Love Beyond Reasons

A/N: The last part is done! Enjoy!

Chapter 9

Meet the Outsiders

Part Four

Meanwhile, Kion had pushed himself free from the lionesses' hold, and then paw swiped another one across the face. They growled angrily at the young cub as they managed to corner him.

"Poor Kion." The cub gasped when he saw that Zira had returned with Nuka, Vitani and Kovu. "So helpless without his Roar."

"Mom? What's going on?" Kovu asked as his mother went down to where the others were. He and his siblings followed her. "Kion said he'd talk to Simba about letting us go back to the Pride Lands! Why can't we be friends?"

Zira had to bite back a growl when her son said that. It seemed that he still had a desire to see Princess Kiara again. And if so, Kion can gain an ally in him, and then all her plans will be ruined!

Instead, she just turned to him. "This wasn't my choice, Kovu." She said. "He's the one who chose the hyenas over us."

Kovu shared a brief worried glance with Kion. Just because he's friends with a hyena, who is actually much nicer than the other ones of her kind, doesn't mean he's really an enemy. After all, he and Kiara were friends, so why are Kion and Jasiri that much different, regardless of their species?

"Aren't we worried he'll use that Roar on us?" Nuka asked.

"If he uses the Roar against other lions, he'll lose it forever." Zira explained. "And if he doesn't use the Roar.... Well, he'll just lose. Either way, we win. Without the Roar, Kion is harmless. Without Kion, Simba's Pride Lands are defenseless."

Kion glared at her when she said that. He knew that he could be pretty fierce, with or without the Roar. He had been doing some training.

"Kion's harmless?" Nuka asked. Then, he started to laugh as he got into a pouncing position. "You won't pin me down this time!"

He leaped forward and tried to push Kion down, but the younger cub effortlessly dodged his little attempt to do so, and then headbutted hard into his chest, sending him flying. He crashed near his siblings, face first.

"Nuka, Nuka, Nuka." Vitani sighed.

Zira narrowed her eyes at the golden cub. "This is your last chance, Kion." She said. The lionesses growled at him, making him back up further.

Kion then looked up to the sky and saw a familiar sight. A smile then came on his face. "Zira? I do have something to say." He said. "'Til the Pride Lands end...."

"Lion Guard defend!" The Guard exclaimed. Everyone looked around to see where the voices came from, and then looked towards the entrance to see them, along with Jasiri, charging towards them.

"Surprise!" She exclaimed, laughing.

Fuli was quick to charge and tackled Vitani onto her back, snarling. Ono was flying above, pecking one of the lionesses' heads. She would try to swipe her claws at him, but she would miss. Jasiri was biting at another one, making her run.

"Twende kiboko!" Beshte exclaimed as he roughly pushed aside the last two lionesses. Kion saw his chance and quickly zipped past Zira and charged head-first into the lioness that was trying to swipe at Ono.

"Mother! I'm scared!" Nuka cried.

The Lion Guard, along with Jasiri, quickly gathered all of the Outsiders into one spot. "So, a Lion Guard with just one lion?" Zira asked, making all of the Guard all glare at her fiercely. "Pathetic!" She spat. "Stand tall, my lions. We have this ridiculous group of animals outnumbered."

"Doesn't matter, Zira." Bunga said, and then turned to his best friend. "Go ahead, Kion. Use the Roar!"

Kion looked down at his paws. "I- I can't." He said. "That's how Scar lost the Roar. He used it against lions."

"Pfffft! That's not why he lost it!" Bunga reminded him. "It was 'cause he used it for evil! Remember Rafiki's paintings?"

Kion then recalled the truth of the story. "Of course." He said. "You're right!" He turned to face Zira and her followers.

"No! That's not true." Zira tried to cover up. "I know the Roar's powers. Listen to me, Kion."

"Oh, I've listened to you, Zira." Kion retorted back. "Now, you listen to me. As long as I'm around, you're not welcome in the Pride Lands. Or the Outlands!"

