Lore

With the sun still hiding behind the horizon, the predators had an hour to search before the coming light would chase the stars out of the sky and give their prey the vision they needed to better detect and escape the pair. And with his heart still so filled with unexpected happiness and joy, it took Lore some time to even get his head into the hunt. It wasn't until they drew closer to the lake and the scent of deer and smaller game reached him that he began to don a more serious attitude. Nose to the ground, Lore paused at the intersection of two game trails, trying to discern if anything had crossed them recently, and whether they were worthwhile pursuing.

"This is a popular hideout for the deer, and there ought to be plenty of fawns about." The running gag of taking on a bull moose had been dropped now, and any scent of such a formidable creature would be immediately discarded by the seasoned hunter, so long as it didn't otherwise smell sick or injured.

Aniyu

Bounding along the dewy slopes that rolled before the shores of Pike's Lake, Aniyu pants with a tongue lolling on the side of her mouth. Blue eyes, even in the hour before dawn, glimmer with unrelenting joy as she paces beside Lore on their travel. The chilly early air maneuvers itself against Aniyu's gray and black pelt, reminding the she-wolf of the time spent hunkered below the earth at the Domes overnight. A little piece of her yearns to curl back up along the dusty sediment of the cavern, basking in the warmth, but her forlorn wishes are easily capsized by the mounting adrenaline coursing through her system as they approach the lake. The wind carries promises in a mix of scents.

Aniyu remains a bit naive to the hunting scene. Her parents hadn't been thrilled with her lacking contribution to pack hunts, and it was a godsend she could pick off small game now that she was out on her own. The she-wolf squints as Lore sniffs, doing her best to remain attuned to his signals. The last thing the fae wants is to royally embarrass herself on this hunt -- or be the reason they come up in failure. The growing ache in her stomach also is a stressing factor, honing her senses towards the earth. Despite her dotty attention and lackadaisical personality, she was a predator at the bone. "It's early," She breaths with a solemn nod, her voice low, "I'm certain we'll pick something off. They don't expect us out."

-Deer-

There was a medium sized herd of deer. All females. Some fawns who were sticking to their mothers sides. Most of the females were grazing but a few were watching their surroundings.

Lore

Lore nodded, acknowledging his friend's remarks without ever lifting his nose from where he'd just stumbled across a particularly fresh clue. His body paused, tense with anticipation as he inspected a neat little pile of pellets left behind by one of the does. After a second or two the wolf tilts his head and shoots a look to Aniyu, his stance and pointing nose used to guide her to his find, "We might have found lunch. This is pretty fresh." He steps aside then, so that she could inspect the pile herself while he turns his keen nose to the air and mentally maps out what he knows of this lakeside terrain.

Taking note of the deer trails and the direction the hoof marks seemed to be going, Lore eventually drops his head back down as he starts forward, shoulders pumping as they carry him hopefully towards the herd of does and their fawns.

Aniyu

Her tail twitches with the incoming flow of adrenaline that pulsates into her bloodstream. Aniyu hunkers closer to Lore as he signals forward, the she-wolf growing antsier with the second. Her blue orbs study the terrain before them, quickly catching sight of movement closer to the lakeshore. She licks her lips with anticipation. Prey. By the time she's considered their future meal, Lore is already barreling out of their spot and towards the herd of doe. Aniyu flinches for a second before propelling herself off of muscular haunches, flying across the damp earth just a stride and a half behind the brute. The wind whistles in her ears as she runs, the she-wolf alive as they storm forward.

Deer

The female were grazing for quiet some time their fawns playing or suckling till an alarm went up and all the does heads shoot up. The fawns with them were too old to do the hid and pray your not found technique so giving off their own alarms the deer began to run their tails up. The fawns sticking close to their mothers. The healthy does much faster then the few sick and elderly does.

Lore

Lore moves swiftly, forgoing all attempts at elusiveness and stealth as the small herd comes full into view. His keen eyes take a quick survey of the available deer, while his mind and experience rapidly calculate his odds with each one. While initially it was the fawns he had interest in, the lure of more meat shifts his focus to one of the elder does who is lagging behind her faster herdmates. The wolf kicks it into overdrive now, turning every ounce of energy over to his fast-flying legs as he rushes his target, his goal to catch her by the haunch and use his weight to slow the doe down or topple her.

