Winter Experiment (Seasonal Prompt)
02-10-2021, 01:28 PM
(This post was last modified: 02-10-2021, 02:58 PM by Drachen.)
Drachen woke up in his den, his body curled tightly with his nose covered by his tan tipped tail to keep it warm. His deep blue eyes flickered open, noticing that the first rays of sun light began to lighten the darkness of night. His jaws parted in a large yawn, his fangs glinting in the soft light before he licked his lips and glanced over at Enzi who was perched on her large branch with her head tucked into her wing fast asleep. A gentle smile danced on his lips as he watched his slumbering companion before he got to his dark paws and stretched out his muscles then shook out his pelt. Quietly, as to not wake the raptor, Drachen exited his den and into the cold morning air, blinking his eyes a few times to adjust to the difference in light. He did not see any others out and about yet, but that did not matter, he could hunt small prey on his own. The thing he wanted most to try was to make that dried meat that Aurielle had when they first met. Not only did he enjoy the taste and texture, it certainly was very useful to have when traveling or when prey was scarce in the winter season. Of course, he could have just asked her how to make it but what was the fun in that. No, he wanted to see if he could do it on his own and if there was a best way to preserve the meat.
His black and tan fur bounced softly as the male trotted away from the dens and out towards the plains were the strong scent of wolves was less likely to disrupt any prey. He kept an eye out for anyone who would want to join him but so far, he was the only one. Once he was far enough away, Drachen paused and scanned the plains before he lifted his earthen nose to the air and drew in the cold air. The scent of deer filled his nares and he grinned before he set off tracking the herd, noticing there was a distinct scent of infection and blood clinging to one set of tracks. Quickly Drachen found the herd, one young female limping hard on her rear leg while she tried to find any small amount of edible foliage. It only took him moments to attack and dispatch the deer, her wound so bad that the poor creature could only get a few steps before she fell. He made sure to give it a clean end as he took no pleasure in prolonging its suffering. Then he set about dragging the small deer carcass home.
By the time he arrived, the sun had nearly reached its zenith and he heard Enzi's screech high above him as she spotted him, he gave her a wag of his tail before he set about his task. He set about skinning the deer and setting aside the pelt for his den and then make quick work of removing and cutting the meat into strips. Out of curiosity, Drachen cut some strips rather thick and then other strips thin to see if the thickness of the meat played any role and out the meat preserved. Neatly, Drachen piled the meat in their respective piles and then sat back on his haunches and thought about what would the best way to preserve the meat. His tan shoulder gave a shrug and he decided to try a couple different things. He took a few strips of both thick and thin cuts and buried them in the snow next to his den, carefully packing down the snow around the meat, he would leave it along for a couple of days to see how they faired. The next part of his experiment required salt and he went in search of a pack mate before he returned with a pouch full of salt. Drachen swiftly gathered two flat rocks and set them in front of him with the salt filled pouch next to the flat rocks. One by one, Drachen salted several pieces of both thin and thick cuts of meat using his paw to carefully rub the salt into the meat before setting them off to the side on one of the rocks in the sun. He hoped that the salt would suck out the moisture in the meat while the sun, even though it was cold outside, would help in the curing process. Then with the remaining meat, Drachen lined them up on the other stone in the sun to see if just air and sun alone would produce the dried meat that Aurielle had given him.
Once that was done, Drachen reclined to his haunches with a sigh, his blue eyes scanning his work with a flicking tail before he grew bored and decided to leave the meat alone for several hours, since just sitting there staring at meat would have been a waste of time. So the Vaekhal male got to his paws and decided to roam around the Valhalla territory, getting himself more familiar with his new home, making sure to find the water source as well as observing the land and taking notes of the amount of prey tracks in the snow and earth. By that time, Enzi had found him once again, the red tailed hawk landing on the ground next to him, her golden eyes meeting his. "So what crazy wolf nonsense are you up to now?" she asked him, the feathers along her neck raising in amusement when he shot her a playful glare. "Since prey is scarce in winter I want to try in find the best way to preserve the meat to hold the pack over until prey is more plentyful." His hushed tones replied as he casually walked along, heading towards the border of Valhalla. Enzi hopped along side him, the raptor clicked her beak together and shook her head. "Smart... Weird... But smart." the red-tailed hawk replied before she got tired of hopping along side his long strides and flapped up to perch on his shoulder. Despite her sassy attitude that the hawk always gave him, he was grateful that the raptor was very careful about her sharp talons against his skin and in turn he made sure to walk smoothly to help her stay on.
