Predatory Instincts

There was a loud thud as a rabbit fell to the ground. A panting wolf with thick chocolate and gray colored fur panted and settled down next to her meal. The rabbit had given her quite some trouble as she had chased it and managed to corner it against some rocks before it escaped. Lyana licked her lips and dug into her meal with gusto as she lounged by her den while ribbing apart her prey with her sharp teeth. She paused to check the surrounding area, licking her muzzle while one paw rested on the half eaten meal. She thought she had heard something, but resumed eating the small prey hungrily.

As it turns out she had heard something. Another wolf, Slit, had been going by hunting as well. The humans were going through the smaller prey, as if they needed anymore.

Another sound caught her attention. She swallowed the bit of rabbit she had just bitten off and stood up. Lyana checked the surrounding area, her tail flicked as her ears pricked up now that she was more alert. Her paws carefully moved across the ground as she slowly checked her territory. She had marked the surrounding area well enough, at least she had thought so. Whoever was intruding was going to get a piece of her mind in a few moments.

Then he saw her. Another wolf emerged out in his line of sight. For a place that was being hunted down he was sure managing to run into a lot of anmals.

Lyana let out a low growl as she approached the strange wolf. "What are you doing here?" She asked with a tone of authority as she circled around him for a moment. "You're stepping on my territory." Her voice carried a growl, not a threatening one, but a warning telling Slit that he'd better watch himself while there. Lyana wasn't afraid to start biting if she had to, she knew she could fight, and she wasn't afraid to try if necessary.

Slit also had expeirience with fights, but he didn't want to. "Well, huntings been off, and I didn't notice any marks... other than that enjoying the veiw." He tried to lighten the situation.

Lyana's ear twitched. Despite his playful words, she still wouldn't let down her guard that easily. She sniffed the surrounding area, there were a few traces of her markings still, granted they had worn away since she had been hunting. "Hunting.. What exactly?" She asked while padding towards him with a serious expression. "I don't see paw prints, and I don't smell any rabbits or the like nearby on my territory."

"Well you have to try, you've probably noticed the rabbit population isnt very healthy right now." He reasoned.

She narrowed her eyes at the stranger. His reasoning was simple, it could be believed, but to her it was too simple. Her markings were there, and surely he'd heard of her at some point. After all she had made a commotion when she first moved in, chasing off a badger and all. And then there was the constant intrusions onto her territory where she either had to defend it or growl enough that they would realize she was the better and leave. "And you're also saying you've never heard of the infamous wolf who happens to stay here? The rabbit population may be lingering, but I highly doubt they'd be foolish enough to stray in here after I've just eaten one of their own anyways." She said as she straightened up, she had been approaching him with her head lowered, in an almost threatening gesture.

He barely noticed her posture at this point yet, "Well I don't get many memo's since my pack was killed off." He said making eye contact.

She stopped, staring directly at him. "Nor do I, but I still manage to keep myself in check when it comes to not treading on someone else's territory. Considering my pack was hunted off a while back and I'm on my own now, except for Alaya." Lyana's eyes lit up like a wildfire at the mention of the name. It still riled her up that they had never came to a conclusion who was the better of the two. She almost bared her teeth completely as she managed the last few words without her voice dripping with complete hatred for the she-wolf. "Yes. All except her. Now I suggest you tell me whether you're really hunting or here for my territory, because the mere thought of her makes me want to rip the bark off a tree." Or the fur off another wolf if I really feel like it.

Slit noticed she seemed to not be a fan of this Alaya. "I swear I was just looking for a meal." He didn't want to move yet. She got pretty riled up by this other wolf.

"Well it seems to have gotten away conveniently through my territory didn't it?" Lyana asked, still unsure of the other wolf. Her trust issues were a problem for her, but she had gained them after her pack had began to mistrust her most of all above the other wolves. Which led to a lack of food and respect from them. Her eyes still stayed narrowed. "What's your name? I've never seen you around these parts before?"

"Slit." He replied obeidietly. "And I'm good at dissapearing." Again with the attempt at making there less tension.

Lyana thought for a moment. "Lyana." She replied simply. "What pack are you from.. Slit. Because I've never seen you around her since I was a pup. Nor heard of you at all." She asked as she circled him, still on guard considering her was a stranger to begin with. She focused her senses to smell any rabbits, but she could only smell the rabbit on her, which caused some trouble when it came to believing his story. Reminded of her own rabbit, she felt a longing to go finish it, but realized she needed to deal with the intruder first.

"Well, before I asnwer that. In my defense why would I ever fight the infamous she-wolf that sent a honey badger running scared?" He said not even buttering up really just saying it as if stating the obvious. "But pack of grey wolves, we were a little while east of here. Weren't very big."

"Well you know. You males can be a bit.. Cocky." Lyana replied casually, finally easing up on her aggressive stance. She stopped circling the wolf and came to face him. "Your gender tends to waltz into my territory, thinking they can win me over or take the place without a fight. No I've fought tooth and claw for this place, and I'm not giving it up any time soon I'll tell you that." She said with narrowed eyes. "And you say you're from a pack of grey wolves... Interesting. If you were a small pack it figures we wouldn't have heard from you."

"Well your not gonna here from 'us' now anyway. And I think to treat other wolves like your own pack. Espicially with whats going on now." He continued with his pleasent tone.

She tilted her head at his comment. Lyana found it very curious that he would think that at all with the situation of all the animals in the forest. "What makes you think they'll just go along with that? And that they won't kill you and take your meal you just helped them get? You're trusting so easily." She said with a confused look. She'd never met a wolf who would say something like that before. Lyana found him strange from all sides actually. He hadn't reacted by attacking, and he hadn't tried to threaten her off her territory, nor had he tried to run away at the first encounter.

"Well, I belive in giving someone the benifit of the doubt." He replied with the hint of background knowledge in his voice.

"Even so, that could lead to losing your life. And you're so sure you want to do that so soon?" Lyana asked Slit. His attitude was clearly the opposite of hers. She wasn't sure if she wanted to call it frustrating, strange, or curious at the moment. Being a loner, she had dealt with many trespassers in the past. Could they have been allies she could have used later on?

"But what if it doesnt? If I die then I'm an idiot. But," He continued as if he told this story before. "If they DON'T betray me. Then the risk will have been worth it."

Lyana shrugged. "If that's the way you look at it." She replied while her mind wandered back to her meal. With her luck though, a smaller predator had probably stolen the rest while she was away. The annoying birds that hovered around a larger predator when they were feeding could be a nuisance, but when they ate the whole thing as soon as you turned your back, well that was even worse. She could feel a faint amount of hunger in her stomach and she idly licked her chops, which were still stained with a bit of rabbit.

"Well. Sorry for interuption. And by the looks of it you have a meal to get back too." He gestured behind her.

Lyana sighed. "Probably gone by now. Besides, it barely had any meat on it to begin with. It was the skinniest rabbit out of the pair I saw eating grass over by the river. Oddly enough they had traveled over to the other side... Usually they stay on the side with the fields." She said while pondering this. She hadn't thought of it during the moment of the chase, as she had focused completely on catching her prey. But now that she thought about it, it was unusual to see them on her side of the river.