Post by Ashen on Jan 7, 2007 21:10:10 GMT -5
Cast: Adamant, Alsoomse, Chestnut, Freyr, Stonewort, Sunflower, Wilhelm
Location: Burrowed Meadow
Chestnut nods. "Yup." At least, he does right now. He doesn't see why he shouldn't, either. The young rabbit finishes his scratch and turns his head to look fully at her. "Don't you?"
Sunflower tilts her head and smiles while nodding. "Ya I do.. Snow's fun to pla in." Speaking of playing.. The snow she was gathering with her forepaws it suddenly sent flying towards Chestnut. A giggle escapes the young doe as she turns and bounds the other way to start a game of chase it seems.
So they like snow, eh? Wilhelm smirks to himself and discreetly slides towards a nearby patch of the white stuff. He plops himself down on all fours and, glancing about innocently, he suddenly pistons his hind legs, sending a spray of icy crystals towards the two youngsters. Snowfight!
Chestnut was completely expecting that, but that doesn't mean he was able to dodge it in time. He takes the fluff of snow on the nose. Spluttering and laughing, he takes off after Sunflower, attempting to get back at her. However, he's not prepared for the attack coming from the other direction. He turns so that his tail is facing Wilhelm and counter-attacks, kicking a swift barrage of slush at the older rabbit.
Sunflower tilts her head as she doens't hear Chestnut following her, an inturn gets pelted in the face by some of the lovely icy snow. She blinks and gives herself a shake before grinning and hops back over to Chestnut helping him kick snow back at Wilhelm. HA.. Two against one, beat that.
Argh! Outnumbered! Wilhelm is barraged with a wall of snow, and he beats a not-so-dignified retreat out of range, laughing the whole while. "So it's like that, is it?" he bellows over the expanse. "Well, then!" He takes a running start and takes a flying leap towards a patch of snow. He throws his full weight into it, skidding through it like an ice skater, sending up a fair-sized spray towards his opponents.
Chestnut laughs, which is probably a mistake seeing as the next minute he gets a mouthful of snow. He shakes the powdery ice out of his face to see who they're actually fighting, and is surprised to see Wilhelm. Obviously he's not too bad all of the time.
Sunflower grins while peering after the fleeing buck. "Ha! Take that.." She errs as she catches sight of Wilhelm 'falling' into the snow, a faint meep escapes her as she is hit by the wave spray and she sits there blinking. Err.. That wasn't suppose to happen.
His attack a success, Wilhelm abandons himself to a good bout of laughter, wraping a forepaw over his chest and falling onto his back, all the while spouting mirthful sounds. "Oh ho ho! Lookit . . . lookit your fa-aces!" he gasps between cackles. "Ah ha! Ohh, gotcha good!"
Chestnut grins wickedly and leaps forward silently, creeping around the laughing Wilhelm. Once he's behind the rabbit's head, he turns around, bends down and bucks his hind legs high into the air, sending up a massive amount of snow towards Wilhelm's head.
Sunflower huffles some and gives herself a shake, which sends snow flying all over. She's about to say something till she notices Chestnut moving forward and grins. She'll just hang back an watch.. Then laugh at it when its over.
The laughter is cut short as Wilhelm's head is suddenly buried in a pile of icy fluff. His joyful guffaws turn into muffled protests as he struggles to free himself, which doesn't really take much. He manages to twist free and lift onto his haunches, looking a comical sight with his whiskers and fur painted with crystals of ice. He blinks a few times, then shoots a playful glower at his assaulter. "Oh, very funny," he grunts, beginning to brush the snow from his face with forepaws.
Chestnut giggles softly, rocking backwards to plop down on his haunches. "/I/ thought it was." He leans his head to look past Wilhelm and grin at Sunflower, winking.
Sunflower grins and giggles while pointing a paw at Wilhelm. "He got you good.." She points out all happy like.
"Yeah, yeah," Wilhelm mutters, though he smiles through the grumbling. With his face now clean, he gives himself a shake for good measure, then he peers around. Yes, the few who are still out grazing have seen the ridiculous display. What little reputation he had is probably ruined. Ah well! With a mischievous glance behind, he kicks a hindleg to hit Sunflower with a small blob of the cold white stuff.
It's two against one, though. Chestnut hops forward once more and lifts a forepaw, dashing a bit of snow at Wilhelm once more. His eyes are bright. This is fun!
Sunflower meeps an blinks while giving her head a shake and smirks while eyeing Wilhelm faintly. Her ears perk as she watches Chestnut and she grins while bouncing forward to send snow flying towards Wilhelm as well with her forepaws.
Gah! Hit on both sides, Wilhelm finds himself not only outnumbered, but out-matched. With a breathless gasp, he leaps away, trying to shake snow off at the same time, resulting in a strange half-hop, half-shiver. "I give, I give!" he protests laughingly. "Uncle, uncle!"
"Ha!" Chestnut calls the single, triumphant syllable playfully. He moves a few hops towards Wilhelm as the rabbit tries to move away, and eventually comes to stop beside Sunflower.
Sunflower giggles and sits up talk while peering playful at the older buck. "That'll teach ya!" She offers around giggles and grins at Chestnut.
It can likely be heard before it's seen or smelled. The sound of snow grinding beneath heavy paws moves in from the southeast, just close enough to be at the edging of hearing. The dark form that looms in the distance does not come close yet; he'd not about to reveal himself and frighten away the quarry, ruining the entire plan before it can even begin. He can't even seen them himself, but he can almost taste them on the air, a temptation that makes his patience so very challenging.
Wilhelm offers a grin over his shoulder, then shakes himself again and begins to groom his wet pelt. Even if he lost the battle, it was a fun diversion. So diverting, in fact, that he's completely oblivious to the looming danger. All that matters is getting himself relatively dry. Snowfights are rather wet matters.
