Oak Tree Bend Path to Nowhere

He enjoyed getting up just before the world was alive. Sure, there would be a lonesome cricket, or the high pitched sound of a bat, but mostly he was alone. It was also in the early morning that Larkspur had the most energy, and it was then that he did his best to be of help to his pack. He had made a vow to help Oak Tree Bend as a hunter after he'd gotten back on his feet. He hadn't expected to keep the promise, or to even really get to know the faces of the wolves of the Bend. Yet here he was, alive and well. Or, well enough, he supposed.

Hunting wasn't typically a solitary role, but Lark felt as if he'd do better on his own. He liked having the job of ripping bats from the sky, or spending the first hours of light pulling rabbits out of their homes. If he caught enough, Larkspur would reward himself with a bite of a leg, or if he was so lucky, a deer hoof from the cache. That morning hadn't been such a fruitful one and Lark had barely managed to grab a squirrel, and a bird that hadn't been paying attention. He was disappointed in himself, as they were meals for cats. A pup could play with them, but it was barely a snack for a grown wolf.

The sun hadn't been up for an hour or two. The day was still young and Lark found himself itching for some bigger prey. He couldn't take down a deer by itself, but a hog, maybe if he could find one small enough... that would be well deserving of a reward. He walked without purpose for a while, but then had his nose to the ground as he frantically searched for any sort of scent.

@Naira

@Larkspur

She knew soon the days would once again grow cold, her hips and back would ache far worse than they did now and her failing hearing would only get worse. Oh how the mighty fall, she dared to think with a smirk, but her legacy would be a lasting one, her children still alive to carry on in her place. 

She preferred to start her day with the sun, laying and basking in the first rays just outside the den. When her old joints were sufficiently warmed, she would make a pass of the borders, the children now old enough to mingle among themselves and be watched by one of the yearlings. It was by chance she caught the frantic snuffling and rooting through the undergrowth, fur standing on end as she remembered the grizzly sight that met them when they found that poor white girl. 

Ears pulled back and teeth exposed Naira growled as she made a small charge through the undergrowth, more focused on using her bulk for intimidation than actually causing damage. One can only imagine her surprise when instead of a pig she almost ran right over the top of another wolf, younger and pale, but larger than Drift. As she stopped in her tracks, mouth agape, her expression morphed into one of pure shock and chagrin, an apologetic smile pulling at the corner of her mouth, but she would never say the words. "I thought you were breakfast, boy." There was a hint of good-natured teasing in her voice for surely he could not be more than a year or two younger than herself. What she wanted to see was whether he would take it as a slight or not.

There was a loud twishing of shrubs, which halted Larkspur's search. Barrelling out from the shadows was a woman, large and threatening. Not able to do much else in that instant, he braced himself, though was only met with an odd, apologetic sort of smile. He didn't recognize the woman and was a little bit grateful for it. She smelled of Spectral Woods, so he could only assume she was a packmate.

Boy? Larkin's ears pinned in annoyance. Boy, she'd called him! His scowl grew deeper, jaw tightly closed as he watched the woman. "Does grandma get a little bit cranky if she doesn't have her sack?" He thought it was a little bit strange, how much better he felt after laying out an insult. "Don't you worry, old timer, I'll get you some breakfast and then you can continue being your fat, merry self," he said, not intending for the woman to get a scrap of anything that he caught.

Boy! he spat in his mind again. Larkspur sniffed again and took a step away from the woman. He had half the mind to just continue on his trek, but two wolves would probably be more successful than one. His ears twisted in annoyance before he glanced back at her. "Are you going to stand there like an idiot or help?" it was as kind of an invitation that he could offer.

@Naira

Oh this one was the type to bite back. A smirk began to light her eyes but it did not reach the edges of her lips. It had been too long since anyone had possessed the balls to do so and it pleased her to no end. So much so that she angled herself to walk along his right side, good left ear turned to catch whatever other venom he might spit in her direction. "Very grumpy indeed," she confirmed with a sagely nod, "Why in my younger days I was known to push little upstarts right off the mountain if they bothered to give me lip." Humour laced her tone as she glanced at the younger wolf out of the corner of her eye as he called her fat. Hefty she might have been but even to this day she still insisted it was her mother's arctic fur that made her appear so plush. "All the better to squash you with, my dear," She countered in an attempt to make it clear that it was a very rare occasion that left her feeling merry.

When he thought to call her an idiot, she sidestepped - bringing her flank into his with a warning bump. "Oh I'm sorry!" she gushed, words dripping with sarcasm. "These old bones just aren't what they used to be." If he chose to escalate she was ready, if not then she would ask the lad just what was on the menu.

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

Larkspur snorted, "I must be in the clear today, I haven't seen a mountain around these parts for weeks," unlike his companion, he didn't sound very jovial. His tone was serious, but his words joking. The fact that he wasn't a snarling and snapping mess might as well been enough to consider him in good enough of a mood, and the fact that he had not run off meant he didn't seem to really mind the old gal's companionship. Another snort, "I'm trembling in my paws," he dryly told her. He took a good whiff of the air around him and almost took off.

It was that dumb lynx. Larkin's fur bristled, but was brought back to the now when the woman bumped into him. He could relax, he supposed, he wasn't in as poor of shape as he'd been before when the lynx had been after him. Inwardly, he sighed, and had half the mind to trip the old woman, but decided he didn't need to risk her breaking a hip on him. "Do you tell that to all of the cute boys?" he gave the woman a toothy smile, but got another whiff of that lynx and frowned.

"You up for a challenge today, old timer?" Or maybe @Naira was all talk and no bite.

It was an upsetting truth that she now found herself located so far from all that had been, perhaps one day her children and grandchildren would find themselves settled by the lake or walking the stony goat tracks of Nomad's Pass, but with the days growing shorter and the weather getting colder, the tawny wolf wasn't certain her paws would ever feel the hardened mountain earth again. His comment about trembling in his paws was followed by a sudden stillness that cut her answering bark of laughter short, eyes narrowing on the way his nose twitched. She thought to comment on duwiddlewabbitwiggle before recognising the scent herself.

His bristling was matched with her own. While lynx were usually pests, better at keeping to themselves than coyotes and far less aggressive than their mountain dwelling cousins - the bend did have a surplus of children to protect, her own numbered among them. She could appreciate that he tried to lighten the mood, asking if she said such things to all the cute boys, proving her mind was far sharper than her hearing she was quick to quip back "Only the ones with the balls to bite back." To a casual observer it might even be taken as flirting, were it not merely in her nature to behave in such a way. She wasn't in the business of taking herself so seriously anymore.

The scent of fresh blood was already mingling with the putrid feline stench, her own toothy grin the only answer to his question before she bumped against the pale wolf again, this time with more purpose. She wasn't the fastest of wolves so it could hardly be called cheating for her to snatch a little head start. "Try to keep up, boy." she threw over her shoulder with a laugh, knowing full well he could probably catch her before she was lost too far ahead in the trees.