Stone Circle they're dying, boss. all of 'em.

@Valette

Akuti had noticed the bountiful cache and the near-frozen carcasses it held. She also noticed that there were more of them still to be collected both within and just outside of the territory. It troubled the tiny woman, knowing that beasts as large as these could just fall. If a mighty elk could perish in the cold with seemingly no other cause of death, what could happen to Akuti's itty-bitty self? She paced around the territory, trying to keep count of how many dead bodies she saw, but she always seemed to lose count. Besides, she was getting tired of running back and forth, only to start from zero again, so she found herself a seat beneath a snow crested tree and allowed herself to think.

Mara was somewhat startled when she noticed another wolf within the territory she had yet to meet. With the loss of Chaska and his mate, many more seemed to be joining Easthollow. Supposedly when door closes another opens, and that seemed just the case. Of course, there was no way to tell if they were apart of her home, she had no sense of smell, which means no indication of family left on their fur. So, her only way was to ask who they were, to which she did. Mara stepped closer to the petite femme, sending her a smile. "Hello," she said simply, "you must be new."

Akuti's tiny frame turned so that she was facing the much larger femme. She straightened her stance and allowed her nub of a tail to give an excited wag, then began to speak; I'm Akuti. You are? It was always good to meet packmates, especially when one's mind needed so desperately to be distracted. You wouldn't happen to know much about hunting, would ya? A partner for her troubling task might help ease the weight on her shoulders, as it was quite a heavy thing for such a sprite to carry.

The girl was different, her tail was gone but not from an attack, her genes were skewed and her bone structure was off, and if she could smell her scent would not be of a normal wolf. She had never seen a hybrid before, but assumed that was why she was so different, she'd heard of them before in passing. Some looked exactly like wolves, but smell was always somehow odd, she might have stumbled upon one and just not notice it, but this one was much more obvious. Now, her differences meant little to nothing to Mara, she didn't mind her different DNA, she was family now, and would be treated as such. "Mara, nice to meet you." She gaved another smile. "I do, actually, would you like to catch something?" Smaller animals, like fish and birds were her favorites to catch as none of them required scent, but she'd trained long enough to know how to catch larger prey excpentionally well with her other senses.

I can't catch much, Akuti admitted to the other huntress, 'cause of my size and all. It was an insecurity which she didn't often acknowledge, as she saw herself as someone built much larger than the petite body she was in. Akuti's litter had stopped growing much earlier than their siblings had, on account of the hybrid blood they carried. After five or six months, they halted in size, despite her older siblings having gone on to reach nearly twice her size. I can catch birds sometimes, but there aren't too many to find in the winter. I'm a tracker.

It seemed the two of them held disabilities of their own, except Mara believed size wasn't all that matter and with enough effort, and maybe a little held, Akuti could catch anything she desired. "Do you feel like shooting high or low?" She asked, referring to big or small game. New expirences were always available in Easthollow, maybe she should consider something she believes is out of reach. "Don't let your size affect what you want." Mara insisted, never dropping the smile on her maw.

Akuti returned the smile, a sweet flit in her heart sounding at Mara's kind words. I'd like to start small, she admitted, not wanting to overreach herself despite her companion's reassurance. Are you up for a game of chase? Akuti hoped she would be, as she was now ready to try out her luck. Tracking was fun and all, but it was the takedown that always intrigued the femme, and for just that moment, it seemed she had the confidence to take something down.

"Anything paticular? Squirrel, bird, hare, so on." She glanced down atg Akuti, seeing she took her message well, and forced her smile to grow even more. "Of course! That's the best part of the hunt, is it not?" Mara tilted her head and shifted her grin into a smirk. She was happy to make someone feel better about themselves in thr aspect of hunting, just as Valette did a few days back.

Akuti's tail sped from a slow wag to a quick pounding behind her. Well, I think I can handle a hare. She was estatic, filled to the rim with joy and excitement. So much so that she lifted herself from her hind quarters and onto all fours as she looked up excitedly to Mara. She sniffed the air, checking for any prominent scent trails, and when she caught onto one that seemed fresh enough, she signaled for Mara to follow. Just over there! Akuti called back as her eyes spotted the dust colored prey and dashed after it, gathering the small being into her maw and dashing back in excitement, thankful for having met Mara.