Close isn't good enough

Chade quietly watched the deer as it tried to graze but clearly had little heart for it. The ooze flowing out of its mouths and the hacking cough that occasionally happened had Chade imagine it was either unable to eat or it was difficult. The deer looked leaner than normal and between that and the mushrooms growing from it, Chade hoped to provide Ricin and him with a large meal. So far eating infested food hadn’t got them sick and if luck continued they might just survive to adulthood.

Chade was getting better at his attack preparation. He was confident in quiet steps so that he didn’t have to go painfully slow. It would be a lie to say he wasn’t fearful of failure but not to the same degree as he had once been. The wind was blowing the deer scent to him and conveniently it was blowing Chade’s scent away from his potential future meal. The failures of other hunts had taught him important lessons and he was sure not to forget any of them.

The boy slid amongst the trees, a tight-lipped grin on his face. If he smiled enough he’d quit worrying about not getting his kill, right? The deer raised its head and Chade froze in place, waiting. The deer’s head turned one way than another. It was an ugly sight between the mushrooms and the ooze that stained its fur after draining from its mouth, eyes, and nose. There was some ooze on its leg but Chade couldn’t tell if it was from an injury or perhaps it had just wiped ooze from its mouth onto the leg. If Chade was lucky it had a leg injury.

Chade listened to every beat of his heart until the deer lowered its head once more. It nosed the grass and occasionally bit into it, leaving the bright ooze in place of the grass. It was a creepy sight and sent a shudder over the pup's spine. He’d rather not eat something that was sick like this but they had limited options. Two more times he had to freeze up and wait as the deer looked up. He wasn’t sure if more experienced and larger wolves had to get so close before attempting a hunt or if it was a lot easier for them and just hoped he’d live long enough to learn the answer with time.
Chade was close enough finally. He ran the short distance separating them and bit into the front leg, aiming to injure the leg so it couldn’t run to fast. He had managed to startle the deer, no doubt about that it but it reacted faster than he would have liked.

The deer’s head shot up and it leaped with enough power that Chade lost his grip. Its leg was bleeding but not overy so. Chade took off running after it, doing his best to keep alongside of it. It had acted so weak while it grazed but now it was leaping and running frustratingly fast. Perhaps a bit slower than a healthy deer but still fast enough Chade’s odds were growing slimmer. The boy wasn’t giving up right away though. Surely its stamina was limited and he would just wait for it to exhaust itself.

Hope flickered when the deer stumbled on the leg he’d bit and Chade shoved himself so that he bit at the deer’s back leg but all he ended up snapping was air. He had been so close but close didn’t mean anything in a hunt. Chade gamely continued the hunt hoping one stumble promised more. If he didn’t catch this meal he’d have to hunt again but he’d be that much more tired.

Finally, an end came to the hunt but, not the way Chade had hoped for. The deer leaped over a bunch of rocks with one graceful leap. Chade attempted to jump over the rocks but one of his paws landed in a small recess in the ground that caused him to stumble. One stumble and the time it took to bound up over the rock pile and the deer was long gone. Nothing more than a golden tan rump and white flashing tail to be seen and soon that was out of sight.

Chade stood on the top of rocks, mouth open to suck in the air watching the spot the deer had been with a grim face. He’d have to go back to Ricin and tell him that he’d failed at another hunt. Fishing would be their best bet tonight and hopefully, they could catch large enough fish to fill them up. Turning away he leaped off the rocks and ran back to where his brother would be waiting for him. At least with the bright moonlight, fireflies, and all the glowing fauna he had no fear of getting lost in the dark.

"Speech"