Firefly Glen Joey, baby, don't get crazy

wc:450 + 278 = 728

While Osiris made the climb up the soft, rolling incline, Bronco took a few moments to cast his glance over the surrounding area. The hillside in this area, at least, was pock-marked with gopher holes which could be dangerous for a wolf (or any large animal, for that matter) if they ran through the area without watching their footing. Further away from him, the little animals still poked their little noses out to check and see if the area was clear, only to find themselves falling under his hungry gaze. He growled whenever one looked out to see if he was still there, sending them scuttling back into their holes with a high pitched squeak. There was no way he and Osiris could fill in all the holes- but if they filled in enough, he figured they might be able to catch one or two of them as they tried to dig their way out.

He barked in response to Osiris' question, nodding. He went back to his own digging, filling in the holes that were within range of him, and he took a moment once or twice to see if he could shove his leg down inside some of the larger holes- and he could, all the way up to his shoulder. That was concerning- he made a mental note to warn his packmates of the area, so they would know to be careful of their footing if they found themselves chasing a jackrabbit up the slopes.

But it was only when he began to use some of the earth that Osiris sent flying down the hillside, filling in other holes with it, that he had an epiphany. He would wait, though, as now was not the time to implement the plan he began to form. But in having investigated the depth and size of the holes he'd begun to fill in, he'd realized that it could potentially bode well for them to use the holes to their advantage, rather than seeing them as a nuisance. He decided to hang onto the idea until he and Osiris had covered a decent enough patch of land before he brought it up. Once he'd shuffled sideways, progressively filling in hole after hole, he called out to Osiris with another bark, summoning him to come and wait with him.

For this particular hunt, they'd simply need patience and quiet, to wait like a lion lying in the grasslands, for the gophers to start digging their way out. He panted softly as he circled and found a place to lay down, and began to scan this way and that, watching for the first signs their prey had begun to emerge from the ground.

Together in silence they lay in wait, scanning the area for any signs that the critters might emerge from their dens. They weren't completely entombed, after all- as their tunnel system was large enough that they could easily find a way to get out through another area...But they'd dug this many tunnel entrances so that they could use this side of the hillside as well, and he had a feeling that eventually, they would get antsy and start digging their way out.

He'd begun to drift off a bit when he heard the first bit of scrabbling nails against earth, and looked up to see a few grains of dirt start sliding down the hillside from one of the tunnel's entrances. Then another, and soon, the prairie dogs had begun to clear the dirt out of the holes in one big excavation attempt. He gave a look to Osiris- and crept forward toward the nearest tunnel he could find, and lay in wait until the creature shoved the last bit of dirt out, but found itself facing a darkness it could not tunnel through.

It'd been a time-consuming task, but in the end, it'd proved that it had worked, and it hadn't taken a great deal of energy. They'd spend some time catching what they could before the prairie dogs realized what was happening, and eventually gave up on restoring the tunnels in that area. Quite pleased with their catch from the day, Bronco set off, carrying a couple prairie dogs dangling from his mouth, having discovered a new hunting technique that would be an easy one to teach pups- if there were to be pups come spring.