Redhawk Caldera Whisper

It was with a purposeful stride that Elwood made his way across the flatlands that encompassed the base of the caldera. Things had been quiet as of late -- almost too quiet, he thought. Some within their ranks had recently departed and he couldn't say he missed them, save for Somnia. He was disappointed to find that his friend had vanished without a trace, and though he was concerned, he knew that the odds of Peregrine and Fox accepting her a third time would be slim.

Rather than dwell on questions he couldn't answer, he decided to hunt. Fox's litter would be due in a few weeks and he wanted to replenish the caches. Now that their group was smaller, he needed to throw himself into his work. He paused and scented the breeze, nostrils flaring, before sending up a short, low howl to beckon any nearby packmates to join him.

Zicorro was lying under a huge boulder. She was thinking about her pack, and her rank. Zicorro longed to have a higher rank, and to impress her pack. She almost howled with delight when she heard Elwood, the beta howl. This was her chance to impress a higher-ranked wolf! She zoomed off towards Elwood.

Young and aspiring to earn her place among the pack that had allowed her entry, to say she was nervous would be a horrendous understatement. The girl felt so displaced in the world that a very tender part of her heart beckoned her to go back to her parents – to join their ranks once more among the safety of what she knew. She might have had four homes since her birth, but they had all been with the same wolves until now – and it became very apparent to her that it was her pack mates that made a place a home.

Longing for her brothers, the girl attempted to keep busy. Almost settling on rounding the borders, it was a quick beckon that drew her forward – one of her pack mates was calling for someone nearby to join him on a hunt, and while her heart hammered in her chest, the bi-toned girl made her pace quicken in hi direction, forcing herself to meet one of the new faces that had likely called this home for far longer than she had even existed.

His grey form came to view, and lowering herself in submission, the yearling prowled forward, her bright eyes falling to the wolf’s cheek. “Hello,” she offered, hoping her voice sounded far more confident then she felt.

Not one, but two wolves responded to Elwood's call. His tail waved in appreciation as they approached; first, the small female that resembled Fox and Wildfire. Were it not for the patches of white, he would have been a victim of mistaken identity. But he identified Zicorro by her markings and was glad to see her making an effort to establish herself, since she was a new member of the pack.

The black-and-white youth that approached moments later was also a fresh recruit. Elwood hadn't met her previously, but he was fairly certain this was Allure, daughter of another pack; Fox had not been shy when sharing this information with her co-leaders. He gave both girls an appraising glance and nodded. A team of three would surely be successful.

"Thanks for joining me," he said with a warm smile. He remembered when he was a new face in Redhawk Caldera's ranks -- and now, here he was, over a year later. "I'm pretty sure there is a herd of deer lurking nearby," he added. He frequently kept stock of the game residing within their territory, and felt that they would have no trouble finding a target. "Shall we?" His question was accentuated with a lopsided grin, and then he pivoted and began to lope away, following his nose to their destination.

They traveled only a short distance before Elwood stopped short, gesturing towards a cluster of four deer grazing the snow-covered grass.

She studied him, her eyes drifting back to catch sight of the red fur. Her natural instinct was that Fox had come upon them, and her form was about to lower even more – but closer inspection caught the bits of ebony upon the other girl, and stark ivory. She gave the other girl a small smile of encouragement, and at Elwood’s words, gave a swift nod of her muzzle – she had desired to learn beter hunting techniques, and this was probably the best place to start.

Pacing after him, Allure was about to introduce herself to both, when the other girl seemingly vanished. Blinking, Allure’s ears swayed back to her skull for a moment, though she gave a gentle shake of her head.

Before she could offer her name, the two had come upon the herd, and with Allure sidling to the side of the pack’s Beta, her eyes cast upon the small herd he pointed out. “Can two wolves take one down?” Her tone was soft, and she cast her companion a sideways glance, hoping he did not take it for snark, and rather the inexperience it came from.

After Elwood halted, he glanced back over his shoulder at the two girls -- but was surprised to see that only Allure remained. Zicorro seemed to have crept away and he hadn't noticed until that moment. He frowned, a little disappointed, especially when his young companion pointed out that it would be more difficult for them to make a kill as a pair rather than a team of three.

He wasn't going to push her to do anything that made her uncomfortable, but he hesitated before answering, quietly inspecting the deer. "Maybe, but only if you're up for it," he said. "If not, we can just do some tracking." He was never opposed to working on the less physical aspect of hunting, especially since it would do well to keep tabs on what was available as Fox's due date approached.

The silver male seemed to only notice the other girl had left – and for a moment, Allure admired the stranger’s ‘ninja’ stealth. A frown clouded his features, and she felt her own uncertainty grow, but at his words, she gave a gentle shake of her muzzle, taking a tentative step forward. “We can try?” If one wasn’t sickly or weak enough, they could always go tracking after – for now, there was no harm in inspecting the herd closer.

And she certainly did not want to disappoint her new Beta.

He raised his brows, pleasantly surprised by the girl's willingness to step up. Zicorro's stealthy departure had been a game changer, but if Allure wanted to give it a shot, Elwood would make his best effort. "Okay. If something goes awry, we back off immediately, got it?" he said, eyeing her. She was young and able-bodied, but he wasn't sure how much experience she had. The last thing he wanted to do was get himself and one of the pack's newer members injured in a reckless hunting accident.

