Though she had made the choice to come home to Hearthwood River Inna still had a desire to go out exploring whether it was inside pack lands or outside. It was one of the reason’s that she had nearly made the decision to become a scout for her pack. When she left the den that morning the sun was up and the sky was clear which lead her to want to travel outside of pack lands, one for the adventure and two she could do some hunting and maybe bring something pack for the pack. Her paws carried her at a quick pace through Hearthwood River and before long she reached the borders. Inna hadn’t been outside of them since she had returned which caused her to paused for the slightest of moments but she soon shook her head and continued on her journey. As afternoon arrived the path she chose led her a little south past Turtleback lake where she stopped for a quick drink. She thought that if she didn’t have any luck catching anything on her return journey she might try and catch a fish or two to take back. After leaving the lake she let her path turn north toward the lowlands. It had been awhile since she had been there and she wondered if there might be some good prey there she could try to catch. Inna did like hunting, it was something she had learned about herself while on her own, there was something about the stalking that she enjoyed. So when the scent of a rabbit caught her attention Inna immediately fell into her stalking mode as she followed the scent with her nose alternating between the ground and the air as she followed the trail. The scent grew stronger causing her mouth to water with hunger. Soon the query she sought fell into her line of sight and Inna prepared herself for the chase she was sure to come. |
Lorcan would of been quite happy to continue to chew on that antler for many more hours had he not caught scent of another wolf on the lowlands. Naturally, he was compelled to investigate, and so dropping the antler from between his jaws, the young male moved to traipse quietly through the grass. Moving against the wind, Lorcan followed the scent that was carried in the breeze and eventually settled his golden gaze upon a dark figure crouched down in the distance. His immediate reaction was to presume that it was @Askan, which caused his fur to bristle momentarily, before he quickly discounted that idea upon noticing that the figure was much smaller than the brute should of appeared, and female.
Silently the Whitestone wolf watched her from a distance, but upon spotting the pair of long rabbit ears peaking above the grass just ahead of her, quickly cottoned on and began to stalk in closer - his body low to the ground as he mirrored her movements, and moved in from behind. Once at a close, but respectful, distance from the young dark-furred female, Lorcan paused and angled his movement so that he may move to crouch a few metres away to her right. He had tried to catch rabbits before out on the lowlands, but they had always been too quick and escaped. Perhaps with two wolves, there would be less chance of failure. A playful grin was offered to the girl, before his golden eyes fixed onto the rabbits ears which bobbed along up ahead. He would not dare speak, for fear that it would spook the prey. Salmon pink tongue swept eagerly across his lips before he turned back to girl, catching her orange gaze, before nodding his head in sign for her to proceed.
There had been many instances during her time away from Hearthwood River that Inna had tried to catch rabbits. Sometimes she had been successful and sometimes she hadn’t and had been disappointed by the outcome. Part of her felt that there had to be some secret to being successful every time. Maybe it was something that came with age and experience which was two things that she didn’t have. Spending a few months out on her own hardly qualified but there was no better time to start gaining the experience which was why as she watched the rabbit nibbling at the grass in front of her she had to formulate a plan that would mean her success. Inna was unaware that she was being observed by another until she felt his presence behind her at which time she turned to look at him. The grin he offered her confused her as it seemed he wanted to help her to catch the rabbit. Then again he might just want to watch and then tease her when she lost her prey. Her gaze went back to the rabbit happily nibbling on a blade of grass none the wiser that it was being watched by the two wolves. Whether the older male was there to help or mock Inna was just glad that he hadn’t scared the rabbit off. She turned her gaze on him once more where she caught the nod that he gave her which confirmed to her that he was in fact there to help her. Though she would have liked to have discussed a plan with him first she knew that wasn’t possible. Any sound could alert to their presence and they would lose their prey so Inna had to accept the fact they would have to wing it. She closed her eyes for a second hoping that they ended up working well as a team together. Then when she opened them she darted forward in an effort to cut the ribbit off from getting away from them and sending it on a path that would hopefully lead it in to range of her surprise hunting companion |
From where he was crouched, he could see the rabbit sprinting towards him, its path leading it to run in front of him from his left to his right. As he watched this all play out in front of him, Lorcan’s muscles tensed as he got read to move. His golden eyes were trained on the rabbit as it entered his plane of vision from the left corner of his eyes, and in the very instant that the rabbit’s body become centred at the tip of his black nose, Lorcan sprang into action. Large paws moved him in a flurry as he raced after the prey, his pace quickening with every metre of ground he covered. Desperately, he tried to get close enough to bite at its rear limbs, but in the moment that he came close, the rabbit swerved away. Lorcan may have been fast, but the rabbit was agile.
