Big Salmon Lake And through the night, so it seems I'm not breathing

He waited quietly while his hunting partner snuck around to the place she'd indicated, though he couldn't really keep track of her. She moved as silently as a shadow, and kept herself low enough that he wasn't even sure if the wisp of darkness he saw beyond the reeds was a tuft of her fur, or simply the bend and flow of the tall grasses. He allowed her time, staying at the ready in his position, and allowed his gaze to meander back to the birds. 

He'd never hunted geese before. He'd seen them, of course, but generally hadn't considered them as a regular source of food, given the fact they were largely migratory and he'd grown up in a forest, which wasn't their natural habitat. They looked bigger than he'd expected- having seen them fly overhead in a V, they'd seemed so small, but now they actually looked like they'd make a decent meal. They had longer legs than a partridge or pheasant, but larger, rounder bodies, so he couldn't imagine they'd be able to leap into the air and take off very quickly. This should be a piece of cake, he thought. 

He noticed the crow land amongst them, and found himself wondering if a brawl might break out between the two very different types of birds. Had the crow spotted the wolves lying in wait? He knew they were carrion-eaters, and that they could hover around where they thought a kill might take place...But did the geese know that? Would they know to see the crow as a bad omen? They moved and honked, but as far as he could tell, they hadn't taken much offense at its presence. At least, not yet. 

In watching the crow, though, he became distracted and lost sight of the injured goose. They all looked so alike, so he found himself scanning over them all, but wasn't able to pick out the one that Zsuzsa had pointed out earlier. He swallowed hard; if she charged now, he might not be able to single it out in time. It seemed to be taking her longer to get settled and ready, though, and he found himself looking past the flock of geese for any sign of his hunting partner. Where had she gone, and why had she not tried to flush the geese yet? All he could do was wait, and calm himself. If he moved too early, he might blow their cover and spoil the hunt completely.