Redtail Rise imitation

there's a madness in Avicus. there always has been, by birthright.

it has always manifested in the physical—the tearing of flesh, grinding of bone. the heavy impact of body against body, whether in combat or in copulation. visceral, primal, without deeper introspection—

but the days grow shorter, and colder, and she's retreated further into her mind.

Tulimaq has not yet returned. not alone, nor with the hunters he'd promised. she had thought upon his departure that she may not see him again, but it was just that—a fleeting thought.

now it plagues her.

she trots along the border, feeling the coming chill settle all along her spine. Tulimaq, most loyal—gone. Ratio and Mori, too, loyal—gone.

who will be next?

she listens to the quiet, punctured only by the hiss of her urine upon the jagged landscape that ringed the Rise, and of the distant seabirds upon the endless horizon. names, names wriggle into her brain like worms out of fresh-soaked soil—

it could be any of them.

how many could she permit to vanish altogether before she started to hunt them down?

to chain them here?

she will not let her children starve, Avicus vows as she sprays pungent warnings across the edge of her land.

she will not let her children starve

The boy had been watching the clouds. So much so, he didn't look where he was going and had wandered to the edge of the rise, where he nearly walked in to a tree.

He thought it was a tree, anyway - it was deeply red-brown, and his head was tilted up so that, when he did hit something, it was with his chin first.

The collision knocked his teeth together with a snap.

The strong smell of urine hit him hard after that, and for a second Reki thought he'd hit so hard he'd pee'd himself; but it wasn't his smell that was everywhere - it was the smell of the pack, concentrated.

He looked wide-eyed up at the (seemingly giant) woman, and squeaked a shy, h...hello.

if she'd harbored any doubt that the boy was Ashlar's, it dissipates as quickly as he'd run right into her flank.

she'd smelled him coming, but hadn't expected the collision. Avicus grimaces at the sound of his teeth chattering and wheels to stare down at the youth, eyes slightly blazing.

small, quiet, deferent. Ashlar's boy.

hi, Avicus responds, terse but not unkind. she steps away to give them a little more space, and still more away from the smell of her scent-marking, now acrid upon the wind. 

your name. . .Reki? she guesses; she's heard it before in passing, but this is the first their paths have crossed since he had taken refuge on the Rise.

The woman was redder than any of the autumn leaves he'd piled up, or jumped in, by the rendezvous. She was all shades of amber and earth, and was somehow lighter than himself, and very pretty! He didn't think anyone could match how she looked, and he hadn't any words appropriate in his limited lexicon to describe her.

But she knew him. She knew his name! Her question earned a little nod. He was petrified to speak up or to confirm anything; that motion should have been enough. It was in that moment Reki realized - he didn't know her name.

She smelled like - well, everyone, and everywhere. In fact, her smell was what made him think of the rise in its entirety. How could that be?

a tiny nod confirms her supposition. she gives him one in return, then continues her meandering along the border, nostrils flaring at her own smell.

she turns back, neck craning to look at him. you wanna help? she asks.

in illustration, Avicus lifts her leg like the alpha she is—the spray is a little wilder with the motion, but she proceeds anyway, not breaking eye contact with the boy.

leave your 'hhmell along our bordher, she instructs. it keep our pack 'hhafe.

Avicus lowers the limb, shakes herself briefly, and moves on, scenting for areas she hadn't yet layered with her pungent markings.

He could do that? Add his scent? Reki was at first perplexed, then very motivated. He didn't think he needed to pee or anything - but Avicus told him what needed to happen, and so he watched her for a few minutes, then saw there were other ways.

She scratched some of the earth or rolled in it, gouged at tree trunks, rubbed up against them; of course she was leaving her scent more strongly when she sprayed, which had Reki averting his eyes -- but he soon began to mimic the other behaviors.

His paws dragged in the soil. He rolled in the dirt (which he found to be an enjoyable little game); he kicked his heels through grass. It took real work to keep up with the adult, but, it was fun.

that's. . .something. she watches the brown boy roll with intrigue before turning away, spraying along the border once more.

leave your 'hhmell, she repeats, fervently.

rolling will do it; urinating far more. she continues to do so, looking at him as she does so. hoping he can take the hint.

maybe he won't. whatever.