Heron Lake Plateau So I'll brace myself against this wall

It took quite some time for Niamh to feel comfortable leaving Screech on his own. She didn't want any unwanted visitors to her den while she was away- as she was still in protective mother mode- so she'd marked the entrance of her den by scratching her claws defensively in the dirt in front of the opening and marking it. That, she figured, would stand as a warning- she'd be back soon, and if someone came by in the meantime, she'd either get up in their face if they were still there when she got back, or she'd track them down afterwards and ask them what the hell they'd been thinking. Obviously- higher ranked wolves would be exempt from that, but as only Quixote, Raven and Towhee were more highly ranked than she (though Elwood and Finley were esteemed), it meant she could potentially have any number of unwelcome visitors. 

But when she was satisfied with the signs she'd left behind, she roved through the wooded area of the plateau, pausing when she heard an odd, repetitive squawk from nearby. Her ears perked; it sounded like a magpie, and when she looked up, she saw two overhead. She hadn't been able to collect magpie feathers, as the birds weren't often on the ground for very long, and were too quick to take off...But the squawking wasn't from the ones in the trees overhead- those squawks were coming from the ground. 

A fledgeling had fallen from the nest. It was almost as big as the adults, but its tail feathers weren't quite developed, nor were the feathers in its wings, which was why it wasn't quite ready to fly. As soon as it saw her it squawked and beat its wings helplessly, rising probably three or four feet in the air before it touched back down, and Niamh was upon it in an instant. This, naturally, caused a ruckus- and the two adult magpies began to swoop down at her, causing her to crouch defensively. She snapped at one as it swooped by, raking its claws through the fur along her back, but she was quicker to act when the next came toward her. Niamh whirled, crouched, and at the last moment, leapt up into the air- grabbing a mouthful of the bird's long, black and white tailfeathers which became dislodged as soon as her weight was applied against the bird's frantic, beating wings. She pulled it to the ground and stepped on one wing to keep it still. The fledgeling was still alive, but that wasn't her concern- it couldn't go anywhere. The other adult continued to harass her verbally, but did not swoop at her again, now that she'd pinned its mate's wing under one foot. She looked down at it, and then over to the fledgeling, hopping its way away from her and through the grass. An idea struck.

She thought, first, to break the adult's wings- but that might kill it. So instead she plucked the feathers from one wing and then the other, amidst its cries and futile attempts to peck at her or pull away. Missing its tail and wing feathers, the adult, too, was grounded. She picked it up gently and carried it over to where the fledgeling had gone, dropped it and grabbed the younger bird- and did the same. Now she had two magpies that could not fly away from her. She held them down by the wingbone, one under each front paw, and sat down. 

It was a good idea, or so she'd thought. But what was she to do with them now? She wanted to have them, but keep them alive until they were needed...But where to keep them, and how to do so, she still needed to figure out.

Elwood had decided that he quite liked retirement. While commotion continued to buzz around the rest of the pack, he was able to keep tabs on what was happening without really having to do much about it, unless it involved his immediate family. That sounded more selfish than he would have intended it, but in a way, it was true; he was concerned about Screech, since the boy had fallen into a coma, but he was being cared for by Niamh. He had heard that they were harboring an injured stranger, but his input had not been required, and Raven was providing the necessary medical attention. He was free to spend his days as he pleased, and that is what he did -- playing with his boys was usually at the top of his list, though he continued to hunt and patrol the borders regularly.

Presently, it was the sound of the squawking birds that drew his attention, and as he headed toward the source of the sound, his gaze landed on Niamh as she seemingly plucked a magpie right out of the air. He watched her pin it to the ground and then carefully pull feathers from its wings and tail, ensuring that it would no longer be able to take flight. By the time he was within earshot, she had done the same to a second bird. He couldn't help but think that X might be offended by the sight if he was around; he surreptitiously glanced up, but didn't see the hawk anywhere nearby.

As he came to a halt, a friendly and amused expression on his face, he said, "How's Screech?" He wanted to know more about the magpies, but first he hoped to hear some good news about his godson.

Though the magpies couldn't fly, and were being held down by one wing, it didn't stop them from making a racket. What could she do to keep them quiet? She didn't know of any safe way to keep their mouths shut without hurting them, or making it impossible for them to breathe. She still wanted them alive, though; because surely, eventually, she could have more of them, and maybe they'd lay eggs...She hadn't figured out their purpose yet. It wasn't as though they'd go bad if she just killed them and stuffed them in a cache, as they'd be eaten before any amount of decomposition could happen. But still- she wanted something that she could have as some sort of a farm animal.

Rooted to her position by indecisiveness with one squawking magpie held down by each forepaw, she couldn't exactly dodge the approach of Elwood. He was no longer a beta, but from what she understood, he was still holding a highly respected rank without having all the responsibility- a rank she hoped one day she'd get, so she could do whatever she wanted but still get others kissing up to her...If that was actually how that rank worked. She turned her ears back and lowered her head in a respectful bob as he approached, noting the look on his face. She was sure he was going to ask her what she was doing so she opened her mouth, to make some sort of explanation, but clamped it shut when instead he asked about Screech. 

