CHAPTER 7:  HOPE AND FORGIVENESS

	Shimbekh tried not to think of her plan.  For all her doubts, one 
thing was certain--she could not kill a pup.  Maybe it WAS the will of 
Roh'kash that Gur'mekh live.  She had to confront her doubts--the  
warning might have only been a dream.
	Shimbekh relaxed and enjoyed their time together.  They hunted 
springhares, played rough and tumble games, told stories and even took a 
walk to the termite mounds.  But more importantly, she looked into his 
eyes and saw there the gift of his parents.  Love flowed into Shimbekh 
like fresh water from the mountains.  Love deep and pure that made 
Gur'mekh and all he did seem beautiful and holy.  And he drew love from 
Shimbekh, for she had it in abundance.
	"Promise we'll always be friends," Gur'mekh said.
	"I promise it, you little scamp."
	Mid sun had come and gone.  As the afternoon grew old, Shimbkeh 
headed home with Gur'mekh in tow.  He was wild about her, and as soon as 
she lay down to rest, he went to nap with his head on her side the way 
Gur'bruk once cuddled on Kambra.  She reached down with a paw and 
fondled his face and neck.  "You're a little Gur'bruk," she said, a tear 
rolling down her cheek.  "He lives in you.  May Roh'kash guide your 
steps little one, and keep you from trouble.  Sleep, my love."
	Shimbekh felt a deep, crushing guilt for the trouble she had 
stirred up.  Only she did not know how to apologize, or even if her 
sister would believe her sudden change of heart.
	The afternoon slipped quietly into evening, softly deepening into 
a wistful shade of azure.  Kambra was worried when Bath and Mer'bel came 
home and said that they had not seen Gur'mekh all day.  She was worried 
and went right out to search for her little boy.  
	A nagging doubt ate away at her, and drove her to look first at 
her sister's home.  "Please God, let it be OK.  Please, Roh'kash, let 
him be fine!"
	She saw Shimbekh with Gur'mekh snuggled to her side.  Terrified, 
she reached out with her thoughts to see what Shimbekh was planning.
	She concentrated with all her might, but she found nothing but 
love in her sister, a love that overpowered all her suspicions and 
bathed old shadows in its healing light.  Kambra breathed a sigh of 
relief, then came running to Shimbekh to wake her with a kiss.
	Shimbekh looked up into the smiling beauty of Kambra's face.  
"Sis!"  Tears of joy began to stream down her face.  "Please forgive me.  
I want to I want to be family again--please?"
	Now it was Kambra's turn to cry.  "Come back with me.  I want you 
to meet Bath and Mer'bel.  Muti and Maleh have been going crazy over 
this trouble.  Oh, honey tree, I'm so happy!"


CHAPTER 8:  STICKS AND STONES

	Taka yawned, then sat up, blinking at the bright light streaming 
into the cave mouth.  He ambled over to the entrance, squinting.  The 
pain in his left eye still made him wince, but it was better than it was 
two nights ago.  
	Looking about, he spied Sarabi and Elanna having fun while Yolanda 
watched them comfortably from the shade of an acacia.  Little Tameka 
came up behind Yolanda, making the supreme effort to leap over her, but 
collapsing in a heap on her back.
	Taka laughed.  "Look at the little frog!"
	Sarabi looked around.  "Hey, Taka!  Are you OK?  Wanna play tag?"
	Taka ambled over slowly and sat down.  He sighed deeply.  "I 
can't.  Rafiki said I have to stay out of the dirt for a week till my 
eye gets better."
	"Why?"
	He stuck his lower lip out in a pout, trying to imitate Rafiki.  
"Keep da eye clean Master Taka or id'dll get een-FECK-ted."
	"Now Taka," Yolanda purred with a mild hint of reproof.  "Rafiki 
is only trying to help.  You should appreciate what he's done, saving 
your eye, and giving you all those herbs for the pain."
	"I know.  I'm just bored, Aunt Yolanda.  I can't do nothing!"
	"You can't do ANYTHING."
	"Yeah.  That's what I said."  He scrached some dust up with his 
back paw and harumphed.  "Stupid old badger!  Why did he have to scratch 
my eye anyway!  All I wanted was his stupid blessing!  I mean, he could 
have at least faked it or something!"
	"Getting angry doesn't change what happened," Yolanda said.  
