Taiga quite liked the wall. It stretched on forever, it was easy to walk beside, it offered a modicum of cover as she moved. The feline found herself walking back and forth daily as she hunted. Often she ran into other predators, but most of the time they turned tail and ran from the impressive lioness. Most times... but not always.

Bears hated Taiga and, with their constant tussles, Taiga was beginning to hate bears. While the black, grey and white cat followed a particularly rich game trail, the scent of grizzly spread thickly in the air, covering up all scent of prey. A low growl wrinkled Taiga's pink nose and her long tail lashed back and forth in annoyance. Instant bad mood.

The massive bear moved down the game trail towards her and Taiga moved down the trail towards it. The grizzly rushed her, swiping out with a big paw and Taiga did the same, her curved claws catching the bears paw pads to draw blood. There was surprise on the bears face, but it was quickly replaced with anger. The area was too narrow for a big brawl, but that didn't seem to matter. The bear dove towards her anyway.

"Taiga"

He was wandering the wall that day to keep his paws moving. It was almost time for his family to return back to Auster and he was becoming anxious. A feeling that he was not happy about. Rather, he would prefer to be calm. Moving helped ease the unease within him. He focused on trailing along the wall until he hit a stopping point and turned back to go the other way. Back and forth, back and forth. A rut nearly created beneath his paws until a peculiar scent hit him. Feline? That was one he was not used to up here. Maybe a bobcat or lynx or cougar here and there, but this scented large. Impressionable. A cat that he would normally see in the south.

Interested, he begins to track toward the scent. His nose tilted slightly as the breeze whips by him. Would he be in for a fight today? The idea nearly excites him. Picking up his pace, he is loping easily, eating up the ground until a second scent and the loud bellowing of a bear stops him in his tracks. Feline and ursine? Akito's eyes widen slightly. Even more interested now, the youngster hops up the crumbling stone of the wall and takes off toward a game trail. His grey eyes watch ahead of him until he spies a black and white lion entangled with a large grizzly. Which would be friendly? The cat? He wasn't particularly fond of bears anyway.

Rushing along the top of the wall, he hops down and makes his way through the brush around the dueling duo. With the grizzly focused on the cat's face, Akito makes his move toward the bear's hind leg. Lunging forward, he manages to slink in and dig his growing horns into the bear's thigh. Blood dribbles down his forehead as he pulls away and quickly goes back in to bite down on the bear's ankle. If he can cripple the bear, it will give the lioness a chance to end its life.

"speech"

The grizzly somehow got under Taiga, pushing her backwards. The feline backpedaled on her hind legs, forelegs wrapped around the head of the bear with her claws embedded in its flesh. Back down the path they went and the trees there weren't as thick. Taiga bit down on the back of the ursine's neck, teeth ripping into flesh until blood filled her mouth.

Movement from behind brought ruby eyes shifting upwards. Behind the bear, a young wolf rushed in, slamming horns into the grizzly's haunch. Surprised, the giant beast spun, its beady eyes on the boy. That worked well enough. The thick muscles in her hind legs tensing, Taiga launched herself onto the bears back, claws once again digging into the bears flesh as her teeth tore into its spine.

"Taiga"

His jab to the bear's thigh had worked. Maybe a tad too effectively. When he went to bite down on the bear's leg, he soon was met with the bear's face as it roared at him. Spit and blood flies into his face and he can't help but scrunch up his eyes to avoid being blinded. Sliding backward to avoid teeth and claws, Akito gives his head a shake and blinks quickly. Though his sight is slightly blurry, he can see that the feline took the chance to leap onto the bear's back. Continuing to dance backward, Akito hops from paw to paw. Side to side, he sways and barely dodges out of the bear's reach. His face leans forward, snapping his jaws together, taunting and teasing the bear. As long as he didn't get injured, he didn't mind being the distraction.

As the boy kept the bear distracted, Taiga did her work. Steel trap jaws slid home around the base of the bears skull. Teeth sank into flesh, then bone, then softer things. The ursine gave a squeal of pain, thrashing a bit, then its body began to go slack. Taiga released her hold on the bear and it slumped to the ground, drool pouring from its maw. She'd crushed its braincase and the result showed through the canine sized cracks at the back of the bears head. Bits of greyish pink stuck out of those holes. It wasn't a sight for the squeamish.

Once she caught her breath, the lioness turned ruby eyes upon the wolf pup. "Are you hurt?" If so, she would find some nearby pack to take the pup to. If not, then she would be the only one with injuries and that was a good thing.

"Taiga"

Akito does not tire as he continues to dance with the bear. Massive paws swipe toward his face as guttural roars belch into the air. Unphased, the pup merely stays focused on the task. Back and forth, left to right, right to left. Paw up, paw down, slide across the dirt and grass. Keep his balance, weight evenly shifting from one side to the other. Even ensuring that his tail was neatly aligned with his spine for assistance, Akito knew he could do this all day. One could see it in his stoic expression that appeared neither stressed nor frightened. He didn't even blink at the noise of canines crushing through the bear's skull. As the bear fell, Akito hopped out of the way. Slightly out of breath, he allows himself to pant gently as he awaits the lioness. He notices the bear's blood and gore on her monochrome pelt, but aside from some minor injuries, she also appears to be somewhat okay. When she addresses him, his grey eyes turn up to her ruby stare. "No," he states, rolling his shoulders back softly to help loosen the wear and tear on his muscles. "Are you?" Akito responds, being as polite as necessary.