Secluded Spring Closing In On Autumn

Kenelm saw Pharika's nod, but he didn't dare leap out of hiding when she did. He waited instead, finding it wiser to watch for the cat to focus entirely on its first attacker before he came barrelling out at it. It would serve no one but the lynx if he and Pharika flew at it from opposite directions and collided with each other in the effort-- There! Kenelm charged forward as the cat took a swipe at Pharika's chest, thankfully missing her - though only by scant centimeters. It didn't have the chance to do more than notice his arrival before the ashen man slammed into its side, knocking it and himself to the ground in a tangle of fangs and claws. The cat yowled in his ear; distantly Kenelm was aware that its forepaws were tearing shallow gashes into his shoulders as they tumbled around each other, both combatants fighting to get the upper hand on their opponent. Kenelm snarled as one set of claws raked him hard across his right shoulder - that was going to be a bloody mess to clean up, but nothing terribly important felt as though it had been damaged. All the same, any time Pharika wanted to leap back into the fray, he would greatly appreciate it. He tried to ignore the voice at the back of his mind that whispered that she might very well abandon him to the cat and eat her fill while the two were distracted. A second later, ducking out of the way of a swipe aimed for his face helped focus him back on the fight again.

With ash on the wind, I move forward...

Let's Cause Some Chaos

Kenelm dashed in at the perfect time. Pharika watches as the man tangles with the feline; the cat lashes at him just as it did her. The woman's jaws part, her pink-red tongue lolling as she pants heavily. Hackles still pricked, she leaps back into the fray, wanting to end it. A hasty snarl escapes her as she viciously snaps at a hind limb of the lynx. Her eyes close to protect herself from possible slashes; her teeth clack together before they meet flesh. She presses down hard, yanking her head backward as she does so. The lynx, thrown off balance, topples onto the grass, its flank exposed. Pharika braces herself, snapping angrily at the lynx. "Get lost" she barks, her gaze deadly.

The thick-furred feline quickly jumps to its feet and releases a frightened hiss at the pair. It swiftly turns, hobbling off while repetitively turning its head to see if the wolves were following. Pharika still stands, her teeth bared before the lynx disappears out of sight. Once gone, she released a heavy breath, lowering her head to lick her scratched up legs. "That was somethin'" She laughs, her tail flicking in amusement. She turns, her gaze now upon Kenelm "Well done." She says, with a dip of her head.

Still heaving, her eyes scan the body of the man beside her. "Bit scratched up? Nothing too bad on my end." Finally her chest returns to its normal pattern of breathing. Licking her wounds a few more times, she shakes her coat out, wincing slightly at the stinging from her scratches. The blood lust that took hold of her dissipates after she begins talking again. A small smile appears on her ebon lips as she looks toward the deer. "Let's dig in" Pharika was anxious to taste the flesh of the deer. She walks casually over to the corpse, nudging it with her nose. Her chestnut eyes peer at Kenelm, awaiting for him to join her.

(This post was last modified: Sep 29, 2015, 11:04 PM by Pharika.)

With Pharika's help the cat was finally chased away, sent spitting angrily off into the grasses as Kenelm dragged himself upright again. His eyes immediately went to his right shoulder, and with a grimace he realized thin trails of blood were trickling down the length of his leg. A few quick laps at the scratches told him that although there was a good amount of blood, the injuries themselves were rather shallow. Hopefully that stupid hairball wouldn't wind up leaving any scars; he rather felt he had plenty of those as it was. He snorted at Pharika's comments, but the sound was good-natured and he smiled as he trotted over to join her at the carcass. “Not the easiest meal I've ever earned,” he commented wryly. “But I suppose it was good practice, if I ever need to fight for my life again.” He said nothing more, instead digging in to their stolen prey without a second glance at Pharika. The thing could be several days rotted out and he would have been glad for the meal; it was his first big feast in several long, hungry days. He didn't eat greedily, though. Pharika had fought just as hard for the kill, and it had been her idea to take it in the first place. He left the woman plenty of space beside him as he ate, and only took what he needed to feel comfortably full - at least for the moment. There was still plenty of deer left when he sat back with a happy sigh, his muzzle and chest streaked with blood. Plenty left for seconds, he thought wryly.

With ash on the wind, I move forward...

