Ravensblood Forest Say my name

@Zugzwang hope you don't mind Ravenblood Forest! Maybe he can show her the beach

The female been traveling over the mountains, while there were some good spots she might be able to settle she had not fond any sign of a male cougar. Life would be pretty boring as she needed a male if she wanted more cubs. Besides, she was not going to settle for the first place she liked. Now she had left her home there was less of a threshold to continue to explore. As she moved west she noticed that the air was getting different. There was salt in it. As she got to the edge of the forest it all felt very bright and open. Forsythe disliked that idea. 

The female decided to wait until it was dark, perhaps then it didn't feel as dangerous. She was not a timid creature, however, she was careful where she would go. She preferred darker places and this forest was to her liking. She could rest here and see if there was some food for her. Perhaps even look for more clues if there was someone of her kind around. She realized she might go in season soon as she felt the need to look for one of her kind, correction a male of her kind.

He had spent the better part of a week following his onslaught of the two wolves, hiding out. Recovering. It was a slow process because the season did not afford him much comfort, and certainly a limited supply of anything medicinal that might aid him; until now, Zugzwang had not needed to pause for long periods or to hunt for things to apply to his many wounds. He only tended to a few of the more dangerous tears in his flesh but the one that really irked him, that he couldn't contort himself in to reaching, was the massive bite to the back of his neck. It continued to leak blood and fluids as he traveled, putting him in a foul mood.

As he came upon a forest, he slipped in among the shadows and basked in their darkness; they hid him well from view, which would give him only a slight advantage since his coat stunk like wolf blood and ruin; but it would be enough. He was striding through a small gap in the trees when he caught the scent of a woman and felt a great sense of relief flood him - as well as an invigorating pulse of heat flushing through his skin. It might've been from an infection settling in to his neck wound, but maybe it was his growing horomones — either way, he began to scour the forest for the woman, intent to find her and show her his many scars.

Forsyth turned away from the light and moved further into the darkness of the forest. The female caught a whiff of some blood. It caught her interest and moved towards it. The female was perfectly fine seeing in the dark. Soon she saw a shape moving. Her eyes scanned ahead as she kept moving forward. The shape seemed a cougar, though the scent was mingled with blood.

Forsyth stopped, her tail flickering behind her. Slowly the female recognized the shape as a male cougar. Slowly glee filled her. She sounded a low growl to indicate her interest. She stepped closer, feeling brave since she was getting close to being in season. She noticed the scars on the male, which meant that he was a skilled fighter it seemed. However, he did seem injured at this moment. Her interest wavered a bit. She didn't want a weak male to breed her.

The female lifted her head, her amber eyes on the male. There was a curious glance from the female. However, it was more skeptical of the male. She was pleased to finally find a cougar. 'You are injured," she stated the obvious.

Sorry for being slow with this!

He did not need to look far. While the beast was scouring the terrain, the female was slinking along behind him in hot pursuit, and it took some time before he noticed her near-silent steps. Once he did, Zugzwang pirouetted in time to catch her crooning through the dark to him — a sound he thought he'd never hear, which brought a weight to his belly and a confidence to his movement. He scrutinized her, but Zugzwang knew how this event would transpire. Women were the ones that made the judgement, women chose, and he would have to sit back and appease her.

And when she spoke, her tone was sharp as her voice brought her first judgement to his ears. A subtle statement, obvious yes, but with many implications. Was he weak for sporting so many scars? Too foolish perhaps, to bed her? Or was he mighty? A warrior, mighty in battle and even mightier in bed? He watched her, and then deferred to her with a subtle shift of his attention away, for only a moment. Still, Zugzwang responded: And yet, those dogs are fewer because of it.

Yes, he was injured, but many of them were dead.

No worries!! <3

The female lifted her head almost regally when she felt his gaze move over her. She had always been more cautious with her body for the sole reason that she wanted to have more cubs. That was often dangerous enough. Forsyth inhaled the male's scent, careful to remember it. So she could return to it when deciding that she was interested in him.

