Barrow Fields Barracuda

Don' lee me plee

A third party journeyed forth silently— a male cougar, only recently deported from under the protective care of his single mother— and he was looking to stake a claim to himself. But this area was accosted by wolves, predators he had little to know experience with, but was keen enough on their size to never approach more than one. As the larger wolf departed, he set his curious sights on the remaining canine. A sleek, sable creature, curious about the other's tracks. She was roughly his height, though he was nearly a foot longer, and his tail lashed thoughtfully, as he thought he might test the mettle of these animals.

Warbone would have gone on his way, but his glance backwards (unusual for him) was fortuitous for he had glimpsed something amiss among the scenery. He did a double-take, bristling once he realized that his own kind was being stalked. The tawny swathe came together in pieces, but he recognized the telltale features of a mountain lion even at his distance. All three creatures were about equidistant from the other, a large triangle whose yards on one end were being closed slowly by the cougar.

The wolf, in the combative mood he was in, rounded with a snarl that ripped through the air, and he charged at the adolescent cat. His violent noise was met in kind by a cacophonous hiss, as the feline realized he would not be left to ambush the she-wolf alone. The puma faced his new opponent, and besides taking a step or two backwards, he held his ground— drawing himself up as tall as he could, arching his back and baring thick, fresh fangs in his direction. But Warbone was not afraid (careful, but fearless) and he stamped closer, keeping wisely out of the cat's long reach. He brought his chest up and tucked his chin, snarled again as he prepared to rush in order to drive the cat back.

The tawny lion held his ground presently, but he was fiercely aware of his disadvantage, and the youth was surprised at the expressed ferocity— a fierceness he had only seen in his mother once before in defense of her young.