Fading like a flower
#1
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860w :: Here be it!! XD Tell me if you want anything changed.


Once the first traces of frost and snow began to appear, this already cold land became merciless against those poorly adapted to snow, Xochime among them. Hunting became harder, and had it not been for the feast offered at the Last Supper, she would have a worse aspect than she already had. Her fat reserves were ebbing, and the layer of winter fur that she had managed to grow did not shield her entirely from the blistering cold. Only at her sister's place she found some comfort, but the hole in her stomach demanded to be filled. That was why she had to leave comfort and warmth in favor of nourishment.


A blur of tan shades mixed with black crossed the gray and green landscape as her most primeval instincts guided her towards the juicy meal that she craved. Pierced nose stuck to the ground, bat-like ears like satellites, the perfect picture of a hunter. Her secui body moved swiftly through the fading foliage. A couple of times a breeze rushed past her slender form, sending chills through her whole body and halting her hunt for a few seconds, resuming her quest immediately after she composed herself. Any form of life had seemingly vanished from the lands touched by the winter, so it took her a long time before she managed to catch the smell of a potential prey. It was a small animal, maybe a hare. She took off swiftly, fueled by the abundant viands consumed not long ago. She needed more food to replace the body mass lost at the beginning of the winter, and this smell was so attractive that it made her mouth water. Red eyes gazed the land before her, but her other senses were the ones that spotted the victim first. The coyote tensed completely and halted not very far from the place where the animal stood, and began to stalk it, keeping her body parallel to the ground beneath her. Primitive instincts took over her as she got closer to her goal. Once the animal was in sight, she realized that it was, indeed, a hare. Only some more meters. The poor critter was oblivious to the danger, as it fed carelessly from the scanty food of the season. She was closer. The hare rose a tube-like ear, feeling a threat coming. A bit closer...


All the tension released from the southern coyote's muscles as she sprinted towards the clueless leporid, which reacted a few seconds late. Grave mistake. The hunter ran after the fleeing animal at its top speed, mind focused on the juicy flesh she would feed off in a few seconds. It had no hope of escaping her claws and teeth. But despite her simple wish to satisfy her duty as a predator, fate is tricky and it often plays us bad pranks. In Xochime's case, a hole hidden under the forest floor caught her left leg, twisting it and sending the rest of her body flying a few feet forward and against the stone-hard floor. Her only movement came from her eyelids, which opened to show her the rear side of the furry creature, which appeared to mock her failure when it halted and stood on its haunches looking at the fallen canid with its onyx-like eyes. A growl from the predator's body shunned the creature, and so she was left alone, alone to her thoughts. Now she was no longer Xochime the huntress, she was Xochime the damsel in distress. And as instinct gave place to conscious thought, new painful sensations bloomed in several parts of her body. The secui coyote tried to stand up, but she fell again. The paw that had been caught by the hole ached, and her chest felt as if she had scrapped it against something rough. Crap. Plus, the humid floor was stealing her appreciated body heat from her, numbing her limbs and accentuating the feeling of pain. Double crap.


This time, she stood more carefully, trying not to put any weight on the sore leg, and limped the way back to the ruins, defeated and hungry. Luckily, there had been no blood, and the twisted articulation would stop aching in a couple of hours, but that meant that she would have to wait that time without moving, with nothing better to do but to count the shingles around her, or maybe stare at the gray mass of clouds atop of her head. She sighed, but decided for the rest, seeing as the distance between her and the ruins was big. Maybe not so. It could be short, less than a mile. Or around the next tree? she didn't care. She threw herself to the ground when she found a cozy looking spot under a pine tree. A wine broke the spectral silence around her when she accidentally placed her leg in an uncomfortable position, but then she plunged into it once more as the tension in her muscles was released. Her scarlet gaze glanced the land beside her every now and then, alert to any change on it that would signal the presence of either a helping friend, or a threat.


Flower lives "Flower says" Flower thinks


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#2
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Here you go!
Word Count ► 874

Isabella was curled up into a tight ball in her den despite how rather roomy it was inside. There was a solid stone wall to her back, but it was covered with soft moss. It was cold against her pelt, but she could only faintly feel the chill. Her lucious thick fur was a gift from her dog heritage. The dog breeds that defined her blood were of thicker stuff, made for winter snow and the hunt for game. Part of her blood was for herding those livestocks that the humans had kept for fleece and meat. This past was entirely unknown to her, as well as the names of the dog blood in her veins. All she knew was that she had to thank that heritage for her ability to brave winters, when half of her was not entirely well-built for freezing weather. Northern coyotes adapted well to the winters but they were not nearly as thick pelted as a wolf was. Thankfully, it seemed like no southern coyote genes played with her features, lucious and thick as her fur was this winter. It had been thickening as it grew colder, despite the abnormally warm winter they had thus far.

