Big Salmon Lake and if onlys, alongside could've beens

Skittering precariously over gravel, a flash of shimmering white was all to be seen of the girl as she lurched to a halt, sides heaving as she tucked herself from view beneath the shelter of a rotting log. 

Her prize still hung in her jaws, an autumn-fattened squirrel, its body disfigured by the trap-jaw clench of her maw as she'd made her dash for freedom. It was unlikely that her catch would be going anywhere anytime soon; yet, Dwyn's canines ground together around the small body - as if reassured by the vise-like state of her jaws sealed around it.

Small tufts of ivory, not unlike the feather-soft wings of a moth, fluttered atop her head, soft and coated in downy wisps like that of a dog. Hyper vigilant, they swiveled in all directions much as her sugared optics did - bright, alert with a gleam of unchecked anxiety shining within them as they wheeled from tree to tree searchingly. 

For several long moments, the Druid crouched low, hidden, with the game tucked possessively against her starshine-streaked chest. When at last the panic within began to abate, and the soft chirping of woodland creatures assured her none had pursued, the wolfdog dared to slip from her secretive nook beneath the fallen Ancient - her rosebud nose brushing against its mossy grain tenderly as she passed. 

The Dragonborn had not the courage to hang about, the coyote band hadn't followed - or so it seemed - but perhaps they were on her trail at this very moment, tracking down the thieving wolf who'd snatched a morsel from their traps. 

Shame curdled in her guts, recalling Emira and the horrid tales she'd been regaled with as she recovered - of the plights of coyotes and the halfbreed children they sometimes sired with her dam's kind. The Druid could envision the embittered, disappointed look that would etch onto her idol's stony features but guilt would not help to fill her belly. 

On the banks of a frigid lake, its edges ringed by a crust of ice, the wanderess halted abruptly and dropped the game upon the cold earth unceremoniously. Without bothering to sit or stretch out comfortably, she bent and tore into her meal whilst trying not to think about Emira. 

Harder to sneak up behind someone, harder to get the drop on them if they never allowed themselves to lower their guard - even for a moment to eat.