Name: Rufaro (birth); Aberash (current)

Meaning (in order): "Happiness" in Shona; "Giving Off Light," in Amharic

Nicknames: Ru, Rufa (birth); Abey (current)

Gender: Female

Breed/Type: African Lion

Age: Unknown

Mother: Unknown

Adopted Mother: None

Father: Unknown

Adopted Father: Rafiki (c) Disney

Sibling(s): None

Half-Sibling(s): Unknown/None

Adopted Sibling(s): None

Crush(es): Kilio (c) YearooTheCub54

Crusher(s): Kilio (c) YearooTheCub54

Mate(s): Kilio (c) YearooTheCub54

Cub(s): None

Adopted Cub(s): None

Personality: She's a pretty calm, controlled lioness, who's very shy, basically a wallflower. She tends to only be talkative around Rafiki, but if she warms up to you, she'll be more friendly and willing to open up to you. She tends to be more mature than most cubs her age, and hardly shows a playful side. She gets attached to certain older figures, such as Rafiki, and constantly follows him around to learn from him. When you first meet her, she can seem cold, however she doesn't mean to act this way. Very intelligent, she catches on easily with certain tasks, such as herbs, but isn't the most social, not knowing what other cubs mean by 'fun.' She tends to be quiet, and some may think she's mute, but she can be quite talkative around those she knows, such as her adoptive father Rafiki. Despite lacking in social skills, she has a vast knowledge of the Pridelands, and often comes with Rafiki on visits to King Simba. She craves knowledge, and is always wanting to learn more.

Likes: Rafiki, Their Tree, Climbing, Sunrise, Herbs, Simba, The Pridelands, Staring At The Stars, Making Pictures, Learning, Peace, Wind, Amara, Ochieng

Dislikes: Social Encounters, Hyenas, Stories About Scar (but she will tolerate those), Zira, Hunting, Fighting, Fights, War, Violence

Hope(s): To Be The Next Shaman After Rafiki

Nightmare(s): War

Pride: None/Unknown

History: Rufaro came to be after two rogues decided to have cubs, and the lioness later gave birth to one cub, whom she named Rufaro. But, a starving pack of hyenas found out, and thinking it would be an easy meal, tried to find and kill Rufaro. Her mother tried her best, but after the death of her father, who died of starvation, she was powerless. Her mother knew she had to give Rufaro to someone else so that she would be safe from more predators, thinking she was incapable of raising her own cub. Her mother left her at Rafiki's tree and left quickly, hoping to lead the hyenas off. Rafiki found the cub when he heard a small cry, and took the cub in. Not knowing her name, he called her Aberash, as he found her at sunrise. He brought her up to his tree, and was allowed to get some meat from Simba's pride.

Growing up, Rafiki was the only father figure she'd known, and she was seemingly attached at the hip with him, following him everywhere. Rafiki wanted to take her to Simba's pride so she could live among her own kind. But, they were having some difficulties at the time from a pack of hyenas pushing on the borders, and couldn't afford adding another cub to their ranks. So, the old shaman kept her and raised her as his own, and she became his apprentice of sorts. She learned all about healing herbs, and how to read signs in the wind or trees, which she had a knack for. One of Simba's lionesses always brought meat for Aberash, since she refused to kill, but preferred fruits anyways. Later, Rafiki taught her how to climb so she wouldn't be stuck in the tree all the time, and soon, she was nearly as good as Rafiki. When she was older, Rafiki brought her on visits to meet King Simba, and though she was shy and timid at first, she eventually warmed up to the king, and listened to his stories. Rather than playing with the cubs of the Pridelands, she always listened to meetings, hearing their conerns about going ons in the lands.

One day, on a visit to Chumvi's Pride, she met the other cubs. After some time, she became friends with them, especially Kilio, a young cub who wasn't very liked by the pride. She spent a lot of time with him, listening to his stories since she was more used to listening than talking, and enjoyed his company quite a bit, despite her shy ways.

Relation To TLK: Rafiki's adopted daughter, friends with Simba, has a crush on The Selfish Lion's grandson and Chumvi's nephew.

Adopted from YearooTheCub

Base (c) sixnewadventures