To her the scars did tell her that he was a might warrior but because he was injured at this moment she was more skeptical. Sure, those scars had been wounds before and he survived those as well. Perhaps it was just the leaking blood from the top of his neck that made her skeptical as she had seen that only on prey. "A noble cause, I see," she returned. As she was not very fond of those canines herself.

She stepped closer. She had missed such a musky scent. Should she offer her help to the male? She was not his female. The one that shared his territory with him, the one that would bare his cubs. "How many fewer?," she asked with interest. After all, if she was ever going to bare his cubs she wanted them in the safest environment, so if this male was skillful at fighting wolves then she might be able to look through the bleeding at the moment.

He slipped closer to her as she sized him up, doing the same but wanting to be as close as he could get. The laws that controlled their kind - like the wolf laws that controlled the vermin he had so willingly torn to pieces - commanded them to unite; they would be the progenitors of a new generation of wolf killers. But, those same natural laws told him to be careful. Lions were not meant to live in prides like their African namesake. The men were warriors. They roamed, they slayed their enemies, and if they were lucky they bedded a woman before their time ended. He knew that any union would result in strong children and that was his desire — it was why Zugzwang drifted through these Wilds in the first place — but after their coupling, he would be gone again. It was the way of their world.

Still, he took her scrutiny without issue. Her question brought a slight upturn to the corners of his short muzzle. A dozen, he commented easily. He might've been boasting a little bit but the number wasn't far off the mark. Whether she believed him or not didn't really matter either. He had enough wounds (healed as well as fresh) to align with such a claim. Zugzwang was proud of his work.

Forsyth watched the male with a guarded expression as he moved closer. She was not ready to breed yet, she needed to be careful as this male could injure her as well. She doubted that he would but still, as a female confrontation wasn't her first choice. It was embedded in her nature. Her goal in life was to raise cubs and if she wanted to raise them well, each day she needed to tread with care. She wouldn't want her cubs to be without a mother and die as a result of it.

Of course, she didn't have cubs at this very moment, but it had become a habit of her. "Good," she dipped her head courtly. "Do you have your own territory?," she asked. It was in a male's nature to roam, but some would stick to a vast territory, sometimes combining the smaller ones of several females. Each time, the male could visit another female's territory. At least, that was the case where she came from. Maybe the laws were different here. "Do you know these lands well?," she asked another question. It was clear the female was keen on settling down with cubs.

His smirk grew in to a cheshire grin; he knew he was impressing her, or at the very least thought he was impressive. Her questions continued, and the more the two of them conversed the more this seemed like a business arrangement. That was fine. Cougars did not marry, they did not link themselves to a single woman for life. They had a shared goal and that was good enough.

These wilds belong to me, he boasted with a raise of his head, a puffing of his chest. He slid closer, and tempted fate by letting his bloodied shoulder slide against her own. Marking her with his scent and some blood, whether she wanted him or not. Pushing boundaries. I came upon this place months ago. These wolves have infested the place — but they are easy targets, and I have learned of their claims. I know this place well, now. He had entered the area by accident but had decided to linger with each altercation, and now he was certainly feeling possessive.

But, she was still not receptive; biologically speaking, her time was not upon her yet. Any agreements made here would be put to the test when she was in estrus. Perhaps she would be a more formidable opponent than all the wolves of the wilds, combined. Zugzwang liked the thought of that.

Forsyth was slightly impressed that this whole territory was his. That was quite a feat. Then this male was exceptionally strong. She was not entirely sure if she believed him. That would mean there weren't any other cougars in these lands? She didn't want to believe that. Still, she did like the idea of the male having such a big territory and he was able to maintain it even with his injuries.

She had been mulling things over when the male was suddenly closer than she expected. She snarled and raised a clawed paw towards him. However, it was too late her fur was bloodied by his shoulder like a claim he wanted to put on her. She moved her head to lick her shoulder clean, her eyes on the male now. She was testing his claim, after all, she was licking away his mark. However, she was interested to know where she would be able to settle without having to deal with so many wolves. She smirked at the male as she licked herself. "So what would be the best place to settle if I don't want to deal with wolves?"

