with the dawn

[Ooc: Care to stretch the thread out over the day with some time skip? He’s happy to share supper if she has no luck hunting again (plus gemsss lol)]

He might have been startled, but the woman seemed utterly petrified of him. He couldn’t really see her under the fabric, but she’d bolted to her paws and was visibly ready to run at the slightest hint of a threat. The thought that he was the one scaring her sent his ears dropping back.

So, he kept walking, heading into the valley and letting her have her space. He needed to scout for a good observation spot before the sun went down, make camp and catch dinner. He’d told Aurielle to expect him back in a few days. It was, he supposed, a mental vacation. Sure, part of it was duty to the pack, but it was clear that the Spirit was on the verge of booting him out to go have time for himself and maybe find the solace he needed to grieve.

He spent a few hours scouting, and located the herds. It seemed bison liked it here, too, though they weren’t as plentiful as at home or on the Dancefloor. What had happened to Lirim?

He shook his head as he found a spot that had a good view of the valley that would keep him concealed from the elk and deer that grazed on the autumn grasses, and the bulls and bucks that tangled for the favor of the females of their species. Antlers clattered, elk bugled.

He didn’t usually have such a good vantage point of the action, so he entertained himself with watching the battles as he set up a small camp set against a stony ledge that was decently padded with soft soil. It didn’t smell like anyone had occupied it since Lirim had left it behind, so he felt reasonably secure in choosing it and not stepping on any loners’ toes.

He unloaded his hide roll to one side and dug into the dirt, making a pit and tamping a raised circle of dirt before he ranged and gathered a decent mouthful of kindling-sized sticks and twigs, which he set about making a small campfire. It was a hell of a lot of effort without Enito’s hands to help, but Chrystal kept him company, perched on the overhanging stone ledge that looked like it would keep the rain off.

Once the fire was crackling contentedly, Cairo made his way down to the river. A nice river bass or salmon sounded nice, and so, in the golden rays of evening, he hunkered by the water, poised and waiting. Fishing wasn’t his strongest point, but he was acceptable at it. Soon, he saw a shadowy form with flashing scales drifting closer and stilled, ears perking.

He thrust downward and forward like a javelin, and came up spluttering through his teeth, and a mouthful of thrashing fish. Victory. He sloshed to the shore and shook out his soaked fur, dispatching the fish and tossing it further up the shore with Chrystal watching over it while he moved to a new spot.

A two-hour span of splashing and sloshing later, he’d bagged five fat trout. It was a good haul for one not a master at fishing, and it took three trips to take them all to the fire. Soon they were sizzling and snapping on skewers over the fire, which had settled into a bed of hot coals.

He flopped on the hide, fur still sticking out in wet spikes in all directions as he watched supper cook, letting his mind drift.

Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think