Life After The Fall

Her First Kill

Just so everyone knows, this fanfic is of the Pride as anthromorphic animal-people (except for prey animals cuz, let's face it, lion people eating herbivore-people is just plain wrong and borderline cannibalistic), though they still live where the originals did. Enjoy!

                "Now that you can feel it all," Kovu whispered from the grass beside her, "what are you going to do?"

                "Um, I think I'm going to--"

                "No," Kovu interrupted. "You are taking the lead. You are the queen, and I follow your orders. It's your job to come up with the game plan and mine to follow through." He sighed. "Don't think: Feel."

                Kiara nodded, then, instead of closing her eyes, surveyed the land and the prey. Zebra... wildabeests.... water buffalo....

                Her eyes flitted to the herd of zebra, a mass of black and white, each individual identical, indistinguishable... except....

                "There," she whispered, pointing. A zebra, not so old to be completely weak, far from it, but his  left rear-leg appeared to be broken. He trod with a prominent limp and appeared to be in great pain. It would no doubt kill him one day and, until then, he would be in excruciating pain. "In the back. The lame one."

                Kovu squinted.

                "I don't see. You'll have to show me."

                She pointed again.

                "There," she insisted. "At the back near the foals."

                Kovu sighed.

                "I don't see which one you want, Princess," he said. "I'll just have to follow you in."

                Kiara's heart leapt into her throat. Her? Take the lead? On a hunt? Was he insane?

                "I thought we were just scoping!" she whispered.

                "Kiara," he whispered back. "This is your chance to prove your father wrong. And not only that, but you can actually participate in the next group hunt and prove to them that you're not the simpering cub Zira told them you were, but the strong-willed, determined and brave princess I know you to be."

                "She really said I was a simpering cub?" she asked quietly. Kovu groaned.

                "Really, Kiara? Why are you so obsessed with what Zira thought of you?"

                The princess looked away.

                "You're right," she said, her voice strong and determined. "I need to do this."

                She sank down into a crouch and started forward. Kovu followed suit, spear in hand. As a young zebra pranced around too close for comfort, Kiara froze, cursing her wild red hair; it was part of the reason that her first hunting trip had gone so embarassingly wrong. It was just so red, like a flame on the savannah.

                Quickly, instinctively, she grabbed a handfull of the long, green grass and covered her head with it. Glancing back at Kovu, she saw him smile at her efficient use of the weeds. The young zebra trotted away, never the wiser to the presence of the hunters.

                Kiara started forward again, crawling towards the lame zebra. At the back of the herd, he grazed, ignored by his companions and bothered by the flies that his tail swatted at.