Mount Apikuni Ain't nothing in this world for free

The deciduous trees were still awaiting their leaves to return for the Spring; they stood like soldiers, ready and willing to sprout colour and life when the weather warmed up. Larch waited among them, her honey brown coat mingling with the sturdy branches. The warrior's ears turned this way and that, ensnaring the tiniest of sounds, right down to the movements of mice in the undergrowth. The tiny critters had no reason to worry for now, though – Larch was after bigger game.

The one good thing about Winter was that it drew the mule deer down from the snowy mountains onto lower, more fruitful ground. Even better, they liked to snack on the twigs of the very trees and bushes that the golden-brown female waited amongst. Larch's gaze was trained on a gathering of berry bushes one hundred feet away. These were the plants with the greatest yield currently in the immediate area.

Larch's eyes shifted from the colourfully dotted bushes when, somewhere behind her, well hidden in the trees, a twig snapped. The swift female regained a four-legged stance within a second or two and pivoted to head slowly, carefully in the direction of the sound. She was still becoming accustomed to the new scents and sounds of the mountains, but the wolf was bred to hunt, and prey was as recognisable to her as the back of her own paw.

Larch was a seasoned huntress and her movements were well practised: a low crouch and a creep forward here; switching around a tree there, creeping ever closer to the foraging deer. Her muscles were tensed like springs, ready to enable her to shoot off in chase when the deer noticed her – for it was a matter of when, not if. Rarely did a hunt go down without a chase.

One large ear twitched atop the herbivore's head, and Larch pushed off the ground, flying headlong towards the deer with the fire of the hunt in her eyes.

Howdy! This takes place before Fox attacks and gets beat up by the cougar, so she's actually at pretty full health. :B

Fox was lingering at the base of Mount Apikuni, wondering what living on a mountain would be like. "Probably terrible," she thought to herself. She could not imagine having to constantly go up and down the slopes, let alone try and walk on a steep surface all day long. No, she preferred the flat lands of the creek. They were her home, after all, and she realized in that moment that the creek was really beginning to feel like a place she actually belonged. Sure, she had been the big bad Alpha for a little while now, but even then she had felt out of her element to some degree. Now, though, she felt she had a good handle on things. Her followers believed in her to some extent, and she believed that she was actually doing them good.

The crashing of hooves and paws caused Fox's attention to snap toward the sound, although she did not move from her place. Her feet were firmly planted on the ground while her eyes and ears scanned for the source of the disturbance. It wasn't long before she spotted the cat and mouse (or rather, wolf and deer) game. Fox scoffed. It was foolish to go after such a large creature alone, and since the wolf who was chasing was not one of her own, Fox had no intention of helping the fool.

Instead, in her typical Fox manner, she called out. "You're never gonna catch that thing!"

But it seemed the failed hunter did not heed her words, for he continued to chase after the beast and remove himself from her sight. With a shake of her head, Fox continued on her way.