to feel. He knew he should feel some type of relief. He should feel free. But he didn't. If anything he only felt more chained down. Unable to speak, Kion just stared at Claire, who gazed back with sympathetic, yet cold eyes. Kion didn't know what to say. What to feel. He was just... Frozen. Dead. Dead. He thought, mind whirling violently. He felt dizzy. And sick. He's dead.

"Kion," Bunga said worriedly, looking up at the cub. He didn't get a response, and looked over at Kiara helplessly, then Claire. This was the second time that day they were hearing of Lucifer. What on earth was going on?

Lilliana hummed slightly as Atazi spoke, offering the smallest of smiles as she pushed herself to sit up, her tail curling around her paws as she tilted her head back to look up a the lioness. "It is very nice to meet you as well," She replied smoothly, lowering her head to rasp her tongue over one paw carefully, before lifting the now wet paw and running it down one of her ears, cleaning the dust off from where she'd gotten a little bit messy from lying on her back earlier. She did the same with her other ear, only pausing when Atazi asked if she was special. The cub stopped with her paw hanging in the air, her ice blue eyes meeting Atazi's, almost looking curiously. "Special?" She said slowly, her head tilting slowly to the side and her eyebrows furrowing faintly, before one of them raised. "Well, I suppose I am quite different from other cubs," she said slowly, tail tip brushing against the ground and her calm gaze staying fixed intently on Atazi. "Though I would not quite call myself special."


##


"Alright," Claire said after a moment had passed and Kion remained unresponsive. The cub stretched before padding forward, flicking her tail for Kiara to stay back, and then wrapping her tail around Bunga, pulling the honey badger back. She realized Kion would need some space and quiet to think about what he'd just heard. She understood he wouldn't be as furious as she was. But he most certainly wouldn't be all relaxed and happy about it. So, ignoring Bunga's protests, she continued to pull him back. "Give him some--" She cut off with a low grunt.

Bunga bit down on Claire's tail as hard as possible, a low growl rising in the honey badger's throat. "Screw off! Leave my best friend alone!" He yelled furiously. He didn't trust this lioness. Something about her was completely off and besides that, she had caused Kion to freeze like this, to go completely unresponsive to anything and anyone. Bunga already didn't like her, and he didn't even know her.

"You little pest." Claire hissed. Then without warning, she gave her tail a hard lash, standing Bunga flying into the air. Then she leaped up after him, grabbing the honey badger's scruff between her teeth and landing back on all fours, flinging Bunga easily to the side. She gave her tail a rough flick, luckily not bleeding, before turning back to Bunga. Her cold purple gaze met his. "As I was trying to say, your best friend here needs some space." She said sharply. "So I'd suggest shutting up, sitting back, and giving him some room. He needs to think, idiot." She spat, and Bunga just gave a low growl in response, glaring at her as he quickly stood back up.

Kiara blinked, watching the scene play out, and she decided it was wiser to stay back. So she did, turning her gaze to Kion. She had to note he didn't seem very upset. Well, he seemed upset, but not sad, at the news of the tiger's death. So they had history, but perhaps it wasn't good history? Maybe this Lucifer was just another tiger Kion hated? But it didn't explain his reaction. This seemed different. Not like it was with the others. Her brother looked scared and shocked. Kiara frowned. Alright, I really need to figure this out... She thought, eyebrows furrowing. This is so confusing.

Kion wanted to protest when Claire slung Bunga aside, but he stayed silent, watching carefully. He knew Claire wouldn't hurt Bunga. Not badly, at least. Right now he was just trying to wrap his head around this whole thing. Lucifer was dead. That was impossible. At least, Kion thought so. He'd always seen the saber-tooth tiger as invincible. Immortal. He couldn't die. So how was he dead now? Kion honestly didn't know how he felt. He wanted to feel relieved, he really did, but he just felt hollow. Even more so than usual. Lucifer was dead. Dead. How? How was he dead? How was this possible? What happened? A million questions raced through his head but he didn't try to voice them, his gaze drifting silently down to his paws. Lucifer was dead. What did this mean?

