A Prince's Wish

[divsalley]

This story is based upon characters in my earlier fanfics... I would recommend that you read the whole The Tale of the Great Kings series (4 fanfics in total) to be able to understand these characters better.

Prologue

The sun had almost set on the Pridelands. The birds were heading back to their nests for some sleep. The same was the case with Nyuni, who went back home to an almost adult daughter. "Time for bed, Zuzu!" the majordomo said sternly. "Aw, come on, mom! Not yet!" the young hornbill complained. "Besides, I'm not a hatchling anymore! I'll be joing the Royal Service of majordomo soon!" "Be that as it may, Zuzu, you still have to listen to me! Tomorrow we have a very important meeting to attend with the Lion King! Your friend Mohatu will have a huge announcement to make," Nyuni said. Zuzu sighed and went to her usual corner. "Yes, mother," she said slowly. Then she stole a glance at Pride Rock from her nest. Mohatu had seemed very worried when she'd met him last. She hoped everything was alright with him as she slept.

A young lion stood on the edge of Pride Rock, thinking about the decision he had to make. His keen, auburn eyes scanned the horizon for any signs of trouble, but his mind was elsewhere. He wasn't thinking of the Kingdom at all. He was thinking of the task his father had set him. He sighed as he walked down for a stroll. But before he could do so, a voice stopped him. "Mohatu, what's wrong?" he heard a familiar voice ask him. He turned back to face his mother. Mahiri smiled kindly upon her son as he smiled at her. "I can't believe what I've started, mother... Father will never forgive me!" Mohatu said in a deep voice. "Your father and I will support you no matter what you decide. I know this has turned out to be an enormous burden for you, but you have to understand that their hopes are high becuase of you!" Mahiri told her son. "Me?" Mohatu asked, a little taken aback. "You were the ones who decided to betrothe me to her! How are we supposed to know as cubs if we'd like each other that way when we grow up? I respect her as a friend! But she's not the lioness I want as my mate!" he finished. Mahiri sighed and said, "The decision is still yours to make. Your father and I will support your decision fully. Just remember that we love you and want what's best for you." Mohatu sighed and said, "I know, mother... But if I make the wrong decision, we will have a war to fight... and if I make the decision to avoid the war, I will be betraying the lioness I truly care for! How can I possibly make such a difficult decision?" Mahiri nuzzled her son lightly and said, "You have to decide which path you want to follow. What do you think is right? Doing whatever it takes to avoid conflict? Or doing whatever you think is right?" Mohatu sighed and said, "I wish I knew, mother... I wish I knew." Mahiri gently licked her son's forehead and left.

As Mohatu watched her go, he thought again of the difficult decision he had to make. Why was this so hard? He knew who he was going to choose... Then why was he hesitating? The three of them had been the best of friends for so long... Why had they all lost sight of that? How would he face them once he'd made his decision? He could never deliberately hurt them... Everything seemed so much more complicated than it was... So much depended on his decision... His Kingdom's fate was at stake here... Hoe could he erase all his father's hard work just for his happiness? Then he saw two silhouettes drinking by the river. As he aproached them, he was greeted by warm smiles. "So, Mohatu... Have you made your decision yet?" one of the lionesses asked him. Mohatu sighed and said, "Yes, I have..." And as he braced himself to reveal his decision, he couldn't help but think of a time when everything had been so much more pleasant.

[Kina]

I've only read one of the Tales you mentioned at the start, but I did really enjoy your prologue. I think I will go find the rest of them, though, before the story gets much further along. Even so, I'll be looking forward to more. ^_^

[divsalley]

Chapter One: New Friendships

Three young cubs were sleeping until they were nuzzled awake by their parents. Dhahabu had gone on to wake his daughter Busara. Mahiri was trying to wake Mohatu and Makani. The three cubs yawned and looked at their parents groggily. "Come with me," Dhahabu told them. "There's something I want you to see." The cubs stretched and followed their father slowly. "Where're we going?" Mohatu asked his parents. "You'll see. Come along now," Dhahabu said as he smiled. The cubs were surprised to say the least as their father led them to the very top of Pride Rock. As they got there, Dhahabu looked at his puzzled cubs and said, "It's time you saw our Kingdom." Smiles adorned each of the excited cubs' faces as they heard this. Mahiri smiled at their excitement, too. The cubs eagerly waited for the sun to rise. And when it did, it was a glorious sight. The whole Kingdom was bathed in the sun's golden light. It was amazing for the cubs to see.

