Ghastly Woods A Guardian of Sorts

No worries at all! XD

<blockquote>Her ears flicked forward happily<b>"Sounds delicious."</b> she admitted enthusiastically, her stomach gurgling along in agreement. Up until now, she hadn't realised just how hungry she was. She happily trotted along behind the wintery male, humming a happy little tune under her breath, pausing occasionally to take a deep whiff of the air, happy that they were still on track. Watching the way he skirted water or cleared it bought another smile to her face as she happily sloshed through the shallow streams, they could probably work on that later.

She saw the antlers first and darted forward into Ice's line of sight, indicating he should slow down and motioning with her head to the looming branch like antlers swaying in the trees. She inched forward, pausing momentarily to manoeuvre herself further downwind. The herd were bunched tightly, one slightly apart from the others. She wasn't really old enough to be counted among the ill or weak, but she was missing one of her antlers and seemed to be carrying a slight limp. She looked to Ice with a raised brow. It looked like they were in luck. <b>"Ready?"</b> she questioned with a dangerous glint in her eyes.

The adrenalin was already kicking in. Her muscles bunching in anticipation she launched herself from the undergrowth, startling the herd in one direction and their little loner in the other, jaws snapping on legs and flanks wherever she could find her mark. Just enough to slow her down until one of them could reach the beasts throat...</blockquote>

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the   ICE breaks. Concentration fell across them, two minds united by and bent to a single goal. The ground disappeared beneath their relentless, steady feet, and nothing seemed to break their pace nor concentration, until a movement up ahead. Naira spotted it just before he did, barreling in in front of him. Ice slammed on the brakes and rocked back, head thrown high as his nose quivered. So close... His eyes sought out the female, acknowledging that she take the lead, and as she slipped further downwind he ghosted after her quietly. The frozen shadowed spring ground left neither imprint nor sound to tell of their deadly passing, eyes glinting in the murky light of the woods. It was a long time since he had hunted larger game in the company of another, but even though his mind did not remember, his body did. Low, alert, he slunk after her, but as she marked their starting position and breathed a question, he gave a fierce nod and began to move away. The thrill of the hunt began to thrum in his veins, adrenaline pumping into the system as he skirted aside a little to better intercept the prey. Naira exploded out of the darkness, wedging herself between the isolated limping female and the rest of the group. The major body of the reindeer herd startled away from them, and he knew that it was on: they had this one chance, this one animal. It was a bit of a gamble, but if they played it out right, it ought to work. However, they were both large. Speed wasn't on their side, so timing was crucial - timing was everything, and the reason that Ice had moved off a bit. He had plenty of stamina and explosive strength that he'd seldom found in another, but sprinting? He was no good at it. Naira's interception drove the lone reindeer away from the group, and from along its projected path, Ice burst, lips peeled back as he closed the distance in as swift a lope he could muster. Muscles rippled beneath his thick fur, blunt claws and rough pads gripping the earth and powering him on. He spent no time thanking the weather for firm, frozen traction instead of spring mush, but simply barreled on like a bullet, careening into the deer and forcing it to swerve sideways. Anything that would mess up its footing, compromise its balance and thus reduce its speed would work in their favor. Because of the angle he'd arrived at, he was more side by side with the beast, but they were matched in pace for the moment and he felt a certainty that any gamble for the throat would be an utter failure, so instead he busied himself with two things; snapping at its front legs and shoulder region, as well as constantly moving in closer, trying to unnerve it or, which would be painful but effective, actually make it trip on him. He didn't relish the prospect of those small, strange feet of the reindeer kicking or trampling him, but he had plenty of muscle to deal with glancing blows without his bone structure being at a risk. Hopefully though, their constant interference with its legs and flanks, and Ice's sideways pressure, would distract it enough for Naira to burst close enough to jump for its throat. She was, after all, lither than him, and thus, he guessed she was a bit faster than him. .ice aesir

let the stars above shine in your soul

sorry, little muse for hunts this week D: work is killing me. Sorry its short and crappy.

<blockquote>She could see the grey males intentions as if they were using one mind. If it hadn't been for the limp they would both be left in the swift animals wake. Snapping at the beasts shoulder, hoping to slow it down further through injury and bloodless she chanced a glance forward and noticed a small stream still partially frozen over. It was exactly what they needed but she knew her hunting partner wouldn't like it. She moved to the side, allowing their prey a little moving room on her side so they could veer from the water source and back to drier ground.

