Willow Ridge Listening to the wind of change

@Enoki

The oreo coloured female jumped when he called out his words of finding her and the Ridge Prince giggled. Tail swishing back and forth eagerly, he smiled widely at her praise, barking out excitedly in happiness. "Of course I found you, I'm the best tracker in alllll of Willow Ridge!" Cass exclaimed proudly, almost believing it himself, and wanting his new friend to believe it too. Someday, he'd be the best tracker in all the world, and no one would be able to best him. Well, that was his goal for now, and he try his damned best to complete it.

His ears pricked, nose twitching furiously as the scent of prey floated into his sensate nose. Rabbits. They were delicious, and he had seen them hopping about every now and then, he had even pounced in the general direction of a few of them, but he was never swift enough to actually catch one, never mind go chasing after it. Maybe he could have Enoki help him catch it. Turning to face his new friend, Cass nodded his pretty little head when she asked if he was hungry. As if in response his stomach grumbled loudly, and instead of feeling sheepish or shy, he giggled again. "I could eat a whole deer by myself!" He woofed, ready to go chasing after the rabbit scent that was enticing him to follow. "Can we go catch them?" The Ridge Prince asked, wanting her permission to go after them before just bounding off. He had learned from his older brother, Dee, to always ask permission when going anywhere, or face the wrath of Mother and Father and be banished to the pack den.

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As if to voice his answer for him the Ashrelle woman heard the faint gurgle of the young pup's stomach, the young boy giggling at the sound before voicing his answer for himself. "I could eat a whole deer by myself!" This brought a soft chuckle from the woman as she pictured that very thought, the little lad sprawled at the bare carcass of deer with his belly protruding enormously from his tiny frame. Boy wouldn't that be a sight to see, but then the next words to leave Castiel's mouth brought Enoki back from his temporary musing. "Can we go catch them?" He asked, looking up at her patiently for the permission he so eagerly wanted to hear. The piebald woman knew not of previous events that resulted in his brother Deacon being pup-napped from below their noses, stemming the reasoning why he asked for her permission instead of just bounding off after their next meal. "We can surely try, little prince. Rabbits are quick on their feet." A smile graced her lips as her amber gaze bore down at him, rising to all fours.

"Have you gone on hunts yet with the pack?" Still being new to joining the ranks there was a blank space where information about the pups would be found. Normally in a pack, by this age the pups may or may not have been brought to pack hunts to observe the process of getting the food they needed to survive. Enoki was unaware of the rearing of these pups in that aspect. They could have, they could not have been given their first bits of hunting experience. This did not completely matter to her as she would be glad to give the pup a lesson in hunting. Hunting was a love of hers and something she took great pride in doing.

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@Enoki

A squeak of excitement exploded from Cass's maw at the oreo coloured female's affirmation at hunting the rabbits. Looking up at her, bouncing from paw to paw while she rose to her feet, he grinned widely. "Not as quick as me! I'll catch every single one of them," he boasted proudly, fighting the urge to go running off towards the nest. His new friend surely knew more than him about catching rabbits, and as she was taking her time he would too... to the best of his ability. The Ridge Prince was still an unpredictable pup, but he could curb his enthusiasm at times.

Padding eagerly next to Enoki, he glanced at her when she asked if he had gone on a pack hunt before, a slight frown on his face. "No, not yet. But I hope we will soon, I wanna learn everything I can. Plus it sounds like it'd be really interesting." He had always wondered what a pack hunt would be like. Would there be lots of wolves crowding around for the chance at a bite at the prey, or would they all be separate in certain places and each help take it down. The Ridge Prince was excited for that, to see how his family did it, and maybe even participate in the hunt if he was allowed. "What is a pack hunt like?" He questioned Enoki curiously. Looking at the nest where the rabbits were hiding, Cass felt excitement bubbling up inside him. He briefly wondered how proud his parents and how jealous his siblings would be when he brought a rabbit into the pack den to show off his amazing hunting skills.

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Castiel's excitement never failed to bring an amused smile to her maw as he yet again responded with an energetic squeak and proclamation on how he was going to be the quickest one in the end and end up with all the rabbits at his feet. Enoki had to smile at that and his positive energy rubbed off so easily as her head lowered to meet his gaze, emitting a low growl that was playful in nature and meant for his ears only before she spoke in a soft tone that radiated her confidence in him. "And you will be the talk of the pack coming home with all these rabbits you caught yourself." With that she gave him a quick wink, knowing that she was going to help him, but that could be their little secret. She liked this little Ridge prince and didn't mind giving him the spotlight.

