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The old ruin temple, once quiet, was now a bustle of activity. Now six cubs (two panthers, two tigers, and two bears) called it home. Not long after their adventure in the Pride Lands, Bagheera, Baloo, and Shere Khan returned to the jungle with their new friend (and Bagheera's new mate) Sheena and Shere Khan had taken a beautiful tigress named Mahal as his mate while Baloo had taken a she bear named Rebecca as his mate. Now, with the passing of the monsoon season, cubs had been born to the three couples. Bagheera and Sheena named their son and daughter Quartermain and Jahanara. Shere Khan and Mahal named their son and daughter Ruh and Lily. And Baloo and Becky named their son and daughter Kit and Molly.
Other changes had been made. Inspired by the rule of King Simba, Shere Khan had changed how he ruled the jungle; choosing to work with the different groups of animals that lived there. Also, inspired by the Lion Guard, Shere Khan, Bagheera, and Baloo had started their own group to protect the jungle. They called it the Jungle Guard. Shere Khan lead it and was known as the fiercest; Bagheera was dubbed the bravest; and Baloo was dubbed the strongest. Knowing they needed two more members, they had asked Mowgli's brother Grey Wolf and the mongoose Riki Tiki to join as well. Gray Wolf, because of his tracking abilities, was dubbed the keenest tracker while Riki Tiki, because of his speed, was dubbed the fastest.
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"Can't catch me!" Jahanara laughed as the cubs raced about the ruins.
"You can't escape, Jahanara," Quartermain said as he pounced on his sister.
The two panther cubs laughed as they rolled across the floor; tumbling into their father.
"And what are you two up to?" Bagheera asked.
"Hi, Dad," Quartermain said. "Just playing."
The little cub got to his paws and looked at the tiger paw print on his fathers left shoulder. It indicated that Bagheera was part of the Jungle Guard.
"Just be careful. And, Quartermain, play nice with your sister," Bagheera said.
"Where are you going, Dad?"
"Out on patrol with the rest of the Guard."
"Can we come, too?" Quartermain asked as Kit and Ruh ran up to them.
"No, son," Bagheera said. "You boys stay here and look after your sisters and mothers."
"But, Dad...," Quartermain said.
"No 'buts'. Listen to your mother, play nice with your sister, and stay out of trouble."
The boys looked at their sisters; a little mad that they had to stay home and play with them instead of going with their dads.
"What was that about?" Shere Khan asked when Bagheera joined them.
"The boys wanted to come with us on patrol. I told them they had to stay here and protect their mothers and sisters," Bagheera said.
"Sorry I'm late," Grey Wolf said. "Delia needed help with the pups."
A small grey, wolf cub came up besides Grey Wolf.
"Where are we, Dad?" the pup asked.
"At the temple where Baloo, Bagheera, and Shere Khan live with their families, Akalia," Grey Wolf said. He looked at the others. "I hope you don't mind but I brought Akalia to meet the cubs."
The little wolf looked up at the bear and two jungle cats. He'd never seen any living animal other than a wolf. He had heard stories of how Shere Khan used to rule the jungle but Akalia only knew him as the one who started the Jungle Guard. He wanted so much to be on the Guard as the Keenest Tracker just like his father.
"I thought you were going on patrol?" came a voice.
Sheena walked up to them followed by a white female tiger. Akalia knew who they were. Sheena was Bagheera's mate and the white tiger was Shere Khan's mate Mahal.
"We were just about to. Can you take Akalia back to the temple?" Shere Khan said.
"I'll pick him up after the patrol," Grey Wolf said.
"Of course," Mahal said. "Come along, little wolf pup. Our cubs can't wait to meet you."
Akalia looked back at his dad as he left on patrol with the other members of the Jungle Guard. Following the two female cats, he soon discovered that he wasn't the only visitor. Two young mongooses were there as well: Rikki-Tikki's son Podo and daughter Kodo. Quick on his feet like his father, there was little doubt that Podo would be the fastest member of the next Jungle Guard. Akala was also positive that Ruh and Kit would also be on the next guard; taking their fathers' places when the time came. The one that was up in the air was who would take Bagheera's place. Quartermain wanted the position but he was more reckless brave while Jahanara, the more cautious of the two, wouldn't back down from anyone (except man).
"Everyone," Mahal said. "This is Akalia, Grey Wolf's son."
