A Life for a Life

[Wyren]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,400,true][bg=65909A] From the sandy beach heading toward the rolling waves of the ocean, a set of paw prints crisscrossed their way toward the icy waters. A gentle breeze rolled along, like the waves, blowing stinging icy water droplets onto the single reddish/white wolf that trotted toward the waves. Suddenly, the wolf’s path turned and she began walking parallel to the water, her steps slow and calculated. This was her home, her pack’s home, somewhere she felt safe enough to walk alone. Somewhat safe. The waves rolled on and crashed against the shore, while the wolf’s progress slowed to a very hesitant walk, until finally the she wolf came to a complete stop. She stood before a large piece of drift wood and as she gazed down upon it, she slowly lifted her front paws onto it and put her weight upon it. With both front paws on the drift wood, she lifted herself up with powerful front legs, lifting her head high, allowing the gentle breeze to blow her reddish tipped muzzle. She breathed in deeply, until her lungs burned and her pale blue orbs almost watered. Standing on the drift wood, the young female looked out at the horizon of the ocean, watching the birds dip and dive into the water, hunting. Her belly rumbled with hunger, but she pushed the thoughts away. The beach always did this to her. Filled her with sorrow and wonder. She glanced over, noticing that she was in about the right spot. Slowly, she drug herself from the drift wood she was standing on and padded a short distance away. Now she was in the spot. Looking down, her mind flashed with scenes from her past, showing her her mother running, she not far behind, and . . . and her father chasing them. Jasmine had tripped and fallen, rolling in the sand until she came to a halt. Her mother had sprung instantly, turning and leaping over Jasmine and tackling into her father. It had been a beautiful and deadly sight to see her mother leaping over her. At least until her father swatted her mother away easily and went for her throat. Jasmine had moved on instinct, and jumped, jolting herself out of her memories. Looking up and out over the water, a bird was barely escaping something bigger under the water. Sighing, Jas sat back on her sand, in the spot where her father had pinned her and sighed. She had to close her eyes again, just had to to see her mother once more.

[castaway]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,483,true][bg=e1d877] Salizar stood along the edges of the treeline, watching the female crossing over objects, just to stand where she had been when he had found her. He recalled it as well, that young female had been young, her and her mother were climbing this beach, possibly to hide from the monster of a father. It was just at that moment that he had arrived that Salizar saved the life of this young female. And to this day she has stayed with him, never failing to amuse him. He climbed down the slope of the trees, feeling his paws sink into the sand. The water lapped hungrily against the shoreline, threatening to swallow anyone who came to close. Salizar knew why he had come down here. To see Jasmine. A soft call of a bird, as it flew off to join the others in flight to the south, small mammals went home to their own families, and these two wolves were left sitting on the beach. Because of his, Salizar padded up to stand beside her. He gave no sign of emotion, instead he greeted her as if it were any other day. "I see you've come down here again. I realise it is hard for you, but you need to realise that she is gone. You must be thankful you survived, I did not have to save you. But I did," he growled slightly, his eyes shadowing any emotion that he betrayed. His ears curved down, as to hear her voice if she spoke. His tail drooped slightly, there was really no need to act all supreme when there were hardly any wolves in his pack. His eyes calmed, his chest fur smoothed, and he smiled slightly. Trailing away, closer to the water, he picked out smalls shells and rocks, then lifted his head and stared off into the darker part of his territory. He whuffed, and his stomach growled. He went back to her, but hung around the edges slightly, more intent on hunting. His nose lifted into the air, he inhaled the smells of deer, not many, and they probably didn't have much meat on them. But it would fill him and Jasmine, without a doubt. Food was unusually scarce in the winter. It drove Salizar mad. He nodded to Jasmine. "Would you like to hunt? I smell deer, and I haven't eaten yet.