"Whoa!" the three cubs exclaimed together. "It's amazing, isn't it?" Dhahabu asked them. "Yeah!" they all said. "Alright... So listen carefully. Everything from Pride Rock to that River down by the marshes is our Kingdom. And if you look back, you will see how far the shadow of Pride Rock extends... until the gorge over there. That is the extent of our Kingdom," Dhahabu finished. More exclamations were heard as he watched them. They were looking all around, taking the glorious sight in. "Hey dad! Can we go all around our Kingdom today?" Makani asked him. "Are you up to it?" Dhahabu asked them. All of them nodded excitedly. Dhahabu chuckled as he said, Älright, then! Let's go!" So they got down slowly and Dhahabu led them to the foot of Pride Rock. "First, we will visit a very special friend by the baobab tree! Come on!" Dhahabu said. The cubs were very excited, so they scampered along to the tree in earnest. When they reached it, Dhahabu looked up and called out to someone. "Sahara! Would you come down here, please?" The cubs' excitememnt had now turned into curiosity. Who was Sahara? Why was their father calling out to it?

An old mandrill's head popped out of one of the brnaches. "Oh, my goodness! This is a special occasion!"she yelled as she came down. Dhahabu smiled and looked at his cubs. They were taken aback by the mandrill's colorful appearance. "Mohatu, Makani, and Busara... Meet a very important member of our Kingdom. This is Sahara, and she is our Royal Shaman." Dhahabu said. "Shaman?" Mohatu asked. "Yes, Mo... A shaman is a healer. But in our Kingdom, a shaman is more than just a healer. He or she is a valued advisor to the King. Sahara and her descendants will keep you posted on what's going on here so you can act on it immediately," Dhahabu told his son. Makani and Busara looked a little bored. "Not to mention we show the lion cubs fun games!" Sahara said to cheer them up. Mahiri smiled at this and said, "That's true, but you have to be very careful when you play those games." The cubs looked at her with innocent smiles and then looked back at Sahara. Mohatu winked at his siblings and said, "I think I prefer the games!" All three of them laughed. Dhahabu and Malkia sighed at their mischief as if resigning to it. "It's good you brought them here, Dhahabu... They need to know who does what!" Sahara said. "Well, that was the idea, Sahara. Thank you. One day soon, I'd like you to start tutoring them, as well. They can learn a lot from you," Dhahabu told her. The mandrill bowed low and said, "I'm glad to be of service. For now, I shall take your leave." Dhahabu nodded at her and then looked at his cubs as he said, "Come on, now! We have another special friend to visit at the mangrove tree!"

As they approached it, a hornbill swooped down and bowed to them. "Your Majesty! Your Highness! What brings you to my humble abode?" Nyuni asked them. Mahiri motioned her to look in the direction of the cubs. "Ah! Educating the little ones, are we? Good! It's never too early for them to learn the ways of the jungle!" Nyuni said happily. The cubs looked at each other with puzzled expressions. Dhahabu tried not to look smug as Nyuni started flying about the cubs excitedly as she told them about all the herds that lived there. It was Mahiri who said, "Cubs, this is Nyuni. She reports the happenings of the jungle to us so that we know what's going on." The cubs didn't like Nyuni much. She seemed to enjoy teaching them a lot of boring things they weren't interested in. "I mean, who's interested in why the buffalo ate too much grass?" Makani asked his siblings mucht to their amusement and their father's dismay. "It is important because that means the other heards won't get enough!" Dhahabu told them as seriously as he could. "Then why should we know about it? You're the one who takes care of it in the end!" Busara interjected. Dhahabu burst out laughing. He knew he was expecting too much of them at the moment. So he said, "Ok, ok... It's not very important now... to you. But thank you, Nyuni. I'll look into that soon." Then he walked on towards the elephant herd.

