#the lion guard makini

[kaythefloppa]

Roar Towards The Future - Masterpost:

I decided that rather than constantly posting separate update fics, that I’d turn my fanfiction based on The Lion Guard into a masterpost. I’ll make it into a huge masterpost/master-chain so that people will properly be able to have better access to the fanfic and to keep my self-promo more organized as well as their synopsis to make it presentable as an “episode list” (even though this is more or less a separate continuation fic rather than a fan-Season 4 of The Lion Guard). So here we go for the chapters that I’ve currently uploaded. The next ones will be promoted through reblogs. If you’re yet to read the fanfic then this’ll be a good start for you.

Synopsis for Roar Towards the Future. - Rated PG-13 for mature themes (involving but not limited to death, violence, blood, profanity, implied suicide, and trauma/grief).

After a long journey outside of the Pridelands, the Lion Guard continue their life-long mission to defend the Circle of Life, now at the legendary Tree of Life. Fighting alongside them are the Night Pride, led by Rani. As the team of protectors journey into adulthood, new trials and challenges arise for them in the future; faces from the past begin to appear: Eyes are opened wider than ever before. The Circle of Life changes for them, and the heroes face their biggest challenges ever that will change their lives forever:

CHAPTER 1: LONG LIVE THE KING AND QUEEN:

A new dawn arises over the Tree of Life as Kion and Rani take the throne.

CHAPTER 2: OF MANES AND MJUZIS:

Two kingdom saving couples on a race, some puberty hints, and a medicine-mastering mandrill.

CHAPTER 3: BUNGA & BINGA:

A meerkat, a warthog, a honey badger, and a sloth bear walk into a termite mound. Sounds like a set-up for a bad joke. Is actually a love-story.

CHAPTER 4: CULTURE SHOCK:

A tour through the Tree of Life leads to some revelations, recollections, and riveting info.

CHAPTER 5: DOUBTS:

Not everyone is happy about the union of the Tree of Life’s new rulers. Are these objections paranoic or prophetic?

Chapter 6: Tutaonana Baadaye

The Pridelanders' visit to the Tree of Life comes to an end. The former Lion Guard of the Pridelands prepare their goodbyes as they officially begin their new chapter:

Chapter 7: Predators vs. Patrol

The Lion Guard begin their first patrol at the Tree of Life as the newest members of the Night Pride. Defending the Circle of Life had been their duty... their destiny, and despite their departure from the Pridelands, that would never change. Unfortunately, as an old enemy of theirs had once said, destiny can be full of surprises...

CHAPTER 8: PLANS AND PATIENCE:

The Night Pride, with the combined forces of half the Lion Guard launch their mission to save the injured animal in a race against time.

CHAPTER 9: RACE FOR THE MEDICINE:

Fuli and Makini rush to find plants that could serve as medicine for healing at the Tree of Life. It may take a new friend in order to save the day.

CHAPTER 10: LIFE OR DEATH:

To live or to die is the question: The Night Pride discovers the answer.

CHAPTER 11: THE FUNERAL

The three victim's of today's incident are buried, and two members of the Lion Guard have differing reactions:

CHAPTER 12: DANGERS AND DREAMS:

Whilst the Lion Guard patrols during the day, the Night Pride guards and protects animals of the night at any cost. Even if that cost is one of their own lives.

CHAPTER 13: A SCORE TO SETTLE:

The Night Pride and Lion Guard's failings are let slip to a land outside the Tree of Life, where a dangerous foe with a score to settle plans on using it for her own nefarious purposes.

Chapter 14: Speed, Sisters, and Sons

With Fuli still out of commission, a replacement is needed and one certain animal dares to step up to the plate: Meanwhile certain members of the Lion Guard and Night Pride embark on side-quests in the name of family.

[valentinbelleyh505]

i was just bored okay??? i just going to sleep

[mask-of-prime]

VG: Broken Birds

Previous

Next (Coming Soon)

____

The Outlands, Years Ago:

A very young cub Vitani ran into some young jackals that neighbored the Termite Mounds, and she'd confessed to her mother that she had felt a friendship coming on, but Zira snuffed that dream right out. Lions could not be friends with mindless food like little jackals.

"Oh, quit your sniffling. It's going to get you nowhere! Get up before I give you a real reason to cry! NOW!"

"Mother, please! I won't disappoint you again, Mother!" the toddler sobbed.

The young Vitani could feel her mother grabbing her wrist. The older lioness pulled the cub closer.

Suddenly, Zira seemed to change in appearance. She was now much bigger, sported a slick, red mane, and a scar across her right eye. It was now an unknown male lion.

"You're seriously going to let a bunch of crows get to you? Are you a helpless little lower animal like them?!" he screamed.

"Father, I'm sorry-y-y!" Vitani sobbed, except… this was not her voice, nor her body.

"A real lion doesn't sit here and cry! Get up, Zira! NOW!"

The bigger lion's paw came up, looking like it was about to swipe.

Vitani jolted awake, putting a paw over her racing heart. More nightmares of Mother, of course.

Mother…

The images of Zira's sentient waterfall form came back to her vividly. No one would believe her. She didn't even believe herself the more she thought of it.

And her head… it still hurt from… something. Her friends said it had been a fall, right?

This didn't happen. No, none of this happened. She just fell… Right?

SCRATCH, SCRATCH…

The Fiercest gasped and made a small noise. Before she went to investigate, however, she looked around to make sure no one heard her pathetic sound.

Luckily, no. But, only because Tiifu wasn't around. Odd. She'd be wrapped all over Vitani.

Perhaps the watery ghost did exist. Maybe it was a little like the case of Nuka's spirit. Maybe Scar's. Kion defeated Scar's spirit. Had he seen one made of water? How would he have dealt with it? She had to find him...

SCRAPE, SCRATCH…

Vitani leapt to her feet and prowled about around the corridors of the Ponya. Her ears pointed to the noise. At the main part of the Ponya, she saw a bipedal form smearing paint onto the wall with precision.

Vitani looked all around the wall. It was a portrait of her brother and her sister-in-law. She smiled a bit, but it quickly vanished, remembering how disastrous last night went. She digressed, and cleared her throat.