"Besides, he died for his crime.  You shouldn't speak ill of the dead."
	"You always take up for the ones that act bad," Taka complained.
	"You're right, you know.  Remember the cub that got in trouble by 
the watering hole?  I said I wouldn't tell on him if he tried to act 
better."
	Taka looked down, embarrased.  She nuzzled him gently and he 
rubbed along her side.  "Yeah.  I guess it works both ways."
	Elanna brightened.  "Hey!  We can play `King's Command!'"
	Sarabi perked up.  "Yeah!  You don't have to get dirty to play 
that."
	Taka looked at Yolanda.  "Can I?"
	"Sure, I think so."  She nuzzled him gently.  "Go ahead."
	"Yeah!"  The cubs gamboled off to the shade of some nearby bushes.  
They lined up in a rough group.
	"Who's gonna be the king?"  Elanna asked.
	"Let Taka do it!"  Sarabi said.
	"I've never done it before," he said, looking down.  "I'm not sure 
I know how."
	"That's `cause Muffy always gets to do it," Elanna said.  "But he 
had to go to see Rafiki this morning.  His stomach was hurting cause he 
ate too much last night."
	Sarabi giggled.
	"That's NOT funny, Sassie!"  Elanna elbowed her sister roughly.  
"Cut it out!"
	"Okay, okay.  But it's not the first time.  One of these days he's 
going to explode!"
	"I'll do it!"  Tameka said.
	"You're a girl," Sarabi snorted.  "You can't be king.  I still say 
Taka ought to do it!"  She smiled at him beguilingly.  "For me?"
	"Okay.  Uhh, lessee..."  He squinched his face in thought, then 
grinned.  "King commands you to raise your right forepaw."
	The girls complied.  "That was easy," Elanna said.
	A gleam appeared in Taka's eyes.  "King commands you to put your 
paw down."  They did that too.  He grinned, and continued.  "King 
commands you to wave your tails."
	They did, Sarabi giving hers a little flick at the tip each time 
she waved it.
	"Stop waving your tails."
	Sarabi and Elanna kept waving, but Tameka dropped hers.
	"Gotcha!"
	"Aww, come on!"
	"The king didn't command," Taka smirked.  "You're out, Tameka."
	"Phooey!"  She growled, scuffing sand angrily with a forepaw.  "I 
don't care!  Mufasa's going to be the real king, anyway; he wouldn't 
trick me like that!"
	"Come ON, Tameka," Elanna said sharply.  "Just wait till we're 
done, then you can try again."
	"I don't want to play anymore!"  Tameka glared at Taka furiously.  
"I don't want to play with YOU anyway, you little one-eyed freak!"
	There was stunned silence as Taka's chin began to tremble.  "I am 
NOT a one-eyed freak!" he stammered.  "You take that back!"
	"Freak, freak, Taka's a freak!  He thinks he owns the world, but 
he's just a snotty-nosed one-eyed cry baby!"
	"STOP IT!" Taka shouted, tears beginning to stream down his 
cheeks.  "Just `cause I got cut doesn't make me a freak!  At least I'm 
not a stuck-up prissy butt like you!"  He sprang up and ran, a wailing 
cry trailing out behind him as he fled across the rocks and vanished 
behind an outcropping.  
	Tameka fell silent, looking down in shame.  Elanna looked 
stricken, but the anger left clear tracks on Sarabi's face.  She got up 
and slowly walked over to Tameka.  "You're the little snotty-nosed 
freak!  You're just lucky I'm a lady, or I'd rearrange your face!"
	"I didn't mean to make him cry.  I just got mad.  You understand, 
don't you?  I mean, he can be so--"
	Yolanda meandered over.  "What is going on, here?!"
	Sarabi growled, startling Yolanda.  "Tameka made fun of Taka's eye 
`cause she got out!  She called him a snotty-nosed one-eyed cry baby and 
a freak!"
	Now it was Tameka's turn to sniffle as the lioness glared at her.  
"But I didn't mean it!  I was just mad!"
	"You go inside, young lady."  Yolanda said softly but firmly.  
"I'll talk with you later."
	"Yes ma'am."
	Yolanda stroked Sarabi with a paw.  "Calm down, honey tree.  Tell 
me where he went."
	"That way, toward the cistern."
	Yolanda padded quietly around the side of Pride Rock.  Pride life 
was communal, but lion cubs, like other children, need some places to be 
alone from time to time.  The cistern was an ideal location.