Another follows Freyr, though not right next or behind. The large female dog has came a different way, a lot quiter then her dear male counter part. Alsoomse is hunkered down withing some bushes, still a long ways off but close enough to catch sight of some playing bunnies.. Yummer.. She can almost taste the sweet rabbit flesh within her jaws..
And completing the trio is Adamant, who is not /really/ a part of the pack. He followed at first to observe, but the prospect of rabbit meat is too tempting to pass up. He joins the hunt at a far distance, carefully remaining downwind and out of sight amidst the brush. His long pink tongue runs over his chops in anticipation.
Chestnut smiles back at Sunflower, when suddenly his ears shoot up. What was that noise? Sounds much too heavy for any creature smaller than him. That's a bad sign. He glances around uneasily, then sniffs the air. It's possible that he's just being a typical paranoid rabbit, but then again...
The current pose order is: {Sunflower Freyr Wilhelm Alsoomse Adamant Chestnut}.
Sunflower giggles at Wilhelm and gives herself a shake to try and get her fur a bit dryer. Her ears catch the sound of moving as well an she blinks while tilting her head to look around wondering what that was. Her father told her to be careful of elil an she was told that with snow more would be coming close to the warren. She looks to Chestnut pondering if he caught something she might not of.
Freyr stops his approach for a moment, centering himself and studying the terrain once it's within view. He's aware of the other dogs, but doesn't risk giving them away with any sort of verbal communication. The mastiff presses himself down in the snow, pulling himself along with a little more subtlty this time. Granted, it's very hard for a dog of his build to be sneaky. But he tries.
Wilhelm's the last to notice something amiss. He turns to speak to the others, but when he sees their alert and worried states, he, too, becomes tense. He rises onto his haunches, ears straight up, nose twitching a mile a minute. Oh no. Not another Thornrove!
Alsoomse is still well hidden within her spot, which while isn't near the rabbits is a bit near one of the holes for the warren where she knows the rabbits would make a quick exit to escape. So, even if the other two dogs don't get anything its still possible that she just might get lucky.
Adamant, on the other paw, is the epitome of stealth--as far as canines go. He creeps forward with all the poise and discipline of a sheep dog, careful to avoid the patches of snow whenever possible. He keeps a keen eye on the prey as he moves not towards them, but circling around, as though they were wool to be herded. Still out of sight, he tries to position himself in the best possible spot to drive the rabbits towards one of the other two dogs.
There isn't any hard evidence of a threat yet, but Chestnut is definitely getting a bad feeling. He turns to Sunflower and then to Wilhelm, his nose twitching nervously. "I...I thought I heard something." His voice automatically lowers. "Maybe it was just..." He trails off, sniffing the air again. Was that a hint of a scent? Or again, just his mind playing tricks on him?
Sunflower watches Chestnut and frowns, so he heard it to. She half stands on her hind legs peering over the forest while sniffing at the air, still nothing. Her tail flicks about while she lowers back down and turns around hoping a few feet from Chestnut as her ears flick one way an another. "I thought I did to." She murmurs to Chestnut, forepaws half grip at the snowy ground, hindleg ready to get the thump of warning it seems. If more then one rabbit is uneasy then there is usually something going on.
The only thing keeping Freyr's belly from freezing is his mercifully long fur, nonetheless, he's not fond of crawling in such a way. The mastiff stops, eyes following Adamant, who seems to have the right idea. Freyr remains in waiting for a while more, taking this chance to focus again on restraining his eagerness to just dash in some a carefree pup.
"Shh!" Wilhelm holds up a paw for silence, his satellite ears swiveling all over the place, trying in vain to pick up an indication of an attack. Even if there is no scents nor sounds, the air holds an eerie feeling of doom, as though the black rabbit of death hung over all.
Alsoomse gaze twitches this way and that while her maw twitches an she sniffs at the air to see which way its going. Good.. Still in her favor, though she's unsure about her two pack mates. With her tail flicking once behind her she shifts a bit on her paws pondering which male shall spring first.. Or if she should seeing how she's near the holes, she could drive the rabbits towards the two males as the rabbits would most likely want to go the other way then where she's coming. She waits a moment longer while the deer hippithops sits there freaking out.
Once he's deemed himself in the perfect spot, Adamant crouches, his muscles bunching and rippling beneath his thick pelt. Now's the time! With silent determination, the mongrel surges forward, heading straight for the rabbits above ground, hoping to attack one at the very most, drive them towards the other canids at the very least. Not even a bark issues from his throat, though it tickles there at the very back. If anything, chasing rabbits is fun.
Complete panic is the the first thing that takes over Chestnut's mind as he suddenly spots the huge shape charging towards him, Sunflower, and Wilhelm. The second is something relatively new - concern for his friends. He freezes for a moment, unsure of what to do, then begins to charge for the burrow instinctively, hoping the other two will follow him.
Sunflower sits in her spot a few feet from Chestnut while she eyes the grasses half thinking she saw something.. Her hindpaw ready to hit upon the ground incase she sees it again.. An she does, its a dog.. Her eyes widen and for a half second panic causes her not to move before her hindpaws slams into the ground a few times and she turns to follow after Chestnut an the others towards the burrow. She wasn't expecting this sorta of elil to grace them tonight, its the first time she's ever see a dog but she knows what it is to say the least.
Freyr's hind legs twitch. When Adamant begins the chase, the mastiff lets out a faint whimper of barely surpressed energy. Must. Chase. Freyr begins to move again, nothing quicker than a brisk slink at first, but it gradually shifts into a jog as he moves to try and intercept one of the fleeing rabbits.
Panic also surges through Wilhelm, who hesitates momentarily as he stares into the face of the oncoming dogs. Then, he's off like a shot, running hot on the trail of Sunflower and Chestnut. He shrieks out only one word: "Thornrove!" The burrow is within sight, but will they make it in time? Curses for having let himself get pulled into a silly game!
