Not quite a mountain goat

[pshh nah you're all good! :P]

Still sprawled within the clutches of her thorny prison, Bellamy’s nose twitched tentatively as a new, unidentified scent came in. A surge of cold fear rushed over her; she couldn’t quite recognise what it was, but whatever it was, she knew it was no herbivore. She lifted her head, ears pricked up and body frozen in fear as she heard the scrambling of claws rapidly approaching.

The young wolf found herself looking into a pair of bright yellow eyes, terrifying when contrasted by the sleek dark coat and intimidating size of the creature that owned them. Alright, what the hell is that? Bellamy thought; as if the situation could’ve gotten any worse. Belle tried to push herself up again but cried out as her paws sunk through another layer of thorns; the bush was as good as quicksand. Maybe her family had been right, she thought ruefully; the period of time she’d lasted on her own was embarrassingly short.

A voice rang out with promise of salvation, tinged with uncertainty but decidedly void of menace. Looking up, it took a moment for Bellamy to realise that the voice had emanated from the beast overhead, to her utter surprise and disbelief. “Am I hallucinating?” Belle muttered stupidly; she didn’t feel like she was, but how would she know? Maybe the fall had been worse than she had imagined. She barely registered the lioness’s offered paw and apologetic warning, but suddenly felt teeth dig into the scruff of her neck. She let out a terrified yelp, despite herself. “No, no, no…” She murmured, bracing herself for the pain that was to follow.

This was it. This was the end of Bellamy Shields.

The lioness pulled her up in a fluid but sudden movement. Thorns which had dug tenaciously into the female’s side raked into her like rusty nails. Some gave way and snapped in the abrupt movement, staying embedded in her skin, but others left gashes in the side of her dusty-tan coat. Her side felt white-hot, the pain throbbing through her soul and crashing with waves of nausea. Having been dragged onto the flat surface of the rock, she allowed herself to lay there, shock and delirium clouding her mind. Blood bloomed over her soft fur, dripping onto the rock’s surface. The initial flash of bandaid-ripping pain had already started to fade, giving way to a sour sting encompassing her legs and body, the worst of it concentrated on her right side.

‘N-not to be dramatic, but if you’re going to eat me, please get that over with quickly.” Bellamy stammered hazily, looking at the lioness warily. Really, the creature hadn’t said anything to suggest harmful intentions, but that hadn’t stopped Bellamy from assuming the worst.