Hearts Never Lie

A/N: Finally! I'm done with this chapter. I usually write down the chapters of this story in a journal, and then I type it up. But, since my parents don't want me writing stories on Sunday, and I can't seem to stop writing wherever I am, no matter the time of day, I can only write this story on Sundays, when my parents can keep an eye on me and what I'm writing. But also, since Sunday is considered Family Day, I can't be writing on my own all day. And I can't think unless I have my tunes and I'm by myself.

But that's all my personal problems. I love my family, though. At least this chapter is done, and now, you guys can read it. So, let's get on with the long awaited Chapter 3. Roll it!

Chapter 3

Hiding Euphoria

The next day, the royal family was getting ready for their day. Kiara had finished grooming herself and was about to leave when she saw that Kion was still sleeping at his usual spot near the entrance. The sight of her usually vigilant younger brother still snoozing peacefully puzzled her.

She quietly came over to him and nudged him lightly with her paw. "Kion?" She asked.

The teenage lion grunted slightly from her little push and drearily blinked open his eyes to look up at her. "Oh. Morning, Kiara." He yawned.

"Had a long night patrolling?" Kiara asked him.

Kion bit the inside of his cheek lightly, because of his sharp teeth, to keep himself from having a giddy grin form on his face. He stayed out a little longer last night because of Jasiri.

"Something like that." He answered. "Everything was pretty calm." He then stood up and shook his fur while stretching out his stiff limbs.

"Yeah, it's been pretty calm for the past few weeks." Kiara said, looking around the perimeter of Pride Rock. "Not that I'm complaining."

"I hear you." Kion agreed. "Well, I gotta go. Just because it's kind of quiet now doesn't mean that there's some kind of trouble somewhere."

Kiara nodded in understanding. "At least have something to eat first." She said, gesturing with her head inside the main cave. "We still have some zebra from last night's hunt."

Kion nodded at her, feeling his stomach beginning to rumble. "Okay." He said.

He went inside the cave and over to the large pile of meat that was there. He tore away a big enough piece for him and quickly ate it. The minute that he was done, he took off and out of the cave with a little sunny smile on his face.

"See ya later, Kiara." He called to his sister as he headed towards the Lion Guard Lair, quietly humming a tune under his breath.

Kiara smiled at her brother as he headed down the side of Pride Rock. She was happy that she and Kion were on better terms than when they were younger. But still, she had a feeling that Kion was hiding something. A few times every month, he would seem particularly excited about something, always watching the sky as it turned dark. What it was, she wasn't exactly sure.

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Kion had entered the Lair with a giddy smile on his face, his eyes almost starry. He couldn't wait until nightfall to see Jasiri again.

"What's gotten you so happy?" A voice asked, making Kion jump. He turned to see the Guard looking at him curiously.

It was Fuli who asked him the question. She had grown into a very pretty cheetah, being as tall as Kion himself, her spots much darker and still as lithe and slender as expected for a teenage cheetah.

Kion looked almost like he was caught in a trap, but then quickly relaxed. The Guard knew about his meetings with Jasiri, but they did tease him about it from time to time, though it was mostly Bunga who did the teasing. But if they ever learned about their little promise they made last night, their teasing was going to get worse.

"I just....had a good time with Jasiri last night." He answered Fuli. It technically was the truth, to an extent. But that moment that they shared was a little too personal to share for the moment. It was best to keep it to himself for now.

"And how good was it?" Bunga asked him, his eyebrows wiggling at his best friend.

Bunga was now up to Kion's shoulders, and his quills and claws were longer. He was also a bit more muscular on his upper arms.

Kion thankfully resisted the urge to blush and lightly jabbed his best friend in the stomach with his paw. "Just fine." He growled slightly before he headed towards where Rafiki's paintings were.

"Don't tease him, Bunga." Beshte said to the honey badger. He had grown into a gentle giant, with a longer tuft of hair on his head. And he was still the biggest member of the Lion Guard. "He and Jasiri are close friends."

"Yeah, very close." Bunga continued to tease, making Kion tense up again, but the teenage lion still kept quiet with his back turned to his friends. The heat that was in his face was starting to make itself visible, but he took a couple of deep breaths to dispel the warmth.

"Knock it off, Bunga." Fuli said. "Remember, we have patrol, and we don't need to tease Kion. Unless you want the entire Pride Lands to know about Jasiri."

Bunga was silent for a few seconds. "Yeah, that's not a good idea." He said.

"Yeah." Fuli said. "So knock it off."

"I think he gets it, Fuli." Kion said, turning back towards them. "So, who's ready for patrol?"

"We're ready when you are, Kion." Ono answered. The egret was now taller, almost the same size as Bunga. But he wasn't changed very much, with just his legs and head feathers longer, though he was still very reliable.

Kion smiled at his team. "Then let's get going, Lion Guard." He said. With that, the Guard left the Lair to patrol the Pride Lands.

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Deep within the dry Outlands, Jasiri was already up for the day and was now patrolling her clan's territory. Ever since their enemies discovered them and of their alliance with the Lion Guard, they had to be extra cautious to make sure that they weren't found again.

