New Beginnings

Chapter twenty one

Kovu sat next to his still sleeping mate and an uneasy frown crossed his face as he stared at her stomach, where his cubs would grow for five months. At first the idea of Kiara becoming pregnant was a good one since it would force Simba to push their coronation date closer so he could become King, but then a new thought occured to him, one that would most likely lead to his downfall if he wasn't careful.

If Kiara got pregnant and anyone from the outlands found out, so will his enemies and if his enemies found out that his mate was pregnant with his cubs, they would abduct Kiara and use her as leverage over Kovu and that would force his to give up everything in exchange for releasing Kiara. 

"How could I be so foolish and so blind!" Kovu said to himself in frustration as he paced the outside of the cave. "How could I not see this? Of course those bastards would want to use Kiara and our cub as leverage over me, knowing full and well that I would do whatever they wanted to ensure their safety, how could I be so stupid?!"

Not knowing that he was being watched by unseen eyes, Kovu began to pace and mutter to himself as he tries to figure out how to turn the situation over in his favour. Suddenly  Kovu whirled around upon hearing a twig snap behind him and saw his parents, Simba and Nala emerge from a bush.  

Kovu's breath hitched in his throat. He hoped they didn't hear what he had just said about Kiara being pregnant or anything about his enemies, they couldn't know his plans; not yet. If they did, everything Kovu had worked to achieve in the past three years would go down the drain and he would be better off dead.

But the look he received from Simba made his heart sank as he realized they indeed HAD heard what he had said. He inhaled sharply through his nose as Simba advanced upon him, his red eyes blazing. 

"You got my daughter pregnant without my permission?" he asked dangerously low as he stopped and gazed into Kovu's eyes. When Kovu didn't answer, Simba growled and stepped closer and Kovu took two steps back, not wanting Simba so close to his face.

Taking a deep breath, Kovu gazed into Simba's livid face and prepared to at least give him an explanation. But before he could open his mouth, he heard a yawn behind him and turned around and saw Kiara emerge from the cave, rubbing her eyes with her paw. She walked up to the group and stood next to her mate and looked at her father, still rubbing her eyes from her long sleep.

"Father what's wrong? Why are you being so antagonistic to Kovu? I asked him to do it, I was in heat for two days now and him being my mate, I asked him to come in and relieve me of the pain," she said calmly. Simba looked at Kovu once more and his expression softened considerably.

"Is this true Kovu? Kiara was in heat and you got her pregnant by her consent?" Kovu nodded in affirmation and Simba sighed and stepped back and Kovu visibly relaxed.

"Well  since Kiara is now pregnant, I have no choice but for the both of you to get married and take the throne as soon as possible. The law states that if the princess gets pregnant before she is crowned Queen, her coronation must happen immediately," Simba said as Nala came and sat next to him, her eyes lit with immense joy at the thought of her becoming a grandmother. 

Kovu smiled at this. He and Kiara would  get married and take the throne. The only thing wrong with the whole thing was the chance of the outlanders or anyone else finding out about Kiara's pregnancy. He would have to be extremely careful so no one would find out, if they did, he and his pride and everyone else would be doomed. Discretion was crucial. 

Diana walked up to Kiara and gave her a hug as to congratulate her on her pregnancy and Nala, Simba and Burnt Eboney did the same. They engaged in small talk for a brief moment before they all decided to head back to Pride Rock.