Creeping through life

If there was one skill that Cinders had truly developed over the last month it was hunting. It was the only reason she could still stand here today. She knew how to track down prey, and more importantly, she knew how to keep prey from escaping no matter how badly the hunt was exactly going. Minutes or entire hours, hunkered down just as she was now, waiting for the right moment to strike. That suddenly became more urgent as she heard rustling in the bushes, either more prey or someone potentially coming to steal her prey, uncertain which was possible given she had wandered closer to pack territory than she ever had since....well since she had to start living the way she did now.

Shaking off those thoughts Cinders lunged herself out of the bushes, jaws clamping successfully around the torso of the squirrel she had been targeting, far from the meal of champions but that was probably why she was still so small despite her paws indicating she had room to grow. Darting back into the bushes with her prize she hunkered down and tore into it, eating almost frantically as she did so, wanting to either be prepared to hunt again or to run away if this was another wolf as she feared.

And, just her luck, what ambled into her view was not a nice squirrel but another wolf. And once more she was that tender and scared pup again, unable to move to run let alone fight, even if the wolf in question seemed to be just minding their own buisiness. A female, if she knew anything, and females were generally less aggressive but.....well Cinders certainly had plenty of violent impulses. Granted that was mostly due to circumstance but....it was proof everything had exceptions!

But, either way, Cinders had to make a decision. She couldn't just lurk here forever. And, despite the trauma clouding her head, it was obvious the female hadn't set out here to cause harm. So, rather than risk a fight she most certainly would lose, Cinders decided to creep away with her squirrel prize while she still could. Or, at least, that was the plan before her bunched up muscles tripped her up and sent her sprawling out of the bushes right into the females path.

And worse yet she'd lost her squirrel.

For a moment Cinders froze, because the last thing she wanted was to actually talk with another adult after her experience, but in the end her sense got the better of her as she meekly got her feet under her and stood back up from where she had been sprawled out.

"Sorry, I wasn't trying to spy, I heard you coming so I hid in the bush with my meal," she murmured quietly, clearly deeply uncomfortable with this whole affair, but while she hadn't had parents for long enough they'd taught her some degree of manners and she was going to do her best here!
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Running away from things was Lyra's forte. She'd run from conflict, bugs, lakes, and men, in that order. So when she slipped away to calm herself down near the lake at the bottom of the terrace, Lyra had finally found a place for her to relax. Or so she thought.

Seeing a squirrel dart past her, Lyra lifted her head in confusion, then a look of surprise came over her when a small, brown-furred body fell from a bush. “Oh!” She exclaimed, rising to her feet to come closer. Something in her knew she should approach slowly to not frighten the small child before her. “There's no need to apologize. If anything, I should apologize for scaring you and making you lose your meal.” Lyra spoke softly, gently. It wasn't uncommon for Lyra to take on this tone, but it felt odd for her to know how to do this.

“Are you still hungry? I may be able to find something for you to snack on.” Lyra allowed a small smile to grace her features, her body relaxing to make her look like less of a threat. Lyra did wonder if the girl had parents, seeing how she was wandering alone.

“Oh! I'm Lyra. What's your name?”

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Cinders wasn't sure what to say at first, given she had quite literally fallen splat in front of the very creature she was trying to avoid, so much for being some stealthy apex hunter. And so rather than say anything she continued to freeze up for a moment, even though it was quickly obvious that the female meant no harm, it was as if every muscle in her body had simply locked and refused to unlock even though the danger was no longer. For as little as Cinders knew about her body she found this a deeply unfair and frustrating feature! Especially because, the more the female talked, it was clear the only danger was in Cinders memories.

Not all adults would be like those who killed her family, she had to remember that, even if her body obviously didn't.

"It's not your fault. My body locked up and I stumbled," Cinders murmured quietly, finally managing to speak for the first time, morosely eyeing the squirrel that had somehow gotten a second life and run for the hills. It wasn't a huge deal, squirrels were easy and quick hunts which is why she favored them, but it was never a good feeling to lose something you had hunted yourself....especially when it was supposed to be dead!

"My name is Cinders, and don't worry, squirrels are easy enough to hunt. You prowl the tree line long enough and eventually one of them gets brave and tries to run down," Cinders offered with a small smile, rambling about something she knew seemingly helping to settle out of her nerves finally, though she still kept her gaze more towards the floor than at the female herself.
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