By the time that he had finished a patrol around Valhalla lands, the sun was nearly touching the horizon and many hours had passed since he left the meat to cure so he turned around and headed back towards his den, this time Enzi took flight and circled high in the air above him. He was curious most about how the snow handled the meat so he dug it up first, carefully brushing off the snow that cling to the now cold meat. Drachen gave a few sniffs before he selected a small piece and began to chew it. It was hard at first to chew but slowly it defrosted with the warmth of his mouth and became rather good. This method would certainly keep the meat from spoiling for a while as long as there was snow deep enough to keep it frozen. This method would be nest to use in the dead of winter. He then moved on to the salted meat on the rock and took another small strip in his mouth and only got a few chews before he spit it out on the cold ground, his tan muzzle wrinkled in disgust. Maybe he had put too much salt on the meat or he was still traumatized from being half drowned in sea water, but he hated the taste of the salted meat. A dark paw gently pushed the rock with the salted meat away from him. Hopefully someone else would enjoy those.
Lastly, he moved to the meat he had left out to air dry in the sun, its color had darkened and the size had become smaller, much like the meat Aurielle had given him when she found him on the beach. Once again he selected a strip of meat and began to chew, its texture was hard but separated into smaller strips easily with his teeth. The brute hummed in satisfaction, enjoying the flavor before he swallowed and grinned. He took another strip, this one with some fat on it and noticed that the fat did not dry as well as the rest of the meat but was still flavorful. "I will have to remember to trim the fat off next time." he rumbled to himself. With that, he gathered all the remained meat strips and carried them to the area where the meat was left for the pack to eat and set them out for other wolves to come by and take. So far he concluded that air drying the meat was the best way to preserve the meat as it would keep well into the spring time, especially if he started preserving the meat in the autumn when the weather was warmer and the sun was stronger. He could then use the snow to preserve it even longer if he had to. By the time he returned to his den after delivering the meat, night had fully set and the stars shone brightly above him so he curled back into his den, noticing Enzi had already perched inside and was sleeping peacefully. Drachen reflected on his experiment a while longer before he drifted off to sleep.
-Exit Drachen-
Word count 1,595
His black and tan fur bounced softly as the male trotted away from the dens and out towards the plains were the strong scent of wolves was less likely to disrupt any prey. He kept an eye out for anyone who would want to join him but so far, he was the only one. Once he was far enough away, Drachen paused and scanned the plains before he lifted his earthen nose to the air and drew in the cold air. The scent of deer filled his nares and he grinned before he set off tracking the herd, noticing there was a distinct scent of infection and blood clinging to one set of tracks. Quickly Drachen found the herd, one young female limping hard on her rear leg while she tried to find any small amount of edible foliage. It only took him moments to attack and dispatch the deer, her wound so bad that the poor creature could only get a few steps before she fell. He made sure to give it a clean end as he took no pleasure in prolonging its suffering. Then he set about dragging the small deer carcass home.
By the time he arrived, the sun had nearly reached its zenith and he heard Enzi's screech high above him as she spotted him, he gave her a wag of his tail before he set about his task. He set about skinning the deer and setting aside the pelt for his den and then make quick work of removing and cutting the meat into strips. Out of curiosity, Drachen cut some strips rather thick and then other strips thin to see if the thickness of the meat played any role and out the meat preserved. Neatly, Drachen piled the meat in their respective piles and then sat back on his haunches and thought about what would the best way to preserve the meat. His tan shoulder gave a shrug and he decided to try a couple different things. He took a few strips of both thick and thin cuts and buried them in the snow next to his den, carefully packing down the snow around the meat, he would leave it along for a couple of days to see how they faired. The next part of his experiment required salt and he went in search of a pack mate before he returned with a pouch full of salt. Drachen swiftly gathered two flat rocks and set them in front of him with the salt filled pouch next to the flat rocks. One by one, Drachen salted several pieces of both thin and thick cuts of meat using his paw to carefully rub the salt into the meat before setting them off to the side on one of the rocks in the sun. He hoped that the salt would suck out the moisture in the meat while the sun, even though it was cold outside, would help in the curing process. Then with the remaining meat, Drachen lined them up on the other stone in the sun to see if just air and sun alone would produce the dried meat that Aurielle had given him.
