Sex: FemaleSilver eyes scanned the familiar yet unfamiliar forest of the sacred grove. The large onyx woman had been to this part of the lore many a times and decided it was the best place for a little escape. The lake was she home and she was grateful to be back, but she needed some time to herself without her two boys watching her like a hawk. She was supposed to be the one to worry and be watchful not them. Large paws crunched the snow beneath them as they walked at an easy pace through the trees. A scent then crossed Moon's nose, hare. There weren't too many hares up on the mountain so this was a delightful find for her. Easily tracking the scent, Moonshadow found the hare searching for food in a small clearing. She crouched and silently watched her prey before beginning to expertly stalk it. Feeling satisfied with how close she was to the rabbit, Moon let out a growl before lunging. The much younger prey easily darted away but that didnt deter the ebony female. She gave chase knowing she would easily catch it...or so she thought. She kept her body low to easily avoid the trees it was darting through but all of a sudden she lost her footing. A hidden patch of ice laid hidden under a thin layer of snow claiming the large wolf as its own prey. Her large frame toppled over, and feet flew upwards as she skid into a tree. The impact caused snow to be dislodged from the branches above. Now partially buried under snow Moonshadow laid still for a moment. Did that just happen?
He found her trail and followed it down the mountainside, unknowingly hot on her trail. As he moved through the forest after Moonshadow's paw prints, worried eyes finally caught sight of her; covered and unmoving on the ground. Panic struck him and he dashed forward as quickly as his legs would take him.
"Mom?!"
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The world was silent underneath the snow, only her thoughts could be heard. The large midnight she-wolf didnt move underneath the powdery substance out of disbelief. Did she really just slip and fall? The idea was laughable and emitted the sound from her maw. Beginning to laugh, Moonshadow begun to unbury herself from the shallow covering. There wasnt much covering her so getting on her paws was no problem. Still laughing Moon shook excess snow from her pelt unaware her eldest was barreling towards her. It wasnt until he was nearly on top of her did she realize he was there. "Chan!" she exclaimed slightly startled. "Ya didnt see that did ya?" she asked almost embarrassed before laughing again. The thought of someone her age taking a fall as if they were a pup or newborn deer was very amusing. Her silver eyes were bright from the adrenaline and her banner wagged happily behind her. Moonshadow found that to actually be fun. Something that she hadn't experienced very often over the last few years.
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Only when he felt confident she was okay did he realize she'd been laughing. Chan sighed with relief. That had nearly scared the life out of him...
"No, are you okay?" the question was an impulse, required regardless of how fine she appeared.
"You really shouldn't be down here alone, mom; you know how quickly the weather can turn..."
Chan, usually so perceptive to others' sensitivities, was failing to see how his concern could be becoming overbearing or even patronizing. The fear of losing another parent so soon was too strong.
He hadn't seen her blunder phew. Although even if she had the onyx woman doubted that she would have minded. A few more hearty laughs left her muzzle as her eldest answered her question. Chan was very straight forward answering with a simple no before following with his own question and remark. His tone was incredibly concerned and full of worry. Dusted audits pressed atop her skull as the mother moved to nudge her sons cheek lovingly. "I'm fine love. Just a little slip while chasin' a rabbit." she explained hoping it eased his worry. She moved back and mercury orbs looked him over taking in how much of a mix he really was of her and her late love. His coat having more tawny and red tones but also having plenty of black sprinkled in. His size rivaled his mothers just surpassing her and his eyes represented each one of them. She was proud of the man he had become and wished she could have witnessed more of it. But that was the past and Moonshadow had learned to not dwell on what could have been but instead appreciate what was, cherish what is, and look forwards to what will be. "And I'm not down here alone...I got ya." She replied playfully as she turned to walk motioning him to join her. It seemed as if the tables have turned and she was the one needing looking after instead of them. The cycle of parent taking care of child then child taking care of parent. Though she wasnt that old yet she understood after two long years of being separated that the Eastfall boys would be protective, she was too.
"I guess you do," he smiled back, dropping the matter; after all, he still knew it wasn't his place to make any demands about how his mother spent her time.
One could see that it was her everlasting positivity and jovial personality that had fostered Chan's own easy-going and usually optimistic nature. Regardless of the hiccups in his childhood, ones that all packs and families experienced despite best efforts made, she had always kept things bright for her eldest son.
"Are ya hungry then?" he asked; he was certainly down for a quick hunt if that's what she had been after.
The snow crunch easily under the two sets of large paws. Moonshadow's smile widened as Chan agreed that she wasnt alone since he was with her now and his worry seemed to melt away. Though the ebony woman knew better and knew deep down he still worried, he was her child after all. Either way she was happy that he allowed himself to relax so they could enjoy their time together. Chan asked his mother if she was hungry then. Moon hadn't expressively been looking for food but had simply happened upon the rabbit. Though a good chase followed by a satisfying meal sounded like a great idea. "I could go for a bite" she replied giving him a smile before turning her attention to their surroundings. Mercury pools scanned the scenery as her nose searched for any trails and ears listened for and signs of prey. "Though we should look for somethin a little bigger than a rabbit" she chuckled. A rabbit was hardly a snack for the large woman let alone for her and her larger son. "Perhaps we could find a fawn?" she proposed looking to her eldest. Surely that would fill the both of them and could even allow for some left overs to fill a cache.
Despite it having been years since the last time Chan freely roamed these forests, he still remembered them well. Clearly, some things had changed, and many trails had faded over the brief packless period, but the prey had maintained their favored places.
"Let's check the river, maybe they've been bedding near it."
Much like her son and many other wolves it had been many years since her paws left their mark upon the scared grove. But just because she hadn't been there in a while didnt mean the large midnight woman didnt know it like the back of her paw. This grove is where she had first stumbled upon the lore wolves when she was merely a yearling. Where she had met the wolf who would not only become her packmate but her teacher, co-lead, and best friend as well. @Kajika and her meeting had been fate that winter's day, neither of them knowing just how important they would become to one another and their future families. Kajika's godson suggested they look by the river to see if their potential prey had any bedding near it. Smiling to her son Moonshadow nodded in agreement and began to head in that direction. It wasnt long before the sound of running water filled her silver dusted audits. Taking a deep breath Moon inhaled the scents around the river and gave her tail a wag. The bedding they were looking for wouldn't be right on the banks but still close enough to have easy access to the precious resource. Silver eyes scanned the brush looking for their prize. After a few moments of searching she found what they were looking for. She gave Chan a low quiet woof to alert him to what she had found.
Chan slipped away from Moonshadow's side without a word, circling around a ways so that they covered a wider area. The mother and it's child remained blissfully unaware, fully snared in sleep's grip. It might even be possible for one of them to walk up and claim the fawn before it's guardian even could fully wake, but it was just as plausible that such an action might earn one a swift kick.
The tawny wolf much preferred to put himself in that position than his own mother. He slipped forward, quiet and cautious. Thankfully, the snow here was soft and gave way beneath his paws without much resistance. If anything, his approach was muffled by the frozen wet. Step by step, finally he made it close enough to reach out and -- clamp his jaws solidly around the fawn's weak neck, crushing its windpipe in the process.