The Lion Queen 1½

Look beyond what you see

Timon walks off. Ma holds out a hand, as if to stop him, then lowers it. Later on, Ma pokes her head out of a hole in the ground and looks around. Timon sits on a rock atop a hill. Ma watches him for a moment before approaching. Ma sighs. "Oh." Ma pauses next to Timon's rock. "Awww, sweetie." She said. Timon turns around. "I'm never gonna fit in here." Timon slides to the ground. "Nobody even likes me." He said. Ma walks around the rock to Timon. "Sure they do, honey. Sure they do!" Ma said. Ma reaches for Timon. "Besides you, Ma." Timon said. Ma pauses and draws her paw back. "Uh, besides me? Um, there's, uh..." she said. "I have to find my place, but it isn't here." Timon said. Timon starts to walk away, but Ma grabs him by the shoulders and forces him to sit. "Yes, it is. We just haven't found it yet." Ma starts to comb Timon's hair. "But we will... Oh, here's an idea. You can run a trail–" she said. Timon ducks away from Ma and marches away. "Stop with the hair already." Timon strides to the top of the hill, overlooking the open savanna. "My place is out there, Ma. Oh, I may not know exactly where or how far, but I gotta go!" Timon said. Ma approaches Timon from behind, gesturing urgently. 

"No, wait, wait, wait. I know. If we just..." she said. "Ma..." Timon said. Timon walks off. Ma watches him go sadly, then sighs. "Well, I hope you find what you're looking for, honey." She said. Timon's face lights up. He runs to Ma and embraces her. "Ooh. Ooh, I love you. Mmm!" Ma said as she hugs him. "I love you, Ma." Ma hugs Timon so hard that he begins to slip until Ma is only hugging his head. "Oh, Timmy. My Timmy." Ma hugs Timon so tightly that his back cracks. "Mmm-mmm..." she said. "Mom..." Timon said. "Ooh." Ma said. "Choking... Not breathing..." Timon said. "Ooh! Mmm, mmm, mmm!" Ma said. "And people wonder why I have issues." Timon and Ma break their embrace. They clasp hands. "I'll be okay!" Timon said. "Oh, I know you will! You will." Ma looks away. Slowly, Timon's hands pull away from hers. He smiles at her before marching off into the savanna. As he walks away, Ma calls after him. "Be careful!" Timon pauses. "I will!" He shouts. Timon continues walking. "Don't talk to strangers!" Ma shouted. "I know, Ma!" Timon said. "Remember, wash behind your ears!" Ma shouts. Timon frowns, his gait slowing. He stops and looks back. "Ma, I'm not a kid anymore!" He shouted. Timon continues walking. "Never go swimming without a buddy!" Ma shouted. Timon rolls his eyes. He waves a hand dismissively. "Got it!" He said. "Send us a message!" Ma said, barely audible. Timon slows, his shoulders slumping in exasperation. "Oy. What?!" Timon shouted.

"I said, send us a message!" Ma repeated. Timon squints uncertainly. He holds a hand to his ear. "What?!" He shouts again. "I said, send us a–" Timon waves a hand dismissively and continues walking. "Goodbye, Ma!" Timon keeps marching until he reaches an open grassy plain. He stops and stares in amazement. His voice is heard over footage of him marching across the plain. "And so, with high spirits, I boldly ventured off where no meerkat had dared to go before. I put my past behind me. Ha! And never looked back." Later on it was nighttime. Timon stops and bursts into tears and sobs. "Mommy! Mommy! Ah! Ha, ha!" Timon is standing beneath Rafiki's tree. "What am I doing?" Timon falls onto his knees and sobs. "Which way should I go?" He asked. Rafiki hangs upside-down in front of Timon. "That depends on what you seek." He said. Timon rears backward. "Ah!" In the theater, Timon clicks the remote, freezing the frame so that he is in mid-fall onscreen. "How convenient. Enter omniscient monkey, right on cue." He said. "Well, you know what they say. When the student is ready, the teacher appears." 

Pumbaa said. "That's it. No more fortune cookies for you." Timon clicks the remote, and the movie resumes. In the movie, Timon falls onto his back. "Hey, where'd you come from?" He asked. Rafiki laughs. "Oh, the better question is, where are you going?" He asked. "Oh, someplace" Timon gestures dramatically. "Wonderful, mister, where...where y..." Timon points at Rafiki. "You didn't happen to catch the song I sang a few minutes ago, did ya?" He asked. "I didn't have the pleasure." He replies. "To recap:" Timon drums his fingers against one another. "I want to live in some beautiful place. Outside." Timon clasps his hands. "A carefree place where I don't have to hide or worry." He said. Rafiki drops onto the ground next to Timon, who backpedals a bit. "Whoo! "Hoo, hoo, hoo!" Rafiki leans casually on his staff. "Life without worry." Rafiki lounges against his staff like it's a chair. "You seek Hakuna Matata." He said. "Harpoon a tomato?" Timon asked. "Hakuna Matata. It means "no worries." Rafiki said. "Perfect! Mind taking that" Timon points at Rafiki's staff. "Stick of yours and" Timon mimics drawing in the dirt. "Drawing me a map, bub?" Rafiki hits Timon with his staff. He is now sitting on Timon's other side. "Ow!" Timon rubs his head. "Hey!" He said. Rafiki sits in a position of meditation, his eyes closed. "To find it, you must look beyond what you see." He said. "What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Timon asked. From behind, Rafiki jabs Timon's head with a finger, turning it so he's poking Timon in the nose. "It means," Rafiki gestures to the open savanna. "Look beyond what you see!" He said.