Kovu had a bad feeling about where this was heading. So he quietly inched away from his spot, away from the line of fire.

"You... you wouldn't!" Zira said, knowing that he was about to do. "We're lions!"

But Kion just glared at her before he roared loudly and powerfully. The Lions of the Past appeared in the clouds and roared with the cub. Kovu shielded himself from the gust of wind. But Zira and the rest weren't as lucky, and they were sent flying away into the distance, screaming.

Kovu looked at Kion with amazement, his jaw agape. He did feel a little out of place by the way the others were narrowing their eyes at him. But Kion just walked up to him with a gentle, merciful grin on his face.

"You know, you can come back with us." He said, taking the slightly older cub aback. The other members of the Guard looked at each other with confusion. "If what you said earlier was true, then I think Kiara would really like to see you again, too. Though she does owe me an explanation about how you two met."

Kovu briefly chuckled. "Thanks, Kion, and I really do appreciate it, but...." He looked back to where his family had been blown away to.

Kion saw it and understood. "They are your family. Whether you agree with their ideals or not."

The auburn cub nodded. Kion just smiled. "Well, know that you will always have a friend in me and in my sister." He said. "Maybe one day, things will be different. And you can see her again."

Kovu gave him a small smile. "Thanks, Kion." He said. "It's kind of nice having you and Kiara as friends." Kion returned the smile, and Kovu ran off to follow his family.

***********************

Meanwhile, miles away, the Outsiders had landed roughly back in their termite-infested territory. "Oh, come on!" Nuka whined. "I hate these termites!"

Zira just growled as she looked back towards the directions they were blown from. It seemed that she had underestimated Kion greatly. Well, that hyena friend of his better stick to the plan and stay within his trust circle. Otherwise, she and Kion will pay greatly.

******************************

Back in the canyons a few minutes later, Jasiri's clan was at the watering hole. The pups were playing near the water, while the two older adults were lying on the rocks nearby. Madoa gave Kion an affectionate nuzzle.

"Thank you, Kion." She said.

"Any time, Madoa." Kion replied.

"So you're the other hyena that helped Kion when he was little?" Bunga asked.

Madoa chuckled. "Yes, I am." She said before turning back to Kion. "I'm glad that we have you as a friend."

Kion smiled. "Me, too." He said, before looking back at Jasiri. His stomach felt a little funny when she returned the grin.

"I'm glad to have all of you as friends." She said, looking back towards the other members of the Lion Guard.

"Back at ya, Jasiri." Fuli said.

***************************

Soon, the Lion Guard had returned to the Pride Lands upon saying goodbye to Jasiri and her clan. Along the way, the Guard had explained what they learned about the Outsiders from Rafiki. Kion made a mental note to ask his father about his side of the story. And then he remembered when he and Kiara went to the Outlands when they were younger, particularly when their father told them to stay away from the neighboring land.

But right now, there was someone he really needed to talk to. When they arrived at Pride Rock, he turned to his friends. "Head on back in." He said. "I gotta do something first."

Everyone just nodded, and then went back inside the Lair. Kion went up the rocky slope to the caves inside of Pride Rock. There, he found just who he was looking for, talking to her friends.

"Kiara?" He called to her.

His sister turned to see him. "Hey, Kion." She said. "What's up?"

"Can we talk?" Kion asked. And then, he looked over at Tiifu and Zuri. "Alone?"

"Uh, sure." Kiara said and excused herself from her friends. Then the two siblings headed up to the top of Pride Rock.

"What's going on, Kion?" Kiara asked.

Kion wasn't sure where to start. How can he explain that he met an old friend of hers that lived in the Outlands? And that he wants to see her again? Finally, he took a deep breath. Just say it.

"When I had to solve a problem in the Outlands today, I ran into someone who said that he's an old friend of yours." He said.

Kiara's ears perked up. "Kovu?" She whispered.

"So you really do know him." Kion said. "I won't tell Dad or Mom about it, if that's what you're worried about."