Alsoomse catches sight of Adamant crash forward and then Freyr, her tail lashes and with a jump forward the large female is moving forward with a thick growl escaping her. The dog is running forward from the other way which leaves the rabbits in the middle of three dogs it seems.. If anything this might end badly for the rabbit's or the dogs be it if the dogs hit one or another or soemthing.
Adamant catches sight of the three fleeing rabbits and alters his course slightly to pursue them, as they seem the closest and easiest targets. He digs deep to find an extra burst of speed, hurtling forward faster than he's ever gone before. He's so close that he can feel the small flecks of snow and grass kicked up by the retreat of the lapines. With a half-strangled bark of delight, he makes a wild dive for the closest one: the doe. It becomes quite obvious, however, that his attack is off-balanced and not properly thought-out. It could easily miss, or his grip would not be sure, nor the bite lethal.
Chestnut skids to a stop as he sees another dog charging towards them from the direction of the burrow. There goes that escape plan. He notices idly, in an instant, that he's kicked up a bit of snow in his sliding forward - but it's not a game anymore. He looks over his shoulder to see where the other two rabbits are - and is horrified to see that there's a huge dog hurtling towards Sunflower. Instinctively, he does the only thing he knows how to do - kicks his hind leg back hard, sending a spray of snow in the direction of the dog, hoping to throw him off, if only a little bit.
Sunflower doesn't look behind her, she can't if she looks behind her no telling what she'll see.. Its about this time she catches sight of Chestnut and the look he has so she just has to look back to see what he sees. A squeal escapes the doe, the dogs jaws basicly on her, an then jaws get hold of her around her lower side as she wiggles about sharply to the side. She kicks out hard with both hindpaws going to dig her claws into the dogs's maw, outer edge and inside some on the roof of his mouth in some attempt to stun said dog before he can bite down all the way.. She hopes anyway.
Freyr takes advantage of Chestnut's efforts to dive toward him, with decidedly less grace and agility than Adamant. The mastiff's jaws part, aiming right for the rabbit's head. He sorely lacks speed however, and his attempt is easily avoidable if seen in time.
Trapped, trapped! Wilhelm becomes frantic when he sees Alsoomse charging towards them, and when he skids to a halt to avoid her, he spots Freyr and Adamant already upon the younger rabbits. The buck's heart pounds and skips about wildly within his chest, and he can already feel the adrenaline freezing his muscles. Trying desperately to keep himself from going tharn, he whips around and makes a blind leap for the burrow, though it's debateable whether or not he'll make it.
With the two other dogs going after the younger rabbit Alsoomse figured she'll go for the older buck. She moves a bit faster, claws gripping at the snow covered ground while drool hangs from her maw as she sucks in the cool air. As Wilhelm dives for the burrow the large dog lunges forward jaws snapping for some part of Wilhelm. Her paws slide across the slicker snow, which is a mix of ice and snow really it seems. With her paws sliding she'll more then liking will miss her mark but at least she'll try.
Chestnut is forced to give up his assistance to Sunflower momentarily in order to avoid the gaping maw of death - a.k.a. the slavering dog that is attempting to bite his head off. Chestnut's head moves first, as it is the part of him at stake. He kicks off, the slippery snow proving to be an obstacle now, and making it hard to get a good start as he attempts to scramble away and dodge Freyr's jaws.
The triumph Adamant feels when his jaws close over the familiar rabbit fluff is short-lived, for before his teeth can clamp together, the roof and corner of his mouth are torn open. A surprised yelp escapes his muzzle and he releases the doe, dancing backwards to avoid more hurt, only to get a faceful of snow from the young buck. The mongrel growls angrily, giving his face a mighty shake to rid himself of the impeding slush. By now, his kill is long gone.
The doe is dropped like a sack of rocks but she doesn't hang around to wait and see what else will happen. Sunflower catches sight of Wilhelm and another dog near the main burron to the warren and she spares a glance to Chestnut. "Chestnut!" She yells out to get his attention before she's darting the other way, past Adamant as he battles the pain in his maw and the slush of snow while she goes for a more not always used hole. The other rabbits that were above hang out in a few holes to keep track of the dogs and Sun dives down the hole slamming into another rabbit who was just taking a peek outside. That might leave a mark. Safe underground the young doe lays there panting hard while streaks of red rest across her right side and haunch. She only prays Chestnut an get down the hole as well..
Freyr has time to snarl in protest before his face meets with snow, which proceeds to pack into his mouth and throat. Any chance of him resuming his pursuit of the buck is not gone as the mastiff sputters and coughs and paws at his muzzle rapidly, a vain attempt to rid himself of the unpleasent feel of ice on his internal flesh. He can only hope the others actually had better luck than him.
It seems that luck is with Alsoomse, for Wilhelm, in a panic, makes a wrong turn and finds one of his haunches caught up in the jaws of the feral dog. In this position, it's hard to fight back, but he does his darndest, kicking about wildly and emitting a piercing shriek of terror. Could this be the end for the paranoid buck?
Alsoomse is surprized at catching said rabbit.. She tastes the copper blood in her maw and is about to crunch down until one of the buck's clawed paws slams into her nose and rips it open along with her lip. A shrill yelp escapes the dog and she tosses her up and then to the side while letting go of said rabbit which inturn would free him but perhaps send him flying. Seems they both got lucky just at the wrong times, from the way it looks all the dogs are going to go hungrey tonight if this keeps up..
Chestnut doesn't have time to sigh in relief as he barely escapes. Instead, he's running, running away from the danger. Madly, no thinking involved - just pure instinct. He hears his name and attempts to stop, turning. Where did Sunflower go? He scans the area wildly, seeing all three dogs. And no Sunflower in sight. She's not dead in any of their mouths - so she must have escaped. Suddenly he sees the hole, clear (for the most part). And he begins to dash for it, his four legs pumping wildly, faster than they ever have before. Hopefully one of the dogs doesn't get in his way.
