Broken Antler Fen I wear my sunglasses at night

it had taken much of an hour to dislodge the catch from the snow, and even longer to tug it back to the borders. now, exhausted and simultanously hot and fridgid, the cold wind whipping around her ghostly form, she glanced back to the prize behind her with a proud glance. A mountain crawler, a thickset ram with horns that curled tightly from its head. Old, and weak, and not her prey, but the winter's. The cold had hunted down the ram, dragged at its steps and invaded it's body with merciless cold, and it had fallen prey to winter's whims. it was simply a matter of dislodging it from the snow and dragging the thing back to what was not home.

Her muscles burned, she was exhausted, but proud. Only a moment of rest she allowed herself before turning back to the thing, gripping it roughly by the neck and inching backward, tuging it into the territory where it ought to be safe from other scavengers. she had promised to commit herself fully to her fresh start, and it was a commitment she would keep.

The wind was like that of angry child, pushing and shoving at her as it wailed angrily in her ears. It was loud enough that Liri felt as though her eardrums would burst. The deafening roar of it in her ears was a fierce reminder that while Teekon was beautiful, it was deadly too. 

The wind whipped her, stinging her eyes and threatening to push her to her knees in the snow drifts. Liri was accustomed to extreme weather since she hailed from the far north but that didn't mean she liked it any better than when she was a yearling. 

Hunting proved almost impossible as the white grains, like shards of glass, stung her skin and made it nearly impossible to see. Still, Liri clung to the parts of the territory that she recognized from their orientation. She was too frightened to venture further; wandering too far away in such conditions meant she might not come back. 

Liri could not have been far from the borders when she caught sight of a moving silhouette up ahead. At first it was nothing more than a murky grey figure, unrecognizable in the ferocity of winter. As she neared, Liri could see that it was the pale woman from Burke's group dragging what appeared to be a caracass. Aeronwyn the woman was named, if she was not mistaken. The carcass, a ram, no doubt had frozen to death or perhaps starved from inability to graze. 

"Do you need help?" Liri had to raise her voice to be heard over the din. Without waiting for a response, assuming from the exhausted stance Aeronwyn possessed that she would indeed need assistance. The question was more so that the unfamiliar woman knew she was there and would not attack when she reached for the ram. It was doubtful that she would but you could never be too sure.

Taking hold of the ram's frozen foreleg, Liri began to tug it alongside Aeronwyn back towards the territory.

Sebastian liked to keep an eye on the new members of Broken Antler. He was not sure what to expect from them. He got to the border and saw two of the pale females tugging on a frozen carcass. Sebastian didn't know what he expected from them but he was pleased to see them at work. He should have known that Burke would only accept hard workers in his pack.

Sebastian rushed forward and instantly went out to help the two females. One was exhaust, probably having dragged the carcass from far away. He could help with his bulk. The young male was very pleased with the pale females and noted it down in his brain. "Let me help too," he spoke and grabbed the animal by its neck and started dragging it over the border. He wanted to give the two ladies a feeling that he was here to help them too, and that he was not like his father at all.

two came then, the woman of white that had attached herself to their group at the last moment, and the male that was but a younger Burke, or so she imagined. The offered help without waiting for a response, and she merely murmured a quick word of thanks before diping her muzzle and grasping the ram by it's roughed neck once more, reentering the familiar movement of pulling it back, though it was greatly eased by the assistance of the two others. Soon, they reached a place were she thought it ought to be safe, and as she released the ram she offered the two a trepidant smile.

Aeronwyn posed no objection to her assistance for which Liri felt a bit of relief. She had not expected the pale woman to reject her help but then she didn't know any of these wolves very well. Liri knew better than to assume things about people by this point.

She had only just begun to help drag the large ungulate backwards towards the Cove, when Sebastian appeared. At first glance she assumed it to be Burke but only when he moved closer could she see his still intact tail. 

Once the ram had been drug by the trio towards a relatively good spot to place it, Liri released the death grip she had on its foreleg. Her jaws ached a bit from keeping them clenched around the stiff leg but she still felt the satisfaction of helping her pack mates.

Liri returned Aeronwyn's smile hesitantly, glancing at Sebastian but saying nothing. Should nothing need be said between the three Liri would melt back into the white winter around them.

Sebastian helped dragging the carcass, trying to pull as much of the weight as he could so the exhausted female didn't strain herself too much. It helped that the ground was a bit slippery because of the snow and ice. They managed to get the ram into the cove. The females were both quiet. Sebastian wasn't sure if that was because of him or not. His tail swayed behind him. "Great job! Thank you for bringing in this meal," Sebastian spoke with a smile on his lips. Perhaps very different from how his father would thank them? He wouldn't know.

"Why don't you two take your part in a well deserved meal," Sebastian offered them. The meat would probably be a bit tough and frozen but it was still a very decent meal. At least it wasn't rotten. He might take one of the horns back home for his pups to chew and play with. Or maybe he would just take them out to see the carcass themselves. It might be a fun trip for them.

while they seemed similar on the surface, there was a distinct difference between the male and his father. she did not know whether this was positive of negative just yet, and had yet to form an option of the male. he was obviously not the type that found their home in the dark wood, rather, seeming the distinct oppposite. to his suggestion, she nodded ,regarding the other with a curious look. Liri, she knew her to be known, though of her she knew little. 

The words of the alpha rought her focus back, and she regarded him with a soft smile, a dip of her head the only response to his gratitude, for she was not the best at accepting such things. At his suggestion, she said, "I will. But all should get their share, and I do not believe this to be the only beast to fall prey to the winter. Later, I shall search for another." she gestured toward the other white woman, inviting her to take her share of the meal along with the words of the male. Hunger was made worst by her labour, and she dipped her muzzle to the frozen carcass, seizing the flesh and bracing her paws on the beast, worrying it as she sought to get it loose. Eating, it seemed, was quite the challenging venture in the winter.

The idea that they would be given a share surprised her. Liri had expected that perhaps the ram would be stored for later or maybe given to higher ranking members first. For a moment her face smoothed with surprise and she blinked slowly as if not comprehending. 

Moments later the usual cautious expression had returned to her face despite the small smile of gratitude she aimed towards Sebastian. An ear flicked towards Aeronwyn as she spoke, nodding in agreement though she had nothing else to add to the conversation. 

Liri chose a meaty section of the ram's neck, not overly large or greedy. Just enough for the small femme to fill her stomach. The frozen meat was hard to work away from the body, taking her a long moment to tear it free after gnawing it loose enough. Once it was free, Liri went to work nipping tiny chunks from it to eat. 

Sebastian nodded in agreement with the other female. "Yes. This is the cove so I am sure others will find it and grab their share," he explained to her. He was surprised by her work ethic. He really appreciated it though. "Oh good. Try to also look into the territory, we have a huge population of moose and I don't think they all survived," he advised her.

Sebastian was more familiarized with the territory and its other inhabitants. He was pleased to see the quieter female grab her share. Sebastian was not hungry so he would take some food later. Maybe take the ram's horn to his pups. "I could help if you would want that," he offered to Aeronwyn. "Same for you. You can always ask me for help," he smiled.