forward-dating to the 28th! tracker thread
her heat is fading; the scent remains, but it is faded. their window is closed, and much has changed the past few days. no matter what comes of this; with Whitebark, with Artyom, she is content.
the morning finds her watching the six that
@Chai had found, quiet as she watches the group. they are unaware of her, as such, they wander comfortably by the stream's edge. one doe breaks away from the group; approaches the stream on stilted limbs. dawn is concealed just within the tree line, watching the deer as she steps carefully over the icy bank.
for a while, he goes unnoticed. but the prickle along her spine, that intuitive sense that is part of all wild things, has her shift her attention away from the deer a moment. gaze trails back to meet the distant figure that she recognizes to be one of bhediya's wolves. she chides herself for the thought; they are all part of whitebark, and thinking of those that had joined with the dark woman to be separate would not do.
she invites him to join her with a low chuff, soft enough not to alert the herd. her attention is drawn back away swiftly, however, when a sharp crack rings out; the doe has managed to puncture a forelimb through the ice. her auds press forward as she watches the doe struggle; she rest of her herd alert and unsettled as they watch her in much the same manner.
then, suddenly, the ice gives. the sharp crack is enough to send the rest of the herd wheeling, stampeding a short distance away, as the doe issues a keening call. dawn shifts, poised, glancing once at her companion. but fear is a powerful force, and a moment later, the doe frees herself, emerging stumbling onto the bank. stilt-like limbs quiver, frigid water rushes off her pelt and then she is rushing after the rest of them—limping.
"are you a proficient hunter, Xizur?" asks the woman then, turning to glance at him. he's young, but well-built, perhaps just edged into adulthood. already, she's fairly certain of what she plans to do next, mind working as she regards the youth. not now, not yet, but within the day. there exists a perfect window where the herd is settled but the doe still weakened; it is this she seeks to pin down. the pair speak a little while longer before the boy takes his leave, allowing the woman to watch over the herd a while longer.