The Lion King: Scar's Reign (editing) - Chapter 15 - Goddess_of_Loki (2023)

Chapter Text

When Sarafina went to Scar's den in the hope of finding Scar and Nala, she was surprised to find Shenzi, Banzai and Ed hanging around there with only a few more other hyenas. There was no sign from either Scar or Nala. "I could have known. When the cat's away the mice will play.." she sarcastically opened up her volume. With that she immediately gained the hyenas attention, all looking like they just got caught in the act.

"Oh, it's only you," Shenzi sounded relieved. "I thought I heard Nala's voice." She knew Scar wouldn't approve it if he knew the hyenas chose his place as a hangout whenever he was out.

"Well, I am looking for her," Sarafina responded as she stepped closer..

"She's out with Scar. I thought ya knew that?" Shenzi said.

"It's late. They should've been back by now. I'm going to look for them!" Sarafina called out and attempted to change her words into action.

Quickly Shenzi and Banzai jumped in front of her. "No! No need for.." Shenzi panted.

Sarafina frowned. "I don't get you creatures! Isn't Scar your friend? He could be in danger and yet you're here dancing like you haven't got anything better to do!" She shook her head.

"They're definitely not in any kind of danger.." Shenzi spoke, annoyed. Obviously the hyenas were quite happy with the king's absence. "For once, may we enjoy a day without havin' to deal with the mad lion's insults and commands? I figured you lionesses are the last ones to complain when he's out long.."

Sarafina rolled her eyes. "Not when he drags my daughter along with him!"

Banzai exchanged a look with Shenzi. "By the way, he ordered us to stay away from the..-" he coughed when Shenzi elbowed him roughly.

"Nala is in good um.. hands. Scar will bring her back safely, just trust him for once," Shenzi quickly said, hardly convincing. "Please promise us you won't go lookin' for them!" Shenzi added, since she had no desire in wasting more of their precious time with keeping the lioness on the Lands.

A deep breath was to be heard from out the boned small cage. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but even I miss the black lion now.. These slobbery creatures are unbearable!" Zazu dramatically communicated to Sarafina.

Sarafina showed Zazu a look of pity, but quickly she sat her focus on the hyenas again. "Fine! But if she's not back tomorrow morning, I will!" Then, with showing the hyenas her aversion one more time, Sarafina stormed out of the den.

"You!" Shenzi called out to Zazu. "Ya better make sure Scar ain't allowin' you out of that cage ever again, or I'll make sure you're accidentally eaten!"

Yonder in the elephant graveyard, sleep couldn't really reach Nala yet. She noticed Scar wasn't sleeping yet either. Nala's eyes got drawn to the bright starry night above her. "It's a beautiful night, don't you think?" she dreamily whispered. "A beautiful miracle.."

Now Scar looked up too. "Yes it is. To be honest, I never paid much attention to that before," he responded.

Nala escaped a little smirk before focusing on Scar. "Maybe that's because you rather liked to use your eyes for checking out all the beautiful lionesses that surrounded you!" she slipped her thought.

Scar grinned on his turn. In a short amount of time, this had been Nala's second attempt of challenging him. It surprised Scar how open Nala now spoke to him and he wondered what intentions she had behind it. "You do have a point there. I only have eyes for one lioness, no sky that tops her stunning appearance!" he responded.

"Are you still trying to conquer me with your sweet talks?" Nala hoped the warmth she felt on her cheeks hadn't already transferred into a visible redness.

"Who said I was talking about you?" Scar smiled and directly sighed. "Oh, who I am kidding? Of course I was talking about you.."

Nala smiled nervously and rapidly she gave the stars another glimpse. "Do you ever wonder.." Nala carefully started. "..how Simba had looked like now?"

Slightly disappointed, Scar pinned back his ears. "You do still.. miss him, don't you?" Of course, he couldn't blame her for that.

"He'll always have a special place in my heart, Scar. But something tells me he's in a better place now. Wherever we are, we all are where we are meant to be. Nothing happens without a reason, you know," Nala continued while still staring up.

"I agree. We can't escape our fate.." Scar actually hoped never to be caught up by his own actions from the past.

"I think he's still watching over me," the lioness continued. "Definitely here in the elephant graveyard.." Nala added, vacantly.

"Definitely," Scar said, exploring his mind.I wonder how he thinks about my presence..Scar assumed that after what he did to his nephew, Simba rather liked watching his uncle burn.

"Or perhaps not, because he knows you'll keep me save." Nala spoke no lies about how she now felt about the king's presence. If there was one thing that had developed here on this ugly place, it was Nala's trust in Scar. She sensed that his intentions involved no harm and that he wasn't making an empty promise when he swore to protect her. "I remember how he always talked about what a cool uncle he had! He totally adored you!"

