automatic synthetic [o]

[hedge]

It was bothersome, how single-minded her thoughts had become; food and survival, that's all she ever seemed to think about anymore. It was so hard to think about anything else, though, when her stomach resembled an devoid-of-life cavern than it did an part of her, but she had so much trouble filling it. There was an abundance of prey here, but nothing seemed slow or dumb enough to lean towards her favor. Screech was sure the rocks and cliffs here had more of a chance of killing her, or wounding her, than they did the things she was chasing after. Maybe luck would turn out to be on her side, just maybe. If she could send something tumbling off the edge, she could pick her way down below to get her fill.

The risks were high, but she didn't have much of a choice. Yes, anything could go wrong. She could fall and break her neck, she could be caught where she probably wasn't supposed to be, on the assumption this was claimed territory-how was she supposed to know if it was?- or she could leave with an empty stomach yet again. At least it wasn't raining. That made everything slick and much more treacherous, and that was the last thing the starving Screech needed. She trudged onward, picking her way upwards along seemingly steady paths, watching with unfocused eyes as rocks rolled away from the weight of her body upon them. Eventually, she pulled herself onto the top, panting from exertion and the growing heat of the day, and had to lay there. Sprawled out for anyone to see, she tried to catch her breath as spasms rippled down her spine, making her limbs and ears twitch. There was no point in trying to rise while they had a grip on her, and she stared blankly ahead of her until they ceased. Standing wasn't much easier, and she weaved from side to side before finally gaining what balance she had. Surging forward in lurking, jerky steps, she followed an invisible path, yearning for a day where bad luck wouldn't cross her path. Food, Food...all she wanted was food.

Was it really all that much to ask for, just a little sustenance? Something to quiet the roiling of her insides, to make that desolate cave a little less empty. She was almost okay with her solitude, had figured that the chance of finding anyone who would accept her for what she had become were slim to none, but she was never going to be okay with going hungry. she could have been such a glorious creature, a leader and a creature others could aspire to be like, but all she had become was a broken little thing. So much life in one little shell and nothing to do with it. Growling, she lurched forward again, having stopped to avoid running into some obstacle. She growled, the gnarled sound bubbling up in her chest and throat, and fading off into the emptiness surrounding her. Something dashed past her, big enough to startle but not fast enough to knock her over, yet the shock sent her towards the ground, landing on her side with a yelp. Realizing that her "attacker" had the possibility of becoming a meal, she rushed to her feet as quickly as she can and sprinted after it, falling and rolling in the dirt. So desperate was she to catch it that she kept on going, no matter how hard she fell. Of course, her legs continued to betray her, spraying up dirt and rock, but she was just so hungry. She leapt towards it, a creature no bigger than an over-sized hare, but ended up with a mouthful of sediment and curses. she sat up, ears twitching and head shaking as she pawed at her muzzle.

"No...no." she cried, spitting in a fit of frustrated rage. "Screech needed.....Needed you. Why fail? Why no fair to Screech be?" The ruddy wolf slumped to the ground, ears back at her skull and eyes closed. Sad, she was such a sad and pathetic creature. Riddled with faults and all sorts of bad things. More than sad, bad. Such a terrible little creature. That's what she was. Terrible and helpless, hopeless and yet not. She was still a live, at least, a little more than barely. so, so sad, but not enough to be granted pardon from all the trials she had to go through. Angry and sad, she opened her eyes and stared listlessly forward, her dull, pink tongue passing through her remaining good teeth. A small rodent-like creature passed just before her nose, but the sigh and turn on her head scared it off. No use, no use. Wouldn't make a good meal anyway. Barely a scrap, mostly fur and bone. Like her, so much like her.

words; 811
muse; gooood.
notes; oh, screech
tags; open
outfit; ---
lyrics; all alright - fun.
credits; template by twilightbright @ caution