Without being able to discuss the plan she had of catching the rabbit with her surprise companion Inna had a choice to make. She didn't hesitate and instead hoped the male would catch on as she darted through the grass kicking up some dirt as she dug in for traction. Her goal was to turn the rabbit right into the path of her companion. She didn't know if she could trust him not to take her rabbit but if he was offering help she felt she'd be foolish not to accept. Rabbits were tricky and hard to catch on one's own. Taking the path she had chosen and curving it around until she had cut off the escape route of her query Inna's plan was so far successful. The rabbit was forced to turn in the direction of the strange male and making a bit of a scene about it in her opinion as it jumped and kicked. With the rabbits path changed Inna lope behind waiting to what the next move should be. She watched as it came within inches of the agouti males nose and as he started his sprint after the rabbit. That was when Inna picked up her pace and sprinted after the two. She saw as he tried to bite the animals hind legs and missed when it swerved away. Inna gained ground on the pair and as the rabbit swerved she tried to counter and push the creature in a different direction. One that would hopefully lead the rabbit into her companions waiting jaws or she would have a chance. Part of her thought that perhaps this wasn't about catching the rabbit anymore but had maybe turned into a game for the two of them. |
This time the rabbit was not as foolish and knowing that Lorcan was still chasing after it just a few metres away, refused to curve right around to race back in his direction. Instead it turned a quarter of a turn, and ran away from the pair of wolves. Lorcan shot a glance towards the girl, his salmon pink tongue lolling from the side of his jaws, before his eyes snapped back to their escaping meal. Sounding a bark of encouragement, Lorcan quickened his pace and raced after the rabbit. If the female joined in, the pair of them would hopefully end up running behind either side of the rabbit in a triangular formation, giving them both a chance to grab it, should it choose to change direction again.
There was some disappointment when the male missed his chance to grab the rabbit but Inna let that go. There wasn't time to dwell on the loss. A moment later the rabbit had turned once more to try and evade it's pursuers. Inna increased her speed so that she would have the chance to cut the rabbit off once more and send it back in the direction of her companion. With ears laid back she stretched her strides as wide as she could to gain the ground she needed to allow her to slip into the rabbits line of sight. Though she was successful in turning the rabbit from the direction it had been heading it changed to a whole new path leading it away from both wolves. Even though their prey did not fall for the same trick again Inna was not quite willing to give up on getting a meal. She met the agouti males gaze before turning her attention back to their prey. Once again she found herself sprinting in the direction the rabbit had gone in. Inna took up a position on the creatures right flank which would allow for her companion to take up a position on the left side. This would give them both the opportunity to grab their prey when and if it decided to change direction. Inna had no doubt that it would in order to try and lose one or both of them. All they had to do was run the rabbit until it couldn't run any longer. |
Pearly white fangs flashed as he grimaced, having received a mouthful of fur. Forcing himself to remain undeterred, Lorcan barked again, releasing some of the irritating hair from his mouth into the air before he moved in again to snap at its rear. Again he was unsuccessful, but his action were fruitful when the rabbit spooked and suddenly veered off to its right, giving Lorcan the chance to twist his body around and swiftly grab it by the rear limb. Jaws clamped down the second he felt any contact and in that second something crunched. Russet ears fell back against his head at the sound before his golden eyes glanced down to see the rabbit now thrashing between his jaws. Placing his front paw on the rabbit’s neck, Lorcan lowered his head to place it on the ground before quickly grabbing it again – now having a better hold on around its neck. Violently he shook his head and the rabbit’s thrashing movements ceased.
It didn't, instead the rabbit was left with the furless tail and they were still chasing it. After that Inna tried pushing herself further in an attempt to get closer to grab the rabbit. She managed to get close enough she thought she would gain a good grip on the animals flank but as she snapped her jaw shut she felt fir Graze her lips and muzzle. The male had also taken a second try and been unsuccessful. A moment later the rabbit had veered to the right allowing Inna a chance to but the rabbit hadn't veered far enough and again she missed. Her companion though had managed to grasp the rabbit by a hind limb and a moment later the chase was over. Inna brought herself to a stop before walking the short distance to where her companion was ending the rabbits life. She waited side heaving until he had finished before speaking, "Thanks for the help, that was good teamwork."