"Um... that's really pretty..."

The mandrill jumped a little. Her hand made a jagged mark of paint on the wall.

"Sorry." Vitani winced, "I know that must've taken hours."

"Oh, that's okay!" the mandrill charmed, "I could make these all day!"

"I really admire the light colors and soft shapes. They really come together to create a distinct style."

"Wow, I didn't know you were so artsy!"

Vitani shrugged, "I mean, everyone makes me plot out patrol maps on the ground in the morning. I think my Guard does that just to watch me draw."

"Oh, right! You're the new Pridelands' Fiercest! What was your name again?"

"Vitani." the lioness introduced, "It's Makini, right?"

"Mmhm!"

"You're, uh... the Mjuzi for Kion and his wife, now --" Vitani rattled her head, "Uh, Kion... Have you seen him? I need to talk to him. Saw some things I can't explain."

"Oh, the Night Pride already started heading back last night. I stayed back to catch up with the Pridelanders and paint —"

Vitani blinked, "What? Why?"

"Why what?"

"W-Why did they leave?!" Vitani began to pace.

"Can't leave the Tree of Life unguarded too long, I guess."

"B-But this is — Wha — I —" the Fiercest began seething, "Dammit!"

Furious, she smacked hard at something with her paw. It had been a husk full of vermillion paint.

Leaving her cloud of rage, she could see that she had gotten the paint all over her paw, and all over Makini's masterpiece.

"I... I am so sorry, I —" Vitani stammered, "I totally ruined your painting —"

"It's okay! I can make a new one any time. I'm always improving!" Makini reassured, "In fact, this gives me an idea..."

The mandrill began to wash the the rest of the painting from the rock with a soaked leaf.

"Here! Why don't you paint how you feel on this rock and maybe I can help you figure out what it means! It's called 'art therapy.'"

Vitani stared into her paint-covered paw. She didn't like the sound of just sitting here for therapy, but Kion was already gone. Kion may have had the advantage of defeating spirits with his Roar, but Makini must've known more about the past and spirits in general. That's what Mjuzis do, right?

Makini was the best option she had, it seemed. Especially with Rafiki opting to stay in his tree more often, lately.

Vitani got a good look at the rock in deep thought of how she would convey her anxieties. She considered Makini's suggestion, and began to make her first move.

Slowly, Vitani took her paw and brought it closer to her canvas. She squeezed her eyes shut.

"Wait." she finally said, eyes open.

She tried and tried to remember the images she saw, but they kept changing and becoming unclear due to the deliberate effort to recall them.

"I… I can't remember, now." her teeth gritted, "It's fading too quickly!"

The Mjuzi frowned, "Aww, that's too bad. I forget my dreams a lot, too. I'm pretty forgetful in my waking life too, actually, and Rafiki says I need to work on that if I want to connect with the past. Which, you gotta see all the old paintings to know what paintings to make in the present so everyone in the future will know what to paint in their present -- We were talking about something else, right? What —"

"My dreams, Makini. The whole reason I was painting?"

"Oh yeah! And how you can't recollect the pa — OOOOHH! I got it!" Makini suddenly chimed, "I got just the thing!"

"You do?" Vitani's eyes widened with a slight roll, her jeering tone going unnoticed by the mandrill.

Makini removed the two gourds from her Bakora Staff, opening the lids of each, and — for once — carefully — poured something onto each palm.

"Rafiki told me that these two gourds on my staff represent the past and the future, and I think I know why, now! So, this staff I have right now wasn't originally my staff, it actually belonged to the old Mjuzi at the Tree of Life..."

Vitani nodded rigorously, anxious beyond belief.

"I found these powders left in the gourds! I asked Rafiki what they were, and he said one is called Zamani, and the other is Baadaye. One lets you see visions of your past, and the other lets you see your future! Rafiki told me he used the Baadaye powder on Scar to show him his future. But, we all know Scar didn't listen to his warning."

Vitani looked at Makini's hand. In each palm were powders of a vivid blue and orange. Mystery of its appearance and origin almost gave it a slight radiance.

"Please tell me you know which one is which…" Vitani knew Makini at this point. It would be in-character for this to be the next thing to somehow tragically and comically mess up.

"Actually I do! I remembered their colors! Colors are the one thing I know I can remember good. You need the blue one!" she then inhaled shakily, "Buuuut…"

"Noo…" Vitani whined to herself, shutting her eyes.

"I kinda… sorta… forgot how the powders are applied." Makini shrugged sheepishly.

"Great…" the Fiercest groaned, stepping away as Makini kept the blue powder in her ahand and placed the orange powder back.

"Don't know if you eat it, or — No, certainly doesn't look like you should." the mandrill thought deeper, "Or was it —"

Suddenly, the wind coming from outside swept the blue powder from Makini's hand. Vitani was unfortunately in the splash zone. The powder had blown into her eyes.

Makini bit her lip anxiously, "Or that could work."

"OW! Agghh! Makini, what the —"

"Sorry!" the mandrill winced, "Are you okay?"

The Fiercest frantically began rubbing her eyes with a paw, preparing for the stinging and burning. Oddly, there was none. Instead, however, she felt a numbness. Testing to see if it really was such, she blinked a couple of times. She felt comfortable to fully open them.

She began to see little blooms of blue specks in her view. They were like eye floaters, but they glowed, and morphed into mandala-like patterns until it filled her field of vision.

She saw her surroundings change from a dark cavern to her old termite mound home. Everything was starting to look like where she was in her dream, with a blue tint on everyone and everything.

"Makini, i-it's working!" Vitani gawked, astonished.

Suddenly, where the mandrill would be standing, was instead Zira., who towered over Vitani and was berating her, just like in her dream.

"Oh, quit your sniffling. It's going to get you nowhere! Get up before I give you a real reason to cry! NOW!"

"Mother, please! I won't disappoint you again, Mother!" the toddler sobbed.

Zira's form once again morphed into another lion. It became bulkier with a red mane, and with a scar over his left eye. His voice was raspy and scheming.

"You're seriously going to let a bunch of crows get to you? Are you a helpless little lower animal like them?!"

