The orange lion stretched languidly, drowning in the simple pleasure that was having a full belly after a well-rested night. The day was warm and inviting but Rei wasn’t too keen on leaving just yet and he plopped down again, laying on the side and stretching again.
Ever since his mother had told him of his heritage, the purple-eyed lion had set his mind on paying a little visit to the Pridelands. Rei was bigger than his father and had inherited his mother’s orange coat and markings which apparently were rather common traits the lions from that pride shared. Who knew? Perhaps that was the place where he belonged, where he was destined to settle down. He doubted it though, fully convinced that it would take a very (very!) long time before he found a reason to actually join a pride – not to mention how long it would take to actually reach the Pridelands. He admitted that there was much time and experiences before that happened and changing his mind was always a possibility but the young lion wasn’t prepared to think about things too thoroughly. He had a plan and he was happy. What would come, would come.
He had but a generic direction his mother had indicated from what little she recollected of her own journey to the lands of their ancestors. So far, it hadn’t proven too difficult. Apart from the occasional challenging rogue – which was often fun even if painful - or pride guards, Rei had found life in the rogue lands to be peaceful and friendly. Females tended to be more wary of strangers – a shame, really – but Rei’s size often kept trouble at bay and company wasn’t that hard to find. Hyenas could be trouble when in great numbers and prides were usually protective of their borders but most of the time, Rei went wherever he wanted, when he wanted and with whom he wanted.
Which wasn’t the case at the moment. Rei had been walking around the borders of an unfriendly pride. After days on not seeing another soul, he’d actually been really happy to find himself closer to a pride. Unfortunately, the guards patrolling the border felt different and Rei had been asked (with more than one implied threat) that he was not allowed to cross the pride’s territory and that it would be wiser to simply walk around it. Rei took them seriously, of course, and followed their “advice” but after walking for a few hours, the setting sun told him he was completely off course and the orange lion started feeling rather cranky which really didn’t suit him. Not really a problem when he wasn’t even sure where he was going and in absolutely no hurry to get there but Rei was a social lion and couldn’t help but to feel lonely after spnding these days in unwelcomed solitude. Anything else, were minor problems adding to the pile.
After a successful hunt and a good night’s sleep, Rei’s mood had definitely improved. Food and rest always made things better, after all. But now he had to fight his own lethargy in order to stand up and get back on his journey which was proving to be rather complicated. His family had been noisy and always bubbling with activity. It was this silence only broken by the sound of own breathing and the occasional bird was wearing on him. The orange lion stood up abruptly and promptly started walking… it was how he dealt with things, after all. Don’t think, just do. He believed it to be a gift, this way his body seemed to react so quickly and obediently towards the goals his mind set for him. Rei narrowed his eyes… was that lioness in the distance? Oh, things were looking up already! His walk turned into a strut and the young lion picked up the pace, desperate to exchange a few words with a rogue beauty. Such luck would not with him today though because somehow, the lioness had vanished into thin air!
He could smell blood though and after sniffing around for a few minutes a growl from above told him he was getting closer to his target. Raising his head, Rei spotted not a beautiful lioness but a rather large and menacing looking male leopard who seemed to have dragged an half-eaten gazelle up the tree and was now looking mighty protective of it.
“Ah, sorry. I thought you were a girl in the distance.” Rei said at once, an amused smile gracing his expression instantly.
“Well, I’m not a girl. Obviously.” The leopard answered, not nearly as amused. If anything, the question seemed to make even less agreeable which, according to Rei, made the whole situation even funnier.
“Ah well, you wouldn’t happen to know where the Pridelands are would you, mate?” Rei asked, ever the optimist. He was aware that his presence was grating on the other’s nerves but he still hoped he’d get a friendlier response if it became clear he wasn’t after free food.
“That way, idiot. Try not to get lost.” The leopard said with obvious contempt quickly followed by mock concern, pointing in a direction Rei recognized as the one he’d been following before he’d strayed from his path.
“Oh, nice! Enjoy your meal.” Rei replied in the friendliest, brightest and most insufferable way he could muster. This brief exchange was the closest thing to a friendly chat that Rei had in days so it was with a good deal of regret that he left the leopard alone in his tree. Negative attention was still attention, right? It would be fun – even if not particularly nice – to tease the leopard a bit further. There was even the possibility that he might pull a fight out of the other cat if he managed to be obnoxious enough… and Rei definitely knew he could be. Oh well, another day perhaps. He was in the mood for a nice, polite conversation with a perfect stranger. Preferably a girl. Definitely a girl.
The orange lion bid the leopard farewell – receiving a very odd grunt for a reply – before turning to walk in the direction he had indicated. The interaction, however brief, had certainly left him in a better mood and Rei moved forward with a confident stride and a silly grin on his face, a continuous laugh inside his as he recalled the ruffled leopard’s most noticeable annoyance. Rei chuckled, glancing back over his shoulder to see if the cat had started eating again but found him still watching the overly-cheerful orange lion that had interrupted his meal, silently and intently.
“Bye!”
Word count: 1107
