Wolf RPG

With the air cool and breeze light, it was a perfect night for a hunt. The does had settled in a meadow beyond the pack’s borders, their new fawns tucked in the long heather. With a stretch and a yawn, Lilia arose, and began to make her way through the pack lands by moonlight with the intention of hunting something young and tender.

What she found, first, was very much that- though not one she would consider edible. In the darkness, he blended in well, though he had yet to learn stealth. His movements were disguised in sound by the dancing ambience of the atmosphere- but his soft puppy coat gleamed under the milky light of the moon.

”Where yuh headed, thcout?” She asked, well aware of the fact that he’d likely snuck out after his curfew.

She gave him a crooked grin when he looked up to her. Yeah, he'd been caught. But she wouldn't discipline him or tote him straight back to Avicus- he hadn't strayed far, and he wasn't bolting away from her. Besides- she was his older sister, she was supposed to be protective but fun, and she could break a couple rules with him so long as he was completely safe while he was with her.

She'd return him to Avicus, but how long they spent out under the stars, listening to the constant chirrupping on the night air could stay between them. 

She'd almost tuned the sound out, no matter how persistent it was. "That'th not birdth," She told him, with a light chuckle. She lowered her nose to ruffle the fur on the top of his head gently. "Let'th try thomethin," She said. "Let'th uthe our ear-th, an' try an' find one of the creatureth makin' the thoundth. How'th that thound?"

She flinched at first, when the boy hopped and licked her nose, as these were unexpected shows of affection. She had to remind herself that Mulherin was a kid- and kids had much less rigid rules. That could make this even more fun. 

”We lowing our headth, an’ tilt uh earth around.” She said. ”An’ then, we lithen for the thound ath we move very thlowly. We wanna get ath clothe to the thound ath we can pothibly get.” She grinned at the boy. ”I think you’re gonna be good at it.”

She winked, and nodded at him, and allowed him to range forward, striking by instinct the pose of a hunter. She watched, fiercely proud of the Bearn who seemed more than capable of rising to the occasion. The chirrups continued, all around them. Occasionally, she would hear one close- only for it to fall silent a moment later when it realized something was moving through the dark. At least, though, they were quiet enough that the chirping insects didn't all go silent at once. 

He looked back, and she nodded. At this point, they were likely surrounded by the insects- so she silently, carefully slid to the ground, so that her head hovered just a couple inches above her paws. She kept her gaze fast upon Mulherin, hoping he might parrot her movements. Her ears swiveled; still like this, she thought she might just convince the crickets within a foot of herself to start singing again- so they could reveal themselves.

She waited and watched, listening as the chirping amplified. With patience, the crickets seemed lulled into a false sense of security, and had begun to sing again once the wolves had stopped moving. She inched toward Mulherin as he did toward her, the pair of them moving with halting steps, as though imitating a stick bug. It seemed to work- only occasionally would a very close cricket stop its song, before resuming once more. 

She gave him a grin, impressed with the stealth he showed. It'd already been an accomplishment for him to sneak out of the den without being caught, let alone sneaking up on the crickets as well. Perhaps he might do well to train with Augur or Masque, who might better hone his tactics. He certainly had the instincts for it!

She turned one of her ears when a cricket sounded off very close to them, and she searched in the darkness to pick it out, crouched and singing on a broad leaf, close to the ground. She  gestured with her gaze, so that Mulherin might finally catch sight of the creature that was creating such a loud din, despite being so tiny in size.

She lifted her brow, both surprised and impressed that he denied her request to actually see the bug. She wondered, then, if he knew what she was pointing at. She huffed a quiet breath at him, and with a movement deft and swift, she scooped the insect up by one of its long, dark legs and tossed it toward the boy- it chirped a couple times as it spun through the air, before it landed not far from him, and the soft thump of its landing sent a shock of silence through the other crickets in the area. She strode forward, and pointed to the dark bug as it righted itself, and began to hop away. 

"Em'th cricket-th," She said. "S'what's makin' all that noise."

She grinned lightly when he flinched, enjoying the look of surprise on his face when he realized what it was. Being startled was natural- it would help him dodge to miss a strike by a stag's antler, or a horse's hoof. He rebounded quickly, naturally curious, and investigated the insect himself. She crept closer while he mouthed the bug, not bothering to tell him it would likely break if he wasn't gentle enough. There were more crickets where that one had come from. 

"Dunno," She whispered. "But they all do it. An' when they all make that thound togethuh, it get'th really loud." She said. She looked around. "There mutht be thouthandth of 'em out there," She said, shuddering at the thought.

Lilia anticipated what might happen if they went hunting for crickets with too much excitement- but she couldn't help but get caught up in Mulherin's enthusiasm. While she knew stealth might've been an asset, the boy had defeated his first cricket and sped off in search of more before she could explain. With a faint shrug, she dashed off after him, trying to avoid crashing through bushes so she could keep up with the smaller wolf, and avoid frightening all the crickets into silence again. 

In the dark, they were tough to spot- until they leapt from their hiding spot to avoid the oncoming predators. Surprised, Lilia let out a soft bark as crickets began to leap from the grasses in her path, and she began snapping at them as she went, both delighted and disgusted when she felt one crunch between her teeth.

Even for a wolf who had once nearly starved to death, the crickets were not a welcome snack. Something about the brittle legs and crunchy bodies made the top of her tongue feel funny and it was likely because the insects were still moving when she swallowed them. 

She hacked when one of them saw fit to try and escape through her windpipe, and spat the still wriggling bug out on the ground. A moment later she stepped on it, as she lunged for another, having learned by now to chew them a couple times before swallowing them down. 

They weren’t likely nutritious and their taste was somewhat bland, but it impossible to tear her focus away from them once they’d started snapping at them. Every now and again she would grab one and lob it toward Mulherin, before snapping for another.

She gagged, trying not to choke as she chuckled at Mulherin's suggestion. Nodding, she gestured for them to head toward the stream, croaking "Gweat idea," as she cleared her throat of what was hopefully the last cricket leg. She snickered, a couple times, just thinking about the cricket hunt. It wasn't the sort of thing she would've ever expected to do- but something about Mulherin brought out the best in her. 

"That wath pretty fun. You're pretty cool, kid," She commented with a grin.

Lilia laughed. "Tell ya what. There'th alwayth gonna be cricket-th aroun', but I can show you how to hunt bigger thingth. Tath-tier thingth," She said, hoping to entice him with that idea. The crickets had been fun, but they weren't exactly delicious and she was still grossed out by the feeling of them still moving while they were inside her mouth. Something like a rabbit, squirrel, a mouse...She thought might be more beneficial for him to learn to hunt. 

"We'll go git a drink now, then I gotta take ya back to yuh home 'fore yer Ma waketh up...Then maybe tomorrow, we'll go huntin' for thome kinda varmint. That thound good?'

She chuckled. ”Big as yuh face,” She said with a cackle, knowing that the boy would have to gaze at his own reflection to know how big that was. Of course, their prey would depend on what was available- and what they could catch. 

He was excited, but definitely needed some good sleep. She dipped her head for a quick drink before she gestured with a shrug of one scarred shoulder. ”Let-th go,” She said, before escorting the boy home.