"I'm sorry-y-y!" the cub sobbed heavily, almost unable to breathe.

"A real lion doesn't sit here and cry! Get up, Zira! NOW!" the red-maned lion yelled.

Zira curled into a ball. She was sobbing, but she felt frustration build up too. It wasn't fair, the way she was being yelled at. But she still failed him. She shouldn't have tried to befriend those crows, as lonely as she was when she would stay over at the Outlands. She mustn't be so desperate to trust just about any animal.

The lion quickly changed his tone as to not completely terrify his little daughter. Screaming wasn't helping, he used a disarming charm that worked on her before.

"You want to be a mighty lion like me, don't you? You want to make the Pride back home proud of you to be one of them, right? I want to be one of them again. Help me, Zira, help the family come back together, and you can see your mother again. Don't you want that?"

Little Zira sniffled, "Yes."

"Yes. There's my mighty lion. Always be stronger than everyone thinks you are. Lions Over All! Lions Over All!" he chanted.

"Wait..." Vitani said aloud, "This is —"

Vitani was seeing way beyond what she recalled in the dream. She realized now that the Zamani hadn't taken her to the recent past, but the distant past.

The vision continued on, and pretty soon, she found herself in a deep, red dystopia. It was the Pridelands, but from an era she'd never known. A time where all animals took on a much more primitive appearance.

She seemed to be chasing a group of a type of animal she hadn't seen in the Pridelands before. Others of her own kind were doing the same thing, even going so far as to needlessly massacring the animals for sport, or as a punishment for existing.

Watching all this activity with a cold and callous gaze was a leonine silhouette standing atop a towering kopje. He sported a familiar mark above his right eye.

"Lions Over All!" he bellowed for all of the ancient land to hear, as if he wanted the lions in the sky to hear him.

"Lions Over All!" the fleet of pillager lions echoed. The message deeply engrained into their minds and hearts.

The visions and voices of these lions of the past had swarmed Vitani. The flashbacks all becoming one and playing back-to-back.

Just then, a gray lioness with eyes and a tuft like Vitani's appeared before her. She spoke with a kind, gentle, and timid voice.

"What's wrong, my little Moonlight?"

The mysterious lioness' appearance fizzled, and there remained Vitani's reflection on a shiny rock. Back to reality.

She yelped and hyperventilated from the bizarre visions. So taken aback by the frightening sights that she felt like she couldn't swallow nor catch her breath. She lied on the ground against the rock, staring upward.

"Vitani!" cried Makini as she bounded over to the lioness, "Vitani! Are you okay?!"

"I... I think I would like some privacy to paint, please." was all the Fiercest could muster, absolutely dazed.

____

Up in the main den lied Kiara. Her eyes filled with tears as she anticipated the future. So many changes were coming their way, and she didn't know how to tell anyone.

"Kiara, honey? May we come in?" asked Nala, who peeked into the entrance.

"It's open." Kiara said flatly.

Nala could still sense Kiara's tension from the humiliation yesterday. It was probably time to talk about it, knowing Kiara's honesty about her feelings.

"Baby, I thought you were finally ready for your coronation. Your dad and I told you we trusted you with the crown."

"I know, Mom, but... everything's changing so much. I don't know what everyone will think about... Just... what if I forget about who I am?"

Kiara was too afraid to say heavier things that were truly on her mind. No, her family wasn't ready.

"Kiara, I know change can be daunting, but sometimes it makes you who you are." Nala rubbed a brow against Kiara's.

"Your mother's right." Sarabi added as she entered the den, "In life, you will always learn about yourself, and become a refined lion. Your father most certainly did, and so did your grandfather."

Sarabi's eyes became glossy at the last part. Her husband would always be a part of her.

Sarafina followed Sarabi, as she always did in life. She had fetched a tortoise shell of fresh, cold water for her granddaughter.

"There ya go, Sweetie." she said, "To calm your nerves, a little."

"Thank you, Nanna." Kiara said sweetly, but still glum.

"Kiara, we trust that you can become a beloved and capable Queen. We've seen your cooperation with herd leaders." Nala said, "And Jasiri. You changed the Outlands forever by welcoming her to the Summit."

"See? Even you've made big changes. You're famous for it! And we can't forget you and that boy Kovu making us all one big, happy family!" Sarafina chimed.

Kiara's heart jumped for a second until she remembered what her Nanna meant. Right. That.

"You're a risktaker, but an openminded and levelheaded one." Sarabi observed.

Kiara smiled nervously, but tears still welled up.

They all saw this, and exchanged concerned looks before they all rubbed foreheads against her in unison.

"Thank you..." Kiara closed her eyes as she embraced them, "But what about Kion...? I totally wasted his time. I made him come all this way just so I could flake on him."

"Kion and Rani would come back in a heartbeat for you." Nala said, "I know Kion doesn't show it a whole lot, but he really wants to see you become Queen."

Kiara again tried to crack a smile, but she was just so touched by her mother's words.

"I need time to figure this out." the Future Queen finally said.

"Alright, we'll give you some space." assured Nala, "Just remember: You will always be yourself, even when you're Queen. The Queens of the Past will guide you, and so will we."

Nala turned away to the exit. The elders looked on at Kiara with love and still with concern before following suit.

Kiara continued sulking long after they left, but she eventually gave into her Nanna's kind gesture of water. Slowly, she dipped her nose into the shell, and lapped up the cool water.

However, as soon as the water reached her stomach, Kiara felt... strange. It's almost like she had lost consciousness, but her body was still up.

Pretty soon, she was trapped in her own body, which began to lick its chops as the water dripped from its chin. Her eyes took on a vivid azure glow as she cracked a grin to herself.

"I feel... much better, now." she said with a sinister tone, one she'd never used before.

____

Finishing her very own masterpiece after several hours of hunched-over work on few hours of sleep, Vitani finally managed to convince herself to sit up and refresh. The lioness had headed over to Lake Shangaza to clean the paint stains from her paws.

As she rinsed her paws, she caught her reflection in the water. She saw her exhausted eyes, and — under her tuft — what appeared to be her gash from last night all patched up.

