Blacktail Deer Plateau somewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond

The two predators seemed to understand that there would be no talking on the approach. This process always required care in step and manner, though in this instance they were lucky to be downwind. The herd was moving as it grazed, but Umi was quick to proceed with near silent paws. The wolf was almost equally nimble, though the cat could feel the movement of the ground as Eleuthera crept behind her. Canines were an interesting sort; they did not move the same way.

Despite this difference, the pair eventually closed much of the large distance from the herd. At that point, the cat also scouted their potential targets and counted all five just the same. Their pace slowed to a halt, hidden with quite an amount of foliage between them and their quarry.

Eleuthera whispered to her the strategy, and Umi looked toward the general location where she had gestured, careful to keep her head movements from knocking any nearby leaves or branches. In the distance, she could see trees to the side and behind the herd. Moving around to this spot would be difficult for her, but surely a manageable task. Umi nodded slowly, creeping off to the left to make a partial circle around the herd.

The problem, which Umi failed to realize, was that the wolf would have no way of knowing how quickly Umi moved and would be unlikely to spot her in the position they had picked. Within minutes, the cat had melted into the undergrowth soundlessly. She crept slowly, but confidently, behind a tree. Had the herd been farther, she would have crawled up it, but there was no time for that.

As she neared the chosen position, a finch in a tree behind her chirped. She stopped.
One of the does looked toward the sound, its large ears turning right at her. Umi didn't breathe. The edge of her tail wiggled, thankfully beyond the direct sightline of the ungulate. After nearly a minute, the doe resumed browsing, and Umi exhaled slowly.

She moved forward, even slower, stopping just before the position they had marked. One of the younger animals had moved during her stealthy positioning, and would have spotted her if she dared to take the spot exactly. The urge to strike was terrible, but thankfully, the animals were too far for her to chase from her spot, so she waited, like a wolf would.