"I hate you!" Vitani screamed, tears streaming down his face as he glared at his mother. Zira simply scowled back and said, "Leave. Go to the den, my daughter. Until you realize that you are a lioness and meant to mate with a male and have cubs, I do NOT wish to speak with you."

Vitani couldn't stand to hear it anymore. He burst into tears and ran to the den. Once there, he slumped down on the floor and sobbed into his paws. No one understood, not even his own mother. His brother Nuka blew him off and the other lionesses of his pride didn't even give him the time of day. The only one he hadn't told yet was Kovu. He was terrified of how he'd react. They'd been best friends ever since they were born, and he was always on Vitani's side. But would he be this time?

Speaking of which, his favorite brother walked into the den just then. Kovu watched his sibling, concerned. He walked up to Vitani and whispered, "Hey, you okay, bro?"

Vitani looked up at him with tear stained eyes but a grateful, loving smile. "Who told you?"

Kovu grimaced. "Well, Zira was pretty livid when I came back from the hunt. She started ranting about how I should go set my 'confused sister straight' because 'she thinks she's fit to be a king and not a queen'. I sort of figured the rest out myself."

Vitani sighed, body still shaking. "It just isn't fair. She's my mother, she gave birth to me. She should accept me. I don't feel like a lioness. I was born one but...I'm not one. I want to be the king of a pride, not some queen used for breeding. I want to be a father and a mate to a wonderful lioness who loves me and I'd love her...but I can't. And NO ONE understands. It just isn't fair..."

He broke down and sobbed into Kovu's shoulder, as his brother comforted him quietly. "It's alright, Tani. It's alright. I understand. You just wanna be who you are. I know the feeling all too well..."

Vitani stopped crying and stared up at him. "How do you know? You don't feel like a lioness, do you?"

Kovu shook his head. "No, I don't. But I know what it's like to feel something for somebody and not be able to accept it because you need to be something different...Zira wants me to be the King of the pride, wants me to take down Simba and then rule the entire Pridelands. Find a lioness to breed with and father some cubs...I can't think about...him..."

He began to shudder and trailed off. Vitani's eyes were wide. "Think about who?" he inquired. Kovu sighed before mumbling a name softly, "Simba."

Vitani smiled at him. "We're one of a kind, brother. You want Simba to stick it in you and I wanna stick it in a lioness. But I don't got nothin' to stick her with and you gotta stick yours in some girl you ain't gonna love."

Kovu chuckled a bit. "Perfect description, bro."

Vitani smiled even wider. "Thank you for...being the only one to accept me, Kovu. It means so much that even in this bigoted pride, I have you to rely on."

The dark haired lion simply shook his head, "Don't worry about it. If you're not a lioness, you're not a lioness. I liked having a sister but hey, Nuka ain't much of a brother anyways. You can fill in for him. You're a lot cooler."

Vitani nuzzled Kovu under his chin and wrapped his paws around him, giving him a hug. "You're the best brother I could ever ask for. Thank you."

Kovu smiled and returned the hug. "Same to you."