Kotori stalked through the weeping willows on the lookout for food.  He was tired of not catching food when he went out hunting.  It was a thing he was still learning to do and that was enough of a challenge but on top of that the sickness had made it near impossible.  Kotori’s mind was starting to clear up now.  There were fewer times he was feeling so distracted or caught staring at nothing in particular.

His sense of smell could focus in on the target he was hunting.  He slowed his stride as he spotted a deer standing near another tree.  A young buck, grazing through the spring grass, searching for green grass.  It should be plentiful but there had been no sun lately to help the grass sprout up so that the grass was shorter with less vibrancy in it.

Kotori twitched, about ready to rush it when he stopped himself.  Kotori started circling about to get a nice angle to its one shoulder, carefully staying out of sight and, at the same time Kotori was lecturing himself to keep control of his focus this time.  The sickness was seeming to get better so this was no time for it to pop back up.


"Kotori Fatalis"

He had moved on from the hot springs, heading further south in search of something to eat. The ache of hunger was present, but it seemed as if all of the animals around were infected with this weird ooze sickness and he had yet to attempt to eat one of them. He didn't want to risk falling ill himself. The willows had long tendrils that waved in the air, and Laith weaved his way through where the hung low to the ground. The scent of another wolf caught his attention, and after sniffing the air he picked up the tantalising smell of deer as well. He could feel his mouth began to water at the thought of getting a meal, but this wolf was going to throw a wrench in his plans. Lath began creeping closer to the scents, doing his best to stay downwind, and when he finally caught sight of the other wolf he paused. Damn, why were so many of these wolves fucking huge? If he wanted a meal to himself he couldn't chase this wolf off all by himself. Fuck, he might have to actually work with them. "Psst!" He hissed at the other wolf once he got a little closer, hoping to not alert the deer. "I'll help you take it down if you let me eat half of it," he whispered in a hushed tone. There was a time and a place to be his usual dick-ish self, and in this case he had to let it slide and be somewhat amiable in order to get a meal.

Kotori was thinking about going for his prey when he scented the other wolf and spotted it coming in his direction.  Kotori quickly glanced at the deer and made sure it wasn’t going anywhere before looking back at this new wolf.  He wasn’t part of the armada and Kotori was fairly certain he’d never seen this wolf before.  However, its request wasn’t a terrible one.  It would mean less meat to bring back home.  A little meat was better than no meat.

“Sure,” Kotori agreed after a moment.  Lifting a paw he pointed to the opposite side of the deer, “if you can get over there we can attack from different sides to trap it in our path. When you’re ready just look at me and you and I can leave the brush at the same time.”  If he agreed Kotori would indeed wait for him before chasing down the deer unless he messed up and it ran of course.  That’d be annoying.  Hopefully, this wolf had skill, even better if more skill than Kotori.


Kotori Fatalis

 

Laith blinked momentarily at the pair of horns upon the other wolf's head, thrown off by the sight until the stranger began to speak. He thought he'd be used to all the weird features some of these wolves had, but every time he spotted a new one it always made him stop and stare. "Alright." His head bobbed in agreement, and as quietly as he could he began to creep his way around to the opposite side of the deer where the other wolf had pointed to. It would be a shame if it got spooked now, but he was confident in his abilities to be quiet when it was necessary. With just a soft rustle of the undergrowth as his side brushed up alongside a big plant, he eventually made it into position, and without spooking the deer off to boot. His green gaze sought out the horned stranger, clenching his jaws together as he found where the other was settling down at. Laith could feel his muscles begin to coil up and tighten, like a viper about to strike, as he waited for the other male to move, and only then would he spring forth from where had had hidden himself and charge at the deer. It had been too long since he'd taken down prey larger than him with another, and he could feel the anticipation building with each hushed breath he took.

Kotori’s family was riddled with mutations so to him it was the most natural thing to have some mutation.  Heck, both his mom and one of his sisters had horns so no big deal there.  He could tell something had surprised the wolf but wasn’t sure what it would have been, nor did he care at the moment.  It had agreed to his plan and that was enough for Kotori.  Kotori let out a slow sigh as the stranger silently left him to get into position.  Hmm, Kotori might get his name later, it just seemed strange to hunt with another wolf whose name he didn’t even know.

