Lake Rodney With every small disaster

I have no impulse control and have wanted these two for a whileee

When Fennec left Niamh, rather than going straight back, she made the trek out of the territory and towards the lake.  There were few herbs left in the winter cold, but those few would likely be found there.  Willow.. maybe some frozen plants beneath the water.  She found the bark relatively quickly, but pawing at the edge of the lake had turned up nothing so far.

She picked up her stack and wandered on, feeling the snow turn to ice as she stepped (by accident) from shore to glassy lake surface.  It was frozen solid.  Her paws tingled from the numb and she stepped back, then dropped her bundle.  She should get back and check on Alyx and Bronco.  Their wounds likely needed some attention again.  She'd kill for some marigold, though.  What else helped infection?

She paused, considering it a moment.  Was there anything resilient, like the bark, she could use?

They were here now.

There was no mistaking that scent.  Kiwi had lurked today near the caldera's edge and caught traces of that blonde wolf, the one whose mate she'd taken care of.  And her aunt and uncle... both traitors.  Hatred and caution mingled, but she knew better than to go in now.  They'd tear her apart if they found her.

Then she'd spotted the lone figure leaving.

Tracking her, she noted the odd way she moved and cast about with interest.  Slowly interest turned to full blown disbelief.  You had to be shitting her.  How the fuck did they let this girl stay with them?  Was she seriously blind?

Kiwi pulled her attention from the girl's dead stare to the awkwardness in her gait.  Recent injuries.  Filing that way, she crept forward... then froze as the girl's head shot up.  Apparently she'd been heard.

Well.  She could have a little fun, yeah?

Beautiful day, isn't it?  Kiwi called sweetly, stalking casually forward.

Fennec continued to wrack her brain as she dug.  There was a type of root... she could not remember its name but she recalled the scent.  Slight spice, slight must.  None here, but maybe further back, among the trees?  She began to backtrack when she heard someone approach and her awareness skyrocketed.

Fennec's lip lifted defensively when they spoke despite their tone.  She could instantly tell that the sweetness was put on.  

Freezing, but if you like that kind of thing.  She answered, choosing to keep going.  She needed these supplies, fuck whoever this was.  But she paid careful attention as she began digging again.  What do you want?

Kiwi huffed.  Apparently this wolf wasn't buying her act.  And here she'd thought she didn't need to try.

I want to know about your pack.  She answered, slipping a little more towards genuine nice.  She wanted nothing more right now than to slam this girl into the dirt but she needed intel and this was likely to be one of few chances.  There weren't many there who wouldn't recognize her.  Who was this, one of her uncle's bastards?  One of the golden bitch's? Her color made that likely.

I'm looking at options for joining for the winter.  How large are you?  How well prepared?  She asked, sitting down and watching her dig with little interest.  What she found so fascinating about the dirt was beyond the other wolf.

It took her three digs to find it, during which she contemplated this strange woman's questions.  Her ears tipped back.  It really wasn't any of her business, was it?  If she joined, she'd be lucky to be accepted by a pack like Redhawk Caldera.  She wasn't an ambassador nor did she feel like talking about it.

Give a call on the borders and find out.  I have more important shit to do.  She answered irately as she dug the roots up.  There was quite a bit here thankfully. Willow would help fever, but before it came to that, this would fight infection.

She gathered as much of it as she could carry and set off back, intending to ignore her new 'friend'.  No offense, but she was busy.  Actually... a little offense.  That initial tone pissed her off.

Kiwi's look narrowed as this younger wolf rebuffed her.  The fuck did she think she was?. Though smaller, Kiwi moved to block her path with a growl.

Look.  All I want is info.  And you are going to give it.  She threatened.  There was no way this girl could beat her in a fight.  Someone had already obviously trashed her recently and she was blind.  

Kiwi wanted to know why they were here.  She wanted it confirmed that this was the same pack... and that their numbers had moved.

Of course she wouldn't take no for an answer.  Fennec tensed, considered running for it, then dropped her bundle and growled.  Okay.  Fine.  But witches don't give anything for free.  So if you want info, you're going to have to give something.

She listened for the woman's location and turned the full force of her blind stare that direction.  And if you even think about attacking me, I'll put a curse on you.  She wished she had some poison on hand to make good on that threat, but she didn't.  So first, who are you?

She tried to keep it casual, but just like with the other guy who'd come too close, Wraith's demeanor was hard to uphold.  The witch's facade was a bluff, but she doubled down on her resolve to learn how to effectively fight.  If this woman attacked she wasn't sure how she'd fare.