It meant no more looking over his shoulder. It meant no more being afraid of the desert. It meant Lucifer was dead. Lucifer was dead and Kion was free. He'd been free for a long time but now he was really free. Now Lucifer was dead. He couldn't hurt him anymore. He couldn't hurt anyone anymore. But that didn't erase the past. It wouldn't make the nightmares go away and it certainly wouldn't help how he was scared of everyone else, including himself. It wouldn't stop how he would just wait for the day when the pain all came back. When he was chained up again. Helpless again. It wouldn't stop the fear. It wouldn't erase the memories. Kion was free, but he sure as hell didn't feel like it. If anything, somehow, someway, he just felt even more trapped.

"Thank you, Atazi." Lilliana said slowly, tilting her head as she watched Atazi leave the cave. She considered for a brief second, then pushed herself to stand up and shook out her fur, heading out after her. Her ears perked up faintly when she saw what was going on. Her brother and sister, as well as the honey badger Bunga. And an unfamiliar face. Lilliana focused on the lioness, hearing Atazi speak, calling her Claire. Then she heard Atazi mention Lucifer, and paused, her ears pricking even more. Lucifer... And then her whole body tensed, and her ice blue eyes glazed over instantly.

Claire's head snapped up when she heard Atazi, and her eyes narrowed faintly. "Oh. You." She muttered indifferently, giving a dismissive flick of her tail toward the lioness. She didn't hate Atazi, she had no reason to. But she also had no reason to like her, either. See, Claire didn't get close to anybody. She didn't guard herself, she stayed completely open. But the thing was that she didn't care enough about anybody to get close to them. Kion was an exception and even then she wasn't really close to him. They were just allies. Acquaintances. Their relationship was difficult and hard to explain. She was only comfortable around him because she'd known him the longest - They were captured together, forced to be slaves together, and worked side by side for Lucifer. Claire couldn't say the same about Atazi. Personally she felt indifferent toward any other slaves. They mostly couldn't do their job right and just continued to get in trouble. Useless. She did appreciate that Atazi was keeping her distance, however. She gave a low hum when Atazi asked if Lucifer was dead, giving Atazi an intense stare before shrugging. "Yep." She replied, running her tongue over her jaws before looking at Kion. "Eclipse took him down."

"Oh." Kion's voice was dead quiet, still trying to wrap his head around this, but at least he could speak now. The shock was wearing off and now... Now he just felt numb. His ears were flat to his head, his gaze fixed on his paws, but he reluctantly looked up to look at Claire, meeting her gaze. "So.. So he's..." He trailed off, taking a deep breath. His fur prickled up, tail wrapping silently around his back paws, and his eyes drifted shut. "Dead.." He still seemed to be having such a hard time believing that.

"I'm confused." Bunga declared, but he stayed a safe distance away, looking rather annoyed. His teal gaze fixed on Kion with concern, before he looked at Atazi, eyes seeming to go cold, before he looked over at Claire. "Who's Lucifer?"

"I would like to know that, too." Kiara admitted, shifting her paws and seeming to shrink down under Claire's cold gaze. Despite the cub being younger, she was fairly intimidating. There was something about her, some fierceness that Kiara couldn't explain. Not like Kion's, but Claire was different. Colder. "What's going on?"

Bunga blinked at Atazi silently as she explained - Well, not really explained - about Lucifer. His head tilted, a frown tugging at his lips. "I don't understand.." He mumbled. What was so bad about Lucifer? And how did Kion know him? What was going on here? He just didn't know. He wanted to know. But so far his attempts at getting answers had only raised more questions. It annoyed Bunga to an extent, but Atazi's cold gaze kept him from asking any more questions.

Kiara stared at Atazi silently, eyebrows furrowing. So this... Lucifer was bad. Apparently very bad. Was he the reason Kion didn't like tigers, perhaps? But maybe it wasn't just the case of not liking them. Kion seemed scared. Kiara sighed, making a mental note to find out all she could about this tiger. She probably wouldn't get anything out of Kion. Maybe Claire. Her eyes flickered toward the other lioness cub, staring at her silently for a moment and managing to catch her gaze briefly, a clear question in her eyes, before she looked away again.

