Noir's bright blue and lavender gaze watched the river with curiosity. During the winter much of the river was iced over, with only the fastest parts of the river remaining open to the air. Spring was here now, and all morning the river had gotten higher. He couldn't count how many times he had been told to keep clear of the water. Enough to desensitize him it seemed. The boy was brazen with his proximity to the water, his body hanging dangerously close to the swift moving water.

The season old pup was hardly old enough to have much situational awareness, and he was completely oblivious to the young mountain lion that stalked him now.

His blue striped tail wagged behind him as he watched the water rush by him. He crouched on a rocky outcropping, having descended a few feet down the bank. The water covered the sound of the cat's paw steps and Noir didn't even know what hit him. The lion's paw knocked him from his perch and he was suddenly in the water.

The mountain lion followed his tumbling and gasping form as he was swept downstream. He tumbled and turned in the water, gasping for breath when he realised he had broken the surface. His lungs begged for air until he lucked out and slammed into a boulder. It was enough to drive the wind from him, but he was close enough to the opposite bank to scramble onto land again. Noir gasped heavily as he looked behind him to see the cat pacing on the other bank.

He thought he was safe until the beast made an impossible leap across the river. Noir's gaze widened in surprise as the cat came face to face with him. He scrambled to his feet, his hackles raising. He still hadn't caught his breath yet but he wasn't about to go down with out a fight. He narrowed his gaze and bared his teeth as he started backing away slowly. All the training he had was from wrestling with his sisters, and he did rival the cat in height. If he could manage to get to higher ground before she struck he might have a real chance. The boy backed away, his eyes never leaving the puma as his rear paws searched for a way to higher ground.

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She did not expect that scent on her border patrol, the cloying, unmistakable scent of cat. A pack as large as Abaven did not get unwelcome visitors very often, the combined scent of their wolves was usually enough warning to discourage even the most hungry predator. Feeling a coldness run through her veins, she turned course swiftly, and let loose a growl as she hurried along the path it left. She was running in moments, through she risked losing the scent, a tight knot curling in her chest at the implications. They had so many frail wolves, from old Storm, to gentle, submissive Epitaph. They had children, too young to fight. They had warriors as well, and she let loose a howl as she ran, calling out to any of fighters, telling them of the danger, and to find it. She reached the swelling river in time to see the blue form of Noir in its clutches, but before she could chase the stream, he landed heavily against a boulder, and pulled himself to shore. She saw her prey, as the puma jumped the waters, landing easily on the other side, bringing it nose to nose with the Abaven pup. Letting out a protective snarl, Shaye continued her run, still not yet entering the scene, she would put on a great burst of speed, paws landing on the last piece of land before the river, hunches coiling, before her speed-enhanced jump brought her to the other side. She almost didn’t make it, the previously frozen waters had added so much volume, the jump was further then she had ever been forced to make before. Her back legs landed in the water, and she instantly felt the current, but she was dragging her legs free of the water and jumping forward. Her entrance had hardly been quite, and the cat whirled to face the greater threat as Shaye charged head first upon it. Never in a normal day would she take on a cat alone, but this cat had dared to threaten the life of one of hers, and her anger blew well past her logic until all she could see was red. “NOIR, RUN” she growled as she leaped. The cat struck a she did, its teeth landing on the thick of her neck on Shaye’s right, as Shaye rammed her shoulder higher, protecting her neck. She lifted up half her weight, trying to topple it down upon the cat, scrambling a paw across its shoulder in an effort to loosen its stance. Her own teeth went for its ear, but a wolf's teeth are stubbier then a cat, and as the puma’s attack fully landed, Shaye let out a yelp of pain, its fangs digging deep into her ruff. "Talk" "You" Think

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Noir had no fear. Even soaking wet and outweighed he wasn't about to back down from the threat in front of him. He was lucky mountain lions relied on stealth, otherwise she would have attacked already. As it was the lioness was measuring her ability. If he had been any smaller of a pup he likely would have been dead already. He growled deeply, showing his teeth as he tried to make himself seem bigger than he was.

