Herbalists' Cache cen

Something was about to break; the pack stood precariously close to a breaking point, and he felt the glimmer of hope that he’d had for a successful, peaceful departure slowly become snuffed. 

He tried to remain calm while he hovered near Sun Eater, his request lost as words began to fly. His head jerked up suddenly at the mention of the word Sheep. His ears perked for only a second, triggered by the mention of his favourite word before he sank back into reality. A reality where the next word uttered was Kill! and it came from the Chieftan. 

He braced himself- eyes darting to the den of the mouth where the pale Ishmira had attempted to make off with a child- only to be pursued by Sun Eater. And there, he made eye contact with Morwenna, who pulled the trigger on their escape plan.

Words he had secretly uttered to both @Kekoa and Morwenna would now be put into action- had they been able to depart peacefully, it might have gone much more smoothly when they would have had only Sivaak and her escorts to contend with- but that option was dismissed the moment Morwenna and all those who helped her were labelled as traitors. 

Darkness moved to shroud the den, and the threat Ksura dreaded the most stepped into his path and challenged him. 

He levelled his gaze, knowing the only way to grab C’ede’ would be to get through, or past the man. And while he summoned the courage to fight, he bellowed out the word, angrily.
RACCOON! 
This wasn’t a wolf. It was a raccoon, a tangly creature. It was a stick. It was a sheep. It was a caribou- it was something manageable. He took the man’s challenge, and broke through the distance between them, pushing off with legs that could launch the wolfdog metres in the air if they had to. His alligator-jaws snapped with percussive chops  that he aimed to muffle by burying them in the man’s shoulder. 

As for “raccoon”
It wasn’t just for visualization.
It was a cue.