#kifaji

New illustrations of kid!Ruggie and kid!Leona by Yana!! I believe it is in the third volume of the Episode of Savanaclaw manga as a bonus at the end of it.

According to the notes, Ruggie and other hyenas have entirely black hair in their childhood. I assume this is because real life hyenas have entirely black fur in their youth as well. I guess when they grow up, their hair/fur lightens, hence the gradient we see in Ruggie's current hairstyle. It looks like beastmen have more traits in common with their animal ancestors than we thought! (We've discussed how animal traits might manifest in beastfolk infants here.) The other note on Ruggie's illustration says that he wears someone else's hand-me-down clothes.

As for little Leona! It says he aspires to be the King of Beasts awww 🥺he used to be so full of hope... and the necklace he wears bears a scar-like pattern. It is apparently imbued with a protective spell, which was cast by Kifaji. We previously discussed what the purpose of the pendant the young royals of Sunset Savanna seem to wear (here!). According to the Magical Archives, Cheka's seems to have a tracking device but no protective spell is mentioned. Leona's meanwhile, has the protective spell but no tracking device mentioned. Are these customized based on the personality (and/or troublemaking level) of the royal in question? Is Cheka's pendant being more tech than magic an indication of the Sunset Savanna's advancements as they slowly industrialize while keeping mindful of nature? Or do the pendants just have both anyway and the design notes fail to convey that to us?

Cheka seems to sneak away from his retainers a lot, so I get why the GPS tracker might be needed for him. I have to wonder why Leona has a protective spell on his, though... Are there more people after him than Cheka, despite him being the second born prince and not the crown prince? And isn't Leona a mage powerful enough to be able to defend himself whereas Cheka doesn't seem to be able to defend himself and/or cast spells yet? Maybe Kifaji cast a protective spell on Leona's pendant to help Leona feel more like a normal kid? Like someone is out there hoping for his safety and worrying about him...

Forever in your shadow 🦁

You all would not believe how long this piece has been sitting in my sketch folder 🤡 I loved the composition of it, but I just had a hard time with the lineart, so I hid it away in my sketch folder until I felt ready to tackle it again. Now, it’s finished! I wanted the main focus to be the shadow of the crown hanging over Leona, just out of reach just like his claim to the throne.

Kalim: *heading up the path with the others* Whoa, is this big building your house, Leona?

Shriek: It's solid stone! 😃 This ain't a house, it's a full-on fortress!

Leona: That's what it served as in centuries past, so yeah, it was built to be strong.

Kalim: So your family's in there? We should pop in and say hello! 😁

Leona: Don't. 😒 We ain't stickin' around either. I just gotta go and-

[[A little red-haired lion cub beastman comes barreling down the path]]

???: UNCA LEOOOOOONA!!! 😃😃😃

Leona: *immediately knocked off his feet by the flying ball of fluff* GAH!!! 😖😖

Vil: What the blazes??

Mahina: Wait, isn't that-

Shriek: CHEKAAAAAAAAA!!! 😃😃😃

Cheka: *looking up from where he's hugging Leona* SHRIEEEEEEK!!! 😃😃😃

Shriek: *squeal-laughing along with an equally giddy Cheka as she lifts him up and spins him around mid-air in a hug*

Kifaji: Young lady, your happiness is evident but I must insist you put Prince Cheka down!

Charles, Lilia, and Vil: Prince???

Shriek: *landing on the ground with Cheka* Yeah, Leona's brother's Cheka's dad!

Vil: So then this boy is...

Leona: My nephew. Real genius, you are. 😒

Cheka: Shriek, you and the other grownups I don't know are wearing a lion garb just like Unca!

Shriek: 'Course I am! We're all decked out for the Bead Brawl! 😁

Cheka: You get to Bead Brawl with Unca? Lucky! *smiles at the sight of Grim who he reaches out to cuddle* Griiiim! 😀

Grim: Ah ah ah! I can remember ya just fine without the huggin'!

Kalim: Oh, how cute! Hi there. I'm Kalim Al-Asim. I'm a friend of Leona's. 😁

Leona: Just gonna let that slide... 😑

Lilia: You can call me, Lilia! It's a pleasure to meet such an adorable little royal! 😊

Charles: Hi, Cheka. My name's Charlie. 👋🙂

Cheka: Unca's friend! Hiiii! 👋😄

Charles, Lilia, and Kalim: So cuuute!! 🥹🥹🥹

Cheka: *giggling as he latches onto Leona's leg* Unca, I'm so happy you're back!

