So much time had passed since his return and still he felt as though time were moving slow. He was unsure of what would happen with his acceptance into Secret Woods, although he was positive that Nina and the kids had missed him, his absence had tore into a huge hole into their trust. He could only wait, and hope for the best as he waited for an answer--in the mean time, he was hungry. He was always hungry, and rightly so, considering his size and current health, he could eat everyday if things went his way but it was nearly impossible to catch every single meal that crossed his path. That didn't mean he wasn't willing to try. With winter upon them, he needed as much fuel as he could get to keep himself from losing muscle, and on this day he was hunting rabbit, following the fresh trail of tiny pawprints.


The rabbit would be a satisfying treat until tonight when he would need more fueling, but that was neither a focus or a concern to him for the time being, instead he had every intention of finding this rabbit. After 15 minutes of stealthy tracking he saw it, the ears of the rabbit swiveling atop its skull as it focused on the sound of Koda's footfalls. After two steps, the chase was on, and the rabbit was quick to seek coverage in the thicket of trees where it would blend in with the surrounding and camouflage itself from its attacker--Koda as always, was three steps ahead of it. Increasing his speed, he plowed through the snow behind the rabbit at an angle, twisting and turning with such precision, one would assume he was flying instead of running. In fact, it was because of his age, and experience in hunting rabbits since his days as a young lad.


The rabbit grew frantic, miscalculated its step, and stumbled over a path of thick snow giving him the boost he needed to catch up to it. Before the rabbit reached the treeline, he threw a forepaw forward to trip it, in which it tripped, flew an inch ahead, and fell victim to his jaws in a flash. He snapped the spine of his prey quickly, feeling the sweet reward of blood on his tongue as he slowed to a slow walk. Dropping the rabbit to the ground, so that he could feast his eyes on his prize, he hardly noticed the figure of the cream wolf in the distance, frail and thin, he assumed that winter had been a harsh one for her. Dipping his head to scoop the prey into his jaws, he approached Frost with caution, his tail high in the air as a signal to her that he would fight if he needed to, and dropped the kill once more to speak. "You trying to catch frost bite miss?" he wondered, seeing her sitting so still in the snow without the presence of anything within a radius of her. Maybe she was of arctic blood and felt nothing, "are you in need of food?" he continued on, turning his gaze to the fresh kill at his feet. If she needed it, the male didn't mind giving her the kill, if only it meant that it would keep her alive longer.

Frost seemed friendly enough. Her demeanor posed no threat therefore a smile spread the length of his lips as he listened to her talk, giving a name similar to the weather they were forced into--frozen, frigid and unbelievably cold. Though Frost was nothing like her name, because she was calm and collected, and her personality made the older male chuckle, he listened to the reason that she stood so still in the midst of such freezing weather. She was hunting a rodent, the smallest meal a wolf could muster to hunt, and this truth made the male turn to the rabbit at his feet with guilt, how could he keep such a meal from this woman when she obviously needed a meal. "A rodent is hardly a meal for a wolf your size," he started, gazing to the spot that she stared so intently at, "besides, that rodent is probably far gone by now. They have plenty of tunnels beneath the earth." he finished, knowing full well that Frost would be there for hours without a prize in her jaws.


When she turned down his offer of the rabbit, the male felt a pang in his chest before giving a shake of his head, acknowledging the woman's strong desire to remain strong and independent, but if she wanted to be an asset to this pack she needed to know how to settle into a pack life. "Please, you need it more then me." he added, nudging the rabbit toward her finally with a push of his velvety black nose, the blood that spilled from the puncture wound from his teeth had frozen over from the cold. "I am Koda Reinier by way, it is a pleasure meeting you Frost. I hope you are liking it in Secret Woodland so far." he was sure that the woman would be able to recognize his last name as that of their alpha, Nina his soul mate. "and there is no need to submit, we are family and I feel no disrespect from you." truthfully, he didn't know what his rank was either, it was better just to drop ranks for now and situate those out down the road.

Look Out!

A young pronghorn has fallen behind its herd and starved in the snow. +5 Health

When the woman suggested that they share the rabbit, his shoulder shrugged as a means of letting her win the fight--he would not bicker back and forth on a meal. He nodded his head, acknowledging Frost's request as once more he nudged the dead rabbit at her feet, allowing her to take the first bite. At the moment his appetite had subsided. "I'm fine with sharing. Go ahead and take the first bite, I'm sure you're starving with a meal so close to you." he fell silent while turning his ear backward against the wind, sitting in one spot so long allowed him to feel the grip of winter along his back hairs, shaking them vigorously he attempted to rid the feeling from him.


It wasn't long before the woman, seemingly forgetting the meal he'd offered her, bolted in the direction of a buried creature. Turning his nose toward her, he caught the whiff of stale meat in the wind and watched as she pulled the remains of a buried pronghorn from the snow and began to devour it. He shook his head, not understanding the reasoning of this woman before him because it amazed him that his freshly caught meal had gone without a nibble thus far, therefore he took it upon himself to begin his own feast. Tearing into the rabbit flesh, he ate quickly and quietly, until what remained was the coat of the rabbit blowing calm in the wind. Licking the blood from his lips he walked toward Frost, who was feasting quietly herself, and settled at her side for a rest, speaking only once the woman spoke on considering bringing what was left for the pack. It was an idea to consider, "Wow, how thoughtful of you." he started, smiling at the woman who was finally getting the nutrients she needed, "that sounds like a wonderful idea,this pronghorn should be able to help some during this strange famine." his concern rested firmly on her health first, and the remainder of the pack once they returned back with the food, "once you're ready let me know." and he waited patiently for the woman to get her fill.

He waited with surprising patience for the woman to finish the pronghorn meal, having satisfied his own hunger earlier from a small rabbit that had died at the expense of his jaws and no longer felt hungry--it was nourishment that fueled him completely. When she was finished he found it odd that the smell of deer crossed his nostrils, the possibility of a meal within the grasp of the pack, that is if they could assemble them without scaring the herd. He was still in his spot, allowing his nose to lift toward the gust of the wind, attempting to decipher how many potential deer there were for hunting but it was hard to tell from this distance. Expelling a huff of breath he looked toward Frost with a gleam of excitement along his features though he did not speak for fear of ruining this opportunity--there was no way he was throwing this chance away.


His tail rising, he lifted his head to send a boisterous howl into the wind which was directed toward the members of the pack. He was sure that his call would reach at least a mile wide, hopefully some Woodland wolf was close enough in the area to help bring down the weight of a fully grown deer. No doubt the weight himself and Frost combined would not be enough to chase away the other herd members so that they could find a weak link to hunt down. "Call with me Frost." he stated, giving her a side ways glance. They would need to send an urgent enough message to get a prompt response.