[Radi]

ooc: Psst. -Cuddles Screech- :I

There were swallows... everywhere. The male steadied himself and moved in a hunting position. Blue's fixated on taking down one or many of those birds, he calmed, slowed his breathing and aimed for the ones on the lower levels of the cliff's side. More flocked lower and he grew somewhat worrisome that he wouldn't be able to claim any now because once they knew he was coming, they would fly away, all of them. His skills would reassure him. Edging ever so closely he waited, the day waned as he lurked in the darkness of the shade of a single nearby tree. The hunter listened to their sounds and studied them. He wouldn't wait any longer. Like a bolt of lightning, when he struck, he struck quick, killing two birds in one chance. He got the closer one first, biting down on it's side, it's sharp chirps immediately ceased. As it hit the ground beneath his feet, he aimed for one who was taking off. Using the cliff side to elevate him, he stretched his neck and chomped down on it's tail. He dropped it on the ground. Quickly breaking its neck to put it out of his misery. Ronan frowned, gathering the two freshly killed swallows and picking them up both with his teeth.

Their smell savory and appetizing but he didn't need to eat, he had the intention of bringing them back to his pack. Trotting back towards camp, rocks suddenly flew from the sky right in front and he swiftly dodged them and yet somehow a few managed to hit him on the head. He made an unamused expression through clenched teeth. Fiercely turning around, he figured someone must be trying to navigate the rocky and dangerous cliffs, he climbed skywards, closing in on the culprit who turned out to be a loner. Well, that explains all the trouble they're having trying to climb the cliffs. Only true Aserio were able to scale these cliffs. He might have not been born in the pack but he had learned how to deal with the deadly landscape. Ronan hid, stalked the tiny she-wolf for a while, looking for a good opportunity to tell the wolf to get the fuck off Aserio territory. However after some time, he pitied the wolf. She appeared almost desperate, trying to catch anything that came her way only in the end did she end up failing. "Screech needed.....Needed you. Why fail? Why no fair to Screech be?"

He gave in and showed himself, bringing towards the swallows. Approaching, at her small paws, he plopped the bodies on the earth, offering them both on the ground to her. "You shouldn't be here and not just because this is pack territory, because this obviously isn't a safe place for you, you could-" The male stopped himself, he didn't want to see her get hurt but he couldn't lead himself to say it. He noticed the scars above her right eye and his heart sunk. Did she herself think she was hideous? To him, being mutated was the most horrific thing ever, to him, she was strong for still trying to live in this awful and unforgiving world. He gazed at the female and sighed. A dark line curved downward on his face as he looked away in a different direction of the little lady. Did she not know how to hunt correctly? She had to know or she wouldn't have survived this long- unless she had others like himself that gave her free food. No she defiantly knew how to hunt, yeah. "After you finish eating, maybe we can better your hunting, gal?" Ronan asked, sitting a few feet away and glancing at her, senses alert. Besides, he didn't want to return to camp with nothing.

[hedge]

Up above, she could hear the chattering of birds. Behind her, too, and they'd been all over the cliffs she'd been climbing up and over, making everything seem more dangerous, frustrating, and ultimately annoying. Catching them would have ended in disaster for her, putting her at risk for a good fall or a much more dire outcome, and she hadn’t been very good at catching them when she’d been so much younger, anyway. Again, such a waste of time. But, oh, how the sound of them made her mouth water. She could feel it running out from between her twisted jaws, something so embarrassing she was glad no one was around to currently witness it. Those were the benefits of being alone, she guessed, but also the downfalls of it. Sure, being alone all the time meant no one had to see her as she was now, but it also meant no one got to see the creature that dwelled inside, and there was no one to help her out when she needed it. Half-heartedly, she paws at her nuzzle, having carefully tilted her head so that her tongue would have no contact with the ground. Even if it wasn’t completely dragging on the ground-she had just enough teeth and control to keep it from rolling about all the time- she had enough nasty stuff in her mouth already and wasn’t keen on welcoming any more into it. The pawing wasn’t doing much help, as everything was on the inside, but it was something to do. There wasn’t much point in trying to hunt anymore, as she’d probably scared everything off within the closest mile. So not only had she gone and ruined her own day, she might have just messed up someone else’s. It was a real disaster, it really was. She willed herself to not shake too much, as it always got so much worse when she was under stress, because someone could be watching. You never could be quite sure. Every time she ended up letting her guard down completely, someone seemed to show up to scare her off.

