high on heat

[cursico]

Cursico bid Spectre goodnight. But he did not take the nest offered. He stared at the stars as they slowly came out. He settled down and slept until morning.

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre x
. the chill of winter will never leave my heart .

Spectre felt the sunlight beat down upon her closed eyelids, creating little spheres of light behind her eyes. She idly lashed out with her paws, trying to catch the spheres, before reality washed over her like a wave. She slowly opened her eyes, yawning hugely to show her sharp white fangs. After a moment or so, she got to her paws, and stretching her limbs, she sat to give her thick white fur a thorough wash. When she had finished, and her coat shimmered prettily, she approached the pile of prey. She recoiled at the sharp scent of fox. The prey as gone. Yowling out in anger, Spectre unsheathed her claws. "Fox dung!" she spat.

[cursico]

Cursico looked up. His deer, too big for a fox to quietly take, was still beside him. He rose and shook his fur, noting the smell the dead animal had began to give off. He noticed Spectre seemed angry. "Whats wrong?" He asked strolling over to her, as he was unfamiliar with the cave he didn't notice the fresh-kill pile had been looted. He smelt fox, it was nothing special, there were always fox's around. He flicked his ears noticing the absence of Spectre's kill "Oooo"

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre x
. the chill if winter will never leave my heart .

Spectre hissed angrily. She looked as if she were about to snap at Cursico, but she stopped herself just in time. She remembered the arctic foxes from her old home. They had been a lot more vicious than the ordinary foxes here. Sighing, she shook herself. "I'm going after it," she decided.

[cursico]

Cursico flicked his ears. He remembered his friend Flick, he had been a Fennec fox and was always loyal. He would feel guilty killing any fox "Are you sure thats a good idea?" He asked not wanting to offend but sticking by his beliefs

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre twitched her ears dismissively. "Oh, I'm no killer," she mewed impatiently. "But I do want to give it some wounds to remember me by. You can come, if you wish to." Without another word, the lean white loner put her nose to the grass, and, catching the fox's scent, she began to follow it, white fur bristling in anticipation and anger.

[cursico]

Cursico noticed Spectre looked a bit like a wolf following its scent like that. A jumble of wolf names went through him, Christ he had so many different species as friends.

[SHADE. :D]

The white cat fllowed the scent doggedly, the sun rising slowly in the sky. By the time she straightened up, the bright hot orb was riding high amongst the fat clouds. Spectre dropped into a crouch, her icy blue gaze fixed upon a ginger brush poking out from underneath a fern bush. The she-cat unsheathed her claws and leapt, yowling a challenge. As she landed, she slashed the fox's tail. The beast yelped, and, twisting around, dealt Spectre a blow to the cheek. Her ears ringing and face stinging, Spectre leapt again, landing on the fox's shoulders. She seized one of its ears in her fangs and tore. The fox bucked and growled as its blood streamed down its cheek. Spectre placed her paws on the beast's head to help anchor her body, getting covered in the scarlet liquid in the process. With a final thrust, the fox sent Spectre flying. She landed heavily, leaping to her paws. She wibced from a deep cut in her foreleg. The fox advanced, its lips drawn bavk. Spectre lashed at its muzzle, her fur fluffed out with hostility.

[cursico]

Cursico continued to sit where he was. "Flick" He muttered missing all his old friends. He shivered then leapt up. His friends where somewhere else, and right now he had another. He ran where Spectre had gone and saw her in battle with the fox. So many troubles over food
He went forward and grabbed the scruff on the fox's neck hissing.

[SHADE. :D]

The fox yelped under Cursico's weight. It shook itself, trying to dislosge him. As it was distracted, Spectre darted forward and sank her fangs into one of its unprotected forelegs. It opened its jaws and howled in pain, batting at Spectre with its other paw, dealing her a slash on the flank and bucking madly to rid itself of Cursico. Still hissing furiously, Sperctre tried to ignore the agony of the slash on her flank. She leapt, digging her hooked silver claws into the fox's flesh. It whmpered in fear, its blood oozing out to cover Spectre's paws. Suddenly it shook both cats off and ran awkwardly off, yelping. It limped on one side, but as quickly as it could it scampered away, torn tail hanging between its legs.
"Leave it," rasped Spectre. She sat down, shaking herself, and began to lick clean her wounds. The cut on her cheek had stopped bleeding and no longer throbbed, but the deep slash on her flank had her sick with pain. She tried to clean it, her head spinning with blood loss.

[cursico]

Cursico was surprised when Spectre told him to leave it. Spitting out the hairs that had come loose he looked to where to fox had left. he didn't feel guilty as he had only grabbed the animals scruff. But he was certain that with its injuries that fox would die, either by huntsmen or other animals... Maybe it would starve. Sighing Cursico sat next to Spectre and asked if he could help.

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre shook her head. "I'm okay." The white pressed her tattered muzzle against Cursico's, before rasping; "Thanks for helping me back there." The white she-cat returned to cleaning the cut on her flank, each swipe of her tongue bringing on waves of pain. She spat out a mouthful of blood. The slash had stopped bleeding as badly. Spectre hauled herself to her paws, staggered a few pawsteps, before straightening up. The stubborn she-cat flicked her tail at Cursico. "Coming?"