[Wyren]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,400,true][bg=65909A] The overwhelming sadness threatened to engulf her world, but, yet again, Salizar was there to save her. And as she watched and listened to the Alpha Male that saved her time and time again from her own grief, she couldn't help but think about a time when he wouldn't be able to save her. Her father hadn't been killed, her mother had told her that the Husky had barely escaped with his life. There would be a day when he returned, and then what. "I know," she whispered, audits flattening against her skull, as she watched Salizar walk down to the water, seemingly playing with the shells in the sand. Icy blue orbs picked out the older wolf's movements and she watched intently as he lifted his head, looking back into his lands. As if on cue, her stomach rolled with hunger and her muzzle seemed to suddenly fill with water. Then he said it. Five magic words that were heaven to any young pup's ears. "Would you like to hunt?" And with those five words, Jas was brought back from her grief and sadness and revived once more into the young two year old she wolf that she had become under Salizar's care. "When have I ever turned down a chance to hunt with you?"

[/color] she questioned, rising to her paws and moving over to the brute. Knowing he wasn't big on the whole cuddling and caring part, she couldn't have missed the show of emotions he had been trying to hide earlier. "Thank you, Salizar,"[/color] she whispered, pushing her head into his ruff and nuzzling at his chest before pulling away and moving past him. "So what are you in the mood to hunt, old man?"[/color] she growled playfully, looking over her shoulder and playfully challenged the Alpha Male.

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[castaway]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,483,true][bg=e1d877] As her mood changed, and her mind roiled with her thoughts, he grew ever more impatient with her slow reply, but when he opened his jaws to ask, her ears perked and her eyes grew large. Salizar even heard her stomach rumble. When she spoke up, with the teasing reply of "When have I ever turned down a chance to hunt with you?" he rolled his eyes and nudged her when she rubbed up against his ruff. He then danced off a little ways, just to shake off the cuddling. Yes, he loved her as a father would, but he didn't enjoy cuddling. It made him less manly in his opinion. As she moved away, and attempted to play with him, and her teasing remark of what to hunt appeared, he wuffed. "Are you daft, girl? Can you no smell deer on the rise?" and then he was off, his long legs reaching over the landscape, racing her to the small heard of three or four. His territory was known to be scarce of food all year round, well. He'd have to show the other packs that no matter what, he would hold back on hunting prey on other wolves territory. It was disrespectful, and Salizar, he wasn't that type of wolf. He inhaled the smell of ferns and trees, the now distant smell of the ocean, and the smell of Jas on his fur. He stopped only a heartbeat to wait for her, before trotting in a fast pace, nose twitching to find the trail. His ears were back, his tail lowered, and his paws were silent, if for his large size. Salizar rubbed himself across a small line of bushes, lifted his head, and gazed upward, where the scent led. If Jas headed up there, and Salizar made a curve around and got them from the back, they could get one with ease. COUNT: 315 MUSE: Not that great, I'm afraid. STATUS: Finished. ;D COMMENTS: Bleh, I hope you get something out of it!

[Wyren]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,400,true][bg=65909A] To say the least, yes, Jas was a little daft, but that was only because she was still learning. She hadn't even bothered to lift her nose to the air and breath deeply, but as Salizar spoke of her daftness and took off toward the forest, she found herself finally lifting her nose and breathing deeply. Yes, there was deer around and it made her muzzle water even more. Quickly, she burst out into a mile eating loop, following along behind Salizar. Her blood sang with joy as she ran behind the male that she considered her father. She noticed that he paused up ahead, waiting for her, then took off once more. This caused her to push off with all her might, trying her best to catch up, yet saving her energy for the hunt. Hunger was one thing, but Salizar spoke more of taking your time to make sure the energy you put out for the hunt would replaced if not doubled. Not far from where he paused for her, Jas noticed that he had stopped once more, this time looking off ahead of him, as if he spotted something. As she neared him, her gaze followed his and sure enough, there was deer ahead. Glancing over to him, she cocked her head to the side, wondering which way he wanted her to go, and which way she would be driving the deer. Though she was small and able to bring down her own game, deer were still a bit out of her league when it came to actually taking them down. She knew . . . she had tried and it hadn't been pretty.