Aniyu

The wind whistles in her ears and Aniyu picks up the pace, pumping with her hindquarters to carry her across the ground. Her paws skid slightly in the mud, the she wolf faltering to regain her balance and falling just a stride behind Lore. The falter gives her a moment to full spectate Lore's assault on the doe. Aniyu's shattered concentration is renewed as she powers forward, aiming at the front leg of the doe. Aniyu snakes forward, leaping off her haunches. If Lore manages to fell the doe from the back, Aniyu's attack would immobilize the doe and prevent her from an easy retreat.

Doe

The doe felt him on her heels and knew she was going to lose but she wasn't going without a fight and when she felt him on her haunches she kicked out with her hind legs at him and made to spin around in an attemp tto throw him off. So when Aniyu was right there she snorted and aimed her front legs for the she wolf as soon as her hind ones hit the ground. Blood dripped from where Lore had grabbed her and may still be located.

Lore

Lore's grip was fairly solid, but he hadn't been able to secure it entirely when the elder doe lashed out with her hind legs. The sudden shift in movement, coupled with a glancing blow to his ribs forced the wolf to let go with a suppressed yelp, knowing he'd have quite a tender side tomorrow. The discomfort was easy to ignore in the heat of the moment though, and he followed up his muffled yelp with a snarl for the defiant creature that had now wheeled around with flailing forelegs. Lore was wise enough not to charge directly at her, knowing that even the humble white-tail could inflict serious injury with their smaller but still powerful hooves. Instead he snarled again, flashing his fangs in an attempt to spook her into running, while he began to stalk quickly around her...

Aniyu

Aniyu hits the ground with a breathless thud, the she-wolf skidding across the ground. Her brain in a tizzy, she hauls herself back onto her paws and givings a panting gasp. Shaking her head, Aniyu leaps back into the action with renewed energy. She decides against striking out immediately, especially since her head still throbs a bit from being knocked away from the doe. Instead, Aniyu slinks around the opposite side of Lore, teeth flashing as she waits patiently, this time. Should Lore's next move be successful, Aniyu was close to land her own attack. Should the doe run, at least Aniyu was prepared for the pursuit as well.

Doe

The Doe snorted at the wolves her head now low as if she were going to bite them or take a bit of grass and she aimed her hooves for Lore in a stomping motion her ears flat back even at his snarl. Her life was at an end but she wasn't gonna go without a defiant fight. She then spin around to Aniyu and lashed out at her trying to ward them both off. After a few minutes of switching between the two she tried to run again, much slower then last but she forced herself to run.

Lore

With his ears perked and his eyes lively and alert, everything from Lore's low, throaty growls to the constant shuffling of his paws showed that this wolf was one-hundred percent into the hunt and not the least bit deterred by the doe's defiance. With Aniyu gathering her wits and stalking opposite of him, Lore made to rush in at the deer's side, only to scramble and duck back with a gasp when hooves came flying in his direction.

He kept this up while the doe stood her ground, rushing in when she turned to Aniyu, then darting back when her attention snapped back to him. It was a harrowing game of life and death, and one that Lore had played out countless times in his many years. This was no spring doe they were dealing with, and he knew if they kept it up, eventually her age would yield them the advantage. And it did.

When finally the doe turned, Lore lunge for her haunch again, trying to knock her over before she could get far...

Aniyu

The doe, despite her age and minor inflictions, is resilient. Aniyu finds herself a bit annoyed, and for a moment considers how much easier her prey as a loner was. Her own sides heaving, Aniyu narrowly dodges the thrashing hooves of the doe as she bolts at Lore, before pivoting and plunging at Aniyu. The hooves land in the dirt close to Aniyu's ducking head, the doe's hot, panicky breath warming the side of Aniyu's face. The she-wolf pants, springing back as suddenly the doe takes a sprinting move away. Pushing off of her haunches, Aniyu remains steady against the doe's side, snapping distractedly at the doe's front heels in hopes Lore, in his larger size and better tact, could land a blow to bring the doe down.

Doe

The doe tried to run one last time in hopes the two were too exhausted to give chase. But she felt Aniyu at her heels and soon there was a weight on her haunches and the doe finally fell down still thrashing and kicking.

Lore

Dirt and leaves flew as the doe careened to the ground, with Lore going down right beside her, though in a more controlled descent that found him with his paws skillfully beneath him at all times. Steering clear of the flying hooves, the wolf released his hold and dashed directly for the deer's slender throat, where he would exert every fiber of strength and a good, solid thrashing of his own dial to either break her neck or crush the vitals in her throat to bring about a quick death...

