A Chance Meeting [StarFire]

[Revan]

"And you barely know anything about me, so I guess that makes us even." To him, this wolf seemed to be forgetting that they only met not too long ago. Of course Asher wouldn't mind learning more about her, but somehow he figured that she wouldn't be willing to share. He knew that loners and rogues had a tendency to be secretive like that. But, perhaps she would open up to him later, he was in no rush anyway.

'So... there is a reason behind those memory flashes.' Asher thought to himself, since he had been wondering. He knew that bad memories could do terrible things to a wolf, but he had never seen anything quite like this. After a moment, Asher spoke again. "Now, I really don't like to judge a wolf completely based on their eye color, but here in front of me I see two lovely gray-blue eyes. It's clear to me that whatever terrible act you did in the past has been put behind you, so I see no reason for other wolves not to put it behind them, along with whatever side effect you now suffer from." He paused to let his words sink in, but then continued. "It sounds to me as if your memory flashes are not the only thing keeping you from joining a pack. Would you like to tell me why you are so against finding a new family?"

[Danger]

StarFire shrugged. "I suppose. But loners like me tend to keep to ourselves," she said. Star wasn't too interested in knowing more about him, because whenever she met another rogue, or loner, they tended to snap at her whenever she asked. Even though Asher was a pack wolf, she refused to change her ways.

StarFire was already regretting telling him why. She cringed slightly. "I-I can't," she murmured. "I just can't. But it's the reason I left my pack in the first place." she paused slightly as she thought about the first part. "My eyes may be grey blue, but I am still blamed for it," she said softly. She started thinking if she had a memory flash when she was in the company of others, and frowned. She shook her head.

Star raised her head slightly, and her ears turned slightly to catch some noise. The deer were not too far away, and Star hoped that they would get off the topic.

[Revan]

"Yes they do. Which is sad, really." Asher replied, but said nothing else regarding loners and their secrecy. It was clear that Star did not want to talk about it, so he left the matter alone. That did not mean he had given up on the other subject, however. He still wanted to know exactly what had happened between StarFire and her old pack. But, being the patient wolf he was, he would wait. Perhaps he would bring it up again after their hunt. He was persistent after all, although he tried not to be annoying.

The noise made by the deer had caught Asher's attention as well. Now was no longer the time for talking, unless they wanted to scare away their meal. He continued walking in silence, until Asher slowed his pace and crouched by a bush. For a moment, his gaze rested upon one lone female slightly separated from the rest of the herd. The deer were very near, and now he looked to Star, giving her the opportunity to decide their next course of action.

[Danger]

StarFire hoped that when Asher dropped the subject, he might leave it alone and not bring it up again. She clearly did not want to talk about it, and she didn't want Asher to push.

Star dropped to a hunting crouch when Asher did. She crept up close to him, and studied the herd. One big male buck, a few smaller doe and one fawn. She saw the one a little separated and decided that that was going to be the one. "Creep around the pack to seperate it from the herd. Once the rest run away, we tire it out by chasing it, then go in for the kill," Star whispered to him.

[Revan]

With a nod, Asher began making his way, slowly and carefully, around the herd of deer. All the while he kept his gaze on the female deer, who had been so unlucky to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He now began to creep forward, and once the herd caught sight of him they began to run, some crowding around the little fawn to keep it safe. The other female, however, had no choice but to run in the opposite direction.

Asher smiled a bit, and turning his attention away from the rest of the herd, he looked back to the lone female deer. Now, all that was left to do was tire it out. Their meal was not so far away now, and Asher began to follow after the unlucky doe.

[Danger]

Star made her way quietly around the other side. While the herd's attention was on Asher, she began to chase the lone doe.

While she ran, Star thought about what it was like to hunt with someone else. She hadn't done it in a long time, and yet now she was doing it with someone she barely knew. How weird things have become, she thought. First the weather, and now this.

The doe kept running away from her herd as Star continued to chase it, but never got too close. She would lunge forward once in a while, but always miss the deer. It was a good tactic, making the doe think she was faster than them and tire out more quickly. Star glanced at Asher to see what he was doing.