The cat followed him as he retreated backwards, but he had managed to find a ledge. If he could only ascend the face with out breaking their eye contact. He didn't know how long the stand off would last, but the answer wouldn't ever come. Suddenly Shaye appeared. Noir's eyes widened in surprise. He hadn't called for help, he had been too confident in his non ability. The alpha scrambled up on the bank and the lioness was the first to blink. Her attention was suddenly completely on the dark coated woman. Noir heard Shaye's command, but he wasn't sure he wanted to obey. He wanted in on this action. She wasn't a terribly large cat and he could help!

The young pup returned to his previous strategy and climbed the bank behind the cat. He scrambled a bit over the loose rocks, but gained purchase on the more stable boulders. His heart raced in his chest as he found a stable place to coil his haunches beneath him and aim to leap at the she cat. The boulder looked akin to a beanbag chair, but it was nestled in many loose rocks and larger stones. He looked down perfectly at his opponent as the cat sunk her teeth into Shaye's scruff.

Noir felt a sense of urgency as he pushed off against the rock and launched himself into the air. With the cat distracted by Shaye Noir was able to sneak in his own attack. With jaws parted and his front legs out he aimed at the lioness' thin back. His chest hit her shoulder as his legs wrapped around her neck. Noir aimed his sharp teeth at the opposite side of Shaye, and as he connected effectively pulled the cat down and off of Shaye's back.

He shook his head violently, pulling the cat down to show Shaye the vulnerable side of her neck. She was smart though, and instead of attacking him she opted to put more effort into retreat than a big meal.

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The day would have been pleasantly warm, the start of spring. The snow had melted, and the stream that ran through Abaven had tossed off its frozen layer. Its deep waters where still cold to the touch, but it was pleasant to place your feet in the water, and feel the warmth of the sun on your back. Instead of these comforts, her back legs tingled with the cold from where they had fallen, and the rest of her felt overheated from the exertion of her battle, the stress of it. Shaye was a big wolf, but the cat was a sleek and deadly hunter. For a moment, they were locked into place, one trying to hold their ground, and dig her fangs deeper into Shaye’s scruff, the other trying to overturn her weight, and throw her to the ground. She might have managed to do so already, if it wasn’t for the pain in her shoulder throwing her off balance. She wanted to howl from it, the way those fangs dug deep into her flesh. She could feel blood dripping through her coat, and knew it to be her own. But it was worth, it was all worth it to give the pup time to escape. To get to safety. She didn’t know where Noir had gone, only seen the fleeting movement of his retreating form. She had no time to spare a thought for him, all of her energy was placed into winning this battle. She should have known. He was Rhyme’s son after all, and Rhyme was never one to run from a battle. She hadn’t interacted much with Noir, but if she had spared that moment of thought, it perhaps might have come to clear to her that he would not leave. As it was, a startled cry escaped the Alpha as a dark form leaped down upon them, landing upon the cat. Shaye, who had been trying her best to unbalance the creature, would suddenly find give, and with one last push, the cat toppled downwards, and Shaye was thrown half over her, almost colliding with Noir. The movement also tore the cat’s fangs from her shoulder, and the blinding pain of that was sudden, and the release of her daggers wold unplug the hole. A smattering of blood would flick across Noir’s face as the younger wolf got the cat into a position to show her neck. The creature was fighting them, writing wildly beneath them in her efforts to get away, her feline eyes wide and wild with hate and anger. Shaye pushed more of her weight upon her, keeping her paws down where they could do no damage. Her teeth where difficult to keep out of reach from, and Shaye wrestled with her for a moment, before howling angrily into the cats face. It paused for only a moment, but it was enough time for Shaye to snake her head forward and dig a bite into her neck. The cat fell limp, but she was not dead, that was evident by the quick breathing as Shaye released her hold. The Alpha panted heavily, her own wound obvious and stark red in the whites around her shoulders. The cat knew it had lost, its limp, afeared form was evidence of that. “We are going to herd her from Abaven territory now Noir, I have no desire to kill her.” her white anger at the pup for reentering the fight was not obvious in her calm, if breathless tones. "Talk" "You" Think