Aniyu

As the doe falls to the ground, Aniyu takes her chance to latch her jaws onto the fleshy part of her upper leg. Her breath is hot and heavy, her limbs dragging in the dirt as lands against the ground with the doe. She sees Lore head straight for the vitals of the doe's neck, and Aniyu remains fixated on the leg just in case there was an freak incident where the doe managed to rise and attempt to run away again. Even if the doe managed to rise, Aniyu's teeth were sunk deeply into the muscle tissue and the movement would severely immobilize her.

Lore

Lore exerted the muscles of his jaws to their greatest extent, closing around the doe's lifeline. His whole body was tense, with every fiber of his being driven towards securing food for himself and his new friend. Aniyu had anchored herself to the deer in the same instance, helping to keep her down and stifle any further attempts at escaping her fate today. Between the maws of two keen predators, there was little more the doe could do.

The frantic fight was over almost as quickly as it started, with Lore hovering over their prey to make sure she was dead, and that flailing hooves were no longer a threat to worry about. Satisfied, the wolf broken into a delayed pant to both catch his breath and cool down from the hunt. His rigid tail loosened and set into a wave, "I'd say we work pretty well as a team." The gleam of a hunter was gone from his copper eyes, taken now by contentedness as he looks to Aniyu. Staying by the upper half of the doe, he wordlessly gives her access to the choicer, fatter bits around the belly and haunch while he starts in at the shoulder.

Aniyu

The she-wolf hesitates for a few seconds as she retracts herself from the deceased doe, her heart still thrumming in her chest. Adrenaline steadies itself in her veins, slowly suppressing itself as Aniyu draws in several composed gasps. Her blue eyes gleam as she studies the tawny frame of the doe, tail swishing a few times. "Wow," she chuckles, gazing over at Lore with a singular laugh. "I mean, what do you expect, pairing the two best hunters in the Valley?" A laugh rings out at her own jest. She takes in a long inhale, gazing at Lore wordlessly, unable to shake the pulsing happiness in her frame. Finally, the growling hunger in her stomach demands her on to sidle closer to the doe, keeping plenty of room open for Lore as she draws in to feast at the doe's belly. She bites in, pausing after a few bites to laugh. "I forgot how good deer meat is," she comments, "As much as I like hares...you can't beat a large mammal as a meal."

Lore

Lore draws his head up, tongue flicking over the edge of his muzzle in a fruitless attempt to clean away some of the gore. "This was just a warm up for that moose hunt later." His eyes gleam with humor at their ongoing jest, tail still in full animation behind him. "And I dare say, none will be safe after we've picked up their scent." He knew full well that they had been lucky to stumble across an infirm doe this morning, but all the same, the kill had been a relatively quick one, with the two of them working in good tandem, and coming out unharmed.

After a few more bites, his keen fangs rending the still-warm flesh with relative ease, Lore once more raised his head. "Hmm-hmm." Again a tongue flicks out, and again it fails to clean much from his silvery mug, "It's a bit more satisfying than fish, too. And-" A sudden sneeze shakes the brute, and a few stray strands of deer fur are cleared from the front of his nose, "-I have to say, you have great skill and instinct, for having been on your own. I think we do make quite the hunting team."

Aniyu

The gray she-wolf's tail wags at Lore, her blue eyes falling down upon their prize meal. A little giggle slips from her throat as Lore is overcome by a sneeze. "Just a little more fuzzy than a fish," Aniyu muses, licking her lips. She inwardly agrees with his comment on her instinct, wondering how proud her father and mother would be to know that, despite the elongated time on her own, Aniyu still retained a thing or two from hunting with them. Shaking her memories from her thoughts, she smiles again at Lore. "One day we'll get that moose. But," she dips her nose down at the doe, "I think this will suffice our bellies for a while. "

Lore

In between his conversation with Aniyu, Lore continues to rip chunks of meat away from the carcass, stripping the area of the shoulder and upper back as his belly simultaneous began to expand. With a few stray strands of deer hair stuck to the end of his wet nose, the wolf flicked his tongue up and dashed them away before they could stir up another sneeze. "This ought to last us a few days, give or take what scavengers try to steal." Stepping back a few paces from the kill, Lore stretched his front limbs before him, relieving some of the tension in the muscles from the strain of their fast-paced hunt. That accomplished, he sat back on his haunches to wait for his friend to finish her share.

