[SpringsSong]

The rabbit was in a clearing, just out of the blueish wolf's reach.

He had been following it for hours, now, and it was finally starting to settle.  He knew that he could not move just yet, though; it would not be wise to startle it now.  Not after he had tracked it this far.

His muscular form was in quite the top shape; after all, as an alpha male, he had to be.    He was the main hunter, as the alpha.  He also needed to be in top form in case of any unwanted competition.

Okay, it was easy to avoid unwanted competition when you were the only one in the pack.

Lithônion didn't mind that he was the only one in the pack.  In fact, he preferred it.  He didn't like it when there were females involved; they all tried to be the one that was the alpha female.  He'd had a mate before...

No, Lith... he told himself.  Focus on the rabbit.  Not on her.

[1.2]

[SpringsSong]

The blueish-colored wolf male was not the only one out hunting out there, unfortunately for him.

Taliña had long since had her sights on that rabbit, but she had also sensed the male's presence there.  The fact that he was there did not phase her any.  If anything, she wanted a little competition.  Her form was lithe and in wonderful shape; but then again, the war had helped her remain fit.  However, in the war, she had also been in her human form more often than not.

Now, she was forsaking that form for her Lucain one once again.

Her vantage point in the underbrush of Idalani was perfect to attack the rabbit, or even the other male if the opportunity both arose and presented itself.  She wanted a little excitement again.

[1.2]

[SpringsSong]

Lithônion gave a slight growl as he crouched low, his eyes transfixed on the rabbit.  It might not have had much meat on it, but it was something that was edible, and begging to be caught.  He knew that there was someone else out there, but he wasn't about to let that phase him.

Only if they managed to make him lose his rabbit.

He did not waste another second, leaping towards the rabbit with great force and ease as he sailed towards it, his pale yellow eyes gleaming darkly.

[1.4]

[SpringsSong]

Taliña leapt just a split second before Lithônion did, and she also leapt a little lower than him.  She had nearly reached the rabbit's fur with her claws, but it slipped away from her--and Lithônion--as it bounded away towards its burrow.

A dull thud could be heard as it ran blindly into a tree in its haste to escape the two Lucain.

Tali turned her gaze sharply at the male as her teeth parted in a feral snarl, her hackles raised as she gave a warning snap.

"What makes you think you can encroach on Darkpaw's territory?"

[1.4]

[SpringsSong]

"Darkpaw?  I've never heard of such a clan before," Lithônion snarled, his own hackles raised as he snapped at her in warning as well.  "I will not be snapped at by a simple female who knows nothing of pack regulations.  Even if this... Darkpaw pack existed, they must have disbanded a long time ago... long enough that no scent remains from them.  I doubt any of them still exist.  They must have moved on a long time ago.  When that infamous war took the land."

Little did Lithônion know that he was technically talking to the alpha female of the Darkpaw pack.

"I'm afraid that this is my territory now, female, and I will have you know that I detest intruders greatly.  Now get out of my territory, or I'll have to hurt you."

[1.6]

[SpringsSong]

"Oh, their alpha female still exists," Taliña said.  "She might have been killed in the war, but she was brought back by Lady Sa'ouna because her mate missed her so terribly.  So did her fourteen children, regardless of what side of the war they were on.  And, well... I have returned to claim my pack's territory, even if I am the only one that remains true to her pack's calling."

Here, she gave a warning snarl just before she jumped.  She aimed first for his wingblades, biting at them as a warning before she jumped off of him, circling him with a dark, dangerous growl on her maw.

"I'll have you know that the Purines put a bounty on my head for my superior strength and skill," she said.  "Fifteen hundred keystones--a small fortune now, but it was a pretty fortune back in the days of the war.  Of course, the only problem was that I, along with my mate--former mate--were the strongest Imperials out there..." she said, pulling the Wood Garudor's feather from behind her ear before placing it back.

"That belonged to a Purine general who crossed him," she said, growling as she circled him.  "I am not afraid to fight you."

[1.6]

[SpringsSong]

Great.  From talking to him as though he was tresspassing on another pack's grounds to saying that she was the alpha female of that pack.  And then, to top it off, she started going at his wingblades and talking about her time in the war!  He could already tell that this female was going to be a... completely lovely thing to deal with.  Calmly, he began to circle her as she circled him.

"Then you should have left someone behind to guard your territory, if you left to fight in the war," he said smugly.  "There were no scent-markers, no sentries guarding the territory, so why in the world would anyone think this territory anything other than what it was; free?  And, another thing.  I could care less if a bounty of fifteen thousand keystones was placed on your head, female, and I care not if your mate befell some tragedy that caused you to be separated.  I do care that you're on my territory and refuse to leave.  Why doesn't the little princess go back home to her mother and be tucked into bed with some nice hot chocolate?  That should soothe your pain from this war."

Lithônion grinned wickedly.  He knew that she would hate that; heck, he would not have tolerated being spoken to that way.

[1.8]

[SpringsSong]

"I'll have you know that I have a name," she spat angrily, "but you would not care if you knew it one way or another, so I will not give it to you.  I will, however, say that I warned you.  No one calls me 'princess', for I abandoned that ages ago.  No one tells me to go home to my mother; I raised myself.  My mother?  Heh, my human and her owner thought it best to not have me around her, lest I pick up on her... bad habits."

