Herbalists' Cache Scars Are My Weapons

@Nochtli

After reenergizing her body, Kivi traveled back over the mountain and past the meadow of flowers. She returned to the lake where she had successfully hunted the deer calf, and met a dark wolf. Today she was exploring further out into the unknown wilds and took shelter from the sun in a nearby forest. The Dotharan wolfess did not like to travel by walking, so instead she ran, always working her muscles and staying in shape, however it constantly left her being exhausted. After a good nap Kivi woke to catch the scent of some deer in the forest. She wondered if it was the same herd she saw by the lake before, but that would be highly unlikely.    

Stretching after her rest, the female began to track her prey, paws silently moving across the forest floor. Kivi came to a stop when she saw a stag, three doe, and two young. The calves were healthy, and would be an easy meal if it weren't for the stag protecting them and their mothers. The wolfess sat, and began to think of a possible plan that in the end would leave her with a full stomach.

She had rested for days, maybe a week. She was still a bit tired but nowhere near how exhausted she'd been after they'd first found the Prince. Progress of any sort was quite welcome at this point and to wake up today and not have to go through the separate process of making sure her feet were still attached was pleasant. They still ached, sure, but not nearly as bad. So with that in mind, Nocta rose from her den floor and set out today with a particular task in mind.

Hunger clawed at her stomach, not in a manner that was life-threatening, but still annoying. She hadn't eaten anything proper in a while and today was the day she'd change that. Early morning, the Amazon tracker had set out at an easy pace, no real direction in mind until she'd caught the scent of deer. Mouth watering, a pang of hunger swept through her once more, something she swallowed back as she adjusted her course to make sure she was downwind.

Closer and closer she came, her footsteps gradually becoming as silent as the shadows she mimicked. She was not along in this, and the smell of another made her tail wag. Success rates raised when there was more than one trying to bring a deer down. Creeping through the forest, Nochtli made small adjustments here and there, careful to come up on the other female's side, far enough away that she would hopefully not be surprised but close enough to communicate through the wonders of body language.

An ear flickered, her dark snout pointing at their quarry before pointing at the agouti female again. This time, both ears centered on her, her gaze heavy and clear. She would prefer to pair with this one and bring a meal down together. If she agreed, then Nochtli would move to a more advantageous position instead of standing here in the shadows of the forest, doing jack all. Silently, she waited for her answer, tail in an amicable position. There was no pull for dominance from her, and she would not attempt such things if the female remained neutral as well.

Kivi was not suprised at all by the other female. She instead stood and gave a nod to the stranger. It would be better to work with her than get in a fight and lose a possible meal. Kivi used the forest to her advantage and weaved through the trees barely making any sound. She lowered herself behind a bush and waited. Now was the matter of pick a target. The calves would be the easiest anothe best chance at a meal. A doe would definitely be a greater meal, but they would be much harder to take down. The stag was completely out of the question unless more wolves showed up, and that would be very unlikely to happen.

Kivi decided to not go for any prey, but instead see how the hunt goes. The was a chance one of the deer could injure themselves. The Dotharan female looked around, honey orbs searching for the stranger. Kivi moved around the bush and pushed on forward towards the deer. She crept around them until she couldn't move anymore, or else the wind would give away her position. once again she searched for the dark wolfess, and waited for a signal showing that she was ready to hunt.

The female accept her silent offer and her tail swept the air once more. Pleased that she now had a comrade to work with, the Amazonian moved off to better her position and evaluate their prey. Bright eyes flickered from doe to calf and back, sometimes settling on the buck as a plan began to formulate in her head. Her for-now-friend lingered on the other side of the quarry and Nochtli moved a bit to capture her attention. Ears twitched to signify to the female that she was going to make noise to startle them.

Her gaze intense, she looked from the female to the calves, and back once more. 'Trip.' She willed silently that the female would be on the same wavelength as her or this would be one hell of an adventure. Turning, she searched the forest directly behind her for something that would be loud enough to make them bolt. Approaching a seemingly old tree, Nochtli lifted a paw and pressed against it's trunk, listening to the sad creek of rotten bark. 

Perfect. 

With a mighty shove, she pushed and pushed and pushed until the tree careened to the forest floor, landing with a mighty crash. Immediately, she spun to speed back to where their quarry had been and, just as she presumed, they'd bolted. Perfect. Now if only the female could do what she needed to do, or even just tracked them until one of the brood injured themselves in the panic, her plan would play out with no problems.

Kivi spotted the female just as she gave the signal that she would make a noise. Kivi had positioned herself so that she was directly in front of the herd. She kept her ears alert for the sound the stranger would make. Kivi believed it would be the snap of a twig or something,  but no it seemed her hunting partner liked to go all out.

Out of nowhere a huge thud filled the female's ears, and she looked to see the deer scatter. A doe and it's calf were heading right for the Dotharan wolfess and she prepared herself for the attack. When the timing was right she lunged at the calf's leg. She heard a satisfying snap and knew that the young deer had no chance of escaping now.

Once she heard the calf's leg break she immediately let go and looked to see if the mother would try and defend it's calf and sure enough it did. She left the calf to the stranger who could finish the job while she handled the mother.

The tactic worked. Their quarry ran straight for the other female and Nochtli was sure to stay right on their tails. The dark shadow snapped teeth and snarled to startle and spook, keeping adrenaline high as she darted in to clench those fangs around the calf's neck. A quick, hard shake snapped the creature's neck and its screams of pain died away, the only sound left the thunder of hooves as they fled the vicinity.

Her jaws split in a bloody grin, she looked to the agouti and wagged her tail. "Good work," She complimented happily. "I take half, you take half?" The Ridge wasn't far. She could drag her share back for the others.