Dawnlark Plains tender like a dove

silatuyok moved like a shadow unhooked from the body that cast it—fluid and low to the earth, her limbs stretching long and quiet over the snow-packed plain.
the hare did not know she was there.
[indent[the wind was in her favor. breath shallow, belly brushing ice. her ears barely twitched, her golden eyes fixed ahead. behind her, the boy shifted—but she did not falter. he was not her concern. not now.
one beat. two.
then she struck.
a single lunge, full-bodied and lightning-quick. her jaws snapped tight around the base of the hare’s neck. no sound. no flailing. just silence, then stillness. snow displaced beneath her paws, then settled again.
she lifted her head slowly, fur dusted white at the muzzle, and turned to him.
no gloating. no smile.
just a steady stare, ears forward, breath smooth. an offering in her eyes, not her teeth.
come. eat.