Fox's Glade [m] Two Birds, no Stone

It had been months since Grackle had savored a proper meal, months since she’d experienced the luxury of a full night’s sleep. Her body was running on empty; their last clash had drained her reserves, leaving her desperately trying to pour water from a pail that she refused to admit was bone-dry. Her once-powerful frame now felt like a ghost of its former self, tearing apart at the seams.

As they fought, Bonnie's relentless assault shredded her, ripping great clumps of fur from her back. Each savage yank sent fire coursing through her veins; scabbed wounds reopening with a sickening pop. She couldn’t stifle the cry of agony that escaped her throat. She circled him, breath misting in the frigid night air, desperate to buy time, to scrape together whatever strength she had left.

Bonnie's head crashed into her chin, and she bit down hard on her tongue. Blood filled her mouth, pain shooting through her like lightning, dazing her. Speech was impossible now—pink-tinged saliva foamed at the corners of her mouth, splattering across Bonnie as she clung to any semblance of control.

Grackle was slammed to the ground with vicious force. Her head felt like it was splitting open, history repeating itself as she found herself prone beneath snapping teeth once more. She tried to speak, but only rough, choking coughs emerged. Floundering on the edge of her endurance, she grasped and pummeled with her hind legs, her vision swimming and darkening at the edges, then growing darker still. The world around her began to fade, her limbs turning to ice, her strength draining away like water through a sieve. Grackle's blows grew weaker, her legs a twitching heap beneath the man. Her once fierce green eyes dulled until she could no longer see.

In her final moments of consciousness, she felt a strange sense of calm, a fleeting clarity amidst the chaos. She had fought with everything she had, against the odds, against the pain. And as darkness enveloped her, she could only hope that Bonnie would realize that this time, she had not stopped of her own accord.