Adamant succeeds in clearing the snow from his face, and his eyes fall upon Chestnut. Though it's certainly a futile attempt, he gives chase, legs pistoning beneath him, carrying him swiftly forward towards his target. He's only making an effort for effort's sake; the distance between himself and the young buck is too great to fill.
Stonewort has crept cautiously up a run and now sits just below ground, ears perked towards all the commotion happening above his head. The sound and smell of dogs are quick to put him on edge, and he prepares to leap aside in case any other rabbits should come dashing down the hole.
The space is too wide for the running dog to catch up to Chestnut, and indeed the young buck does manage to dive into the hole before those sharp teeth can come close to catching ahold of him. It gives him a good scare though, and he collapses next to Sunflower, his heart thumping so hard it feels as if it might explode. He's too worked up to say anything or make any sense out of his thoughts, just yet.
Sunflower is still laying where she fell once she got into the hole, she's shaking from it all which doesn't help as she's gasping for air as well. Her wounds arn't life threating but there bleeding rather quickly thanks to her freaking out to go along with it. She half squeals out as Chestnut falls next to her unsure if it might be a dog trying to grab her again, but as she sees its her friend she attempts to relax. At least his alright.. Though Wilhelm's squeal from up above catches her attention but there isn't anything she can do but stare wideeyed at the hole above her.
When most of the snow is rid from his mouth, Freyr takes quick stock of the scene. The buck he was after is gone, as is the doe. But a shriek alerts his attention to the second buck. With new found intent, the mastiff turns and launches himself after Wilhelm, hopefully to succeed where Alsoomse hadn't. But no more mouthful of snow for him; Freyr's goal is to pin the buck with either forepaw.
Wilhelm finds himself airborne for a short duration after being launched by Alsoomse. When he returns to terra firma, it's on his side, knocking the breath from his lungs. His left hind leg hurts something awful, but the pain is secondary to his desire to get away. He attempts to scramble to his feet, but he finds himself suddenly oppressed by the weight of a heavy paw upon his ribs. The buck lets out a feeble shriek and kicks out wildly, hoping to find the same dumb luck that saved him from the jaws of Alsoomse earlier.
Alsoomse has her maw pressed into the snow hoping the coldness will help with the pain. Damn that hurts.. Anything across a dogs nose hurts like fire and here she took a claw to the side of it an its ripped open. Her ears flick forward as she listions to the others before glancing around. She catches sight of Freyr and the buck and makes a beeline towards the two. "Crush him Freyr.." She snarls out between her bloody maw.
Adamant doesn't want to give up the chase so easily and is tempted to begin digging up the burrow, but the scream of the trapped buck behind him calls him away. He glowers down into the hole and, with a final disdainful snort, he turns and trots over to the other two dogs, briefly glancing at the buck. "Hmm," he utters, flinching at the taste of his own blood draining from the cuts on and in his mouth. "Not much meat on 'im."
Sunflower hears the dogs up above and cringes back against her passed out friend fearing the worse.. But then the dog leave to go somewhere else and she gulps hearing talk about Wilhelm.. Oh no there going to kill him, an there's nothing she or anyone else can really do about it. Soon the young doe herself passes out, a faint whimper escaping her as well.
Freyr's muzzle scrunches up a bit. "True, he's a small one." Largely because rabbits are small. "Think we should throw it back, or'd you like to do the honors?" At the last part, he glances over at Alsoomse and her wounded nose.
By now, Wilhelm's frozen with fear, and he can only stare up at his attackers with wide, terrified eyes. Already his life is flashing through his mind: the warren of his youth, the mischievous antics of his brothers, the loss of his tail. It's a short slideshow, but poignant to the rabbit. And amidst it all, he sees the shadow of the Black Rabbit flitting about on the edge of his vision.
Alsoomse jaws snap towards the rabbit but she makes no move to finsh him, yet it seems. "Leave the worthless blob of fluff." She's not amused it seems, blood still drips from her nose an maw an she turns stalking off. "I'll be back to get him when his healed an it will be more of a fair fight when I rip him apart." Seems Wilhelm get's to live unless one of the males wants him.
The mercy of the other dogs simply flabbergasts Adamant, who scoffs softly despite himself. "That seems a waste of a good hunt," he utters, "to catch something, only to release it. Meat is meat, even if there's very little of it." He looks again at Wilhelm, taking in the terrified state of him. "He's liable to die of heart failure after we leave anyway," he adds mockingly. "Look at him!"
Freyr glances after Alsoomse. He'd mainly wanted to save the rabbit for her, but Adamant is right, meat is meat. With food so sparse, they can't really afford to waste energy for nothing. The mastiff presses harder, to end the small life beneath his paws. There's none of the feeling there was before, the chase is over, and ultimately that was all that mattered. A sidelong glance is given to the other male dog. "You did good, by the way." Freyr murmurs, tail taking on a bit of a wag.
One final struggle as the life is crushed out of him. The faint /popping/ of ribs. A last frantic scrabbling of legs, and then Wilhelm moves no more: just one more prey animal's life snuffed out in the end.
"Shutup.." Alsoomse snaps out at Adamant, not at all amused.. Ya well she didn't want the stupid rabbit, she gets crazy little things in her head now and then that tells her otherwise. Anyway, Freyr caught it again she figured he should be the one to kill it. She doesn't bother waiting for the males an just pads off muttering about males and rabbits it seems.
The snapped retort from Alsoomse strangely shuts up Adamant, who merely glowers indignantly after her in response. The expression is quickly wiped out of existence and replaced with his old familiar smirk when Freyr speaks. The mongrel dips his head in gratitude, the tip of his own tail giving a faint sweep.
Freyr frowns. He'll have to find a way to make it up to her, somehow. "Wouldn't be so bad to have you around." Removing his paw from the unfortunate rabbit, the mastiff nudges the corpse lightly. "We should head back. I'd feel better giving the pups first pickings." With that, he takes it in his jaws, and starts slowly back toward the copse.
