hurry up now

"Speech"

She trembled under his paw as he swiped it over the rough welt on her maw. Her sagebrush eyes flitted up to his molten leads in a panic. Taking his words to mean he had plans to inflict more pain on her, or for her to patch him up when he fights, or both. She swallowed when he finally released her and told her the next set of orders.

He had other things to do it seemed. He would be taking his companions, leaving her all alone. She glanced at the trophies on the table. She'd have to find a way to climb up things to get them on the walls. Was she strong enough for that large tusk? He trotted out of the den as she looked about it, trying to configure how best to do as he ordered. She found the supplies to hang them readily enough. She kept an eye on the door as the den fell silent. She picked up one of the trophies and tested it's weight. Yeah, she could see it hanging here alright... She went to work to do the smaller pieces, finding string and looping it and hammering nails in the walls to hang them. She did that until she got to the heavier pieces. She glanced at the door. A good fifteen minutes had passed. She wondered if she could find a nearby stream to wash herself in... Get his scent off her and... find a way out of this place. Mark the patrol routes before he got back at least. Who knew how long he would be gone... She couldn't heft the big tusk or skulls herself. And he might be coming back any second now.

She brought herself closer to the door. And slowly opened it, making sure the hinges didn't creak. Finding out where each hinge might start to creak. She was slow and meticulous. Ensuring the door was as silent as it could be as she opened it. Her eyes glanced around at the area, looking for any sign of foxes or birds in the sky. Surely he had gone to visit the alpha or something... She carefully closed the door behind her, looking around again. She scented the air and could smell him, his fox and bird but that was to be expected, this was their quarters. A patrol had gone by recently... She found his earlier spores that smelled like a creek. Maybe she could track it back to the water...

She slunk down as she thought she heard something, freezing in place, her ears wiggling about wildly trying to locate the sound. Nothing... She padded quickly through the underbrush toward the creek.