"Hello, Tembo!" Dhahabu said as he saw his old friend. Tembo smiled as he looked at Dhahabu's cubs. So these are the cubs?" he asked Dhahabu. "Yes! This is Mohatu... Our first born and the future King. This is my little lioness Busara! And this cheeky lion," he said as he looked at Makani, "Is our other son, Makani." Tembo ruffled the fur on their heads with his trunk affectionately. The cubs liked him instantly. "Has he been telling you to be obedient and careful?" Tembo asked them. The cubs nodded with sullen looks on their faces. "Well, let me tell you this... Your father wasn't the most obedient cub, either!" he told them slowly. They all laughed. "But seriously, listen to them! They only want your happiness," Tembo said and raised his trunk in farewell. Soon they had toured all around the Kingdom. But when they arrived at the plain of burrows by the riverbank, their father's face turned a little grave. "I owe a lot to these creatures," he told his cubs. Then he called out to a creature named Cheko. "Hey, Cheko!" he said as he greeted the old meerkat.

"Whoa! This is a pleasant surprise! His majesty is out with his family!" the meerkat said happily. "Hey, kids! I'm Cheko! Nice to finally meet ya!" The cubs smiled at him warily. He seemed too happy to them. After a small talk, they left the place for a hill overlooking the river. On the way, Mohatu plucked up the courage to ask his father, "Dad, did that guy have something funny for breakfast?" Boosted by their brother's initiative, Busara and makani also voiced the same opinion. Dhahabu and Mahiri laughed heartily and said, "Well... meerkats are very... active... You never find them idle. They have lots of energy in them and this is how they show it." The cubs nodded watched as their father looked at the ground where the grass looked newer than the rest. It was a small patch, but it was visible. Dhahabu sighed as he remembered the lowest moment in his life. Then he looked at his cubs and smiled. "Now you've seen the whole Kingdom," he told them. ""Pride Rock is right there," he told them as he motioned them to look in that direction. The cubs smiled and then asked, "Can we go to the waterhole now?" Dhahabu smiled and said, "Of course... But be careful!" Dhahabu and Mahiri watched as their cubs scampered away to meet their friends. They sighed as they thought, "They grow up so fast..."

[divsalley]

No responses to the first chapter??? Anyway, here's the second one...

Chapter Two: New Arrivals

The cubs scampered to the waterhole to meet a few of their friends. "Hey, you guys!" Mohatu yelled to a few cubs who were playing there. One of them responded immediately. "Hey, Mohatu!" a young lioness with dazzling, blue eyes came to him with a smile. "Hey, Zahara! We finally got away from that dodo... She keeps following us all the time! I bet mom and dad put her up to it!" Mohatu said as he looked at his siblings. They nodded with irritated looks. "So, what do you wanna play?" "Let's play hide and seek!" Busara said. The cubs nodded excitedly. "Let's go to the orchard over there! There's lots of good hiding spots there!" Makani said. And so their game began. They had plenty of fun until midday, when it was finally time for them to go to the rocks by the riverbank where their mothers would usually rest after a hunt. Mohatu and Zahara were walking together. He was telling her all about his day. "Wow! That must've been so much fun! You went all around the Kingdom?" Zahara said. "Yep! And dad says I'm going to rule it all someday!" Mohatu said smugly. Behind them Makani and Busara made nauseated faces and laughed at this as quietly as they could. They watched as the duo chatted all the way to the river. "They are pretty cute together," Busara admitted. "A little too cute, if you ask me," Makani said with a snigger.

As they reached the rocks, their mothers welcomed them with smiles. Each of them went to their mothers for their baths. Busara was the first to get hers from Mahiri. "Mom, why can't I get my bath first? I'm the oldest!" Mohatu asked angrily. "And that means you have to be patient, Mohatu. You're not always going to get your way. This will teach you to wait your turn," Mahiri said calmly. Mohatu sighed and sat himself down with a little flump. Zahara was busy getting herself groomed. Her mother Gaea was grooming her very carefully. Mohatu had almost gotten up to go talk to her when he felt himself being pulled by his mother for his bath. By the time he was done, Zahara was sparkling clean and waiting for him to get done. "Ok, Ok, mom! That's enough!" Mohatu said. Mahiri raised her eyebrows as she said, "I thought you wanted to get a thorough bath?" Mohatu smiled meekly and licked her muzzle lightly. "Thanks mom," he said and tried to wriggle free. Mahiri smiled at her son and licked his cheek affectionately. "Have fun!"she told her cubs as they left with their friends. She watched as Mohatu and Zahara walked together talking seriously. Then she looked at Gaea and said, "It's a good thing they get along so well, isn't it?" "Yes, it is!" Gaea said as she watched them.

