Blackberry Fields savage the poison

Overcast, mid day — Current Temperature: 43° F/6° C | North of Secret Woodlands on the fringes of Blackberry Fields. @Koda, feel free to post before @Kite

They'd been slowly moving north for the better part of a number of hours. The winter may have stripped him of many things, but his hunting and tracking prowess was not one of them, and as the morning had faded into afternoon they were getting so close. Slipping silently between the aged trunks of two ancient trees, the scent of the deer herd that had seemed to have eluded him that night in Copper Rock Creek was thick on the wind. He tested it with a flick of his tongue, lifting his muzzle to catch a whiff. It wasn't remarkable that the herd had taken to the woods, but luckily enough their trail had led to the outskirts of the blackberry fields to the east. An open area wouldn't hide the hungry wolves, but it would make for an excellent chase. His eyes, bright in the scattered shadows of the forest, found hers. "They're close," he informed. By now, the two yearlings were the epitome of team. They didn't have to collaborate, they didn't need to ask questions, and they didn't have to second guess about the other; Kite and Mirren moved fluidly, thought fluidly, and acted fluidly. Everything about her complimented everything about him, and today, as they trailed their prey, he had no doubt that the hunt would only exemplify this. His breath was hot as the cloud of it met his wet, black nose and adrenaline coursed through his veins like a river. The thought of a fresh, warm meal in his hungry belly was tantalizing, and the Tainn was primed to kill.

I was not sure if Koda met Mirren before...

Hunger was his constant companion; today was no different. He ignored the groans of his stomach, and instead concentrated on the scent he'd been following for the better part of a mile; the deer were close. He was no fool, knowing full and well that by himself he could not bring down the bulk of a deer alone, but he was within range to call those of Secret Woods when he was within sight prey. Long, thick legs plowed through what remained of the winter snow as his gaze was cast over the horizon and intensely trained on the brown pelt of his prey.

No sooner did he reach Blackberry Fields did he caught wind of another scent, this one heavy of wolf; their perfumes seemed to melt together though Koda could tell their were two and of Secret Woods. Perfect, there was no need in wasting breath with members close by but he would toss a howl into the wind if he needed to and bring in more. Increasing his speed, as excitement raged through him at the possibility of catching prey, he followed the trail left behind by his pack members and woofed them a reply when he was within range. He noted how fluidly the two wolves walked, as if melted together and a feeling of jealousy dropped in his gut; they reminded him of his past relationship with Nina. Though their relationship was in the past, he still reminisced of what once was between them but was no fool in assuming that anything could be mended between the two--he only hoped these wolves would be more lucky. Having come within range he slowed his run into a fast walk as he closed the gap between his counterparts, his tail wagging quick behind him. "Have you two come in search of food?"

Kite slunk next to him, prepared to kill. Kite had always thought of bringing something to prove her worth... and at last she had admitted to Mirren her idea. He helped her, as she had known that he would, without any persuasion. Kite moved with him, step for step, her tail lashing behind her. His information given was already known, but she so appreciated the sentiment of his informing her. She rumbled lowly, licking her chops. Her stride was strong, sinewy muscles stretching beneath her winter furs.

Kite was eager for their hunt to truly begin. They would soon have a visual, and in mere seconds, they did. Her own breath fogged before her eyes, but she sliced through the area before there was any chance for her to note it. Kite seemed to move a bit faster, but peered sidelong to him. She had always been the chaser; she was swift, and fast. Kite had broken an animals leg before by chance and chance alone, but she was not primed for the kill as he was. She would chase and help him, snapping at it and helping bleed it out a bit before it would arrive to him. Kite paced forward some before loping back, her tail excitedly whipping left and right. She gestured toward their quarry, grinning impishly. Shall we test them? See the injured, unnerve them, cause them to run. They could not hunt that which did not move... and she knew their arrival and wolfish eye would unnerve the crowd. It would be easy to pick out the weak when they were tested...

But another presence caused Kite to lift her head and look in the direction of a wolf that smelled as Mirren did, of his pack. His question caused Kite to nod. We're here to hunt, she informed, her eyes flashing and her lips curling in a feral grin.

(This post was last modified: Apr 15, 2014, 11:48 PM by Kite.)

They haven't met personally, but I'm sure it could be said that they each know who the other is as they're in the same pack? Keeping it vague there.

