The Lion King Fan Fiction ❯ The Circle of Life ❯ Reborn ( Chapter 1 )

Disclaimer: Obviously, I don't own The Lion King. Disney owns that. But I do own the original plot elements and Original Characters that pop in the story that aren't canon to the Lion King universe to begin with. With that said, enjoy the story.

---

Chapter 1: Reborn

I remember going to bed and closing my eyes. And when I did fall asleep, there was nothing but blank dreams, black voids of nothingness. Well, I suppose there was a peaceful feeling, but it was just a normal sleep until I felt something warm and soft around me. The instant I felt this, I tried opening my eyes. It took a few tries but I soon opened them to feeling something warm lightly brushing against my cheek. What I saw was astounding -- it was strange, but not in the least bit frightening.

A tawny, almost creamy furred lion was sniffing at me, its brown-red eyes staring at me with a warm, loving gaze.

It didn't register in my brain what was happening or where I was at. All I thought or knew was that this was a dream and I couldn't get hurt..

The lion sniffed at me, running its tongue over me while I laid here. Everything felt peaceful, calm even. I felt something equally warm stirring beside me, but it didn't seem to phase me. I felt at peace like this. If it meant I was a lion in this dream, so be it. Being a lion wouldn't be so bad, would it? After all, they’re amazing creatures.

Inhaling brought the wonderful scent of flowers and trees, pretty much from what I glimpsed briefly, this entire area of my dream was nothing but nature. I heard birds chirping and various animals making noises nearby. I felt the softness of the mother lion's pale creamy fur as she held me and the other mass of fur against the side of her belly.

The longer I laid here, the dizzier I felt. The dark blankness inside my mind gave me the sensation of the world around me spinning, rocking back and forth.

Accompanying the dizzifying sensations was a sense of comfort oddly enough. And a deep thrumming could be heard from within the chest of the Mother Lion and it brought about a sense of safety within me as I just curled even more into the warmth of her body. The mass of fur beside me did the same, though unfortunate for me, I felt something lightly kicking my backside.

It must be my younger brother. He must be trying to wake me up for school again. If only I could wake up long enough to tell him off and just enjoy this dream for a few more minutes.

"They're beautiful, Sarabi." Said a soft voice from nearby, sounded much like a female. The name sounded off in my head, it sounded familiar, but where had I heard it before?

Sarabi...?

Even though I questioned the familiarity of the name, my hazy mind forced me to remain asleep. I was far too tired to wake myself up, let alone bring myself to look back at the face I had glimpsed earlier. I needed my beauty sleep apparently.

A deep rumble grew from her throat as she purred and Sarabi, who was obviously the Mother Lion, my mother in this dream, chuckled. Her tongue met with my cheek again, only this time, it traveled down the entire length of my body, the sensation wasn't hard enough to rouse me, it was more of a "comforting and nurturing," kind of thing, a motherly thing. Usually, if anyone else tried that in real life, I would've slapped them so hard, they'd be seeing stars, and I might have called the authorities. This was a dream, and nothing could harm me in a dream, can it?

"Thank you, Uma." Sarabi purred.

I couldn't help feeling the same joy she felt as I breathed in her scent. It smelled like milk and cat, like wild cats, not that I had ever come in contact with a real live wildcat. But I guess this is what I imagined a female lion would smell like so it is what it is.

With that final thought, I breathed in deep and fell deeper into this dreamless haze. It wasn't long before I finally fell asleep once more.

---
It seemed like an eternity as I slipped in and out of sleep. And throughout this infantile sleep, I did glimpse a few more faces, and just like with the Mother Lion, or Sarabi as she was called, the other faces were also feline. Although I couldn't tell you the names of each of the lions I had glimpsed, I could definitely say they were all lionesses, female lions.

This little den of a cave was full of nothing, but stones, and lionesses. Of course, shafts of sunlight peeked out in places, giving this cave just enough light for everyone to see by. Despite me being able to see (even if I couldn't keep my eyes open for very long), my vision was still a bit blurry. One of the faces I did glimpse was the face of a golden-furred lion cub fast asleep beside me (I wonder if he was someone dreaming he was a lion, too?). I could never stay awake long enough to see him wake up, but it didn't matter. I needed all the sleep I could get in between feedings.

--
One day as the two of us were nestled against Sarabi's belly, her hind feet keeping us in the safety and warmth of her side, a new smell met my nose. It smelled a bit different than the Mother Lion. It was hard to place this smell, but it was enough to rouse me from my slumber. A deep voice accompanied this new smell, speaking softly but still strong enough to resonate with such emotions.

"I came as soon as I heard, dear Sarabi."

Wait, since when did James Earl Jones enter my dreams?

"Mufasa." She purred at him, and Sarabi shifted her body just enough so as not to disturb us too much and just from the  happiness radiating off of her, I could tell she was smiling (if it were possible for lions to smile). "Come, meet your children, my beloved husband."

(Wouldn't the proper term be mate?) I was starting to question the logic of this dream, and whether or not I was still dreaming. But as I heard this Mufasa purr deeply at the mother lion, I soon felt her warm tongue running over the back of my head before she did the same to the other lion cub.

As soon as I opened my eyes, I was greeted with a pair of red-brown eyes that wasn't the Mother Lion's. Instead, it was a golden-furred male lion with a dark auburn mane. He seemed to smile as he saw me looking at him and his smile grew wider still for the lion cub beside me stirred, twisting himself onto his back.

"Such lovely cubs, love. Just beautiful." Mufasa murmured. The lion leaned closer and nudged us both lovingly with his cold, brown nose. I almost wanted to swipe at him for doing that but he meant no harm and I was far too tired to do anything beyond looking at him.

I saw the two lions rub their heads together in what some might call a lion hug, purrs rumbling from both of their throats, but the purring sounds soon ceased as Mufasa spoke again.

"And what should we name our beautiful children?"

That question hung in the air for a few seconds as Sarabi tilted her head in thought. I could only tell by how her body shifted slightly that she had done so. Finally, she spoke, returning the question.

"What about you, do you have any ideas?" She asked softly as I curled back into her body.

I wanted to tell them my real name, my human name, but the sleepiness of being a newly born lion cub was overwhelming me once more.

The last thing I heard from my Lion Father were three words, two names. "Simba and Amara."

Amara, huh? I guess that was close enough, were my final thoughts as I slowly drifted back to sleep.

"Lovely names for our children." Sarabi purred softly.

"Yes, may they grow up strong and healthy." Added Mufasa as I slipped back into the darkness.