Kiara

The headstrong and eldest daughter of Simba and Nala. Kiara now rules as the queen of the Pridelands and is the first true queen to have inherited the title in a long time.

Appearance
Standing at just below the average height for a lioness, Kiara's build might seem rather unimposing. Fortunately, what she lacks in height she makes up for in strength and agility. Years of training have built her into a lioness fit to be a lead warrior, and it shows in the light muscle draped over her frame. Kiara has a golden pelt that rivals the sun in brilliance, inherited from her father more so than her mother. With bright, scarlet eyes that can sometimes take on a bloody hue in the right lighting, Kiara is coloured rather brightly save for the muted, creamy-tan of her muzzle, undercoat and paws.

Personality
As a cub, Kiara was curious and a little bit mischievous. Kiara loved to wander off despite her father's wishes, and more often than not she would land herself in trouble. Naive to the core, Kiara held no concept of the dangers of the world about her and she had no concept of pain, either. She thought that the most annoying thing in life was her father's incessant need to keep her close to home. In fact, in her youth, the respected queen of the Pridelands was considered something of a pompous, bratty little princess, who was also rather self-entitled.

But, life is known to change cubs, and Kiara was no different. By the time she had reached adolescence, her sparky behaviour had faded. In it's place was a much more quiet and sombre lioness, who had suffered the loss of her brother (Kopa). Not having experienced something like that before, the shock sobered her personality and taught her an appreciation of the world around her. As years passed, and she suffered more loss, Kiara's anger built. It shaped her into a harsher lioness, a true leader - a true warrior. She may not have been strong and fierce, the way that the Lowlanders were, or silent but deadly like the Mauti, but she was her own kind of warrior and she began to morph into a lioness who realised her own faults and corrected them.

History
When Kiara was a cub, all was well, as you would expect. A golden lion growing up in the Pridelands as a princess, daughter of Simba and Nala who were both wholesome and loving parents, sister of Kopa who was the heir to the throne. Without the risk of ever having responsibility thrust onto her and with the support of her family who she was so dearly fond of, how could Kiara expect this happiness that had followed her since the moment she was born to evaporate so quickly into bitterness, fear, anger and grief. As a cub, she pranced around all day and all night, playing, ignoring her father's warnings not to wander too far. She had her first encounter with Kovu before Kopa went missing due to an earthquake.

Grief stricken by the loss of her brother and suddenly smacked in the face with the responsibilities of being heir to the throne, she sought out Kovu and grew up sneaking off to visit him, taking extra care to ensure her father never stumbled across her when she was with Kovu.

She soon became the key ploy in a plot to bring down Simba. Kovu would "pretend" to befriend her in order to get close to Simba and murder him, but love is a complicated matter. Though all may have seemed to be getting better for Kiara with her best friend not only around but accepted into her pride by none other than her father, it was not to last and soon a mysterious killer stole the lives of her cousin and her grandmother, Sarafina and Miranu. And this is where Kiara first got a taste of pure, unadulterated anger. A fire burns deep within the lioness, one that will burn until she exacts revenge on the lion's who stole her family member's lives. The Outsiders attack only stoked this flame into something larger, something more violent than it had been before.

An unsteady peace settled itself into Kiara's life after all was resolved, and she even found happiness in the form of an adopted cub, Masozi. With Kovu taken as her mate, and her preparations to become queen underway, everything seemed well - until the Shadowlanders attacked, with the Agiza at their rear. Simba was murdered, and Negasi was killed by his own followers, who then offered their "assistance" to the queen. With her in a weakened state of mind, she readily accepted their help, and thus became their pawn. For her first year of being Queen, she did no more than what the Agiza asked her to do until the Mauti and the Agiza destroyed one another. Regaining the respect of her pride was a difficult feat, but after appointing one of her loyal followers, Aleela, to the position of lead warrior, she took back control of her home and proved her worth.

Now, as her three young ones Kondo, Kyan, and Amira grow, the attention of her and her pride remains on the Shadowlanders - a pride still ruled by Negasi's daughters.

Fun Fact
Kiara was meant to have a litter birthing cubs from two different fathers - Kovu and Valio!