	Even before Yolanda could see him, she knew where he was.  She 
could hear Taka's gentle sobs, and her heart sank.  He was sprawled on 
the edge of the spring, paws over his face.  "Honey tree," she purred, 
drawing near and nuzzling him.
	"Go away!"  He sniffled loudly.  "Leave me alone!"
	"Come on, honey tree.  It's Yolanda."  She licked him with her 
warm, moist tongue.  "Shh, it's all right."
	"It will never be all right."
	"It will take some time, my child.  But never say never.  Tameka 
is very sorry she hurt your feelings.  She really wants to make up, and 
she will apologize."
	"You should have seen her," Taka said, shaking.  "She hates me!"
	"Nobody hates you.  Tameka has a temper, but she also has a big 
heart."
	"There you go again."
	"Yes.  Taking up for those in the WRONG.  And honey tree, she was 
in the wrong.  Having that scar doesn't make you a freak."
	"Oh yeah?  I saw how you looked at me the other night.  You think 
I'm ugly.  You think I'm a freak, just like everybody else!"
	"Oh, hon!"  Yolanda's eyes stung.  "I didn't think you were ugly!  
I think you're beautiful!"  She began to groom him.  "When you love 
someone, really LOVE them, you get all knotted up inside every time they 
get hurt.  If I came back from the hunt limping--let's say I had a 
broken leg--how would you feel?  Would you think I was ugly?  A freak?  
Would you hate me?"
	"Oh no!  Never!"
	"Or would you maybe take in a deep breath and say something like, 
`Oh my gods, what happened to your leg?'"
	Taka looked at her in stunned silence.  He swallowed hard and 
tears--compassionate tears--welled up in his eyes.  "Do you really love 
me, Aunt Yolanda?"
	The lioness took him by the scruff of the neck and padded over to 
a corner.  She laid down, setting Taka beside her and grooming him.  
"There are lots of people that will say they love you lots of times.  
Then there are people who get off their haunches and show you."  She 
filled his fur with the scent of lioness love.  "How does the eye feel, 
honey tree?"
	"It still hurts, but it's getting better."
	"Good.  Now come on, Your Majesty.  After your bath, let's see if 
I'm still as good at `King Commands' as I used to be."  She grinned 
mischieviously.  "I betcha you can't get ME out."
	Taka grinned back.  "Betcha I can!"
	She laughed warmly.  "You're on!"



CHAPTER 9:  PROMETHEUS UNCHAINED

	The hyena pup Fabana was napping with her family, when suddenly 
she felt a paw nudge her shoulder.
	"Fay," someone whispered.  "Fay, are you awake?"
	She grunted and shifted.  One eye came open.  "Who wants to know?"
	"It's me, Jalkort."
	She whispered, "Oh.  Hi, Jal."
	"Let's go play."
	"I can't right now.  Muti says I have to take my nap."
	"No one's going to mind--if we don't get caught."
	Jalkort was her best friend.  She didn't have to think long before 
she made her decision, rising up carefully and sneaking away from her 
family.
	If her parents had caught her, she would have been in a lot of 
trouble.  Humans had been sighted nearby, and everyone was in a state of 
heightened alert.  Fay had been warned many times not to go off without 
permission.
	"We don't have long, Jal.  They won't sleep all day, you know."
	"Oh, we'll be back in plenty of time.  Now you're it!"  Jal tapped 
her and ran.  
	"Not fair!  I didn't say `start' yet!"
	"OK."  Jalkort came trotting back and stood next to her.  "Say it 
now."
	"No you don't!  Stand over there first."
	"Over here?"
	"Further back."
	"Now?"
	"Further back!"
	"Geez, I'm not a wildebeest!  What do you want me to do, migrate?"
	It was the dry season.  In the human camp, an unattended campfire 
shot out a coal that crossed the ring of rocks and fell in the grass.  A 
small trail of smoke went up, then with an almost shy beginning, the 
first flame sprang up, greedily consuming the first tuft of grass, then 
looking around for more.
	The rabid flames quickly infected the grass with a fatal fever, 
overwhelming the golden shafts and turning them into blackened ash.  A 
light wind fanned the flames which spread rapidly over the savanna.  
	High above, a hornbill spotted what appeared to be a large black 
thundercloud, then stopped in flight, turning back toward Pride Rock as 
fast as he could go with the news--brush fire!
