Taikon wanted to forget his past, but he seemed unable to escape it. He had come across many a wolf who seemed happy and content in their family packs, and he had to remind himself that he, too, had once been happy. It was when people had found what was wrong with him that everything went to shit.
He walked through the Hollow, but all he could think of was Cella. Lately, she poisoned his thoughts. The beautiful women he had met on his journey seemed nothing to him. There was something wrong with him for this, he was sure.
A bird flew out from the undergrowth not far from him, and his gaze shifted quickly to meet a girl.
She had a curious red colour to her. Her legs in particular were dipped in a deep cherry that he had never seen before. She was an odd, lovely animal. Hi, said Taikon. The white male had not seen her fumble. Did that bird fly away from you? He smiled broadly. He had no idea she had been in hunting mode.

The she-wolf jumped when Taikon spoke, which made him flinch. His ears swivelled sideways as he realized that he had very much startled her. She spoke, but her words were rattled and her voice small. She seemed... fragile. I apologize; I didn't mean to scare you, he said honestly, lowering his head a bit and offering a couple of friendly, small wags of his white tail.
Here, he offered a deep, low bow. It was a royal bow, one that he liked to save for moments like this to make him seem vulnerable and dorky. Pleased to meet you, madame, I am Taikon, he had changed his voice, mocking someone from some made up aristocracy. From his bow, he peered up at her and winked, hoping to relax her.

Ah, her Majesty Sorscha, what an honour, he grinned. Lately, Taikon had not been particularly playful. Most of the joy from his youth had seemingly died with it. The chestnut she-wolf seemed to like his flavoured speech and demeanor, but he wasn't sure how long he could keep it up. Being happy was both exhausting and a welcome reprieve from his misery.
As Sorscha laughed, he became infected with it. One thing he had learned in the Teekon Wilds was that it was teeming with pleasant women. Creatures that should have made him able to forget. Actually, in a former life I really was a prince, he said, his accent disappeared and his true, smooth voice surfacing. He said it as though it was a weird fact, grinning weirdly as though he could barely believe it himself. That life seemed far away. It was. 

Sorscha appeared enthralled, and Taikon relished the spotlight she offered him. He beamed at her fascination, raising his head and smiling, still oddly.
The russet she-wolf then asked him what had happened for him to lose his princehood. This was something he had to think about, and he looked down and away, a bit puzzled at the idea. Well, he started, though he was still thinking. The reality was that he no longer had a right to the Farukan throne. However, he was still technically the son of a King and Queen, and thus, should still be properly called a prince. You know, I never actually thought about it before but I think I still am one. The realization was profound, and Taikon blinked a bunch, feeling silly and strange at this new information.
I no longer have a right to the throne in my birth pack, but now that I think about it, I don't think that makes me not a prince. Heh, he explained briefly, watching her, smiling. Taikon had spoken it as though he were talking about the breeding habits of shellfish; the tone of his voice was flat and dull.

Sorscha didn't respond beyond a smile, so Taikon abandoned his self-made podium and talk of royal blood. He noticed her tongue wet her lips, and grinned slyly. Nothing really, but I'm starting to get hungry, he said. Really, he was usually hungry. One of the unfortunate facts of lone wolf life was that kills were even more infrequent than co-operative hunts. The meals themselves were smaller and offered a fair variety, but often included things such as carrion. Taikon had eaten many dinners that were merely the spoils of cats and other predators.
We should hunt. It was a simple offer, and he looked at Sorscha, perking his ears up hopefully. Perhaps together, their chances might be improved, even if they had only just met.

It was only with Sorscha's next sentence that Taikon realized she had been trying to hunt the bird that had flown from her. Birds, generally, were more trouble than they were worth with the notable exception of ground-nesting feathered beasts like ducks and geese. Thus, the lone wolf was hardly surprised when she mentioned she might be lacking in skill.
We'll go for something easier I think; birds are difficult prey because we can't run them down, he said. With the Faruka, most hunts had been no more than a matter of tracking and long distance travel. Ungulates in particular were beasts that tired easily. That was a strategy they would have needed greater strength and numbers for, and so Taikon began instead to move past the rust-coloured she-wolf. Let's keep our wits about us and head to the creek, he said, moving at a slow trot toward the smell of water.
He knew that creeks weaved through the area in many places. He also knew that water in forested areas tended to attract larger, but still small, beasts such as muskrat and beaver. He hoped that her pretty eyes might see something as they moved that he could not.

The red wolf followed him like a pup. For the first time in a long while, Taikon felt truly confident. He felt even more so because he was with a woman. Had Sorscha been male, things probably would have been a different story. In his old life, the prince loved to show off. With any luck, they might be able to find a prey animal enough to do so.
They ventured forth into the woods. The air was still quite cool; a light breeze was blowing from the west. This, Taikon used to their advantage. As they moved closer to the creek at a steady pace, he made sure to come at such an angle that the breeze blew toward them from the creekside rather than away. Always, he kept on sniffing the air, trying to detect anything other than trees, mud, and water.
When they were close enough to hear the burbling of the waters, he slowed down, and then stopped completely. Listen, the white wolf challenged her, do you hear that? Taikon waited, hoping that she, too, could pinpoint the sound that had stopped him.