As she said this, she dove for Lithônion's paws, clamping her jaw firmly on it as she sank her teeth into the flesh.  She was not going to let him talk to her like that; not on her territory, and not on her life.  She had already died once, and she doubted that Lady Sa would be able to bring her back a second time, with no war going on and no Shrine to pray at.

"And another thing," she said as she moved her jaws from his paw to his neck, "tragedy did not just befall him.  It befell us," she spat, sinking her fangs deep into his neck--but not deep enough to kill.  Just deep enough to let him know that she was no show-Lucain.

[1.8]

[SpringsSong]

...okay... Lithônion thought as she bit his paws, all the while seething at him.  This woman can fight... and judging from the depth of these bite marks, I'm outmatched.  Maybe there was a reason she had a bounty on her head.  He couldn't let that distract him, though; the important thing now was to fight back, even if he was at a clear disadvantage.  He raked his claws against her side as she bit into his neck, fighting back a howl of pain.  He was not going to let a female draw the first admission of pain out of him.

"I could care less if the entire Purine army murdered him," he spat as he raked his claws over her left eye, which already had a scar on it.  "This is no longer your territory.  Let the one who remains standing after this battle determine what is to happen here... and I am giving you this opportunity to surrender.  I wouldn't want to hurt a female just for tresspassing on my territory."

He knew, though, that she would not give in.  She was too much like her in a sense; always wanting to prove that she could survive in a men's world, even when they all told her to go home and mind the children.  What children were there to mind?  They were all grown; most with children of their own, and even those children were grown with--again--with grown children of their own.  He could tell just by looking at her, she had a large family--and they had all left her, so she had no one to go back to.

[2.0]

[SpringsSong]

"We'll see who is hurting more at the end of this battle," she spat, resisting the urge to call him "pup".  After all, she had never once seen him before the war, so he had obviously not arrived in Evelon before the war.  She grinned darkly as she unsheathed her claws, which had grown quite long since she had forsaken her human form, with nails that were lucky to grow more than a couple of centimeters past the tip of the finger before either breaking or getting gnawed off in nervous-ness.

"Since it is evident that you will not surrender either..." she said, she quickly spun around and dragged her claws across his side, the claws going far deeper than she had suspected that they would go.  Thankfully, though, she had the sense enough not to plunge so deeply that she would harm him beyond repair.

"Who's the big alpha now?"

[2.0]

[SpringsSong]

Okay.  That hurt, and it hurt a lot.  Lithônion let out a whimper of pain as the female's claws dug into his side, and he fell to the ground at this, glaring up at the female in pure hatred.  Here she was, looking like a princess, but she was a warrior deep down within, just like she had said.

She had beaten him in the same way that she had.

"Fine," he spat, clearly angered that he'd been taken down so quickly.  "Stay on this territory, if you like.  Set foot near my cave, though, and I will drive you out like I was going to before I challenged you to this spar.  There should be a wooden shelter just on the edge of this territory... you can use it as a shelter, unless you find or think of something better," he said.  He was not in the mood for this now...

"Oh... by the way, my name is Lithônion."

[2.2]

[SpringsSong]

"Taliña Darkpaw, alpha female of the Darkpaw pack," Taliña said, holding her head high.  "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lithônion, but I will leave you be if you so wish.  I do not wish to anger you anymore than I already have, as it so seems that I have... pup."

She whispered the "pup" so it was barely audible.  She didn't want him attempting to kill her any than he already had.

"Well... I will be on my way, then; unless you wish to revise your offer."

[2.2]

[SpringsSong]

Lith thought that he heard her whisper something that was slightly derogatory, but he paid it no mind.  She had obviously not meant for it to be heard, but whatever it was, she was probably right, he realized.  She had a few years on her, judging from her talk about the war.  He really could care less, though.

"No, I will not revise my offer.  My mate would not appreciate it."

He knew he was lying, because he knew that Mosqua would probably adore this rebellious female, for she was the same way... and he could almost hear her scolding him for turning her away.

[2.4]

[SpringsSong]

"Very well.  I can respect that."

Taliña said this sharply, turning and heading away from the male.  She didn't mind that he was being this way, but she could also tell that he was not being entirely truthful.  Whether or not it was about having a mate or if she would appreciate her being around, she could not tell; she could jsut tell that he was not being honest.

Nevertheless, she found her way down to the wooden shelter and examined it, standing up on her hind paws and then leaning against it to test its integrity.  When it did not give under her push, she nodded.  It was acceptable.

[2.4]

[SpringsSong]

Lithônion was surprised when Tali did not press the matter any further than he had offered information on.  However, he supposed that she would infer the information for herself if enough time passed and they continued to talk.

He hoped that she would leave him alone, though.  He saw too much of Mosqua in her, to the point where it was painful for him to bear with.  He would have to try and isolate that part of his memory whenever he was talking with her.

As he saw the sky begin to darken, however, and as he heard the rushing river, he had a feeling that painful memories would all too soon be rehashed.

[2.6]