it tastes like duck, only sweeter

Winter was a frigid bitch. Calliope was coming to know this well. Snow threatened to fall every day. It was all she knew. The shivering, the wetness, the cold, it all sucked. Unsurprisingly, it made Cal that much grumpier. All she wanted to do was go outside. Explore, get into trouble, you know, normal puppy things. But every morning, she awoke to see more frost on the ground and a larger fire in the fireplace. Scorning the day she met the wolf who decided the weather, it would be days before there was finally a warm front that pushed in from the west. While the clouds still rolled in, instead of snow, they were met with a cold rain that dampened the sand and deafened the loud jungle that surrounded their home.

This was it! Her chance to go out without being completely miserable! Waiting for nightfall, Cal made sure her family was asleep before getting up and sliding out into the hallway. Once there, she made her way outside. Breathing in damp air, she was only slightly startled when the rain tapped against her body. Growing cold quickly, she picked up her pace and headed down toward the ponds out back of the building. Eager to find something fun to do, she was not expecting a group of ducks to be lingering by the edge of the pond. Stopping in her tracks, she eyed them warily. They eyed her back, unsure of what to think of the colorful pup.

Raising her hackles, Cal tried to go around the group of ducks. It was no use. She'd disturbed them and they weren't happy about it. Suddenly, the larger male was screeching at her, flapping its wings, and trying to peck out her eyes. A disgruntled noise left her as she jumped out of the way of the duck, collected herself, and then lunged back at it. Her jaw opened, head moving forward, paws digging into the mud. Taking the duck by surprise, she grabbed onto its neck and began to shake until she heard a snapping noise. The rest of the ducks stood in silent horror as they watched her take the duck's life.

Pleased with her success, Cal began to drag the duck off toward the back of the pond where she could stash it until morning.

Calliope, The Callous