Kion woke up cuddled with Fuli.  He took in her sweet scent, smelling the grass on her fur.  It was something he had missed while he was out.

"How you doing?"  Fuli asked.

"Not any better," Kion responding, standing up.  "I tried, but I can't remember anything."

"Go talk to Rani," Fuli said.  "She'll be happy to know you're awake."

"Rani's the dark lioness, right?"  Kion asked.

"Without the spots," Fuli confirmed.

"Right," Kion said.

Kion walked out of the den, looking for Rani.  Once he found her, he walked up to the lioness.

"Kion!"  Rani called from beside Sira.  "You're awake!"

"Yeah," Kion responded.  "I am.  But I'm having trouble remembering a lot of things."

"Are you okay?"  Rani asked.

"Physically, I'm fine," Kion said.  "But mentally, I don't feel like myself."

"Sira, I'll be back," Rani stood up.

"What about how you've been feeling?"  Sira asked.

"I'll be fine," Rani said.  "Don't worry."

Rani walked off with Kion.

"You said you can't remember things," Rani said.  "What do you remember?"

"Fuli said I went to the Tree of Life," Kion said.  "But I can't remember it."

"But you remember me, right?"  Rani asked.

"Only a little," Kion responded.

"I don't know where to start," Rani admitted.  "So much went on."

"Like you trying to send us away?"  Kion teased.

"Exactly," Rani said.  "Hey, you're remembering things!"

Kion smiled.

"I am," he said.  "I remember my healing now.  And when you proposed to me."

"Do you remember your training with the Roar?"  Rani asked.  She knew it was a big part of their plan, and if Kion couldn't use the Roar, the plan would fall apart.

"I think," Kion said.  "But I can't remember who trained me."

"Do you remember giving Vitani the Roar?"  Rani asked.

"I remember that," Kion said.  "All my memory's back except for some gaps."

"Kion," a voice said, making both Kion and Rani jump.  "You have recovered well."

Kion turned, and immediately remembered the gaps.

"Grandfather Mufasa!"  he exclaimed.  "I can't believe I forgot about you!"

"The Roar is a powerful thing," Mufasa said.  "But it's also our only hope."

"I know," Kion said, digging his claws into the ground.  "Thank you, Grandfather Mufasa."

Rani was about to speak when she gagged and vomited into the grass away from Kion.

"Rani!"  Kion exclaimed.  "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Rani said.  "Probably better than fine."

"I didn't think Sira was the type of lion to do that," Kion said, immediately understanding what Rani meant.  "He seems way too closed-off."

"Fuli did it," Rani said.  "And she's closed-off."

"Yeah," Kion agreed.  "She's expecting now."

"That's surprising," Rani said.  "She's a cheetah, and you're a lion."

"I know," Kion agreed.  "I can't wait to see what our cubs will look like."

"I'll be able to visit them, right?"  Rani asked.

"Fuli will say yes," Kion confirmed.  "She likes you."

"I know," Rani responded.  "She's like a sister to me."

"And you two are so similar," Kion observed.  "I know exactly why I chose you out of you all lions.  I loved Fuli since I was a cub.  And we both thought that we couldn't be together because we're different species.  And you have almost the exact same personality.  But you're not her."

"Yeah," Rani said.  "And you're not Sira.  It's just how it is.  I wouldn't want either of us to not be happy."

"You're still like a sister to me, though," Kion assured.

"And you a brother," Rani responded.  "I'm just glad I could help.  What made you forget everything anyways?"

"It's a little bit of a blur," Kion said, "but I think I got too angry and lost control of the Roar.  You'd have to ask Vitani or Jasiri to get the full story."

"Okay," Rani said.  "I don't want you to have to go through it again."

"I'm sure I've been through worse," Kion said.  "Don't worry."

"No," Rani said.  "I shared a den with you for a year.  If it made you forget everything, it must've been bad for you."

"I should've known," Kion responded.  "But anyways. we have bigger problems."

Kion looked towards the volcano.  He didn't know where the images were coming from, but behind his eyes, he saw the destruction the evil caused.  Scar wasn't Scar anymore.  He was being controlled by something bigger.  They might not have a chance to defeat him.  They might have to rely on the next generation.  He shook his head.  They had a chance.  And they will take that chance.

"Scar's power is growing," Kion continued.  "He also has an army with undying loyalty to him.  This won't be easy."

Rani's eyes shadowed over.

"I know," she said.  "I've seen animals from the Tree of Life coming here.  Scar's building his ultimate army.  He knows how he can stop us."

Rani shook her head.

"I don't want to fight any of my subjects," she said.  "There has to be another way."