"Now that we've proven ourselves in the realm of hunting, that leaves the entire rest of the day open." Lore begins, his demeanor and tone as casual and carefree as ever, "Have you any other favorite haunts that you haven't shared?" It was an open invitation to continue traveling together, as he was loath to give up this companionship, but at the same time didn't want to intrude too much if the wolfess desired more space.

Aniyu

Once she too was satiated, Aniyu steps back from the deer carcass and flops onto the grass. She's close to a bellyache from the rich meat yanked from the doe's skeleton. She hasn't eaten this well in eons, it seems. A wicked grin steals away on her face as she gazes sheepishly up at Lore. "I think I'll be full for an entire day," she chuckles, blinking her blue eyes. She releases a groaning sigh, following it with a soft chuckle to repress any of Lore's concerns. "Give me a few minutes to recuperate...." she advises, "But...have you seen the sunset on the secret beach?" Resting her head on her paws, her tails thumps as she considers the old wolf territory beyond the White River Mountains. Aniyu figured it had once been a territory, but it smelled completely vacated of canine residency when she found it. The best part was the quiet beach stowed away. Sunset Beach, someone had said it was called. If Lore had shared his secret cavern underneath the earth at the Domes, Aniyu decided she could bear to share her beach discovery.

Lore

Gravity began to pull at his own enlarged gut, adding a note of discomfort to an otherwise happily bloated belly. Seeing Aniyu's good idea, Lore padded with heavy steps in her direction and plops down beside her, limbs stretched out and tall ears sagging just a bit with the sheer laziness that comes from indulging in so much good food. "I hear you, a few minutes of rest sounds perfect to me." The cool earth felt refreshing as he relaxed against it, and in the background, the sounds of the early morning creatures began to sound their chorus once more as the wolves settled down from their hunt. One of those ears twitched and perked to listen to his friend's suggestion, and curiosity immediately awoke in his coppery eyes. "...hmm, no, I don't think I have." His mind whirled, trying to come up with such a location, but none came to mind. With Orca Bay to the east, and the river delta not too far south from there, Lore couldn't bring to mind any beach that had a good sunset view. Despite his long, adventurous years in the Valley, Lore had never explored the White River Mountain Range in any detail, and didn't know of the hidden gem of a beach that made for one of the most stunning sunset viewings in the entire valley. Hooked, his tail thumped the ground, "You've got my interest."

Aniyu

A moment of mischievous pride passes through Aniyu as she triumphantly realizes that she's gotten one thing over Lore. The brute is so well-versed in this valley, and she still hasn't comprehended how he discovered the cave under the earth at the Domes. The younger she-wolf grins, her mind wandering to the beautiful pink and crimson sky at the beach. She'd spent several days there after her initial stumble-upon, basking in the wonderful territory and watching the sun sink in the western horizon for several evenings. "It's wonderful, you can hold me to that promise," Aniyu bubbles, unconsciously thumping her tail against the dew-covered grass. "It'll probably take most of the day to travel there. But we have full bellies and, once things digest, a lot of energy!" Her blue eyes sparkle as a laugh escapes her, the she-wolf shifting against the ground so that she's perched up against Lore's side once more. Moving her gaze to meet his copper one, Aniyu's smile remains. The sky is softening to tones of pale blue and lavendar, and the she-wolf takes a moment to listen to the cacophony of the rising songbirds. It's so serene, and she feels so full in this moment, and for a brief moment the disdain of wondering how many more moments she would get with Lore fleets through her mind, before she shovels it away and tries to enjoy just this moment.

Lore

"That I will." Lore responds to the promise, conjuring up images in his own mind for how this hideaway beach might look. With Orca Bay as his only working source for a visual, the scenery which took life in the wolf's mind wasn't near as grand and peaceful as reality, lacking the luxurious white sands and the stunning palette of oranges, pinks, and fiery reds that would paint the evening sky and splash upon the waters. Truthfully, it was the shewolf herself who stole most of his attention in this imagined beachfront, and the thought of spending that time with her warmed his heart more than the soft heat of the setting sun. "By the sounds of it, a day's travel will be well worth the effort to get there. Heh, just finding a new sight that I've not seen before is exciting enough." When Aniyu leans into him again, Lore's unconscious smile broadens and he instinctively leans his shoulder back against her. "If we time it right, we'll be there to enjoy that sunset too, weather permitting. But-" Lore tilted his muzzle up, turning his head as he did so that the fur of his neck mingled with hers, "-the sky is looking clear enough so far, we might be in luck."