The curse comment did give Kiwi pause for a second.  Witch?  Was this girl making fun of her?  Her eyes were eerie enough for a single instant of hesitation, but then she gave her terms.  And the question she asked wasn't one Kiwi was willing to entertain.  If they knew she was here they'd come looking.

Kiwi surged forward, not bothering to hide her intentions from a wolf who seemed to present no threat.  She was aiming for the throat.... she'd choke the answers out of she needed to.

She knew in a second that she'd miscalculated.  The blind girl's jaws slammed down on her nape and suddenly she was the one flattened into the snow.  She snarled and shoved, snapping upwards, calculation dissolving into hot fury.

Clearly this wolf had issues.  Fennec hadn't even gotten to her real question yet; what kind of secret was a simple name?

Thankfully she was ready when Kiwi came at her.  She dodged sideways and actually, somehow, managed to step out of the way.  She heard the woman's front paws slide and that's where she aimed, lunging down and catching the back of her neck.

Surprise turned to elation and then annoyance as she began to struggle.  Fennec shoved her down and planted herself on her back, injured leg shaking with the strain of holding her down.  She was not in the right shape to be doing this.

Kiwi's fangs caught her cheek and nicked a few new lines before she could well and truly pin her.  

Okay, what now?  The moment she let go she'd be set upon.  Fennec growled and shifted her grip on her throat.  Fine then.  She'd take a page from some else's book - choke out her competition before they had the chance to fight back.

this was not how I was expecting this to go but wow this is a hilarious turn of the dice.

She'd never been this humiliated.  And the worst part was... she couldn't find a way to spin this.  She cheated.  She tricked her.. No matter what thought she followed, the fact remained that Kiwi had been bested in a single move by a blind wolf and was now at her mercy.

She shoved against her, bucking under the pressure as she felt Fennec's jaws slip around and begin to compress her windpipe.  Her growl grew feral and she thrashed, tearing her throat some on the other girl's teeth.  But the grip didn't let up.

Desperation clawed its way up to the blockage around her throat and, instead of aiming to attack, she tried to drag herself away.  To break loose and run.  Later she'd insist she'd rather die than flee, but in the heat of the moment, this encounter wasn't worth dying over.  

Witch she'd called herself.  Kiwi had felt this kind of fear only a couple of times before, and she'd remember it.

Fennec felt her shift and attempt to drag her way out, scrabbling at the ground beneath them instead of snapping at her.  She contemplated letting her run, but instead tightened her grip.  I could kill her, she realized, and the power she felt in that moment was amazing.

In every fight she'd ever been in, she'd always felt so overwhelmed.  This one had been over before it began and she was the one holding all of the cards.  She wouldn't even need to feel guilty - she hadn't asked the woman to attack her.

Fennec felt her struggles weaken, then drop limp in her hold.  She held on a moment longer, ensuring that she wasn't faking it, before giving her a shake and dropping her unceremoniously at her feet.  She stood there for a moment, all of her legs trembling and her chest heaving from both adrenaline and exertion.

Holy shit.

For what felt like a long stretch she did nothing but remain where she was, frozen.  Eventually her breathing calmed down, though, and the haze of the fight filtered away.  Did I actually kill her?  Fennec hadn't thought, but.... now she couldn't recall what she'd decided.

She stepped over and pressed her muzzle to the stranger's chest.  Faintly, but she was breathing.

She wasn't... honestly sure if she'd have minded either way, but she was in a small part glad.  Hopefully the idiot learned her lesson, though Fennec wondered again why introducing herself had been such a big deal.  Was something wrong with her?

The fur at the nape of her neck prickled and she retrieved her supplies before cutting a beeline out of there.  She wasn't about to stick around to wait for her to wake up... and she'd definitely be warning her family about this.

Kiwi wasn't sure how long she was out, but by the time she came groggily to, the blind wolf was long gone.

Feeling suddenly exposed, she got to her feet, then slunk northwards.  Her head ached and she was in a hell of a mood, but she maintained a grim silence.

For the last few years she'd made sure she was infallible.  She'd trained, struggled, and conquered every task thrown at her.  She'd never been caught like that, unable to tear at her enemy.  The memory of it was sore about more than her throat, and she tried to remember what had happened.

How had she known where Kiwi was?  Was she telling the truth, then?  Witch.  A curse.  Kiwi shivered, glancing behind.  She could almost feel those cloudy eyes burning into her from somewhere unseen, and for the first time since returning, she felt the familiar paranoia of the hunted.