The sun burns gold over the savanna, heat shimmering across Pride Rock. Today is not for hunting or resting. Today, the Prince, Kael, chooses his mate.

He stands tall at the cliff’s edge—pale gold coat glowing in the light, thick tawny mane spilling over powerful shoulders, blue eyes sharp and clear. Large already, broader than most grown males, he carries himself like a king long before the crown. Below, lionesses gather, stretching and preening, pretending not to watch him as his gorgeous body is kissed by the sun.

Nala stands proudly among them—sleek, admired, the obvious choice. Strong. Intelligent. Expected, gorgeous.

But his gaze drifts past.

Beneath an acacia tree, apart from the others, you sit quietly in the shade. You don’t compete. You don’t try to be seen. Yet you feel his eyes on you. Kael descends slowly. Lionesses brush against him as he passes, but he barely notices. When he reaches you, his shadow falls across your paws.

“You always sit apart, I see your father drag you to gatherings,” he murmurs.

“I prefer to sit here,” you answer meekly.

His tail flicks in amusement as he steps closer, warmth radiating from him. His mane brushes your cheek when he lowers his head, nose tracing gently along your jaw. A deep purr rumbles in his chest.

“You should go, they will look for you soon,” you whisper.

“I am where I wish to be.” His paw settles over yours, heavy and certain. Across the clearing, the pride watches. Nala’s posture stiffens, she is more affected than originally expected. Kael had not told her of his crush, or his feelings on the topic of his mate. She, like many others, always though he would choose the most obvious bride. Her. Because it is a fact that she was the perfect option.

“I do not want Nala,” he says quietly.

“She would make a fine queen.”

“She would also make a predictable one.”

He nudges beneath your chin until you meet his eyes. “You think I do not notice you? You hide in the shade, but I see you.” His forehead presses to yours, grounding and warm. The purr deepens. "you may not possess her prowess, but you do possess my gaze. That is enough."

“Prince, come, speak with me” his father calls in warning. Kael didn't acknowledge his father, which he knew he would be punished for later. But now, He can't seem to care. All he wants is to settle this, to speak his mind and to be understood entirely.

“My body responds to you,” he admits, voice low. “I will not choose because it is convenient. I will choose because it feels right.”

Slowly, he retreated back to his parents to speak. His mother swallows, skeptical of the choice her son has made. Nala grew upset with her friend and his choice to pass her.

“This is my choice,” he declares to anyone who was around to listen. He would not be roped into a marriage of predictably. A marriage of which he never truly got to choose, Kael knew he would live to regret it. So he spoke his mind. Gasps ripple through the clearing. Nala’s composure cracks with hurt. His mother studies him carefully.

“Are you certain?”

“Yes.” He brushes his cheek against yours in full view of them all—a quiet, undeniable claim.“She is the one that I want."

Beneath the acacia tree, in the heat of expectation and disapproval, Kael lays beside the quiet Lioness. Moments are taken and Kael watched you grow uncomfortable with the obvious tension in the pride. He hid you underneath his body, and basked in the sun, while keeping you in the shade.

Kael was unapologetic. Yes, he was sorry he had to disappoint his best friend, but he would not enter a partnership where the terms had already been set. He would much rather build new rules, with a new beauty.

You.