Redtail Rise She Swam Higher

The rise’s caches were low, though Masquerade made a point to bring meat to @Avicus at every opportunity. Occasionally she spared some for @New Snow as well. The freshly promoted Ulfr grew leaner herself, though she wasn’t the one carrying new life. There would be time to bulk later, after the pups were born.

Today, she brought a different sort of gift for the Wealda. It didn’t look like much, thought Avicus might recognize the badger’s pelt by appearance and scent. Every edge was jagged and there was still dried gristle clinging to the dead skin, though Masque had worn out both her tongue and the pads on her paws trying to scrape it all clean. The side with the fur was soft and warm; that was all that really mattered.

She carried it in her mouth at first but after stepping on it multiple times and tearing one corner, Masquerade decided to try tossing it over her shoulders like a cape. It took many tries to find the right angle of attack and perfect the motion, though she did eventually succeed in settling it over her nape.

With a measured step and a smile on her face, the cloaked Masque sought the pack’s Wealda.

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their caches were low.

as augur knew red woman had coupled with blood eyes, and he with new snow, he had no reason to believe there would not be new pups in some short months.

all his energy was put into hunting. he was therefore keen to answer the tang of preyblood on the air and thorn caller's scent mingled with it.

he found the youngster with pelt draped oddly across shoulders. the huntsman sniffed idly at this and then turned his face skyward, to where ravens circled in the distance.

he started in that direction at an easy lope, inviting the youthful hunter along with a twitch of his ear.

Augur’s appearance and subsequent approach did not faze her, nor slow Masque’s step. She closed the distance to the cache nearby one of the Wealda’s favored haunts. He lingered beside her like a ghost, sniffing at the ragged skin, and she didn’t mind that either. She unshouldered the pelt, then nosed it into a bundle and covered it with some leaves for Avicus to find later.

Now she turned her full attention upon the Ulfhedinn, head bowed and tail low. He was gazing skyward and she glanced up too, seeing the birds circling. Augur soon dropped his head and began moving off in that direction. Wondering if they might find some carrion drawing the ravens’ attention, the young huntress gamely loped after him.

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The participants have indicated the following reason(s) for this warning: gore, desc of killing smaller animals

augur moved in easy silence, pleased to be in the company of thorn caller.

the young wolf was silent and missed nothing, two qualities the hunting-man meant to nurture in them all.

at length they came to bloodied and churned snow. augur lowered his muzzle and smelled the feces of a torn gut.

he paused to consider it, the potential poisoning of the carrion by foul matter leaked into its body.

meat was meat. he would investigate further when they had come upon the beast.

more quiet. the ravens' cries intensified.

a cow moose lay on her side in the snow, dead. 

three coyotes scattered. augur snarled and lunged for the nearest.

the crack of its broken skull echoed across the plain. the ulfhedinn dropped the twitching carcass into the snow and pursued another of the crying pests.

They came upon some churned snow, tinged here and there with spots of bright red blood, glistening like syrup over frosted flakes. Masquerade paused to sniff, registering the odor of a disembowelment. The smell of it stirred a memory of sinking her own fangs into a horse’s rectum. She licked her jowls.

Augur strode forward and she now flanked him, her red face even with his rolling white shoulder. It wasn’t long before they came upon quite the scene: a trio of coyotes feasting on a moose sprawled in yet more stained snow. The instant the pair of wolves arrived, they scattered.

The pale giant lunged at one, crushing its skull with startling swiftness. Masque blinked, then looked to the remaining two. Augur went after a second, leaving the final one to her. There was no time to form a proper strategy, so she dashed toward it armed with nothing but killer instincts.

The leaner, slighter carnivore gave her the slip at first, though Masquerade pumped her legs hard to chase after it. Augur, his quarry and the slain cow all fell away behind her as she bounded after the lithe Canis latrans. She couldn’t quite close the gap, though she didn’t lose any ground either. For more than half a mile, she relentlessly dogged its steps.

The coyote tried to shake her off with an occasional wild dart to one side or another, though still Masque gave pursuit. It happened enough times that the she-wolf learned to read the signs preceding this sudden movement. She could not guess which direction her quarry might turn, though when it swiveled this time, she coiled her haunches and leaped to the right, hoping to swipe out a foreleg and sweep the coyote’s legs from underneath it.

The smaller canine sprang clear with the grace of a doe, then darted back the way they had come. By the time Masque pivoted too, it was disappearing into the distance. Masquerade watched it, rumbling under her breath. Her tongue lolled from her muzzle as she panted. She did not wait to catch her breath, quickly loping back to where she’d left Augur, who’d hopefully fared better.

wowwie wow sorry for the wait!

thorn caller followed suit.

the coyotes were routed, two of them escaping the teeth of the redtail wolves. augur snorted in their direction and scent-marked the ground, slashing long furrows with his foreclaws and hinds.

the carrion now, theirs to take. 

he began to butcher it with precision, using his heavy jaws to tear a larger hole in the hide so that thorn caller could access the entrails.

she was a hunter in her own right but she was still young and he saw it as his role to feed her.

augur himself cleaned his jaws, sitting down in the destroyed snow to watch for others.

ravens settled near.

When she arrived, she saw Augur butchering the carcass. Despite failing to capture the coyote, they had successfully laid claim to the meat. Masque’s tail twitched as she sauntered over to watch the Ulfhedinn work. The stench made her eyes water, though she did not blink as he tore a hole through the cow’s thick hide, accessing what was left of her viscera.

Augur stepped back to clean the blood and gore from his jaws, leaving Masquerade to stick her muzzle into the opening he’d made and fish out a few relatively fresh morsels. Thin as she’d become lately, she didn’t swallow a single mouthful. Instead, she pinched each bloody chunk with her teeth, gathering what she believed she could carry easily.

I’ll be right back, she said after a time, gathering a length of intestine in her mouth like a segment of sausage links and trotting away.

After delivering this choice meal to the very same place she’d left the badger skin, Masque made her way back to the dead cow. She scattered several blackbirds upon her return, though she paid them no attention. She did glance at Augur, the tip of her tail twitching, then stepped up to the carcass once more.

After two more round trips, Masquerade finally allowed herself to eat some of the carrion. She only ate enough to take the sharp edge off her hunger and boost her flagging energy. The yearling then padded over to Augur and flopped down in the churned snow, letting out the sort of sigh that always followed hard work.

No worries!

perhaps she was taking it to store.

augur wanted to tell her that she could carry it in her belly with far more ease, but he had neither the notions or words for it.

and so he only watched with fond and silent interest until thorn caller had finished and joined him.

instinctively he reached to clean her nape and shoulders with a fatherly affection. he had always thought of red woman's first children as his own, as there was no way to be certain he was not.

the hunt-leader's tail thumped in the snow with pleasure.

She jolted softly at Augur’s initial touch, though she quickly relaxed as he groomed her. It was not only necessary, it also just felt nice. With her belly full of meat and her muscles ticking like a cooling car engine, all Masquerade wanted to do was lie here a while. She even closed her eyes, deciding she’d earned a catnap.

in time he too lay down, though he was not willing to sleep.

instead augur dozed, massive head sitting on heavy shoulders, ears flicking as he let thorn caller rest as long as she needed.

she would be safe.