Leona: *shaking his leg* Tsk. Quit clingin' to me like that! Knock it off! 😠

Vil: He pays no mind to Leona's scary demeanor and simply keeps running around at his feet. What an innocent child. I can hardly believe they're related.

Mahina: Yeah. It's almost surreal seeing them side by side.

Cheka: Unca, let's play!

Leona: *pushing Cheka back by the forehead with his fingers* We have to practice for the Bead Brawl today, then tomorrow's the tournament. After that we're going right back to school. Really, I wish we could play, but time's just not on our side. Tragic, I know.

Cheka: Whaddaya want to play first? Tag? Hide-and-seek? 😊

Leona: *blinking* Did you hear me, Cheka? I ain't playin' either of those. Why would I play such childish games anyway?

Shriek: That's fine. There's way cooler games we can play than that! Like Butcher Ball and Shaftlands Roulette and Coroner!

Charles: Those last two sound they lead into each other and I am not about that. 😥

Cheka: Hey, I know! I can come with you guys! 😃

Kalim and Shriek: Yeah!! 😃

Kifaji: Prince Cheka, you are forgetting yourself.

Cheka: Huh??

Grim: Ya just said he was Prince Cheka. 🤨

Kifaji: Exactly. *to Cheka* You are next in line to the throne of this country. You are not free to gallivant around a tourist destination.

Cheka: But I never get to go outside! 😟 And I never ever get to see Unca Leona! Please, please, pleeeease, Kifaji! 🥺🙏

Kifaji: Now, now, you know what happens to children who don't listen. They have to sing!

Cheka: Nooooo!! 😱Anything but that!

Kalim: Sing? 🤨 But that sounds fun.

Leona: You'd think so, wouldn't ya? It's a punishment. He makes you sing the most boring and irritating songs over and over again. For a kid who just wants to play, it's enough to make ya cry.

Vil: Sounds like you're speaking from experience.

Leona: Not like you'll ever find out.

Shriek: *whispering to Cheka* I can teach ya a trick to get around that... * fluttering over to Kifaji* Look, man, if Cheka wants to go with us than he should go! If you're worried about him, don't be. I can watch his back!

Kifaji: *hearing rapidly approaching heavy footsteps* I assure you that won't be necessary*

[[An extremely tall and muscular lion beastwoman with a large brown curly mane vaults over the nearest wall and flips in the air before landing in a crouch by the group, kicking up dust and leaving some cracks in the pavement]]

Grim: MRAAAH!! WHAT THE STARKISS?! 🙀

Mahina: The hell?!

Kifaji: *coughing* Halisi, have we not talked at great length about these needlessly dramatic entrances?

Halisi: *straightening up and chuckling with a big grin* Sorry, Kifaji! Just seemed like the quickest way up. 😅Hey, there he is! Jahi! Carla! I found him! He's over here by the front gates with... well, everyone!

[[A shorter, leaner rock monitor beastwoman with long, wavy black hair and a swampy green and yellow striped tail turns a corner, holding a spear over her shoulder ]]

Jahi: Told you he was gonna sneak past the substitute attendants first chance he got. Always something with that kid, I swear- oh damn, they're like here here. *sighs and braces herself* Alright, let's get this over with...

[[A tall and muscular hyena beastwoman with an auburn death hawk and a more ornate spear than her companion comes jogging up]]

Carla: Cheka! Cheka, sweetie, I know you're excited, but you can't go running off like that without telling anyone!

Cheka: *smiles and waves at the girls* Oh, hi! 😁

Leona: Took 'em long enough...

Mahina: *utterly speechless as she looks upon these three women, all of whom are wearing the same uniform she saw on the royal guards in the city*

Carla: *gentle sigh* What are we gonna do with you? *looking towards the other prince and bowing her head with a smile* Prince Leona, welcome home. 😌

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If this already been asked, you can ignore this if you like.

It has not being ask! Don't worry (bc of the amount of characters, the write will be quite short)

Yui Komori and Family Characters

Georgina Leech

To say that Georgina is charmed by Yui is an understatement—she thinks she's the cutest little thing on earth! Always so polite and sweet, she really appreciates that she's friends with her troublesome son. Yui, to be honest, was a little intimidating at first, mainly because of her teeth and height, but once she really started interacting with Georgina, she realized that Georgina just has a rather dark sense of humor (Yui now knows where Jade got her scary personality from, but at the same time, her mother is much less intimidating somehow). She's a lovely lady! And overall, I can see them both enjoying each other's company, whether it's having tea, shopping for clothes, walking along the seashore, etc. (a mother who never had a daughter, a daughter who never had a mother).

