It was a cold morning when Liam left his home in Cour des Miracles to go hunting. He was in one of those moods – where a hunting trip in solitude felt like the perfect way for him to relax and unwind. He needed to think about the path his life had taken in the recent month since the war and he just couldn't do that at Chien Hotel, where he could potentially run into people and get side-tracked. And besides, at Chien Hotel Liam was constantly influenced to practice his medicine and today that was the last thing on his mind. He didn't want to smell the rotting flesh of animals as he practiced sutures or feel the fabric of the bandages as he wrapped them around fake injuries. He was growing bored of practicing the same things over and over. He needed something new and until then he was straying from medicine. He knew that meant perhaps pushing the day where he would be the official pack Apothecary but right now, on this dreary end-of-autumn day, he just didn't care.

The sun was only just rising when Liam left the pack-lands, walking in his lupus form. He didn't have anything on him aside from his leather string that was tied around his neck, a bone pendant hanging at the end. It was playing around as it swung from side to side, occasionally hitting his furry chest. He felt unusually bare without his rucksack, but given his form and the fact that he would have to be pretty mobile to catch prey, he had decided that leaving it and all of its contents was his best bet. His bi-colored eyes were clear and alert as he glanced around him for signs of prey, his paws working slowly and soundlessly. He continued walking stealthily until he was a good mile north-east of the Miracles' pack, surrounded by all kinds of different trees. The most common one he saw was oak and ash.

It took him a few moments to sense his first prey. It was a hare, standing lazily nearby, nibbling at the grass near a few trees. Liam smelt it before anything else, but his eyes locked on it almost instantly. Stopping dead in his tracks and watching the creature for a moment, Liam waited for the right time to attack. Finally he jumped and neatly killed the small animal, leaving almost no blood at all. He did this for a couple more animals, mostly small critters, for he would have to carry them all back to the pack by himself. He continued further north for a few hours, carrying his preys along with him. It was inconvenient – a part of him wished he could have Robin's archery skills. That way he could hunt in his Optime form and carry the kills with his hands.

It was considerably warmer when he decided to stop near a source of water, dropping his kills on the ground so that he could take a long gulp of the soothing liquid. It was very cold but the weather had only just warmed up since earlier in the morning. Deciding that he was done hunting for the day, the Catori male shifted to his Optime form. It would be easier for him to walk back home with the kills – even if it would also be a little slower.

The quiet atmosphere was great for thinking. Liam sat near the water and listened to the stream. Occasionally he heard birds chirping in trees but those sounds only relaxed him even more. Watching the water flow, Liam let his mind drift to the up and coming winter. He felt so much more prepared nowadays, what with all of the gathering of food that had been done recently. He had helped out Caspa quite a bit and had hunted a few times a week – occasionally alone like today, but mostly with one or two pack mates. His thoughts of pack mates brought him to his favorite pack mate – Robin Aatte. He hadn't seen her in a while and he was beginning to miss her terribly. He knew now there was something going on that stretched the boundaries of friendship. He didn't know what to do about it though. For now his logic was to leave it be. He liked having a certain friendship with Robin and anything else would just be complicated. The last thing Liam wanted was complicated.

Complicated... something that was complicated – well, it was the plants aspect of healing. That was how Liam started thinking about herbs and how he would be able to learn more about brewing remedies. He wasn't about to try trial and error because that would just be foolish. He would have to find a book about it – or maybe go and see Soran and ask for her help. She had showed him some of her books when he'd gone to Crimson Dreams a few weeks ago. He liked her a lot and he had a feeling the feeling was mutual. She probably wouldn't mind... would she? And then thinking about Robin's grandmother brought him back to his patchwork best friend. What if he did tell her how he felt? What would be the harm – oof!

He smelt her a little too late, for she had already leaped from her position in the tree above him. Liam didn't have time to get ready for the attack and found himself lying flat on his back, a mass of bones, flesh and brown fur lying on top of him in a heap. “Damn!” he hissed as his head hit the solid earth floor. He stared up at those familiar green orbs. The fact that she hadn't broken any of his bones – or injured him at all – was perhaps the only reason why he wasn't in a complete rage right now. And maybe the fact that he considered her a friend.

To be honest, Liam was pleasantly surprised to see a familiar face – a fellow pack member he had met a couple times since she'd joined the pack. Unfortunately that pleasure was somewhat blurred by the fact that she was on him, and in a very uncomfortable fashion might I add. Liam smirked, squirming a little under the female. “What brings you here on such a lovely day, Terra?” he asked playfully, attempting to nibble at her left ear.

Terra was wet and her fur was dripping on him. He squirmed some more at the sudden realization. Because you see, Liam wasn't particularly fond of being wet – actually he rarely ever took baths, only when he was excessively muddy or bloody. Even then he was looking forward to being dry again. Hell, he didn't even like the rain all that much. Could you expect anything less than distaste as the smell of wet fur filled his nostrils and cold drips hit his body? She did get off him however and Liam smiled appreciatively. “Drop in. Quite literally.” he laughed as he sat up again, rubbing at his shoulder. He had injured it during the war a month and a half ago and although it was fully healed, it sometimes still ached. Especially when people 'dropped in' on him unexpectedly.

Speaking of injury though. “So how's that leg of yours? Looks pretty good.” he stated as he surveyed the limb quickly. He was kind of proud of his work, especially since she appeared to have made a pretty full recovery. After all she was climbing trees and jumping on people.

