“Me! Me!”
“OK, Lisani! Why don’t you lead us?”
Wiggling with pride, Miss Priss faced her small audience. Her eyes narrowed in deep concentration for a moment as she mentally went over the parts she was unsure of, but then she brightened. Facing away from the sunset with a paw against her cheek, she began:
She turned to face the sunset and touched her nose to the ground, putting a paw on top of her head.
Finally, with simple, heartfelt faith, she rolled on her back and rubbed her chest above her heart. Elanna and the others followed her.
“Wasn’t that good!” Elanna kissed her repeatedly. “And how big you’ve grown! Don’t wait so long till you come to see me again, or you’ll be all grown up!”
Isha, who showed up near the end of the song, said rather urgently, "It's time for your bath, Habu. You too, Lissie."
"Oh, I can handle that," Elanna said.
"No thank you," Isha said, almost curtly.
“I don’t mind, really! You take Habu and I’ll do Lisani.”
“No thank you, my lady. Unless that’s a direct order.”
"Of course it’s not an order. I just love them, that’s all." Elanna bowed her head. "And I thought you loved me, Isha! Don’t you remember when I used to groom you after the hunt? You said we’d always be friends! Have you forgotten, Isha??”
Isha looked away and sighed. “Please, not in front of the children. They don’t understand.”
“Neither do I. I wish to Aiheu someone would explain it to me!” She looked at the cubs who stared at her with sad faces. “Good bye, Miss Priss. Take care, Habu. Well, I guess you other cubs had better run along too." As Isha stalked off with her pair, Elanna left Togo and Kombi and sneaked off to hide in the reeds.
Shouldering the plants aside, Elanna stared down at the dry dust. A tear trickled down her cheek, hanging from a whisker for a moment before dropping to vanish into the parched earth. "Aiheu, Aiheu, why have you abandoned me?? This judgment is more than I can bear! Let it rain, God! One little drop to fall on my husband’s parched tongue! Why won’t you listen to me! Oh God, if there’s hope for me, show me a sign! Don’t abandon me, God! Please don’t abandon me!"
Togo and Kombi came and huddled next to Elanna, kissing her and snuggling by her side.
“I thought you were headed out with Isha,” she said, startled.
“Lannie,” Uzuri’s voice said from behind her, “would you mind looking after these two until I get back? I may be a while.”
“Zuri! How much did you hear??”
“Enough.”
Elanna bit her lip. “You won’t tell anyone, will you? You’re such a good person, Zuri. I hate to cry like a cub, but sometimes I get so depressed, and it seems like there’s no way out....” Elanna shuddered. “Nala left the Pride. Oh gods, Zuri, if you left me, I’d go crazy! Stark raving mad! Never leave me, Zuri! Whatever you want, I’ll make sure you get it! I’ll give you my portion. Anything, Zuri! Don’t leave me! Please!”
“Did you say you’d do anything? Then would you consent to be the Nurse-mother of my children? If I died, would you take care of Togo and Kombi?”
Elanna’s chin trembled and her eyes flooded with tears that spilled over and ran down her cheeks. It was a few moments before she could speak, and her first words were, “I love you, Zuri! I would offer them the blood of mercy if need be!”
With her paw she fondled Togo and Kombi, and kissed them. “See, Uzuri, God has not abandoned me!”
“Of course he hasn’t,” Uzuri said, kissing away her tears.
“You do know I love you, don’t you? You know I’d do anything for you, don’t you?”
“Of course I do. Now buck up. You don’t want your husband to see you’ve been crying, do you?”
“No.” She sighed. “It would be one more thing for him to worry about.” She took in a deep breath, let it out slowly, and smiled.
THE LOST SON OF AMALKOZI:
Whenever Rafiki told stories, he would bring some of his jerky for the cubs. It always ensured a large crowd, but it also fostered the close ties of love and trust that made Rafiki an integral part of the pride. Sometimes when Rafiki would examine a wounded lioness or massage a pulled muscle, he would have to bend painful joints and prod aching abdomens. These things and many more he did for many years, and never once was he bitten or scratched, though he could have been killed with a single well-placed blow or bite.
Rafiki was always happiest surrounded by cubs. He loved their antics and always laughed at their jokes, no matter how many times he had heard them before or how poorly they were told. And within the limits of his strength and durability, he would play games with them. He had to make those limits clear to each new generation. Indeed, among the few phrases of leonine he learned in his long life, “I love you,” “Let go,” and “Claws in, please!” figured most prominently.
Misha would always get jerky with the other cubs, but as he once did with Taka, he would save a piece of rare Tiko root for her alone. He gave her the treat, and as always her eyes half closed in pleasure as the fragrance and flavor permeated her. And as always, he quietly whispered, “Misha, mabinti penda,” which is to say, “Misha, my beloved daughter.”
She kissed him. “You’re my bestest friend. Did you give my mother Tiko root?”
His face clouded. “Some. I wish I could have given her more.”
“What do you mean?”
“I loved Mufasa very much. When he died, I was heartbroken, especially because Taka looked like he didn’t really care. I had no way of knowing that he killed Mufasa, but I was plenty upset, and I said some things that really made him angry. He confined me to this tree and for almost three years.”
“Three whole years?” She snuggled against him.
“Three years is a long time, but doubly so because I was prematurely old. I lost my youth over him, and it seems I did not lose enough of my life to suit him.” Absently, he began to stroke her as he spoke. “I missed your mother’s coming of age. I wasn’t able to be there for Nala and Habusu, and to think of poor Simba wandering around in the jungle like a lost soul! I try to be philosophical about all this and go on with my life, but sometimes its hard. But just you wait till someone tries to hurt my little girl, and they will know what fear is! I’ll move heaven and earth for my little Missy.” He put his arms around her and hugged her. “Maybe I’m giving you all the love that I kept stored up inside of me all those lonely moons. You know, I used to plan on one day walking out of this baobab and never coming back. But now that I’m free to come and go, it’s a funny thing--I just can’t find a home as nice as this one. I guess I’m stuck with it. And you have to help me.”
“How?”
“You’ll help me make some happy memories that will sweep away all the sad ones. It’s easy. See, you’re doing it right now.”