At Least I've Got Chicken

[Hakumei]

The alpha walked, head held high. He had made a successful kill, even though he stole it from the only farm of the area. The bird hung limp in his jaws as he moved into the forest. The scent of the moon flower was closer but still a ways off so he figured it would be best to let his pack rest for a bit. The forest of Bamboo seemed like the perfect place. There was limited humans around and plenty of their 'pets' to eat. And most of the time humans were too stupid to figure out that one of their many birds had gone missing. As long as they didn't take more than one they should be alright. Despite the easy kill he was quite proud of himself, it was a rather large bird, even for human standards.

A sound caught his attention and he looked over to see a pack of wild dogs eying his kill. Hackles and tail rose as he glared the mongrels down. To him wolves were perfect, these flea bags were nothing but useless inbreeds who didn't deserve to eat the kill of a wolf. They didn't even deserve to be near a wolf. He bared his fangs and began to growl as the larger canines started their approach, intent on taking his kill. He dropped the kill and lunged at the "alpha" of the dog pack, making a quick gash accost it's right shoulder.

It wasn't accustomed to pain as it moved away while crying out. The other three moved in quickly but the wolf was faster. Two steps back, one to the side than a lunge. One down. Standing on the submitting dog the wolf turned, ready to take down the other three.

[Rukia]

Haku had gone out to hunt, leaving Rukia to look over their resting spot and settle in the rest of their small pack. There was the faint scent of moon-flower in the air, compelling and starkly distinctive, but the craving for it was easier with her than it was with her older, more dominant brother. He deserved to find it, and if anyone could create a Paradise that would honor the wolves and remove the human and dog menace it would be him. That was why she helped him on his quest- there was no one else the small, lashed-upon Rukia trusted to accomplish that goal.

With her ears back and scenting the wind carefully from a slight rise within the bamboo thicket the wind told the beta something of her brother's progress. Then, the fainter sound of snarls and blood in the air, and a wolf's rage. With a quick yip to Aisa to keep watch and stay Rukia raced in the direction of the conflict. There was no doubt that Haku could take care of himself, but dogs could mean humans and there as no way to tell exactly what was going on. Besides, she was never afraid of a fight, and her rage was singing through her veins. No one was allowed to harm her pack or her family.

Mustering all of the speed she raced toward her brother, trusting her nose to lead her through the thick bamboo that obscured most of her vision. There was a thick scent of dogs still there, but no humans- yet. That didn't mean they wouldn't come if they were nearby, attracted by the noise or the bad manners of their pets. There was nothing the humans did that could convince her they were more than intelligent deer that walked upright and ate odd meat at times.

Snarling and nearly frothing in anger the tiny wolf burst from the underbrush and straight into the side of one of the other dogs, ripping her teeth through the flesh of its ribs and then springing away before it could reflexively turn. She may not have looked very impressive, and she was small, but there was a good deal of wiry strength in her body and she was very fast indeed. With her mind completely on her opponents and her eyes gleaming almost madly she picked her next foe and sprung again. Save the pack and save the meat, those were the only things on her mind.

[Hakumei]

The alpha moved quickly, not hesitating to target the muzzle and neck of those he was up against. Without pausing he made fluid movements to get under the dog leader's neck before making a quick and precise bite as his beta came in to join the fight. A sharp fang severed the dog's artery leading to the brain as he moved away to avoid an attack from another dog. That was two down, two to go. As the leader dog bled out the other two began to get confused and anxious, one was bleeding heavily from the side where the beta punctured the flesh at the ribs, the other fled as soon as the leader collapsed. One left, she must have been the main dog's mate.

Snarling the alpha warned the dog to leave, giving her the chance to live with the other two, if she did not run she was fair game for the beta.

[Rukia]

A lifetime of deprivation and fear had not turned Rukia into the most patient or understanding wolf where other canine competition was concerned; while her brother and alpha finished the dominant male and the others fled she kept her eyes on the female, watching for signs of her thoughts. There was no doubt she was at least as smart as her mate was careless, and while there wasn't any real wolf intellect to her she was nevertheless a smart animal. Not that the beta cared. She was a threat, and her brother's hesitation to attack a female was both understandable and stupid. At least it was something she didn't have to think too deeply on.

With blood still dripping over her teeth and a loud snarl of rage the wolf lowered her head slightly- not in submission, but to ready herself for a lunge. Her entire body shook with tension as she watched and waited, somehow hoping that the dog would be the same stupid creature she expected and make that decision to attack even while she knew it was her job to make sure that didn't happen. Fortunately- or unfortunately- the female was smart enough to cut her losses and turned aside just as Rukia lunged, following the rest of her pack deeper into the bamboo thickets.

With that taken care of she looked at her alpha and then away, making sure to keep her eyes and ears down as she calmed herself, the fur on her back no longer raised in alarm and threat. This was her family, and she would not hurt them if she could possibly avoid it. "Is done now?" she asked carefully, keeping careful track of where exactly the other pack was moving in case they tried to double back and steal their meal again.

[Hakumei]

The alpha watched as his sister lunged and the dog ran. Dogs were so cowardly and dependent on their humans, it made them weak and pitiful. He went back over to his kill and picked the chicken up by the neck before starting to walk again. "Yes, no need to stay and wait for the dumb animals to come back." He headed back toward their temporary den, one bird wouldn't suit for all three of them but it was better than nothing seeing his failure in catching wild game. He was thoroughly disappointed in himself but instincts told him to shrug it off and keep going, so he did. there was no use in trying to keep at the same thing like humans, they kept going until they died or got maimed. Stupid creatures. They also thought themselves to be the smartest beings alive, but he knew, since it was the wolves to created the world, it was the wolves who were smarter. Sure they didn't read or have 'science' -whatever that was- they had cunning and instincts to guide them and that was much more than the humans had. They had thrown away their instincts and that made them stupid.

