Takes place in dampwoods, sometime in the morning.
Blood pounded through Kostya's ears as he raced through the forest, eyes fixed on the deer feeing ahead of him. Kostya had been chasing the deer through the forest for a while now, tucking under trees and racing past spots of sunlight breaking through the canopy of leaves, revelling in his ability to once again just run
Kostya didn't particularly need the meat from the deer; his den was well stocked with meat from his recent hunting efforts and would last him a fair while. Instead he was just chasing the deer for the sheer joy of it. Up until today he had been recovering from his encounter with the bear which left him with wounds on his stomach and chest. Today was the first day that he actually felt well enough to run without limiting himself and his movement, and so he did, the deer more a target to run after than something he was actually interested in catching.
Easily clearing a fallen log that had caused the deer to stumble slightly Kostya slowed his pace, letting the deer pull ahead again before speeding up, snapping at its ankles playfully. This must have been the fifth time that eh could have caught it but to be frank he was having too much fun to bother.
And so he didn’t, instead he just carried on chasing the deer, revelling in the brisk morning air running through his pelt and the feeling of being able to run again.
Haha I noticed this thread yesterday, but you have it mark P. for "Valen" so I wasn't sure if it was for me XD
Zalen had just returned into his knick of the woods from his adventure to the north amongst the hidden valley within the mountains. His head was still swimming from what he had experienced there; or rather yet, who he had met there. “Titania…” Her name rang in his head. He couldn’t get her off his mind and like a burning flame she ran through his veins as he briskly trotted back to his den.
The young wolfess Titania was who he had come across in that mountain valley, much to his surprise and delight. She was a young thing, barely out of pup hood and just so full of life that being around her brought him back to his youth, not that he was old by any means, but with her he felt like a puppy once more. They had frolicked in the crisp mountain air together, playing and jostling like wolves do, and it had been perfect. Zalen had decided then, that he would return there soon and it would be there that he would establish his pack, “With her! His mind rang out, and he had to shake his head with a simple smile.
His being so deep in thought, he was thoroughly surprised when the brown hide of a deer ran past him, followed closely by a wolf in chase. Zalen watched them zoom past, shocked that once again he was encountering an unknown wolf near his territory. He turned in place and started pursuing them. As he neared, he noticed that the deer was winded and that the wolf in chase was not truly hunting but instead running the deer just to run behind it. Zalen grinned, the playful mood he had gained in the mountains still present, and he put forth a burst of speed and managed to flank the male wolf and brush up against him, giving him a grin before pushing forward to the flank the deer which looked down at him wide eyed with fear. He barked at it and nipped at its heels playfully.
Kostya gave an indistinct bark of greeting when the unknown wolf brushed against him. If he was actually hunting he might have been a bit more defensive but this was just for fun so the more the merrier in his opinion!
Kostya returned the other wolf's grin as they pulled ahead of him, going for the deer's flank. Kostya gave a bark of laughter as the deer nearly tripped itself over trying to change its course away from the stranger. His eyes glinting Kostya but on a burst of sped of his own and quickly moved around to the deer's other flank, letting out a loud bark which sent it skittering back towards the other wolf. Once again the deer nearly tripped itself up as it tried to figure out which way to go, changing its course nervously one way and another and it was all Kostya could do not to fall over and start laughing.
Still, as amusing as the chase was Kostya was starting to get fairly tired; he had been chasing the deer for a fair amount of time before the stranger had joined in and while he had been working on his stamina lately he was still pretty lacking when it came to fast passed activities such as chasing. Since losing his prey would be a pretty crappy ending to a hunt, even a playful one, Kostya sped up once more, gaining some ground and moving into a position where he would have a better lunge at the deer's neck. He made the distance easily and kept pace alongside the deer in his new position, all he needed now was for the deer to move a little bit closer to him and he had it.
The male was receptive to his playfulness the two of them ran alongside the deer, sending back and forth between them. Zalen was laughing aloud, his tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth like a triumphant flag. They played ping pong with the deer for a while, but then Zalen caught a glimpse into the wolf’s eye that looked like he was ready to kill. Zalen’s demeanor changed; there was no reason for this kill, both wolves were well fed, Zalen’s could smell meat on the male’s pelt and they had tortured this deer enough.
Before the male could strike, Zalen crossed behind the deer and body slammed the male, sending the both of them tumbling to the side and the deer disappeared into the brush. Zalen was panting, and he quickly jumped away from the male just in case his action was perceived as a thread, Let it go. He said in a calm but demanding voice, There’s no reason to spill blood today.
