Once upon a time not long ago

The air had teeth, sinking into tender flesh strong as any beast would in the height of winter. The raven furred boy endeavoured to ignore the chill against his soft, tender flesh as he trailed quietly after his brother. Ludo was tracking something, with the kind of unwavering intensity that made him curious. The myriad ravens tracked their every movement, croaking calls echoing through the trees and ricocheting from the walls of the canyon like gunfire. When his littermate paused, so did he. Though the distance between he and his brother's quarry was notably greater, he could still catch the brief flashes of motion against the pallid terrain. Curiosity piqued, the youngster drew forth on cream painted limbs and paid little heed to the soft crackle of frosted snowpack beneath his paws.

As his crimson painted brother slunk forth to stare forlornly into the hollow of roots at the base of the old spruce, Indica closed in to stand almost uncomfortably close. Drawing scant reserves of heat from the shared presence and mingling of ostentatious fur. "What's down there?" he spoke in whisper soft tones, an inescapable reverence for the sanctity of the woods as he waited to learn what manner of prey his brother had sought down that little tunnel. Certainly they could put their heads together and bring it back up to the light, if only he could know what manner of beast they sought.