The boy should have known better. He trailed after a scent that belonged to a dangerous creature. There was something in him that drove him to follow after it. Despite being the boy who had strayed away from the chaos lately, he was about to cause a good bit of his own.
Amber eyes focused on the small creature that stood out against the ivory world. The brown-mixed pelt seemed to shine in the morning light. Those dark stripes and spots made them stand out even more. His tail beat behind his body with excitement. The boy had never been so close to a feline before. He had never had a good reason to be and even know he didn't.
Something about the way it lingered near a willow so unaware gave the boy the worst idea he could get. "Go closer." His mind whispered. Without hesitation, he crawled forward from his hidden spot, now exposed to the feline. He heard the low warning sound that emitted from his company. That should have been his warning to not see the creature as a plaything.
Roman growled back as his tail lashed above his back. In his crouched pose, he was in no state to be pulling back if things went south. Which was exactly where things were going for the boy and his short-tailed friend.
A few moments of intimidating stares and sounds passed before the cat seemed to give up on hoping the Archer would get his wits about him. Romanov leaned back to try and pull away but before he knew it there was a stinging sensation on his face. It burned. Between the pain and co, fusion he could only manage to whine and groan. He quickly stumbled backward away from wherever his attacker had gone off to. There was a high chance it was already trying to escape but that mattered little to the boy with wounds now open on his face.
One eye cracked open to notice the ruby drops on the snowy ground. In that moment he was no longer worried about a possible second strike from the feline. No, there was something much bigger to worry about. What was the Ridge going to think when he showed up with a wound? Hadn't his cousins already played hospice enough? If the bobcat did not kill him first, his cousins certainly would.