Then, with a quick bob of his head, he started to move towards the herd at a swinging trot. He gave them a wide berth, scanning their options with his gaze. One doe lingered further from the others, although there was nothing striking about her outward appearance to indicate that she would be a particularly easy target. "Let's just try to cut her off from the others," he suggested in a stage whisper, making eye contact with Allure before loping towards the deer.

Alerted to the presence of the wolves, they scattered; Elwood honed in on their target, keeping his distance for the time being.

“Yep,” she chirped, her shoulders rolling back as she gave a light stretch, as if to shake away any pre-hunt jitters she might have. No worries – she was just about to hunt with her new pack Beta and she held very little experience with larger prey. Casting him a shy smile, she waited for his command – which was received by way of a quick head bob before he began to lope toward the herd.

She followed suit, her own eyes drifting to the herd where the silver wolf mentioned targeting the one that withheld from its herd. It did not look sickly – nor injured.

But she placed her trust in the Beta, knowing the wolf more experienced then her, and before she could do more than nod her understanding, he was maneuvering his way to the herd, They scattered – the ground rumbled beneath her paws and adrenaline coursed through her. Elwood directed their target, and she drifted from him, hoping to cut off its next viable escape route.

He watched carefully as the deer began to move away, zigging and zagging across the uneven terrain. He kept his gaze trained on their chosen target, although his left ear flicked back towards Allure every so often, keeping tabs on her location. The gamekeeper preferred to play the waiting game at first and allow the situation to progress before making any snap decisions.

Another deer drifted close to the targeted doe and he peeled his lips back from his teeth, snarling as he snaked towards it. The leggy creature leaped away, though their prey followed on swift hooves. With a short bark, he gestured for Allure to move forward and increased his speed, trailing just far enough back to snap at its hocks.

He veered to the side, attempting to drive it away from its herd. Unexpectedly, luck was on their side -- as the deer tried to circle back, it unwittingly stepped into a hollow in the ground and tripped. Elwood seized the opportunity and fell on its neck with teeth and claws, using his weight to hold it down even as it struggled.

Her eyes were focused upon their task, but she was forever looking to the older wolf for guidance. He was leisure in his pace, and so she did not rush either – a much different approach than she had tried before. The silver Beta nodded for her to move forward, and she did so – her own pace quickening as his did as well.

What happened next stirred her to pause for only a moment – the deer stumbled, and fell. The ridiculousness of it all was not lost upon her, but no sooner did the prey stumble did the Beta leap forward, his weight pinning it down with an ease that the black and white girl admired.

She rushed forward then, breaking of her pause, and her jaws snapped toward the deer’s neck, hoping to grab something vital as she made to tear in to flesh, her own forelimbs moving to push down on the creature.

Were it not for that incidental stroke of luck, Elwood likely would have called off the hunt within the next few minutes. But he and Allure both seized the opportunity and dispatched the deer quickly and skillfully with a few sharp snaps of their teeth. When he withdrew, his muzzle was painted with blood but he was grinning.

"Wow, that was a lucky break!" he said breathlessly, tail swishing. "Thanks for your help. If you're hungry, go ahead and have a bite -- I'm going to cache the rest of this, I think," he added. He wasn't currently wanting for a meal, and knew that the stored meat would come in handy as the pack continued to care for Fox as her due date approached.

With their hunt surprisingly successful, the bi-toned girl could do no more than beam at the Beta male, giving her muzzle a good natured shake, as if she hadn't just witnessed the event that had unfolded. "That was amazing," she decided then, the grin upon her face also evident within her tone.

Giving a nod to his offer, the girl stepped forward, gnawing off a decent chunk of the meat, dropping it to her white paws before giving a nod to the wolf once more. "I'm going to leave this outside Fox's den," she offered, becoming more shy on the topic of the fiery alpha female. "It was nice meeting you..." She paused, realizing she hadn't even gotten his name. "I'm Allure," she offered then.

Thanks for the thread! :)

"Perfect!" Elwood replied, pleased by the girl's suggestion to deposit the meat directly at Fox's doorstep. The Alpha female would greatly appreciate the delivery, and there would be more waiting for her in a nearby cache once the Beta was done storing it.

With a smile, he introduced himself. "It's nice to meet you, Allure. I'm Elwood," he said. Feeling buoyed by their unexpected success, he was in a good mood and was eager to start portioning the meat. "Thanks again," he added earnestly, then set to work dispatching the carcass with his teeth and claws. Once he had sliced off a sizable piece, he seized it in his mouth, and -- grinning at Allure around the flesh -- turned and trotted away, his destination a food locker near Fox's den.

The silver Beta gave his approval, and the girl cast him a shy smile, offering a nod as he introduced himself as Elwood. She took the name to heart – knowing she would remember it, and with a quiet nod to reiterate his own words of how it had been a pleasure, the girl moved forward, helping him make quicker work of the carcass that had practically fallen in their lap.

Once done, she maneuvered the chunk she had taken once more and buried it not far off – a sliver for herself now, and instead, went back to make claim to one of the organs for Fox, knowing the nourishment would be quite needed by the pack’s Alpha. She did not run in to Elwood again, and chose to deposit the offer closer to the den before skirting away and allowing the fiery she-wolf her space.