The cubs all turned to look at the wolf pup. Akalia suddenly felt nervous. He had never had so many eyes on him outside of the pack. He didn't even know why they were looking at him. After all, their fathers were all members of the Jungle Guard just like his dad was so its not like he was anything special. Ruh came up to him and wolf pup and tiger cub sniffed each other.
"Hi. I'm Ruh. Your mom's the leader of the wolf pack, right?"
Akalia nodded not sure if it was a good thing or not.
"That's so cool," Quartermain said. "Mom and Dad told us about Kiara. Have you heard of her? She's going to be the next ruler of the Pride Lands."
Akalia just stared. He had no idea who this Kiara was or where these Pride Lands were. He did remember his parents telling him that Bagheera mentioning her before his Uncle Cain left the pack.
"Who exactly is Kiara?" Akalia asked.
"She's Simba's daughter," Quartermain said.
"She's a lioness," Sheena said. "A great cat living in a place far from here called Africa."
Akala couldn't believe what he was hearing. He never heard of any great cat outside of tigers and panthers and there was no place other than the jungle. However, his parents did tell him and his litter mates that Sheena came from outside the jungle.
"Mom, can we go play?" Ruh asked.
"It's alright with me," Mahal said.
The boys started to shout and run off.
"As long as your sisters go with you," the tigress finished.
"Aw, Mom," Ruh said.
"Ruh, either you boys take your sisters with you or you can play here at the temple."
"Fine."
The cubs left the temple, the boys reluctantly letting their sisters come with them.
"Let's play hide-and-seek," Jahanara said.
"With any luck we can ditch them." Ruh said.
"You count first, Kit," Molly said.
"I went first last time," her brother said.
"I'll go first," Akala said. "It will help with my tracking skills."
The wolf pup covered his eyes with his forepaws and began to count while the others went to hide. They knew to keep the ruins in sight so that their mothers would know where they are. They also knew to listen for when their moms called them. Quartermain, Jahanara, Kodo, and Podo scurried up a nearby tree while Kit, Molly, Ruh, and Lily looked for hiding places on the ground.
"...Eight...nine...ten! Ready or not. Here I come," Akala said.
The wolf pup sniffed around looking for a scent.
"What are you doing?" someone asked.
Akala looked up and saw a young elephant.
"Looking for my friends," Akala said.
"Did you lose them?"
"No. We're playing hide-and-seek."
"I love hide-and-seek. My friends and I play all the time."
"Friends?"
Without warning, his friends ran from their hiding spots, a young orangutan and a young python watching them.
"Who are you?" Ruh asked seeing the elephant.
"My name is Hathi, Jr. But everyone calls me Junior," the elephant said. "These are my friends Louise and Kai."
"Who are you?" Kai asked looking at the two mongooses.
"They're names are Kodo and Podo," Akala said. "This is Kit and Molly, Ruh and Lily, and Quartermain and Jahanara. And my name is Akala."
"Our dads are on the Jungle Guard," Ruh said.
"The Jungle Guards? We know about them," Louis said.
"Our dads told us that, if we're ever in, trouble, to call the Guard," Kai said.
The friends looked at each other. They knew Shere Khan had started the Jungle Guard before the last monsoon season but didn't know that it had spread this far.
"So...you know our dads?" Podo asked.
"Of course," Junor said. "All the animals in the jungle know about them."
The friends didn't know what to think. They wondered if their parents knew about this. There were a lot of questions that the friends had but one seemed more pressing.
"Who are your dads?" Podo asked.
"My dad's Colonel Haith," Junor said.
"My dad's King Louie," Louise said.
"My dad's Kaa," Kai said not even bothered that her dad didn't have a title.
The other cubs looked at each other. They knew who Kaa, Colonel Haith, and King Louie were. In fact, Baloo, Bagheera, and Shere Khan had grown up with them.
"Where are your dads?" Quartermain asked.
"Around," Louise said.
For Kaa and King Louie, that was probably true, but the friends were sure that Colonel Hathie wasn't 'around' as they would have seen a full-grown male elephant. However, they were a little apprehensive. Kaa and King Louie didn't have the best reputation. But Shere Khan's reputation before starting the Jungle Guard wasn't good either. Perhaps they shouldn't judge right away.
"Well," Ruh said, "if you three aren't other wised engaged, let's play."
The cubs laughed as they pounced on each other. A game of chase soon ensued. Not far away, their fathers watched them. A new generation was starting in the jungle and this one would be even better than the last.