Hideaway Strath leave the bones alone

attn @Augur and permission to find the body in this thread granted OOC'ly, wounds NS received also discussed!

New Snow had not been able to get her face away from the old and experienced man. Her muzzle, her ear, and just around her eye had received the brunt of the wounds. She was not the best of fighters to start with (nor was she the worst), but against a man of that skill there was much to be desired in reference to her own ability. New Snow had acted more hunter than fighter; she had hoped to strike his already weak side, but he had guarded it well.

She had done damage too. Her mate probably the majority of it. New Snow, bloodied but not beaten, took a breath and set off after the old man. They had hit him hard enough for the rest of the fight to be done with sooner rather than later, if any was left. She was exhausted herself, and she found that her nose now was clogged entirely. Perhaps by sickness, though she snorted out blood. Her own, or the mans, the bloodied New Snow could not truly discern.

Her shoulder ached. New Snow found that her own limp was obvious. It would be up to the healers skill, if it would be permanent. New Snow found his blood-stained paw prints soon enough. And she called to her man lowly, the sound now ending in a loud cough. They had started this fight, together; and she would not finish it without him there. 

In her sorry state, New Snow was not certain that she could have.

Her left ear turned—she winced, not knowing then that the man they had battled had succeeded in providing her a notch there.

new snow wore new marks upon her face.

his jawline had not fared much better, left ear notched like his mate! the right side of his throat had been grabbed and torn. but his great size and his great strength had added advantage to his younger age.

new snow limped. augur rumbled a great vibrating sound and moved to support her. his tongue passed over her nape and then to her shoulder.

he cleaned her wounds and then set off in a swinging gait, slower to accomodate her injuries.

She turned to look at him, and her tail waved. Despite the circumstances, and somehow as though in spite of them (hateful as it was), her love for the man heightened. He had fought well, and his bloodied visage gave him the look of a warrior. And he was a warrior; she had fought by his side this day. New Snow had already made note to spar more with her man, so that they would fight even better the next time.

Hunting was not so different than fighting, but it could not be called the same. Territorial spats had been quicker than this; New Snow had never been so engaged with the enemy, nor gripped by one. The Clawan had a healthy respect for the man they had fought after it all.

An answering rumble filled the air. She sighed quietly as she leaned against him, accepting some support though even this stung. His tongue, too; her skin flinched, but she did not withdraw. Before they moved on, her tongue gently cleaned the places that Adlaratok had split her mates face. It seemed he was of the same mind; he cleaned the blood away from her eye that had clouded her vision beforehand.

She huffed in gratitude, and then they moved. New Snow coughed again, but with his support she moved better than she had moments ago.

The tracks they followed, and the snow around it, were rich with blood—it seemed to increase in volume the closer they drew. And up ahead lay the wolf! Sure that her man saw him, too, she bore her teeth but made no noise to warn the resting man of their approach.

New Snow did not yet see that he was already dead.

augur knew it by the stiffening limbs and remembering the massive tearing bites he had grabbed in their fight.

he approached stiff-legged and growling nevertheless, hackles from spine to tail a forest of white railroad spikes.

augur circled, keeping himself between new snow and the dead kin of the killer.

he ran another test,  lunging forward to catch the wolf's nape between his teeth and yank him a few feet upon the snow.

New Snows tail flagged just above her hips in shared authority with her mate, snarling with the rancor earned from the long days and longer nights of toiling with the Rise for an end that had seemed to somehow cause more suffering within the Red Woman who had gone to chase the cause of it. This man was a part of this in being here. A rival pack.

New Snow, hearing no movement after her man had acted, rigidly stepped around her mate to stare at the body of a man whose death was so fresh it was not yet locked in rigor mortis.

But the stillness, the way the stranger did not flinch, caused her gaze to leave them and fall back upon Mountain Boulder. A quiet whuff to announce what she could now see: he had died.

She felt relief. This part of their fight was over. They two had succeeded. New Snow pressed her bloodied muzzle against her man with a sigh she could feel in the whole of her body, which relaxed. Her hackles fell, and so too did her tail that hung loosely between her legs. It had been a good fight.

And yet it was too soon to celebrate!

Through and through she was a wolf; there was no desire to desecrate the place in which the man lay. But now that it was finished, New Snow sniffed the earth and limped two steps forward in search of a cache to raid. With her clogged noise, New Snow grumbled to her man who had endured this sickness (and so, would understand these grumbles) before sneezing heavily into the snow.

New Snow knew she would truly need to follow his lead, now. She was not too proud; survival came first, and she had made it this far for a reason.

he had fought for his home. augur let him alone when it was proven the man did not only lie close to death, but wrapped in it.

let him lie in this place. he was strong to have made it so far.

the hunt-leader followed new snow when her stuffed nostrils' sounding drew him aside. the illness clung annoyingly to them. he would find better meat for her.

but for now they would eat what had been left. augur dug deep into the earth, exposing cold bone and flesh clutching it. he excavated further, chuffing that she should begin eating at once.

Her man found for her meat to eat; New Snow moved to help him excavate with her working leg, tearing earth away with him. Given that this was still an active raid, her gaze shifted around them as she began to scarf down the meal. 

When she had her fill, she pulled out more for her mate and some for their son. But first she would see that her mate also ate after their fight. 

Her gaze dotted around the landscape all the while.

as usual, new snow insisted he too eat.

this time he did not grumble.

augur took what bites there were and kissed her cheek, her shoulder.

off again, searching for another cache. he grabbed up a bone and tossed it hard against the ground.

Her tail wagged to see him eat. He would be hunter of their own clan for a while; New Snow would ensure, though, that he was not weaker for it while she recovered. She bore no resentment toward Red Woman for their path, for its consequences; it had been necessary, and they had protected their home well.

She rumbled happily to his affectionate touches, though her shoulder smarted. Her gaze hovered over the wounds he had earned; she would be sure to take care of them later as well, before they slept.

New Snow went after the bone; there was no meat upon it. But while her mate searched, she began to gnaw on the object, one paw splayed across the other end of it possessively. Theirs, now.

augur was pleased to know it was over.

he flopped down with a heavy and comfortable sigh, muzzle across forepaws.

his yellow eyes watched new snow with warm interest as she gnawed possessively on the bone.

he was content to let her have it, to make sure she took as many spoils as possible.

wanna fade this one?! I can start us a new one!

 

New Snow gnawed away, and as her mate moved to lay and rest she picked up the bone and shuffled closer to him. She had felt his eyes upon her, and wanted to be and stay close. 

She continued her gnawing, though placed one paw over his own as she watched him with bright eyes. New Snow did not want to be apart; the days without him had been longer, when he had searched for the quarry. And with the dead man near them, and the pain of her injuries upon her, New Snow was reminded of the savage ways of the wilds. 

New Snow dropped the bone and pressed her nose gingerly to his own. She huffed before she gently licked a wound upon his chin. I love you. 

A high whine trickled forth from her throat; the same noise she had made when he returned to the Rise. Relief. Happiness to be with him. And another sound came from her, two short whiffs, as she began to gnaw again at the bone. 

Made to commend him for his strength; sounds that relayed her continued respect and admiration of him.

yes & i love them <3

love existed for wolves in touch and sound.

augur had both these in measure with new snow.

his breath mingled with her own. he licked her ear as her strong teeth grated against the bone.

she was fierce, his woman. he hoped he found the same merit in her eyes.

it felt as though he did.

i love you.