Weather wrote:Winter is ending. Rivers and lakes are beginning to thaw, and animals are coming out of their dens, prey and predators alike. Pups are beginning to be born, and, soon, the animals will begin to have young, providing more sustenance for the wolves of the Norther wilds. The sun is out much more often, and the grass is beginning to green, the world showing signs of life once more.
Dawnguard Howlers - painting roses wrote:Yiho could feel the slight movement of her pups that were growing in her. The actual thought of other life inside of her scared the life out of the female, yet also got her interested. She knew she would have to keep having pups, she was Alpha female! She's the highest in the pack, not even Zirro can actually tell her what to do! Thinking of Zirro, she also knew that other wolves that potentially join the pack might attempt to over-power him... The male was strong enough to keep that for now, but she couldn't even bare the thought of that happening when he was older, frailer... Not many Alpha's actually love each other, she wasn't even sure if Zirro loved her back, but Yiho loved her mate with all her heart. She would never give that up, not for anything. Lost in her own thoughts, Yiho almost missed Zirro leaving for hunting.
[ Zirro goes hunting ]
[ consumed four snowshoe hares ]
[ Yiho's belly is swelling with pups. She will be giving birth soon. ]
[ Zirro caught 1x Adult Beaver ]Shadowed Pack - Chinchy wrote:Their bellies had been kept full for a while after the catch they had made in their last hunt. With Careless Rabbit's stomach beggining to swell by now as the two's pups developed. Still, she refused to stay behind during a hunt, much to the pleasure of Roaming Bear who would rather be chasing prey than guarding his mate and superior as she rested. Yet again the two ran through their territory. They stopped briefly at the western edge of the forest where it wasn't quite as thick anymore and gave way to open ground. The two took notice that the river, once frozen over, albeit flowing under the fairly thin layer of ice, was now more open to the air around. The two black wolves approached the water for a drink before slipping back into the dark forest where they were practically invisible within the dark. They continued at a slower pace now, one or the other lowering their head to sniff the cold ground for any sign of fresh scent of prey.
[The pack consumed 4 snowshoe hares]
[Roaming Bear and Careless Rabbit hunt]
[ While hunting, Careless Rabbit and Roaming Bear caught x1 Whitetail Deer Doe and x1 Snowshoe Hare ]
[ Careless Rabbit's belly swells with pups. She will be giving birth soon. ]
[ While hunting, Careless Rabbit and Roaming Bear caught the scent of a dispersal wolf - they can choose to seek them out to have them join the pack, or ignore them ]The Pack of Burning Waters - Chamrosh wrote:Sonsee-Array and Qaluun ate the adult beaver there and then. There wasn’t a lot of point in carrying the whole thing back when they themselves had to eat too. It was a waste of energy, and would result a curse from the beavers spirits. They thanked the beavers for their lives and their gifts of their ended lives, pushed snow around the remains, then carried the kits back to the cave, one each. It was a simple enough climb that it was still easy with them. They placed down the beaver kits together, in a little alcove off the side of the main body of the cave.
-------
Sonsee-Array closed her eyes and fell deep into her sleep. First, she had a vision of a set of tiny pup paws prints through the snow, emerging and falling into it while the pups were not to be seen. She was sure that meant that she was expecting pups, and that they would be healthy and energetic- surely a good omen.
Then the snow melted away, leaving no sign of the running paw prints.
A huge figure, what looked like a skinny, very tall bird with an ugly, crooked beak and strange bright yellow and orange stained feathers, erupted instantaneously from the ground below. It released a horrendous smell, like the burning pools, and smoke seemed to come off it in huge clouds of yellow steam. Stinking water dripped off it, and it was quickly clear that where the drips landed, they made up the pools from below the slope of the mountain, and in some of the precise spots, geysers erupted upwards. It was almost painful to look at, with a burning sickly light so bright that everything else, even Chaghalsi’s ever-changing home, and the tiny lights of the single eyes of her many followers paled into insignificance.
“Hello, little wolf.” The bird had a booming voice with a heavy rasp in it, and Sonsee had never been more terrified in her life, and could not imagine so much fear before at just three words. “My land. I burn, I boil, I bake. Destroy. You step in my pool, you burn. You trespass in my water, you boil. You spoil my fire, you bake.