She wilted, slightly, but forced herself to nod. "He's awake," She said. "But he's....Kind of out of it. Not talking much, and I can't tell if he recognizes me or not. Just kind of on autopilot, I guess. I think aside from food and water, time's the only other thing I can really give him to see if he gets better." She said. Not that it would necessarily be a bad thing if he didn't return to his normal self 100%. "How're uh, the pups?" She asked. Having been avoiding Finley's den area completely, she hadn't seen them, and hadn't exactly got much information on them either, aside from the fact that they were off limits.

Elwood's brows raised with surprise at the news that Screech was conscious. He was happy to hear it -- while he certainly wasn't a medic and knew next to nothing about concussions and comas, it hadn't seemed like the boy was in good shape. It sounded like he was still adjusting to wakefulness once more, but Elwood couldn't help but think that Screech had managed to dodge yet another bullet. He was unlucky, in that he often found himself in precarious situations, but at the same time he was quite lucky to keep moving forward in life.

"That's good news," he replied with a bob of his head. "If there's anything I can do to help -- bring food to him or anything -- let me know," he offered in the next breath. While his own children were not big fans of Screech, Elwood still considered him to be family. Speaking of family, Niamh asked after Tywyll and Cinder, which drew a smile from the retiree. "They're good -- becoming more independent every day, especially Tywyll," he said. Some of the initial protectiveness he had felt upon moving to the plateau had finally worn off; the boys were nearly three months old, and they were all becoming more acquainted with their new home.

Shifting his gaze back to the birds, he then asked the question that had been on the tip of his tongue since his arrival. "So what are you doing with them?" He gestured towards the magpies with his snout as he spoke.

When Elwood offered to help and bring food, Niamh's ears slicked back and she regarded him with utmost appreciation. She nodded furiously, and licked her lips hungrily, casting a quick glance down at the squawking magpies, tired of their nonsense but not exactly having any other way to get them to be quiet- unless she killed them, of course, but she still hadn't made her mind up about what to do with them. "Food would be so appreciated," She said. "I'm doing my best to hunt for both of us- it's just...Hard," She said, gesturing down  at the magpies. Obviously she'd been sucessful today, but now every day was this good...And the magpies were a terribly small meal for two adult wolves. 

Tywyll. One of the kids had a name- she thought she could kind of remember the other one's name, but it escaped her. She would still avoid the pups, at least until they were old enough to be trusted to go out on their own and mingle with the packmates...But even then, she had no idea what she'd be dealing with, after having already met Clover and Fiadh. Hopefully the Blackthorn boys would just be chill, like Tegan and Lucca were, and maybe the craziness was passed through the female gene. 

She glanced down at the magpies and shrugged. "I...I'm not sure yet. I like...I wanna have live food, y'know?" She said. "Tegan and I brought crabs back from the coast when we went to Drageda, but I don't think they can live without salt water. I just wanted to have something super simple to catch, for if someone gets sick or hurt. I kind of thought...Maybe these could work too- with their wing feathers gone. But...I dunno, I think some things just maybe aren't meant to be farmed." She admitted, a bit ashamed of her own foolishness.

At Niamh's grateful acceptance of his offer, Elwood made a mental note to deposit food in the caches nearest to where Screech was recuperating. She admitted how difficult it had been to provide for herself and Screech, and he nodded his understanding. Some time ago, he had been in a similar situation, when Finley returned to the caldera suffering from pretty severe injuries, and he remembered what a trying time it had been.

As for the magpies, she began to explain her train of thought. Elwood tilted his head, regarding the birds thoughtfully as they continued to voice their protest. He hadn't heard about the crabs that she and Tegan had brought from the beach, and a brief smile flitted across his lips. It was a good idea, but he didn't know either if the crustaceans would survive in a different habitat. As she continued to unravel her thoughts out loud, he pieced together his comprehension.

"So, basically, you want to have some live food that's easy to access, right?" he asked, for clarification. "I think that could potentially work. You're right, they won't be able to go anywhere with their wings clipped. It just might be hard to keep them in one place, even though they can't fly." They were certainly precocious, as evidenced by their squirming and squawking. "I could help you try to figure something out," he suggested, lifting his gaze from the birds to Niamh's face.

N'awww, Elwood's some handsome in his avatar!

She felt a bit foolish, explaining her ideas to Elwood when she hadn't exactly planned them out, or allowed them to grow into fruition. He echoed her plan, and she was relieved to see that he was interested, rather than scolding her for doing something so foolish. After all, food would keep for some time in a properly dug cache, so there wasn't too much point in keeping them alive- other than to have a meal that was more nurtitional and delicious than something that'd been buried in the dirt. Cache meals weren't Niamh's favourite; if she could have constant access to something fresh and still living- without having to hunt too hard, she'd be much happier. 

