Even with the seems stitched tightly

MERCY get your things, we're leaving when the morning birds are singing, we're sailing. Though Mercy had straightened under his mother's subtle glance, his back bowed and his legs bent when Naira joined them. His tail swept back and forth happily between his heels, dusting the ground and his ears trembled lightly. He was very fond of her and brimmed with excitement, seeing her here- in action. He trusted that his mother knew what she was doing, but he was all the more impressed that he'd get to see Naira interrogate a newcomer. She came in between himself and his mother which the boy didn't mind at all, and he licked her chin a few times to show his respect. When he looked back at Veronika, it was with an illuminated gaze; wasn't his alpha awesome? Of course, the boy was even more impressed when Naira decided to test the newcomer by going on a hunt. Mercy forgot himself for a moment and in his excitement, bounded forward, nearly blundering into his mother as he did so. He immediately side-stepped, lowering his body and grinning in apology. His mother moved forward, as did Naira, and he trailed behind them for a moment, until he decided to settle back, alongside Veronika. He figured he probably shouldn't bother her with conversation- it probably wasn't the thing to do, with a stranger, when she hadn't proved herself to the pack yet. He didn't notice any pain she might've been in, though every now and again he'd cast a glance her way and offer her a small, encouraging smile. The boy wasn't even paying much attention to the task at hand until his mother addressed him. His head lifted in surprise, and then he quickly lowered it and began to swerve this way and that along their path, behind the alphas and making sure not to cut Veronika off, as he tried to decipher how many scent trails there were. He wanted to impress his mother, Naira, and the newcomer. It was important for him to answer correctly- Sagacity, he thought, was trying to show the newcomer that the pack was a group of trained elites; he'd have to live up to the legacy. <b style="font-family:georgia; color:#fefefe;">"There's definitely a buck with them," He said, and was quite pleased to actually see the shape one of its cleft hooves left behind on the ground. <b style="font-family:georgia; color:#fefefe;">"Decent-sized fella." He said. He wasn't going to try and guess how many points the buck had- that'd be going too far. But the hoofprint was of a decent sized, so he guessed it was at least a few years old. Bucks were the easiest to scent, anyway- they had a much more pungent odor. <b style="font-family:georgia; color:#fefefe;">"Couple of older does, a younger doe...Or two," He said, and focused on one area in particular, before he spoke again. <b style="font-family:georgia; color:#fefefe;">"Two that might've been this year's fawns? I think that's it." He said. <b style="font-family:georgia; color:#fefefe;">"Six and a buck?" Mercy knew well enough not to include the buck in the list of potential kills. A buck- unless it was young, injured or foolish or old- was not their ideal prey. So he left the buck as an addition, rather than suggesting that it would be one of the ones considered for slaughter.

table by mimi

(This post was last modified: Nov 19, 2013, 07:48 PM by Mercy.)

ok if we can get the hunting part over this round and get this thread wrapped up we can move on to our current dilemma!

my milkshake brings all the boys to the pass

and they're like, it's better than your ass

She was impressed. The girl moved confidently, her injury perhaps imagined by the leader as there was very little sign the woman was in pain. Sagacity and Mercy followed suit and her chest swelled with pride as the boy began to track, picking out the scents of those they followed. Six and a buck, a small smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Between the four of them, they should be able to manage a sizable doe, but hunting on the mountain was always treacherous. It was just as fraught for their prey who could easily slip and twist or snap a leg - but they would need to be careful.

A dedicated hunter was one thing they were lacking at the moment, the woman’s sheer determination to prove herself was enough to make her welcome in Naira’s opinion, and if she could prove herself here she would have earned herself a role all in one encounter. Her thoughts slowed as the scents grew stronger, her body inching close to the ground, ears angled forward in earnest. She slowed. Her bulk was better used for pulling prey down than chasing it, her eyes flicked silently to her companions, encouraging them to find their positions. Winter was upon them and they couldn’t afford to mess this up.

Veronika could only guess as to the positions of her new found companions, but at least her assumptions were based on fact. The silvered woman's long legs and lithe frame suggested that she was a runner of sorts, while the young male whose build was similar would probably fall into step behind her. It was clear that the alpha female's large frame would be best suited for taking down the prey, but again, she was guessing.

