Sleeping Dragon Apatite

The decision of just what to do next was put upon Freyja and in that moment she did not hesitate in this descision. “We will watch it,” she said, turning her attention to the otter. Since she had never seen one before, she had no idea how it acted and even feared that it would attack if they struck.

“Do otters act as warriors?” she asked, observing the creature carefully. “You know, since they’re like us when it comes to families-- they could be like us in fighting.” As silly as this sounded, she did not want to jump into a frey unprepared.

"They can," Portia replied with a shrug, "I think they're typically much more docile." Her tail held steady, but she smiled at the thought of their own species. They too worked together as a family and fought to help keep one another safe. Surely otters didn't work exactly the same way, but it was nice to think that maybe it did move from species to species. "I wouldn't worry," she added to reassure the girl.

She nodded again, feeling somewhat eased by the information she provided. She was confident that she could take it down, especially with Portia’s help. “I don’t think it’d be hard to take down,” she admitted then with a smile. “But,” she added quickly, looking up to Portia. “I don’t want to take it down yet. I need learn more before I take it down.” Perhaps it had pups, or other family members. Maybe there could even be enough for her and Wildfire to raid their colony-- at the moment the possibilities were endless.

"Good," the Skayona nodded-- but only because she was still winded from the unexpected sprint downstream. She didn't really mind what the child decided to do, and would be completely fine if she'd chosen to attack right at that moment, but was perfectly content sitting and staring... she needed to catch her breath still. She made sure her breathing didn't scare off the otter, her breathes controlled and hushed-- but her heart thumped regardless.

"What do you notice?" Portia asked the child. 

“I just see one,” Freyja reported after surveying the area quickly. She didn’t see any other’s about or any traces of any bystanders. “And I also see that it’s holding something in it’s paws… a rock, maybe?” The otter was still pursuing the divine beauty of the pebble. There must’ve been something truly captivating about it.

“I think we should find out where it lives,” she said suddenly, turning her eyes to Portia.

Portia nodded. "We can either scare it and chase it, or kill it and find where its scent is most concentrated... I doubt it lives far, we're right here at the water," she offered with a shrug. There were probably other, better ways to handle this, but Portia was not a skilled hunter. This was the best way she could think to do it.

She thought about the presented ideas briefly before turning towards the otter. “If it has a family I don’t want to alarm them,” she replied. “I think we should kill it.” Her eyes roamed the scenery beyond the river as she attempted to work out a plan in her head for how they could take it down. “Now, are you more of a chaser or a killer?” she asked, turning towards Portia with an excited glint in her eyes.

Though the first steps were often quite fast, Portia lacked the endurance to be a true chaser. She was a killer, her grace and accuracy rather astounding. "Killer," she said, and maybe it didn't register with the child, but the statement might've caused a laugh in one of her fellow adults. Portia seemed far too dainty and docile to be a killer-- her sharp tongue was the only mean bone in her body. 

"You think you know what to do, hun?" she asked, watching Freyja curiously. 

Killer. She nodded to this, pleased with Portia’s answer. Though she loved both positions, she loved the thrill that came with the chase. “I need to sneak up on it-- I’ll probably have to go upstream a little,” she replied, turning to look at the otter. “Once I do start chasing, I’ll chase it over the hill over there.” She beckoned to the hill just behind the otter. “As we start going over it, that’s where you’ll come in for the kill.” Her decision was made with a sharp nod of her head as she returned her attention to the older wolf.

“Any questions?” she asked, not offering room for any modifications to her plan.

"Not at all," Portia said, smiling, pleased with Freyja's plan. "You go, I'll wait here," she added, and lowered herself to the ground, gathering her body and preparing herself to spring-- even though she knew it'd be a hot minute before that happened.

Her brows rose at Portia’s reply and her lips fell into a straight line. “I’m not chasing the otter over here,” she clarified with a lash of her tail, confused on why the other wolf was readying herself already. Though she knew the river that separated them from the prey was not deep, she knew that it would be easier to lose it when it had the upper hand.

“Here, follow me,” she said and she picked herself up carefully so that she started heading upstream. Pausing a few steps away, she looked over her shoulder to see if she was following.

The pup seemed agitated, and at first Portia was confused, but after Freyja reexplained she let out a breathy "Oh," realizing that it was her who had made the mistake. "I'm coming, I'm coming," she said, standing up quickly and following after the girl. She understood what was going on now, and was ready to catch this damned otter.

She offered a smile once Portia caught on and from there she turned to lead the way. Traveling upon light paws, she guided them upstream while keeping a close eye on the prize. She hoped that it wouldn’t get distracted and found that, thankfully, it was a creature of simpler needs in life. It continued to observe its own prize, paying little mind to what was going on around it.

