It had been about three weeks. He had not looked for her, nor waited for her to pass him by. He had kept away, and did not so much as loiter the plains nor the areas that neighbored it. From time to time she would invade his mind, and he would dismiss her.
This time, however, was different.
He had happened upon a bounty, an old doe that had succumbed to her age. He was the first to find her. His teeth, slick like a knife, opened her belly, and out poured his choice of the finest meats. He sought the liver with swiftness, intent to devour it before any other predator winded the easy meal, but was halted. There, still nestled in its sac, an unborn fawn. The time for birthing was almost past, and he would have been birthed soon were it not for his mother's death.
She would be giving birth soon.
It was a moment of clarity. Of what he had to do. He tore open the sac, grasped the fawn by the neck and made haste to the plains, pausing only at a stream to rinse it clean. Without the blood, it was almost odorless. His eyes swept the grasses, looking for her.
It was known a band of rogue coyotes had been spotted harassing the Dothoran bison herd and thus Rakharo had given the order to stalk and eradicate those who were not affiliated with their tribe. It was unlucky for Devil that Vitihi loitered close by, scenting his rangy odor on the slight breeze. For a while she slunk in the grass like a lioness on the savanna, but it wasn't long before she sprung from her hideout a few lengths away - her pale face twisted into a baleful snarl.
Her teeth clicked as she savagely charged, a low rumble thundering from her elegant throat. The young woman had a lot to prove now that she had been named Khaleesi, especially since her ferocity was not equal to others of her breed. She sought to run the cur down and slay him. Her people would cheer for catching such a trophy, and so she mercilessly perused him unaware of any connection to their slave, Tomahawk.
He couldn't go unscathed forever, I suppose! >:D
Layaffi, Zafra, Tomahawk, Davri, Hawk—the coyote with many names—was heavily pregnant now. Whatever fat and sustenance she had managed to keep had quickly gone to the gifts and taboo children that pressed against the sides of her belly. The past few weeks had kept her restricted to the bison, keeping at their side and never treading far away from Rakharo and his brother, Lavakho, who still seemed to have some hope for his own children. She knew that the Khal would not permit it, nor would Vitihi. She did, however, believe that the new queen would be pleased with her gifts.
Still, Layaffi was a creature of habit, and so she found herself at the outskirts of the plains once more. A familiar (if mildly unwelcome) scent drifted her direction, and she alerted to it with bright golden eyes and ears pointing forward. The coyote. The bringer of seeds. She had no use for him now that Lavakho showered her with food and gifts. He had given her the only thing she had needed: his seed. Tomahawk watched as Vitihi charged toward him, seemingly appearing from nowhere, and she made no move to intervene. It was not her place to do so, though she did wonder why the queen did not seek to capture him.
Haha. Surprised it took this long for someone to intervene!
It was habit, routine, to conceal himself as he moved, but for all his effort and talent he was not immune to being seen, or smelled. It did not happen often, but it happened this time: one of the plain wolves had scented him. Just as he caught sight of the coyote he sought, he saw the grasses sway as the wolf stole toward him. He strafed as she neared, his paws moving quicker, anticipating an attack by the predatory way she stalked him. He was right: she sprang from her cover with a snarl, and he bolted with her on his heels, dropping the fawn so as not to be encumbered by it.
His mind worked quickly.
"I surrender!" he called, but he did not slow, nor turn his head. His ears were fanned back to listen to any shift in her pace that suggested she was receptive to changing her mind, to listening.
"I brought a gift. I wish to serve!" The acid, he tasted it in his mouth as he said those words. But he had a task, and a saw a more efficient means to it, if he could convince her to capture rather than kill him.
Tomahawk knew that he lied, but she did not care. This was not her decision to make, not her battle to fight. And so she did not linger long, deciding it was best to retreat to her den and bunker down. The children would be here soon, she knew, and she would need to provide for them. The coyote turned, leaving Vitihi and the father of her children to do what they would.