Dix-sept

Everything left him twitchy. Vidocq continued to linger around the watering hole, uncertain what to do about the weather. He certainly wasn't going to go back to the far north -- not interested at all in that any more -- but some of the other areas didn't seem much better. Here it was quiet, not many to bug him. Hell, he'd probably even put on a few pounds just from the fact he wasn't wandering excessively, he could put more of his energy into hunting when he needed it rather than roaming. But just the same, had he made a good choice to pause here? He wasn't sure. It was all weird here again.

The biggest issue here was that there was very minimal cover anywhere nearby. If the weather finally broke and whatever storm it was hit, he'd get absolutely drenched. He'd look like a damn stick figure. Okay, maybe not quite a wolf Jack Skellington, but whatever shreds of being imposing he might have had would almost literally get washed away. For now, though, he was just wandering the shore of the watering hole, ears twitching, nose skimming the wind. He wasn't quite to the point of deciding maybe he should dig something vaguely resembling a den for cover, but it was an idea that was floating in the back of his mind. Much like the ducks that were the bane of his hunting.
the staff team luvs u

The young girl lowered herself to the ground as she stalked forward, her eyes zoning in on the rabbit in front of her. It was nice and plump and looked like it was settling down for a drink. Hiding deep within the tall grass, her black pelt moved forward, waiting until the rabbit leaned down to take a sip. And then she was rushing forward, grabbing the quick creature and snapping its neck within seconds. It was a swift kill but it always needed to be a quick kill when it was a rabbit. Saxa was a smaller creature and though she was fast, she wasn't as fast as a rabbit. Especially one that knew the territory better than her. 

It was only after her kill that she took a look around at the place, noting the green, long grass and how it melded so easily into the cool water near her feet. The plains seemed to roll onward forever until it met the mountains in the distance. This was such a beautiful place that she found herself not wanting to leave any time soon. However, as she was looking over the land, her eyes fell upon another creature, this one much larger than her. It seemed like a wolf to her and she momentarily wondered what he was doing. He seemed to just be relaxing and she wondered if he was one of those weirdly aggressive wolves that were always rude to foxes for no reason.

the staff team luvs u

Got interrupted before I could reread, LMK if it doesn't make sense.

---

The thing about any flatland is that any sort of activity would set off the local alarms -- any matter of small birds that'd set off twittering away and drawing attention to what just went down. It was supposed to warn the deer and other herd creatures (or at least that's how he interpreted it) but it was also a "hey look over there" for everyone who might want in on the action. His ears pricked up, and he stood tall to try to spot what it was. Dark shadows between the grasses. He started forward, trying to get a better view.

What he saw, though, didn't spook him away, quite the opposite in fact. And the thing about Vidocq was that even though he wasn't usually the type to mess with other wolves, he didn't have the same respect for any critters smaller than him. Survival for a lone wolf meant being opportunistic, and some fox killing a rabbit looked more like they'd gone and become Doordash for him. He picked up the pace, acting with a confidence that he normally didn't have -- it was just a fox -- eager to use his size and power to bully himself a free meal. With his tail straight behind him, and the scrunching of his muzzle, he wasn't full on attack mode (yet, at least), but he did mean business.
the staff team luvs u

She had a bad feeling about this guy, watching him with weary eyes. As he stood up, she would tense herself, watching him closely. Of course, he seemed to want her food. What a dick. He was much larger than her but she had a fiery spark in her, one that wouldn't be diminished by big brutes trying to push her around. She remained in her same place, watching him with a bored expression. "You know, if you use your big boy voice and ask for what you want, I might be willing to give it to you or even hunt for you. If you're nice you'll get more than just this little rabbit from me." She knew she was pushing her buttons, but she didn't really care. 

Tensing herself, she kept her body ready to bolt, though very much ready to snatch the food from him too. If he was going to continue to be a dick, than he would have a hell of a time getting this rabbit. Even if she might die from this, at least she could have the last laugh.

the staff team luvs u

There were places for dialog, but when it involved survival that was certainly not one to him, so he didn't listen to a word. A lone wolf that didn't try to steal from a smaller predator was a lone wolf that'd probably end up dead. As soon as she opened her mouth and started talking instead of doing the smart thing -- which he knew very clearly was the smart thing, given how long he'd been solo and the various bigger-than-a-wolf predators he'd scented -- and backing away, he cut in with a snarl and accelerated to a full charge with a narrow focus. 

Vidocq was fully expecting her to leave without even making contact: he was probably at least twice her height and maybe nearing 8 or 9 times her weight, and those weren't odds he'd want to be on the other side of. Perhaps unlike some, he wasn't really interested in killing her or anything, he just wanted the rabbit and wasn't going to haggle for it, but just because he wasn't trying to kill her it didn't mean he'd pull punches. If she stayed put and allowed the leggy brown bullet to get within striking range he'd certainly try for a bite. He wasn't going to stay latched on either, strike-release, see if she'd leave him to the kill. 

Honestly this was probably the most adult-like and actually proper wolf-like he'd been so far in the game.
the staff team luvs u

She had a feeling he was going to be a dick still, though she couldn't say that she certainly didn't antagonize him. As he rushed forward though, she yelped, taking a few precious seconds to pick up the rabbit. Because of that, she felt his teeth nick her shoulder, though thankfully not finding purchase. 

As she ran away from him, using her size and speed as an advantage, she would try to throw the rabbit into the water. "Go fetch you fucking dog." She snickered to herself, thinking that she was so cleaver in her words. Of course, she hoped he would actually go after the rabbit instead of her, but she continued to run either way. She didn't want to get him the chance to choose between her and the meal. 

She knew she didn't need to be a bitch to him, but it wasn't her fault he was an asshole to her first. She was just returning the favor. That should be something bad.

the staff team luvs u

Vidocq just has a way with... apparently everyone, no matter the species, heh.

---

To be able to turn the tables and not be on the losing end of the stick for once was not necessarily appealing, but maybe finally fair at last. After being chased out of basically everything, here he was doing the chasing. For a moment, he wondered if he was actually going to have to do more than threaten -- so he'd have two meals then maybe -- but the vixen wised up even if she seemed hesitant to do so. Even though she threw the rabbit, to prove a point he followed her for another handful of strides before peeling off to circle back to grab the rabbit out of the low waters without otherwise responding to her taunt. She could jeer all she wanted, he just wanted an easy meal and was apathetic to the rest of it. Damp prey was nowhere near the worst thing he'd had either. He'd been alone for how long? It had meant eating some stuff that prim and proper pack wolves would probably think was gross. Maybe the bath would wash off the fox cooties too.

When he'd think about it later, maybe he'd find it amusing that a fox of all things had thought she was so totally above it all, if he had photoshop he'd have made a terrible lern2foodchain meme or something and posted it on reddit for a grand total of 7 karma and someone trashing him in the comments. In actuality all he had was his own inner monologue. He looked over his shoulder to see if she was going to be coming back, but started trotting the opposite way around the shore regardless, with his prize clamped tight in his jaws. All things considered he'd been nice -- he hadn't tried to hurt her too bad, hadn't tried to kill her, so he hoped she'd just leave it at that so he didn't have to reconsider. An ear pointed back behind him, but he otherwise moved to a point away from the hunt, the chase, and hopefully a section of shore with a little more brush as cover so no bigger and badder predator came to take it away from him. Right now, he was feeling pretty good about it all, though, it was a nice change of pace from being battered by everything in existence.
the staff team luvs u