Ocean's Breath Plateau one more time
38 Posts
Ooc — Margot
Offline
#1
The rabbits were calling Domi's name, and she thought this to be the perfect opportunity for regaining @Clock's attention. She howled for him, quick and short, so as to not frighten the burrowing group before her (tiny heads disappeared at the sound, but resurfaced soon after). In truth, she had become quite fond of him within the first hour or so of their meeting, but she'd convinced herself that things were all friendly. Domi had never been one to put herself out there first, and that wouldn't be changing for some scallywag who she had only spent time with once.

Well, twice now. And two was a bigger number than one.
 Hunter                Caregiver
1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5
63 Posts
Ooc — Sarah
Offline
#2
Clock had been wandering along the rocky edge of the plateau, exploring in the morning sunlight. The views over the sparkling ocean were simply breathtaking, and even though he was happily anticipating the official joining of the Bhediyon pack, he was also feeling a little bit of apprehension. What if they don't like me? he had thought timidly. So, to rest his mind, he ran for a while through the grassy plain and wound up here at the far end of the Ocean's Breath Plateau. Clock was young and spirited, which was going to prove to be his saving grace here in the Teekon Wilds. Sure, in his brief two years of life he had been slowly separated from his family (the only pack he had ever known) and then witnessed his only brother being violently killed before him, but that all seemed so distant now. Clock's arrival to the Teekon Wilds couldn't have been more divinely inspired. After Onni had died, Clock had felt compelled to run and run... get the hell outta there! The end of his running had been here - at this ocean shore. It was almost like this young wolf was destined for great things. And so, he found he was naturally able to keep his thoughts mostly on the joy and eagerness of being in a new land and belonging to a newly forming family. He couldn't wait to get to know the other wolves better.

When he heard the howl meant for him, his ears immediately flew forward to attention and then swiveled - flawlessly directing him to where the brief sound had emanated from. Domi! Clock remembered her from their little hunt the other day and wagged his tail. There was something he liked about her... and she was fun! Turning on his heel, he took off at a sprint across the plateau in the direction his ears had pointed him. Her call did not sound distressed, so he was in no real hurry save for his eagerness. He did not hear her call for him again, and so he slowed from a run to a trot and started sniffing the air when he felt he had gone about far enough. Not smelling her just yet, he started zig zagging through the grass and shrubby spruce trees in order to efficiently cover ground.

Finally, Clock caught a whiff of a scent that pulled him instinctually before it was registered mentally. That was her! He bounded gleefully off with his nose in the air, tracking her to a group of thick shrubs near the top of a rise... and no doubt unintentionally scattering dozens of rabbits as he went crashing along.

He found Domi crouching concealed amongst the shrubs, only then realizing by her stature that she was in "hunting mode". His ears dipped appologetically as he realized all the noise he must have been making. He gave her a sheepish grin and approached with his head dipped into his shoulders (see how small and innocent I am?).

"Hello again, Domi," he said after what he felt was an appropriate length of time for his please-don't-hate-me-because-I-scared-off-all-your-prey demonstration. He felt compelled to go up to her and nudge her playfully, but along with maturation came a certain degree of understanding boundaries, and Clock knew he would need to get to know her better before assuming it was safe to freely approach just because he was in a good mood.
38 Posts
Ooc — Margot
Offline
#3
If Clock had thought that Domi had one mean bone in her body, he was sadly mistaken. Rather than greeting him with contempt or annoyance, she turned with a widespread grin and a Clock!, called at the top of her lungs; had any rabbits decided to stick around, they were probably scurrying off with the rest of the group by now. Domi moved forward to close the distance with an affectionate touch to Clock's shoulder, her tail wagging happily behind her.

I was wondering when I'd see you again, she laughed, then seeing his demeanor, she sucked her teeth and made sure to reassure him. Oh, don't worry about those things. We can track 'em again, together. Hunting was always more fun when there was someone else around to talk to, especially compared with the one-sided conversations she often had with passing shrubs. What have you been up to? Domi asked as nudged for him to follow her down the hill.
 Hunter                Caregiver
1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5
63 Posts
Ooc — Sarah
Offline
#4
He playfully batted at her shoulder with a paw when he saw that she was not the least bit perturbed by his exuberance. What fun she was!