	A dead acacia stood in the way, but it was soon overwhelmed by the 
destructive tide.  It soon turned into a giant torch, raining limbs of 
golden light.
	Some Thompson's gazelles were trying to get some good out of the 
dying grass.  They looked up and saw the wall of flame coming.  In a 
panic, they sprinted away.  "Fire!  Fire!  Get out!"
	The choking, blinding pall of smoke dimmed the sun and the searing 
heat was enormous.  Some sleeping hyenas were nudged by the Roh'mach.
	"What the...."
	"Brush fire!  Get out while you still can!"
	The father looked around and quickly spotted the smoke.  He looked 
in the other direction where escape should lie, but there was more 
smoke.  "Get up, everyone!  Up, up!!  We have to get out of here!!"  He 
looked around desperately.  "Where is Fabana??"
	Fabana was hiding from Jalkort.  She wondered why it took so long 
for him to find her, since hyenas had a keen sense of smell.
	She looked out.  "Jal?  Jal!"
	That's when she saw the flames spreading all around.  She forgot 
the game and thought about her family.  "Muti!  Maleh!  Oh gods!"  
	A zebra went galloping by madly, then balked at the flames and 
reared up with flailing hooves.  She was nearly trampled by his hooves.
	"Muti!  Maleh!"  
	Like a predator, the flames sought to surround and drive their 
victims.  Most head toward the river and safety.  In the mad rush, 
Fabana could not tell which way led back to her parents.  She ran around 
in the confusion looking for some sign of her family.
	At Pride Rock, young King Ahadi stared at the gray cloud with 
anxiousness.  Zazu landed next to him, but by the time he had reached 
his King, the message was too obvious.  
	"It's sheer panic, Sire.  The jackals will feast tonight."
	The wind shifted the progress to and fro, and blowing sparks that 
spawned new fires in its wake.  Vultures had already began to gather, 
looking for victims.
	A meercat pushed past Fabana in a mad desire to escape, then 
encountered a fresh wall of flame.  He ran around in circles staring 
wide eyed at nothing in particular, shouting, "We're all going to die!  
Oh gods, we're all going to die!"
	Flames had surrounded Fabana completely.  Perhaps the meercat was 
right.  And then suddenly bounding over the flames came Fabana's okhim 
(father) who grabbed her up by the scruff of her neck in his strong jaws 
and took off running.  
	He plunged through the flames, ignoring their hot embrace.  
Picking out the best routes, he managed to jump most of the flaming 
ground and come through unhurt in a deadly game of hopscotch.  Then 
finally he saw freedom behind one remaining wall of fire.  There were no 
easy routes, so closing his eyes he plunged directly into the fire.  The 
swirling flames hurt Fabana's nose, the tips of her ears and her eyes.  
She reached up with a paw to ward off the heat.
	Finally they burst through on the other side.  Her okhim dropped 
her quickly with a loud yelp.  "Run!!  Run quickly!!"
	Fabana looked back and saw her okhim become a living torch.  
	"Maleh!  Oh gods!"
	"Go!" he screamed.  "Run!  Run!!"  He staggered a few steps, then 
fell into a crumpled heap, jerking spasmodically.  For a moment she 
stood rooted to the spot.  She would draw in a breath and shriek, and do 
it again.  "Maleh!!  No!!!"
	Finally her fur began to singe.  She had the presence of mind to 
turn away from what was left of her okhim and head away from the flames.  
She ran sobbing and howling across the ash, raising small clouds with 
her feet and getting soot in her nose and mouth.  
	Too late she saw some game wardens with shovels and picks trying 
to outflank the fire before it consumed their camp.
	"I wish I could wring the bloody poacher's neck!  Three elephants 
weren't enough--he had to burn up the whole damned place!"
	One of them said, "Look at that!"  Large hands circled her, and 
before she can snap at them, they rubbed her behind the ears gently.  
"There now, fellow, it's going to be all right."
	"What are you going to do with it, Ed?"
	"We'll see."
	Fabana strained to look through the flames.  "Okash!" she yelped.  
Then she began struggling frantically and crying, "Muti, Muti!!!"
	"You're a loud little bugger, aren't you!  Hey, It's all right.  
I'm not going to hurt you."
	"Muti!!!"  Tears came to her eyes.  "Muti!!!"

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