HI SORRY I AM terrible

He grinned as she moved the topic further; hearing her speak of staying was good, it meant he had a chance to bed her. He must have impressed her.

The coast is full of them, and most forests. If you stay with me - his brows raise as he mentions this part, - then there is no reason to be wary of them. The could claim one of the territories that houses a small pack, and mark it with their blood. Take it over as their own. It was an idea.

No you are not <3 Don't worry about it!

Forsyth's face instantly fell into a disapproving look. If she wanted to raise cubs she wished to have them in a safe environment. The female slowly raised one brow when the male suggested she would stay with him. It was an option but she was not sure if she wanted to commit herself to the first male she would see. She slowly curled her maw into a smirk. He only wanted to be social now, she was certain of it. "Live in your territory? I don't know if you convinced me yet," she murmured.

However, if she was going to carry his litter then she would want the protection of a male. Especially from other males. Raising cubs was tough, and she didn't want to do it all for nothing. Especially if another male would want to take those cubs and make her fertile again. "Do you have other females?," she asked boldly.

She is resistant and he clearly dislikes the attitude; ears slanting back across his round head and body shifting, tensing. But she asks another important question and it is enough to quell whatever irritation he is feeling - but only for a moment. No. The wolves are everywhere, and I have assumed they removed your competition. That did not bode well for them as a pair, considering offspring would only make things more difficult and if there were too many wolves, that would make their children targets. But there was never really a good time to have kids — they'd just have to deal with it, should it happen. You would have my undivided attention, he added with a smirk.

Forsyth was shocked to hear that there were none of their kind here. The female instantly felt uncomfortable with these lands. Maybe these lands weren't good to raise kits. Then again, this male had survived. He was strong and clearly capable of defending himself. That definitely charmed the female. She couldn't help but let out a soft purr at the thought that she would had him all to herself. She wouldn't mind if he had multiple females as was custom for males to have more females but the idea that she was the only one that could provide him with offspring excited her.

"But you don't have your own territory? One where a pregnant female could settle?," she wondered curiously. Her voice dipping a bit. Her tail swaying behind her. It did sound compelling to have the male's protection. He was convincing her more and more.

Her comments made him sneer.
It is not my job to find you a home, woman.

No, just fight the rival predators and bed the women when given the chance. But, he wouldn't win any points with her if he refused to assist her - even if it was a woman's job, they were a limited species in this place and the wolves would easily remove her from any place they found her.

But I will.. Assist you. If I must. There, he gave his word. If she needed a guardian during her hunt, he would serve her in that role.

The female slowly raised her head when the male sneered at her. Her tail flickered behind her in discontent. "I did not ask you to do so," she returned with a hiss. "I was just curious about your life in this place," she returned to the male. He was interesting but she didn't appreciate his temper. Still, she knew when her heat would come around she would want him.

"No. I will pick my own territory. I was just curious if you had a spot you preferred to be in these lands," she returned, more stiffly. Perhaps she should find her own territory. She was pretty sure the male would come running if she was in heat. Maybe even more males would come to her needy call.

He should've known better than let his temper take over, but he couldn't help it. The nature of their kind made coupling difficult to begin with, and being used as some kind of guardian did not make sense to the male. He huffed softly as she recanted her request, and after a moment he answered, The wolves here are stupid things. You are more than a match for them, and so you should be fine wherever you choose to settle. He would keep an eye on her regardless; whever her path led, he would be hot on her heels.

Forsyth raised her head proudly. The female, however, was not much of a fighter. She would if needed, ferociously but she rather keep her body free of wounds because she knew that scars came from wounds. If she was wounded she couldn't care for herself and be in perfect shape for cub bearing. The female's eyes traveled over the other, he had survived all those wounds. She had to keep it together now.

"Well then," she stated. "You will clearly know when I will in heat so I assume I will see you then," she stated. It was not much assurance of a coupling maybe her heat would decide that she didn't like the male. Clearly she was going to invite every male to see which would come out on top. She would make it very clear when she would want to be bred. Maybe more men would show up and she could have multiple males. Or even better, one win a fight for her.