[castaway]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,483,true][bg=e1d877] Salizar heard more than felt Jasmine's race to catch up with him. When she had arrived beside him, he nipped her ear gently. He gave her a look of slight disappointment as she stopped. His hushed voice blew out as the small herd of deer sat dumbfounded, oblivious to the two wolves presence. "Jasmine. You came in here as if your life depended on it. You need to put your paws down lighter. Otherwise you'll scare every bit of prey from here to the unclaimed lands. Hush. Now, you go along and dive out when you count to five. I'll be around the edge to catch one. I'm counting on you," and with that he disappeared through the bushes, pacing himself along the lines. He was circling the herd with a certainty that was severe. Jasmine would do well this hunt, and he knew it. He bent down at the edge of the small glade like area, waiting for Jasmine to rush out. His ears were pricked with deep satisfying interest. There was the meal, a heavy doe with thick fat covering it. Surprisingly, it was the weakest. Every few steps it would stumble. There were scrapes on the deer's knees, and the scent of fresh blood set his jaws on fire. Saliva dripped from the edges of his mouth as he waited, poised to attack. A strategy was forming in his mind. Without hesitation he would drive that one out of the group, Jasmine would hopefully launch herself after the others, scare them off before helping Salizar bring down the meal. It would be perfect. It was when she did that he drove out, hounding a large one, the aroma filled his senses, and he nipped at it's heels, the blood of the doe staining his maw. He snarled loudly, kicking off his heels and lunging with his jaws open wide, locking them in the doe's hindquarters. It was coming to Jasmine's turn to get underneath it and drive it down. Salizar would be the one to kill it, as was always what happened. COUNT: 344 MUSE: It's returning, step by step STATUS: Finished. COMMENTS: Have fun!

[SILENT]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,480,true][bg=0f4b5f] Taild was watching the hunt from a short distance away. Her golden eyes flashed in the shadows of the trees, and despite her not liking the presence of others she did not yet know, she had the urge to join the hunt. But, despite her growling stomach, she was not yet apart of the pack. The younger wolf, the female was crouching in the bushes, and the older, much larger male was darting over the trail, obviously about to herd them around, to get in for the kill. Everything about the strategy of the hunting diagram was perfect. The male had already seemed to lock his eyes on a specific doe, Taild's mouth drooled with hunger, and she let out a soft whimper as her stomach coiled and quaked with hunger. She needed to get down there, and help, her poor belly depended on it. Her ebony paws glided her sleek, thin body across the slight hill. Her gaze fixed on the side, where she could hel Salivar get the deer from the side. The poor wolf just hoped there was a way she could get some food out of this, and possibly join the pack. There were only two wolves it seemed, so there was really no need for her to be chased off. Now, she did realise that she was trespassing badly, across nearly the middle of the land, but she did not seem to care, or didn't realise. Besides, the borders weren't all that freshly marked. To her it was free land.