Her older sister, Madoa, was with her, helping to patrol the area. She looked somewhat similar to Jasiri, except her fur and mane had no purple tints in them, and her eyes were soft and brown.

Madoa curiously eyed Jasiri walking next to her. She seemed quite happy today, not that she was complaining. She always seemed so sunny during the couple of days when the moon was at its fullest in the night. Most likely, because of Kion and that she would see him.

But this time, Jasiri seemed to be smiling more than usual. Not the trademark mischievous smirk when she is teasing or challenging someone, but a more genuine, gentle grin. And she was even humming a cheerful tune under her breath. It seemed that last night's visit was much more pleasant than usual if she was acting like this.

"You seem happy today." Madoa said, getting her sister's attention.

Jasiri briefly stopped in her tracks at her sister's words, her humming having been paused. "I just....had a good time with Kion last night." She answered.

"Huh." Madoa mused, not sure if that was the whole story. "How good was it?" She asked.

Jasiri felt her face growing warm, but she still managed to keep a neutral look. "It was good." She replied. "I just miss him a lot through the month when the moon's not full."

Madoa still wasn't convinced about her sister's answer, but didn't press on further. "Okay." She said simply. "Are you meeting him again tonight?"

"Yeah. The full moon lasts about three nights." Jasiri replied. "Hopefully, we can one day figure out a plan to bring peace between the Pride Lands and the Outlands, once and for all. It's the least we could do for the Lion Guard since they've done so much for us."

Madoa still had a feeling that there was some other reason to end this war, for her sister, but she didn't press any further on the subject because she knew that her stubborn younger sister would just continue to deny or avoid the question. She also hoped that the war would come to an end soon, and that the Outlands and Pride Lands would rest easy.

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Later that night, in the shadows of the Pride Lands, Kion and Jasiri were just past the border of Flat Ridge Rock, nuzzling each other, basking in their newly discovered feelings for each other. They didn't speak for a while, for their smiles spoke for them when they saw each other.

Soon, the nuzzles paused as they both began to discuss some ideas on how to end the war that inflicts the Pride Lands and the Outlands.

"We can't wait for the army to attack again." Kion said. "And I really don't want the Hyena Resistance to go on another reconnaissance mission. It's too risky."

"Don't worry about us, tough guy." Jasiri assured him with a little nuzzle under his chin. "We can hold our own."

Kion returned the nuzzle. "I know." He said.

They soon ended the nuzzling session. "But you do have a point." She said. "We can't keep waiting for them to attack us."

Kion nodded. "We would be giving them what they want." He added.

Jasiri then thought of something. "Then maybe, we should make the first move for a change." She suggested.

Kion paused. "Invade?" He asked her. "I'm not sure about that."

"I know how you feel about this, Kion." Jasiri said. "But it does look like we're running out of options."

"But we don't know how we can beat him for good." Kion answered back doubtfully. "I don't know if he even can be beat."

"Kion." Jasiri said, cutting him off. "I may not know how to answer that, but I do know that you did many things that seemed crazy or impossible because you stayed true to yourself. Maybe soon, if you know who to turn to, you can find a way to defeat him for good."

Kion looked at her with surprise, touched that she believed in him so strongly. He gently nuzzled her, and she returned it. "When did you have this kind of faith?" He asked.

"Well, when you hang out with an annoyingly optimistic lion a lot, you get to be a bit like said lion." She answered teasingly.

Both of them chuckled as they continued to nuzzle each other affectionately, and they once again fell into a comfortable silence. But soon, they saw that the moon was beginning to descend from its highest point in the sky. They shared a brief sad look, knowing that their time was up.

"Someday, this will end for good." Jasiri said softly. "And then, no more hiding."

Kion nodded, and nuzzled her face gently. "No more hiding." He repeated.

Jasiri returned the nuzzle, though she wished that she could stay longer with him. After a few more seconds of affectionate nuzzling, they broke away.

"See you tomorrow." Kion said to her.

"Tomorrow." Jasiri answered back fondly.

Then, she took off back towards the Outlands, Kion longingly watching her as she did so. When she was out of sight, he turned around and headed back to Pride Rock in the distance.

But what they didn't know was that they were being watched. Two colorful little skinks; one of them a bold red and black, and the other one pale orange and blue, had seen the entire thing from a nearby tree, and they looked at each other with pure shock at the somewhat loving interaction between the teenaged lion and hyena. It seems that their master would definitely want to hear about this.

Without a word, they got off the tree they were listening from, and quietly and quickly skittered off towards the volcano deep in the Outlands.

A/N: Yeah. Now from here on, it's where things are going to get...not necessarily complicated, but definitely interesting, to put it lightly. Their secret won't be a secret for long.

Well, hopefully I won't take so long for the next chapter. But no promises, since I have lots of other projects, I'll be taking college classes online pretty soon, and of course, you never know what life is going to throw at you. Especially because of COVID-19.

I'll see y'all! Please leave a review about what you think, and keep healthy.

Got to fly! ;)