"He did? I've never actually.. realized that.." Scar swallowed and looked down. He tried to hold back some upcoming emotions he had kept so deeply hidden in the past, that he actually believed he never even possessed them in the first place.

"Perhaps I shouldn't have said all this, seen how you feel about the dead," Nala said, apologizing.

"Ah, that.. Sometimes I'm rambling on.. I'm not really afraid of dead elephants."I'm ruling over one giant graveyard anyway..Scar rolled his eyes and shook his head for his own words.Are you done showing her your stupid weaknesses? He sighed deep. "This area is more of a hyena graveyard anyway, not that terrifying.."

Nala chuckled. "You're funny." Then she looked up to him. "Since we're stuck here now, can't you tell me the story about your scar now?" She figured they had some time to kill anyway. "I've heard that it had something to do with a buffalo," she said, frowning.

"Those buffalo's.. Yeah, that's where this scarred story begins," Scar started. "It all started with me and my brother being chased by buffalo's." Scar paused. After the years had passed, parts of this story had become awfully vague that on some point, he could have even started to believe the lies that were spread by others. "You know I hung out with the hyenas and one day we decided to play a prank on Mufasa. We had no intentions of putting him into any kind of danger. You know, Muffy and I, we were young males.." Scar took a deep breath. "Of course, things got out of hand.."

"The animals panicked and.. you guys were trapped in the buffalo herd, right?" Nala imagined Scar's story to be similar to the wildebeest event where Simba and Mufasa, as far as she knew, lost their life's at. "Is that where you got the scar?"

"I came out with a few scratches yes, but nothing time couldn't heal," Scar answered head-shaking. "It was not a buffalo that gave me the scar and I can assure you; it had nothing to do with fighting a serpent either!" Scar took a deep breath after mentioning the rumour brought in life by one of the older lions who liked to bully him. "This.." Scar rubbed his marked eye. ".. is one of my father's lies. This is a mark done by my own father's claw. He let everyone believe it happened during the buffalo thing." Scar paused. "Father went far to make himself look better, over the back of his own flesh and blood." The thought of his father made Scar sharpen his claws. "Besides mother and of course Mufasa, no one knew the truth. I already told you I was Ahadi's unwanted son, a fact he also kept hidden from the kingdom. Mother often argued with him about it." Scar took a glance at Nala, who was hanging on every word he spoke. "Just sit tight, I shall tell you the whole story about the scar."

Flashbacks Taka/Scar:

Taka had his face turned and was avoiding eye contact with the lion he had to address as 'Father'. He knew he couldn't evade the consequences his thoughtless actions had. Earlier Ahadi had promised to go hunting with his sons, but when he failed in fulfilling this promise due other obligations, Taka's jealousy grew again. Although Ahadi this time had disappointed his other son too, it took Taka back to times when, in his eyes, Mufasa got favoured by their father. Mufasa and Taka eventually went without their father, but Taka now had a double agenda. He let his hyena friends join them and earlier he requested them to madden the buffalo's. On top of that he challenged Mufasa to try and catch one of the weaker buffalo's.

"You've jeopardized your brother's safety!" Ahadi called out to Taka. He took a deep breath. "Why are you such a disappointment?" he whispered beyond his son's hearing reach.

"I.. I didn't mean to harm him. Believe me, father!" Taka stuttered. "It was a joke!"

Now Ahadi moved himself closer to Taka, who automatically got forced to take a few steps backwards towards the cave's walls. "A joke? You are the joke!" Ahadi yelled without hiding the aversion he felt for his son.

Ahadi minimized the space between the two of them and a shiver went through Taka's body when his back hit the wall behind him. It wasn't the first time the strong lion had trapped his youngest son between himself and the walls. "Mufasa wouldn't even think of hanging out with a bunch of worthless hyenas!"

His father's words awakened a part of the rage Taka had kept hidden deeply inside of him for a long time. "That's what I am to you right, a worthless bastard?" He gathered all his strength to raise again, facing his father with a look worth to kill. "I hate you! I hate Mu..- ARGH!"

In an impulse of anger Ahadi had lashed out his claw and before he knew it, with a hard smack he hit Taka on his left eye. "Know your place!"

Immediately Taka covered up his eye as a loud roar entered the cave. "Get away from my son!" Uru's voice sounded. Instantly she jumped in between the two male lions.

Ahadi looked from his son to Uru. She had her teeth bared and in her eyes seemed to live an enormous fueling fire. For a moment he thought of responding but to avoid the situation from getting even worse, he decided not to. Instead he turned around and took off.

"Taka, my child, are you okay?" Uru turned to Taka and rubbed his fur. "Let me see that." Gently Uru moved her son's bloody claw away from the eye he still had it covered with. "Oh, Taka.."

"It looks bad, doesn't it?" Taka softly spoke. His voice shivered from shock.