Once they were across the river and upon the shore, Freyja crouched and jerked her muzzle to the hill before whispering a determined, “see you soon”.

As Freyja set off, Portia moved into position. She was hidden behind a boulder just short of the top of the hill, her freckled face peering out, her nose twitching, and her ears cupped forward as she waited for any signs of Freyja and the otter. Then, she would strike. Her tail wanted to wag in her excitement, but she held it still-- she knew better.

Now, she waited.

With Portia in place it was now up to her to start off the hunt. Once she was confident that the other was ready, Freyja sprang into action and quickly alerted the otter of danger. She splashed in the shore as she stormed towards the creature in an attempt to keep it from jumping in the water. Seeing this danger the otter quickly turned towards the hill, seeking the false solace that it seemed to offer. As the otter began running towards Portia, Freyja smiled and she felt a pang of pride-- it was all working out!

Turning sharply, Freyja followed carefully after the prey, snapping at its heels as she urged it closer to Portia. She slowed as the otter crested over the hill, knowing the creature had sealed its fate.

Her stomach churned with child-like excitement, something normally only brought out in the elegant woman by children themselves... Freyja lived up to the generality. She could hear the thumping of feet against the earth, the otters scent getting closer... and closer... and there it was!! 

It's brown little face poked over the hill and after it came it's weasely body, but almost immediately it was struck down by the mighty Portia, who had no hesitations. It died almost instantly, her jaws crunching down on it's fat little neck. It fell limp in her jaws and she let it fall to the ground, letting out a quick bark for Freyja to come see what she had helped catch!

Her gallop had slowed to a stop as she waited for the inevitable. Her heart thudded and she swallowed nervously as she heard very little from beyond the hill. It wasn’t until Portia barked that she felt her heart skip a beat. Rushing the remaining distance of the hill, Freyja overcame it to find the sight of Portia and the kill.

Her tail whipped madly as she rushed to Portia’s side and reached up to place a kiss upon the Skayona’s chin in way of expressing her excitement over the matter. “We did it!” she said as her paws danced.

With the kill out of the way, the pair could enjoy their meal and then investigate further of just where this creature came from.

"Indeed!" Portia exclaimed, returning the kiss to Freyja's head. The pair settled and shared the otter, Portia happily reminded of it's fishy taste and taking this time to explain to Freyja the fur of an otter! It was so thick that they could swim even in the winter without getting sick, she also explained that a beavers fur is so gosh darn soft that the beaver never actually got wet! Portia was overjoyed to share this information.

When the pair finished eating, Portia nosed her and stood. "Ready to find out where this little guy came from, hun?" she asked.

Portia was right-- it did taste like fish. Though it wasn’t her favorite, Freyja enjoyed the meal with Portia and they took everything that they could get from the otter. Once they were done, Freyja followed suite and stood, inhaling deeply once she was stable on her paws. It did not take her long, deep breath as she caught onto the trail.

Turning sharply towards the North-- and deeper into the territory-- she waved her tail. “This way!”

The trail lead the pair upon the river’s shore and soon enough the pair came across a few otters floating in the stream. Confused, Freyja halted quickly and looked up to Portia with a tilt of her head.

Portia stared, her head tilting. She knew they swam a lot, but they seemed awfully involved in the water. She returned the child's glance. "What do you think?" she asked Freyja curiously, tail waving once.

Her confusion was met with Portia’s confusion and to this, Freyja turned her attention towards the water with a pouted lip. Unsure of what to say, she lowered her ears slightly  and confessed, “I’m not sure-- they’ve got to have dens, right? I mean, it would be weird for them to always float around like that.”

Portia shrugged. "I mean, yeah, hun, you're right... but otters are different than wolves. It's possible they do live in the water," she told her. She wasn't certain, but it was a possibility. There were no visible dens nearby... who knows. She watched as some sprawled out on rocks, others hanging onto one another as they laid on their backs. Such strange creatures.

She nodded to Portia’s comment, unsure what to say in response. She watched on silently then, observing the other animals. They seemed much more docile in comparison to wolves. She could never imagine her packmates coming into the river to float.

“Maybe Wildfire knows?” she asked suddenly, turning to Portia once more.

Portia nodded. "Maybe, you should ask her next time you see her, hun," She said, smiling at the child. Wildfire knew a lot, it wouldn't surprise her to find out that Wildfire was an otter expert.

She nodded to Portia’s suggestion and made a mental note to seek Wildfire out later. From there, the pair left the rest of the otters to their floating as they made their way back to the dens, Portia testing Freyja on what was learned as they walked side-by-side.