Kion just shook his head, his head lowering until his muzzle touched his paws. His tail flicked side to side, his gaze fixed ahead uncertainly, before his eyes trailed up to Claire's face. His head tilted toward Atazi when she spoke, suggesting a walk, and Kion's gaze snapped back to her. "No." He mumbled simply, ears flattening. He didn't want to leave Pride Rock. And he didn't really want to leave Claire. She wouldn't comfort him and she wouldn't press against him and tell him everything was okay, everything was going to be okay now, but just having her there in front of him was enough. It was the simple reminder that he wasn't alone in this, that Claire had been through just as much as him. And while she wasn't broken like he was, she certainly wasn't whole. And she was suffering through this as well, just in a different way. Glancing toward Bunga and Kiara, Kion took in a slow, deep breath and managed to pull himself together. The mask returned. The fear, uncertainty and shock left his gaze, and his mouth snapped shut, jaws locking together as he pushed himself back up. His shoulder remained stiff, but his fur slowly began to flatten, and his ears pricked up just faintly. His amber gaze flickered back up to Claire. He went silent, meeting her gaze, before speaking up. "So what about you?"

Claire's purple gaze didn't waver, or move from Kion's. Her tail tip flicked toward Kiara for a second as Atazi explained who Lucifer was, and her gaze finally moved, casting the Princess a look that told her she'd explain everything later. Then she turned her gaze back to Kion just in time to see him pulling himself together. She saw the effort it took to force that mask back up, to force all the emotion away, and she did nothing but stare. She wasn't going to reassure him. She wasn't like that, she didn't do the soft, mushy moments. But she silently encouraged him, her gaze sharp and fiery, pushing him to stand up, to summon what strength he had, to keep fighting. Because somebody had to. Claire gave a short, small nod to the golden cub when Kion finally managed to pull himself together completely. She had to admit he was strong. Sure he was broken, but there was a small spark of fire there. A will to fight. Claire's eyes flickered faintly, an unreadable emotion crossing her face when Kion spoke. "What about me?" She returned the question, giving a one-shouldered shrug as her ears flicked, tail lashing back and forth, brushing lightly against the ground. Her nose twitched, whiskers quivering faintly as she continued, "I don't know. Guess it's time to see what life's like beyond the Sabers."

Kion nodded slowly, tail flicking, a thoughtful look crossing his face as he stared at Claire. He saw the fear in her eyes that she wasn't trying to hide. Claire didn't do that, Claire didn't hide her emotions. That was more of a weakness to her than showing them, Kion knew. "If you want," Kion said carefully, glancing briefly toward Kiara for a second before looking at Claire again, "I'm sure my family wouldn't mind... But if you want, there's always a place for you here."

"I appreciate that." Claire muttered simply, holding his gaze intently. The offer was kind, but Claire doubted she'd take it. Her place wasn't with a Pride. But then again, she didn't have a place anymore. She was nothing now. Nothing but a leaf blowing in the wind and she didn't know where she would land - And she didn't know if she wanted to land anywhere else. It was weird, how much she'd relied on what she'd done, being a slave, working for Lucifer, for the Sabers, but now, without it, Claire felt like she had no purpose. Like she'd done all she could. And yet she felt like she hadn't done enough. Like she should be doing something... Else. And that scared her more than anything. Claire didn't like change. She liked what she already knew. But, what she knew... Was gone.

(Oooooohhhhh)
(Okie! Could be interesting o3o)
Oh... Bunga paused, meeting Atazi's gaze briefly. He blinked, then turned his teal eyes to Kion, making sure he was alright. He seemed okay, for the most part. So, Bunga stepped back, before turning and heading after Atazi, hesitantly making his way to her side. He didn't say anything, just fixed his eyes ahead, casting occasional glances toward the lioness cub and waiting for her to explain. If she wanted to, at least. Bunga was curious, but he didn't want to make Atazi uncomfortable. So he wouldn't ask any questions. He'd just wait for her to speak.


##


"Well..." Kion trailed off, watching Atazi and Bunga go. Then he gave a soft sigh and sat down, tail swishing back and forth over the ground, his amber gaze meeting first Claire's, then Kiara's, seeing the clear curiosity in her eyes. He went silent for a moment before looking over at Claire, his eyes holding a clear question. Asking her to explain it for him, because he couldn't. He wouldn't be able to.

Claire met his gaze, and a silent conversation passed between the two before she sat up straight and looked over at Kiara. "Master Lucifer is the leader of a group called the Saber Kingdom. They reside in the Desert." She started, seeing Kiara's ears perk up with interest. Claire's voice went cold. "A group of tigers and leopards that capture innocents, mainly lions and smaller, weaker animals, to do their work for them. They break them down into slaves and make them work." Her ears flicked, waiting, studying Kiara's face carefully and glancing toward Kion, who was listening silently. "They use unspeakable methods of torture to break the slaves down. They're a vile, horrible group. And Atazi was right, you are lucky to never have met Master, and especially lucky to never have experienced what we have." She said solemnly, her cold, calm gaze meeting Kiara's. "Is that a good enough answer?"

