The past two hunts had been failures. This was not a good sign for Fox, who hoped to bring children into the world, come spring. If the pack could not provide for young mouths, her body would realize this and not allow her to have children at all. The thought sickened her, and a feeling of impending dread swallowed her whole. It would be wretchedly unfair if she were to finally settle down with a mate, at the head of a pack, and be denied children in the end. So today, she had set off to seek out other herds where they might try their luck.
Fox's paws took her south along the mountains, where she and Finn had once attempted to catch a goat (or was it a sheep?). That hunt had been a failure, too. Fox grimaced at the memory, even though their conversation had turned out to be an amiable one. The young Nimble Paws scaled the cliffs with ease, bouncing from one rock to the next as she sought prey that she might return to in the coming days. Taking down one of these beasts solo was not exactly her strong suit. She was more of a chaser and less of a killer. Silvery-grey eyes scanned the cliffs, looking for any signs of life.
There was a herd of sheep in the Kintla Flatlands. They mainly inhabited the Sheepeater Cliff, what a surprise. The largest prey that Kaname often hunted were deer, elk, moose. Rarely did he hunt goats and sheep, because he would often fail. But today he would try to hunt the fluffy creatures again.
The assassin crossed the sea of grass, heading to the cliffs where the herd of sheep resided. He caught a glimpse of the white mass of sheep in the distance. Stealing into the foliage, he snuck closer to get a better look at the creatures, only to hear them bleat in alarm and run away. Making a sound of disgust, he climbed higher onto the cliffs until he was met with the sight of a flame-furred female walking the mountains. Kaname chuffed softly, wondering who she might be.
Fox fanned her ears backward at the greeting. She'd been intent in finding the herd, but being interrupted wasn't the worst thing in the world. The young Alpha turned to face him, immediately pleased by what she saw. The wind still blew in his direction, so she was unable to capture the scent of who he might belong to. He was handsome, no denying that, with fur as black as night and eyes as blue as ice. Fox, on the other hand, was covered in scars and had tattered fur all around her. She may have once been a creature of flawless beauty, but those days were behind her, now.
Considering he had greeted her with neutrality, she did the same, dipping her head in a small way to acknowledge him. "Have you seen the herds?" she asked, though she knew he had no reason to answer.
On closer inspection, the fire-furred female was heavily scarred and tattered, especially for one so young. It reminded him of Cara in a way. Damn, he was such a cradle-robber. "Yes, a bit down from here. They ran away from me." He said with a tint of annoyance. Why were they so damn skittish?
He breathed in the red female's scent. A plateau wolf. He was meeting a lot of those lately, though the meetings were not as violent as the one with his doppleganger. "Looking to hunt them?"
Fox nodded when he explained that he had seen them, but they had seen him first. A frown tugged the corners of her lips downward. It didn't look as though the plateau wolves would have much luck hunting here. The cliffs were too steep and the reward too small. Fox made a note of it, and she would relay the information to Peregrine when she returned. Alas, the trip didn't have to be for nothing. This was a wolf she did not know, and yet he smelled strongly of others. Not a loner, and definitely not a member of the creek. That was a smell she would not soon forget. Unless Bazi had been overthrown by a newcomer, of course.
“Not on these cliffs,” she replied, disappointment lacing her voice. “I’m Fox Redleaf-DiSarinno, Alpha of Blacktail Deer Plateau. Who're you?” Her tail lashed behind her, and Fox licked her lips to show that she was no threat. She had grown accustomed to introducing herself by her new, full name, rather than the short one-syllable one she had worn up until a month or two ago.
Prey on mountains were hard to catch, especially if one was not used to mountainous terrain. Especially if the inclines were this steep. He wondered if the plateau was lacking food sources and were forced to hunt out here. But it was merely a thought.
Her name was Fox, and she was Alpha of Blacktail Deer Plateau. How similar she was to Cara, so young and getting in high places (even though Cara was thrown down by Ptarmigan). "Kaname Sicarius, Beta of Ouroboros Spine, formerly known as Silvertip Mountain." He returned with his full name and title. He included the former name of his pack, just in case Fox had knowledge of the pack prior. The assassin doubted that their pack would pose any threat, but if they were, he still didn't give off their location as of yet.
If she'd had a better memory, Fox might have remembered that her former Beta, Jinx, once led Silvertip Mountain. She might also come to learn that the great Kesuk was now dead, rotted away by disease and then put out of her misery by an usurper. As it were, though, Fox lacked that kind of recollection, and she merely raised her eyebrows at him. “Never heard of it,” she replied. Nor had she met anybody who lived there (as far as she could recall). Just another pack, like all the others. Only the ones Fox had been intimately involved in did she remember with clarity.
“Ever caught any of these sheep? Terrain seems like it’d be a bitch.” Polite conversation wasn't Fox's strong suit, but she figured there was no harm in chatting with the locals. Besides, it was possible he could give her some hints or tips on trying to catch one of these buggers in the future. If this was their only option, Fox wouldn't mind a bit of advice.
He only grunted softly in response. If she didn't know she didn't. But he did recall an old technique that the Silvertip wolves used for hunting the goats. "The best way is to get them from above. They have an advantage with climbing, so if you chase them from above and then down there is a chance that they might fall. Or you could set up a trap for them."
But he did not know if it really worked. The last time they had done this, the goat had escaped. But in other circumstances, it would work. Or you could just chase them off a cliff. He had seen that work as well.
He offered advice, even if Fox was suspicious of it being the truth. She was generally distrusting of strangers from other packs, considering they had every reason to betray her. If he tricked her into doing something stupid, he would get a larger share of the sheep in the end. Still, Fox knew better than to call him out on his (what she thought were) lies. Instead, she pressed him further.
“A trap?” she asked, “What kind of trap?” Fox was a dull-headed creature, and it was rare for her to be imaginative in her ways of getting prey. To her, it was always just chase and attack. Anything beyond that was out of her mental realm.
There was a tone of suspicion in the young woman's voice. Why would she be? All he was doing was sharing hunting tips. "A wolf could be hiding near the bottom and run out and grab them while they're hopping down the mountain. It's hard to stop as you go down. Or you could always chase them off a cliff." He suggested.
"If you want we could try it out." He needed something to do anyway, so he was only suggesting it to Fox if she wanted to see how it worked out.
Last post for me. :)
Fox listened, allowing him to explain what he meant by this trap of his. It sounded, at least on some level, to be a possible outcome. He then offered to give it a go right then and there, but Fox shook her head. Hunting with strangers was not one of her pastimes, and she would rather come back with some of the plateau wolves if she did not discover any suitable prey elsewhere. Besides, if they did manage to kill something, she did not want to have to share it with him, as petty as it was.
“I should move on. I’ve got a lot of scouting to do.” Fox turned her head toward the sheep for a brief moment, and then back to Kaname.
“See you around.” Although, in all honesty, she did not expect to see him around at all. The farewell just seemed like it had to be said, and with that done, Fox toddled off to seek out other possible options for the plateau's next hunt.
Thanks for the thread!
The assassin's request was denied, sadly. He tilted his head slightly, wondering why. Sure, he was a stranger, and a possible rival, but couldn't they just go out and try it? But alas, he wouldn't just stop the female from leaving. That was rude, and he did not want to leave a bad impression on her. "Farewell." He said before turning tail and leaving.