Redtail Rise healing

since his defeat at the hands of relic, ancelin had kept to the borders of redtail rise. he marked. he hunted. he kept the caches as full as he could, knowing that his aunt was laid up with new cousins.
new family, his mind added bitterly.
the boy who grew taller by the day faced into the cold wind, and not for the first time he searched it for any sign of aventus, no matter how faint.

It was difficult for Masquerade to divide their attention, though their recent conversation with @Avicus had reminded them that they had obligations outside of their mother and younger siblings. They resumed their tireless hunting and made sure to stop by @New Snow’s whelping den as often as the Wealda’s to drop off catch after catch. They took only the bare minimum for themself, their frame whittling down until they were rather rawboned in appearance.

Ancelin looked similarly worse for wear, in an entirely different way. Masque spotted him from a distance and decided to approach, their bright eyes flicking over the gouges on their cousin’s face. They knew it had something to do with their brother, though Masque was so duty-bound, they scarcely paid attention to the rise’s interpersonal conflicts.

They halted a few feet from their patchwork cousin, tail twitching limply behind them, and queried, What are you doing? Without waiting for an answer, Masque added, Would you like to hunt with me?

masque. ancelin had almost rounded on her. but that would do nothing. she was not relic; she had not subdued him. and she hadn't failed, either. ancelin saw how all his cousins had the favour of his aunt and the others in a way he had not yet captured.
he needed to do something big.
and so ancelin nodded, wincing as the movement tugged the healing wounds along his face and neck. hangdog, he followed at her side, jaw quiet and eyes saying nothing as he let masque take the complete lead.
"how many new cousins do i have?" he finally asked, if only to break the crush of silence.

He nodded, so Masquerade resumed walking. Ancelin fell into step beside them and Masque looked ahead, leafing through a mental catalogue of possible prey. They couldn’t help but think of the time when he’d suggested hunting rabbits.

Show me where you found rabbits, they suggested, hoping he would remember, then answered, There are four. You haven’t been to see them. It wasn’t a question. Is it because of Relic?

ancelin grunted, as much for her to turn with him as it was to answer. "maybe."
his cousin shouldn't keep him from the babies. with no mother and no father, ancelin was at the edges of redtail. but the boy was aware he had put himself there. look at lilia. adopted by prophet. raised by the older pups and adults. she was one of them as if she'd been born here.
the burned place was downy with green around all the crisped edges, and here in the longest parts the mother rabbits searched for nests. he paused, crouched. "just don't feel like i deserve to be closer, masque." to avicus and the babies, he meant, but ancelin wasn't good at elaborating once his focus was taken.

They pondered his grunted response but did not comment further. Soon, they arrived at the warren’s location. Masquerade studied the field for a moment before dropping their red muzzle to begin combing for scents.

Their head raised when Ancelin spoke again unexpectedly. Masque didn’t quite know what to say to that. They met his eyes to acknowledge his words, then resumed their search for any sign of rabbits.

They lucked across a nest of kits hidden by tufts of fur and grass. When Masque thrust their muzzle deeper, they felt several small, squirming bodies. It was tempting to make quick work of them. Instead, they pulled them out one after the other, crushing their skulls and putting the tiny bodies in a pile.

Would you like to take these to my mother’s den? they offered, raising their head, sunken eyes settling on their cousin’s mangled face.

masque dispatched each kit and stacked it nicely. ancelin's stomach growled for the blood, saliva flooding his mouth. he was hungry as all young ones were, growing fast toward his first year. but he was also envious of masque's smooth movements where he had cultivated none.
and he was grateful to her for a segue into visiting avicus. "alone."
his voice broke a little, and in the hoarseness he looked away. "thank you. i'll go — now." how he was going to take all of them escaped ancelin for now. "i owe you one."
his lips flicked into a rictus of a smile that passed.

I can go with you, they offered. You’ll need my help carrying them anyway. I’d say we should look for some more but… Masque paused and looked around thoughtfully. It’ll be challenging enough as it is, carrying these. We can always come back later.

Sniffing, they bent to examine the pile of small corpses. There were seven of them altogether. Masquerade wasn’t entirely sure they could fit half as many in their mouth, though they would try. Perhaps one would get dropped on the way. They could always fetch it.

I’m going to stuff four of these in my mouth. You do the same with the other three, they said, looking to Ancelin to make sure he understood. There’s a cache not far from here, where we can stop and drop some off if we need to.

It took a few tries to get four of the bodies crammed into their muzzle, though they eventually managed. Masquerade exchanged a glance with their cousin and then set off toward the Wealda’s distant den. They made the aforementioned pit stop but decided not to unload. Breathing noisily through their nose, they waited to see if Ancelin needed to unburden himself before continuing.

When Avicus’s den came into view, Masque rumbled a note deep in their throat to get Ancelin to stop. They halted and opened their mouth, depositing the corpses along with a fair amount of saliva. They took a moment to catch their breath, now that they could breathe freely through their mouth again.

You take them, they said, tail flicking. You’re part of this family but you have to earn your keep. We all do. Go on. I’ll go back and get some more, I think.

I figured you could tap Avicus and the pups into this or start your own? Whatever works for you! :)

feel free to throw masque into his new thread w avi! <3

ancelin followed where directed, happy enough to pace behind masque and follow suit.
she was doing a lot for him. he wouldn't forget it. "thanks, cuz," ancelin grunted with a little of his old humour. his eyes were gentle. "i owe you one."
he crammed as many bodies into his mouth as he could and set off, meaning to come back for others.