"We'll try our best to find another way," Kion assured.  "This plan was supposed to be our plan b.  But from what we know now, it's the only way."

"I wish it wasn't," Rani turned away, hiding tears.  She had been through this exact situation before.  She didn't know why she couldn't find the strength to tell Kion or Sira about what happened to her parents.  She needed to talk to Baliyo.

"I'm sorry, Kion," Rani wiped away tears.  "But I need to go talk to Baliyo."

"That's alright," Kion put his tail over Rani's shoulders.  "But I know something's bothering you.  Sira and I are here for you, too."

"I know," Rani said.  "And I'm grateful for that.  But this is something I need to talk to Baliyo about before anyone else."

"Alright," Kion watched Rani go.  I should get back to Fuli.

Kion walked back to his and Fuli's den, and saw her lying down on the edge, staring off into space.

"Fuuls?"  Kion asked.

"Kion!"  Fuli exclaimed.  "You startled me!"

"Sorry," Kion chuckled.

"You seem better," Fuli observed.  "More like Kion."

"Yeah," Kion said.  "I have all my memories back now.  Except for when I used the Roar.  That part is still unclear."

"Probably for the better," Fuli said.  "But I'm glad you're back.  Can we at least just enjoy this time together before we put our plan into motion?"

"Of course," Kion said.  "I wouldn't want anything more."

Kion leaned onto Fuli's side, who did the same.  The sun was setting, and they just wanted to enjoy it, because they knew they wouldn't get much time together.

Rani walked back to Sira.  They brushed pelts in greeting before Rani pulled away.

"I want to spend tonight with just you," Rani said to Sira.  "It might be our only chance to be alone together.  But I need to talk to Baliyo about something."

"Your parents?"  Sira guessed.  He quickly added, "It's okay if you don't want to tell me.  I know something bad happened."

"No," Rani said.  "I want to tell everybody who I consider my family - you, Kion, Fuli, and the rest of the Lion Guard and Night Pride.  But I want to only tell it once, and I'd rather have Baliyo with me to tell it."

"You want me, Sis?"  Baliyo asked, coming out of the den.

"Yeah," Rani said.  "I want  to talk to you alone."

Baliyo and Rani walked away from Sira.

"This isn't right!"  Baliyo exclaimed, lashing his tail.  "I wish I could just walk away from here!"

"You can't," Rani said gently.  "I wish I could, too.  But we'll be needed the most if-"

"No!"  Baliyo's eyes teared up.  "I can't fight!  My dreams have been plagued by what happened when we were cubs.  I want to fight, but I can't focus.  I can only see the wasteland the Tree of Life was left as."

"That was why I wanted to talk to you," Rani said.  Even the Night Pride didn't know what happened to their parents.  "Sharing the burden will help us.  I wanted you to help me tell the Lion Guard and Night Pride about what happened to them."

"I'll try," Baliyo wiped away tears.  "Can I go get some sleep now?"

"Yeah," Rani said.  "I need to get back to Sira."

"I wish I had a mate," Baliyo said.

"We're in the Pride Lands," Rani said.  "Maybe you can introduce yourself to some cats.  They don't have to be lions or female, either.  Look at Kion and Fuli, or Vitani and Imara.  If you find you have a strong connection with one of them, get to know them better."

"I will," Baliyo said.  "Thanks, Sis."

"No problem," Rani said.  "You're my brother."

Rani walked back to Sira.

"Let's head somewhere else," she said.  "I want to relax on our own."

Sira stood up.

"I'd like that," he said.  "Get your mind off whatever's bothering you."

Rani nodded, though behind her eyes she saw the wasteland the Tree of Life became when the Evil attacked.  Trees were burnt to the ash-covered ground, shelters were blocked off, corpses were everywhere.  She shook her head.

"You good?"  Sira asked.

"Not really," Rani said.  "This is too similar to how I lost my parents.  It started exactly like this.  A-and I don't want to lose you."

"You won't lose me," Sira assured.  "We have our cubs to look after."

"I know," Rani said.  "But it doesn't feel like that."

"Let's go for a hunt," Sira suggested.  "Maybe that'll clear your mind."

Rani stretched.

"Let's try it," she said.

Rani took a mouthful of wildebeest.  Sira was right, hunting had cleared her mind.  Swallowing the wildebeest, she looked at Sira.

"Thanks for that," she said.  "I feel much better now."

"Let's get some sleep," Sira suggested once the wildebeest had been finished off.

"Right," Rani yawned.

The two lions cuddled together, aware that this could be their last time together.  Everything was going to start tomorrow.  All over the Pride Lands, mates and families were doing the same thing.  They all knew war was coming, and if they weren't prepared, it might wipe out all of them.