The day was concluded with a show of teeth and claws raking seamlessly through tender flesh with ample blood as the reward for the diligent hunters. The taste of the killing blow only partially soothed the growing lust for vengeance and an exacted strike upon one that had done harm to an innocent of the Ichikan lands. But it was not at all the same as actually sinking razor teeth into a lupine hide and rending it free of its putrid soul. But it would do for now…it would do.
Patiently, the wolves of Ichika no Ho-en had waited for this day to come even since they prepared for it through minor hunts to make their forms ready for the counting task. They would not be denied this engagement because of events that transpired beyond their control. In the mind of the Kozan, she felt it was best to continue on, to hunt with the wounded in spirit and make them a part of the festivities as best as they were able. Truly it was not the same, and even her mind once captivated by the ideals of the hunt was distracted by the startling event that happened not but a day ago. It was still fresh… fresh as the blood that lined her lupus lips and stained her brilliant fangs red. But in time, it too would fade, but the taste… the memory would remain permanently engraved in her mind.
But she digressed, returning to the present with a leg of an elk within her powerful jaws, dragging the carcass alongside her mate who had a portion to carry himself. The two had been successful in their hunt, providing a sizable meal for the gathering to come. Despite what weighed upon her mind and a pressing growing distraction, the hunt had been enjoyable as a small flame of nostalgia was rekindled of how the two first met; entranced by each other’s skill in the hunt as well as the pull that often overcame male and female so rightly made for each other. It had been a swift kill, but certainly not effortless. Mentally it had been a partial struggle for the golden she-wolf who had yet to get her mind wrapped around their game. Her thoughts still strayed to Kiara and the horror she had endured, as well as the anxious state of her own body. It was not until the chase of their quarry began that she was again in tune with her instincts and matters that could not be controlled became quieted by her mind. The hunting couple’s timing had been seamless from then on, their execution beautifully refined and were rewarded with a fine prize of which they now carried together deeper into the snow covered valley.
And what better place for the pack to gather than there; the open field beneath a starlit sky with all of Nature playing witness to their homage to the old ways before the civil mind overtook their kind. It would be a grand stage of white stained with the blood of success and pride, displayed by their various kills. The silence of Nature would be stirred with the glorious sounds of their feeding, their howls of success and songs to their ancestors who carried the bodies they would be adorned in with pride countless generations before they found their strength upon two legs. They would dance upon the limbs they were brought into this world with and remember what it was like to take the form of those that came before them.
The anticipation was nearly more than the Nomad could bare and before the carcass was brought to a suitable spot, she relinquished her hold of the meat and threw her muzzle into the air, sounding a call for the Ichikan’s to heed. Their time to gather had come, to again become part of a whole and pay their respects in both form and spirit. And most importantly, to come together as family. As her song faded, she turned her gaze from the night to her mate and smiled endearingly, her tail waving excitedly for the events of the celebration to unfold, and simply rejoicing in having him near. She padded to his side brushing her unclad shoulder into his flank as she waited alongside his impressive stature for the others of this growing family to show.