Not very far away, Dhahabu was resting on a rock lazily. But the sound of laughter woke him up. He knew it was his cubs with their friends. He smiled as he saw them running towards him. "Hey dad!" Busara yelled as she ran to nuzzle him. He smiled at her and said, "There's my little lioness! How's your day been?" Makani and Busara got hugged by their father as all the other cubs watched. "Ready for your storytelling session?" Dhahabu asked all of them. They nodded excitedly. Dhahabu started with the tales'he'd heard from his father of the Great Spirit and how he'd saved these lands from drought. All the cubs were listening attentively. It was important for all of them to know why they as a pride were chosen over the others to rule these lands. "So remember, it is because we have the ability to help the herds that we were chosen to rule. We have been bestowed great power by the Great Spirit, and it is up to us to use it wisely. We as a pride can accomplish great things and overcome any pbstacle that threatens our survival. When you grow up, some of you might go to other prides for shelter, but most of you will remain. We need to work well with the herds and each other to survive," Dhahabu finished. The cubs smiled and nodded, but Dhahabu knew it would sink in only later. "Alright, litte ones, time for you to take a nap!" he told them and led them back to Pride Rock. Then he stood guard as the cubs slept peacefully.

The lionesses returned a little while later that night as the moon shone brightly. Mahiri nuzzled Dhahabu lightly and said, "You do a wonderful job with them." "I try," Dhahabu said with a smile. "We found a lioness with her cub today," she told her mate. He looked at the frail lioness with her tiny cub. They were sleeping. "You sure they weren't sent by another pride?" he asked her. "As scouts?" Mahiri asked. Dhahabu nodded. "They wouldn't send a cub like that," Mahiri said firmly. Dhahabu shrugged and said, "Well, I trust your judgement. And if you think they're not here to stir up trouble, then I don't mind them staying here." Mahiri nuzzled him and said, "You are a wonderful lion!" "I think so, too," Dhahabu said with a smirk as Mahiri nudged him playfully. Then she rested her head on his shoulders and slept. He would ask the new arrivals about where they'd come from in the morning.

Dhahabu awoke to a gentle nudge at his paw. He opened his eyes to find Mohatu looking at him curiously. "Dad... Dad! Good, your awake! Who is that?" Mohatu asked eagerly as he looked at the little cub who'd just arrived with her mother. "Well, your mother found them yesterday... I was going to ask them a little later. You should really consider getting more rest, Mohatu," Dhahabu said sleepily. "Dad, come on! Ask them now!" Mohatu said. Dhahabu groaned a bit and said, "In a while... The sun hasn't risen yet! Calm down and go back to sleep." Mohatu looked a little dejected, but lay down. Dhahabu smiled as he pulled him close and lay his head over his son's body lightly. His mane fully covered Mohatu. Soon the little cub was up and about and tugged at his father's mane. "Dad, come on! They're up! As them now!" Mohatu whined. Dhahabu stretched and walked over to the frail lioness. She looked at him warily. "Don't worry," Dhahabu told her, "I'm only going to ask you where you came from... That's all." The lioness smiled slightly as she said, "I'm Upendi, and this is my daughter Tahiti. We needed help and..." "I see... You're welcome to stay here... If you want to join our hunting party, you're most welcome," Dhahabu said. She nodded at him and looked at Tahiti. Mohatu was smiling at her. "Hi!" Mohatu said. "Don't be rude, Tahiti... Say hello!" Upendi told her. Tahiti smiled slightly at Mohatu. "Wanna come out and play?" he asked her. Tahiti looked doubtfully at her mother. "Go on, Tahiti... Just be careful, now!" Tahiti nuzzled her mother and walked towards Mohatu. Makani and Busara looked at each other and smirked. This would be fun.