Pulling up behind the larger female she waited to see everyone's preferred position before taking a definite place. Her movements became caluclated as her stomach inched closer to the ground. Her limp, though not entirely gone, was at least not very apparent. Each time her weight pushed down on it pain shot through her body, but she was going to pull through it. The soft crunch of hooves across the mountainside set her into motion as she began crawling forward, careful of her pawsteps. Catching the dark female's gaze, she began moving away from the group, ready to pull down the animal from the opposite side. Soon the hunt would truely begin, and if all went well, she could have a place here with them.

-cue-lightning-speed I'd love for this to have gone on longer- but I'll wrappity-appity it up with my Mercy post, so we can continue on with present woes and such :D

Sagacty gave her son a quick nod when he began to make guesses about the deer they hunted. She too had focused her attention in on the scent of the herd, and tipped her head in an affirmative response to her son once he'd come up with his final total. Wordlessly, she sank to Naira's side when she could sense their proximity to the herd, made brief but meaningful eye contact with Veronika and Mercy before she moved away from the group, angling herself so that she could keep pace with Naira and fit herself in where needed in order to cut their chosen victim away and bring it down. Her glance had lingered on Mercy just long enough to state her message to him very clearly- don't get underfoot. He would be perfectly useful for the chase, but she didn't want him trying to take the deer down. He hadn't learned how to avoid kicks, or how to angle himself so that he could get a good grip on the deer's hide without risking his own life. Now was not the time to learn such things.

Like a team they moved forward, the three adult females- albeit one with a physical handicap- and the young male. They closed in, their footfalls silent and senses tingling as they closed the gap, moving forward at an accelerated pace until all four of them broke from their cover. With a sharp exhale the stag alerted his herd members to their present danger and all of their white tails stood up, bristling with fear as they began to bound away, at first in different directions in the confusion. Each herbivore sought to spot and identify all of the wolves, but the four predators closed in quickly, startling them and sending them scattering. A few quick maneuvers had one doe separated from the rest, and surrounded by the wolves, who closed in, snapping at her ankles each time she leapt into the air. he lashed out and fought, her cleft hooves shooting out with deadly speed whenever the glistening white of teeth came too close. But with four wolves against one, it was only a matter of time.

Sagacity could still hear the stag's warning whistles even after they'd felled the doe. She doubted very much that the herd had regrouped yet, so they were still unaware that one of them had fallen. The meat was warm and delicious, and would make a good meal for their fellow pack members. Aided by this new member, who'd proven herself even while injured, they dragged the carcass back to share their spoils with the other Nomads, knowing that it could very likely be one of the last good hunts they bad before the winter fell upon them.

Avatars by Arla!

Yes! He was right- and furthermore, though he caught the {i}don't even THINK of going for the kill![/]i look his mother'd given him, Mercy was still fit to burst, with pride, knowing that he was going to participate in a hunt with both his mother and Naira- and the kill was a deer! This was his first large hunt. He knew he'd be nothing more than a chaser, but even that was better than sitting out on the sidelines, as he had so many times before. Now he could put those lessons to good use- he could use the moves he'd seen, swerving, dodging, pushing forward to badger the deer. He knew his mother would sooner tackle him herself than let him get too close to the deer's sharp hooves, but he'd give it his all, nonetheless. He'd be careful, but he'd still make sure he contributed.

It was so surprising, how quickly they came together. It was a different form of communication- one without facial expressions or words- one which went from wolf to wolf simply based on their positioning and the deer's movements. He knew when to duck left, when to push ahead, when the fall to the right or feign an attack. He focused his attention not only on the deer, but on the other wolves around them, sensing their movements so that they did not crowd each other or push the deer in the wrong direction. It was as though it was choreographed, albeit with a few hiccoughs here and there. At the end of it, he slid to a halt while the adults gripped tightly onto the deer's hide and throat while the life slowly faded away from her eyes.

He moved forward to nuzzle Naira and Sagacity, and give a pleased and welcoming smile to Veronika. After having pulled the deer into portions, to make the trip easier, he happily dragged his share up the mountainside, toward their home.