Kotori had indeed intended to hunt today but this wasn’t exactly what he had planned to hunt.  The wolf watched the lone elk thoughtfully.  It was still young with knobbier joints and only the beginnings of antlers that would likely not grow much farther this year.  That said the animal was still of decent size and was clearly alert, looking both ways unsure of itself.  Behind it was one of the many hot springs and by the water, on its front hooves, Kotori imagined it had been investigating.

Was it lost?  Kotori imagined he could possibly take it down though it would be easier with help.  Farther away the wolf saw an irritation, another elk that was slowly coming towards his potential meal.  He had wanted this to get easier instead of harder.  Fine.  A challenge was always a good thing.  Help doesn’t randomly show up whenever you want it.

"Kotori"

The woman had visited the North once more and after the brief time there she had set off for Eastern Boreas once more. The woman had enjoyed her time in the East before and it seemed a good enough reason to visit again. The lands were pretty too, so that was just a bonus, especially now that she had Splatter with her to be her eyes in the sky. Not to mention the more that one wandered, the more wolves they met, and the interactions were what Ngurulivu was living for. She had yet to make a firm decision of if she wanted to join a pack or not, favoring not rushing the decision just yet for Florian’s sake. She didn’t want to rush into things and make him feel like they were abandoning Gargoyle… or herself for that matter. She hadn’t visited this area last time, she realized as she came from a different direction than the river. But that was alright, she thought. It was good to see the different things the lands of Boreas had to offer. She was starting to get hungry too, she noticed, stomach grumbling with discontent as she moved, and the woman flicked her ears thoughtfully. She heard water… maybe she could fish? A fish wasn’t the most satisfying meal but it would be something to keep her stomach from grumbling and complaining. She continued walking along, but as she neared the water source she noticed a stranger… and beyond him? Ah ha… now that would be a good meal. The struggle, however, was the larger elk walking towards the youngling. Hmm… perhaps it was time to serve up a distraction. Lowering towards the earth, with hopes the man might be willing to share the meal after it was caught, Ngurulivu moved across the earth with quiet stealth. Then, once she deemed she was close enough to make a sprint, she burst from where she was waiting towards the adult elk. It was time to provide a distraction to the adult and startle the calf into running. She just hoped the other wolf would catch on to what she was doing and go for the calf while she kept the adult busy. "Talk, 'Think.'

Kotori scented the other wolf only a moment before she was running after the adult elk.  Well, either he got lucky or the wolf was intentionally helping.  Whatever the reason it hardly mattered right then.  The younger elk closer to him leaped sideways, startled by the adult being chased off by a wolf.  

The young elk started to run and Kotori was able to get alongside it easily.  Staying beside it was another matter.  Kotori snapped at its front leg, grazing it.  The elk leaped up and tried to kick Kotori with its back hooves.  Kotori skidded on the breaks to avoid getting hit then sped up to get alongside the elk again.  The animal was veering right, away from the other elk and wolf, it cried out in fear and confusion.

Kotori pressed farther forward, snapping at the leg and getting a better bite, the animal started to stumble before trying to kick again.  Kotori could go for its throat but with the young things' size and spirit it still might have a chance to trample him alone.  This would be a real slow process if he tried to take it down alone.  

“C’mon,” he hollered out to the stranger.  They’d done a good job of chasing away the adult.  If they wanted to get an even share of the spoils they might as well come help kill this thing faster.

"Kotori Fatalis"

Just as the woman planned, the adult ran. Snapping and barking at its heels, staying on it, the woman was careful to avoid any limbs that might come in her direction. She didn’t even have to go very far before the cow elk was running for her own life, abandoning the youngling that she left to the other wolf. She could hear it crying out, fearful and confused, as the wolf chased it. She spun on her heels, her focus shifting to the young prey animal and the wolf she’d decided to help. Alright then, it was time to really kick things up a notch and get this over with so she and the stranger could have something to eat! Ngurulivu wasted no time in coming towards the calf on the opposite side of the stranger. She could smell its fear, the realization set in that it likely wasn’t going to live through this encounter. She put on an extra burst of speed, slamming into the calf’s legs to further unbalance it, and down the critter stumbled to the earth. “Go for it!” She called to the man before aiming to leap onto the thing to keep it pinned down. The last thing this stranger needed was this calf kicking at him as it tried to get up and he tried to go or the kill. ———————— Tracked and killed any medium prey animal (Young Elk) - 2 / 3 "Talk, 'Think.'

Good.  The wolf had joined up with Kotori, helping to bring down the young elk.  The elk's breath had grown harsher, fear, pain, and energy had him running out of breath faster than it would normally do.  His temporary companion slammed into the elk and it had no choice but to fall, its front knees slamming into the ground.  It would surely try to get up in a second but Kotori wouldn’t give it that second to get even one leg back under it.  

Even as the grey wolf called out for him to finish it off Kotori was already snapping his teeth into the underside of the deer’s neck.  Kotori’s teeth tore at the flesh, ripping to get the blood flowing.  He’d trust the stranger to keep the animal from moving and getting any chance to fight for its freedom in the short span the elk had time to still move.  Even if Kotori had stopped the young elk would die, it was just how long it took.

