Cub trouble

This story is done by The-Rootbeer-Queen
== Summary ==
When their parents are away for a long hunting trip and diplomatic purposes, the cubs left behind take advantage of the situation to cause trouble.
== Characters ==
=== Main characters ===
Nyota
Mkali
Wawindajii
Pippi
Upendi 
Mamba 
Kaka
Duma
Dada
Haraka
Misuli
Oregano
Bungalow
Rikki
Lindo
Kage
=== Minor characters ===
Kion
Jasiri
Bunga
Ono
Beshte
Fuli
Vitani
Kovu
Kiara
Simba
Nala
Tiifu
Zuri
Rika
== Story ==
"Now, remember to stay together. If anyone gets hurt, you go tell one of the adults. Do not touch anything you wouldn't touch or do anything you wouldn't do if we were there. Remember to think before doing anything... stay away from pointy objects..." Vitani lectured, she looked worriedly down at her six cubs. Upendi, Mamba, Kaka, Duma, Dada, and Haraka all sighed as they listened to their mother lecture for the millionth time what was to be expected while she, Fuli, and most of the other adults were away. It was okay the first few times, after all.. this was the first time they would be away for so long. But somewhere around the eighth time listening to the same lecture, the cubs had stopped paying attention. Fuli watched them, a slight smirk on her face.
"Now Vitani, I think they would have gotten it by now. Don't you think lecturing them every few seconds is a bit much?" She laughed as she walked over and teasingly nuzzled her mate. Vitani smiled, but the worry didn't leave her gaze.
"I'm just so worried about what could happen... I've never left my babies alone for so long!" Vitani said.
"Don't forget their my babies too. I trust them enough to take care of themselves. Especially with Upendi being there. She'll keep them out of trouble." Fuli said as she ruffled Upendi's strangely longer fur on her head. Upendi smiled. Oh she was going to keep an eye on them... They could count on that. Still not looking quite satisfied, Vitani opened her mouth one more time to voice her worries.
"Don't worry mom. I'll keep them safe from whatever harm that may come!" Haraka cried proudly, puffing his chest out.
"Me too! I can keep them safe too!" Mamba said excitedly, trying to match Haraka's strong demeanor.
"And I'll be sure to let you know if anything went wrong!" Upendi said assuredly.
"Yeah! And I'm so fast, I don't think anyone could ever even touch me!" Duma piped in.
"Mew!" Dada cried in agreement, her toungue subconsciously sticking out. Vitani looked down at each of her children happily. She sighed finally.
"Okay, okay... I guess I've been a little bit over protective. Most likely things will be fine... right?" Vitani said. All of the cubs nodded eagerly.
"Come on. I think it's about time we got you to aunty Tiifu and aunty Zuri." Fuli told them. Vitani nodded and the two led the excited cubs out of the cave.
**** mean while *****
"Sis, come on, we're all waiting on you." Kion called to his sister, Kiara, the current queen of the pridelands.
"I'm coming, just a second." Kiara called back. She turned to her three cubs, who were also in the middle of a lecture session. Wawindajii and Samaki were listening intently, while Pippi had a scowl on her face, slouching slightly. She was so done with the whole 'lecture' thing. She just wanted to get out there and enjoy her freedom from the constant attention of the adults.
"Remember Daj, you're going to be acting king while we're away. I need to be able to count on you." Kiara said to her eldest and only son. 'Daj', for that was one of his many nicknames, only nodded.
"I'll make you proud mom." He said. Kiara was flooded with relief and she chuckled.
"I'm sure you will." She said warmly. She looked over at her middle child, and frowned slightly. "Pippi, remember to sit up straight. You are a princess, act like it." She scolded. Pippi sat up and put on a fake smile. Kiara sighed. "Pippi, listen. This is serious. How you act while we are away will determine how many opportunities we can leave you alone for in the future." Kiara said. Pippi's eyes widened and she nodded intently. If that was the case, then she didn't want to blow this. She enjoyed all the times her parents were away, she was free to hang out and do what she wanted. Kovu strolled in.
"We really need to go now. The children know what is expected of them. I'm sure everything will be just fine." Kovu remarked to her. Kiara nodded.