He shook himself free of any debris he had picked up upon landing in the dirt and quickly sniffed a nearby tree. They were right on the edge of his territory, how funny. Well if the man had anything to say against his actions when it came to the deer, he could fall back on the fact that the deer had run off into his territory, and therefore, was technically his prey to do with as he chose.
OOC: I'm fine with it but Kostya ain't too happy ^_^
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Kostya wasn;t expecting to be randomly rammed so when the other wolf jumped for him he went over easily, along the way proving the old phrase "The bigger they are, the harder they fall" to be true as he fell to the dirt, rolling twice before he managed to catch himself, his right leg jamming ahrd against the ground.
Pickign himself up, wincing as he put weight onto his right let but otherwise ignoring the pain, Ksotya glared balefully at the other male, his teeth peeking out from beneath his lips just the slightest bit, "Was tha' really necessary? Do ya' make a habit of bargin' people before ya' even ask em ta' do soemthin'?" That said Kostya relaxed his posture and hid his teeth again, enough of his earlier good mood lingering to lessen the sting of being randomly attacked, though he was still fairly annoyed.
"Ya' know, ya' migh' not'a wanted tha' deer, but I could'a used some meat ta' put in my stockpile. Ain' gonna be much by way of deer like tha' wanderin' round my den when winter comes, an ah'm fairly low on meat at tha' moment" This was said in an unaggressive, neutral tone, simply a gentle rebuke to remind the other wolf that winter was coming, and prey was going to become scarce soon. Kostya's food supply was becoming fairly low as the prey began to disappear, not that it had been vey high in the first place with all the injuries he had suffered recently.
With an annoyed snort and a shake of his head Kostya let the matter go, the deer was long gone by now anyway so there wasn't much point arguing over it. Instead he peered curiously at the male who had body slammed him. The stranger was a black coated wolf slightly smaller than Kostya himself, with two feathers tied into his mane and an odd red pattern around his eye. The last thing caused Kostya to double take and snort in amusement, remembering his meeting with Saxif, who had a similar mark, nearly a week before.
"There some sorta fashion goin' around tha' I don' know about with those things? Yer' the second wolf i've seen with a red markin' over their eye in a week." Kostya asked with an amused snort, gesturing to the strangers eye with his snout as he wandered closer, stopping about two metres away from the stranger, "The names Konstantin, who're you?"A bit blunter than normal for Kostya, and he hadn’t offered up his nickname, but then again he didn’t particularly appreciate being body slammed, so he would wait and see before he got friendly with the wolf.
The male’s reaction was expected and he was annoyed and put off by Zalen’s action but black wolf stood firm and unchanging in his decision. The male went on to speak about putting meat in a stockpile and Zalen shook his head slightly, somewhat unbelieving of what he was hearing. Had wolves turned into squirrels when he hadn’t been looking? Why would a wolf need to have a stockpile of food, especially at this time of the year and in this type of territory. It was as if all the knowledge of their ancestors was being discarded for silly hume ideals.
He then went on to speak about the lack of deer in winter and Zalen nearly laughed. What was wrong with everyone these days? He felt more and more jaded to the ways of the Luperci who chose to live like men. Brother, you are most mistaken. Do you not know that winter is the best and most fruitful time for our kind? The prey are weak and just as numerous if not more so than in the summer time, their offspring now grown enough to fill our bellies. I assure you, there is no need to stockpile, and if you wish I can show you the area the local herd frequents if you are truly worried about not finding prey in the snow.
Zalen hoped he wasn’t being too rude with that statement, but it was the truth and he felt like knocking some sense into this newcomer. The male then introduced himself as Konstantin and Zalen nodded in greeting, I am Zalen, pleased to meet you. He wagged he tail slightly, moving closer to the male to take in his scent. Konstantin was strong and young, something that Zalen very much admired in a wolf. Perhaps he should offer this man a place in his pack. Before he could so however, Konstantin remarked on his eye mark and how he had seen something similar being. Zalen paused and then smiled, You have met Saxif then? It is interesting how both of us choose to mark ourselves in this way but it is not something that was planned. Zalen was glad to know that Saxif was still in the area and socializing, he made a mental note of having to ask her about joining him in the territory to the north.
Kostya bit back a snarl as his gut reaction to the strangers statement, his pride already wounded by being knocked over earlier. If he had been in the habit of expressing his anger more outwardly he would have been close to attacking the stranger by now. In truth some of his frustration was likely leaking out into his body language, but he reigned it in when he actually processed what the stranger had said.
Kostya hadn't actually survived a winter out in the open before within his memory; his first winter had been spent as a pup and was something he could barely remember and his second had been spent on a boat, crossing the Atlantic. His reaction to the oncoming winter, namely stockpiling food, had mainly come about from observing how several other wolves he had met were preparing, and it seemed was unnecessary.
