Vesper’s entire focus was on the black cat, and as such, she was surprised when the dog she’d barely acknowledged leaped in front of her. A snarl ripped out of the tricolor canine, and the coywolf froze in her tracks, legs splayed. She let out a snarl to match, ears flattening and hackles rising. Instinct told her that this creature was in the way of her prey—would fight her for her prey. Emotion told her that she was pissed and ready to rip into any animal that looked at her funny. Sense was on hold for the moment, along with her composure.
She bunched her legs underneath her then jumped at the dog, landing a few feet away, just out of biting range. The lunge was meant to unnerve the opponent more than anything else. She remained light on her toes, eyes narrow as she looked the other female over.
The familiar process of actually sizing up a foe before attacking brought some calmness to the loner, and with a blink of her eyes, she stepped back, realizing that she was about to tussle with this stranger over a damned cat. Her ears remained flattened, and she let out one more growl, but she took a few more steps backwards and loosened her posture a bit to show the grey-and-black-splashed dog she wasn’t going to fight.
“What the hell are you doing protecting a stupid cat?” Vesper demanded to know, baring her fangs a brief, irritated moment.