Let's Cause Some Chaos

[[Would you like to fade this out/exit after this post? :)

Pharika observes the wound on Kenelm's neck, and she looks to the ground. As he speaks, though, she lifts her head, a small smile now adorning her face. Odd, she never really smiled fully. "Well, it was well earned." Kenelm begins to feast, and Pharika follows suit. Her pearly fangs tear at the flesh near the chest cavity, ripping it open and snipping at the muscles. She eats slowly at first, savoring the flavor she hadn't had in quite some time. After about ten minutes, her stomach decides enough was enough. Rika would have loved to continue; if she did, though, she'd be rolling away rather than walking.

Lifting her head upward, the blood staining her face is only detectable on the white/gray patches on her face. Licking her muzzle, she closes her eyes, releasing a satisfied sigh. "Perhaps the lynx will return here. I definitely don't want to be caught on a full stomach." The smile wanes as she rises to her large paws. Turning, her eyes look to Kenelm's before she speaks again. "I suppose it is time we part ways." Her mind churns of the travels ahead of her. It was actually kind of nice running into someone else and being able to chat.

"It was a pleasure, Kenelm." She can feel the weight of the meat in her stomach. It was both a nice yet uncomfortable full feeling. Pharika dips her head to the man, preparing her leave once he spoke.

(This post was last modified: Oct 03, 2015, 09:37 PM by Pharika.)

ooc: Fading out here. Thankies for the thread!

---

Kenelm licked at his muzzle absently, his grey eyes turned towards the south - towards the route he hoped Calanthe may yet have taken. Though his weaker eyesight and distance itself provided something of a blurry barricade to the loner's wandering gaze, he imagined he could almost see the pale woman trotting away from him, following some unknown errand. Hopefully that errand was finding a pack, just as hopefully Kenelm had chosen the right direction to head in now that he had lost Calanthe's scent trail. He could try asking Pharika if she knew anything about the girl's whereabouts, but he sincerely doubted the otherwise friendly woman would have any information for him. More and more he was beginning to suspect he might be better off asking pack wolves about Calanthe; not only would they have access to more information than what they had each individually discovered, but they would be able to alert at least a few of their pack mates to the girl's appearance. If nothing else, perhaps a pack wolf would be eager for the opportunity to recruit a wandering young woman into their ranks - but Pharika, surely, was no pack wolf. His question might be wasted on her. Instead he pushed all thoughts of Calanthe to the back of his mind for now, choosing instead to tune in to Pharika's commentary about the Lynx. She had a fair point; cats were notoriously terrible at taking a hint. If a mountain lion didn't understand "stay away" until it was dead, who was Kenelm to say the lynx would prove a better listener? And Pharika clearly knew far more about the stocky, vicious creatures; if she was concerned that theirs - or even any others - might return to try again to fight them for the deer, Kenelm was keen to heed that worry and act accordingly. He had been shredded plenty as it was. Still, he was going to miss having someone to chat with. His encounter with Pharika had been his first taste of "pack" life since... before. Even if it wasn't exactly the same (surely no pack wolves in their right heads would fight a lynx just to snag a quick bite from its kill!), it had still been a refreshing change of pace from his lonely wandering and fruitless searching. For a moment, he had almost been able to forget there was a single thing wrong in his part of the great, wide world. But now it was time to say goodbye. It was time he continued onward, and continued his long, solitary trek through these untamed wilds. The ashen man dragged himself to his feet, similarly feeling quite a bit heavier - though certainly looking hardly any fatter - than when he had first encountered Pharika at the spring. He smiled and dipped his head to her in farewell, saying as he did so, “It was certainly interesting, Pharika. Maybe someday we'll run across each other again - although,” he added wryly, “we should attempt to find our own food if we do. I can only handle so many cat fights.” He shook himself out a bit gingerly, mindful of the scratches across his shoulder, and grinning said, “Goodbye for now, Pharika. Try not to get into any more fights with the local wildlife.” He turned and trotted away, heading south again on a road only he could really "see." He didn't let himself look back, though for a moment the pull was a hard one. With each new wolf he encountered, the former scout of Spirit's Gambol found himself digging his claws back into the open, festering wound the fire had seared into his heart. More and more, the thought was beginning to creep up on him that he might falter and anchor himself to a new pack before he found any further traces or news of his own sister (but never to a new family - never again, not until he knew Calanthe's fate for certain.) It was a disturbing thought, and one that he was glad to leave behind him to rot beside the lynx's feast. {EXIT}

With ash on the wind, I move forward...

Let's Cause Some Chaos