Plus the other wolf was offering help, and not having to spend the winter eating old stored food would be nice, even if he did have to swallow his pride a little bit. As the stranger introduced themselves he sat up with a sigh, flicking his ears down the slightest fraction. "Tha' would be… appreciated. I'm new ta'' tha' area an' well frankly I'm better at the physical side'a huntin' than tha' logistics" Kostya shuffled his feet awkwardly, perhaps Zalen wasn't that bad if he was offering help to a wolf he had just met, though Kostya would reserve his judgement for a short while.
Kostya's ears flicked upwards when Zalen mentioned Saxif by name, finding it odd that the two had met but were not connected like the eye decorations had initially lead him to think they were. "Yeah, Saxif, met 'er about a week ago, intrestin' ta talk to, though I've met a lot more sociable wolves since movin' 'ere." Kostya regarded Zalen with his head tilted slightly, wondering if the black furred wolf would be one of those sociable wolves, it was always interesting talking to somebody who actually had more to talk about than hunting spots and threats over territory.
Sorry bout the wait! And Zalen calls humans humes just fyi.
While the male continued to look quite miffed as he contemplated Zalen’s words soon the black wolf could see him relax and he thanked him for his offer to show him the area. Zalen nodded, knowing that it must have been an awkward position he had put him in. Konstantin then spoke again of Saxif, how he had met her a week or so ago and how the wolves in the area had seemed much more friendly then he was accustomed to.
Zalen sat and nodded again, I agree. When I first came here four moon turns ago I was also taken aback by how… hume the Luperci here acted. Sufficed to say I have yet to get used to it… nor do I wish to. This is why I have no joined a pack here and tend to keep to myself. He realized how sad it sounded, but it was the truth. Zalen knew he would not find happiness in the packs here; they lived in hume dwellings, the wore hume clothing, they fought and talked and ate and acted like humes. Zalen was a wolf, and he would live like one. That was what he had been doing in the mountains, when he Titania, finding a place where he could be true to his nature once more.
Zalen looked back up from his thoughts to Konstantin, wondering if this wolf, like Titania and Shandom, felt the same way. He wouldn’t just outright ask, afraid he might offend, but his Konstantin gave him some sign that this was his view as well, then Zalen would offer to have him join him and the others when they left to the north.
Kostya listened to Zalen talk, nodding slightly as the other wolf described his feelings towards the packs and their humanization, Kostya had felt similar feelings towards them, though evidently to a lesser degree. "I can see where yer' comin' from; Optime form is useful an all, but I'm much more comfortable like this." Kostya jerked his nose downwards and inwards, as though gesturing to his body in general.
Peering at Zalen, Kostya decided to offer a bit more information. "I ain;t joined a pack fer; pretty much the same reason as ya' really. I wouldn’ feel comfortable livin' in Optime form an well, I wouldn' feel comfortable livin' different from everyone else either." It was something that Kostya was regretting recently; he was beginning to get lonely living by himself and was wanting the companionship that a pack would bring, but was unwilling to force himself to change to fit in better.
From there Kostya fell into an awkward silence. He didn’t really know what to say to Zalen but politeness and the fact that the other wolf had said that he would show him some good hunting places stopped him from just up and leaving, so instead he cocked an ear, waiting for the other wolf to reply.
Zalen listened with keen interest as Konstantin spoke, mirroring his feelings to the tee. Zalen was surprised on how many like-minded wolves he had been meeting lately, it was if fate was dealing him a good hand. Previous to his decision to forge a new pack to the north, he had been mentally accosted by the way the Luperci around here lived their lives. Though he had made friends with those who chose a more humanistic lifestyle, it made him realize how different he was from them and this solidified his purpose.
Zalen stood and walked to Konstantin’s side, sitting again, their hides nearly touching. Something about the closeness of another canine who believed what he believed felt freeing, it was like an echo of what he had experienced with Titania the other day. Well brother, what if I were to tell you that I were planning on leaving these territories to start a pack in the north, a pack where wolves can be wolves without the suffocation of the hume cities and customs. He glanced his green eyes to Konstantin’s blue one’s, wondering how he would react.
If Zalen could manage to gather a good group of wolves to join him in his mission then he would be better off; in fact they all would. A good pack found its strength in numbers, and seeing how this wolf had been so nimble in the chase Zalen sufficed that he would be a great asset in pack hunts. He had already been pledged loyalty to by Titania and Shandom, and perhaps this wolf would be the third.