As he could have easily imagined, the side of Kite that seemed to emerge as they tracked was just as alluring as all the others. Sleek. Powerful. Sharp. Even the way she licked her lips added to her blossoming deadly facade. Mirren tried not to let it distract him. Off in the distance he could hear the mewling and here and there he could make out the sight of their quarry. Stretching his neck to get a better look as Kite skated forward to check them out, it was no wonder the scent of them was strung about all over the place. There were so many! Maybe it was because he hadn't seen a deer or anything else alive and remotely edible through the winter, but laying his own eyes on a herd of them was enough to make his heart beat a hair harder. Mirren shared Kite's impish excitement fully, and this was apparent by the feverish gleam on his face when she returned to him. He couldn't read her mind, but he did. Before they could make a move, however, the rustle of foliage and the distinct crunch of old snow behind them caused his head to snap around, a growl rumbling lowly in his throat. With Kite around, he would never be too cautious, and really he'd make child's play of flaying anything that could possible pose a threat to the girl. But from the forest emerged a familiar figure, and with a grin he inclined his head in acknowledgment. "Koda," he regarded his pack mate invitingly. Mirren had made it his business to know about the man. After all, he'd played an intricate part in Nina's life, and Nina was like a mother to him. Mirren knew exactly who he was, and, well, he didn't begrudge the guy. In fact, he was pleased to see him─three sets of teeth were better than two. Kite proceeded to inform him of their purpose here, and Mirren was quick to add, "There, just over that knoll─" He motioned toward the herd. "─they're ripe for the picking."

His eyes lingered on Kite, the first to respond to his question and probably the lead in their relationship, and produced a smile after she confirmed the answer to his question. He couldn't help thinking about how familiar he was with their kind of relationship; definite roles were assigned. The male was the muscle, the strength and protection and the female was the stealthy, bright one of the bunch; it was ever so typical. Like Mirren, he was accustomed to being the muscle, the protection in any situation, and watching the pair swelled his heart as his attention next moved to Mirren who had greeted him by name. He hardly recognized the young male but since they were of the same pack he assumed that perhaps he had met the male in passing a time or two--his memory wasn't the greatest as of late. Having acknowledged both wolves with silent body language, his lips pursed before he finally spoke, "Good, we can use some young muscle." he mused, ears pulling backward on his skull as a fierce wind brought with it the tempting scent of traveling deer.

He was not sure of Mirren's skills, and his companion was little known to him, but he assumed hunger could bring out the instinct of any predator, otherwise they would starve; he would not allow a packmate to famish on his watch. Flexing his shoulder muscles, and gripping the ground with his toes, he turned toward the strong scent of wafting scent before turning to face his company once more a smile on his lips. Mirren was correct these deer were ripe for the picking, but he would not get too confident, he was still weary of the skills of his counterparts, Secret wood or not. "Tell me, which one you two prefer," and a wicked smile spread the length of his lips; game on.

Koda. The name stuck. She would not forget that name, and her tail waved left and right. When all was quiet for a moment, she introduces herself. I'm Kite. I'm, ah, new, first-meet jitters! But she brushed those aside as he directed her attention to the situation at hand, and again her fangs were revealed in an excited smile.

We ought to test them out, get them moving. It's a large herd... there could be a number of weak ones. We just need to find the weakest. Kite's tail waved left and right as her eyes turned in the direction Mirren had gestured to but moments ago. The huntress moved forward, not quite stalking yet... their presence ought to be known to the large herd, who made their presence no mystery. The small group could harass the herd one portion at a time, snapping at them to begin the surge of movement they would need to know who exactly the weakest link was.

A few more steps forward... but she pauses, looking over her shoulder. Sound like a plan? She waits a moment before continuing, Or do you have any other ideas...? Kite and Mirren were equal parts to a whole. Truly, she did not see herself any higher than him, and valued any and all of his ideas, thoughts, and just about anything he could express in any way. Kite only knew how to handle big herds due to the herds from home and them being of a similar size. Also, they only had open land... this, Kite had done before.

Going to get this thing moving along :)

Mirren watched carefully as Koda's gaze lingered on Kite, his own intelligent eyes roving over the man's worn features. Obviously the old wolf was no threat, and Kite was surely beautiful enough to warrant such a look, but he wasn't sure he appreciated that. Nonetheless, his tawny counterpart responded with grace, as usual, and the Tainn was content to let her show the boys how things were done. Her observations were right on, and he personally had no objections to her suggestions. Stepping to her side, the masked boy glanced over at Koda before addressing Kite. "An excellent plan," he affirmed. "We'll start at the back and play it by ear." It was certain that once they descended upon the herd that panic would ensue, and they weren't going to be able to single one out until then. He didn't see much point in spinning their wheels any longer. "Let's get it done." And with that he made to move, motioning for Koda to follow suit as he prowled from their position in the trees with not but one thing on his mind. Saliva pooled in the corners of his dark lips, the smell of their chosen prey very nearly overwhelming as he came upon them. Quickly his eyes found two fawns, their spotted patterns sticking out like a sore thumb among others in the group. Cutting across the clearing swiftly, he didn't have to look to know Kite would surely be finding her own path. Coming up from behind the herd, a vicious growl bellowed from deep within the tawny predator's chest as he closed in on them. Before he could move to snap at their heels they were already on the run.