She wasn't sure if it was the sleep deprivation, or if she'd still been under the effects of the Zamani powder, but when she stared into her reflection in the water long enough, she could swear she saw her mother's ghastly face appear for a moment.

Her body jerked back from the jumpscare. She glanced back to find nothing there. She was confused, and genuinely terrified, even though it may have been an illusion.

Though, this reminded her; perhaps she could contact a ghost she knew was on her side...

She lit a torch and said her summoning phrase:

"Roho ya Moto!"

A puff of fire exploded from the flame of the torch until it resembled her brother.

"What?! What's goin' on?! Where's the danger?!" Nuka whipped around, his paws chopping the air defensively.

"No danger, here." Vitani deadpanned.

"Lookie here, Vitani," he scowled, "You can't just summon me every time you break a claw!"

"Nuka..."

"You know how much energy it takes to —"

"Nuka." she snapped, "I summoned you for a reason. I have a genuine question that only you can answer."

"Fire away." he said bluntly. He'd realized his unintentional pun, and snickered to himself a bit.

"Have you... have you ever seen Mother up there, or... wherever it is you go? What does she look like?"

"Um... not recently?"

Vitani's eyes became curious, "Really? What do you mean recently? What does she look li —"

A raindrop landed on Vitani's nose. She looked up to see dark clouds she hadn't even noticed rolling over the lake.

SIZZLE

"OW!!" Nuka cried.

Vitani looked over to Nuka, and caught a worrying sight: Where there was fire around his being, there was now black, crusty spots that steamed.

"Nuka, what's happening?!"

"Ow, it's the rain! I can't be touched by rain, or I'll turn to smoke!" he cried, trying to blow fire onto himself where there wasn't.

"Well, we gotta get you out of here!" she cried, panicking.

"Ugh, come on, say the phrase!" he grunted as he waved his paws frantically.

"Okay, okay! Errr — Roho ya Moto!" Vitani said rapidly.

POOF!

The flame shrank into the stick shortly before it could be snuffed another, more permanent way.

"Well, that was brief." she muttered, not knowing at all how to feel today.

She couldn't see that in the distance stood a lioness. One who watched her entire interaction with Nuka.

The lioness turned away, back to the direction of Pride Rock.

____

Not too long later, the rain had mysteriously stopped.

Imara and Kasi muttered to each other about the events last night, expressing concern for Kiara along with the odd weather. They spotted Vitani wandering close to Pride Rock. She seemed pensive, but also dazed. After seeing her stumble a bit, they rushed their stroll.

"Hey, 'Tani." greeted Kasi, characteristically arriving first.

"We're about to head to our patrol routes." added Imara, "We split into groups, today."

"Taz and Shabs already headed out." Kasi said, "You wanna go with them, or us? Please pick us..."

Imara nudged Kasi. The smaller lioness got a better look at her tired friend.

"Hey, you good?" asked the Fastest.

"Um, yeah..." Vitani slowly shook her head, "Headache."

"Right. You probably don't wanna be out here, huh?" Imara said, "You fell pretty bad."

Vitani's memories of her interaction with her mother suddenly flashed back into her mind, along with the frustration with Nuka, and her visions she painted. This day was chaotic, and she just couldn't think of it anymore.

"Uhh, you know what?" she smirked, "I'll go. Joining Team Kasi and Imara."

The two in question exchanged looks. They eventually shrugged, and let their friend take the lead.

____

"Right this way, Rafiki! I can't wait to show you Vitani's work!" Makini beamed with delight as she took the elder's hand and guided him to the Ponya.

"Yes, yes, Makini, I'm coming." said the old monkey. It was difficult to catch up to his protege, now that he was without his staff, and for a long time, now.

"Welp, here it is! Could you believe a lion made all of this? With her paws?!"

"Hmm..."

Rafiki put a hand on his chin and looked all around the walls of the Ponya, noting many changes outside of just Vitani's work. There were detailed paintings all around made by Makini. He smiled a wrinkled and weary smile to himself, feeling proud and confident in his successor, and hoped she could frequent the Pridelands more.

"Vitani's been feeling a little stressed, lately. So I told her to paint her feelings."

“Hmm, yes. Art therapy is a good form of expression. Excellent idea, Makini.”

Rafiki’s eyes continued to follow every painting on the wall. He could see that not every painting had been finished. They were… very different from a Mjuzi’s paintings, to say the least. Not only from the shapes made from non-opposable, blunt paws, but the paintings were dark in palette and in subject matter.

Murky, grayish browns and deep reds were the main colors used in these nebulous shapes scattered on the wall. Circling everything was what seemed to be black birds swarming every picture. Attempts to draw her own kind were made with as precise shapes as one could make with their paws.

The lions caught Rafiki's eye. Some resembled Zira what with the recognizable stripe on her head, but others seemed familiar as well considering the motifs that surrounded them.

"Makini, take your staff and touch the paintings."

"Oh, o-okay."

With a tap to the wall, the finished paintings glowed a hellish red. The cub Vitani cowered below Zira, and Zira cowered below a similar-looking lion with a scar. The birds circled around them all in a terrifying storm. Rafiki's jaw dropped.

"R-Rafiki?" Makini stammered, a bit horrified at what she saw, "What is it?"

He slowly put his hand down from the wall, and finally spoke.

"That lion... I have seen him before..."

Makini dropped her staff, "Really?"

"Yes. When I made a recent journey to the Outlands to find paintings I had never seen." he said, "How did Vitani see these lions?"

"Vitani had trouble remembering her dream while painting, so I had just the thing — I gave her the Zamani powder I found in my staff! Pretty smart, right?"

"Makini!" the elder mandrill snapped, "You have to be careful with these powders. You cannot just use it all up on something like dreams. This powder is very difficult to find, and can have side effects if used too much!"

"Really?!" Makini gasped, "Ohh, I didn't think of that! I'll put it away, Rafiki! I'll put it way away!"

"Good. Now, come! I must show you something!"

"Rafiki, wait!" Makini cried, still putting the powders in a safe spot — a nook behind some vines.

However, in an attempt to grab her staff while she hurried after him, she didn't see that she'd knocked a gourd from the hiding spot. A mess of orange powder lay scattered about the ground...