The entrance to her den, a wide hole supported by old walls, was covered with a thick cloth tautly secured to keep the wind and weather out of the warm den. It was dark, unfortunately, and Isabella had not had time to figure out a way to incorperate a light bearing, heat giving crude fireplace. Ideas she had but time and ability she did not. There would be time later to expand her den and the small corner of ruin she had taken as her own. It was still not homey and did not yet suit her tastes. Thankfully, the time she had put in with a communal slave to expand the den had been worth the effort. The den was now tall enough for a woman of her size to hunch over in it, but sit comfortably. Without her usual supply of fur coverings and padding, sleeping was for her four legged form so her body heat would stay at her core. But when she had the small fire hole built and more luxurious pelts, her full form could spread out in her home. For now, she made do.

Shuddering, her body uncoiled, tail slipping back as her body slithered toward the exit to her home. Isabella's back grazed the cloth as it fell back into place over the hole in the ground. A small low wall of stone divided the den's entrance from the rest of the corner. Body shuddering again, the woman thought about changing her form to the one she enjoyed most. Sultry curves and flexiblity made her life a wonderful thing, significantly easier. Yet the rumble in her stomach made her pause, as she inspected her surroundings. The fire pit was cold, the embers day old. There was no meat to be found here for she did not store it. Her last meal had been a hare with more fur than he knew what to do with. That pelt was drying in an alcove, something the woman was no good at but hoped to at least get a few soft additions to her den. Regardless, she would have to hunt.

Bi-colored eyes gazed at the empty metal pot, smelling the faint oder of meat but it was from the last meal, long since washed clean. Perhaps another hare if she could find it. Slipped away from the ruins, the woman hunted between trees, her dark colorings blending against the dark tones of pine trees and the lighter browns of deciduous trees. Leaves had fallen though this far north evergreen swere prevelant as well. A dart of brown caught her eye, and the gypsy woman followed it slowly. Her quick wit and herd dog instincts told her how to back the hare into a tight corner. After a few maneuvers, the woman managed to get the hair stuck at a rock pile. With a quick snap, the hare was squirming in her jaws. With a crunch, the spine broke and the creature's movement ceased. The metallic tang of blood filled her mouth though it was only on her tongue for the most part. Terribly self satisfied, she turned back to the ruins in an easy jog.

A whine pierced the silence and the woman stopped in her tracks. Tall black ears twisted to find the source, and the woman turned in the direction of the sound even as it faded away. Hare still in her jaws, Isabella saw another member of the Thistle Kingdom curled up beneath a green pine. Cocking her head, the gypsy woman came close, dropping the hare to the ground with a soft thump and wide jaws. "Is something wrong?" she asked the woman before her, bi-colored eyes glancing over the unknown stranger. She had seen her at the Last Supper but had no idea as to her name. She was not one of the exalted at the dinner, though she seemed terribly pained now. "Are you alright?" Her concern was partially feigned, but the respectful tone was not.


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#3
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613w :: I'm really sorry for the delay! Didn't expect having so much homework D:


There she remained, lying among frozen vegetation and a soft but rather bumpy layer of rotting organic material. She felt tranquil there, but still frustrated because of the infructiferous chase that had costed her some time of freedom and the very needed food. And as if she needed further remarks on the statement, her stomack rumbled, not too loud to be heard, but she could still feel her stomach stirring inside her. She sighed, and stared off into space, actually forgetting about the aching limb as she spaced out. She would have remained like that for longer had it not been by the presence that blew up her private bubble, startling her.