Couldn't help a slight Hunger game quote! :D

When his eyes fell on Mirren he noted the male's own lingering gaze, watching Koda's every move as though he would take Kite from beneath his watchful gaze and a crooked smile eased on his lips, finding a sort of humor from the young male's jealousy. Though Koda was fairly capable of taking a young woman as his own he found no interest in Kite, her every movement seemed to mimic that of Mirren and the older male had recognized their relationship from the moment they arrived on the scene; he couldn't quite tell if it was lust or love within their eyes, but there was definitely something there.

Dismissing the male's gaze, though remembering his moment of jealousy, he watched in silence as the young woman took the lead in the hunt, following behind her was Mirren who suddenly seemed intent on taking the reins, probably for the sake of declaring his dominance over his mate and proving his intelligence over the older male. Though he was assuming this, he was probably more correct than wrong, dominance was always on the mind of a male, and pack mates were no different, especially from that of the old and the young.Two can play that game Koda thought, allowing his ears to fall slowly to his skull as he cast his gaze toward the lingering herd, having grown more interested in them then the conversation at hand.

He followed behind the duo for the sake of conserving his energy, he was not much of analytic, he left those up to the more skilled hunters in the pack, though his muscles were well suit for helping to bring down prey, his mighty lungs were strong to keep up his stamina, and his eyes were well trained on the targets ahead of him. His age would not show during this hunt, in fact one would forget Koda had turned yet another year on the Lore, and he would make sure that Mirren and his mate knew just how capable he was of using all of his skills. "May the odds be in our favor."

(This post was last modified: Apr 18, 2014, 02:38 AM by Koda.)

Arla and Emma are the ish and made my pretties!
Koda will most likely always be accompanied by Chiron unless otherwise stated, or requested.

Kite had no idea what was going on in either of their heads. While Kite was perceptive enough to understand Mirren, she was not totally clairvoyant. She was oblivious to Koda's once-over assessment of her, and although Kite herself had briefly looked the elder male over, she had not done so in any other way but one that was harmless, not wanting the male to be injured and further hurt the spot in their chase. But he was a fit male, and Kite knew better than anyone that Koda might be even reaching his prime, if he was not there yet.

Mirren accepted her plan, and so, apparently, did Koda. Kite propelled herself forward, pleased that they were alright with her tactic, and they were off!

He took the lead. Kite swung around him, and her ears turned to the eldest of them as he spoke. Kite could only hope the odds would be in their favor, else they would lose a perfectly good opportunity before their eyes, and waste precious energy. A leveret bounded past her along the way... and Kite was content to ignore it in favor of a slow fawn. However, as soon as she snapped at it, its speed dramatically increased and its good health was noted. Damn.

Kite smelled the air, trying to dissect them from one another. There was a hint of sickness, somewhere... age, too, but not an age that promised a detriment to their prey. But with a herd so large, Kite knew it would only be a matter of time... her long-legged stride was rigid and full of power and prowess as her keen eyes moved from one body to the next, an expert herder just waiting for a distinguishable weakness.

The odds. They were surely in the wolves' favor, but the clever boy knew well that he was the architect of his own fortune. Their mewling and panicked cries spurred him on as he wove through them, growling, snapping, picking them apart with a practiced eyes. An easy kill would entail snatching up one of the leggy fawns, but after months of starvation the Tainn craved a larger meal, not to mention that he was cautious not to risk injury inflicted from a protective mother. The telltale stink of sickness lingered in the air, mingled with the smell of fear and breath and grass. After a time the declining buck came into view, his antlers as wide as a tree trunk, his face tailored in shades of silver that gave away his age. The elder's body was less defined than the others, the atrophy in his musculature visible even from a distance. The sight of him was grand, but so was the thought of stripping the flesh from his knobby leg. A pointed bark alerted his counterparts of his position and intent. Swinging out wide from the herd, he cut across the clearing directly to his target as heat filled his cheeks, the adrenaline coursing through him drying the saliva that had pooled in his mouth and dripped along his dark flews. Mirren surged forward, long and powerful strides enabling him to head the old buck off. With his dark-tipped tail curled high over his back, his posture clearly formidible, he made his stand against his prey as he waited out the seconds until the others would join in.