They always scared her off.

Why couldn’t they just let her in? She wouldn’t cause too much trouble, really. Sure, she’d never be the best hunter or anything, but she had to be worth something, at least a source of companionship for someone. At that point, she’d take being the butt of someone’s joke, as long as it meant not being so horribly isolated. More creatures bobbed past her, and several bugs landed on her face, primarily her nose, but she wasn’t going to move. As much as a failure as the day was turning out to be, the sun was warm and the dirt was soft, the grass sweet-smelling; it wasn’t all that bad. She could remember days like this, when her family had been whole and she had been, too. Screech allowed herself to get lost in her memories, gold eyes growing distant and watery with nostalgia. Her littermates and parents passed by, their images the only thing clear while their voices warbled and changed while the birdsong interrupted and changed the melody of the memory. Just slightly, she knew, but enough to distract her for much, much longer. She shifted her position slightly, rolling onto her stomach and lifting her head. Occasionally, her ears twitched and jerked about, but for the most part, she was still. It was a rare occurrence, and she’d cherish it for long after it lasted. Screech could only imagine life like this, peaceful and uninterrupted by foul circumstances. It meant, of course, letting go of the awareness she had of her surroundings, but it could be forgiven. She thought so, at least. At that point, she wasn’t doing anything wrong. Wasn’t trying to hunt, or steal, or fight. No, no. Just lying there in the warm light, lost in thought. That could be forgiven. Ignored, maybe.

She was jarred by her thoughts when two birds by her outstretched paws. Her head jerked upwards, eyes focusing on the birds and then the stranger who had dropped them. She shot up into a sitting position, forgoing any normal social cues. She’d never been taught, and would have forgotten how to act around someone superior by now anyway, so it was no use. Hopefully, this would all go well. They could both walk away and pretend this encounter had never happened. Just as quickly as she had sat up, she leaned forward and grabbed a swallow off the ground, pulling at feathers and trying to get to the meat beneath. It was kind of messy, and probably unpleasant to watch, but she was so starving. It didn’t matter what this wonderful stranger thought of her at that point; he’d given her food, and she was going to eat it the only way she could. One ear jerked in the gray wolf’s direction as he talked, and she could head him loud and clear. Well, as clear as he could be with all the noise she was trying not to make. After a while, because it took her so much time to eat even something so small because she had to keep from dropping any pieces, she finished. Sheepishly, she nodded her head and let out a long, feather-tainted sigh. ”Screech…..I know...” She confessed. ”Now know…. I is...no, am sorry.” Shaking her head, she didn’t even try to hide the look of disbelief on her face as he brought up hunting. A harsh, wheezing laugh filled the air, her sides rising and falling rapidly. She tried to apologize; failed. Tried to tell him she wasn’t making fun of him, was laughing at her own expense. The idea of her hunting? Preposterous. Hadn’t he seen her earlier? He must have been following her, to have found her in the first place. She was pretty elusive when she wanted to be.

The laughing stopped, and she apologized some more, as profusely as she could in her broken speech. He seemed to be able to stand, she thought. Her words made sense to her, when she could remember them. Sure, it took her a while to remember what words to use, and she didn’t always get it right, but she wasn’t speaking a completely different language. The words were still clear; the order and everything else just wasn’t always in sync. ”If strangers wants try, can teach. Screech will be good student…not results promised. Regret this, she does.” Screech nodded, as if to seal the deal. She’d been a good student when her parents had been teaching her to hunt. It had been so long ago, and they’d never finished, but it was worth a shot. After all, it meant she wasn’t going to be alone for some time. Teaching her was going to take a lot of time, and a lot of patience. ”Stranger patient? Have name? Screech want be correct if can.”

words; 1200
muse; Awesomesauce!
notes; oh, screech
tags; open
outfit; ---
lyrics; all alright - fun.
credits; template by twilightbright @ caution