Rykas licked the rabbit's blood from his muzzle and took the warm carcass in his jaws, where it hung limply as he loped toward the gentle sound of water. His stomach roared, but the stream was not far off, and it would be much better to eat his meal beside it. The music of water had an uncanny ability to calm him. Recently, the young male had been on edge, so he took advantage of whatever could tame his riled nerves. Eating beside the water usually helped - somewhat. When he and his siblings were young, his mother had taken them to the river at mealtimes, probably because she saw beauty and solace in the water. Now that Rykas understood it, he took up his mother's habit whenever he could and sought water if his emotions spun out of control.



The stream was a silver sash around the beautiful grove. Rykas paused to look into the transparent depths, where minnows flashed among the bedrocks. His redwood eyes glazed slightly as he breathed the crisp autumn air, drawing it deeply into his body. He exhaled, feeling relief. Soon, he would find a direction to take, and his life would regain its meaning. It had to, or he would go insane.



He sat down, then slumped heavily onto his belly, moving the his prey between his pale paws. Blood had never smelled so sweet, nor had a stream sounded so beautiful. He had never been anywhere more serene than this forest, where the only sound seemed to come from the water, perhaps from his own breathing. Rykas began to eat, thinking of nothing but the taste of his food and the stillness that surrounded him. Strangely, his anxiety had not only faded -- it had disappeared.