blackbird singing in the dead of night

The volcano wasn't the safest or most intelligent place to explore, but it was warm despite the harsh bite of the wind, and Chaos was enjoying the sweat on his pawpads and the prickle of heat under his fur as he raced up the slope, bounding from rock to rock, the muscles rippling beneath his dark coat. Besides, it was kind of his little 'fuck you' to the pack that had claimed both it and his beloved mountain after the kids had been born. Made it satisfying in more ways than one. He came to a sudden halt though, stymied by the unexpected appearance of a crack in front of him that had the reddish glow that spoke of magma in its depths. Close one. Chaos grinned, not at all phased by the danger, and pivoted to sprint off in another direction to work his way closer to the sullen glow of the caldera.

This time disaster waited until he was leaping from one boulder to another, and as he leaped his hind legs slipped on the rock and he barely caught the second boulder with his forelegs and hit hard enough to click his teeth together with a jarring snap that sliced the side of his tongue and one of his lips. He was lucky he didn't slam his head into the boulder itself and snap off one or both of his fangs, but being who he was he just whooped as he scrabbled his hindlegs for grip enough to lever himself up onto the rock.

Standing there to catch his breath with head and tail high in spirited triumph, he felt blood dribble from the corners of his mouth, and it turned to a gush as the built up fluid ran out over his fangs and down his chin and throat when he lolled open his jaws in a grin. He just laughed and closed his mouth again, swallowing the blood that continued to run from the gashes, but otherwise unconcerned as he surveyed the slope for his next run.