Not far behind is Adamant, whose unusually springy step and high-held head indicate that he's prouder of himself than normal. Ah yes. This is a top-dog.
Location: Burrowed Meadow
Chestnut nods. "Yup." At least, he does right now. He doesn't see why he shouldn't, either. The young rabbit finishes his scratch and turns his head to look fully at her. "Don't you?"
Sunflower tilts her head and smiles while nodding. "Ya I do.. Snow's fun to pla in." Speaking of playing.. The snow she was gathering with her forepaws it suddenly sent flying towards Chestnut. A giggle escapes the young doe as she turns and bounds the other way to start a game of chase it seems.
So they like snow, eh? Wilhelm smirks to himself and discreetly slides towards a nearby patch of the white stuff. He plops himself down on all fours and, glancing about innocently, he suddenly pistons his hind legs, sending a spray of icy crystals towards the two youngsters. Snowfight!
Chestnut was completely expecting that, but that doesn't mean he was able to dodge it in time. He takes the fluff of snow on the nose. Spluttering and laughing, he takes off after Sunflower, attempting to get back at her. However, he's not prepared for the attack coming from the other direction. He turns so that his tail is facing Wilhelm and counter-attacks, kicking a swift barrage of slush at the older rabbit.
Sunflower tilts her head as she doens't hear Chestnut following her, an inturn gets pelted in the face by some of the lovely icy snow. She blinks and gives herself a shake before grinning and hops back over to Chestnut helping him kick snow back at Wilhelm. HA.. Two against one, beat that.
Argh! Outnumbered! Wilhelm is barraged with a wall of snow, and he beats a not-so-dignified retreat out of range, laughing the whole while. "So it's like that, is it?" he bellows over the expanse. "Well, then!" He takes a running start and takes a flying leap towards a patch of snow. He throws his full weight into it, skidding through it like an ice skater, sending up a fair-sized spray towards his opponents.
Chestnut laughs, which is probably a mistake seeing as the next minute he gets a mouthful of snow. He shakes the powdery ice out of his face to see who they're actually fighting, and is surprised to see Wilhelm. Obviously he's not too bad all of the time.
Sunflower grins while peering after the fleeing buck. "Ha! Take that.." She errs as she catches sight of Wilhelm 'falling' into the snow, a faint meep escapes her as she is hit by the wave spray and she sits there blinking. Err.. That wasn't suppose to happen.
His attack a success, Wilhelm abandons himself to a good bout of laughter, wraping a forepaw over his chest and falling onto his back, all the while spouting mirthful sounds. "Oh ho ho! Lookit . . . lookit your fa-aces!" he gasps between cackles. "Ah ha! Ohh, gotcha good!"
Chestnut grins wickedly and leaps forward silently, creeping around the laughing Wilhelm. Once he's behind the rabbit's head, he turns around, bends down and bucks his hind legs high into the air, sending up a massive amount of snow towards Wilhelm's head.
Sunflower huffles some and gives herself a shake, which sends snow flying all over. She's about to say something till she notices Chestnut moving forward and grins. She'll just hang back an watch.. Then laugh at it when its over.
The laughter is cut short as Wilhelm's head is suddenly buried in a pile of icy fluff. His joyful guffaws turn into muffled protests as he struggles to free himself, which doesn't really take much. He manages to twist free and lift onto his haunches, looking a comical sight with his whiskers and fur painted with crystals of ice. He blinks a few times, then shoots a playful glower at his assaulter. "Oh, very funny," he grunts, beginning to brush the snow from his face with forepaws.
Chestnut giggles softly, rocking backwards to plop down on his haunches. "/I/ thought it was." He leans his head to look past Wilhelm and grin at Sunflower, winking.
Sunflower grins and giggles while pointing a paw at Wilhelm. "He got you good.." She points out all happy like.
"Yeah, yeah," Wilhelm mutters, though he smiles through the grumbling. With his face now clean, he gives himself a shake for good measure, then he peers around. Yes, the few who are still out grazing have seen the ridiculous display. What little reputation he had is probably ruined. Ah well! With a mischievous glance behind, he kicks a hindleg to hit Sunflower with a small blob of the cold white stuff.
It's two against one, though. Chestnut hops forward once more and lifts a forepaw, dashing a bit of snow at Wilhelm once more. His eyes are bright. This is fun!
Sunflower meeps an blinks while giving her head a shake and smirks while eyeing Wilhelm faintly. Her ears perk as she watches Chestnut and she grins while bouncing forward to send snow flying towards Wilhelm as well with her forepaws.
Gah! Hit on both sides, Wilhelm finds himself not only outnumbered, but out-matched. With a breathless gasp, he leaps away, trying to shake snow off at the same time, resulting in a strange half-hop, half-shiver. "I give, I give!" he protests laughingly. "Uncle, uncle!"
"Ha!" Chestnut calls the single, triumphant syllable playfully. He moves a few hops towards Wilhelm as the rabbit tries to move away, and eventually comes to stop beside Sunflower.
Sunflower giggles and sits up talk while peering playful at the older buck. "That'll teach ya!" She offers around giggles and grins at Chestnut.
It can likely be heard before it's seen or smelled. The sound of snow grinding beneath heavy paws moves in from the southeast, just close enough to be at the edging of hearing. The dark form that looms in the distance does not come close yet; he'd not about to reveal himself and frighten away the quarry, ruining the entire plan before it can even begin. He can't even seen them himself, but he can almost taste them on the air, a temptation that makes his patience so very challenging.
Wilhelm offers a grin over his shoulder, then shakes himself again and begins to groom his wet pelt. Even if he lost the battle, it was a fun diversion. So diverting, in fact, that he's completely oblivious to the looming danger. All that matters is getting himself relatively dry. Snowfights are rather wet matters.
Another follows Freyr, though not right next or behind. The large female dog has came a different way, a lot quiter then her dear male counter part. Alsoomse is hunkered down withing some bushes, still a long ways off but close enough to catch sight of some playing bunnies.. Yummer.. She can almost taste the sweet rabbit flesh within her jaws..
