Her foot suddenly dropped and was submerged in water, ripping her out of her thoughts. She had literally stumbled onto a river, rushing through the wintery world. She brought her paw back, and dipped her head to take a drink. The water was so cold it almost made her spit it out.
Her foot suddenly dropped and was submerged in water, ripping her out of her thoughts. She had literally stumbled onto a river, rushing through the wintery world. She brought her paw back, and dipped her head to take a drink. The water was so cold it almost made her spit it out.
The yearling lifted his head off from the floor, his eyes narrowing. Of course, he didn't own the river- not really. There were no scent markers here, nothing that indicated he had some claim. He didn't want to share though. "Aye," the boy barked. He had been curled up a few trees away, his head tucked between his tail. He lifted it now to shoot an icy cold stare. "Who are you?"
There was no politeness, no casual banter. He wanted information: now. He didn't think she was a threat, not enough to stand up and take on a defensive position. She was definitely close enough to analyze, his eyes scanning over her fur and face. He couldn't smell pack on her, thankfully- but still.
She took another gulp of water just to spite him. She held it in her mouth for a bit, deciding what to do. Then she spat it out on the other wolf. Wonder what he'll say to that? she thought.
Oh. The boy hadn't been expecting so much aggression. Usually when he acted like this, wolves backed down. It was a rare occurrence to bump into another wolf so conflict-driven. Especially in the winter, it seemed most individuals purposely avoided confrontation. A fight could mean life or death, especially in the harsh winter cold when food was already so scarce. Occasionally he was underestimated, his small stature to blame. It was true. He was not as strong and bulky as many others, but he was a fighter.
The water wasn't close enough to hit him in the face, but it might as well have. A roar of anger surfaced through him, his body trembling. He rose to his feet in a millisecond, his teeth exposed in a threat. "Back away then," he hissed, jumping forward to shove his body towards her. It wasn't a dangerous move, nothing that would severely hurt her, but an act of dominance. He wasn't in the mood to play games.
He wouldn't back down. That at least was clear. He was a worthy opponent to her, though she was superior, of course. No wolf could beat her in the games she liked to play.
A whine of pain echoed through the small clearing. Vaken hadn't been prepared for the woman's violence, her teeth sinking into his muzzle. Breaking skin was a new low, a droplet of blood tangling in his fur. The cold air stung it, reminding him of how dangerous it would be to continue the fight. He hadn't wanted to get that rough. She had started it, increased the risk. He didn't have a choice now, refusing to submit. He tore away from her grasp, stepping back quickly to get out of her line of fire. He needed to rethink his strategy.
If she wasn't going to submit, he'd make her. The boy puffed out his chest and once more snarled a warning. He wasn't going to say it again. Clearly it was falling on deaf ears, but what else could he do? He didn't want to kill her or risk injuring himself further, but he wasn't mature enough to ease the tension. Instead, he charged forward, attempting to knock her off balance with the side of his shoulder.
But the scrawny male charged forward doggedly. She clicked her teeth, cocky in her hope of victory. But h e caught her on the shoulder, and she stumbled back a step, in her arrogance not being careful enough. She growled and bared her white fangs in annoyance, before lunging forward to snatch at his flanks.
fight 5/5
Vaken wished he was bigger, that he had more weight to throw around. If he was a heftier wolf surely his impact would have knocked her off balance. Instead, she just readjusted her footing and collected her balance. Shit. He was at a loss. He didn't have time to consider it much, to think of a new plan. She jumped towards him and he faced her head-on, preparing for the impact.
Her teeth grabbed a chunk of fur, but not any skin. While not deadly, it still shocked him and caused him a bit of pain. Enough to bolt him into action, motivating him to survive. He spun around at the attacker, reaching his teeth out to try and grab her by the scruff. His plan was to get the upper hand, to grab hold of her near the neck. If he applied any pressure, maybe she'd call it quicks and they could go their separate ways.
They were caught in a deadlock. Neither could pull away without necessarily letting go of the other. Seventeen felt her breathing go from a heavy pant to a more restrained form of breathing.
She was the first to move. Her jaws opened and she spun quickly out of the wolf's hold, to face him. A scowl darkened her face. She detested losing, and this was pretty close. "See you again sometime," she said, then turned away, tail and head high and proud despite the tie fight. She had better things to do than skirmish with this boy.