Haku took his time walking, keeping his ears out for human sounds, he couldn't lead any humans to the den, and because of the dogs that put him on edge. He looked back to see if his beta was fallowing. Her pent up aggression was useful in battles and when the pack was in danger but he feared it would end up being her downfall as well. Making her his beta was not a hard decision but it would take another several years to get his sister to let go of her submissive and aggressive side, the omega, that still lurked in her mind.

"Will be leaving again soon." he said before looking to the side, after hearing something. It was just a spreow, "Humans are too close by, will have to get further away, moon flower is in the same direction though."

[Rukia]

Rukia knew her brother's nature, and though he seemed mostly composed there were always other things on his mind- like keeing the pack alive and strong, and the moon-flower that they were all chasing. Details, like finding food or water, were supposed to be the area of the beta, but too often Haku insisted on taking those jobs himself. They were still trying to work as a family pack again after their long time of separation and though she had her own memories to fight down it was still Rukia's job to do whatever the alpha needed to accomplish his goals and adapt to his way of doing things. That was what her instincts told her.

"Can go back, will try to find more of bird-things," the smaller wolf told her litter-mate as she looked over the one chicken that he had, then scented the air to try and pick up the faint odor of the feathered thing. Birds were good food, and the human ones had a lot of fat that would give them energy but for herself Rukia preferred red meat. It was easier to rip off skin than getting all of those feathers stuck in her teeth. "Then can eat better, get more rest, move faster tomorrow."

Even while giving this advice Rukia kept her ears carefully back and her posture low- not in an aggressive way, but a defensive one. She knew that Haku was a good leader and that she was no longer the lowest member of her pack, and therefore the one on whom all frustrations were vented on, but habits were developed as an unconscious method of protection and hers were still wound deeply into her instincts. She's had to say something, though. It was her job, no matter how anxious it made her at times.

[Hakumei]

Rukia spoke and the alpha looked back at her. Ears down, submissive stance yet ready to take a lashing. If only she wasn't haunted by the past she would make a great beta. The only thing to do was to wait until she finally let go and accepted the fact that she was in a better place now. He than turned and started walking again "Can't. If take too much from humans, will come looking." He said while glancing around. Another sound, this time it was a jack rabbit. The skiddish creature seemed to think it was safe enough to be out of it's borrow. Rukia was right though, they needed more than just one bird. There was three pack members to feed and none of them had eaten for a good two weeks and thanks to their short fur the fact that their ribs were showing was a bad thing for the coming winter.

He had to do something or the pack would starve before they found the flower. His ears went back as he thought. He had to do something. He couldn't risk Rukia getting shot by going after another one of the humans' pet birds and he didn't feel like getting one of those bits of medal in him either. There was one thing he could do, but there was no guarantee that it would work. He could possibly trick the dumb dogs into getting the birds for them. They were dumb enough and listened to anything stronger than they were. He paused and set the bird down before looking at Rukia "Will see if the human pets will be stupid enough to get food for us."

[Rukia]

Her alpha had denied her idea, as was his right, and she accepted it, ears going back only slightly. Though it may have seemed cold his nonchalance was a comforting thingp; panic and tension would only have made her more excitable and anxious herself. The sound of the jackrabbit nearby was quite loud if you were used to noticing those sorts of things, which she was- and the creature was heavy as well, and probably well-fed. It took a good deal of self-control for the beta not to immediately start stalking such a prize and she nearly whined at the scent of it. That was not what was to be done though. Maybe he would let her go after it in a little while, or he would take it himself. Her brother was much smarter than she was and would make the right decision.

When Haku spoke of tricking the dogs into catching the animals for them Rukia was both shocked and secretly offended, though she was immediately ashamed for thinking in such a way. Food was a necessity and taking it in any way possible wasn't that strange for a desperate pack- but it almost seemed as though her alpha was saying she couldn't handle the job and they would have to rely on lesser creatures. It was barely one step above begging from the humans themselves and that was completely unacceptable. "May try, may not, depends if can run away," she advised in a quiet tone, hiding her shivering by keeping her body as stiff as possible. "Or are rabbits out here. Can catch those. Will be fat and slow."

[Hakumei]

He knew she didn't like the idea of using the dogs, it was a human concept but they were easily manipulated if they weren't too attached to humans and hungry enough, the pests would do anything for a meal, even attack their own humans. It was worth a shot, if they couldn't get the dogs to be a distraction so the humans would go after them than they could always eat the dogs. Dogs tasted horrible but food was food, and the ones they saw before did have a good amount of meat and fat on them. Thinking like a human was annoying and he started to wish they weren't so desperate for food, if not than they could go back to thinking like normal wolves. She suggested going after rabbits. That was a good idea but the buggers were quick and a pain in the ass to catch one-hundred percent of the time, but the hunt would ease his beta's mind.

He looked toward where the rabbit was and thought before making a small motion to Rukia for her to go after it, she was the fastest in the pack and the best rabbit hunter because of it. Hopefully the beast had enough fat on it so they wouldn't get protien poisoning. The rabbit was starting to shed it's darker summer coat for a lighter winter one but the attempted camouflage gave the rabbit no upper hand when hunted by wolves.