"It's okay, Kion." Kiara said. "Mom and Dad are the only ones in the pride who know about my encounter with Kovu."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Kion asked. "I'm not angry, just curious."

Kiara sighed. "It happened when you and I went into the Outlands back when we were little." She began to explain. "After I lost you, I ran into Kovu. And then, we got into some trouble with a float of crocodiles. We managed to help each other out and get to safety. I thought that we could have been friends, and he was going to help me look for you. But then, Dad and his mom, Zira, appeared. I think you can guess what happened after that."

Kion nodded. "Yeah." He said. There was a stand-off between them, and then they left with their cubs.

"Then, we all found you with those hyenas over at Flat Ridge Rock." She continued. "And you had that scar on your face."

"It was a run-in with jackals." Kion reminded her. "Those hyenas did nothing to me except protect me and get me home."

"I believe you, Kion." Kiara said.

Her brother's brow was raised. "You do?"

She nodded. "Besides, I have a feeling you had a similar experience to mine back then."

Kion rolled his eyes, but there was a smile on his face. "Yeah, I guess so." He said. "Jasiri and her older sister helped me get through the Outlands."

"Oh, is that her name?" Kiara asked, a playful little smile on her face.

"Don't start." Kion muttered, trying to hide a traitorous growing blush. "But yeah, and sometimes, I still see her when there's trouble in the Outlands."

"So you're actually friends with a hyena?" Kiara asked quietly. "If Dad finds out-"

"He'll ground me for a month, and forbid me from ever stepping foot there again, even though I am on the Lion Guard." Kion finished. "Can I actually trust you with this? Only the rest of the Guard knows about Jasiri."

Kiara nodded. "This time, you can trust me." She assured him. "If I managed to keep my meeting with Kovu a secret from Tiifu and Zuri for this long, then I think I can keep yours."

Kion smiled gratefully at his sister. "Thanks, sis." He said.

Kiara returned the smile. "Anytime, bro." She replied.

**************************

Back in the Outlands, Jasiri's family was relaxing by the watering hole. Madoa had the two little pups sleeping beside her, and Jasiri had a whole rock to herself. But then, she caught an unwelcome scent.

She stood from her place on the rock. "Janja." She said.

Her leader came up the water hole. "Nice acting skills, Jasiri." He said, a cruel smile on his face.

Jasiri glared at him. "It wouldn't have been an act if he was hurt in any way." She sniped back, her teeth bared.

Janja rolled his eyes. "That annoying cub can take care of himself." He said. "I should know. I still have some scrapes from the last time we tried to get into the Pride Lands."

Jasiri coldly laughed. "And he keeps kicking your tail right back into the Outlands." She said. "Why do you even bother tangling with him and the Lion Guard?"

"We have to keep them distracted from knowing the true plan." Janja explained. "Then, when the time is right, you and that fuzzy fur ball of Zira's can infiltrate the Pride Lands. And now, it seems that Kion seems to trust him as well."

"He's not like the rest of his family." Jasiri said. "I can tell."

Janja rolled his eyes. "Lion lover." He muttered. But then, he raised his voice to his normal tone. "But I hope you're ready. You might not see Kion again for a while. In the meantime, Zira will be training Kovu. You're gonna start working hard, too."

"Why?" Jasiri asked. "I can already kick your tail."

Janja glared at her. "You're gonna be working double-time around the den from now on." He said. "You won't see that puffball of a prince for a long while. And you're not going to go and get him when you need him if Zira's little scheme is gonna work."

Jasiri growled defiantly at him. But Janja just smirked. "Unless you do want those cute little cubs to starve."

The female hyena looked back towards where the two cubs were sleeping with Madoa. Then, she resumed glaring at Janja. But her leader's smirk only grew deeper. He had her right where he wanted her.

A/N: Okay, I think one more super long chapter after this one, and then, we'll get into the events of the Lion King 2. That chapter will finally clear the air between Kiara and Kion once and for all.

Until then, I'll see y'all! Please leave a comment about what you think.

Got to fly! ;)