Cassiopeia's View Use the rocks to show where the frame will go.

They ought to head back to Epoch soon, though Towhee just wasn’t ready to return. It’s only been, like, three days, she reminded herself as she walked along the edge of Bramblepoint. She was hunting with @Jack Snipe, purportedly. She was too distracted and her son had disappeared off into the trees fifteen minutes ago. He hadn’t turned back up yet.

But even a rusty old hunter like Towhee couldn’t ignore the pungent musk of deer. She halted to look at the ground, where she saw imprints pressed into the soft earth. She bent to sniff at them, reading the story of the herd like leafing through the pages of a book. There was a stag, three does and a couple of fawns.

Jack? Towhee hisspered, raising her head and swiveling it like an owl to see if her son might appear out of the woodwork.

He did not, which left Towhee to idly track the scents by herself, well aware she could never attempt anything. Their trail led her due westbound toward the mountains. When it hit the foothills, it turned south. She continued following it and soon came across a spring tumbling down the slope to her right. Towhee looked up at it, then turned to squint to her left.

Ha, I was right…!

Feeling rather pleased with herself, Towhee waded across a shallow part of the stream, fully expecting to hit a dead end. But the deer’s scents were just as strong on the far side, so she kept tracking them, up into the mountains.

Down the mountain he went. The strong allure of deer musk bringing him down from his home. He knew he'd probably not be able to hunt one on his own, but he could at least track.

He had yet to see the other wolf tracking. Green eyes sesrching towards the deer.

small phone post

It had rained overnight, making the rocky ground a little slick for Towhee’s tastes. But she was quite accustomed to navigating mountainous terrain, so she didn’t let it discourage her. She kept trekking ever upward, marveling at the views every so often.

Warmth suddenly fell across her back like a blanket. Towhee stopped and looked at the sky, where the sun had peeked out from behind the thick clouds. She closed her eyes, enjoying the heat on her face for a moment. This place definitely wasn’t as shadowy as Nocturne Summit next door.

Somewhere along the way, she kind of lost interest in the deer, though she still loosely followed their scent as it wound along a game trail. She missed the sun when the path led her into the adjacent mountains’ shadows, though at least the ground began to even out a bit. Breathing hard in the thinner air, Towhee came to a stop in a copse of evergreens.

There they were, grazing on the carpet of pine needles. Towhee quickly sidled behind an outcropping before the deer could notice her. She peeked from behind it, watching them snacking away on those sharp little leaves. She pulled a face, wondering how awful they must taste. Didn’t they get caught in their throats?

It was almost a slip and slide going down the mountain, and he couldn't quite stop thr small bark of hearty laughter as he slid downward. Death who cared if it was imminent, he was having a blast.

The sun was warm on his black fur and it sparked against the green of his eyes. Which he had to close at the onslaught for a minute. Finally, he stopped and ahook his fur a jolly smile on his maw.

He continued on his way to the deer. Watching, searching. They chewed at the pine needles and he wondered if they tastwd good? Were they chewy? Didn't they get stuck in their teeth.

She hunkered down and watched the herd for a while. Towhee really wished she’d waited for Jack to come along with her, even though it was probably still a bad idea for the two of them to try anything. But the fawns might be easy prey, right? Her orange eyes kept fixing on them, though they never strayed far from their mothers, who in turn stuck close to the buck.

The deer spooked, suddenly and all at once. Towhee shrank behind the outcropping even while casting her eyes around the nearby mountainside. They must’ve heard something. Before she could figure out what, one of the scattering does sailed straight over her.

Towhee crouched instinctively, muffling a yell. The deer landed gracefully on her far side and bounded up the nearby slope. She sat up to goggle after her when something clobbered her upside the head.

This time, she let out a loud shout of pain as she was knocked sideways. Her eyes squeezed shut and she curled to protect herself against an onslaught. It felt like someone was rapidly beating her with sticks and stones.

She cracked open one orange eye to figure out what the hell was going on right around the time a second doe—who’d evidently slammed right into her—found her footing. Towhee could only gape as the frantic deer tried to spring after her cohort up the nearby incline.

Something went wrong. Maybe she’d hurt a leg in the collision. Or perhaps the combination of pine needles and recent rainfall made her hoof slip. Towhee had no idea, she just knew that the doe slid and began tumbling backward, careening right toward her for a second impact.

Alaric saw them moving and for a brief moment, whooped as he realized he'd done it. It hadn't been unpurpose of course, but it had happened all the same. He chased them down the mountain until his chest tightened when he saw a wolf there, with a giant doe ass heading straight for their head.

Putting speed in his movement he hadn't before. He was anxious to get to them. Use his own body for the seat if he could be so bold, because that doe's ass was big. Weeks of eating some prime grasses and maybe a little bit of some baby weight in there. 

Alaric wasn't sure if he'd make it in time, but he'd sure try.

Towhee tried to leap clear, though she didn’t move quite fast enough. The tumbling doe clipped her hindquarters, knocking her off balance. As the deer’s weight pressed down on her posterior, Towhee instinctively curled her body and lunged at whatever part of the unfortunate ungulate she could reach. Her teeth sank into flesh while she simultaneously tried to tug herself free.

Towhee didn’t even see the other wolf, a little too preoccupied trying to wrench herself out from beneath the doe. Her weight wasn’t quite crushing, luckily, but the Redhawk couldn’t stand being trapped. She kept biting and snapping until the doe finally writhed off her.

