Wolf and Deer - Part One - Beta
#2 of Wolf and Deer
The story of the deerwolf's parents starts here. Don't hesitate to comment, any feedback would be greatly appreciated. :)
I plan to have every part of the story illustrated over time, the artwork slot for this one being reserved for Dakarai. ^.^ Enjoy!
1
Winter. Cold biting through the paws drumming on the frozen snow. And hunger, like the stomach had turned in upon itself. Despair. Human hunters, just as hungry, following on the heel. Damn them. As if they'd miss the few chickens that granted the pack some days of hope. Running. Running on with only one thing known for sure; make a kill, or die.
Beta ran on, hardly feeling the frozen snow biting into his paws, not caring that he left behind a trail to be seen and smelled even for the dumb and nose-blind. Food, meat, blood for the old and weary. Nothing else counted. Beta ran, not heeding his by now torn paws creating a purple pattern on the snow behind him. Make. A. Kill.
He couldn't tell the hours that passed when he finally found what he sought. His stomach fur had long turned into a dull brown from his own blood. No matter. The wind was in his favour, and the deer was preoccupied enough with his own quest for food. He became one with the undergrowth. Sneaking ahead so slowly and carefully that a squirrel on a quest for it's stashes got a nasty turn when it had its tail stepped on.
No time for small game. A deer was waiting ahead. Normally, Beta would rely on several other members of the pack to circle it, surprising it to jump right into his jaws, but tonight he was on his own. So he just crept ahead as far as he could and jumped.
If it had been summer, and the deer well-fed, his weak attempt wouldn't have borne fruit. As it turned out, the wolves weren't the only ones who had to suffer from the cold. The deer turned away to flee, but Beta crashed into it and forced it to the ground by sheer force of momentum.
He only got a weak hold of her at first. Only a few inches above her shoulder blades, not down in the soft part of her neck as he would have preferred. Nevertheless, he hung on, secure in the knowledge that even Alpha could not have beat him in terms of dexterity and determination. He ruled by right of age, not ability. As the deer struggled and tried to get back on its feet, Beta took the opportunity to put his jaws a little further up and more down, getting closer to the jugular vein. As he prepared to crush her windpipe, the unthinkable happened, for with already constricted breath the deer said: "You... have beautiful eyes."
Beta hesitated. Never before had prey spoken to fang, though he dimly remembered his grandsire telling the pack of prey begging for mercy, which the whole pack had taken as a joke. Prey does not speak, prey is eaten. He pounced her again, turning her on her back and finally having the soft part of her neck between his jaws. Which he found himself unable to close. He cursed himself, remembering how much the pack relied on the hunters to bring home meat.
With an effort, he tried to bite through fur, skin and muscle, but the only thing he found himself concentrating on was her fast heartbeat reverberating on his tongue. The heat of her body seemed more comfortable by the second, and her smell had long turned from prey to... something else entirely. He shook himself, but took care not to shake the neck trapped between his teeth. Only now did he look up into her face, hesitated and said: "You too."