Fox's Glade pet

i know we already have one BUTTTTTT I THINK THEYRE KINDA CUTE and i have a ton of muse so @Swift if u want/when u have time <333

today, athalia tries to hunt on her own.
her wandering takes her out into a part of the valley she had never been — a sparse forest, thick with newly sprouting foliage and the ever-present frost that still seemed to permeate the land through spring. she'd been following the trail of a rabbit; it was hours, possibly even days old, but she could not help but remain hopeful.
the more she learned to hone her instincts, the stronger the urges became; to bite, to maim, to taste blood and flesh and bone. to watch something rot and become one with the earth, to feel its lifeblood seep into the soil; to take, and to give right back. she'd done it many times with things she'd scavenged, dissecting them in her mind and putting them back together again like a wicked puzzle. but never before had it been her teeth to end a life.
she supposed her guardians might like the meat from her prize, too.
the beargirl is not particularly careful as she traipses through the woods, which might have been her first mistake. her steps are careless, loud, feverish; she is beginning to grow impatient. all grave missteps for a young hunter — ones she, perhaps, will learn to correct in time.

The growth of his body had slowed. Observed at a distance, he had the figure of an adult, but a closer inspection would make obvious the adolescent lankiness that still marked him as such. But while Swiftlet's physical maturation waned the development of his mind waxed. His dispersal had come remarkably early, but out in the wilds his prodigious hunting talent was honed by new experiences and his tongue was perfecting the language of many more creatures. He owed his success to this.

On the prowl again, the young wolf's ears caught the sound of some animal barging through the forest without care. He was surprised to find Athalia on the trail ahead when he tracked down the source of the noise. But he was not disappointed. Strange as she was and despite her complete disregard for his personal space, there was something alluring about her.

What's with the racket! He called out as he caught up to her. I thought you were a moose.

<33

athalia's head whips around when the voice reaches her ears. swiftlet. swiftlet! he had come to her again, and she is pleased by this.
she watches him as his stride slows to match her own. wasn't it obvious what she was doing? i hunt, she grumbles, one ear bending to touch the back of her head in confusion.
maybe there was good to come from this — she had helped him before with his search for katla (even if it hadn't been successful), and now she sees an opportunity to get an eye for an eye. plus, it was a good excuse to keep him near! the beady yellow eyes widen with newfound excitement. you hunt? you help?

That grumble drew his paws to a stop and pulled his brows together. She spoke as if he had interrupted and spoiled her pursuit, but there wasn't going to be neither mouse nor moose around with the way she was carrying on. But whatever small offense she might have caused him was immediately dropped when she excitedly asked him to help her hunt!

Yeah, yeah! It's all I do! Swiftlet's enthusiasm was absolutely naked in his happy grin, and his tail threatened to helicopter him up and out out of the trees. What are we hunting?

Let's go let's go let's go!

the relatively aloof, cool-headed boy athalia thought she knew was now suddenly gleeful in a way she had never seen before. in her rather grim and grumpy life, she rarely ever saw anyone smile, much less wriggle their hinds and wag their tails like some kind of weird bird.
but his smile and enthusiasm are infectious, and so, as she watches him, she begins to slowly lift up her lips and squeeze her eyes shut. her teeth jut out of her mouth rather garishly, one ear flopped down to the side while the other stood straight up. a witness to this action might have assumed it to be a pitiful display of aggression if not for her own swaying tail.
and then he asks her what they're hunting. still smiling (partially because she did not know how to get herself to stop), she emits a loud hnnnrrrrr. she didn't know. what were they supposed to hunt? birds? bunnies? a snake? a deer? a beaver? all she truly knew how to do was track! rab-bit?