Eska had been spending some time with her older sister, Iolaire, now that the woman had chosen to join the pack. It was different, that was for sure. With Iolaire, Eska shared blood. That didn't make Artorias or Gwyn any less her family, there was just a different feel to it. Io was slightly mad, but Eska rather liked her sister's odd ways and supported her where she needed it.

Together, the pair of ladies, one large, one small, ran a patrol through the plains. Io could run for days, it seemed. Eska needed a little break here and there, still recovering from her illness. The pair sat at the edge of a little stream, slaking their thirst and lightly conversing when out of nowhere came a bear. A big brown bear and it didn't seem to like them being so close. It charged and Eska reacted in kind, taking a snarling step towards it and puffing up her coat. The bear hesitated, but eventually continued forward. Great.


"Eska"

Things had changed considerably since her encounter with the ghost of her former mate, Roan. Iolaire had woken up a bit. She was still a little strange and odd, but that would never go away. There was an underlying somberness to her these days as she fought to differentiate between reality and fiction. She tried to hide it from the others, but she knew that they noticed. Never one to be a burden, Io would handle her own issues.

Spending time with Eska helped. Her younger sister was a lot like their mother in the way that she was so calming and grounded. They had an easy relationship, neither needing to talk much. As they ran patrols and rested, there came a bear. Io, obviously too small to do much, took to skirting around the bear, sinking her teeth in here and there. As she ran, ducked and dodged, she shot instruction to Eska. "Bear elbows are tender. Tendons are easy to rend."

"Speech"

As Eska continued to attack the attacking bear, she listened to Iolaire's words as best as she could. With her sister distracting the bear, Eska sank her teeth into the suggested elbows and thrashed her head back and forth, tearing into flesh and filling her mouth with blood. The bear roared and rose to its hind legs but Eska had a little trick. Curling back, she rushed forward, planted all four paws against the bears stomach, and pushed. The beast rolled off of its paws, falling hard on its back and giving the wolves the advantage to run in and do damage. They didn't intend to kill it, only run it off. Eska glanced to Io, expecting more pointers.


"Eska"

Eska was impressive with her skill and seemed to have a natural talent for fighting and battle. That was all well and fine with Io since she did not. The silvered woman took instruction, biting at the bears elbows to bring rich, tangy blood to the surface. The obsidian woman did as she could, snapping at heels and calves when able. Harrying the bear was the easy part. Eska was left with the difficult position.

As the brindled wolf pushed the bear onto its back, Iolaire barked out a laugh of amusement, eyes closing momentarily as she crossed her slender forelegs over her stomach. "Good tactic," she wheezed out before shaking her head and getting back to her paws. On the ground, the bear flailed, confused and bewildered. "Now would be a good time to get in there and do some damage. Teach this furball that it's not allowed or wanted here. Stay clear of the arms. They're strong!"

"Speech"

Iolaire's laughter at having seen the bear be pushed back pulled Eska's attention to her sister for a moment. Seeing the joy on the woman, she couldn't help but smile. It was good to see her do something other than frown or be pensive. She couldn't focus on it for long though. More instruction came from Iolaire and Eska was on it. Again she moved forward to sink her teeth into the extremities of the bear. There would be no lasting damage. The ursine would not be a cripple because of this fight, but it would learn a valuable lesson. The Hallows were off limits to predators other than wolves. Hopefully it would spread the tale and its wounds would hammer that tale home.

The bear flailed and managed to get to its paws. Tiny tail tucked, it lowered its haunches and began running out of the plains. Eska gave chase, nipping here and there to let it know that she was seeing it out. Io was on the other side doing the same and eventually it crossed the border with a groan and their work was done.

Licking the blood from her chops, Eska shot her golden glance towards the smaller fae. "How did I do?" Eska knew that she'd done well, but she also knew that Io loved to teach and instruct, so she asked to be polite.


"Eska"

Without complaint, Eska had carried out Io's suggestion. Soon the bear was up and on its way and they were seeing it out post haste. With the ursine out of Hallowed lands, the women stopped at the border, watching and listening until the bear was both out of sight and hearing.

As Eska questioned her skill, Io laughed, green and gold eyes crinkling at the corners. "Ye did lovely," she admitted. "There's a lot of our mother in your fighting style, Eska." It was a compliment and Eska took it as such with a grateful nod. "Perhaps we'll do this again. I know some tricks that our mother had that you could quite possible use."

Together, they made their way back to the castle to inform the Aegis that a bear had been present on the plains. All who patrolled would need to know.

"Speech"