[cursico]

Cursico nodded. "Although I feel like a tag along" He grinned showing his teeth. He flicked his paw as a fly landed on it. It was much cooler today. Cursico glanced at the blood on the floor.
Who knew why that fox needed food, its probably dying now He shuddered inwardly thinking of the deaths he caused. Even prey has the right to live, I wish it was some other way Although he still thought 'Better them than me'

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre let out a sputtering purr of amusement, before beginning to limp back towards the cave. She knew there was no way of getting the prey she had caught back - that damned fox would have eaten it by now. Spectre smiled a little, happy that she had got her revenge on the scavenger. Spectre hobbled on, her flank oozing scarlet blood. Finally she reached the cave, where she collapsed on her nest, breathing heavily. After giving the slash on her flank a couple of licks, she swatted at a swathe of pearly cobwebs hanging frm the top of the cave. Pressing the cobwebs down on her the cut, she winced at the pain. After the pain subsided a little, Spectre decreased the pressure on her wound. She sighed, letting her body go limp.

[cursico]

"Was it really worth it?" Cursico asked, walking over to the deer and taking a few mouthfuls before settling next to Spectre. "You didn't get your food back, and now you're injured." He hoped to disuade her from attacking scavengers again without thought. For her safety and the scavengers.

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre looked at him. "I have a warror's spirit," she explained. "It is in my nature to defend what I have, and avenge that I lose. That's the way it is in a clan." Spectre began to give herself a thorough grooming, until her sweat matted fur was clean and snowy once again. "Besides, I'll live."

[cursico]

The fox won't
"Okay then" Cursico adverted his gaze and looked at the floor. His conscience wouldn't let him go though.
What if that was me? Who knows why that fox stole, it might not have had any choice He shut his eyes tight and ignored those thoughts.

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre looked closely at the tom. "What's tweaked your tail?" she asked him. The white she-cat stared at Cursico. He looked almost... Ashamed. "Do you feel guilty for hurting the fox? It was a theif." She told him, her voice mild.

[cursico]

I didn't hurt it, you did Cursico thought stubbornly.
"Did you stop to wonder why that fox stole?" He asked. "It might have been starving" His tail flicked in reflex. "There are many possibilitys to why it stole. And I've stolen before, when I was new to the outside world. Before I could hunt properly" He took a deep breath and looked away "I stole"

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre blinked at the tom. "Everything must survive," she mewed. "That fox stole because it was easier for it than catching its own prey. It was old enough to hunt on its own, and the forest is rich with prey at this time of year. It stole out of laziness." Spectre took a deep breath. "I cannot blame you for stealing, however long ago. If you could not hunt yourself, then it was essential for you to stay alive. You had no choice."

[cursico]

Cursico took a long breath and looked at the woods. They seemed lighter somehow. "Okay, do you want to take the deer? I don't need it" He looked at the stiff form of the day-old prey. "It's the best thing I have... apart from my life" He gave a toothy grin.

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre smiled at the offer, but shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll be okay," she examined the deer. "And I'm not used to that fresh-kill. I eat smaller food." She looked genuninely grateful for the offer, despite her refusal.

[cursico]

Cursico couldn't comprehend why she liked smaller food. It made no sense to him. Getting up and stretching he turned to her "Do you want to go hunting so we can get your food back?" He asked

[SHADE. :D]

Spctre got stiffly to her paws. "May as well," she mewed through teeth gritted with pain. She shook herself. She would leave the cobweb dressing on her wound, she decided. The cut on her cheek began to tingle, and she shook her head Despite this, the white loner limped determinedly from her cave. "C'mon."

[cursico]

Cursico trotted gently beside her. He wasn't very fast so it was all the better they weren't running. He began to purr forgetting his troubles "So, you want rabbits right? Maybe another Hawk if you can get it"

[SHADE. :D]

"Yeah," Spectre mewed. She wondered what Cursico planned to do. She lifted her snowy muzzle to scent the air. Scenting vole, she dropped into a painful crouch. She awkwardly stalked the creature, freezing every time she broke a leaf with a crackle. Finally he spotted the creature. Pouncing, she landed short of the prey. Pain ripped through her torn body, and she gritted her teeth. The vole squeaked in alarm and darted under a thistle. Hissing in anger, Spectre got slowly to her paws and shook scraps of moss from her pelt.

[cursico]

What a lucky vole Cursico thought. "Ohh well, maybe we should just keep trying" Cursico flicked his ringed ginger tail then crouched. Sneaking forward with average stealth he approached a rabbit.
The rabbit didn't even seem to be aware of anything, it just sat there. Obviously a pet rabbit that was used to cats. It turned and smiled at Cursico opening its mouth to speak.
Cursico pounced on it a second later. The rabbit instantly bucked and squealed with fear and pain. Cursico quickly tore out the creatures throat.

[SHADE. :D]

Spectre watched grumpily as Cursico caught the rabbit. She sat down, knowing that with her injuries she would never catch anything. Feeling useless and burning with shame, she began to groom her ears, trying to look dignified.

[cursico]

Cursico looked at the two-legs pet. It didn't even have a chance to learn cats were dangerous. Even though he wouldn't be as stupid as the rabbit. He wondered if the same could have happened to him. "It could've" He whispered then carried the rabbit to Spectre "Here, not as good as road-killed deer, but its still nice" He puffed his chest and cleaned the blood off him.

[SHADE. :D]

"Thankyou," murmured pectre. She got to her paws, and scented the air once again. She smelt mouse. The creature was sleeping in its hole. Not more than two tail lengths away. Hobbling over to the bolt hole, Spectre inserted a paw. She dragged out the squealing mouse and killed it swiftly. "There," she puffed.