Hunt With Us

OOC:Sorry for the delay, I keep holding us back!

As they padded along, Bright glanced around her, noticing some nervous glances from the youngsters. Alfred posed a very valid question, and Leo gave a quick explanation. Bright nodded in agreement - you couldn't always choose your prey based on what you wanted. Tomorrow was never a guarantee, whether it was the security of a pack, or the head count of available prey. Things went wrong, and you had to know how to make the best of any given situation. She turned to the yearling, blinking as she added her own voice. "Like your father said, you may not always have a choice," she mentioned, "And learning to be careful and precise in your hunting is a valuable lesson. Porcupines are dangerous, their quills are painful, but making a mistake with them will only leave you with a painful reminder. Hunting larger animals holds much greater danger, so it is best to learn now to be cautious and accurate while hunting. Take your time, don't rush, and look for the best opening - this applies whether you're hunting porcupine, or elk, or moose, each has their inherent risks. But don't let that discourage you. We are wolves, and hunting is what we are born to do."

She continued along, hoping she'd addressed the question appropriately. She knew the youngsters would still be anxious - even she could get nervous about hunting these animals. But it was a healthy fear to have, something that could be faced with confidence when your skills were honed. She paused in her stride for just a moment as she spotted one of the creatures, predictably waddling from its burrow to a nearby tree to nibble on the bark. Crouching down, she motioned to the hunters with her. "Watch carefully," she whispered, stalking forward, preparing to get between the prickly animal and its burrow so that she could ambush it. Quietly, carefully, Bright slipping behind the foliage, her movements smooth and practiced, an experienced predator as she weaved her way toward the porcupine's burrow.

She crept forward until she blocked the entrance, and then burst toward the animal with a sharp bark to startle it into facing her. It whipped around, grumbling angrily as it curved its body protectively, threatening with its tail. Bright danced around the animal, feigning attacks to confuse it and lure it away from the tree. She took her time, not wanting to be too hasty and end up with a snout full of quills, especially in front of her nervous students. At last, there was an opening immediately after it swung its tail as she feigned a movement to its side. She darted to the opposite side and her jaws snaked forward to its face, clamping onto its nose. Immediately, she began to thrash her head back and forth, her paws moving her backward so that the animal never got a chance to find its ground and take a swing at her. With a twist of her neck, she flipped the now dazed animal over and pounced over it, ending the struggle with a swift and powerful bite to the neck.

Panting from her efforts and the exhilaration of making just the right movement with precise timing, she turned back to Alfred, Lionel, and Leo. "As you can see, it takes patience," she said in between breaths, her tongue lolling to the side, "Once you think you've found an opening, you have to act fast without hesitation, and you don't give it a chance to strike you. If you get a hold of the porcupine's face, you start moving right away, otherwise it will dig its claws into the ground and find a way to swipe its prickly tail at you." She hoped that she had demonstrated it well enough, with enough clarity for the hunting party to see. She wasn't sure if they would find another target nearby after the noisy struggle, but she would like to see if any of the three males could give it a try. "We'll have to move elsewhere to find another one, as I'm sure all of the prey around here will be hiding now," she said, catching her breath, "Who would like to volunteer to test out their skills?" She knew it wasn't likely that any of them would really want to, but it was an important lesson to learn, and she wouldn't want them to pass on this opportunity.