Silvertip Mountain That's where I am, silent in the trees

Going to make this a hunting thread, anyone can join!

The Famine had certainly taken its toll on the land, sucking the life out of the flora and fauna. It was a relief and a spark of hope to see even the smallest shoots of green growing from the decay. Anita strayed throughout the territory, pondering whether or not she should go hunting. 

A loud growl from her stomach made the final decision. Already a bit far from the pack, Anita decided to stay where she was. The she-wolf tilted her head back, letting out a howl for a hunting party. She wasn't sure if that was something she was allowed to do, but she would see. Anita had never made her own hunting party, and hoped that a few others would arrive soon.

Nom Noms!!! Since the famine is still in effect, we'll have to hunt for small prey, but since the foliage would be almost fully returned, maybe they'll get lucky with a few smaller meals!

His head lifted and his ears perked at the sound of Anita's howl, calling for a hunting party. Steady had tried here and there, but hadn't caught anything, so he ditched his lone efforts in favor of hunting with others. He trotted towards her, his body expression his rank, though his tail wagged in friendliness when she came into view. While she was still the Omega, and he figured her demotion hadn't come easy to her, he silently commended her for having the initiative to start a hunt.

He came to a stop in front of her. Hey, Anita, how are you doing? Any leads on anything? he asked, in reference to the prey. Although he was curious how she was getting along with Ezekiel lately, he figured now was not the time for such topics. If Ezekiel came to the call, Steady would get to see first hand how they got along.

Small prey sounds reasonable! :>

Anita's ears perked as she saw Steady come into view. He seemed to be in a good mood, and Anita was glad for that. The she-wolf listened to the Alpha's question and tried to think if she had noticed any prey. "I haven't seen anything, but I caught the scent of rabbit from over there," she notioned a bit ahead where the undergrowth became a bit more dense.

She knew that Ezekiel was on both their minds, and silently prayed for him not to come along. She would have to act very nice to him due to Steady's presence and her own requirements, and she knew that Ezekiel would enjoy it very much. However, if he did decide to come, the more wolves the better.

She confessed she hadn't seen anything, but had caught the scent of a rabbit nearby. He nodded- it was good enough for him. Steady was torn between waiting for more pack members to show, and going ahead with the hunt with just the two of them. But, his rumbling stomach made up his mind. Let's go ahead and start. If we catch more than one, we can share with whoever comes along, he said, then waited for her reaction.

Assuming she agreed, Steady formed a plan. We'll follow the trail, and if we have sight of it or its hole, you go on the far side, and I'll herd the hare straight to you. That good? he said, waiting again for her reply. Omega or not, he honestly valued her opinion, as he knew others might have a different experience than he and come up with something better. Steady wasn't scared by one of his wolves having a better idea than he- after all, they all formed one pack, and it was only as strong as what they collectively came up with. 

I went ahead and rolled, but they won't be catching the rabbit :C sorry if I rolled a bit too early!

A plan had been made, and Anita decided to go along with it. Whoever else who wanted to join could always meet up with them later, she assumed. "That sounds like a good idea to me," she spoke, trying to catch scent of the trail. It wasn't too hard, seeing that it was somewhat close. Anita tipped her head towards the ground, trying to pick up on something she could follow. The she-wolf caught on to something, following it until she spotted a burrow.

"I found something," she muttered quietly, sneaking around to far side of the burrow. It was small, but not too small. It wasn't big enough to be a groundhog, so she figured that she must have stumbled across the right thing. The scent was strong. The rabbit was in there, probably too scared to even move. She rehearsed how they would catch the prey over in her head, praying that she wouldn't mess things up.

The she-wolf was still skinny from the famine, ribs showing through her fur. Like a lot of the others, she was recovering slowly as the famine crept away. I hope I have the energy to catch a simple rabbit. These reassuring thoughts kept her optimistic. She decided she would put in her best effort, despite the outcome.

Not too early- perfect!

She agreed with his plan, and they were off, searching for the exact location of their prey. Anita spoke softly when she had found it, and Steady walked over gingerly, trying to keep his steps as light as he could. Steady kept his voice low. I'm going to go around to the other side. We'll sit tight until it comes out, then I'll push him your way. He looked to her for confirmation. Providing he got it, he went around to the other side, settling down partly behind a bush. He kept his head low, and his breathing shallow and even. 

This part required a lot of patience, as rabbits were flighty things, always scared of the littlest movement. It was a little while of silence before it popped his head out of the hole. Steady was ready, but knew not to move just yet. He waited until the rabbit came out, and hopped a little ways from its home. When it was far enough, Steady bolted from his spot, his eyes fixated on the rabbit. His gaze glanced down just in time to see a second hole, and he had to jerk to the side to avoid it. In doing that, he lost his momentum on the rabbit, which turned and hastily went down a third hole. Steady growled at himself as he approached that hole, though he need not waste his energy. The rabbit was long gone under ground. His expression turned apologetic at his gaze went to Anita. He knew it was his fault they lost their meal.

Steady had formed his plan, and Anita went along with it. She stood patient yet cautious in her spot as the rabbit wandered out of its den, watching as Steady bolted to catch it. Much to her dismay--and Steady's as well, the rabbit seemed to have an escape plan of its own. Before Anita decided to move, it was over. Their prey scrambled down another burrow she had not noticed before. Tricky little thing.

     Anita walked over to Steady, seeing his downcast look. "You did well regardless, we just didn't see those extra burrows," she said, sounding sympathetic. The plan they had would have worked, but next time Anita felt she needed to pay more attention to her surroundings. "It's alright, the famine is slowly fading away, prey will be more plentiful," she said, gesturing to all of the budding plants arround them.

    "I suppose the rabbit will live for another day, and it's pretty lucky. I sense that larger prey will start to emerge, seeing that this awful famine is starting to leave this land," she added, trying to cheer up Steady. She hoped he was not going to be too hard on himself for this, though knowing the alpha, he probably wouldn't be too concerned over it for long.

fade after your post? And another quick question, does this count for a thread towards Anita's hunting trade since they didn't end up catching anything? (sorry if that's a dumb question!)

Yup, it counts! Even if a wolf isn't successful in a hunt, or a fight for example, they still showed their ability and skills. :-)

Anita was gracious to him, for which he was glad. He nodded to her conclusions about the rabbit, and the famine. Yes, I suspect the larger prey to be returning any time now. Most of the foliage has come back, and they'll start to stroll in, too, he said, his gaze looking around the area as he spoke, and it settled where the rabbit had disappeared. Maybe the rabbit is meant to live to have more rabbits, and we can eat one of those one day, he said a little morbidly. He couldn't help it, he was hungry. 

Letting the thoughts go from his mind, he smiled at her, grateful for her attempt to cheer him up. I think I shall go on patrol. You're welcome to accompany me, he said, extending his muzzle to nudge her shoulder. He headed off to the borders to patrol, with or without her.