And completing the trio is Adamant, who is not /really/ a part of the pack. He followed at first to observe, but the prospect of rabbit meat is too tempting to pass up. He joins the hunt at a far distance, carefully remaining downwind and out of sight amidst the brush. His long pink tongue runs over his chops in anticipation.
Chestnut smiles back at Sunflower, when suddenly his ears shoot up. What was that noise? Sounds much too heavy for any creature smaller than him. That's a bad sign. He glances around uneasily, then sniffs the air. It's possible that he's just being a typical paranoid rabbit, but then again...
The current pose order is: {Sunflower Freyr Wilhelm Alsoomse Adamant Chestnut}.
Sunflower giggles at Wilhelm and gives herself a shake to try and get her fur a bit dryer. Her ears catch the sound of moving as well an she blinks while tilting her head to look around wondering what that was. Her father told her to be careful of elil an she was told that with snow more would be coming close to the warren. She looks to Chestnut pondering if he caught something she might not of.
Freyr stops his approach for a moment, centering himself and studying the terrain once it's within view. He's aware of the other dogs, but doesn't risk giving them away with any sort of verbal communication. The mastiff presses himself down in the snow, pulling himself along with a little more subtlty this time. Granted, it's very hard for a dog of his build to be sneaky. But he tries.
Wilhelm's the last to notice something amiss. He turns to speak to the others, but when he sees their alert and worried states, he, too, becomes tense. He rises onto his haunches, ears straight up, nose twitching a mile a minute. Oh no. Not another Thornrove!
Alsoomse is still well hidden within her spot, which while isn't near the rabbits is a bit near one of the holes for the warren where she knows the rabbits would make a quick exit to escape. So, even if the other two dogs don't get anything its still possible that she just might get lucky.
Adamant, on the other paw, is the epitome of stealth--as far as canines go. He creeps forward with all the poise and discipline of a sheep dog, careful to avoid the patches of snow whenever possible. He keeps a keen eye on the prey as he moves not towards them, but circling around, as though they were wool to be herded. Still out of sight, he tries to position himself in the best possible spot to drive the rabbits towards one of the other two dogs.
There isn't any hard evidence of a threat yet, but Chestnut is definitely getting a bad feeling. He turns to Sunflower and then to Wilhelm, his nose twitching nervously. "I...I thought I heard something." His voice automatically lowers. "Maybe it was just..." He trails off, sniffing the air again. Was that a hint of a scent? Or again, just his mind playing tricks on him?
Sunflower watches Chestnut and frowns, so he heard it to. She half stands on her hind legs peering over the forest while sniffing at the air, still nothing. Her tail flicks about while she lowers back down and turns around hoping a few feet from Chestnut as her ears flick one way an another. "I thought I did to." She murmurs to Chestnut, forepaws half grip at the snowy ground, hindleg ready to get the thump of warning it seems. If more then one rabbit is uneasy then there is usually something going on.
The only thing keeping Freyr's belly from freezing is his mercifully long fur, nonetheless, he's not fond of crawling in such a way. The mastiff stops, eyes following Adamant, who seems to have the right idea. Freyr remains in waiting for a while more, taking this chance to focus again on restraining his eagerness to just dash in some a carefree pup.
"Shh!" Wilhelm holds up a paw for silence, his satellite ears swiveling all over the place, trying in vain to pick up an indication of an attack. Even if there is no scents nor sounds, the air holds an eerie feeling of doom, as though the black rabbit of death hung over all.
Alsoomse gaze twitches this way and that while her maw twitches an she sniffs at the air to see which way its going. Good.. Still in her favor, though she's unsure about her two pack mates. With her tail flicking once behind her she shifts a bit on her paws pondering which male shall spring first.. Or if she should seeing how she's near the holes, she could drive the rabbits towards the two males as the rabbits would most likely want to go the other way then where she's coming. She waits a moment longer while the deer hippithops sits there freaking out.
Once he's deemed himself in the perfect spot, Adamant crouches, his muscles bunching and rippling beneath his thick pelt. Now's the time! With silent determination, the mongrel surges forward, heading straight for the rabbits above ground, hoping to attack one at the very most, drive them towards the other canids at the very least. Not even a bark issues from his throat, though it tickles there at the very back. If anything, chasing rabbits is fun.
Complete panic is the the first thing that takes over Chestnut's mind as he suddenly spots the huge shape charging towards him, Sunflower, and Wilhelm. The second is something relatively new - concern for his friends. He freezes for a moment, unsure of what to do, then begins to charge for the burrow instinctively, hoping the other two will follow him.
Sunflower sits in her spot a few feet from Chestnut while she eyes the grasses half thinking she saw something.. Her hindpaw ready to hit upon the ground incase she sees it again.. An she does, its a dog.. Her eyes widen and for a half second panic causes her not to move before her hindpaws slams into the ground a few times and she turns to follow after Chestnut an the others towards the burrow. She wasn't expecting this sorta of elil to grace them tonight, its the first time she's ever see a dog but she knows what it is to say the least.
Freyr's hind legs twitch. When Adamant begins the chase, the mastiff lets out a faint whimper of barely surpressed energy. Must. Chase. Freyr begins to move again, nothing quicker than a brisk slink at first, but it gradually shifts into a jog as he moves to try and intercept one of the fleeing rabbits.
Panic also surges through Wilhelm, who hesitates momentarily as he stares into the face of the oncoming dogs. Then, he's off like a shot, running hot on the trail of Sunflower and Chestnut. He shrieks out only one word: "Thornrove!" The burrow is within sight, but will they make it in time? Curses for having let himself get pulled into a silly game!
Alsoomse catches sight of Adamant crash forward and then Freyr, her tail lashes and with a jump forward the large female is moving forward with a thick growl escaping her. The dog is running forward from the other way which leaves the rabbits in the middle of three dogs it seems.. If anything this might end badly for the rabbit's or the dogs be it if the dogs hit one or another or soemthing.