“Stay away from my water, you fine. My lakes for me, land for little wolves. Cold water for little wolves, hot water for me. Little wolf that goes in my lake dies, they burn, they boil, they bake. You stay out, you fine.” The voice got lower, louder, raspier throughout his speech.
It took many minutes for Sonsee to get her words out through her fear, and then she had to howl as loud as she could to even feel like her voice vaguely compared. It sounded pitiful, like a pup’s first whimper afterwards.
“What is your name, Spirit?!”
“I am Ltsooy-Tuu, spirit of the burning water.” He seemed both angered and surprised to have encountered, even in dreams, anything brave enough to question him.
“Great Ltsooy-Tuu, we pledge never to taint your waters, bar with those that first taint us and you may do with them what you will!”
The bird spirit gave off a laugh that made thunder sound like leaves falling, and Sonsee was sure that there was a real sound of a huge quantity of snow shifting thanks to the noise of it. “Little wolf thinks I need permission to punish trespassers! Ltsooy-Tuu needs no permissions! But I hold you to your pledge, little-brave-one. Now go!”
The spirit flapped its wings once, sending searing water towards Sonsee. She yowled in pain as the heat of it consumed her, even in dreams.
Her eyes snapped open in the cave. She quickly checked herself over, but there were no signs of the injuries of the scalding water on herself. In her dream she had rolled a little ways away from Qaluun. She hoped for his piece of mind that he had not encountered the same spirit.
She considered that they might have to travel onwards after that, for a few moments, now seeing the danger they faced from the very land itself. But, if that was a guardian of this land, they would surely never be destroyed, and Ltsooy-Tuu had chosen to speak to her and not just smite them down, so it was a good omen, she was sure. They just had to be very careful.
-------
Qaluun looked at the pile. They’d need to make sure it was bigger than that for the pups to have plenty of food. They’d only been here a month and Sonsee’s pups would still not be likely to arrive for a few months, so they should be safe to go hunting again. She still seemed shaken from whatever dream it was that had been sent to her on their first night here, and since their first day, whenever they had been together, Sonsee had not allowed Qaluun to head anywhere near to the burning pools. She had yet to say why, and he almost wished she was planning not to, for if she were that terrified, he dreaded to think the effect it would have on himself.
Qaluun was more concerned for her pups, however. He didn’t want there to be any harm coming to their pups for her over-exerting herself. But he was even more concerned about there not being enough food. He would trust her judgements, and he prayed that Taqundi would understand why they needed her to hunt now for their pups and keep them safe and strong.
[The pack consumes 2 servings of food (an adult beaver)]
[Sonsee-Array and Qaluun go hunting]
[Sonsee-Array has been gestating for one moon]
[ Sonsee-Array and Qalaan caught x3 Snowshoe Hares ]
[ Sonsee-Array's belly swells with pups. She will give birth soon ]Ghost River Pack - raven walker wrote:In silence, the two wolves sat next to each other, gazing out into their land. They were still, the only movement being their fur moving with the breeze. This was land to be proud of. The female, Oribel, nuzzled her partner. "Let's hunt." She suggested. Edur looked at her, then back at the territory, then at her again. His strangely violet eyes softened and he nuzzled her back. "A celebration hunt, in honour of our pack." He agreed and they both stood, tails wagging. Oribel let Edur take the lead,
and could barely contain her excitement. The first hunt in their new territory! She couldn't wait.
(Oribel and Edur go on a hunting party)
[ Oribel and Edur caught x4 Snowshoe Hares ]The Pack of Frozen Peaks - røsebud wrote:Enita and Kahkwa padded side-by-side, gradually scaling the mountain together. Enita's paws were beginning to ache from all of the walking and climbing they'd had to do recently, but she didn't dare complain. Kahkwa let out a long sigh of obvious irritation. "What?" Enita asked, clearly exasperated. "Nothing," her mate grumbled, followed by a pause. "It's just that I wasn't expecting this to take so long," he finally spat. Enita couldn't help but roll her eyes. "If you're not up to it, then leave. I'm sure I'll find an easy replacement," she said warningly. For a moment, Kahkwa looked almost afraid. "You wouldn't actually... would you?" he whispered. Enita smiled despite herself. "Of course not, you idiot. Nothing could replace you," she replied, nuzzling him affectionately. A moment later, her commanding aura had returned. "Really, Kahkwa, pick up the pace. We will find a suitable place to live," the she-wolf assured. It was only a few minutes later that the wolves found the small waterfall. Enita padded toward it cautiously, Kahkwa close behind. Small droplets of water sprayed the two pelts as they wandered into the cave that had been somewhat concealed by the sheet of water. They were both silent as they explored the cave. "So what do you think? Could this be the place?" Kahkwa finally asked. A small smile formed on Enita's muzzle as she nodded. "The Pack of Frozen Peaks has begun."
