The lionesses of Zuba's pride weren't having much luck catching game that day, so Zafina decided to let them off for the remainder. Most of them were sleeping due to the heat of the midday, so Zambia used the opportunity to ask something she'd never be allowed to ask their father. Just to be safe, she also made sure her brother was not nearby when she did so.
"What is it, sweetheart?" Zafina smiled affectionately and nuzzled the cub.
"Mom. Before I ask, promise not to tell my dad or even my brother that I asked you this question."
"Let me guess. Your father keeps taking your brother places, but not you. Is that this is about?" Zafina speculated.
"No. It's nothing like that. It's just that." Zambia pursed her mouth before she continued with the question. "If something happened to dad so that he either passed away or was unable to continue ruling while my brother wasn't grown up, who takes over leadership of the pride?"
Truth be told, Zafina had been anticipating being asked this question and had not looked forward to it. She just hadn't expected to be asked early as she was.
"Mom?" Zambia asked.
"I would." Zafina said.
"You?"
"Yes. Me."
"But doesn't a pride need an adult male? Uncle Rabat is the only other adult male besides dad. Doesn't he get to be the new leader by default?"
"In a sense, yes. But your uncle has expressed no such desire to assume leadership of this pride, as we both know."
"What if that changes and he later decide, now that dad is no longer there, that he wants to be the new ruler?"
"Then he will be."
"Does that mean you have to marry him and have cubs with him? That would be so creepy if that happened. The cubs would be half-siblings and cousins at the same time to me and my brother." Zambia shuddered at the incestuous thought.
"Ridiculous. No. Even if your father passed away early, I am not having cubs with another male. I had you two, and that is enough for me." Zafina assured with a slightly awkward smile.
"Dad doesn't let Uncle Rabat be with any of the lionesses because he thinks that if Uncle Rabat starts a family of his own, that he will form a split in the pride and get the other lionesses to follow him and not dad."
"Oh, I don't think he needs to encourage them to follow him to make that split happen." Zafina almost said out loud, but luckily didn't. "Your uncle has no interest in having children and starting a family. You know that. Your brother knows that. I know that. He has you two as his nephew and niece and that is good enough for him. He has no interest in power or ruling over anyone. If anything, he'd be happy to let me call the shots while he occasionally gives advice and mostly patrols the territory. In the event that both your mother and father passed away prematurely, only then would Rabat become the leader of this pride."
"Dad said he'd kick out Uncle Rabat if he ever had a cub, especially if that cub is a male. He doesn't want any male cubs in the pride that are not his."
"Obviously." Zafina drew circles in the dirt with a claw.
"He thinks any male cub aside from my brother would try to steal my brother's spot." Zambia pouted.
"Well, Zambia. Most lion prides don't simply allow the king's son to be next in line. Most lion prides don't even call their leader a king. A king lion is simply a title that is given to a lion when he has ruled a long time and controls a larger territory than the average pride. Most lion prides force their sons out of the family once the sons are old enough to fend for themselves. This is done so that the sons, when they start entering their teen years, don't potentially mate with their sisters. Other lion prides, like this one, allow the leader's son to succeed him. But usually, there are no more than two adult males in a pride. More than that, you are asking for feuds to erupt between the males over leadership, mating rights with females, and territory. That is why there is usually only one adult male in a pride and, at most, two. When a rogue lion takes over a pride, he often kills the cubs of the previous male to drive the lionesses back into heat. This way, he can replace the cubs of the previous male with his own."
"So, if both dad and Uncle Rabat passed away and if some rogue male took over this pride, will you and the lionesses accept him as king?" Zambia asked jokingly, but a little afraid she'd get an answer she wouldn't like.
"What makes you think the sisters and I would let him be our king?" Zafina gave her daughter a challenging, yet mischievous look. "The second he strutted around like that and barked orders, we'll each give him a piece of our minds. Then he will never think to do that again."
Zambia couldn't help but smile. "I'm guessing that's a no."
"Some lionesses don't defend their cubs and let the new rogue just waltz in and take over. Others, like myself, do not."
"Why don't they defend their cubs? That's horrible!" Zambia grimaced. "So, just because the father of the cubs is not around anymore, they just stop caring?"
"They see no point in continuing to raise the cubs of a dead father when another stronger male could take his place and give them stronger offspring." Zafina yawned.
"So, my brother still gets to be the king?" Zambia asked.
Zafina stretched her back. "That depends on what your brother thinks. Knowing him, he might not even want to be king. He might just let your uncle be king. One thing for sure is that your uncle himself has no designs on your father's position. Now, if he had a son and that son decided to challenge your brother for the position, that would be a different matter entirely. If that happens, and he won? Then, I'm afraid that your brother has to forfeit the position. But I'm confident that won't happen. Your uncle does not want anything to come between him and your brother and you. He would ensure no harm came to you two until you came of age."
"What if neither my brother nor Uncle Rabat want to be king? Do I get to be the queen by default?"
"That depends on what kind of lioness you become. Being matriarch is a position of great responsibility, possibly even more so than one of pride male. You are in charge of organizing the hunt, listening to the problems of lionesses, prevent any feuds from breaking out, and attend to the cubs. You have to give approval or disapproval when a lioness wishes to join the pride or to leave it or to marry another male lion. Over the years, if I judge you fit to assume that position, you will be the matriarch. Or queen, in my case, since your father claims to be the king, which, I suppose, makes your mother the queen by default." Zafina laughed at her own joke. "In the extreme event that both your parents and uncle are dead, Bora will take over the position of leader since she is the head huntress and this pride's strongest lioness after yours truly. She will act as a regent until you and your brother come of age."
"Where would my brother find a queen once he becomes king?"
"If another lioness with female cubs joins this pride, then once they come age, that cub and your brother could choose to marry. Or your brother may visit any number of the neighboring prides and earn the approval to be wedded to one of the females."
"And what about me?"
"Same, though…." Zafina trailed off with a worried look coming over her face.
"Mom?" Zambia put a small paw on her mother's leg.
"In your case, you will have to leave with the other male. I don't like it. But that is how things are with our kind. This other male could potentially cause problems for your brother, who would likely be the king at that point."
"I'm not going to marry a lion who hates my brother." Zambia said confidently.
"It's not so simple. Your brother would have children of his own by that point. Any nephews from his end would naturally be next-in-line. However, if your brother only had daughters and if you had sons, then some arrangement can possibly be made. Of course, your brother may pass leadership to his daughter anyway." She paused to cough twice. "But again. That would be when you are both adults old enough to have children of your own."
Zambia yawned, growing tired. "If my brother does have kids, I hope, for his sake, that he has a son. I can't imagine dad would be happy if my brother was unable to give him a grandson and only had girls. I'd hate to be my sister-in-law and being on the receiving end of a royal tongue lashing from his majesty on how the future queen can't give the future king a male heir."
"We will cross that bridge when we get there." Zafina sighed, hoping that such a scenario did not happen.