Adamant catches sight of the three fleeing rabbits and alters his course slightly to pursue them, as they seem the closest and easiest targets. He digs deep to find an extra burst of speed, hurtling forward faster than he's ever gone before. He's so close that he can feel the small flecks of snow and grass kicked up by the retreat of the lapines. With a half-strangled bark of delight, he makes a wild dive for the closest one: the doe. It becomes quite obvious, however, that his attack is off-balanced and not properly thought-out. It could easily miss, or his grip would not be sure, nor the bite lethal.
Chestnut skids to a stop as he sees another dog charging towards them from the direction of the burrow. There goes that escape plan. He notices idly, in an instant, that he's kicked up a bit of snow in his sliding forward - but it's not a game anymore. He looks over his shoulder to see where the other two rabbits are - and is horrified to see that there's a huge dog hurtling towards Sunflower. Instinctively, he does the only thing he knows how to do - kicks his hind leg back hard, sending a spray of snow in the direction of the dog, hoping to throw him off, if only a little bit.
Sunflower doesn't look behind her, she can't if she looks behind her no telling what she'll see.. Its about this time she catches sight of Chestnut and the look he has so she just has to look back to see what he sees. A squeal escapes the doe, the dogs jaws basicly on her, an then jaws get hold of her around her lower side as she wiggles about sharply to the side. She kicks out hard with both hindpaws going to dig her claws into the dogs's maw, outer edge and inside some on the roof of his mouth in some attempt to stun said dog before he can bite down all the way.. She hopes anyway.
Freyr takes advantage of Chestnut's efforts to dive toward him, with decidedly less grace and agility than Adamant. The mastiff's jaws part, aiming right for the rabbit's head. He sorely lacks speed however, and his attempt is easily avoidable if seen in time.
Trapped, trapped! Wilhelm becomes frantic when he sees Alsoomse charging towards them, and when he skids to a halt to avoid her, he spots Freyr and Adamant already upon the younger rabbits. The buck's heart pounds and skips about wildly within his chest, and he can already feel the adrenaline freezing his muscles. Trying desperately to keep himself from going tharn, he whips around and makes a blind leap for the burrow, though it's debateable whether or not he'll make it.
With the two other dogs going after the younger rabbit Alsoomse figured she'll go for the older buck. She moves a bit faster, claws gripping at the snow covered ground while drool hangs from her maw as she sucks in the cool air. As Wilhelm dives for the burrow the large dog lunges forward jaws snapping for some part of Wilhelm. Her paws slide across the slicker snow, which is a mix of ice and snow really it seems. With her paws sliding she'll more then liking will miss her mark but at least she'll try.
Chestnut is forced to give up his assistance to Sunflower momentarily in order to avoid the gaping maw of death - a.k.a. the slavering dog that is attempting to bite his head off. Chestnut's head moves first, as it is the part of him at stake. He kicks off, the slippery snow proving to be an obstacle now, and making it hard to get a good start as he attempts to scramble away and dodge Freyr's jaws.
The triumph Adamant feels when his jaws close over the familiar rabbit fluff is short-lived, for before his teeth can clamp together, the roof and corner of his mouth are torn open. A surprised yelp escapes his muzzle and he releases the doe, dancing backwards to avoid more hurt, only to get a faceful of snow from the young buck. The mongrel growls angrily, giving his face a mighty shake to rid himself of the impeding slush. By now, his kill is long gone.
The doe is dropped like a sack of rocks but she doesn't hang around to wait and see what else will happen. Sunflower catches sight of Wilhelm and another dog near the main burron to the warren and she spares a glance to Chestnut. "Chestnut!" She yells out to get his attention before she's darting the other way, past Adamant as he battles the pain in his maw and the slush of snow while she goes for a more not always used hole. The other rabbits that were above hang out in a few holes to keep track of the dogs and Sun dives down the hole slamming into another rabbit who was just taking a peek outside. That might leave a mark. Safe underground the young doe lays there panting hard while streaks of red rest across her right side and haunch. She only prays Chestnut an get down the hole as well..
Freyr has time to snarl in protest before his face meets with snow, which proceeds to pack into his mouth and throat. Any chance of him resuming his pursuit of the buck is not gone as the mastiff sputters and coughs and paws at his muzzle rapidly, a vain attempt to rid himself of the unpleasent feel of ice on his internal flesh. He can only hope the others actually had better luck than him.
It seems that luck is with Alsoomse, for Wilhelm, in a panic, makes a wrong turn and finds one of his haunches caught up in the jaws of the feral dog. In this position, it's hard to fight back, but he does his darndest, kicking about wildly and emitting a piercing shriek of terror. Could this be the end for the paranoid buck?
Alsoomse is surprized at catching said rabbit.. She tastes the copper blood in her maw and is about to crunch down until one of the buck's clawed paws slams into her nose and rips it open along with her lip. A shrill yelp escapes the dog and she tosses her up and then to the side while letting go of said rabbit which inturn would free him but perhaps send him flying. Seems they both got lucky just at the wrong times, from the way it looks all the dogs are going to go hungrey tonight if this keeps up..
Chestnut doesn't have time to sigh in relief as he barely escapes. Instead, he's running, running away from the danger. Madly, no thinking involved - just pure instinct. He hears his name and attempts to stop, turning. Where did Sunflower go? He scans the area wildly, seeing all three dogs. And no Sunflower in sight. She's not dead in any of their mouths - so she must have escaped. Suddenly he sees the hole, clear (for the most part). And he begins to dash for it, his four legs pumping wildly, faster than they ever have before. Hopefully one of the dogs doesn't get in his way.
Adamant succeeds in clearing the snow from his face, and his eyes fall upon Chestnut. Though it's certainly a futile attempt, he gives chase, legs pistoning beneath him, carrying him swiftly forward towards his target. He's only making an effort for effort's sake; the distance between himself and the young buck is too great to fill.