____

((Author's Notes: Yeah remember when I said this would be out July 12th on that one schedule post I made? The one where I basically irreversibly printed those dates that I had to abide by? Well, I was once again a couple of days late because a bunch of ideas and revisions came up. This has to be, like, the most despised production of a chapter/episode so far because this is a very transitional (and kinda filler) installment right after getting to such a high point with the last one. I kept switching a bunch of concepts and dialogue exchange scenes around to make sense of the chronology and why and when such things would happen. I've been so concerned lately with how much everything makes sense rather than just having something jotted down like how uploading this story used to be.

On a positive note, however, Makini was super fun and therapeutic to write. It was so fun to channel informalities like run-on sentences and rambling through her because she's so ADHD-coded lol.

Artist Note: This entire episode is highkey a meta commentary on my struggles to come up with things to draw, even down to overworking an image in my head so much that I actually lose the image altogether, making me give up before the stylus touches the tablet. The struggles with composition and making sense of this story were what played into such a debilitating 9-month hiatus. That, finishing community college, and taking forever to rid myself of a perfectionist art student mindset while making art over the summer is what finally got my head out of my ass, realizing that this story doesn't need to be so overly professional. I get that I wanted to emulate a nonexistent, hypothetical PG-13 show to succeed The Lion Guard, but I'm not a studio, I'm one person jotting down ideas and putting them in a screenshot art style. That's how Vitani's Guard even started, and it's okay if it goes up and down in how refined it is.

Also, I'm thinking of adding that little border with watermarks of the VG logo and episode/chapter number on VG art so we can keep track of when in the story an illustration takes place. What's confusing is that I refer to things as "Seasons" too, like this is "Season 3", for example.

Fun Facts:

The Zamani and Baadaye powder are based on the unnamed orange powder Rafiki used on Scar during the future hallucination sequence in the Disney Villains: Scar comic. DV:S is… not my favorite TLK installment because of how disconnected it feels, kinda feels like someone didn't watch TLK for years and only wrote something based on what they can remember of it. But! There were some aspects I liked, such as the aforementioned eye powder trip scene, these selfish and greedy vultures whose motives are actually established rather than just "hunched bald bird evil haha" that Disney always does. Also, just the general idea of Rafiki and Scar having a dialogue exchange. You never see that anywhere in any other TLK works, I don't think. I love how Rafiki sees something in Scar that no one else can yet, and how much Scar is like the Anakin to Rafiki's Obi-Wan/Yoda. The concept does get ruined by Rafiki seemingly knowing way too much about Scar's intentions, though, it kinda just makes Rafiki look like he just let Scar's tyranny happen :p. Think I'll write a full review on DV:S sometime.

Vitani and Makini's dynamic are an analogy of me taking the word of much younger, passionate artists who simply love what they make and have fun.

"Broken Bird", according to TV Tropes, is a term used to describe once idealistic individuals who had their dreams crushed through tragedy or abuse. The individual's demeanor and personality permanently change and they find it hard to love or get attached in any way again. Vitani and Zira's ideologies and emotional maturity were commonly deeply affected by the actions of their predecessors. Also it just so happened to go with the crow theme.))

Nuka trying to restore his fire by blowing it is based on the visual gag of Lumiere doing the same thing to his candlesticks.

[pizacat72]

weirdest tlk expressions i could find

feel free to steal these for reaction images :)

[tired-lamb]

anybody else notice how makini’s humming ‘wisdom on the walls’?

[spinnysocks]

*pops into your inbox* okay spinny there has been this ship idea that’s been at the back of my mind for a teensy bit and I think I talked to it abt gem once but I wanted to ask your thoughts on it!! (beware the ramble :’])

makini x fuli. I KNOW it sounds very crackship and also fuli would never date makini as lovable as she is but the dynamic of yapper x listener and the image of fuli being all daggers with everybody then all soft with makini? and also makini usually being all loud and chatters but bcoz she knows fuli needs some quiet you’ll find makini the most quiet when shes around fuli (and when shes not mjuzi-ing)? thoughts? :3

HI RAHM!! :D

i . i genuinely think you could tell me about any tlg crackship and i'd get into it LMAO, cuz i'm lovin this idea! yapper x listener makini x fuli! fuli being all soft around makini! them having quiet time together!! aaaaaaaaa /pos. i support this completely :3

[sukalaap]

WARNING: BRIGHT COLORS

Here's a thingy I drew for a contest over at TLKFAA that consists of converting canon characters from The Lion King franchise into sparkle characters.

Chose Makini from The Lion Guard as my guinea pig cuz, I dunno, her personality & overall design seemed to work for such a drastic change lol (Plus monkes are more unique than loins & yeens)

[fountainpenguin]

skdlfjsdlkjf I forgot Makini keeps trying to sing a song she calls "Now Is My Time!" but she can't get past the first couple lines and everyone just looks at her like this the whole episode:

What is up with Kion's darting eyes; that's hysterical.

All her friends think she's cringe despite the fact they're ALSO comfortable bursting into song at random...

[houseofmouselove100]

While Clarabelle is desperate, Mortimer tells a joke about Rafiki and another about the evil queen and it turns out that Timon laughed and was hit by Rafiki and the evil queen with the cane

Well those two have no sense of humor

Imagine that Bunga laughed at a joke about Makini from the Lion Guard and Evie from Descendants and they both hit him with the cane

This is how I imagined it if House of Mouse had a future reboot

Episode Clarabelle big secret

[archive-lion-guard]

The Lion Guard | The Wisdom of Kongwe | S2 EP18

[kaythefloppa]

Lion Guard: Roar Towards the Future

It's like 3am so I'll be quick in my little self-promo, but yeah, for any of my followers who are in the LK/LG fandom, check out my new Lion Guard fanfic on my Ao3 account, Roar Towards the Future.

RTtF takes place after the events of The Lion Guard's series finale Return to the Pride Lands and centers around the Lion Guard as they adjust to their new lives outside of the Pridelands and how said lives affect them when they reach adulthood. The main intent of the fanfic was basically me choosing to cope with my disappointment of The Lion Guard's final season and ending by expanding upon the characters and their stories after the show, most prominently the controversial character of Rani and by extension, her Night Pride, in that they will have a much larger [and more deserved] role as the deuteragonist than she did in the second half of Season 3.