Hunting Patrol: Enita and Kahkwa
First Litter: Enita and Kahkwa
[ Enita and Kahkwa caught x1 Adult Mountain Goats ]
[ Enita is now expecting pups ]The Chowilawu Pack - RebelliousWinters wrote:Tiny wisps of a dream tickled her mind delightfully. There was no sight - everything was black - but her other senses...they were on high alert. The taste and smell of snow and fresh pine, the loud thundering of a stampeding herd of caribou, her paws sinking into the fresh snow. A feeling akin to joy began crawling into her chest sending her heart fluttering. She felt herself relaxing in this odd sensory dream. As the dream progressed everything seemed to be getting clearer... louder, stronger. A burst of colour pierced through the darkness of her mind.
Panic seized her. She wasn't chasing the stampede of caribou... they were chasing her!
Safiya let out a high-pitch yelp as a Caribou stepped too close to her foot. She was in the middle of it all, and there was nothing she could do to escape! Tossing, turning, flopping around at the feet of the caribou she ended up bruising her shoulder. Everything seemed to stop the moment she felt a sharp pinch erupt from her side. She believed she had been kicked.
Looking through the feet of the herd she saw a dark creature running straight for her. This is the end...
Safiya let out a wild gasp and she spasmed on the cold frozen ground. Panting heavily she looked around in a flurry. This isn't the hunting grounds... As her eyes scanned the area she let them fall upon the giant lake reflecting the sunlight back at her. Her eyes dilated, This isn't even apart of our territory!! Safiya tentatively took a few steps towards the water, her throat was aching. Like she had went on a long journey without any water. She lapped at a few drops while her ears were left swiveling. She didn't trust this unfamiliar land enough to let her guard down. Safiya nearly choked as a sharp pain erupted from her skull.
Voices murmured softly together as a loud whirl noise drowned out all else. This language they were speaking sounded foreign. Yet at the same time familiar. "You sure this is the right place to release them?"
"That's what the documents said. There's a conservation reserve near here. We already called in, they agreed to take them."
A soft voice overpowered the other two, it was melodic... peaceful. The voice of a Goddess. "This is the place, yes. A blessing has surely been bestowed upon these two. I looked over this land myself. It is in perfect condition for pup-rearing and pack rising."
"The goddess. She spoke to you?" Still disoriented and dizzy Safiya turned unsteadily to bare her teeth at the intruding wolf. The goddess!? He knows of her too? That I've heard her voice....? Familiarity punched her right in the gut. Oh, of course he knows of her... stupid Fadeyushka spawn. She scoffed, referring to the pack of wolves her family had... an interesting relationship with. The Fadeyushka and Jaazaniah packs were both allies... and enemy's. Throughout the generations depending on who led the two packs, they were either the closest of friends... or the worst of enemies. Currently a struggle had broke out between the packs. For years the packs had been allies with one another. Her father in leadership of the Jaazaniah pack, and close friends with Fadeyushka's old leader - Rourke's father. Unfortunately that winter Fadeyushka's leader was killed, leading to a change in leadership.
"I don't talk to the likes of you." Her voice was scathing, however a slight hesitation in her words could be heard.
During their packs years of peace her and Rourke had became friends, it hurt to brush him off like that. But she was no longer permitted to talk with him, for their packs were enemies now.
"The likes of me? Now what would that be? Fudeyushka wolves, correct?" Rourke hummed, not waiting for an answer. "Fortunately for you, I left the pack..." Rourke flashed Safiya a smile that made her heart drop. "C'mon Safi-bear... We both know we're far from home."
[ Rourke & Safiya go Hunting ]
[ Rourke & Safiya prepare for their first Litter ]
[ Rourke and Safiya caught x4 Snowshoe Hares while hunting ]
[ Safiya is now expecting pups! ]
[ On their hunting trip, Rourke caught the scent of a someone familiar... he can chose to seek them out to have them join the pack, or ignore them ]
