Bramblepoint I think you pissed off my sandwich.

She watched, a little fascinated, as he made another few attempts to throttle the weaker of the two bucks. He was unsuccessful, though Towhee could tell that his efforts were further tiring the already exhausted beast. Would he eventually collapse and permit the wolf to swoop in and finish him? What would happen to his trapped foe then? Curious about how this was all going to unfold, she didn't quite realize that he was doing a demonstration that she was meant to mimic.

Her breath caught in her throat and she held it there when he became tangled in the stag's legs. Luckily, he managed to extract himself with minimal damage. Towhee gave him a once-over, then turned her speculative gaze upon their weakening prey again. His narrow escape had given her an idea. He was focused on the jugular, which would of course be a fatal blow. But she now had another target in mind.

While he readied himself for another strike, Towhee acted in the hopes of easing his way by distracting the downed deer. She moved forward, snapping her teeth at one of the smaller buck's flailing hind legs. She took a glancing blow to the cheek but quickly managed to seize the hoof in her jaws. She immediately applied crushing pressure, which caused the buck to begin writhing and bleating (not that she could hear). Towhee refused to let go, at least until his other hind limb—the one closer to the ground—clipped her in the fetlock, knocking it out from beneath her and causing her to face plant right into the ungulate's heaving rump.