This fic is somewhat canon-divergent as some events of The Lion Guard as well as its prequel, The Lion King II: Simba's Pride, go differently in my AU than they do in canon [the original film's events remain largely unchanged]. There will also be characters from the semi-canon fodder appearing/being mentioned such as Mufasa and Scar's parents, Ahadi & Uru, and many of the non-lion characters from the comics.

I've been working on this story since January of 2023 and I've felt like enough chapters have been written ahead of time for me to go ahead and start uploading them to Ao3 and getting more people to view it:

I don't know how many chapters this'll have, but we'll see how far it gets:

Disclaimer: Despite TLG being a kids' show, this fic will be rated teen and up for mature topics [inclusive but not restrictive to violence, death, murder, blood, abuse, suicide, and profanity - There's obviously nothing proshippy in it, or anything written to be proshippy in this fic - I'll put trigger warnings if and when necessary].

[valentinbelleyh505]

Makini: "Kiara, i hope nothing bad happens to you!" *janja and his clan appears* Makini: "WHAT DO YOU WANT?!" Janja: "i always come back." *janja and his clan leaving with kiara* Makini: "NOOOOO-"

[mask-of-prime]

TLG: As You Move Forward

So I went a few months thinking about how I'd forgotten to include Makini to my past depictions of Kion's Guard as adults (1, 2), so I decided to celebrate the 4th anniversary (albeit 2 days late :p) of the Journey of Memories episode by finally showing off the adult design I have for her!

Because I'm still salty about TLG's last-minute decision in making Makini the Mjuzi of the Night Pride instead of Kiara's bestie like Season 2 hyped her up to be, I made a compromise by headcanoning that she frequently journeys back-and-forth between the Pridelands and the Tree of Life, especially when she's called over by each land for a ceremony of some kind.

Design Process:

To avoid making her look too much like a clone of her mother Fikiri, I figured that Makini would develop her dad Kitendo's features as she grew older (I think she's about 20-something in this image). It's kind of a thing for TLG to erroneously depict animals without their distinct sexual dimorphism (see: Mbuni the ostrich), but this time, I felt like embracing Makini's unusual bright colors for a female mandrill and make her look a little androgynous. I feel like it would fit her role as a Mjuzi for some reason lol

I figured the Bakora Staff she received at the Tree of Life would be her last new one as she's since learned to keep better track of it. I like to think that it symbolizes not only growth and learning, but it coming from the Tree of Life symbolizing that her true place is there.

In all that time she's owned it, being the crafty artist she is, she's put years of customization and souvenirs from her back-and-forth Pridelands/Tree of Life adventures into her decorating her staff, selecting just about every pretty flower and naturally-occurring bead she saw. I mainly sought out the idea of people bedazzling their canes for reference, she seems like the type to do that, making just about anything she owns pretty lol

Drawing Process:

ngl I got to work on this very much like that episode where Makini procrastinated on getting started on her portrait of Simba's family. I just, like... really struggled with the composition until I was hit with sudden inspiration to just go wherever my hand took me.

I grabbed a thumbnail sketch of my adult Makini design that I was the most happy with and rendered it digitally and was happy that it got me somewhere... then I ran into the background that I didn't put any thought into.

Because of the cropping and composition I already had going on with Makini's standalone model, it was very hard to come up with something she could be surrounded by, until I decided to insert some headcanons about a certain new TLG-related short Disney released. Basically: I headcanon Makini made those Circle of Life paintings that Kion shows to those younger cubs as I think the style they used in those paintings looks WAY different from Rafiki's (I mean the whole video looks different from the whole TLK art style). You can't tell me those purple pigments and cutesy flowers aren't something Makini would draw everywhere lol

Sources of Inspiration:

Sadly not pictured due to the angle and cropping is the headcanon that she paints her nails all the time, and she's always trying different color combos basically every week lol. I adopted that headcanon from iceflowerglow, who depicts Makini with painted nails in their comic "Shining Above Your Head". Other artists I drew inspiration from were Vtoony's "TLG: Kion's Guard" and tango_fizz.le's "Where'd all the time go?" when it came to designing her fully-developed mane.

[pizacat72]

More Random TLK Headcanons

Kion was much more stubborn as an infant cub and would push Kiara away whenever she tried to help him.

Tamaa eventually joins the Traveling Baboon Circus along with Cheezi and Chungu. Janja is mildly irritated (and somewhat proud of those furbrains but he'll never admit to it. Yeah, of course he comes to every show, it's only for the free food after all).

When Bunga gets old, he starts acting like a grizzled veteran who tells wild and overly exaggerated tales about his time in the Lion Guard and he even wears a leaf eyepatch to look cool.

Beshte frequently gives some of the Pridelander children rides down the river during the wet season. The Guard helps him build an easy exit point for the kids to get out safely.

Ono sometimes sits and floats in the watering hole to catch some rays and just relax for a while.

Makini absentmindedly doodles on leaves whenever she's bored.

[tired-lamb]

If you were to rewrite the Lion Guard, what would you change there?

*cracks knuckles* get ready for a word blast.

Firstly, I would change the target audience of the show, mainly so that I could slide in much more serious plots in the show and also to raise the stakes. Target audience would be.. maybe preteens to teens. Think The Owl House, Amphibia, She-ra and the Princesses of Power, ah yes all the queer shows, Ducktales, Gravity Falls, etc. That’s what we’re trying to go for.

Secondly, characterisations. I want to add more depth to the main characters, i.e., the Guard. Give Bunga more of a role than being the comedic relief, give Ono more of a role than just being the one with the braincell, give Fuli more of a role than just snapping at Bunga all the time, give Beshte more of a role than just being Kind and Strong, give Kion more .. development, you get what I mean. Don’t get me wrong, I like the characterisations in the original show, it’s just I wish there was more to it. Give the characters flaws, maybe even have them all go through some sort of development arc (very much impossible what with industries these days cutting shows down </3). I’d like to see why these characters have been chosen for the Guard, because if you take the roles of bravest, fastest, fiercest, keenest of sight and strongest at just face value, Kion could have picked any animal. I want these roles that they’ve been given to mean something.