"I have been exploring, mostly," he said in answer to her question. Then, "Have you seen the ocean at night?" His dark eyes widened with wonder. He had never seen the ocean up until a few short weeks ago when he first arrived in these parts. He followed her eagerly when she started down the hill, talking as they went. "The moon looks so.... cool reflected on all that water. The closest thing I've ever seen to that is some large lakes." He panted happily and then lifted his nose to sniff at the air, gauging if there was any prey nearby.
38 Posts
Ooc — Margot
Offline
#5
Domi smiled and shook her mane with a mock growl. I grew up around the ocean, she sighed, Not too far from here, actually. When I was real little, my parents used to take us out of the den almost every night to watch the stars. Ma disappeared sometime around then, so we moved back to where my pa grew up. That's a bit further, mthatway. She pointed eastward with her nose, then turned back to Clock. I wouldn't mind going to see it with you sometime. It's been a while.

After they left the first time, Domi stopped seeing the water as much. She went from a child to an adult to a soldier all within her first six months of life, and now she was caught up trying to find her innocence again. What about you? Did you grow up near here? Not many wolves she'd met had, but it was still a fair question; maybe if she asked around enough, she could find some long-lost family. Wishful thinking if I'd ever thunk it.

There! Up ahead! Domi called, having noticed a well-sized rabbit butt up ahead. Beat ya there!
 Hunter                Caregiver
1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5
63 Posts
Ooc — Sarah
Offline
#6
Clock lowered his ears and tail slightly with empathy when Domi made reference to the disappearence of her mother. She made it sound so casual.... and yet, Clock would bet all the rabbits on the Plateau that she was still wounded by it. Underneath his sympathy, though, was a tiny flutter of hope. Domi knew what it was like to lose family, so that was something he had in common with her. He swallowed when she directed her question toward him and spoke, "No, I grew up far south of here. There were big mountains like these parts but no oceans." Truthfully, Clock was glad to be away from there. The wolves were much more friendly here in the Wilds.

He tore off after Domi when she spotted the rabbit, glad for the opportunity to run for a while and also quietly glad to be spared the uncomfortableness of trying to give his condolences. He was starting to make this a habit: feeling uncomfortable and then running it off. Dimly, in the back of his mind, he knew he would slowly have to let this behavior go, especially if he was going to be part of Bhediyon. He wouldn't be able to just flee if something bad happened to the pack.

But for now, Clock was happy as a clam. He nipped playfully at Domi's shoulder and elbow as they raced side by side up the hill. Truthfully, Clock liked chasing her more than he liked chasing anything else, but he tried not to let it be too obvious. The rabbit had heard them coming but it hesitated a moment as it decided whether to freeze or run. It finally took off across the field with both canines hot in pursuit. Clock took an unsuccessful leap at it, missing and watching dismayed as the little creature bolted into a group of tightly clustered bushes. He trotted over and circled the bush, sniffing and smelling out the rabbit inside somewhere. He looked at Domi to see what she would do.
38 Posts
Ooc — Margot
Offline
#7
For a moment, while caught up in the euphoria of ther childlike dance, Domi almost forgot what they were chasing after in the first place. Almost forgot, as Clock's tiny tumble quickly snapped her back to reality. She watched with disappointment as their prey darted into a bush, then shrugged her shoulders at her playmate when he looked to her for advice. Uh..., she breathed, then reached a paw in between the branches to try batting at the rabbit. Now, Domi had been through quite a bit when it came to the art of the hunt, but she'd never seen (or felt, in this case), a rabbit bite back.

