Ziruka

Ziruka
GENERAL
The Lion King
Character	Zira
Character	Nuka
Canonical?	Canon
Status of Relationship	Mother and Son; both are dead
IN FANDOM
Type (?)	Family

Ziruka is the family ship between Zira and Nuka from The Lion King fandom.

Canon

Nuka was Zira's eldest son and child, as seen in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride and The Lion Guard. He accompanied his mother, younger siblings, and Zira's followers into exile from the Pride Lands. They took up residence in the Outlands, and Zira often tasked Nuka with watching over his younger brother Kovu. However, Nuka gave little heed to this responsibility, resenting Kovu for being favored by their mother and by Scar, the usurper king of the Pride Lands to whom Zira had been devoted.

After the latest in a series of incidents in which he allowed Kovu to wander, Nuka dismissed his sister Vitani's warnings about Zira's displeasure. He further added that he should have been chosen as Scar's heir instead of Kovu and insisted that he could be the leader she wanted for their side if given an opportunity. Upon Zira's actual appearance with Kovu, though, Nuka's air became that of a cringing suck-up, eager to please and visibly crestfallen when Zira initially took no notice of him. Nuka may have found this preferable, however, to the anger Zira turned upon him as Kovu spoke with Vitani.

Nuka later reacted in disgust when Zira fawningly compared Kovu to Scar, earning another display of her temper to which he responded with a terrified laugh before lapsing into a sulk as Zira carried Kovu away. As his mother performed the song "My Lullaby", Nuka joined in, apparently hoping to get back into Zira's good graces. Zira responded by shoving Nuka roughly aside, before later stepping on his tail deliberately. Despite this, he continued to take part in the musical number, albeit with varying levels of enthusiasm.

In The Lion Guard episode "Lions of the Outlands", Nuka eagerly supported Kovu's suggestion that Kion, leader of the Lion Guard and son of Simba, be taken to see Zira. Upon arriving at the watering hole the Outsiders had seized from a clan of hyenas whom Kion was friendly with, Nuka called out to his mother to call her attention to the new arrival. He then complained about Kion to Zira, accusing Kion of attacking him only for Zira to correctly guess that Nuka had initiated the confrontation. As Zira addressed Kion, Nuka came up beside his mother and siblings.

Later, when Zira took Kion away to speak in private, she ordered Nuka to behave civilly towards Kion's hyena friend Jasiri in their absence, much to Nuka's disappointment. While this was happening, the members of Kion's Lion Guard were learning the full story of the Outsiders, of which Kion had also been unaware. Despite Zira's instructions, Nuka became impatient and began to menace Jasiri, only to be rebuked when Zira returned. Nuka attempted to deny any wrongdoing but wasn't particularly convincing.

Nuka then stood alongside his mother and the other Outsiders in confronting Kion when he refused to side with them. He expressed concern that Kion might use his powerful Roar of the Elders, but when Zira claimed that Kion couldn't use it against fellow lions, Nuka eagerly attacked Kion. When the rest of the Lion Guard and Jasiri arrived to back up Kion, Nuka slunk to Zira's side in fear and was sent flying along with her after Kion realized that Zira had been lying about the Roar of the Elders. Landing back in the same desolate area on the outskirts of the Outlands they had inhabited previously, Nuka failed to recognize it and questioned Zira, who informed him angrily that it was "[Their] new home."

Sometime later, when Kovu was fully grown, Zira dispatched Nuka and Vitani on a mission to make it appear as though Kovu had saved the life of Simba's daughter-and Kion's sister-Kiara. Still resentful of his lot in life, Nuka complained about being forced to assist his younger brother. After the ploy succeeded, Nuka and his mother would observe Kovu and Kiara from a distance. When Kovu failed to attack Kiara, Nuka made his astonishment and disgust plain to his mother, insisting that he would have taken advantage of the opportunity.

However, Zira felt that Kovu's actions were in harmony with their plans, which were to gain Simba's trust so that they could eliminate him. She emphasized her point with a strike that Nuka just managed to duck and which destroyed a branch that had been hanging behind him. Later, when Kovu showed signs of turning against the Outsiders and befriending Simba and Kiara, Nuka joined his mother and the other Outsiders in ambushing Simba and Kovu while they were away from Pride Rock. When Zira ordered her lions to attack, Nuka was the first to do so, though with little result.

Later, as Simba was making his escape, Nuka chose to pursue him up an unstable pile of logs, declaring to Zira that he would do as she wished. He called out to Zira as he climbed, noting under his breath that his actions were taken for his own sake as well as hers. Tragically, the logs would give way beneath him as Simba managed to escape, and Nuka was crushed as the pile came apart. Showing her first genuine affection for her oldest son, Zira dug through the logs to reach Nuka, whose last words were an apology for failing his mother.

Zira quieted Nuka, taking his face tenderly in her paws as he breathed his last. Overcome with sorrow, she made no effort to pursue Simba and later called upon Scar to watch over her son. Zira's grief soon turned to rage, however, and she attacked Kovu for failing to assist in the attack on Simba and thus perhaps save Nuka from his sad fate. She went so far as to equate Kovu's inaction with his having killed Nuka himself. It was perhaps partly due to grief and anger over Nuka's death that Zira would later refuse to join the other Outsiders in choosing to make peace with Simba's pride, leading to her own demise.

Fanon

As with Zira's other relationships, the connection between her and Nuka was toxic, with only a hint of the affection that should exist between a mother and her son. While Nuka's manners could certainly be grating, he was also devoted to his mother, and for the most part was rewarded only with her anger and contempt. Zira seems to have held Nuka in the lowest regard among her children, training Kovu and Vitani for specific tasks and leadership roles while Nuka was relegated to the role of lackey. Only in the moment of his death did she become tender towards him. Unfortunately, rather than acknowledge the role her own treatment of Nuka and hatred of the Pride Landers had played in his death, Zira chose to blame Kovu, letting grief for the loss of one son lead her to drive away another.

There are 3 works tagged for Zira and Nuka's relationship on AO3, 1 of which is rated Explicit.

Fandom

FAN FICTION

Nuka & Zira tag on AO3