Porcupine Ridge roasted peanuts

anyone :)

It was a cold evening and the snow was blowing. The black wolf retreated from his borders, his most common haunt at the time, to the dense forests of a nearby hollow. Sheltered by the thick foliage of evergreens and their wind-blocking, sturdy trunks, he was far more comfortable. He shook his coat, throwing a spray of snow about him before he moved further into the trees and settled himself down in the crook between several large, protruding roots. He laid his head across his paws and simply relaxed.

Lemongrass was walking happily towards the forest with a rabbit dangling from her mouth. She was tired of the snow, tired of how it reminded her of her sterile, lonely upbringing. Instead, she was resolved to eat in a dry place for once, without having to soak her paws. She placed the rabbit on the ground outside a hollowed tree and crawled inside the burrow, rolling around in the damp moss to mask her scent. Where there were trees, there were crows ready for a free meal, and Lemongrass would happily offer them one, provided they wouldn't object to becoming her free meal. 

Soon enough, one fluttered down from the branches to pick at the dead rabbit, and Lemongrass was more than happy to break it's neck and drag both it and her rabbit into the hollow with her. She ate happily, only her fluffy, golden tail sticking out from amongst the roots.

Relaxed he may have been, but the black wolf was nonetheless aware of his surroundings, and alert to the faint scent of rabbit, blood, and wolf - wolf that he did not recognize. Had he been on the borders, he would not have been alarmed, but here in the heart of his domain, he was instantly on alert, rising to his paws and bristling. He immediately set off to discover the source of the scent and picked up a foreign trail. His defensive pace was just shy of a full out sprint as he barelled through the snow.

He could not fully see the white wolf as she reached out to pull a rabbit and crow both into a hollow tree - a peculiar thing. This enraged him further, that not only did she dare to tread so boldly onto his clearly marked lands, but that she took from the mouths of him and his wolves. Taggarik charged forward, slamming his heavy paws down in front of the hollowed out tree, where he bent down and snarled savagely into makeshift den. His tail was stiff and bristled, thrust into the air above him, and the furs along his nape and spine had risen like sharp daggers.

His face was not so near that he could be struck without being able to return a strike, but unmistakable was his intent that this trespasser would not escape. His fierce, unyieling snarl paused only enough for a severe command to be growled out. "Get out." Out of that tree. Out of his territory. The rabbit and the crow he would take as penance, along with the taste of her own blood as he laid his furious teeth upon her.

Lemongrass looked up at the other wolf, her ears perked with interest and then laid against her head with great. She whimpered and came out of the tree slowly, rolling onto her back and exposing her white stomach. She looked up at the other wolf, her prey forgotten as she tried to appease her attacker.

"I'm sorry, I didn't know," she whimpered softly.

Something did not settle well with the swarthy she-wolf, and it soon became apparent that another had trekked in to their home. The scent trailed further past the borders, and feeling anger flicker in to her veins like fire, Capri prowled toward the direction of their trespasser, her gaze cold.
 
Taggarik had found the offender before her, but it did not stop the regal female from gliding to the girl’s other side. A whimper was given – a pathetic excuse that she did not know. “How did you miss our borders? Are you nose blind?” The words snapped from her, a growl loosing itself from her jowls. Gone was the gentleness of her usual voice, and with her stance rigid and teeth bared, Capri snapped toward the ivory she-wolf, hoping to catch fur and scare her.

Lemongrass whimpered as she was bitten again, the blood pooling in the snow around her shoulder. She stayed on her back, looking at the two older wolves with panicked eyes. "I-I didn't know that's how you t-told people to keep out. I'm s-sorry!" She'd grown up in a sterile environment, away from any sort of other animal. Her only impression was that the scent had come from someone simply relieving themselves, not that it was an actual signal.

She got up and stayed low, ears flat against her head and trail between her legs. "I'm really sorry. You guys can have the rabbit and crow, and I'll do away," she whimpered softly.

Lemon, please follow the posting order as per the rules. If you are unfamiliar, that means you reply in the order that participants join the thread. Your turn was supposed to come after me, but you skipped over me in your last post, so please wait and post after Capriccio now. Also, neither Tagg nor Capriccio actually bit her shoulder at this point so I am going to disregard that bit. :)

She did as she was bid, crawling out of the hollow tree just as the alpha female arrived, equally as displeased as the alpha male. Her roll of submission was all that stopped her from being savaged by Taggarik's teeth that instant, but even so, she would not get away unscathed. Her foolish excuse fell on deaf ears, and Capriccio snapped her teeth to pluck menacingly at the trespasser's fur. Taggarik's teeth closed loudly in the air.

The female tried to elaborate on her excuse, but Taggarik had no mind to listen to her. No proper wolf would mistake a pack's borders. "Out!" He roared, and with a snarl his fangs descended on her flank with the speed and precision of a viper. The slower she was to run and flee over their borders and disappear, the more his teeth would score her hide for the black wolf would be chasing her every step of the way.

The girl before them was clearly oblivious to instinct and life, and with a snort of impatience, Capri took her own turn at rounding at the ivory female, this time the snap of her jaws heavier and aimed with more precision to slice in to her flesh should she not run.
 
The time for talk was over – no excuse was acceptable, and the two wolves had made it quite clear that they wanted the pale woman to move off their land and fast.
 
Taggarik was a force to be seen when angry, but Capri was distracted by her own anger and frustration. Leaping forward, she made to drive the other away from their lands and in the direction of their border – and should the foolish woman ever try to set paw in their home once more, Capri would do more than spill a little of her blood.

Lemongrass was overwhelmed and unworried for the assault, especially since she didn't know that she'd done anything wrong. She yelped as she was bitten, not understanding what she had done wrong and how to fix it. She tucked her tail between her legs and backed away, shimmying with all four of her paws. She trailed blood on her way.

Finally, she felt secure in the distance between herself and the pair. She whimpered and ran away, hiding in the snow to lick her wounds and roll around. She hoped the snow would wash it out and bring down the throbbing pain she felt in her flesh.

I am going to assume she crossed the borders as she ran away, even though it was not clear in the post. :)

She was slow to move, and his teeth met her flank again with fierce encouragement until she had found her speed and was fleeing from him and his alpha female. He chased her, snapping at her hindquarters until her paws ran over his marked borders, where he came to a stop and watched with a piercing stare until she had disappeared from sight. Only then did the tension in his muscles slacken, did the fur along his nape and spine smooth over, and did his tail hang easily once more. It was with a derisive snort that he turned to head back toward the comfort of the trees, and as he made to move past Capriccio, his nose grazed her cheek and passed by her ear.

The pack wolves made their stance on their words very clear once fangs slashed to flesh, and that seemed to get the foolish thing going. She turned, her form still slinking away much slower than Capri would have cared for, and after another lunge, the girl released a whimper and ran away. The sudden speed of the stranger spurred Capri forward, and speeding after the girl, her own snarls intermingled with the snapping of Tagg’s jaws upon the cold winter air.
 
Once the ivory dove had placed herself a distance from their borders, the duo stopped. Taggarik’s gaze was locked upon the girl as she fled, and Capri, who’s very nerves were frayed and distraught, bristled quietly beside him.
 
She would have distratced them both by moving closer to him -- to settle her muzzle in the thick nape of his fur and soothe him physically, but Taggarik was set on removing himself form the situation now. His nose grazed her cheek, and her own bumped him affectionately in return before she slunk off in an a separate direction – seeking out Terich-mir.