Fox's Glade [m] Two Birds, no Stone

Mature Content Warning

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The participants have indicated the following reason(s) for this warning: Violence, Language, Heavy Topics throughout this entire thread

Note: Power play, injury, etc. have already been discussed OOC
Backdated to November 5

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Grackle was on the move again. The water had guided her steps, leading her southeast through the wetland until a new wood had unfolded before her. She wouldn't be staying here long, however. It was too much like home, and the once occasional nightmares had begun to torment her every resting moment.

The sun, a mere splinter amid skeletal branches, cast a cold glow over the landscape. She retraced her steps to the makeshift den nestled beneath an old tree, a chunk of meat hanging from her jaws. Grackle's mind was elsewhere, reliving her encounter with @Bonario a few weeks prior. Her body, still marked by the altercation, still protested against the mere prospect of hunting. Fortunately, in this valley shared by multiple packs, rotting carcasses were as plentiful as the wolves who called this place home.

With the meat hidden, Grackle squeezed into the earthen den, the afternoon chill seeping into the makeshift shelter. As much as she wanted to, she would not sleep, not now. The only thing that awaited her on the other side of consciousness was the nightmare that had been set on replay every night for the past few days.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows over the woods, Grackle's eyelids grew heavy. Memories, both recent and long buried, flickered through her mind like ghosts, and the cold, dampness of the den offered little comfort.

--

Grackle jolted upright, her head meeting the earthen ceiling with a hiss. Her heart threatened to escape its bony cage, and she feverishly licked at her fur. "I'm alright, I'm alright, I'm alright," she murmured, tearing out mouthfuls of black strands.

A rustling disrupted the night's quiet, silencing the droning insects and nocturnal calls. Grackle paused, her ears perked, and a low growl reverberated from her throat. "Who's there?" she barked, her frantic voice cutting through the sudden silence.