What's this? What's this?

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random prompt: you come across a large prey, half eaten & seemingly left behind. You don't notice anyone else around or any other predator within the vicinity.

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It was by some miracle that Reiko or her new dude had decided that it was better for them to return to the tundra, and the duchess’ could not have been more pleased. She hadn’t, of course, understood what had made the tundra unsafe to begin with, when they had been the ones to initiate war on the tiger to begin with.

Perhaps they thought, or assumed, that the beast would come after them. They’d lost one of their own in that battle, and a funeral had yet to be held. Cirilla had lost half of her face, as well as half of her sight. She, too, held a coat of similar color and patterns to a tiger. She had wondered, though in silence, if because the tiger was their enemy, if her packmates felt differently towards her, despite that she was involved in the war itself.

It would explain a few things..

The garden was Cirilla’s favorite spot, and with the night as clear as it was, Cirilla had wanted to stare up at the stars, like she used to do. Tonight, though, she was met with a half eaten kill, and no one else around.

It wasn’t some small kill, either. Cirilla’s eyes narrowed, knowing of the tiger that Reiko kept around. Perhaps he hadn’t known where their new caches were? It was much unlike him to give them a half eaten kill, left in the middle of nowhere.

Slowly approaching the kill, Cirilla took a few sniffs, in wonder if she ought to begin an investigation.

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Curious.

She, too, approached. A silver specter and spectator among the tundra. Aware of the other woman, but unwilling to speak right now, Edelweiss inspected the half-eaten beast. The scent of blood was still fresh, which caused concern. She hadn't expected someone to kill and leave their prey. The Tundra was also a beast - unwilling to compromise and shut down resources. Especially so close to winter... The fact they ate half and left was disturbing. It meant they had the bulk to take down a massive prey animal alone.

And they were perhaps dangerous. "We should track it" Edelweiss voiced "pick up the hunter's scent, and follow. Make sure it has left." The Garden was too close to Tsukiishi and that is where the children resided. If the beast went west and entered their land, the others should not be caught unaware. She even angled toward where Tsukiishi was, the scent of blood and meat wafting in that direction. However, she was a new face to the pack. She turned back to the woman, expecting a plan of action.

If they found it, they would need to drive it away. That is, of course, if her suggestion was taken.

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^^Curious indeed. What’s worse, is that Cirilla didn’t know if tigers were known for this sort of behavior. They were the only large predator in the tundra that Cirilla had ever faced, and she would hate for another tiger to drive Shiroshika back south when they’d just resettled.

Cirilla considered the possibilities; another tiger, or something else. If she would even consider telling the ruling pair, if it was. The crunching of snow told Cirilla that she was not alone, and the voice spoken was not one she knew, but she spoke what Cirilla had been thinking.

The duchess, who had recently taken up training Alexei, glanced towards the new recruit with the dip of her head and wag of her tail. Yes, it was probably a wise idea to figure out what it was, and drive it away.

So that Cirilla could remain with a pack, and not find herself suddenly homeless, because if Shiroshika moved south a second time, she would not be in attendance.

“Yes! Yes, that’s a lovely idea! I’m Cirilla, by the way!” A chipper tone, Cirilla smiled up at the stranger with the nod of her head. She glanced back at the food that was left.

“It’d be wise to remove this, too; don’t wanna attract anything else, either.” She had no idea what she’d do with it, though, and it was pretty big, so she’d have to drag it somewhere.

“Toss it, eat it, or put it in the cache? Whatcha think?”

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"Edelweiss."

A quick flash of an awkward smile - if one could call it that - before her expression returned to neutrality. A look was given to the half-eaten creature, and she turned on the spot. Her rear faced the corpse and she began to kick snow over it. This way, the scent was concealed from predators and also marked for the Shiroshika members to find.

"It is more pressing to drive out the predator" she explained, turning around again "we can divvy up the meat when we come back, and bury the rest." The girl drifts from the spot, hoping Cirilla would not be far behind. She spoke the truth; if they delayed with the corpse... The corpse could very well be a distraction. Sneaky.

Edelweiss began to track the other predator. The blood was less heavy, leading away from the kill. It had dripped and dropped until the trail was visibly forsaken. Steps that could be other wolves and lesser animals littered the ground. She allowed Cirilla to check the area, with herself trying to pick up the scent again.

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^^Her ears lowered as she watched the woman, dubbed as Edelweiss, simply kick snow over the kill. The very brief flash of a smile Edelweiss offered her, too, didn’t really sit well with her; like talking to a robot. There was no emotion; no warmth in her tone. Cold as ice.

No, this woman only cared about making sure the predator stayed at large, and away from Shiroshika, but just because it had made a kill so close to home, didn’t mean it had lingered. Something could have frightened it or chased it away. She took a moment to glance back at the kill, then towards the other woman as she headed off, with the duchess not too far behind.

What could make such a large kill, and leave it? If it had been frightened, what had caused it? Cirilla checked the area, because she wanted to, and not because she had been allowed; but she was a half blind war veteran.

While the noble woman tried to pick up a scent, or whatever she was doing since she was leading this charge against their unknown enemy, Cirilla closed her eyes and relied on her other scents.

She didn’t know if she’d have an advantage, but the loss of her eye had caused the duchess to rely on other scents. Smell. Sound.

Something not canine. There were the sounds of crunching snow east of them.