Stonewort has crept cautiously up a run and now sits just below ground, ears perked towards all the commotion happening above his head. The sound and smell of dogs are quick to put him on edge, and he prepares to leap aside in case any other rabbits should come dashing down the hole.
The space is too wide for the running dog to catch up to Chestnut, and indeed the young buck does manage to dive into the hole before those sharp teeth can come close to catching ahold of him. It gives him a good scare though, and he collapses next to Sunflower, his heart thumping so hard it feels as if it might explode. He's too worked up to say anything or make any sense out of his thoughts, just yet.
Sunflower is still laying where she fell once she got into the hole, she's shaking from it all which doesn't help as she's gasping for air as well. Her wounds arn't life threating but there bleeding rather quickly thanks to her freaking out to go along with it. She half squeals out as Chestnut falls next to her unsure if it might be a dog trying to grab her again, but as she sees its her friend she attempts to relax. At least his alright.. Though Wilhelm's squeal from up above catches her attention but there isn't anything she can do but stare wideeyed at the hole above her.
When most of the snow is rid from his mouth, Freyr takes quick stock of the scene. The buck he was after is gone, as is the doe. But a shriek alerts his attention to the second buck. With new found intent, the mastiff turns and launches himself after Wilhelm, hopefully to succeed where Alsoomse hadn't. But no more mouthful of snow for him; Freyr's goal is to pin the buck with either forepaw.
Wilhelm finds himself airborne for a short duration after being launched by Alsoomse. When he returns to terra firma, it's on his side, knocking the breath from his lungs. His left hind leg hurts something awful, but the pain is secondary to his desire to get away. He attempts to scramble to his feet, but he finds himself suddenly oppressed by the weight of a heavy paw upon his ribs. The buck lets out a feeble shriek and kicks out wildly, hoping to find the same dumb luck that saved him from the jaws of Alsoomse earlier.
Alsoomse has her maw pressed into the snow hoping the coldness will help with the pain. Damn that hurts.. Anything across a dogs nose hurts like fire and here she took a claw to the side of it an its ripped open. Her ears flick forward as she listions to the others before glancing around. She catches sight of Freyr and the buck and makes a beeline towards the two. "Crush him Freyr.." She snarls out between her bloody maw.
Adamant doesn't want to give up the chase so easily and is tempted to begin digging up the burrow, but the scream of the trapped buck behind him calls him away. He glowers down into the hole and, with a final disdainful snort, he turns and trots over to the other two dogs, briefly glancing at the buck. "Hmm," he utters, flinching at the taste of his own blood draining from the cuts on and in his mouth. "Not much meat on 'im."
Sunflower hears the dogs up above and cringes back against her passed out friend fearing the worse.. But then the dog leave to go somewhere else and she gulps hearing talk about Wilhelm.. Oh no there going to kill him, an there's nothing she or anyone else can really do about it. Soon the young doe herself passes out, a faint whimper escaping her as well.
Freyr's muzzle scrunches up a bit. "True, he's a small one." Largely because rabbits are small. "Think we should throw it back, or'd you like to do the honors?" At the last part, he glances over at Alsoomse and her wounded nose.
By now, Wilhelm's frozen with fear, and he can only stare up at his attackers with wide, terrified eyes. Already his life is flashing through his mind: the warren of his youth, the mischievous antics of his brothers, the loss of his tail. It's a short slideshow, but poignant to the rabbit. And amidst it all, he sees the shadow of the Black Rabbit flitting about on the edge of his vision.
Alsoomse jaws snap towards the rabbit but she makes no move to finsh him, yet it seems. "Leave the worthless blob of fluff." She's not amused it seems, blood still drips from her nose an maw an she turns stalking off. "I'll be back to get him when his healed an it will be more of a fair fight when I rip him apart." Seems Wilhelm get's to live unless one of the males wants him.
The mercy of the other dogs simply flabbergasts Adamant, who scoffs softly despite himself. "That seems a waste of a good hunt," he utters, "to catch something, only to release it. Meat is meat, even if there's very little of it." He looks again at Wilhelm, taking in the terrified state of him. "He's liable to die of heart failure after we leave anyway," he adds mockingly. "Look at him!"
Freyr glances after Alsoomse. He'd mainly wanted to save the rabbit for her, but Adamant is right, meat is meat. With food so sparse, they can't really afford to waste energy for nothing. The mastiff presses harder, to end the small life beneath his paws. There's none of the feeling there was before, the chase is over, and ultimately that was all that mattered. A sidelong glance is given to the other male dog. "You did good, by the way." Freyr murmurs, tail taking on a bit of a wag.
One final struggle as the life is crushed out of him. The faint /popping/ of ribs. A last frantic scrabbling of legs, and then Wilhelm moves no more: just one more prey animal's life snuffed out in the end.
"Shutup.." Alsoomse snaps out at Adamant, not at all amused.. Ya well she didn't want the stupid rabbit, she gets crazy little things in her head now and then that tells her otherwise. Anyway, Freyr caught it again she figured he should be the one to kill it. She doesn't bother waiting for the males an just pads off muttering about males and rabbits it seems.
The snapped retort from Alsoomse strangely shuts up Adamant, who merely glowers indignantly after her in response. The expression is quickly wiped out of existence and replaced with his old familiar smirk when Freyr speaks. The mongrel dips his head in gratitude, the tip of his own tail giving a faint sweep.
Freyr frowns. He'll have to find a way to make it up to her, somehow. "Wouldn't be so bad to have you around." Removing his paw from the unfortunate rabbit, the mastiff nudges the corpse lightly. "We should head back. I'd feel better giving the pups first pickings." With that, he takes it in his jaws, and starts slowly back toward the copse.
Not far behind is Adamant, whose unusually springy step and high-held head indicate that he's prouder of himself than normal. Ah yes. This is a top-dog.