Silence fell between the two for a brief expanse of time as the duo padded along the scent trail, Enoki's steps slowing only when the scent grew to its strongest point meaning that the nest they would find the rabbits hiding in for protection was only a stones throw away. "What is a pack hunt like?" the young prince asked with an exuberant amount of curiosity. This made the woman think back to her time spent in her homelands within the Calarosa pack. That was the last time she had participated in a pack hunt and the memory felt like it had only happened yesterday as she recalled it. "It is an exhilarating feeling." She began while continuing to wander in his fond memories of home and life among the pack. "I haven't hunted with the pack here yet, but I can tell you about my childhood. My parents had every last muscle movement planned out and who was to take what position."

Her words paused momentarily to let them sink in his young mind to picture the scene. "They knew the strengths and weaknesses of every pack member and they used them to the best of their abilities. The fastest wolves that could run forever started the hunt first, tiring the prey for the second group of wolves to take over. That group consisted of wolves not at fast, but could still run for ages to keep tiring the prey and leave small wounds to weaken the animal while leading it to the last group where the rest of the hunting party awaited to take over and give the others a break. Now this group was made up of the strongest wolves in the pack." Once more she paused as her steps also paused, not wanting to spook their prey with her hunting talk before they were prepared. "Their job was to bring down the animal and secure it enough for someone to give the life ending bite to the jugular. Then everyone in the pack feast until their bellies are about to pop." A small chuckle followed her last statement, amber gaze washing over his face to take in his reaction to how a pack hunt worked.

@Enoki Short post compared to your beautiful, big post <3

Tail swishing behind him happily, Cass giggled again after the oreo coloured female spoke with confidence that everyone would be proud of him. Maybe now he could finally show his older brother that they were equal with one another, rather than Dee being better just because he was the first born of his litter. Not that he minded, he also sometimes felt like that, he just wanted to be on the same terms as his brothers. The Ridge Prince's ears cocked curiously as Enoki answered his questions of what a pack hunt was like, replying with it being an exhilarating feeling. He also felt like at times, every minute of his day had been previously planned out for his by the adults of Willow Ridge, as there always seemed to be one nearby.

Cass listened silently and attentively as his friend began to tell him what a pack hunt was like. When she told him about all the different roles the wolves would have to play, chasing down the prey, tiring the prey, bringing down the prey, he immediately knew what his job would be. He would be one of the strongest wolves of the pack, the muscle used to bring down the prey. Already he was built more heavyset compared to his siblings, though a little smaller and less lengthy than his younger, lanky brother Greer. Deacon however, seemed to be in the middle of them, being neither one nor the other. He looked sideways at Enoki as she finished speaking, eyes lit up with a bright golden fire. It all sounded so fascinating, and he could wait to be a part of it himself. "I can't wait until I get to join a pack hunt! It sounds like so much fun." It was then that he glanced at the rabbit nest, ears pricked forward, gazing at the entrance. Would they hunt the prey now? He glanced meekly back at Enoki, a silent question in his eyes.

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The smile that graced her lips only grew wider as Enoki witnessed the fire behind his eyes grow brighter and hear the enthusiasm in his voice at his impatient words of joining the pack for a hunt some day. The Ashrelle woman would enjoy being there on the day he got to join the pack and have the possibility of passing on her knowledge of the hunt to the young prince. Hunting was such a love to her and to encourage the next generation of excellent hunters would be such an honor. And then as soon as his words left his lips his gaze focused on the rabbit nest before meekly looking back at her to silently ask if they would hunt said rabbits now? To answer him just as silently she gave a small nod of her head and morphed her body language into that of her hunting mode, glancing in his direction to have him mimic her actions.

Lowering her body to the ground she slowly crept closer to the entrance of the burrow, occasionally stealing a glance to her friend while whispering just loud enough for him to hear. "Now you must sneak up quietly on the prey or else you risk spooking them and having them run before you can secure the entrance. If they escape you can kiss your snack goodbye." A small chuckle then followed from between her lips, focusing her amber gaze upon the burrow entrance as the two closed the distance between them and their snack. She could almost taste the blood on her tongue and this caused it to slip out and graze over the black lining of her lips.