"All right. Come on, let's get you three to Aunt Tiifu and Aunt Zuri." She said and led them away. But just before leaving, Pippi paused and looked up at her father.
"So... how long will you be gone again?" She asked him. Kovu merely chuckled.
"A good three days, depending on how long it takes us." He told her. Pippi nodded thinking.
"Oh.. will that be from morning to night or..?" She asked him.
"How about you get going so your mother and I can begin?" He asked her with a patient smile. Pippi nodded and hurried after her mother, with Kovu right behind her.
*********
"Can you believe that they're leaving to go on Royalty buisiness and we're left to watch the cubs?!" Zuri snapped at her friend. The peach colored lioness was laying down, her back against the rocky wall. And she did not look happy.
"I dunno, I enjoy spending time with them. I know my little Oregano does too." Tiifu replied, lying a little ways away with her head on her paws. A look-a-like small male lion cub curled up next to her, snuggling into her chest. Zuri scoffed.
"Of course you do. How you can even stand the little things... Always so hyper and crazy... always running off somewhere.. getting into trouble.. getting you dirty.. demanding... always breaking my nails.." Zuri muttered. Tiifu chuckled.
"Aww, they aren't so bad. Your just a sour grumpypuss." Tiifu said teasingly. Zuri immediately looked annoyed.
"I am not!" She cried. "I just don't know how to deal with all they shouting.. and- and- the pouncing... and all the questions... and the 'never-leaving-me-aloneness'... Ugh! Why do I always have to be the one babysitting! I could think of a million things better to do than watch- ugh- kids." She spat.
"Yep. Sour puss." Tiifu chimed in, a big grin on her face. Zuri glared at her.
" Shut. It." She growled.
"Calm down. I'm just messing with you~" Tiifu said.
"Well quit it. It's getting on my nerves." Zuri grumbled. Which in turn only made Tiifu's smile widen. Tiifu herself may have calmed down and had grown less snobby and hyper active over the years, but she couldn't say the same for Zuri. In fact, if anything, Zuri had grown in snobbiness. She had become a bit ill-tempered, and though she had proved herself a good hunter, but had no idea how to deal with kids. Vitani and Fuli's arrived first with their cubs.
"Hi Tiifu! Zuri! Sorry we're so late. We were held up a bit." Fuli apologized. Tiifu looked up and smiled at the lioness and cheetah.
"It's quite all right. You're actually the first ones here!" Tiifu explained. The cubs left their parents side and hurried over to Aunt Tiifu, saying hello and how excited they were. Tiifu chuckled as they swarmed around her. The little cub at her side opened his eyes and shrank back at the sudden crowd around him. Seeing this, Upendi elbowed her younger brother Haraka. The cheetah gave her a glare and a questioning glance. She nodded to the young cub, and he understood.
"All right guys, calm down. We're scaring Oregano." He said. Instantly, all the cubs backed off. Except for little Dada, who was to young to notice that he was scared. Instead she wobbled over to him and rubbed her head against him. Tiifu's smile grew softer, and Fuli and Vitani looked down at the baby Cheetah fondly. Duma wasn't paying attention, she was looking around the cave excitedly. She and her family lived away from pride rock, and though they came as often as they could, the pride rock cave still excited her. She looked over and saw her aunt Zuri all alone. She grinned and quietly crept up on her. Completely unaware she was being hunted, Zuri put her head on her paws and rolled her eyes. Duma smirked as she saw that she went undetected. She stayed very still.. then pounced on her aunt. The unexpected attack made her jump in surprise. All heads turned to Zuri with Duma clutching on her back.
"Got you Aunty Zuri!" She cried. Zuri tried to smile and act good natured, but it was obvious she was annoyed.
"Ha ha... you sure did... now, how about you get off me?" Zuri asked through gritted teeth. Duma, although unaware of the annoyance and danger she was in, merely nodded and hopped off. Fuli and Vitani shared a glance. Uncertain wether it was a good idea to talk to Zuri about it. But they were stopped when a familiar voice called out; "Zuka Zama!"
Fuli groaned. She didn't even need to turn her head. She knew exactly who it was. Sure enough, Bunga bounced in. His two little bundles of fur following closely after. The twins, Bungalow and Rikki, hopped over to their friends.