Ow! she exclaimed, quickly retracting her forearm, I think it bit me. As she was busy nursing her tiny wound, Domi missed the vital moment of the rabbit's near escape through a small hole in the rear of the bush. Hopefully Clock had been more attentive, otherwise another chase would be in order.
 Hunter                Caregiver
1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5
63 Posts
Ooc — Sarah
Offline
#8
Clock watched eagerly as Domi poked around in the bushes, poised to pounce should the rabbit flee his way. His ears flicked back with alarm when she cried out in pain and his eyes zoned in on the perpetrating bunny, ready to murder the little thing for hurting his new friend. He was ready when it made its escape from the bushes and tore off across the field with its powerful little legs pumping. Clock took off after it, fangs bared menacingly. There was no way he was letting it get away! The rabbit, knowing it was being persued, attempted to cut sharply left toward another cluster of shrubs and that was it's fatal mistake. Clock also swung left and closed the distance. He took a powerful leap, landing right on top of the little creature. He pinned it beneath his lanky front legs and before the rabbit even had a chance to register what was happening, he had snapped its neck, leaving bloody teeth marks there. Assured that it was dead, Clock left it lay there and rushed back the short distance to where Domi was to check on her injury. He approached slowly, sniffing a little as he studied the wound on her powerful foreleg. "Are you okay?" he asked. He was pretty sure she was, but it would not be gentlemanly of him to not ask.
38 Posts
Ooc — Margot
Offline
#9
Clock asked if she was okay, and one should take note that she could have very well said, Why, yes Clock! I'm doing just dandy, but that would've been too easy. Domi saw the opportunity present itself and snatched it from the air before it could float away. I don't know, she mumbled, wincing as she sat back and lifted her paw, Does it look deep? It couldn't have been any deeper than an inch or two, as the rabbit had only gotten a chance to graze her, but that little fact was irrelevant. 

Look! she exclaimed, noting the sneaky approach of a scavenger in the distance. Why Clock had decided to leave the prey, Domi might never know, but now they were left with the quest of saving it. As if miraculously cured, she took off, leaving her playmate in the distance.
 Hunter                Caregiver
1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5
63 Posts
Ooc — Sarah
Offline
#10
Taking the bait like a gullible lamb, Clock leaned closer to the female and inspected her outstretched leg. "Well, it doesn't seem to be bleeding much-" he began soothingly, but before he could finish, Domi had pulled her leg back and took off at a dead run. Clock had been so engrosed in checking out the wound that he had not noticed Domi's attention shift back to the abandoned rabbit carcass. He laughed a little to himself when he saw that she was running on the leg just fine and then darted playfully after her.

It was a fox that had come sniffing around the freshly killed animal, and it lifted its head when the pair of canines came running toward it with Clock several paces behind the frisky female. Making a split decision, the fox grabbed up the body and dashed off in the direction of its den. "Don't let it get away!" Clock shouted from behind Domi. He had been intending to give the rabbit to Domi as a way to impress her, but he had been so worried about her "injury" that he had abandoned it. And now all that trouble might be for nothing!
38 Posts
Ooc — Margot
Offline
#11
Domi laughed and shook her head as she ran after the fox, making unnecessary twists and turns to keep Clock focused. Soon enough, the gap between herself and her prey was bridged, and she was able to successfully snap down on its thickly furred neck. The rabbit flew a few feet away, but not too far to where she couldn't keep an eye on it. A moment of temporary euphoria ran through her veins as her pupils dilated and her muscles relaxed, but the sound of her hunting partner close behind managed to bring her back to reality. 

Domi dropped the bloodied carcass down and looked back to Clock with unbridled joy. It's like it gets better each time! she exclaimed, closing in to nuzzle his shoulder, I mean, what are the chances of killing two birds with one stone like that? She had to give herself some credit; the last time she'd had a stroke of luck like that one was some years ago. Now, thanks to the two of them, the pack would have two delicacies.
 Hunter                Caregiver
1 2 3 4 5                1 2 3 4 5
63 Posts
Ooc — Sarah
Offline
#12
Clock was definitely impressed. A fox was not natural prey for a wolf, and it could have easily gotten into a nasty fight with them over the rabbit's carcass. However, the fox had seemed to only be interested in outrunning them. It probably did not think Domi would go in for the lethal kill. Clock stared down at the lifeless, furry red body of the fox for a moment and then let his dark, expressive eyes meet Domi's. His tongue lolled out in a happy pant. "That was... well, that was impressive," he admitted with a laugh. He felt his heart swelling when she pressed her head against his shoulder. With a rush of hormones, he felt suddenly strong and powerful, but also light and carefree. It was an exhilirating feeling and one he had never felt before. Who was this female and what was she doing to him? When she pulled away, he had to check himself so as not to follow her and press his body back against hers. What was the matter with him? He had never wanted to be this close to another wolf before. It wasn't anything he had even thought about before. With a mental shake of his head to clear it, he looked back at Domi, all at once feeling a bit shy. He quickly diverted his eyes, looking back toward the two kills. "What should we do with them?" he asked, allowing his voice to become serious.