Her eyes opened, and she looked to the noble woman, wondering if she had picked up on it as well, or if the scent she had found might lead them into the same direction.

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It was lucky that this woman got any emotion at all.

Quicksilver had been kind and welcoming, though Edelweiss had not given him a smile. She was perceptive and knew Cirillia was put off by her lackluster reply, but she was not the type to bounce around, giggle and wag her tail. Take it or leave it. What was more important than socializing was duty. They could sit here and gossip like hens, or they could make sure Shiroshika was safe. The predator went west, near the border that was being formed.

She had noticed, when they stopped, the eerie silence. The crunches came next after a beat. Edelweiss turned, half expecting nothing. Maybe the wind was making such a nose, the Tundra's icy scent covering most other smells because of the strong wind. It howled like a wolf. "Look out." her tone turned into a warning, her body slipping to Cirilla's side as she gave a snarl. A polar bear approached, it's bib made of blood. It was in no hurry, a slow lumbering pace as it approached the wolves.

It knew enough to approach the woman's blind side. That meant it had been watching them for some time. Her shoulder fur puffed up, attempting to make herself bigger. The bear gazed lazily at the pair, a chuffing sort of growl. It did not move right away, but it was clearly tense.

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^^It was not hard to tell that Cirilla was a disabled canine, lacking part of her vision. The way she carried herself; the way she had to turn her head further to see things. It was both a shock and a relief that Shiroshika hadn’t demoted her for the disability, but to others, like the bear that had been watching them..

A weakness was a weakness.

The silence was eerie, at best; not even the birbs sung to them. The normally nosey forest around was silent. A predator was amongst them, she knew. She could feel someone watching them.

It had been silent until it wasn’t. Edelweiss’ cry of warning, followed by a snarl and a body pressing up against her blind side as Cirilla growled, though not towards Edelweiss, but their sudden opponent.

The goal had been to drive the best out, and away from their home. They needed to get it to chase them, or they chase it. And she had half the mind to chase it head on, but didn't want to end up totally blind if it called her bluff, or smacked her on the other side of her face.

Cirilla didn’t move for a moment, staring down the beast with a scoff as she shook out her coat and took two very bold steps towards it, barking and hollering and making as much noise as she could. Perhaps if they made enough noise, it would flee, or attract others.

“Get the fuck outta here with that nonsense.”

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Edelweiss did not see the woman as disabled.

Scars, heavy or not, and missing limbs or eyes did not make someone unable to live. Cirilla did not strike her as the type to lay down and die easily. Perhaps a bit distracted and lacking in duty, but that wasn't something to be held against another forever. Edelweiss raised her lip at the polar bear, never spying a white bear before with her own eyes... She heard tales of the beast's existence but her people lived in deep woodlands. They had grizzly, brown, etc. Never a polar. It was massive; but not as big as a grizzly. It wasn't as mean too.

It somewhat flinched when Cirilla started making noise. A quick look at the yapping woman bent out of shape and agitated before the girl joined in. She lunged halfway at the polar bear, snarling and snapping her jaws in the air. Making a fuss. Bears did retreat sometimes when noise was given to them. Loud noise. "Get lost!" she growled, a bit louder than she was used to. Her throat felt already raw from the effort "go away!" Even if the bear attacked, they'd have to report this to the emperor or empress. Perhaps both at once.

The fact that a bear killed and left prey was worrisome enough. It meant that it wasn't as fearful of the wolves' claim as most could be. Apex predators left a pack border alone mostly. This one showed indifference to the two females, lifting a lip and growling deeply. It was not a female bear, so there were no cubs. If Edelweiss was to attack, she felt no shame if they could end it. No children would be left behind. But the bear gave a decisive huff and began to turn. She glanced at Cirilla before letting it leave. If the polar bear wasn't going to attack them, fine.

But would it become a problem again? She hoped not.

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^^If it was a matter of life and death, Cirilla wouldn’t have cared if the bear had been a mother. Of course, she was also not confident that they’d manage to kill the thing. That would have been a nice tale to tell, though.

Thankfully, the bear decided this was not a fight worth having. “AND DON'T COME BACK.” Cirilla added with a growl, which still felt weird on her throat. Sticking her tongue out, like dogs typically do when they pant, Cirilla glanced over at Edelweiss with the wag of her tail and nod of her head.

“Thank you for your assistance with this.”

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She watched it leave with narrowed eyes, Cirilla snapping after it. Once the danger passed, Edelweiss made a mental note to speak to Reiko or Quicksilver about the encounter. Probably Quicksilver first as she had no idea what the empress looked like personally. She glanced at Cirilla as she was thanked. "I did what anyone could or should have done," she replied honestly to the woman "though I am thankful the bear left. I doubt we could have taken it on alone."

It was true. That beast was massive. It rivaled the titans of her people's lore in strength and cunning. She released a breath she hadn't realized she held. "Come," she added, turning back to the fallen piece of prey they left behind "we should try to save as much meat as possible... Though I personally will not eat anything that polar bear touched itself" Her nose wrinkled in disgust "there should still be good meat left to harvest." Another's mouth, she was aware, woefully held germs.

She didn't even touch food that another wolf chewed on first. It was a good way to avoid becoming ill. Edelweiss moved to the fallen prey, wondering why the bear decided to let them know it was here... And not attack. Was it testing Shiroshika?

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