Dragoncrest Cliffs the eternal struggles of the howling man
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Ooc — Kat
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#1
All Welcome 
For breakfast, Haunt finished the last of the venison she'd cached following her successful hunt with Erzulie and Njord. She savored those last bites of her very first big game, already dreaming of the next time. Haunt enjoyed hunting in all forms, though there was a special place in her heart for larger prey, especially now.

After she fed, she left the caves and headed toward the borders, where she'd originally discovered the doe. Haunt wondered if there might be a herd somewhere nearby, perhaps in The Tangle. She decided she would try to do some tracking there today. She could do it on her own, though she decided she would prefer some company and sent up a howl, inviting one (or more) of her pack mates to accompany her.
Fear is the heart of love
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Apparently her focus as the winter stretched was destined to be hunting.  She had never taken the practice further than the basics needed to survive, but it made sense to begin to prepare as the months threatened to grow warm again.  She felt the drive intrinsically.

When Haunt howled, Rosalyn raised her own voice in reply, then moved to meet with the girl.  She didn't say anything outside of granting a nod of greeting.  She'd not been in much of a talkative mood of late, but she was glad to see their newer joiners taking initiative.  The look held approval.  She'd allow the girl to lead this, if she chose, and Rosalyn would run support.  She was no trained huntress, much as she enjoyed a group outing.
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Ooc — Kat
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It took a moment for Haunt to place the voice, her tail twitching when she eventually realized it was Rosalyn who would be joining her. The young she-wolf found she could not sit still and began pacing. As she rambled back and forth, her mind wandered further afield, to Legion. A heavy dose of guilt settled in her core as she thought of her mother and sister. She and Vex really ought to check in soon.

The appearance of her leader pushed those thoughts aside. The youth ducked her head. "I figure that doe must've come from a herd nearby. I thought we could look in The Tangle." Haunt gestured with her muzzle, saying nothing more before pivoting on a white heel and leading the way toward the neighboring territory.

The terrain was rocky and, in a word, inhospitable. They hadn't gone far into it when Haunt pulled up short and licked her lips. It was just a minefield of stony ground, with hardly any cover. Grass, trees and shrubs were all rather sparse. This was no place for a herd of ungulates, she realized.

Her yellow eyes cut over to Rosalyn. "Let's try this way," she suggested, pointing now in a roughly southwestern direction. The rugged plain was so flat, Haunt could see the forest from here. That was a much more likely place to find any sign of a herd.
Fear is the heart of love
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#4
Rosalyn nodded and was content to fall in silently behind, following her lead easily.  The turnaround she'd made since arriving was intense, and Rosalyn wondered idly (and perhaps a bit morbidly) if it would last.  What had caused her catatonic state before, and if re-triggered, would she remain that way longer?  It was... unsettling, that a mind could shut down like that.  She tried to shrug off the chill it evoked, but a shiver ran her spine.

What do you look for, tracking a herd? Rosalyn asked, more an attempt to shift her mind than a real grab at knowledge.  She did know admittedly few things about hunting large inland game, however... she could count on one paw the times she'd taken down deer in a pack.  Always it was small solo game or large coastal catches, and birds were her typical go-to.
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Beyond the bare treetops, there was a small rise. Haunt eyeballed it as they roved in that direction. A forest beneath a mountain seemed like a cozy, safe place for a herd of deer to congregate. Surely they would find some trace of them here in the woods.

She turned her head toward Rosalyn as she queried about tracking. Haunt figured it was a rhetorical question to test her knowledge. She replied, "Scent is the most obvious answer. But when I don't have that, I look for footprints, droppings and other, less obvious signs that they've passed through an area, like bent grass or broken sticks. Sometimes they chew on bark, maybe even eat it. I'm not sure. But you can see the marks on trees sometimes, about ye high."

They'd reached the tree line, so she paused beside a tree and reared against it. There were no tooth marks in this particular example, though she tapped her paw against a spot a few feet above the ground to indicate where they might find some. Haunt then pushed off the trunk and resumed all fours. Before heading in further, she waited for Rosalyn's response.
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#6
About half of this, Rosalyn did know.  She'd always relied heavily on scent to find prey, and occasionally droppings and tracks as indicators.  The other two had never occurred to her, especially the bit about the bark.  Deer ate that?  No wonder they seemed to have heads made of cotton.

You've made a study of them, to know what they eat.  She observed, watching the girl drop from the tree.  She'd watched birds for patterns in catching them better, but had never considered the thought that behavior would also aid in finding.  This is an interest of yours?

