You Better Know What You're Fighting For

Chapter One - Restless

It was quiet in Pride Rock. The moon was out, the stars glittering bright in the pitch black sky. The birds had gone to sleep, almost every animal tucked up in bed and asleep. There was no sound outside beyond the rushing of water from a stream, a river, perhaps a waterfall. The sounds Kion most enjoyed. But they didn't reach his ears. Kion could hardly hear anything - Occasionally, he had to tap his claws against the ground, creating soft clicking noises, just to ensure he wasn't deaf. The usual snores from his father were surprisingly absent, and Kion, who was usually quite annoyed at the noise, was more irritated that it wasn't there to lull him to sleep. The silence was unsettling, so unsettling that Kion found it hard to drift off. Every time he closed his eyes, he just saw the pitch black darkness, and heard nothing. Not the best thing to fall asleep to.

Kion carefully drew his paws under him, trying to stay as silent as possible so not to awake his family. The golden cub heaved himself to his paws with a quiet huff, turning his amber gaze toward his family briefly. Nala lay curled beside his siblings - Kiara, Kila, and Kopa, who all slept soundly. Simba was curled around them all, his huge frame casting shadows over the moonlit cave. Kion stood a few feet away, where he'd been laying before. He had curled beside his siblings to begin with, but moved when he became restless, not wanting to wake them.

He often had nights like this, nights where he couldn't sleep. Where he lay awake staring into the darkness, left alone to his thoughts. Where he would try to get to sleep, but each futile attempt somehow fueled whatever it was keeping him awake. Blinking his amber eyes to clear his vision a bit, Kion turned on his paws and headed for the entrance, ducking out into the cool night air. It was usually awfully hot in the Savannah at daytime - The nighttime is what Kion relished most, when the wind was much more chill, and the heat of the sun was gone. The young leader fluffed out his fur slightly against the wind and padded forward a bit, his gaze tracing the Pridelands from where he stood atop the rock, taking it all in. He could name every place his gaze trailed over, having memorized the Pridelands by heart.

The cub's lips twitched into the smallest of smiles, settling down on the cool stone and stretching his front paws out in front of him briefly, looking ahead toward the desert. Where his good friend, Chaka, lived. Chaka ran his own Empire, an Empire Kion quite liked. Besides his father, he could easily say that Chaka was possible the best ruler he knew - He was fair, kind, calm, and his subjects simply adored him. Often, his grey friend would ask him if he ever considered making his own Kingdom, and Kion replied negatively. Why would he want to rule? For him, leading was a big enough responsibility. Being in charge of the Guard and looking after the Circle of Life, the safety of the Pridelands... Kion loved it, but he could never imagine having to be King.

Sometimes, Chaka would muse to him that he might as well be ruling the Pridelands with as much as he worked to protect it. Kion never saw the similarities. To him, Kiara had it much harder. She was training to be Queen. She had the entire Pridelands and every single animal to think about, to rule over. Kion had several duties, and perhaps they were a bit similar, but there was a difference where it counted, right?

After all, titles mattered, too. Kiara would be officially considered Queen. Kion was officially considered the leader of the Lion Guard, nothing more. Yes, he was a Prince, and should something happen to either of his sisters, he would step up as heir to the throne. But part of Kion's job was ensuring nothing like that happened, and he was going to do his very best to make sure it didn't.

Sighing, the golden cub flicked his ears forward, a small smile appearing on his face as he stretched out slightly. It was a peaceful night, and despite not liking the silence, he was glad nobody was in trouble, nobody was hurt. It was a great feeling to have, to know the Pridelands were safe.

Because of me. Because of us. Kion's smile widened ever so slightly at the thought, his eyes slipping shut for a second. Maybe he could lull himself to sleep with the thoughts of the Pridelands being safe from harm. Perhaps that was why he had trouble sleeping? Perhaps he felt like he had to be awake to protect them?