Kiara opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out so after a second she just snapped her jaws shut, eyes wide with shock. "So.." Ahe finally managed to speak, her voice soft and choked. "...Oh, Mufasa.." She whispered, then turned her gaze to Kion. "You were..." She trailed off when Kion closed his eyes and nodded. Kiara stood frozen for a moment, then looked back at Claire, horrified. "And... Oh, mother of Mufasa..."

Koja's head snapped up. His ears perked instantly, swiveling toward the sound, dropping the zebra meat in his jaws instantly. It took him no more than half a second to recognize the voice, and no more than a full second to take off toward the sound, claws sinking into the ground as he propelled himself forward quickly, launching himself forward, a growl rising in his throat. His sea-green eyes fixed ahead, ears flat, lips pulled back over his teeth as a loud snarl escaped his lips. His sister was in danger. He heard the panic in her voice and as he drew closer, he could smell the saber-tooth from where he was. It only made him move faster, a roar escaping his bared teeth. "SADE!"


##


Bunga just stared in shock as Atazi explained everything. About Lucifer. About the camp. His teal eyes drifted toward the desert as Atazi gestured toward it, but his gaze returned to Atazi almost instantly. It was weird how completely serious he looked - The usually playful and idiotic honey badger looking unusually serene and sympathetic as he stared at Atazi, not saying anything. He watched as she sat, gaze fixed on her paws, registering everything she'd said. Yeah, Atazi had been right before. This Lucifer guy definitely sounded like a nightmare. Like a really bad guy. The badger shifted his feet silently, looking down, thinking all this over. Then he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and opened his eyes again, looking up and taking a step forward, reaching out to gently touch Atazi's shoulder. "I'm so sorry," He said solemnly, his eyes searching hers. "Are you... Alright?"


##


"Oh, Kion..." Kiara's eyes were wide as she looked over at her brother. And for the first time, she finally understood. Kion's hated for tigers, the way he avoided the desert and any subject of either one. How jumpy he was when he first returned to the Pridelands, how nervous. The nightmares where he woke up, choking back screams. Kiara would comfort him but even so vulnerable, Kion refused to talk about what had scared him. Even now, he'd cast occasional glances over his shoulder, he'd get that look on his face when he thought nobody was looking, like he was trapped in some horrible memory. But he snapped out of it when someone spoke to him or touched him, and that mask returned, that fake smile. Kiara had to admit, Kion was good at hiding stuff. But now Kiara understood everything. She understood why. "He's dead now, though," She paused, gaze flickering to Claire, then back to Kion. "He can't hurt you anymore. He can't hurt anyone anymore.." She trailed off.

Kion stared at her silently for a long time, then eventually gave a small shrug. "Yeah." He replied, his voice steady, calm... Blank. His expression was masked, guarded, and Kiara's tail lashed in irritation. Kion watched the frustration flare up in her gaze, and gave an apologetic smile. Sure, Kiara knew now. Sure, there was nothing more to hide. But even then, Kion wasn't willing to let his mask drop. He had to be the Kion that they knew, not the pathetic hollow shell of a cub that he really was. The golden cub stood for a moment before speaking up. "Where is everyone? Now that I think about it, I haven't seen anyone else all day." And then he glanced at Lilliana. "'Cept her. That's probably more surprising than anything." He muttered. Lilliana was more the loner of the group, quiet and sticking to herself - Nobody really ever saw her.

"Me either." Kiara admitted with a sigh, willing to let the subject drop... For now, at least.

Claire hummed, tail flicking lazily back and forth and her purple eyes drifting toward the desert. "This is going to be a very hard adjustment." She muttered, mostly to herself. She could feel Kion's gaze fixed intently on her, but she didn't move her gaze from the desert, staring silently now.

Lilliana stood silently, watching them, then her gaze drifted toward the desert. And then her eyes flickered over to rest on the Outlands, her fur prickling up, ice blue eyes seeming to narrow. Not good. She thought, tail flicking back and forth. Not good at all.


##


"Ready.... Set.... Go!"