Dylla Spade

Dylla had already heard about Yui from Deuce—what a kind person she was, how much she inspired Deuce to improve, and all the bad things that had happened to him before arriving at NRC… let's just say Dylla wanted to give this girl a hug, but somehow held back. Yui was happy to meet Deuce's mother; she must be a wonderful woman and mother to raise such a good boy! (These words may or may not bring tears to Dylla's eyes. This girl is definitely one of the good ones.) They spend a lot of time sharing anecdotes about Deuce, both before and after NRC (let's just say Deuce can't look Yui in the eye for a while—how embarrassing!), exploring the city, and so on. It's safe to say, Yui is welcome at the Spade house anytime.

Kifaji

Kifaji had to admit it, he was curious to meet the girl who had been on Leona's mind for so long. It wasn't just a passing interest; it was a kind of obsession he hadn't seen in the prince for years. Yui felt the same way. Of course, she had already met Falena, which was a big step, but meeting Kifaji was like meeting a father figure to Leona. Kifaji was happy to see that Yui was not only a beautiful lady but also kind and had good values, encouraging Leona to improve and better himself. At least he could entrust her with the prince's care while he was away. Yui couldn't help but feel nostalgic around Kifaji. Sometimes she wished she could talk to her own father like this again… but at least she was starting her own family here.

Eric Venue

Eric was so happy to hear that Vil was making friends! Especially someone as kind and understanding as Yui. Eric knows Vil's temperament better than anyone and that he's not always easy to deal with, so he appreciates Yui's effort and patience in connecting with his son. Although, of course, Yui says it's not a chore; Vil has his quirks, sure, but he's a good person, a good friend, and wants to be the best version of himself—that's not complicated, it's admirable. Yui is quite taken with Eric, I won't lie, but it's his personality that makes the biggest impression on her—he's so funny and charming! She genuinely hopes to see him again someday (and Eric hopes Vil will bring her back too, lol).

Marja Felmier

Grandma instincts kick in. Yui doesn't even mention she has anemia (and other health issues) and Marja is already cooking her an iron-rich stew to eat all by herself, and NO BUTS ABOUT IT. Yui is a bit shy in other people's homes, so she ends up doing whatever Marja tells her, whether it's eating a whole buffet by herself until her clothes don't fit anymore, helping carry the sweaters she's made for Epel and his friends (Yui's is a cute pastel pink with a magenta heart in the middle), or sitting near the fire when it starts shaking too much. For Marja, she's just another granddaughter for the collection; for Yui, it's the whole world to have someone who takes care of her like this. She almost feels like crying, but she has to hold it in; she still has stew to eat.

Najma Viper

Typical younger sister trying to make her older brother get the girl he likes. Namja isn't stupid. She can see how Jamil not only lets Yui help him with the cooking (something he doesn't let almost anyone else do) but how much more understanding he is with her, how more attentive he is to her surroundings, how he jokes with her. Namja would find it cute if all that sweetness didn't make her sick. However, she won't accept anything less than Yui as a sister-in-law, so she makes certain comments about it (like, "I'm just kidding, but if you want, it's not a joke") to both Jamil and Yui. Even if Yui dies of embarrassment over the implications or Jamil wants to kill her, it's totally worth it.

Cheka Kingscholar

We know that Yui loves children and is good with them, so when Leona simply doesn't want to spend time with Cheka, Yui practically jumps in to volunteer to spend time with this sweet little angel. I won't lie, Cheka is disappointed about not spending time with his uncle, but in that childish way that he doesn't want to say it in a bad way. So Yui starts thinking of ways to distract Cheka and play with him without magic, things that range from board games and origami to charades, etc. Cheka ends up having a blast! To the point that the next time he visits campus, he goes straight to Yui—oh well, I guess he's her nephew now.

So leona we know in the novel he was born with his unique magic and we also know he is talented and super strong you cant tell me there wasent people who want to use that power and him and leona smart too just imagine instead of fearing him and outcasting him instead they make him like a weapon we know from cloudcalling that he is supposd to be the sunset warriors leader and yeah you get the point do you know what would change like savanaclaw would change a lot to be honest

On the whole making him into a weapon i dont see kifaji/neji or falena reacting to this well

I dont know can someone help me expand this this has been in my head?! Give me ideas please

Like in the lion guard scar original name was askari which means soilder and i can see so many implacations of that you know

Also this au idea happens in hes childhood or tweens but you can do what you want

Can someone help me expand this au and give me ideas i would love to hear it!

ROYAL ADVISOR YAOI

I don't have an idea for a Sebastian based oc ATM but this won't leave me alone

I'm not only one who sees this right

Beastmen X Mermaid too?? Hell yeah 👌

This is my meal will you order it?