"Hey Haraka!" Rikki called.
"Upendi!" Bungalow chimed in.
"Kaka!" Rikki chirped.
"Duma!" Bungalow grinned.
"Mamba!" Rikki laughed. A small little 'mew!' Was heard and they looked down. They chuckled and Rikki picked up the baby Cheetah and nuzzled her.
"And of course little Dada!" Bungalow giggled. Oregano looked around cautiously, but smiled. He hated being crowded, but at least he was with his friends. Rikki looked up and suddenly noticed him.
"Oh hey Oregano!" She said and hopped up to him. Oregano smiled shyly.
"H-hi..." He whispered. Rika walked inside and smiled at Tiifu and Zuri.
"Thanks again for letting Rikki and Bungalow stay. I might not be going with my Bunga, but I do have somewhere to go. I'm going to go visit my family over in the other side." She explained. Bunga wrapped his arm around her.
"Stay safe. But not too safe if you know what I mean." Bunga said giving his children a wink. They giggled.
"Sure thing dad!" Bungalow called. A noise at the mouth of the cave made everyone pause and turn. Kion, Jasiri, Their cubs Mkali and Nyota, Kovu, Kiara, Simba, Nala, Pippi, Wawindajii, and Samaki had arrived. Mkali, Nyota, Pippi, Wawindajii, and Samaki padded over to their friends. The cave was getting a bit crowded with 14 children, 8 full grown lions, two honey badgers, and a Cheetah all in one place. Zuri looked around nervously. She hadn't signed up for watching fourteen kids for three whole days! To make matters worse, Ono and Beshte showed up. Suddenly realizing how crowded it was, the grownups ducked outside to talk. Zuri followed them out, but even she couldn't help but notice that Ono and Beshte had brought their kids as well. She groaned. Not more of them.
"Kanisa, why don't you head inside I'm sure your friends are waiting for you." Ono told his girl. She gave him a wide smile.
"Sure thing dad!" She said and flew inside.
"You too Misuli." Beshte told his son. Misuli smiled and padded in.
"Now we have everyone in here!" Rikki laughed as Kanisa landed and Misuli came to a stop.
"Isn't this going to be great?! We're going to be together for three whole days, and all without adult supervision!" Pippi squealed excitedly. Upendi shook her head and rolled her eyes.
"Well, not entirely without adult supervision. There's still Aunty Tiifu and Aunty Zuri." She reminded her.
"Well yeah, but they hardly count!" Pippi said.
"Three whole days of acting king... isn't that going to be just lovely... while you guys get to play, I have to go do kingly things." Wawindajii sighed. Rikki and Bungalow's eyes lit up.
"Waitwaitwaitwait... your going to be King for the next few days?!" Bungalow cried.
"Yes..?" Wawindajii said uncertainly.
"That's so-" Bungalow began but was interrupted.
"AWESOME!" Rikki cried. Wawindajii looked confused. "Well think about it, you get to tell others what to do, give them kingly advice, and best of all... we get to say that we're best friends with a king!" Rikki said elbowing him.
"Hold up, I don't want to just go around bossing animals around. As king, I must respect all animals and only cut in when I need to. Which rarely happens.. but for some reason I still need to stay up at pride rock all day. I mean, what could possibly happen in just three days that wouldn't happen on any other day?" Wawindajii explained.
"Oh..." Rikki frowned and tapped her chin thinking. She brightened up. "Well if it rarely happens, then I'm sure the pride lands can get along fine if you come hang with us for a while!" She said. Wawindajii tilted his head.
"Um.. i dunno... i might not like it, but its still a big responsibility-" Wawindajii began.
"Oh come on! You said so yourself that things rarely happen, and it would only be for a little while. I mean, what could happen?" Bungalow pressed.
"Well, I guess so... Makes sense." He said.
"Of course it does!" Rikki chuckled. Haraka glanced at his friend nervously.
"Are you sure? I mean, I know that your parents trusting you means alot to you.. and I wouldn't want to lose it over something like this.." He said.
