King Elk Forest ≼ völuspá

she froze at the sound, a thin soot-dark thing caught in the sweep of his single, burning eye. heat flickered beneath her skin—instinct, warning, memory of larger shapes closing in. her lips peeled back in a brief, brittle flash of teeth.

then her body folded low, rolling to her belly in the moss with a soft thud, ribs tight against the earth. paws tucked close. chin down. one golden eye lifted to him, not in challenge but in wary recognition.

a small tremor ran along her flank—not fear alone, but the echo of fire telling her when to yield. still, her tail tip twitched once, cautious acknowledgment of the chuff he’d offered.