Son of a Legend

Part 27: Home at Last

6 days later...
"C'mon, guys! The pass is just a mile up that way!" Mkali shouts before he takes off running towards the mountain pass. Misuli takes off running after him.
Vitani chuckles at her son's antics. "He might look more like me, but he definitely takes more after you, Kion." She looks up into the sky as she says this. She casually jogs after the two Lion Guard members.
"Hurry up, Mom!" Mkali shouts at his mother once he can see her again. Misuli is taking some deep breaths. Vitani can't help but smile at the progress Misuli has made since becoming a member of a lion guard. If this was 5 years earlier, she'd be on the ground gasping for air.
"Alright, let's go!" Mkali says excitedly. "The Tree of Life is just on the other side of this pass!"

The other side of the pass...
"You're sure you want to do this, sis?" Simko asks Taji.
Taji nods her head. "Absolutely, I do." She responds to her younger brother.
"Be careful out there." Rani warns her daughter.
"I will be, mom. It's me we're talking about!" This draws a laugh from everyone.
"Well, safe travels, kiddo." Baliyo says to his neice.
"Thanks, Uncle Baliyo." Taji replies. She hugs everyone goodbye, and then she sets off through the mountain pass. She gets about halfway through before she sees the silhouettes of three lions in the shadows, one male, the other two female.
"Halt!" Taji orders.
Mkali, Misuli, and Vitani stopped immediately and put their hands up.
"That's her," Mkali whispers to his mom.
"She's very pretty," Vitani compliments the lioness. "But why doesn't she recognize you or Misuli?"
"One, because we are in the shadows, and two, it's been almost two years since we've last seen each other."
"Show yourselves!" Taji commands.
Mkali smiles. He knew exactly what he wanted to say when he walked out of the shadows.
"Hey, stranger!" Mkali greets when he steps into the light, so Taji can see him.
"Mkali!" Taji exclaims. She runs towards him and jumps into Mkali's arms. Mkali spins her around before he pulls her into a hug.
"Words can't describe how much I've missed you," Mkali tells Taji.
"Same here," Taji says back.
Vitani clears her throat behind them. Taji and Mkali stop hugging and look at her. She gives Mkali the "aren't you forgetting something?" Look.

"Oh, right. Taji, this is Vitani, my mom. And I'd hope that you remember Misuli." Mkali tells Taji.
"Well, of course I remember Misuli," she says as she hugs Misuli. "And it's an honor to meet you, Vitani." She says as she shakes Vitani's hand.
"The honor's all mine," Vitani says. "I've heard a lot of things about you. All of it was good."
"Not to sound like I don't want you guys here, but why are you here?" Taji asks.
"I missed my girl. I don't need any more reason than that. Plus, I had a promise that I needed to uphold." Taji blushes slightly at what Mkali says.
"Okay, so why isn't the rest of the guard here?" She asks.
"Well, Kamani is probably too young to make the trip, and finding a replacement guard would be too much of a hassle." Vitani says.
"And before you ask, Kamani is Koda and Kasi's daughter." Misuli says.
"They have a duaghter!?" Taji exclaims. "Good for them!"
"They're married now, too." Mkali tells her.
Taji nods. "So, where's Kion at? I'm assuming he would've wanted to come with Mkali,  right."
Everyone goes quiet for a second.
"You're not wrong about that, but he didn't get the chance to come with us." Vitani sighs.
"He died in a fire just hours before we left to go back to the Pridelands." Mkali says sadly.
Taji gasps and puts her hands over her mouth. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!"
Everyone nods. "Sometimes, I talk to him, and it feels like he's still here," Mkali says. "But enough small talk, let's go tell everyone else that we're here!"
The group heads back into the kingdom of the Tree of Life.
"Guys, I'm back!" Taji called out to her family.
"So, you changed your mind h- ohh, hey Mkali! Misuli! It's good to see you!" Rani says once she walks out of the tree. "Vitani! It's been a while!" She hugs each of the Pridelanders.
"Yeah, 20 years almost." Vitani chuckles.
"So what brings you guys here?" Rani asks.
"Well, I had a promise to uphold, and I was scared that if I didn't, my dad would climb out of his grave and let me have it." Mkali jokes.
Rani laughs. "Very funny. Where is Kion, speaking of which?"
Everyone goes silent. Rani can figure out what's happened. "I'm so sorry for your loss!" She apologizes.
"It's alright. Kion wouldn't want us to grieve over his death." Vitani tells the queen.
"Yeah, you're right about that," Rani says. "There's never going to be another lion like him."
"Another lion like who?" Baliyo asks when the rest of the Night Pride comes back from dealing with a disagreement between two groups of lemurs over bamboo.
Rani quickly recounts why Mkali, Misuli, and Vitani are there and what they were just talking about to the Night Pride.
"He's dead!? Mom, from the stories you told us about him, you made it sound like he was immortal!" Simko says.
"There were only so many times that he was gonna be able to beat death," Vitani says to them. "He wouldn't want us to mourn his death. He'd want us to celebrate the memories that we have shared with him."
Everyone else nods their heads in agreement. Mkali sees out of the corner of his eye that Tamaa is eyeing Misuli. He immediately is able to figure out what's going on in his head.
"Misuli's gonna have to make the first move," He thought to himself.
Taji taps Mkali on the shoulder and signals for him to follow her. The two slip away using their skills in stealth that they have accumulated over the years. Once far enough away, the two run to the river of patience.
"Lots of good memories at this spot," Mkali says.
Taji smiles at him, "And plenty more to come."
They lock eyes, and then they kiss.
"I love you," they say at the same time. They both laugh.
A bush starts rustling behind them. Mkali and Taji both snap their heads over to where the sound came from. The two of them know what to do in this situation. They both creep towards the bush. Unbenounced to them, there is a group of about 9 lions right behind them. One of them grabs Taji and throws her at a nearby tree. Her head bounces off of the bark. This knocks her unconscious.
"TAJI!" Mkali screams.
The rest of the lions tackle Mkali and pin him to the ground. Mkali tires to make his scar glow so he can fight them off, but it wouldn't work for whatever reason.
"WHO ARE YOU GUYS!?" Mkali demanded.
"Oh, C'mon Mkali. You really mean to tell me you don't recognize your uncle?" A lion with light golden fur, a light brown mane, and green eyes says to him.
Mkali immediately recognizes the Lion. "KOPA!" Mkali snarls.
_______________________________________
There's Part 27 for you guys! I'm going to be honest, this was a hard part to write, and I apologize for putting it up late. I'll try to get another part up today, then another tomorrow. Thank you guys so much for reading. Recommendations are welcome, as usual. Thank you guys so much for reading, and have a good one!