[Wyren]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,400,true][bg=65909A] Her head lowered as Salizar scolded heron how she entered the area, but he quickly issued new orders, orders for the hunt and his plan and her audits perked up and her fluffy tail began to wag, curling over her back once more. Nodding her head once, she did her best to move as silently as Salizar did. It was hard for her, the Husky blood in her demanded to just barrel through everything and kill the deer, as she had come up on the small herd, smelling blood. One, she forced herself to think, pushing back all thoughts of rushing in. Her paws hit the earth softly, making hardly any sound. She was closer now, still not within the right amount of distant, but closer. Two. She began piecing together everything, hoping Salizar would be proud of her when this hunt was finished. She would get close enough, spring out and drive the rest of the herd any. Even if the herd was small, and the prey lacking in some areas in their land, the stags and stronger does would be trouble if not driven away. Three. Salizar was depending on her, and as she neared the herd, she felt her blood singing and her heart pounding. Four. Coming to a halt, she eased herself down, trying to pick out which deer she would drive toward Salizar and which would be driven away. Bingo! There was the sound of someone stumbling and lucky enough, it was a heavyset doe. She looked like she had been lucky the last hunt, but had taken a bad tumble. Maybe tried to be brave and jump something she shouldn't have. It didn't matter. It was time. FIVE, she growled to herself, back legs pushing her off the ground and between the main herd and the doe. Another lucky move, the doe had been graving further and further from the herd and there was a small gap. As she appeared the herd scattered, the doe she wanted went one way and the herd went the other. She was able to catch a glimpse of Salizar leaping out at the doe and driving it on, but after that, she went on autopilot and drove the herd away. When she felt none would return, she skidding to a halt, turned tail, and ran back toward Salizar and her doe that she had left behind. As she neared, she found Salizar dangling from the hindquarters of the deer. Taking that as a cue, she dove under the deer, grabbing onto its belly, almost losing the doe and got kicked in the muzzle by a front hoof, but the taste of her own blood caused her to sprang forward, latch on and hold on for dear life. As she clung on, the doe wasn't giving her a chance to dig her feet into the ground and the deer was simply dragging her along. It seemed like a lifetime before Jas was finally able to get all four paws back on the ground and she planted the all, almost getting drug some more, but by now the doe was tired. It seemed for a moment, the doe was just going to stand there, which gave Jas just enough to get a better grip on the doe's belly and she gave a strong yank, knocking the doe over and almost getting squished in the process. But nothing else mattered, the doe was on the ground, Jas wasn't letting go until Salizar said the doe was dead, and all she had to do now was wait for Salizar to kill the creature. Her body ached, her muzzle hurt so bad, Salizar seemed to be ok, and that was all that mattered. They would be fine with this meal. It would hold them both over for a couple of days.

[castaway]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,483,true][bg=e1d877] Salizar drove on, kicking out with his front paws to help Jasmine. His eyes were dark, his jaws clenched, and as the large doe fell with an almost earth-shaking force, he went in for the kill. The tainted feeling of Jas's blood tickled his senses, before he drowned down to the neck, clamping his fangs into the thick neck. The aroma of fresh meat clouded his senses, and that was when he heard the pawsteps of another wolf. He immediately set up his posture for snarling and raised his hackles, his eyes angered and looking deadly. He did not look at Jasmine, but he knew she must understand the danger of this newcomer, she should help him defend the kill. Salizar bared his teeth and let out a harsh speech. "What are you doing on Divisia land? And to walk right into the heart of the claimed land. You have nerve." then he growled, waiting for the rather rude females voice to reply. Just because she looked harmless didn't mean she wasn't. The smell of a dead deer was rising, and there was the easy threat of a bear just the same. They had to eat soon. Salizar calmed slightly when the wolf seemed of little threat, but he couldn't be sure. He backed up to the deer, protecting it. If she wanted to join the pack, she could. But he would still be edgy of her loyalty. But her hard gaze that looked pained with hunger gave his heart a little squeeze. In a way she was just like his adopted daughter. Scared. But now that Jasmine was with him, she was safe. This newcomer, was a different story. He took the chance to look at Jasmine, hoping she wasn't scared. He stepped closer to her, giving her a look that read she shouldn't be scared, and that he needed her now. As his gaze slid back to the newcomer, his posture released into an easier state. The reason he had looked so menacing was because of how much the female had scared him. But he wasn't about to admit that, not until he knew they wouldn't laugh. COUNT: 358 MUSE: Bleh. STATUS: Finished. COMMENTS: Talid will become a member soon, if thats alright.

[Wyren]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=width,400,true][bg=65909A] With the deer finally down, Jas held on still, at least until Salizar stood, snarling and growling at someone close by. Releasing the deer's belly, the young she wolf mix stood, blood having stained her muzzle, as icy blue orbs took in the sight of a black she wolf not far away from their kill. Taking a hint from Salizar, she lowered her audits, tail curled and raised over her back, while she set her body, getting ready to attack if Salizar gave the command. "What are you doing on Divisia land? And to walk right into the heart of the claimed land. You have nerve." Jas heard Saliar speak. As he spoke, Jas slowly moved around the kill, putting herself between the deer and the she wolf. They had worked so hard, and she knew that Salizar was hungry, as was she. There was no way this lone she wolf was going to take their kill. Icy blues tracked the she wolf, watching and waiting. One step out of line and she would pounce.