As the cubs went out to play that day, Mohatu was trying his best to strike a conversation with Tahiti. Makani and Busara were enjoying this very much. Zahara, on the other hand, felt a little left out because Mohatu had always paid attention to her. Now he was talking just to Tahiti. Makani noticed this and felt bad for her. He went up to her and said, "Don't worry, he'll be back to normal soon... It's only because she's new." Zahara smiled at Makani and said, "Thanks, Makani... I'll be fine." Then she looked angrily at Mohatu trying to impress Tahiti and left in a huff. "I'm the Crown Prince, you know!" Mohatu was telling Tahiti. "So if there's anything you need, you can ask me!" "Really? I'm sorry, but I cant seem to look past your big fat head!" Tahiti said smartly. Mohatu was stunned. "What?" he asked her, puzzled. Tahiti smirked as she went off to play with the other cubs, leaving Mohatu completely stunned. Zahara smiled slightly as she watched these events unfold. Mohatu didn't like being insulted like that... but she didn't have to tell her about it!

[Kina]

Both of your chapters were pretty good, Divsalley. Chapter One reminded me of the LK one and two quite a bit, but Chapter Two took an interesting turn. One thing I'm confused about is the mandrill, though. It's name was spelled as both Sahara and Zahara, and consistantly. Which one is the actual name? XD

Either way, I'll be looking forward to the next chapter.

[divsalley]

[quote="Kina"]Both of your chapters were pretty good, Divsalley. Chapter One reminded me of the LK one and two quite a bit, but Chapter Two took an interesting turn. One thing I'm confused about is the mandrill, though. It's name was spelled as both Sahara and Zahara, and consistantly. Which one is the actual name? XD

Either way, I'll be looking forward to the next chapter.[/quote]


Actually, the mandrill's name is Sahara. Zahara is a young cub and is Mohatu's friend. Both names are mentioned, but if this confused you, then sorry

[Kina]

XD, ah, okay. Sorry about that.

[divsalley]

Chapter Three: Fatherly Advice

As time passed, Zahara watched with a mixture of jealously and delight as Mohatu tried countless times to talk to Tahiti, but failed because Tahiti always had a smart remark for him. After a while, Mohatu had had enough. Ärgh!"he roared in frustration as his siblings watched, trying very hard not to laugh at their brother. "No matter what I do, she always has some smart remark! I'm done! I'm not going to try and impress her anymore!" he finished. "It's alright, Mohatu... I'm here for you," he heard Zahara say. He smiled at her lightly and said, "Thank you, Zahara... I'm glad. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get some shade." Then he walked away to sit under a mangrove tree. He watched as Tahiti played with the other cubs... She seemed like a fun lioness, but she was never fun with him! She always taunted him and teased him and drove him so sompletely mad! But he still liked her! He watched sadly as Tahiti wouldn't even look at him as she ran past him. He got up and walked away to find the one lion who could help him.

"Hey, dad,"Mohatu said sadly as heflopped himself on the stone floor of Pride Rock. "You're home early,"Dhahabu said as he looked at his son. "What's going on?" "Nothing," Mohatu said at first. Then he sighed and said, "Tahiti hates me." Dhahabu looked at his son's dejected face and said, "No! She doesn't hate you! You're the Crown Prince!" "That's exactly why she hates me! Every time I talk to her, she has some witty remark which is actually kind of insulting," Mohatu said. Dhahabu sighed as he watched his son. Suddenly, Mohatu turned to him and asked, "How did you get mom to like you?" Dhahabu didn't know how to answer him. He had no clue as to how Mahiri could so easily decide that he was the one she wanted as her mate. So he remembered what his sister had once told him. "Well, Mo... I'm not sure what I did to make your mother choose me, but I will tell you this. Stop talking to her as if you're the Crown Prince. It actually irritates them,"he finished. "But I am the Crown Prince," Mohatu said angrily. "I know, Mo... and You know that too. And that's enough! It's not nice to brag about it," Dhahabu said seriously.

