Redtail Rise the business man

the days have grown cold, and Tulimaq has not returned.

the clock has stopped. time is up. she is disappointed in her first Ulfhedinn—the one with which she'd built this place, initially—but she must move on. there are other faces.

chief among them—

she stands near the rendezvous, sheltered from gusty autumn winds within the edge of the forest. she lifts her muzzle and calls for @Augur: hunter, fighter, father. beyond Prophet, she cannot think of another more loyal or worthy.

no one else crosses her mind.

the clawan came, and he was stained with blood.

a goat, crippled by another and with its eyes plucked by eagles. the kill had been easy. the red drops would stain him a while.

he pressed his nose to her chin, swiping a lick across red woman's skin. augur rumbled to her, intimately and submissively.

why had she called?

he's covered in pungent crimson, and she can't resist a smile as he greets her with his usual tactile submission.

fitting, that. he's killed recently.

you are Ulfhedinn, Avicus tells him without preamble, stepping back to give him a solemn stare. hunh' leadh'er. 'hank you for bein' 'hloyal.

and that is that. will he accept?

why wouldn't he accept?

even if he finds it overwhelming, her word is law.

these thoughts cascade through her mind and she clamps them down, focusing instead on his expression, his posture, waiting for his response.

ulfhedinn.

hunt-leader.

it was toward what he had worked. augur accepted with a loud chuff and click of his teeth.

his plume lashed. his eyes shone. he was grateful to red woman, and distinctly respectful of her.

her chest swelled and rose at his acceptance. hunt-leader. she should test him for it.

Avicus motioned up the slope, toward the trees.

show me. she barked once, tongue lolling. she's hungry.

find us food.

one paw moves forward, slowly. another, but not, perhaps, before their new Ulfhedinn.

she knows what he is made of, but this, perhaps, is his final test. she watches his nostrils, gazes over his blood-spattered pelt, wondering if he has a new approach.

he moved at her command and without hesitation.

augur glanced at the crown of ravens in the sky which announced where he had left the kill. he led red woman in that direction, intending to pick up the tracks of its fellows.

his step was true; he followed the path until he came upon the milling bodies.

the male goats stabbed and gored one another on the plain. blood blossomed upon a ragged hide. an animal bellowed in agony.

the reek of fresh kill overcomes her; she is heady with it, and weaves slightly into the scene, scattering the ravens with a sharp bark at the sky.

she ducks and rips at the flesh, freely stealing what is hers. a mouthful, two, three, then she turns to Augur, mouth bloodied.

gestures to him to eat.

once he's satisfied, she plans to work away a haunch to feed the children. for now, they will celebrate, in private, this promotion. he has done well.