Bitterroot Valley one night only

Before she could even reach him, two things happened: the youth stumbled and lost his footing, hitting the ground while something simultaneously struck Wildfire so hard that it caused her to spin off course, lose her own footing and fly forward so that her chin hit the dirt. She sprawled there, dazed, even as voices continued to shout at her. With a grunt, the yearling pushed herself upright, moving her jaw to check that it wasn't broken, then glancing down at the scab on her thigh which had torn open on impact.

She glanced upward, disbelieving gaze falling on Portia. Wildfire glanced sideways quickly to make sure the young boy was still on the ground, then launched onto her feet and snapped her jaws in the Skayona's direction. Her tail arched up over her hips and her ears thrust forward, a flagrant display of dominance. She did not make contact and didn't even wait for a reaction from Portia, instead turning sideways to leer over Freyja and the boy, who turned out to be the Fleima's friend, Seff.

For a long moment, Wildfire stood there, feet planted, red fur prickling, breathing heavily. Then, slowly, she began to calm down, her severely arched tail making a downward swing and her ears pricking atop her head. Her wrinkled lips fell back over her fangs, sheathing them as she squinted from the two youths to Portia. Wildfire connected the dots in her head: the Skayona had only been trying to stop her from attacking Seff and hadn't intended to assault the Bandrona herself.

But even if she hadn't intended any harm, Wildfire was bleeding heavily from her thigh. With a muted whine, she backpedaled several yards and sat to begin cleaning her own wound. Portia could help Freyja and her friend while the yearling took a moment to collect herself and stem the bleeding.