"I wont! They won't even know that I was gone!" Wawindajii said. Samaki looked at her older brother, observing him in her stone cold gaze. She made a mental note to talk to him after everyone was sleeping. Suddenly, their talk was interrupted when Lindo and Kage made their way inside the den. Delighted, Duma raced to meet them.
"So what's the deal? Lindo? Kage? Are you staying too?" Duma asked them.
"Well yeah. I can't exactly go with my mom." Lindo said.
"No, I mean are you going to be staying with Aunty Tiifu and Aunty Zuri as well?" Duma asked.
"Yup!" Lindo pipped up.
"Yep." Kage said.
"How come? Aren't your moms staying too?" Mamba asked.
"Well, yeah.. but my mom is going to go out on a long hunting trip. She's looking forwards to the opportunity." Lindo explained.
"And my mom is heading to a special oasis on the other side of the pride lands for a couple days." Kage told them. All the kids looked at each other.
"And you don't feel... bad..?" Rikki asked hesitantly.
"No? Why would I?" He asked them.
"Well.. no offence Kage... but uh, it kinda seems like your mom just wanted an excuse to stay away for a little while.." Pippi told him. Kage chuckled.
"Oh, she asked if I wanted to go too. That particular oasis is kind of important to her. But she figured I would want to stay here with my friends, and she said she would understand if I didn't want to. And she thought right!" He told them.
"Oh. Well that makes sense." Bungalow said. His sister nodded in agreement.
****** mean while.... *****
Kovu, Kiara, Simba, Nala, Kion, Jasiri, Fuli, Vitani, Zuri, Tiifu, Bunga, Rika, Ono, and Beshte were still talking.
"So, you never really told us exactly where you were going." Zuri pointed out.
"We're going to meet leaders of another pride. It's been a long time since we have met with anyone outside our pride. The last time a meeting took place was just before Scar came into power." Kion told her. Zuri's eyes shone with interest.
"We're hoping to mend our relations with them after so many years of silence and isolation." Simba explained further. 
"Are you sure you don't want me to go?! I would be much more help there than staying here with those..." Zuri grimaced but quickly put on a smile. "Lovely little furballs..." she said politely through clenched teeth. Kiara and Kovu shared a knowing look. Rika chuckled, and Bunga rolled his eyes. It was no secret that Zuri wasn't a huge fan of kids. Kiara rubbed her head against her friends shoulder. 
"Come on Zuri, watching the cubs is just as important. You know how they can be... You'll be doing a real service to the royal family and the people of the pridelands. We know you hate doing this... but it will only make others respect you, how you do your duty even if you hate it." Kiara told her softly, her eyes gleaming. While what she said was true, she also knew that this was the only way to get Zuri to do what they wanted without a fuss. Just as she had hoped, Zuri's eyes began to glitter. 
"Well if you put it that way...I'd be more than happy to watch the little..." she trailled off. She was going to say 'furballs' but felt that this wouldn't be the best way to do it. "The cubs. I'd be more than happy to watch the cubs!" She continued. If Kiara had been a housecat... she would have purred as she sat back smiling with gratitude. Tiifu took a step forwards.
"Dont you worry about your cubs while you're gone. They'll be perfectly fine here with me and Zuri to watch them." She promised. 
"I know they will." Kovu said with a nod. He fully trusted these two to do their job. Vitani bit her lip, she wasn't so sure about Zuri... but there was no time to worry. They would need to leave soon. The adults hurried inside to say one last goodbye to their children, then they left the cave to start their journey. Tiifu, Zuri, and the cubs watched them leave, before turning and heading inside. Zuri turned to follow but hesitated. She took one last look over her shoulder, her eyes wide with hunger, a fire roared in her chest. But she shook herself and went inside, remembering the words Kiara told her. She would just have to deal with it, no matter how much it displeased her.
*******************
With the adults gone and only aunty Zuri and aunty Tiifu to watch them, the cubs exchanged excited glances. Rikki opened her mouth, but she didnt have a chance to make a sound before Zuri's voice rang throughout the cave. 
"All right! Listen up! You're going to be stuck with us for the next three days, so listen up!" She snarlled. Immideately the cubs gave her their full attention. Best to not make her angry. 
work in progress....
Category:Fanfiction
Category:The-Rootbeer-Queen's Content