Vexy launched herself forward at her brother's command, a grin on her face. The pale lioness's bright blue eyes focused ahead, claws sinking into the ground, propelling herself forward. She tensed, then loosened her claws, tensing her back legs and pushing herself up, springing into the air. She easily leaped over a fallen log, only stopping for half a second before launching herself forward again. Her breath came in wild gasps, but her blue eyes were bright with mischief and excitement, tail whipping back and forth. Then she glanced to her right, and faltered a little bit, a growl escaping her lips when she saw her brother beside her, matching her stride for stride. "Oh, come on!"

"Eat dirt, big sister!" Chaka sneered, pushing himself forward to pass her. Her irritated shriek was like music to his ears - It made Chaka laugh as he quickened his pace, stretching his paws out for longer strides, easily passing her. His dark blue eyes fixed ahead, and the smirk on his face suddenly melted and turned into a frown. His paws slammed down instantly, claws sinking in hard, and he skidded sharply across the ground, gasping. "Vex--"

"Eat dirt, Satan! Whoooo!" Vexy laughed, tail lashing at her brother's shoulder as she launched herself past him, ignoring his shouts of protest. She noticed the golden shape up ahead a little to late, but managed to stop herself just in time, skidding to a sharp stop and coming face to face with another lioness cub, noses actually touching. Vexy took one look at the cub and her face broke into a nervous grin as she stared into narrowed amber eyes.

Kila let out a huff, jerking her head back sharply and fixing Vexy with a cold glare. "You nearly ran me over, Desert-lander." She growled icily, tail flicking back and forth faintly and her cold gaze fixed intently on Vexy, lips curled back slightly to reveal sharp, pointed fangs. Vexy let out a nervous laugh and flattened her ears, and Kila narrowed her eyes before looking up as a tail came to rest on her shoulder.

"Now, now, sweetheart," Kiyu chided, her tail tip brushing against Kila's ear, and the cub seemed to instantly relax. "I'm sure she didn't mean to, love. Be a bit more polite, please, angel?"

"Yeah, I really didn't mean to," Vexy said sincerely, her bright blue eyes meeting Kila's and a soft smile forming on her face. "Really. I'm sorry, I was racing with my brother and I didn't see you ahead." She cleared her throat, then extended a paw. "I'm Vexy."

Kila continued to glare at Vexy for a moment, but eventually gave in, the anger melting away to a neutral expression. The stared at the other cub for a while, amber eyes meeting blue, before she pulled away from Kiyu to take a small step forward, extending her paw to take Vexy's. "Kila."

Kion blinked when he got a clearer look at the cub, and his ears flattened ever so slightly, but his expression stayed the same. His eyes widened, however, when she mentioned "big, huge tigers" with teeth just likes hers. His gaze fixed on the cub's saber-teeth, and he felt his shoulders stiffen slightly, his mouth snapping shut and his lips pressing into a thin line. "Sabers." He muttered simply, closing his eyes for a moment. He took no more than a minute to pull himself together again. The golden cub took a deep breath and straightened up, shaking out his golden fur before opening his eyes and looking back down at Sari. He stared at the cub's saber-teeth for a second. Saber-teeth tigers... They always unnerved him more than the normal tigers. But Lucifer was really the only saber-tooth tiger he was truly afraid of. With any other saber-tooth or normal tiger, he could turn the fear into anger. But this cub... She was innocent. Kion could tell that much. The cub took a deep breath and allowed a soft smile to appear on his face. It was forced, but nobody would be able to tell that. "Alright, sweetheart. Can you, uh," he cleared his throat, unease flashing through his eyes for a second before it was masked again. "Tell me where these tigers were?"

Bunga was silent as he listened, staring at the cub. Then his eyes narrowed ever so slightly, studying her carefully before looking back toward Atazi, then at Sari again. His eyebrows raised faintly but he didn't comment, just continued silently looking back and forth between the two.

"Huh." Claire clicked her tongue and made her way down the rocks to stand beside Kion, shouldering Bunga out of the way. She stood side to side with Kion, purple eyes finally flashing with some interest as she looked down at Sari, before glancing at Kion. "Now I'm curious. Tigers kidnapping cubs - Sounds like a Master Lucifer thing, doesn't it?" she nudged her shoulder against Kion's, and the golden cub nodded faintly in agreement, frowning. "Well," Claire mused, running her tongue over her jaws before baring her teeth slightly, rage bubbling up. "If you ask me, looks like some of those rats are trying to play copycat." She commented slowly, a low growl rising in her throat. Kion grimaced at that, nodding slightly again.