Hunting

The conditions were right - the wind was blowing back behind her; the greenery was lush and flourishing; the sun had yet to graze the horizon. Not even the birds had become aware of her presence, pruning their chicks as slippery grubs hung lifeless from their beaks. Grazing gazelles were crooning their newly borns, cream coats glistening with the glows of the generation of nutrients offered at the hands of frosted grass blades. The spring breeze chilled the edges of her whiskers - almost encouraging a sneeze if the wolf hadn't buried her fuzzy snout under their large front paws.

Angela held in a sigh of relief as she felt the sneeze fade away - the herd having not noticed the predator hidden amongst the tall grass. The wolf couldn't help sniffling a little - just to make sure the sneeze had passed. Gracing the uneven dirt floor with her toes once more, Angela clenched her claws in as a test of traction; wasn't the best but she'd dealt with worse. Her breaths were shallow, the mist penetrating the fresh air and fading up into the fluorescent pink sky.

The hound held their breath as the wind had begun shift; time was running out; their heart rate quickened; without a moment's warning she sprung out from the overgrown grasslands.The roaring of her entrance sent the fawns scattering amongst the aged.

With a bounding stride, Angela started to seal the distance between herself and a stray calf she'd been watching. Bucking and bleating, the unsteady newborn threaded between the elders of the herd, struggling to keep up with the group now thundering through the thickets to try and reach fleeting forestry. Long strides aiding her fast paces spurred the predator on to match with the herd.

She kept her distance - out skirting the raised hooves and kicked dirt created by the mass movement. Angela needed an opportunity and she needed it soon. Her stamina was quickly diminishing in the chase, much more dragged out than she'd anticipated. The wolf hung her tongue as she panted heavily - unsure of whether there was any point left in the hunt.

A howl pieced the air, sending the herd scattering. Angela's opening arose as the calf slipped out behind the larger gazelles; hooves hammering on uneven flooring; legs shaking from sheer sapped strength.

Jaw clenching, she gave it one last push, bounding with a new found stamina with leaps in her stride. Finally shrinking the distance - digging her back legs into the dirt; lunging forward and clamping her jaw onto the skittering fawn's back side - both predator and prey came crashing down onto the ground. Angela pulled back as the fawn tried to kick out - a strong hit to the chest knocking the wind from the hound's lungs, pulling back momentarily. Snarling in frustration - the canine lunged forward once more before the herbivore could hurry away.

A swift crunch of the neck; the fading of hooves into the distance amongst the long scattered birds left the pair in silence. The body thumped to the ground as the now bloodied jaws released the motionless kill. Angela barely registered the emptiness held in the fawn's eyes before she collapsed beside them, the exhaustion finally overcoming the adrenaline and causing a droning ache to arise in her muscles.

The soft crunching of grass caused the canine's eyes to shift up - blinded by the light of the clear sky until a reddened figure blocked it up. Taking a moment to register the figure, Angela almost immediately groaned out of frustration. This received a swift chuckle followed by a sarcastic comment, "All by yourself, huh?" The figure rhetorically asked, finally laying down to see Angela at almost eye-level.

"Shut up..." The she-wolf grumbled into the ground, muffled in the dirt causing the arrival's smirk to widen.

"Sorry, couldn't hear you. Mind telling me how great I am just a little louder~?" He crooned to the expense of the black and white patterned canine, "Was your plan honestly to out stamina a gazelle?"

This time the response was even less audible, the narcissistic male taking it as his win and contently glancing back at the carcass - he was still the solo hunter King.