The newcomer strolled in her direction with a grace she envied. The first thought of the tawny coyote were that the woman would do nothing but pass by. But surprise tainted her expressionless face when the woman halted not very far from her shuddering form and dropped a furry lump in front of her. The creature laid in an unnatural position, the neck clearly broken and bent in an unnatural angle. For a moment she thought she saw the same animal whom she had given chase not long ago, but then gave up that senseless statement. hares were all the same, so it could have been just a coinsidence that these two had been roaming the same area at the same time. It did not matter, hence she gave more weight to the fact that a stranger was standing before her. Scarlet surrounded by orange-yellow stared at the woman's thick fur, feeling envy blooming one again within her for her lack of coating and for the prey thrown so near to her body. This last object made her mouth water, but she hid it, fearing that the brown-colored stranger would take that nicely.

In spite of the female's lack of true care for her state, Xochime couldn't avoid feeling lightly relieved that from the options that had occurred to her, the first had been the one that had manifested itself. She was still wary though, but not as much as she would've been if she hadn't casually repaired on this person during the Last Supper. "A-aye am...th-thanks." her answer had came out rather cutting with the sharp tone and the omnipresent stutter that accompained her voice since the northern winds found their place in salsolian territory. Which happened manifestate in that moment in the form of a freeting breeze that sent several strong chills down her spine, which looked more live convulsive movements than what they actually were. She couldn't refrain from doing so in front of a stranger, but she actually let out a muffled cry, which faded when the wind stopped rustling her scruffy pelt. Afraid to recieve another blow like that, she tried to stand up and escape the shivery conditions, but no sooner she supported her weight on the twisted foreleg, a whine escaped from her throat. It still hurted, and the numbing hadn't been of great help either. Her eyes met the female's again, apologizing beforehand for the deplorable scene she was offering. "A-a-aye'm sorry, aye'll j-jussst..." There was no need to finish the sentence, her body said it all. She was hunched over herself, trying to protect as much skin as she could from the inclement weather, and her body shivered randomly, still recovering by the cold wind that striked her moments ago. "I-its j-just-t too c-cold for me." She said, excusing herself. She was not sure about what to expect from the black-haired woman, but she hoped that she wouldn't mind helping a packmate, as bad and uninviting as her aspect could be.


Flower lives "Flower says" Flower thinks


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#4
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I myself have been on vacation xD; I do hope you don't mind the pp :x let me know if i need to changes it
Word Count ► 513

Isabella furrowed her brows, eyes filled with evident doubt. This woman was by no means alright, which simply meant that she was lying through her teeth. Isabella had not stuck her head in a tree hollow; she could see plainly that this stranger, to her, was cold and injured. Now, why the woman was denying it and unwilling to ask for help was beyond her. Snorting lightly, a soft white cloud of vapor appeared and disappeared before her nose, carried away by the chilling wind. It ruffled through her pelt lightly, doing little more than moving the strands of hair, which then settled back into place only moments later. Isabella instantly took a step forward as the woman before her gave a convulsive shuddering, the pelt on her flesh rippling in chilling twitches. On top of that, Xochime attempted to stand and let out a whine, which made the hybrid woman flatten her ears in concern. She herself had little understanding of the meaning of cold, not remembering the days when her pelt had not grown in and she still relied on her mother's body heat. That had been long ago, and now Isabella did not fear the cold breath of the frosted monsieur of the deepest winter.


Heaving a desperately heavy sigh, Isabella lightly stepped her way to the side of the chilled canine. Pressing her side against the one weakened by injury, she did her best to support this pitiful creature and ensure she avoid pressing down on that leg. "You ought to come with me to my small home. It is undecorated but I'm sure I could get a fire going quickly enough." Isabella glanced up from Xochime's shivering form to gaze at the shadowed ruins that many called home. "It is close and the stones will block this wind. You are not made for it," she added, rather redundantly. It was an obvious statement but it was meant to be so. This woman had clearly not planned well for the weather, though she had fur like other canines. It must not have been cut out for such sharp weather. There had to be ice where water had remained, and snowy white frost dotted the dried grasses, bushes, and tree branches like dangerous candy.


Before leading the pained creature from her refuge by the tree, Isabella grabbed the deceased carcass of the hare between her jaws. Its flesh was cold against her tongue and the blood was chilly. Silently, she led the woman to the set of stones she claimed as her own. The wind no longer picked at their fur and the chill of the freezing breeze was dulled to the temperature of the still air. It was quiet and the smell of old embers permeated the air with a mixture of hidden lavender. "Please, by the fire if you would like. I will try to get it going. Would you like something heavy to cover yourself?" inquired the colorful woman as she deposited the woman in her home open to the cloudy grey sky above.


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