They're jumping, Taikon agreed. He smiled broadly at Sorscha, gesturing toward the creek so that the red lady might follow him. As they moved over the roots of trees toward the creek's edge, the sound of plunging splashes grew louder. Taikon spread his toes out to get a better grip as he stepped over and into the muddy bank, searching for a better place to stand.
Taikon looked at the water for a moment, then carefully stepped into it. The creek was not particularly wide and likely measured across at this point no more than five meters. I think they're trout, he said at a loud whisper, but then stopped talking. The fish were toward the opposite bank at the middle, but stopped jumping when they noticed the disturbance in the water caused by the wolf. To be honest, I'm not that great at catching fish, but we can try, he admitted. Having grown up on a mountain whose river water was often freezing cold, he hadn't made it a point to be an expert in water sports.

Taikon looked over to her, but couldn't quite make out the words she spoke under her breath. Maybe she didn't like water. He shrugged, and slowly moved further into the water until the line was just over his chest. It was difficult to see the glimmer of the fish, and harder to maintain his footing on the slimy rocks and gravel under his feet. Even so, he waited until he felt a fish swim through his forelegs and swiftly, but badly, pushed his snout into the water and wildly tried to grab at it.
He failed. He waited. He failed again. 
At that point, he was soaking wet, and began laughing. Come on! Help me! It was in a jesting, pleasant voice he demanded this, hoping that perhaps with two failures of wolf fishermen, they might actually catch something.

At last, the scarlet creature entered the water with him so he was not left alone splashing about. She seemed pensive, at first, saying nothing to him and looking at the water, gathering strategy. Taikon, on the other hand, thrashed about semi-frequently, flopping his head into the water and struggling to do much of any fish catching on account of his nose being overrun with water every time. He didn't realize that he could simply breath out through his nose to prevent this; that was a learning experience that he just wasn't advanced enough to grasp.
When they did at last catch something, it was Sorscha, not Taikon the hunter, that chanced a win. However, it was quickly apparent that the trout had not died from the bite — the prince had assumed that this would just happen immediately for no reason. It flailed about and smacked the poor woman in the face repeatedly. Taikon sloppily splashed his way toward her, unsure what to do. All he could think was to grip the struggling fish on whatever part he could reach, which happened to be the tail. They stood there very awkwardly as the fish still tried to wiggle with two wolves smashing their teeth down on it. His mouth was mere inches from the new woman's, which gave him a strange and exhilerating thrill.
Finally, the fish calmed and fell silent, wiggling once after a moment and then no more. Taikon let go. Wow, he said. I did not expect that. He meant..well any of it. He didn't expect her to catch anything, and he didn't expect the events that just happened. But you got it!

As Sorscha moved to the bank and exclaimed her surprise and effort, Taikon laughed. He stayed in the water. Why don't you go ahead and eat that; I'll keep trying. With that, he waded back toward the middle of the stream.
Catching these things was difficult indeed. Whenever he felt one slip by his paws, he tried to snap at it, but he was never quite fast enough. He had seen bears stand at the edge of waterfalls and snap up salmon just by holding their mouths open, and they made it look fantastically easy. Two, three, four fish floundered past him as he splashed about in the creek, shouting curses every time he missed. He looked ridiculous.
He heaved out an annoyed sigh, standing still in the water. He felt the current winding through his legs. His paw pads were touching slimy river rocks. He concentrated.
Before he could think, the prince had shut his teeth down hard on a trout of reasonable size. He pulled it up, and just like Sorscha the thing was flopping about against his face very unpleasantly. He growled and shook it, but that didn't seem to quell its thirst to escape. He moved toward the bank, biting down harder and harder all the way so the animal wouldn't be released. He was very lucky not to drop it.
Finally, he put it between his paws and yelled, Hah!! It flopped out of his paws. Shit, he grabbed at it just in time as it made a flop toward the creek, catching the tail in his teeth once more. He put his paw over it and pulled. These things just didn't want to die. He looked at Sorscha with the flopping fish in his mouth, looking quite foolish.

Crunch.
Juice, or perhaps blood, ran down the body of the slippery animal into his mouth, which made him drool. He pulled playfully at it while Sorscha had its head between her teeth, effectively decapitating it. For virtually any other animal, this would indeed have been a gruesome scene and warranted a strong warning for those outside of the world of wolves. As it was, Taikon had a headless fish all to himself, which he stepped backward with and lay down to enjoy peacefully.
Thanks, he said, pleased that their little hunt had gone smoothly enough. A good chunk of time had passed, but they had been rewarded with fatty, fresh fish. As Taikon ate, he occasionally made choking faces when tiny bones would slide down his throat. In little time, he managed to pry most of the flesh from the trout and have it safely stored in his stomach. All that was left behind was part of a tail and the core of its skeleton.
It wasn't a heavy meal, by any means, but it would satiate the two lone wolves for some time yet at least. So, what's next for you then? Had she a pack nearby, or was she on her own like he was? He wondered what her plan was.