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Night time was when all the prey animals slept and worried. Darkness was the friend of predators and they knew it very well. Even as they slept their senses were aware of their surroundings, ready to bolt at any moment. Thankfully, prime hunting specimen like Grinsen thrived in the dark. He was as silent as a sloth, as graceful as a gazelle, as fast as a cheetah. He was unstoppable when it came to hunting at night! It really was the perfect time for males to hunt, since they were usually alone. It was his time to shine. Time to put all those skills to use!

About ten minutes into the hunt and the whole herd of antelope had fled. Grinsen grimaced as he limped off to a tree to lick his wounds, a strong male having caught him in the leg with his hoof. Dang...he had been so quiet and so fast! Just not...very graceful.

...all right, if he was being honest with himself, he hadn't been quiet or fast at all. He was hungry, so that didn't help his mood, and his shoulder was throbbing with the kick. Drat. Now he'd have to try to catch some stupid turtle or meerkat again. He just wanted a nice, juicy flank! Was that so much to ask? He didn't think so.

Grinsen rolled his shoulder a bit to try to get the pain out of it, and was pleased to find that it was slowly dulling to just an ache. Good...nothing was broken, then. Just some superficial wounds and pain. He ended up standing after a few more minutes, deciding he needed to walk off the rest of the ache.

He hadn't walked terribly far when he spotted another large male, though. He froze to the spot, not having expected company. Oh dear...what should he do? Normally his confidence was high, but he was hurt and hungry and knew he wasn't at his best. Oh well...the other lion didn't know that. He adopted his easy smirk as he continued his little stroll, taking the limp out of his walk with just a bit of pain.

"Hey there," he called out as he approached. "Nice night, right? Full moon, lots of prey around...too bad those antelope took off, huh? I think a hippo spooked 'em from the pond they were sleepin' by."

Phew...the male hadn't seen his royal fail, then. That was good. He could keep up with his little white lie. If the other rouge knew he was the one to chase them away...well. He probably wouldn't be quite as friendly. Grinsen nodded in sympathy and stopped a few paces away from the other lion, still not sure if he was friend or foe.

"New to the area? I haven't seen you around before...I've been here a while." A week at the most, really, but the orange lion didn't need to know that. He tossed his mane a bit and flicked his tail, his shoulder aching again from the movement. Dang...it really need to knock that off. It was getting rather annoying that it wasn't a barely noticeable ache.

"Grinsen," he added with a charming smile. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Neirin...bah, that was too long. "Nei it is," Grin said with a little smirk. He loved giving nicknames to new people to see how they reacted. Some didn't mind, and others found the suggestion of shortening their name silly. He sat down again now that he knew this lion wasn't going to pose a threat, relaxing a tad as he took some weight off of his leg.

"Oh, there's quite a nice selection. Some prey animals...gazelle, antelope, things like that...smaller creatures like birds and bugs...rhinos, giraffe, hippos...you and I...it's a very nice variety." Also severely lacking in predators. That was always a plus in his book.

"I'm sure there'll be another herd where that one came from," he added, nodding in the direction of the dust cloud that was all that remained of the herd that had been here just minutes ago. "There's plenty of watering holes around here for them to congregate at."

Grinsen chuckled quietly as Neirin returned the gesture. It seemed nicknames didn't bother him, then. That was good! Single syllables were always better to remember. Grin, Nei...yes, everyone was happy and this was good. He flicked his tail a bit in irritation at his shoulder, and decided that walking around might actually help it to get the muscles stretched out and the blood pumping.

"Hey, you're a cool cat. I wouldn't mind showin' you around," Grin said with a little snort. "Don't look so nervous, all right? I'm not the type to whip around and sink my teeth into your neck." He tossed him a little wink before getting up and heading back the way he had come from. "There's a few around here, but there's this really great one about a five minute walk this way. The water's always moving so it's not stagnant, it's nice and cool, and there's no alligators!"

What could be better than being able to drink in peace? Nothing, really. Except if there were prey around to nibble on while you waited to get thirsty again.

"No problem," Grin said, waving a paw dismissively. "If you want to go now, I can take you to one real quick." There was one just a few minutes walk from where they were, Perhaps that would help get the kink out of his shoulder, too.

"So, where are you from?" he asked as he motioned for Neirin to follow. "Everyone's gotta come from somewhere. Born to a pride and left, maybe? Or have you been roamin' the rouge lands like me all your life?" Yes, Grinsen had been in the rouge lands all his life. He had been here, there, and just about everywhere. They were his home and he'd probably feel a bit out of place in a pride.

"Got a girl?" he added as they strolled. "Or a guy? Or an it?" You had to cover all your bases these days.

"Ah...a fellow Rouge Lander," Grinsen said with a laugh. It was rare to find someone that was from the Rouge lands. Most were born to a pride and then left to seek their own pride and freedom. Every now and then you ran across one that was from the area, but more often than not there was a pride somewhere along the line.

"The lands are pretty big...I'm not surprised you haven't been here before," Grinsen said with a nod. He was older as far as lions went, so he had had more time to roam around and get used to the area. There were still places he had never been, of course.

"Nah, livin' the life of a bachelor is the way to go," he said, shaking his mane as he continued to walk. "Girls bog you down, you know? And then if there's cubs....hoo. That's something I could never deal with. Not cut out to be a dad, really. Too much of a free spirit."

Grinsen knew he was an odd lion to not want cubs or a mate. Most lions felt the urge to pass on their genes and maintain the population of the species. Not him. It might have had something to do with his age and slightly sarcastic view on life in general, but he didn't dwell on it too much. Younger lions could do as they pleased, of course. He wasn't about to stop someone from having a dream.

"Well, if that's the path you're gonna take, I suggest you get your furry behind into a pride before you get much older. You're a good lookin' guy, I bet you'd pick up a nice girl faster'n you can say wildebeest." Staying out in the rouge lands for too much longer might make Nei a bit jaded, and most females Grin had happened upon really hadn't been too pleased by it.

"Don't worry, you're not the odd one out here. I've seen enough to know family life isn't for me. I'd probably be a horrible role model and all that," Grin said with a laugh. "Yeah, not someone you want for a dad. But you...you seem like you'd do go with kids." Where Grinsen was a bit rough around the edges, Neirin seemed far more warm and welcoming.