Once that was done, Drachen reclined to his haunches with a sigh, his blue eyes scanning his work with a flicking tail before he grew bored and decided to leave the meat alone for several hours, since just sitting there staring at meat would have been a waste of time. So the Vaekhal male got to his paws and decided to roam around the Valhalla territory, getting himself more familiar with his new home, making sure to find the water source as well as observing the land and taking notes of the amount of prey tracks in the snow and earth. By that time, Enzi had found him once again, the red tailed hawk landing on the ground next to him, her golden eyes meeting his. "So what crazy wolf nonsense are you up to now?" she asked him, the feathers along her neck raising in amusement when he shot her a playful glare. "Since prey is scarce in winter I want to try in find the best way to preserve the meat to hold the pack over until prey is more plentyful." His hushed tones replied as he casually walked along, heading towards the border of Valhalla. Enzi hopped along side him, the raptor clicked her beak together and shook her head. "Smart... Weird... But smart." the red-tailed hawk replied before she got tired of hopping along side his long strides and flapped up to perch on his shoulder. Despite her sassy attitude that the hawk always gave him, he was grateful that the raptor was very careful about her sharp talons against his skin and in turn he made sure to walk smoothly to help her stay on.
By the time that he had finished a patrol around Valhalla lands, the sun was nearly touching the horizon and many hours had passed since he left the meat to cure so he turned around and headed back towards his den, this time Enzi took flight and circled high in the air above him. He was curious most about how the snow handled the meat so he dug it up first, carefully brushing off the snow that cling to the now cold meat. Drachen gave a few sniffs before he selected a small piece and began to chew it. It was hard at first to chew but slowly it defrosted with the warmth of his mouth and became rather good. This method would certainly keep the meat from spoiling for a while as long as there was snow deep enough to keep it frozen. This method would be nest to use in the dead of winter. He then moved on to the salted meat on the rock and took another small strip in his mouth and only got a few chews before he spit it out on the cold ground, his tan muzzle wrinkled in disgust. Maybe he had put too much salt on the meat or he was still traumatized from being half drowned in sea water, but he hated the taste of the salted meat. A dark paw gently pushed the rock with the salted meat away from him. Hopefully someone else would enjoy those.
Lastly, he moved to the meat he had left out to air dry in the sun, its color had darkened and the size had become smaller, much like the meat Aurielle had given him when she found him on the beach. Once again he selected a strip of meat and began to chew, its texture was hard but separated into smaller strips easily with his teeth. The brute hummed in satisfaction, enjoying the flavor before he swallowed and grinned. He took another strip, this one with some fat on it and noticed that the fat did not dry as well as the rest of the meat but was still flavorful. "I will have to remember to trim the fat off next time." he rumbled to himself. With that, he gathered all the remained meat strips and carried them to the area where the meat was left for the pack to eat and set them out for other wolves to come by and take. So far he concluded that air drying the meat was the best way to preserve the meat as it would keep well into the spring time, especially if he started preserving the meat in the autumn when the weather was warmer and the sun was stronger. He could then use the snow to preserve it even longer if he had to. By the time he returned to his den after delivering the meat, night had fully set and the stars shone brightly above him so he curled back into his den, noticing Enzi had already perched inside and was sleeping peacefully. Drachen reflected on his experiment a while longer before he drifted off to sleep.
-Exit Drachen-
Word count 1,595
Drachen has a female Red-Tailed Hawk companion named Enzi that is always with him unless otherwise stated