Thirdly, the concept of the Guard. Tying back to how I want the Guard and their roles to mean something, I’d change the main basis of the Guard’s concept to not just be a group of animals with certain qualities, but a group of animals that not only hold those qualities close to their chest but have the ability to work as a team with those qualities. The ability to combine these traits and use them for protecting the Circle of Life. This allows for moments in which, say, any of the Guard is unable to.. well, perform the role/quality they’ve been given (eg: Ono being unable to see, Fuli being unable to run fast), they still manage to be helpful to the team. This adds depth not only to the Guard members themselves but to the Guard itself, too. Also adds opportunities for fun dynamic exploration!

Fourthly (is that a word?), I’d change the fight scenes, or, rather, how the characters fight. I want to really showcase the animal side of the universe and characters, so I’d make it so that we see them fighting like or at least similar to their actual real life counterparts. Also since I’m making this a show targetted towards preteens and teens, I’d show the scars and effects characters face from these fights, too.

Another thing I would change is the Pridelanders. Not change the characters, per say, but change the atmosphere of the Pridelands. Again, I want to add stakes. The Guards before our current one usually have little to no trouble protecting the pridelands, but this new Guard that we follow as viewers is facing a land that is just recovering from the reign of a terrible king; Scar. Have the herbivores unable to trust the Guard due to the presence of two carnivores. Have the Guard face challenges in being accepted as protectors of the Circle of Life. Have carnivores themselves be hesitant to having a Guard with a lion for a leader protecting them. Have the Guard really struggle to find just how they can protect the Circle of Life. I want to see hostility. I want to see chaos. I want to see Simba struggling to be a king and thus rely on the Guard too much in order to help restore peace.

I also want the Guard to struggle. The Lion Guard has not existed for two decades. They have no one to look to for guidance. There is no former Guard member they can talk to who might know a thing or two about teamwork, about existing together as not just a unit of protection but as a part of the Circle of Life, too. They have nobody to go to … except the older lions. The older lions that remember the times of Scar’s Guard. Sarabi, even!! I love how much the og show gives time to other Pridelanders, but let’s not forget the lions maybe? Have Nala or Sarabi be a sort of mentor figure to them, maybe.

Speaking of Sarabi, I’d also get rid of Mufasa’s role in the show. I like that they wanted to include Mufasa in the show, but I dislike the way they went about it. If at all we need Mufasa in the show I’d give him a kind ‘haunting the narrative’ role except in a.. good sense? (Also to parallel with Scar’s own negative ‘haunting the narrative’ role). The Guard don’t know much about Mufasa, only that he was a great king. I’d try to add Mufasa in the story in bits and pieces, never directly and never outright. Honour him in a more quiet, in the background way.

While we’re talking about mentor figures, something I would really like to add, and I cannot emphasise this enough, is having the moments where we let the Guard be kids. I hc them to be pre teen age when they start, and I want to see these kids not only embrace this newfound role that they’ve been given in the Circle of Life, but also really think about what it means to them. What being a part of the Circle of Life means to them. I want to see moments where the Guard struggles in saving some animals or making decisions. I want to see the Guard mature as the show moves on but also really put into perspective that these are child soldiers. The things they face will and do have an affect on them. When I say let them be kids I also mean it in other ways. Let them be absolutely scarred (hah) after events like the burning of Mzimu Grove, the loss of Kilio Valley, and especially the Battle for the Pridelands. (I’m aware this kind of makes TLG a coming of age show).

I’m not quite sure what I would do with the villains. I honestly like them as they are, except I wish they got more screentime and had more of a logical reason as to why they’re villains, instead of just being animals that are ‘greedy’ for food. An idea I’ve been having for sometime however is to make the TLK2 villains serve as the villains in TLG aswell, plus making them the ones to resurrect Scar. Also, while we’re talking villains, change the Circle of Life concept to be a little more up-to-interpretation. Like, of course I’d let it have some concrete characteristics (such as the ones mentioned in the first TLK movie), but when it comes to the Guard and the show as a whole I’d make it more up-to-interpretation in order to avoid the whole issue the writers had with their villains (and how in a real life situation the outlanders’ whole ordeal being portrayed as ‘bad’ just.. doesn’t make sense).

For villains like Makucha, I would have given him much more build up or not put him in as a villain at all. If the main cast needs to face any struggle at all in season three, I would make it about them trying to recover from the Battle for the Pridelands. I think this would be a kind of arc for the Guard. They think they’re as good as they can get, but the BFTP hits them in the face, as does having to take the Journey to the Tree of Life. They’re forced in a new environment, and excuse me for how I’m about to describe this, freshly traumatised, and not only that but I would write some of the characters to regress back to older, bad habits they had when they were starting out at first. I’d write this to be an affect all of them face from the Battle for the Pridelands; a piece of ‘evil’ inside all of them instead of just Kion.

Alongside this arc of the Guard (wow thats catchy) I’d also have Makini have her own arc as well. The Guard is in shambles after the BFTP, and Makini is their closest friend. I would see this as an opportunity to build up Makini’s character, especially as a future Mjuzi (whether that be in the Pridelands or the Tree of Life). She finds herself in a position where she’s the only one who can somehow try to bring the Guard back together to what it was, or maybe even something stronger. Some development for my girl <3.

