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Chapter IV: Confusion

Kopa's POV:

I woke up to the sight of a light brown pelt next to me; at first I was mentally panicking, trying to figure out who and what that was. As my half-conscious mind started to work, I realized Fuwele must've fallen asleep next to me. I decided to just stay there and wait it out. I quickly changed my mind when I saw Brasta step around the corner. He had an oddly calm look on his face, as if he was logically trying to think out exactly what was going on. And then came the explosion.

"JUST WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?" Brasta roared at the two of us. I could've sworn he was about to hit me. Fuwele's eyes snapped open, and she looked around bleary-eyed, "Huh? Tojo? What's going-?" she looked up, giving me an Oh crap!,

"Look, Brasta; it's not what it looks like! I promise you." She said, stammering and trying to stand up. Unfortunately, we tried to do this at the same time; because of the close proximity, we ended up tripping over each other and into a tangle of legs, somehow ending up nose to nose. I stayed there for a few seconds, actually blushing for the first time in years, and then looked at Brasta sheepishly. Brasta's face changed from red with fury to cold and unemotional in a matter of seconds. I could see the the raw emotion just bubbling beneath the surface; I guessed showing emotion wasn't something he did often, from the way he was bottling it up now. "And I'm supposed to believe that?" he said coldly, giving me a warning glare. "Nothing happened I prom-" Again he cut us off.

"Promises? You expect me to trust a stray rogue who I caught like this and think nothing happened?" he said, tensing up again.

"How could anything happen? I could barely move and I barely know your sister! I have HONOUR!" I said, starting to shout.

"Honor? Rogues have no honour." He said smugly. "Rogues are typically rogues because they couldn't follow the rules of their old pride," he said in a self-assured tone.

"What about Strike? Doesn't he have honour?" I said, starting to slowly, and painfully, walk forward.

"That's different..." Brasta said, backing down slightly. "He's different." He said, looking away. I could see the gears working in his brain.

"How is it different?" I asked, starting to get angry. Who was he to make assumptions, and judge me because of the life I lead?

"That's none of your concern, just... just forget I said anything... I'm sorry Fuwele, and Tojo." Brasta said, his manner switching to subtly depressed. He turned around and walked off, ending our conversation. "Look Tojo, I know it's not right; but you can't get angry at him like that. He has feelings too, however seldom they show up." She said, starting to get softer. "He prefers to be a thinker; lives his life by logic, not emotion. But that doesn't mean it doesn't affect him, as you know now."

"Look, I'm sorry Fuwele, but it's just that..." I couldn't find words to justify my actions.

"I know you didn't mean it." She said soothingly, "Here, let me show you around. Can you walk?" she asked.

"Yeah, let's go." I said, thinking a walk might be able to clear my head. Ever since that morning I couldn't seem to recall certain things about my past. Like what home looks like; all I can conjure up is last night in Strike's cave. But mom and dad and.... and... and... Vitani's faces were clear as day. I just brushed it off as post injury trauma; I was still a little on edge though, and I felt myself getting skittish around Fuwele as we walked around. GET AHOLD OF YOURSELF KOPA! I mentally screamed. She is showing you around her home, and that's all no reason to avoid her so obviously, I thought to myself. I just couldn't get that feeling of anxiety out of my chest though.

Vitani's POV:

Let's just say things at home weren't going so well, okay? First, Mom was off on another rant with Nuka over Kovu's recent adventuring. It was really quite pitiful how my mother treated him, he didn't really deserve it... but there's nothing any of us could do. Anyways, things so far have been going well with Lati, considering I still have to bring Kovu with me. He is my brother; well, half-brother, but I still would defend him with my life. I loved my spare time with Lati. Like that day, for example, he found this oasis way out in the desert in a jungle. I had never seen a jungle before, and so Lati took me on a "date" over there. It was beautiful; Every variety of plant, flowers and wildlife, some I had never even seen, lived there. I found myself just gazing at the simple beauty of this place. It was nice to see some green other than in Lati's eyes. I loved him so much.

"Hey Vitani! Look at this!" Lati said, jumping from a vine into the water and causing a splash. I noticed a set of bubbles coming up next to me. I smirked, and as he jumped at me out of the water, I flipped him over and dunked his head in playfully. "Hey! Stop that." He said, laughing.

"No. I won't let you up." I said, dunking him under again. I let him up again, "Now Lati, what do you have to say for yourself?" I said playfully.

"Hmm... how about I'm waterlogged?" he said jokingly.

"Wrong answer." I said, splashing him.

"Hey cut it out!" he said.

"Not until you say it." I said, laughing heartily. "I think I'm in love with the most beautiful lioness in the world. There; is that good enough?" he said, smiling at me. I jumped onto the shore, chuckling. As Lati emerged from the water, I winked at him, strutting towards him alluringly, and said seductively, "Hmm... come and find out."

Simba's POV:

I thought Kiara was a hassle when she was little! Now that she could actually talk, and has a personality, I got even more worried. I've had to enlist the help of my foster parents/ buddies Timon and Pumbaa numerous times to watch her. I would not make the same mistake twice. I had made that resolution long ago, but now I was wondering if I could keep it. I was drawn out of my thoughts by Nala.

"Something on your mind?" she asked knowingly.

"It's just that... I feel like I can't keep her safe. I don't want her to end up like... like..." I couldn't finish the sentence.

" Like Kopa? Simba you're still beating yourself up about that? I thought I told you! What happened to our son was not your fault." She said, trying to get me to listen to reason; but I couldn't escape the guilt.

"Nala, I feel like I killed him. I didn't go fast enough; I talked myself out of exiling Zira. I did a lot of things, so I am responsible, in a way, for his death." I started choking up again.

"Simba! We both talked each other out of that stuff when we we thought we killed outr parents; WE, not I, not you, but WE. Weren't you the one that said out our marriage ceremony 'We are one?' Whatever you do, I do and vice versa; this isn't another Mufasa or Mom!" she said sternly enough to shock me back to reality.

"I-I guess you're right Nal', it's just..." I sighed.

"I know Simba, I know..." she said soothingly, the both of us sharing a tearful embrace.

Strike's POV:

I heard what had happened with Brasta that morning, so I decided to go talk to him. After about a few minutes of searching I found him. He didn't look so good, kinda half asleep and depressed. "Brasta?" I said tentatively.

"Yeah?" he said back. "Can I talk to you?"

*Sigh* "Sure."

"I'm worried about you, Brasta; why did you explode at Tojo?" I asked.

"He was with my sister, SLEEPING WITH HER!" he said, his voice frosty.

"Brasta, use the god-given logic your famous for! You're the last person I would expect for emotion to cloud your judgement. Brasta, just because he was with her doesn't mean that-"

He cut me off. "I know that! But I cannot have a rogue as a brother in law." he said matter of factly.

"Look, Brasta; just forget that he's a rogue. He is a lion of honour; any other lion would've done what you accused him of this morning, but he and I have honor." I said, starting to defend Tojo.

"LOOK, just because you have honour doesn't mean you don't kill things!" he said, starting to get defensive again.

"Not that again... look, honour may be used in a twisted sense, but give him a chance, he at least deserves it." I said flatly.

"You barely know him! How can you make that judgement?" Brasta said, in his typically icy manner as he walked away.

"He's not Drake, and he's not Sadic! Brasta, remember that!" I called out to him. I sighed heavily, "Brasta, you have no idea how much I know." I let out another sigh, "Fujo, why?" I said, calling to the sky, hoping that somehow the spirit of my lost mate would hear me.