Almost without noticing, Nala found herself starting in on the last giraffe. The distension of her stomach was painful, sure, but her mouth didn't seem to realize that. And anyhow, it was either this or push the rest of the meat out of the den, and in her hugely bloated state, Nala didn't relish the thought of that.

She tried not to think of Kiara as she gulped down chunk after chunk of meat. It was a good thing this was her absolute last meal like this, because otherwise she knew she would end up like her immobile daughter. What she was willfully ignoring was how close she was to that mark already. The fat lioness' gut had hung nearly to the floor before she'd started this binge and now, with every new bite she swallowed, it was pressing harder and harder against the ground, forcing her legs to splay wide.

After she'd finished the last of the giraffes, eating started to become paradoxically easier. The pleasure of consumption was swiftly overcoming the pains in her overstuffed stomach, and soon she had devoured the whole enormous pile of meat. Nala was fuller--not to mention bigger--than she'd ever been in her life, but if she had had more food in front of her, she would have kept eating. In the moments before she passed out from her huge meal, a traitorous thought stole into her head: she could see how Kiara enjoyed this.

When Nala woke up...