"Yeah, right! Like you never felt special when you were a cub!" Mohatu said sadly. Dhahabu sighed as he said, "No, I didn't." "What?" Mohatu asked incredulously. "The story I'm going to tell you is very painful, and it's very close to my heart... And you'll know why once I narrate it to you," Dhahabu said sadly. Mohatu was suddenly all ears as his father narrated the story. "There were three royal cubs wo were closer than most. One of them was the Crown Prince. He was kind and wise and loving to his siblings. His brother and sister loved him, too, but they sometimes took him for granted because he was the Crown Prince... One day, they ventured into a cave and were ambushed by hyenas. They dealt with most of them, but the Crown Prince died saving his brother... who survived with a feeling of constant guilt, knowing that he'd have to take the place of the brother who had died trying to save him. You're looking at the cub that survived, Mo... I never forgave myself for it... and I never felt like the Crown Prince. I know your situation isn't the same, but it'll help you. I don't want you to think you're better than everyone else just because you're going to be King. I want you to prove yourself worthy of that honor! That doesn't mean you do something crazy. All I mean by that is when your time comes, I want you to be the best King these lands could ever have! I want you to make all of us proud. And you can only accomplish that when you let go of your pride about being King. And as Crown Prince, you're going to have to set an example for your friends. You're going to have to be brave for them... You're going to have to make sure that you don't take anyone for granted just because you're Crown Prince. You need to show tham that you are worthy of leading them when the time comes," Dhahabu finished. Mohatu still looked confused.

Dhahabu sighed and said, "Just remember that you're one of them, and that they're just as unique as you are in their own special way. They may not be Kings or Queens like you when they grow up, but they will be an integral part of your pride. So respect them. You'll have to depend on each other someday... And I can tell you for a fact that a pride would prefer a King who keeps their best interests at heart. They will trust such a King and work with him. And I want you to be such a King. I want them to respect you and work for you. But most of all, I want them to love you. And I want you to love them, too. They are your family. And they are your strength. Do you understand?" Dhahabu asked his son. "What does this have anything to do with Tahiti?" Mohatu asked him. Dhahabu smiled and said, "Reach out to her as a friendly cub. She'll respond positively if you approach her with an open heart." "Thanks, dad," Mohatu said as he stood up and ran away to find Tahati.

[Ushujaa]

i was just reading your story over a bit and i like the plot to it alot, but a word of advice (and please don't take offense to this it's nothing big) ,

Try to separate the dialog,i know it can be tricky to do dialog i used to do the same thing... whenever someone new speaks it should be a new paragraph just makes things a bit easier to read... at least in my opinion...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Example (this is from your second chapter ,i just spaced it out the way that would be easier to read...):

The cubs scampered to the waterhole to meet a few of their friends. "Hey, you guys!" Mohatu yelled to a few cubs who were playing there. One of them responded immediately.

"Hey, Mohatu!" a young lioness with dazzling, blue eyes came to him with a smile.

"Hey, Zahara! We finally got away from that dodo... She keeps following us all the time! I bet mom and dad put her up to it!" Mohatu said as he looked at his siblings. They nodded with irritated looks.
------------------------------------------
Now i know everyone has their own style of writing but this is just something i picked up here on the forums and it's a part of the way i write now
again please don't take any offense to this it's just something i thought i would share
i'm looking forward to seeing how this story progresses

[divsalley]

[quote="Ushujaa"]i was just reading your story over a bit and i like the plot to it alot, but a word of advice (and please don't take offense to this it's nothing big) ,

Try to separate the dialog,i know it can be tricky to do dialog i used to do the same thing... whenever someone new speaks it should be a new paragraph just makes things a bit easier to read... at least in my opinion...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Example (this is from your second chapter ,i just spaced it out the way that would be easier to read...):

The cubs scampered to the waterhole to meet a few of their friends. "Hey, you guys!" Mohatu yelled to a few cubs who were playing there. One of them responded immediately.

"Hey, Mohatu!" a young lioness with dazzling, blue eyes came to him with a smile.

"Hey, Zahara! We finally got away from that dodo... She keeps following us all the time! I bet mom and dad put her up to it!" Mohatu said as he looked at his siblings. They nodded with irritated looks.
------------------------------------------
Now i know everyone has their own style of writing but this is just something i picked up here on the forums and it's a part of the way i write now
again please don't take any offense to this it's just something i thought i would share
i'm looking forward to seeing how this story progresses [/quote]


No offence taken! Thing is, I don't want this to turn out to be a wall of text. You're right about the dialogue, though. I'm going to try and get this in my next chapter. We'll see how it works