Mufiara

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Mufiara
GENERAL
The Lion King
Character	Mufasa
Character	Kiara
Canonical?	Canon
Status of Relationship	Grandfather and granddaughter
IN FANDOM
Type (?)	Family

Mufiara is the family ship between Mufasa and Kiara from the The Lion King fandom.

Canon

Mufasa is Kiara’s paternal grandfather, and he sadly was killed long before she was born.

1994 continuity

In The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride, Mufasa’s spirit appears to watch as Kiara is presented to the Pride Lands. Mufasa also watches over Kiara as seen in The Lion Guard. In "Can't Wait to be Queen", Mufasa’s spirit appears counsels Kiara’s brother Kion, who is in the midst of a dispute with Kiara. Mufasa urges Kion to support his sister in spite of their differences.

As seen in the later events of Simba’s Pride, Mufasa sees Kiara as the key to reuniting the lions of Simba’s pride with those who were exiled for their loyalty to Scar. Knowing of Kiara’s friendship with the Outsider Kovu, Mufasa suggests to Rafiki that they encourage the relationship between the two so that they may serve as the bridge between their respective prides. Mufasa’s instincts are correct, and Kiara and Kovu fall in love. When Simba banishes Kovu, believing that he is acting as Mufasa would in his place, a brokenhearted Kiara asserts to her father that he is not Mufasa. Mufasa’s voice was later heard as the two prides celebrated their reunion, made possible by Kiara’s courage. In The Lion Guard episode "Return to the Pride Lands", Mufasa’s spirit appears to speak to Kiara and the rest of the royal family.

2019 continuity

In the alternate continuity film Mufasa: The Lion King, Rafiki shares Mufasa’s story with Kiara while her parents are away. He notes that Mufasa once helped Simba face his fears, and Kiara sadly expresses the belief that she “could never be like Mufasa.” Rafiki then proceeds to share how Mufasa, like her, was once a frightened young cub. Later, when Timon and Pumbaa interrupt, Kiara eventually stops them so that Rafiki can continue telling her about her grandfather. She later becomes so caught up in the story that she urges the young version of her grandfather to run.

As the story continues, Kiara wonders if her grandfather and Sarabi, her future grandmother, had fallen in love. She becomes frightened for the two of them after hearing that Taka, the future Scar, planned to betray them. Once the story is finished, Kiara expresses the longing to meet Mufasa. Rafiki urges her to “look into the heavens.” Inspired, Kiara goes out and roars to the sky, and Mufasa’s image appears in the clouds above.

Greatly pleased by this, Kiara wishes that Mufasa could always be seen. Rafiki assures her that a part of Mufasa lives on in her, a thought that comforts her. Shortly thereafter, Kiara’s parents return, bringing her newborn brother with them. After greeting him, Kiara begins to share with him the account of their grandfather.

Fanon

This section is in need of major improvement. Please help improve this article by editing it.

Mufiara doesn't receive a great deal of attention in fan works based on a number of factors. Notably, Mufasa's death in the original The Lion King and its 2019 remake mean that he is not physically present to interact with Kiara. Mufasa also never speaks directly to Kiara as a spirit as he does with both Simba and Kion, Kiara's younger brother. Despite this, Kiara cherishes the memory of her grandfather, and Mufasa is seen to be genuinely caring towards Kiara.

There is one aspect of Mufasa and Kiara's relationship that might be seen as somewhat controlling, however. Mufasa, seeking to reconcile the divided prides, seeks to encourage a relationship between Kiara and Kovu. In doing so, he makes no attempt either directly or through Rafiki, his intermediary, to inform Kiara of this design. This action is reminiscent of the concept of betrothal mentioned in the original The Lion King film, in which it had been arranged that Simba would marry Nala when the two were still cubs and had not been consulted on the matter. While Simba and Nala ultimately did fall in love-which is the reason Kiara herself is alive-the fact remains that Mufasa, however noble his intentions, sought to influence a fairly significant decision for his granddaughter.

Currently, there are no works on AO3 tagged for the relationship.

Fandom

FAN FICTION

In a Perfect World