"It'll heal, eventually," Uru answered but her eyes rather were telling the opposite.

"The truth, mother. I can handle it, I'm not a little boy anymore." Taka let his claw slid over the wall, wiping off the remaining blood attached to it.

"It doesn't look so good."

In distance, Mufasa found Taka sitting on a rock. In a hurry he ran towards him. "Brother, I hope father hasn't been too harshly.." Mufasa silenced when Taka stood up, facing him. He held in his breath and awkwardly he stared at his brother's eye. The young lion just didn't knew what to say.

"Just say it, I look hideous!" Taka pulled his nose. "I can't believe you let me take all the blame!" he called out.

Mufasa looked around him, confusingly. "Bro.. let's be honest here.." he softly responded. "I mean, you knew how I felt about the hyenas. I have just as little faith in them as father does, but you insisted in letting them join!"

Taka rolled his eyes. "Father, father.. blah blah. For as long as I remember, you've been trying too hard to be his favourite son! But guess what Muffy, even without the act, he has always favoured you!" Taka's voice came with a huge portion on enviousness.

"Just stop it, Taka!" Mufasa responded. Ahadi was one of the most occurring subjects he and Taka mainly shared words about nowadays. Mufasa hated that it had affected their brotherly band that much.

"From the moment that I was born, I was trash in his eyes!" Taka realized that when he spoke it out loud, it just couldn't hurt him that much any longer. "As far as I'm concerned, if he drops dead tomorrow; I can't even pretend to care." Without giving his brother another look, Taka ran away, leaving Mufasa standing paralyzed.

After the altercation with his brother, Taka went down to the elephant graveyard to cool down. He was now staring at his eye that stared back at him in the reflection inside a puddle of rain. After the hyenas spotted the lion arriving at their place, Taka had explained Shenzi and Banzai what happened.

"If it makes ya feel any better. That thing makes ya look real badass! It fits ya black manes!" Shenzi stated.

"Yeah, it makes ya look less like ya dad!" Banzai added.

Taka gave Shenzi a bit of a proud smile, but immediately he growled at Banzai. "Don't mention my father to me!" Carefully, Taka chuckled his scar. It was still sensitive. Then he stared at his own reflection in the rain puddle again. He stared at the scar, at his new self. "Scar.." Taka mumbled. "Strangely, it does suit me.."

"Up for some fun today, Taka?" Shenzi was determined to repeat the success of the other day's buffalo prank and with that, doing something about her boredom. But when she witnessed how Taka's facial expression transformed into a unusual dark grin, she frowned and exchanged looks with Banzai.

"Taka is dead!" The scarred lion spoke loudly. "Scar is born!" He sighed when the announcement, that in his mind had sounded awfully clear, resulted in the hyenas to look even more confused as they usually did. "From now on, call me Scar!" He gave the hyenas a satisfying look when they finally looked like they understood where he was going with this. "Time to let them feel what we're made of!"

"Before anyone came up with a bad nickname, I changed my name to Scar." For evident reasons, Scar chose to not share the last memory he thought of.

"I'm so sorry, I never knew.." Nala faced trouble in finding her words.

Scar shook his head. "Don't worry, it's in the past now, but I'm relying on everything I told you to stay between these.." Scar looked around him. "um.. rocks and geysers, because this isn't a side of me I like to show often. In fact, a while ago I thought he had left permanently." Scar sighed. Mostly he managed to keep his sensitive side that he stated as his weaker one, hidden, "But today, tonight you've got him.. Taka.." His usual sharp tone was replaced by a soft, sensible one.

"Taka.. I think I'm starting to like him.." Nala spoke softly.

"I'll try to be him more often, just for you Nala." Gently, he gave the lioness a lick and waited for the lioness to respond. Nala failed in hiding her blush when she looked into his deep dark coloured eyes.

When Scar moved closer to Nala, she simply gave him a small nod. "Be careful with me, okay, Taka?"

"No need to worry, sweetheart," Scar whispered while wagging his tail. His look showed no sign of malign, but the sultry gaze still present in his eyes surely gave away his excitement. Softly, his head brushed against hers and now Nala turned her head to give the lion above her a small lick. The feelings Nala now experienced strangely weren't to be described as badly as she had feared, in fact it was more the opposite. Even Scar had feelings. He had kept them buried deep below his thin skin, but now they were fully awakened by Nala. Scar rather showed the outside his cruel side and therefore most lionesses see no more than a horrible lion. Today Nala got to see his sensitive side, one she hoped she got to explore a little deeper. Nala felt Scar's warm breathing's in her neck while he softly grabbed her skin to help himself not to lose his grip. Nala purred and in her ear she heard Scar's soft grunts. Though the lion close to her actually wasn't Scar, it was the one who he had banned himself to be: Taka.