She'd spoken of being a hunter, but Rosalyn didn't recall the details.  This was good to know, and it helped her to fit a more concrete skill set to Haunt.  The captain in her couldn't help but be interested.
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She shrugged, then tipped her head. Haunt hadn't done that consciously, though she had always exhibited a penchant for hunting. She even dimly remembered stalking beetles in the whelping den, which called up a memory of Kaertok throwing her younger self across said den. Haunt went rigid, then brushed the memory forcibly away.

"Yes, I've been hunting since I was just a Grub in Legion," Haunt replied. "I've mostly specialized in small game until recently. I prefer big game, it's just... logistics." A single, young wolf didn't stand a chance against most large prey, for starters. She paused thoughtfully. "Erzulie told me I should focus on learning how to hunt in the sea, though I haven't had many opportunities yet."
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#8
oops! this one's a bit outdated, we can wrap soon if you like

Grub.  What an odd term, Rosalyn thought with bemusement.  Aye.  We have land prey around, but it tends to wane in the winter months.  The sea is different, but once you learn, there is a lot to be found.  She had always preferred the fares of the water to those on land, though a deer now and then was a nice change.  She was glad that Sapphique now boasted a variety of talent.  It seemed they could all learn something from one another.

Seals are similar in requiring logistics.  Crabs have a trick or two, as do the shells beneath the sand.  I could show you, if you like?  Oysters were the easiest to find and the simplest, a (rather salty) snack that could save a hungry life in a pinch.
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Ooc — Kat
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I don't mind! Sure, we can nudge this toward the finish line. :)

Rosalyn mentioned a few different varieties of prey, including seals. That made her think of the day spent on the beach with Erzulie, where she'd first been introduced to the flippered creatures. The Obsidian had gone over some of the very logistics Rosalyn referenced, though Haunt would never turn down the opportunity to sharpen her skills as a huntress.

"Sure. Erzulie gave me a crash course but I haven't been able to apply anything I learned," Haunt elaborated on her earlier remarks. "She made me try a clam, said if I just ate three, I would be full. But the first one was kinda gross," she admitted with a bit of a sheepish sideways glance at the leader. "I've scavenged some fish that washed up on the beach too. I wasn't a fan of those either, though they were pretty rotted..."

But weren't they supposed to be tracking some decidedly land mammals? Clearing her throat, Haunt redirected her attention to the task at hand and proceeded into the trees, though she did say, "I'd love to take you up on that, as soon as we find some sign of this herd." Haunt was nothing if not determined to locate these damn deer.
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Rotted fish and a clam, not exactly the best the ocean had to offer.  Rosalyn dipped her head in acknowledgement as she directed their course back towards the deer, but made a note in her mind to introduce the girl to some finer fare.  Of course she did not show interest in hunting in the waters; she had never tasted anything to make it worthwhile.  If she was to discount it she should at least experience seal, fresh fish, or perhaps even urchin.  Erzulie had spoken of a lesson with Chacal recently in those.

Fair.  Perhaps they've moved on to graze in the flatlands?  The plains just outside their territory seemed to be the likely direction, and in impatience, Rosalyn would have skipped some of the tracking to follow her gut inference.  She wondered if this was correct or if Haunt would direct her otherwise.
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Haunt wondered which flat lands Rosalyn meant and turned to ask her when she heard a strange noise in the distance to her right. She immediately froze, then slowly swiveled her head in that direction, raising it and cupping her ears. It came again, a sort of queer bellow. Her eyes lifted, her lips parting when she saw a deer trotting across the nearby rise. It was a young stag cantering along the ridge line, though Haunt didn't take many more notes before he dropped out of sight on the far side.

"Well." Haunt turned toward Rosalyn with a twitch of her lips. It was tempting to pursue him and locate the rest of the herd, though she felt she'd accomplished the task at hand: spotted the general whereabouts of the herd. "Onto the beach?" she said with a small wave of her tail.

Feel free to concluchive!
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No need to confirm or deny - apparently the stag would do the work for them. Rosalyn looked on, amused, as it seemingly put on a show for them. That one won't bear many offspring, she thought wryly. They were only two but snap judgements told her it was a proud creature... and a stupid one.

Aye. She would find the girl a proper catch, or at least take her to observe the sea lions that resides on the rocks nearer the sound. If she wished to watch as keenly as she did the deer, they provided a more stationary challenge.