The grey fellow wasn’t moving fast but that was fine, better to be slow than spook the deer.  Once the other wolf was clearly in place and waiting Kotori didn’t give the deer any further time to consider leaving.  Kotori broke his hiding spot to run to the deer’s left side, head lowering to get a solid bite for the deer’s front leg.  If he took out the leg the deer should hopefully stumble and the other wolf could either bite its other leg or just go straight for the neck.  Regardless, a solid bite on the deer’s leg should make the end result set in stone.  Food.

Kotori’s teeth found the leg, sunk in, the deer’s back legs kicked out in a defense that would never work for hitting Kotori with where he was positioned.  Hopefully, the other wolf was ready to do his part.


Kotori Fatalis

 

It took him just a moment to bolt from his hiding spot when the horned stranger started moving, his legs moving him to the right side to stop it from escaping. The deer was quick to respond, but it didn't make it very far before the other wolf latched onto its front left leg. Seeing his opening as the prey stumbled for a moment, Laith dodged the back legs as they kicked out and leaped up into the air, jaws open wide so he could grab the side of its neck. His teeth found purchase, and he grabbed tightly with a vicious snarl. He curled his front legs around its neck to ensure he stayed on the deer, not wanting to lose his grip or be shaken off. The taste of blood filled his mouth, and it kicked his drive into a higher gear. His head shook violently, wanting to rip and tear at the soft skin of the deer's neck, aiming to tear into the artery to quickly incapacitate the creature. He did not have enough strength to hold on for too long, so he wanted to end the hunt as fast as he could, and with the stranger latched onto a front leg, he hoped their combined weight and large amount of blood loss would be enough to bring the deer down.

Kotori was impressed the deer hadn’t fallen down already.  Laith seemed to have a solid hold on it but the deer was apparently determined and well balanced.  Well, it was weighed down far too much to get away from the wolves.  Kotori easily kept up and smiled grimly.  Lowering his head Kotori slammed his horns into the deer's shoulder then raked them up, a large gash and then tearing through the muscles.

The deer cried out from pain and its knees buckled sending its chest and face to the ground.  Kotori slowed his pace and waited.  The deer was good as dead but with all the work Laith had put into it he would let the wolf finish it off.  The horned wolf blew out a small sigh of satisfaction.  Another successful hunt.

"Kotori Fatalis"

The deer was strong and refused to stumble and fall, even with two wolves latched on. From his position he couldn't see what the other wolf was doing, but after a few moments the deer let out a shriek of pain. Laith felt it's legs buckle underneath him, and not wanting to get squashed under the larger animal, promptly let go, using the deer itself as an object to push off of so he could land next to where the creature proceeded to fall flat on its face. But somehow it was still fucking alive. Wasting no time at all, and not caring if the other wolf wanted to go in for the kill, Laith pounced forward to rip at the other side of its throat, easily able to get to the most tender spot even as it lashed out with its legs weakly. Blood profusely poured forth from the wounds he created, soaking his mouth and chin in a bright crimson red, and it was only when the deer stilled that he let go. He licked his lips, relishing the fresh taste of blood, and looked up at the larger male. "Nice work with the uh... horns." Laith had noticed the strange gash in the deers' shoulder that definitely had not been there before they attacked, that and he could see a bit of red dripping from the points on the stranger's horns. It was still so fucking weird to see a wolf with horns, but he had to admit, they seemed pretty useful. Without waiting for any sort of conformation, Laith began to dig right into the deer, ripping at the skin, muscle, and tendons of its underbelly to open up the inner cavity and get to where the delicious organs lay. He'd take a large chunk out of the liver and kidneys, but leave enough for the other male to have some if he so desired. He could be a right asshole most times, but he wouldn't have been able to take the deer down himself, and so would begrudgingly share the tastiest parts, lest he risk getting gored himself by those horns.