She quickly leaped to her feet and stood panting as she watched the doe struggling on the ground. If her leg hasn’t been broken before, it certainly was now. She bled from multiple bite wounds as well, thanks to Towhee.

Just as she was considering springing for the doe’s throat, Towhee abruptly noticed the other wolf and nearly shat herself thinking it was Maxim.

Alaric snapped at the doe himself and then backed off. He didn't want the wolf, that he now noticed was female to think he was trying to go for her. He laid his ears to his head and looked at her. 

Shit are you okay? That was all my fault? I spooked them and didn't realize you were here. I'm a healer for Moonspear. Do you need some help? Or I mean I can call someone else if you'd prefer.

She was probably gonna be pretty pissed when she realized what he said. He honestly hadn't done it on purpose, but wolves took things different sometimes and she was probably scared and irritated.

Of course it wasn’t Maxim. He was too large, his eyes entirely the wrong color. He was saying something but Towhee was too busy grappling with her emotions to read his lips. And then the flailing doe recaptured her attention.

Feeling sick with anger just like she had with Aquene, Towhee threw all caution to the wind and lunged for the ungulate’s throat. She took more than one brutal kick to the ribs but she did manage to throttle the damn thing.

Mouth full of blood and chest heaving, the Redhawk backed off the kill. She wasn’t even hungry. Her orange eyes shot to the stranger, wondering what he’d tried to say to her before.

Suddenly, she moved over the carcass again, putting a possessive paw on the doe’s flank. Towhee’s eyes never left the other wolf. She thought he smelled a bit like her daughters’ village, though she couldn’t be sure.

Are you from Moonspear?

Alaric stared with surprise, but let her have the kill. In that moment she reminded him a little of himself, but normally when he did stuff that was dangerous he wasn't doing it for an emotion he was just doing it cause, well he did.

He held up a paw and backed up even further. HE was just about to turn away and go on his merry way, not fully realizing she was unable to hear anything he said, before her question met him.

He nodded. Alaric.

Towhee, she offered in reply to his own name, Redhawk. You might know my daughters, Fennec and Meerkat, or their kids.

She winced between words, the rush of angry adrenaline draining out of her and apparently taking the rest of her energy with it too. Towhee sagged a little as all the cuts and bruises flared into her consciousness. It wasn’t that bad right now, though she had a feeling she was going to be in a world of hurt tomorrow…

I have a family to feed, she said, but I don’t care if you take some of this back with you, if you want.

A brief nod. I've met Fennec once. And Meerkat a couple times, her little ones are adorable.

He looked her over with worry on his face and shifted, shrugging the wrap from around his throat and pushing it open with a paw, the herbs showing up stark.

I don't need any meat, but will you at least let me heal you. I'm a healer. I don't have much, but i'm sure i have some cobwebs and some aloe and maybe some raspberry leaves to help the bruises. Though. If you have nursing littles I can't give you the leaves.

She didn’t notice the pouch until he removed it. Towhee stared as he unwrapped it to reveal an assortment of herbs. Well, that was handy. Alaric said something as he looked down at the greens, so she didn’t catch some of it, though fortunately he looked up at her partway through and she managed to get the gist of it.

I don’t think I’m that busted up, am I? Towhee queried, turning her head this way, then that way, to ascertain her injuries. I mean, she knocked me around quite a bit but I think it’s probably mostly internal, she acknowledged with a grimace.

There were a couple of shallow scrapes on her right shoulder and flank where the doe’s hoof had broken the skin. Towhee maneuvered to present that side to Alaric, wincing at the tenderness there. She was definitely going to be feeling it in the next 24-48 hours.

You can clean these up, if you want, but can you make it quick? I need to take… Towhee trailed off as she eyed the dead deer. Actually, I guess it’d make more sense to bring them here rather than drag her fat ass across the wilderness, she mused aloud, mostly to herself. But just a quick patch job’s still good. I have a long walk ahead of me, I need to hit the road.

He shook his head. Not too bad. It was only then he noticed her watching his face intently and he realized quick enough with healer's mind that she was probably at least partially deaf. She was aware so it was not this incident that had caused it, so that was good.

I'll help you carry it. That ass is huge. Like mm she likes food that's for sure.

Then he set to cleaning and restoring at least some relief to the scrapes and cuts. A gentle countenance came across his jaw as he worked, softening at the edges. Gentle brushes so he didn't hurt, a brush of the aloe for relief, then cobwebs for the wounds so they didn't bleed all over the place that'd be unfortunate.

He backed up so she could see him. That can stay on for a few days. Then gently remove it, water will work to keep from ripping the skin anew.

No, she said decisively when he offered to help her carry it. Thanks, but I’d rather bring them here.

While he worked on her, Towhee looked around, assessing her surroundings. It was quite the climb to get up here and she didn’t necessarily prefer mountainous terrain over woods. But as far as a makeshift rendezvous site for her young pups, the altitude felt safer.

When he finished, Towhee looked down and frowned at the things sticking to her. They didn’t feel very nice. She looked up to catch Alaric’s remarks, nodding in resignation. She should be thankful, she knew, though mostly she just wanted to go get her kids.

Thanks, Alaric, I owe you one. Are you sure you don’t want any of this meat? Towhee asked, waving a paw at the carcass. I’m going to go get my family now, she said in the very next breath, trying to be patient in case he had any final comments.

He shook his head and motioned for her to go. I'll guard it for you til you get back

Then he settle a few feet away with his tail around his paws and rolled his pouch back together.