As the animal moved closer to her she took a chance and picked up her speed, drawing even with its lighter coloured throat she launched her first snap missing by a hair, the second finding its mark. With a savage growl she bit down hard, missing any arteries but crushing the animals windpipe. She couldn't let go now. Just a little longer...</blockquote>

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the   ICE breaks. The thrill of the hunt pounded through is body, reverberating through his flesh with each beat of his powerful heart. Adrenaline flooded every artery, each breath quick and ragged, gulping down oxygen and exhaling it again in stutters. Ice's mind was bent to the task, and the rest of the world fell away. He was unaware of the looming creek, only sensed that the creature was veering more and more away. He didn't analyze it, he simply followed, grunting as each stride had to lengthen in order to keep up. Halfheartedly he snapped at it, nipping flesh and coming away with the metallic taste of blood rushing in with every breath. On the other side of the frenzied reindeer Naira was moving in, through the blur of legs he could see hers. Time seemed to stretch, her first lunge missing, the second striking true and he leaned in, jaws closing on the nearest front leg and biting down hard... Ice slammed on the brakes as the reindeer stumbled and toppled sideways, its back and shoulder shoving him aside. Panting, he slunk further away to avoid the kicking legs as the animal writhed in pain. Not even a flutter of guilt; a wolf's hunt was not iniquitous, it was necessity. It wasn't a blood lust, it was survival. It was kill or be killed. Even though he was a philosopher by nature, he wouldn't ever dream of going vegetarian. It simply wasn't in his genes to not eat meat. Breathing hard, he trotted to the downed animal from a safe angle. It kicked weakly now, dying, asphyxiated. It reeked of panic, and with a low growl he bit down hard beside Naira, hoping to speed it along. He didn't want to try and eat from a kicking reindeer - despite the soft look of their hooves, they were bitches to be hit by. After a while though, the deer's eyes had glazed over, no longer full of warm fear and desperation. The upmost shoulder twitched feebly as the electrical currents ran haywire inside, but the flesh was cooling, the blood stilling. A successful kill. Likely his next three attempts at downing something large would be foiled, then. It was quite rare that you took everything you intended to take, and sometimes you misjudged an animal's condition horribly. Luckily for them, they hadn't in this case. It was a healthy animal, but the injury had been its undoing. Breathless, hungry, trying to shake the adrenaline off, Ice lifted his pale eyes to behold the female with her bloody muzzle. "You alright, Naira?" He couldn't see anything that appeared to be a wound on her, and since she had managed to rush up and grab the throat, he guessed she was okay unless the reindeer had hit her when it fell. Somehow, it would feel bad to start feeding before checking she was okay, and slowly he drifted around the reindeer's head. He'd much rather eat the belly than the back. .ice aesir

( don't worry! and don't feel pressured about replying just because I am in a phase of quick ones. I know what it's like to not feel like it for a while. c: )

let the stars above shine in your soul

Wrap it up soon?

<blockquote>She wasn't expecting the sudden downfall of the reindeer and her neck was jerked momentarily before she let her body go limp and follow her jaw to ground. If she had tensed up instead she imagined she would be in a fair bit of pain for several days with a jarred neck. She could feel the fight ebbing away with the clamping of her jaws and was grateful for the added assistance to speed up the reindeers passing.

As her jaws loosened, she realised the hunt was pulled of flawlessly, and after several misses on her own it was a wonderful boost to her confidence. <b>"I am...'</b>she said between panting breaths <b>"and you didn't run into a creek so I'm hoping no other harm came to you?"</b> she questioned with a small twinkle in her eyes. She doubted he even knew the creek was there, he had been so caught up in tripping the hulking creature up. It was a shame they were so far away from home, it would be a wonderful boon for their caches. Perhaps a leg would do...

<b>"Best dig in while its still warm..."</b> she offered with a small smile, turning to tear the still thick fur and skin back from the flesh and innards. It tasted amazing after such a long absence from her diet. Yes, she had missed it.</blockquote>

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the   ICE breaks. As she confirmed her being free from harm, Ice relaxed and gave a short nod. Good. He'd have felt bad otherwise if his strangely successful tripping-up of the reindeer had harmed her. After all, they were larger than wolves, and he didn't relish the thought of being trapped underneath one - or kicked by one, for that matter. However, a chill traveled down his spine when she went on. A creek? The look in her eyes was all mischief, and with his heart hammering in his chest, Ice turned, stiff. His eyes traced their trail and its convenient arc, but it wasn't until he raised his head a little that a sunbeam refracted off the open portion of it slammed into his eyes. Shutting them, he made a face. So, she'd saved him from that. "Thanks," he said, half-amused, half-annoyed that she'd noticed his animosity towards open, unfrozen water. Sighing, he turned back to the present, sidling up beside her. The carcass steamed in the air, and her suggestion was splendid. "Mmh," he said by way of agreeing, briefly giving her shoulder a friendly nudge before settling beside her. In truth, she outranked him, but the deer's belly was large enough for both of them to eat shoulder to shoulder - if she wanted to enforce feeding order, she was welcome to try, but her suggestion made him think she wouldn't. Teeth dug into hide and helped flay the skin aside, red staining his pale front as dark blood pooled beneath the still body. Messy, but excellent. Grinning to himself, he abandoned all thoughts for the simple joy of eating. Perhaps, when the meal was done, she'd not be opposed to rolling up under a tree and sleeping it off... .ice aesir

( the end! I also attribute the reindeer's swift death to my solid belief of their stupidity and tendency for random suicidal actions. xD )

let the stars above shine in your soul