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Noir was much too busy shaking his head with his jaws full of cat fur to notice that Shaye had almost toppled over him. He couldn't come close to the kind of damage the mountain lioness had done to Shaye. He felt himself stop short as the feeling of blood splattered against his head caught him off guard. Shaye's large form was quick to overtake the feline.

The alpha's form pushed the cat over and Noir couldn't help but release his hold and retreat. His bright eyes took in the incredible struggle up close. Over large paws clung to the stones and he hopped backwards, though Shaye had hold of the cat's paws he couldn't be sure.  Instead of standing like a bump on a log Noir took to his previous perch. Dark striped paws scrambled over the loose stones as his focused remained on Shaye and the cat.

He hadn't spent time with Poem and Motif's mother, not that there had been any desire on his part. Though as he watched her fight he was a bit more impressed with her. With her weight and a carefully placed bite Shaye subdued the murderous cat. Noir was more surprised when she then released her.

The pup's jaws fall open in displeasure. He wanted to see her kill the beast! Now she was going to escort it from Abaven and just hope it didn't come back? "I'll kill her for you!" he offered enthusiastically as the idea popped into his head. Noir had sought out a loophole and he thought he'd found it, not understanding that Shaye had overall wanted to spare its life.

With out waiting for her reply Noir started off after the lioness, she had been beat down hard but she still moved with a quickness. She was small and lithe, closer to Noir's size than Shaye. Noir ran now. His large paws carried him over the loose stones and large boulders of the river bank. As he ran the river's borders shifted slowly to bigger boulders and massive rock formations. The cat easily leapt up and over a sudden sheer face, leaving Noir to take to the brushy tall grass that bordered the river. Bigger trees started to appear more frequently here as well.

Noir was forced to slow his pursuit, and the cat with leverage was getting ideas again. Of course she wouldn't attack again with Shaye close by. However her eyes didn't let Noir from her sight. The boy wasn't as aware. He assumed she would just continue forward, following the river upstream. His main focus was on dodging trees and slipping through the underbrush.

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She got to her paws, eyeing the subdued cat carefully, prepared to strike again if necessary. The cat seemed to sense her seriousness, and as Shaye gave it space, it got slowly to its paws. Shaye came forward, lips curled upwards, baring sharp, bloodied teeth. The cat began to slink away, its past only getting faster as the pup shouted his idea and went after it. Clearly, Noir hadn’t gotten a single whiff of her displeasure. She growled and moved after them, moving more slowly with her wounded neck. She was surprised at how quickly the cat could move, with a chunk of skin above its collarbone missing. They moved until they weren’t far from the borders. She liked to think Noir was only helping escort it, but she knew the truth in the determinedness of his pursuit. When she reached him, she grabbed him firmly by the back of his neck in her teeth, pulling tightly once in warning, then releasing him. “Noir.” she said, her voice firm, unyielding, before stepping in front of the boy and growling at the cat, who had begun to watch them once more. She took another step forward, and spat in the grass, a sliver of furred flesh flying loss and landing there. The cat looked at the piece of its skin, looked at the angry alpha, and the foolish boy, and it turned and fled the territory. Shaye watched both it, and Noir, ready to leap forward and grab the boy if he tried to pursue it out of Abaven’s territory. “She won’t be coming back.” Shaye promised, she knew this lesson would stick well. Perhaps in the future it would think twice before crossing a packs borders. Shaye sat shakily on her haunches, at this point her fur was thick with blood, and the lethargy feeling of blood loss was settling in. “Noir, can you.. Grab a healer” The words where thick in her mouth. "Talk" "You" Think

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