Taking the offered hand, Liam got to his feet in one swift motion and brushed himself off, his hand catching on a few dried leaves. He scratched at his head before smiling at her words. “Maybe it's not the construction. Maybe it just wasn't meant for a wolf your size to crawl into.” he chuckled. “Could have been some fox den or something...” he said thoughtfully. He wasn't about to criticize her however. He was as curious and chances are he would have done the same thing. He was a lot bigger than Terra and chances are he would have gotten completely stuck. But then the prospect of a bath would have probably kept him away from all of the mud.

When she asked him about his own reasons for being here Liam shrugged. He then glanced over at the small pile of dead animals. “I was just hunting... got bored of that and stopped here to relax. I was growing bored of that too, though. So it's nice to see a friendly face.” he told her amicably.

Glancing down at what had once been a bloody mess with an arrow tip stuck in it, Liam grinned. He was perhaps being a little selfish, but he was happier about his success in healing the leg than Terra actually having full use of it and not hurting anymore. It meant that he was a good healer – that he had chosen the right path for his co-rank and that he would ultimately become a great asset to the Court. “Well I'm really glad you're feeling better.” he said, and he truly was. “And thanks, that means a lot.” he added, replying to her words of him being a brilliant doctor. His smile widened even more.

It didn't come as a surprise when Terra showed him her other wound. She was a spitfire! A ball of energy always on the go and stirring up trouble! Liam had gathered those facts very quickly upon first meeting her a month ago. Mentally shrugging those thoughts away, he quickly inspected her shoulder – at least as best as he could from his position a couple feet away from her. Considering he didn't have anything with him, he probably couldn't do much about the bite. But then chances are, he couldn't have done much even with medical supplies. “What kind of trouble did you get into this time?” he asked. His tone wasn't scolding however. It was actually amused and the smile on his face showed that the pickle that had been up his butt the last time she'd gotten injured wasn't there anymore. Yes, he was definitely more relaxed nowadays, his paranoia from the war mostly gone.

When she spoke about food, Liam glanced at his kills. “Yeah – I'm glad we've managed to get that much food in so little time. I was a little worried at first but it was all for nothing. Besides, there will still be preys in winter. We'll just have to look harder.” he said. A lot of animals would be sleeping until Spring, but not all of them. It was reassuring to know that, because while they did have quite a lot stocked up, in March or April, the supply could diminish pretty fast, especially the meat. While Liam wasn't opposed to eating poppy seeds and chestnuts, a strict diet of such wasn't as appealing.

“It'll be my first clear one too – I was born in the middle of the season last year and only remember fragments of it. I'm kind of excited; now that I'm not so nervous about starving to death.” he laughed. It was odd to think that Terra was actually a little older than he was. But not by much – a month or two at the most. She clearly wasn't as mature as he was, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. He'd had to grow up a lot because of the war and she had the fortune of not having to deal with all of those nightmarish thoughts. But then when you thought about it, she had seen a lot more than he had, traveling around Nova Scotia and coming from a pack pretty far from here. It made Liam's couple escapades look like a walk in the park. If there was one thing that would be new to the both of them however, it was winter. The snow, the cold, the ice, the scenery, the whiteness...

As Terra brushed past him, Liam grinned again. There truly was a lot of things they could do and with their adventurousness combined, not to mention their creativity, they would undoubtedly find something to occupy their time with for the next little while. He turned around, leaning on the tip of his toes, prepared to take off at a run. “Alright – although we can't stray too far. I don't want this food to get stolen or eaten.” he said, gesturing towards the kills near the tree. He started jogging at that point, lightly pushing Terra once he reached her.

The friendly scuffle brought a grin to Liam's face. He pushed her once more, stubbornly wanting her to be the one to put an end to the foolish game. “Right.” he said, regarding her comment on not wanting a thief breaking into their storage. Although technically the thief would only be stealing a small percentage of the food – and it wouldn't even be in the storage cellar yet. This was neutral territory and although it would be rude and disrespectful to steal someone else's kills, it wasn't a major crime that needed severe punishment. “Glad to know you're defending the pack's food supply – although I do feel bad for that poor cougar.” Liam chuckled as he poked her arm, just a couple inches below her latest scar. “You know that scar makes you look kind of bad-ass?” he chuckled again, truly entertained by his train of thought.

For a moment Liam just watched Terra. He could tell by her eyes that she was thinking of something. He smirked – waiting for the big reveal. Then she told him there was a way to keep these potential thieves away. Of course Liam was all ears. He grinned at her, anticipating what she was going to say next. But what she came out with was a little strange. One of them be a thief? Wasn't that a little pointless? They were both from the same pack and as far as Liam knew, they were both very loyal to the Court. Stealing food from one's own pack was definitely a strange idea. “Oh, it's a game! Makes sense now!” he said when she'd explained further – if the guard can get all of the food up the tree without leaving the other (the thief) with the opportunity to take any of it, he would be the winner. He nodded understandingly, simultaneously glancing at the large oak. He was debating whether or not it would be an easy climb. While Liam could climb trees, he wasn't the most agile wolf out there and the trees he'd climbed in the past had been a lot smaller. And definitely a lot easier. “Okay let's do it.” he said.

But, like Terra had said, who would be the thief? Liam was a good soul – maybe a little too good for his own... good. Ironically enough. Now Terra on the other hand... Terra and her brand new scar... she could make a pretty good thief. She was used to getting in trouble and, even better, causing trouble. Either way Liam wouldn't be very good though. He had never stolen before and climbing trees was a lot harder for him than it was for a petite female like Terra. He decided the only way he'd be able to decide was if Terra did the choosing for him. “You decide what you want – guard or thief?” he said excitedly.