Heron Lake Plateau theodore rex

bumping to present <3

Amber gaze watched the rabbit corpse with mild caution, tentatively wandering closer to sniff at it - what on earth happened to it? The youth's ears pricked at Phox's deciphering of the odd occurance, but his heart felt like it might stop completely at the last statement; tail stiffening and eyes widening with both wonder and fear. "How old are wolves when they die?" In reality, Cinder had never thought too much of death. It seemed a fantasy concept, so far out of his reach... it was something he didn't intend to grip, either. But could it really happen so easy, and was it inevitable?

As he was pondering in silence, his lips parted, only to taste a new scent tainting the air, a strange, unfamilar one. His brows quirked up in excitement, gaze wandering the horizon while his paws itched beneath him - was there someone here he hadn't met yet? Or maybe there was an intruder, a big bad man that Cinder could totally chase off! If he did that, he'd prove to everyone that he was just as cool as his siblings. They didn't have the comforting scent of the plateau wolves. He snuck a glance toward his new friend before idly sneaking off to the side, engulfing himself in the undergrowth that remained. 

Spindly legs caught his attention as he dove closer, tongue poking out from his muzzle in concentration as he scoped out the scene - he crept closer, creating images of him catapulting into an enemy and forcing them to the ground, only to return with baskets full of praise from his family. That was all he wanted, really. They'd be proud of him if he defended them, wouldn't they?

Suddenly a hot breath fanned in front of his face, brushing his whiskers slick against his cheeks. Cinder's gaze trembled upward, only to meet gleaming predatory eyes, flickering a vivid yellow that froze him in place like the deceased rabbit's body, paralysed by fear. There were a few heartbeats of silence, and then the trance snapped just as the jaws did - the blackthorn tumbled backwards, feeling pointed teeth scrape at his back, and a tremendous scream fled his mouth, shoving himself up to his paws and sprinting back in the direction of the darker wolf, away from the malicious intruder.

"PHOX!"