"Yeh," She said, lifting one foot so the magpie that had been pinned by one wing could hop a few paces away before being wrangled back down again, to illustrate the point he made. "Legs still work. But I don't want to like...Break their legs to keep them still- they'll probably just die of shock." She said with a frown. Elwood offered to help, and she nodded, perking up a bit. "That'd be cool. OH! What about a hole? If we dug one deep enough, they can't fly out, or climb out...Something like that?" Obviously, fence-building wasn't something Niamh had really experimented with yet- but digging holes was a specialty of hers.

:D

He watched as Niamh released one of the magpies to demonstrate her point. It made an attempt to escape, but she quickly stilled it with her paw once more. She continued to think through the idea aloud, and without any further input from Elwood, she came up with a solution that sounded like it could work. He smiled; sometimes, just talking a concept through with someone else was helpful.

"I think a hole would work," he agreed. "Do you want some help to dig one? Where do you want to keep them?" He was ready and willing to assist with transporting the birds as well as creating their future home-slash-prison.

When Elwood offered to help, she nodded. It wouldn't exactly be easy for her to keep track of two squawking, bopping magpies if she was digging a hole at the same time. "Sure. Here's fine, really- I just...Can't exactly move with these two, heh. We could trade off in a bit, if you want- but one of us has gotta be holding these guys down while the other digs." She said, and sat down. 

Assuming Elwood would help her out, she mused for a moment on the real implications of keeping food alive. It would be more fresh, she knew, though stashed food wasn't terribly bad, anyway. But a new thught occurred to her, as well. "Y'know, these things'd be good for teaching pups how to hunt." She said. "They can't fly away, but they're still alive, too." She said. "What d'you think?"

Their current location was as good as any, and Elwood agreed with Niamh's reasoning once she shared it. The magpies were already proving to be pretty feisty, and he imagined that it would be particularly difficult to move them somewhere else without causing them further harm. "Sounds good," he replied, and set to work digging promptly.

He scooped at the dirt with his forepaws, finding that the upper layer was relatively firm but once he broke through that crust the work became easier. He tilted his ears towards Niamh, acknowledging that he heard her and was listening although he didn't stop his digging just yet. "That's a great idea," he said, thinking of his own children. Tywyll was already showing interest in hunting, and Elwood had spent some time teaching him to track; but having prey that was guaranteed to be available would be helpful. "I think my boys would really enjoy practicing with the birds. They would still pose a good challenge, even though they can't fly," he continued as he kept scratching at the still-shallow hole.

Elwood began digging, and Niamh watched him do so with some interest. She herself, as a wolf who liked sleeping in a den, was very adept at digging, but she was presently holding down the magpies which, for the time being at least, had become somewhat quiet and resigned. Perhaps they knew there was no hope for them now- unless, of course, they could somehow manage to get out of the pit she and Elwood dug- but as long as they dug it deep enough and maybe put a stick or two across the top to discourage them even more, they wouldn't be going anywhere. 

The problem of feeding the magpies was another issue- but she wasn't quite ready to think about that yet. Niamh was more of an 'act now, plan later' kind of wolf. Elwood responded with reference to his own two boys, and Niamh smiled. "Well then I'll try to save one of these guys for them, and bring them here next time I see one of them." She said. In the very least, it'd get her some brownie points with Finley- and that was pretty important to her.

"Thanks," Elwood replied, tossing a smile up at Niamh as he dug. He lapsed into silence for a few moments, focusing on the task at hand, and then finally sat back to regard his work. There was now a shallow hole in the ground, just deep enough to prevent the birds from escaping of their own free will.

Glancing at Niamh, he asked, "What do you think? Is that deep enough?"

Niamh leaned forward to inspect the hole Elwood had dug; it looked like it was deep enough, and the sides were steep enough that she didn't figure the birds could climb out at all. She shrugged, and playfully smiled, lifting one foot and pushing onr bird and then the other forward and into the hole. They squawked angrily and bopped up and down in the hole, scrabbling at the sides with their little claws and beating their wings to try and take off- but without feathers, it was impossible. She nodded. 

"Looks like that should work," She said, but glanced around until she saw a stick not too far away, with a few leaves still clinging to it. She marched over, grabbed it and then dragged it back, draping it across the hole's top, making it even more difficult for the birds to escape. "I think that'll do it," She said, looking down at the birds who continued to struggle in their prison. "Go team! Thanks for your help, Elwood. This should do great," She said, dipping her head in appreciation.

Thanks for the thread! :)

The ultimate test was to place the birds in their new prison, and Niamh did just that, plopping them in unceremoniously. There was a great deal of protest, naturally, but as the seconds ticked past under the wolves' watchful gazes, it was easy to see that the magpies would be unable to escape no matter how hard they tried. Elwood grinned, pleased with their teamwork, and took a step back as Niamh draped a tree limb over the opening.

"Perfect," he said. "You're welcome -- let me know if there's anything else you ever need help with," he added. "I think I'm going to go tell the boys about it. I'll catch you later!" With a smile in Niamh's direction, he departed.