"Kotori Fatalis"

Ngurulivu kept on top of the young animal, the fear and pain heard even in the elk’s breathing. At least it had fallen, but if the other wolf didn’t finish it quickly she wasn’t sure she could hold it down forever. Temporarily though? She used her weight to pin it and keep it down under her, the woman spreading her limbs out to cover more of a surface area over it. The other wolf was quick to move in, even as she called to him. Perfect, their hunt, even if it hadn’t originally been planned for a group, had gone off without a hitch. She kept the elk from getting up as its life ebbed away. It grew weaker and weaker in the jaws of the other wolf and once it stopped moving at all she moved from above it to a standing position by the elk’s side. She drew in a breath and now got a good look at the wolf that she had helped. He was darker furred, like herself, though he had horns. Not that mutations were too uncommon. “Nice work. Sorry to intrude on your hunt like that - figured it might be easier to take something of this size down with more than one wolf.” Not that it’d be impossible to do so alone… but it was definitely riskier. “My name is Ngurulivu Ancora-Desrosiers by the way. Call me Nuru - it's easier. Who did I have the pleasure of assisting today?” ———————— Tracked and killed any medium prey animal (Young Elk) - 3 / 3 "Talk, 'Think.'

Kotori was sure to make the wound as deep and large as possible for it to bleed out faster.  Once done Kotori looked to the stranger, brows raising up at her name.  Thank goodness for the nickname.  She didn’t mention being part of a pack.  A loner then?

“I’m Kotori Fatalis.  Leader of the future pack Valta.” Kotori would get used to saying it now.  Regardless if someone tried to fight him for the land, Kotori would have his own pack.  No power in the land could stop his passion to make it happen.

“You did well on the hunt.  Especially since we didn’t have time to discuss a plan for working together.  I appreciate the assistance.”  Kotori nodded towards the corpse.  “Plenty of meat there for numerous wolves anyway.  Eat your fill but I’ll want the pelt afterward.”  

"Kotori"

Kotori Fatalis, a future alpha, huh? Ngurulivu gave a small nod at this bit of information. She didn’t know much about the different packs here in Boreas but she knew there was a fair amount of them scattered about. “Wishing you luck in that endeavor, Kotori. I’ve never been much of the ambitious sort, but I can respect a creature that is willing to go for their dreams.” Ngurulivu wasn’t sure if any of her siblings had those sorts of ambitions, truth be told. But that was alright. Not every wolf could be a leader. “It was no problem at all, happy to help.” Nuru didn’t move closer to the elk just yet. “Not a worry, I know some creatures enjoy the art of crafting. Would you prefer to get the pelt first, perhaps? I don’t mind waiting a little while so that you can get it before tearing into it messes the pelt up somewhat.” It was worth asking about at least. The femme offered a small smile. They had done this together so working together now made the most sense too. "Talk, 'Think.'

The deer lay between them as Kotori and Nuru discussed what to was be done with it.  Nuru apparently only wanted the deer for meat so there was no need for a debate or compromise on who got what part of the deer.  The wolf was willing to wait for his food, not rushing into their spoils, and even agreed to wait so Kotori could save more of the pelt.  It was true that eating first would have ruined a bit but the horned wolf was well aware sometimes it was hard to wait on eating.  Both Nuro and Kotori had helped kill it so a compromise was a thing that had to be considered.  This was working out well.

Kotori’s bracers had a hidden knife in them and he twisted he worked his leg to bring out the knife.  The wolf used his horns to help left up portions of the skin even as he lifted the bracer up to cut where he wanted to clearly get the rip in.  Kotori was no master craftsman for it to be quick or have signs of a future artistic look, but he was able to practically get the job done with a bit of time.  The wolf felt no need to master skinning, generally, others could do that part if he wanted perfection.  Kotori preferred to practice the aspect of killing for offense and defense.

Once it was done he looked to Nuru, nodding, “Feast is on.”

"Kotori"

The monochrome woman moved back to give Kotori room to do his work. She watched him with her pale blue gaze, fascinated as he cut the pelt away from the young moose’s body. She remained quiet, politely watching on as he worked at it the best he could to get the pelt mostly intact. She had never personally skinned an animal but the hunter in her was fascinated at how he worked. Perhaps she would need to give it a try on her next kill and start stocking up on hides and the like. Though she might not have a lot of use for them herself they could surely be traded for things she and her brother might need or want. Once the pelt was free and Kotori gave the go-ahead for her to eat, Nuru moved close to the moose once more. But before she lowered her head to it she glanced at Kotori again. “You mentioned your intentions of starting your own pack, Valta. Have you considered what lands you will claim when you make it? She was admittedly curious. She and her siblings hadn’t been in a pack for years… what would Kotori be like as a leader? As she waited for his response she tore a chunk off the moose and began to chew on it thoughtfully. "Talk, 'Think.'