This arc resolves in the journey itself. I had thought of making it continue to their time in the Tree of Life, but hit a dead end there. The way I see this arc coming to a close is that it eventually erupts in a fight between the Guard members themselves. It’s nasty, with Makini and Anga trying their best to hold at least one or two of them back. This would take place around ‘Friends to the End’. In the prior episodes, I’d make it so that the fight that takes place here builds up. All the points I’ve mentioned above for this arc would be shown in the prior episodes, and eventually produce what happens in this one. I’m not going to write out the entire episode plan I have for this, but I’ll give some important points. The episode is pretty angsty, in a sense, and after Kion leaves I think the others would, too. Beshte, although not as mad as some ofthe others, is still deeply unsettled, and is also feeling some inkling of annoyance. Again, pieces of ‘evil’/Scar inside all of them. They’re not acting themselves, all of them, and when they split up, Makini and Anga are just trying to get them to reconcile. In the end, what brings them back together is Kion. I’m keeping his whole nearly-falling-off-a-cliff thing. The moment all of them find out he’s in danger, they rush and forget whatever they had said or done in the fight before. This is to sort of remind both the Guard and the viewers of why they’re on this journey, and why they’re together at all. Why does the Guard exist as a unit and why has the Circle of Life chosen them? All themes and questions that have been already addressed in the previous seasons, but something the Guard has forgotten due to the events of the BFTP. Trauma does that to you. To everyone. It’s not easy for them, especially as kids, but they find a way to come back together, because they’ve grown from ‘just the Guard’ now. They’re practically family to each other. What Scar and his army wanted so bad was to seperate them, and by the effects of the BFTP, they’ve unknowingly succeeded. It’s Makini who finally brings this realisation to them, and reminds them of all that they’ve learned and all that they’ve experienced, together. They’re the Lion Guard, and that’s where this arc sort of concludes. (Cough, can you tell I like found family themes?)

However we will still definitely see the Guard struggle after this, but not without wanting to make up for it, not without wanting to try and to heal. There’s no more spitefulness, and even if there is, what follows after is forgiveness and love. While this particular arc of the Guard will have come to a close by the time they reach the Tree of Life, I still want to show how it’ll take some time before they’re able to become what they once were. Healing is never perfect, after all.

Speaking of the Tree of Life, the Guard’s time there deserved waaay more episodes. The place had such a huge build up only for us to spend barely anytime there at all. I’d also like to see more time given to the Night Pride. I think they rushed a lot of things regarding them, such as their introduction, Queen Janna’s death, how we’re suddenly supposed to root for Rani as new Queen.. etc etc. I’d probably write it so that we spend some time with them before anything major happens. I’m not criticising Queen Janna’s death by any means, and although I really liked the entire episode and Rani’s coronation in general, I do wish we as an audience had more of a chance to connect with these characters first. I mean, I’m an emotional person, and while I did cry once or twice for Queen Janna, there was no basis for me in order to root for her or Rani’s character, you know? I’ve also seen one or two people talk about how they wish Queen Janna had more connection with the rest of the Night Pride, especially Baliyo, than with just Rani. I can agree with that, and so I’ll probably add that bit or two in my rewrite, as well.

Another idea I have in mind (and this is inspired by this particular night pride redesign/revamp) is to change Binga. I like her, don’t get me wrong, but I dislike that she’s just a genderbent Bunga whose supposed to be his love interest. Heck, I dislike the whole squeezing in love interests for the Guard (except Ono and Beshte, ofc) at the end of the series. If at all you want them to have love interests, let it build over time. I know Kion and Jasiri or Kion and Fuli would have made more sense that Kion and Rani. But for Bunga specifically the idea I have in mind is to make Binga an Indian-crested porcupine instead (an idea that was also inspired by this post). Idk much about them, but what I do know is that they’re tough and close to the honeybadger in terms of size and toughness against larger predators. I can see that what the writers were trying to go with for Binga was to kind of have Bunga meet ‘his competition’; someone who could stand up to Bunga. I think having this someone be a porcupine (especially with Bunga’s already established history with porcupines from Mama Binturong) would make sense and also be a lot more fun than having another honeybadger. I would also probably change Binga’s name, too, so as to not make them.. well, you know, genderbent Bunga. I don’t wanna go too in depth on this idea in this post specifically, but I’ll definitely be making a post on this idea someday (and maybe an OC, now that I think more abt it lol).

Also, although I’ve not finished the series I am aware of the fact that the Guard return to the Tree of Life after returning to the Pridelands. Now that.. is something I would change. If I go with Kion and Rani being love interests, then I’d make it that maybe Kion wants to go back, but this doesn’t mean the rest have to. I mean, they all have a life in the Pridelands after all, and I’m sure some if not all of them would like a break now that Vitani’s Guard is keeping the Circle of Life in balance, and whatnot. Not such a fleshed out idea but just wanted to add it in there.

I also really like @kaythefloppa ‘s idea of how the show ends (particularly his last point of his entire rewrite). It’s sweet and brings everything to a satisfactory close. I’d have to love to see it, honestly.

Aaand I think that’s it! There’s my ‘how I’d rewrite of TLG’ and things I would change! According to tumblr this post was started around 5 November and has been sitting in my drafts ever since so uh.. saying this is late would be an understatement. However, in my defense, I had a LOT of thoughts while writing this! A lot of my ideas were coming to dead ends the more I thought about them so I tried rearranging/changing some stuff so that wouldn’t happen, but I’m sure if this rewrite were to be the actual show’s writing there’d still be some dead ends and plot holes, lol. Ah well, good thing this isn’t then, huh?

Thank you so much for this ask!! I gotta say, you usually have really interesting and thought-provoking questions so whenever I see you in my inbox I get excited, haha. Hope my answer was as interesting to read as your question was!

[spinnysocks]

Gimme your headcanons about Bunga please? lol

i don't have many, unfortunately :[

no matter how many times simba reminds bunga that he's royalty, bunga calls him “bro” or “big bro” without fail - ever since the events of Bunga and The King, kion is a little bit weirded out that his dad and his childhood best friend are practically brothers lol

i think honey badgers are pretty rare in the tlk universe, or at least they are in the current timeline. there were more of them before scar's reign, so when simba reclaims the throne and bunga shows up to play with his son, it makes simba proud and happy. even though bunga is the only badger in the pridelands, he's a welcome sight you know?

bunga regularly babysits the pridelands kids! it's like his second job except it's never tiring or bothersome for him, it's always fun :)

bunga always loves hanging out with kiara! she is like a sister to him because he grew up around kion so much

there's this headcannon that kiara spars with makuu to get strong - i'll link it here if i find it again - and i like to think bunga watches and cheers for both kiara and makuu. he gets super excited (just like when he watches the mashindanos), it's like he's watching a football/soccer game or something lol

that's all i've got atm but i'll reblog if i think of more!