[Revan]

Once StarFire began to chase after the doe, Asher slowed a bit to keep pace with her. He was in no rush, because if they hurried they could quickly lose their energy before catching the deer. Eventually the deer would tire itself out, and then they could move in for the kill.

It had been a while since the last time Asher actually went hunting for anything larger than a rabbit. It was nice to get out and explore again, now that the rain had stopped for a while. He only hopped that his pack didn't mind him being gone for too long, but he had been gone for longer before, so this was not out of the ordinary. He was mostly thinking about where his new friend would go once he went back to his pack.

[Danger]

StarFire sighed slightly. This deer had a lot of energy. Even so, they had more. After a while of running, the deer seemed to slow down. Star smiled, then started closing the gap between them.

As Star closed in, she also thought about what would happen. Would the alpha be angry at Asher? It was none of her business, but she could't help being curious. And where would she go? Back to familiar territory? Or go with Asher to join his pack?

[Revan]

Asher was relieved to see that the deer was slowing down. He was beginning to get tired now, and he was definitely hungry. He started running a bit faster now, with a look of determination on his face. While still behind the deer, he moved to one side to prevent it from escaping.

Although his mind was mostly focused on catching their prey, Asher was still curious about Star. Where was she planning on going, anyway? He would hate for her to wander off and get caught in a storm, like he had a few weeks earlier. But he also knew that she was against joining his pack, for reasons which were still unknown to him.

[Danger]

StarFire saw Asher move to one side, and she moved to the other. She matched Asher's pace, and they both closed in on the deer. The doe itself could sense her pursuers catching up, but was too tired to run anymore. It slowed down even more.

Star frowned slightly as she thought. She didn't want to join a pack, especially because of her secrets. What if the alpha asked her to tell? She would probably refuse, but what if the alpha insisted? It was a hard choice. But she was leaning towards leaving after te hunt.

[Revan]

Eyes still locked on their prey, Asher began to think a bit more. Who was he to believe that he could convince a loner to settle down with a pack? What made her so different from the other loners he saw? Perhaps it was because she looked rather lonely. She had clearly been that way for quite a while, considering they way she reacted when he suggested she think about joining his pack. With a slight shake of his head, Asher reminded himself that this was no time to think about it.

The deer was slowing down, it was almost their time to strike. He could sense the doe's fear now, and almost felt sorry for it. Almost. She was a deer, and they were wolves. There was no reason to feel bad about being a predator, so Asher thought little of it. He let out a slight growl, ready to strike the deer at any time.

[Danger]

StarFire glanced at Asher once, before turning to the doe once again. Why was she so scared to join a pack? Because you're afraid that the same thing will happen, a little voice whispered in the back of her mind. Star shook her head. That was many moons ago. She was older now, more mature. That wouldn't happen again. Star then thrust the thoughts away from her mind, focusing on the deer.

She could sense the deer tiring, and knew it was almost time. She had been hunting for so long that she had forgotten the first time she had felt an animal's fear beside her own, but now she remembered and wondered if Asher was feeling the same. She shrugged it off, glanced to Asher with a look asking, now?

[Revan]

With a quick glance to StarFire, Asher caught the look on her face and gave a nod. Now was the time. He sprinted forward, and only slowed when he was alongside the doe. Then, with a fierce growl he pushed off the ground with his paws and lunged at the deer. He sunk his teeth into the doe's neck, in the soft, unprotected area just under its jaw. Asher held on tightly and waited for Star to join him. It wouldn't long until they brought down their prey.

[Danger]

StarFire quickly sprinted around to the same side. She pounced, her claws digging into the deer's side. With the weight of both wolves on it, the deer fell to the side. Star quickly let go in order not to be caught underneath the tumbling doe.

[Revan]

Asher jumped back so as not to be kicked by the deer when it fell, but then quickly moved around to its front. As the deer struggled to get up again, Asher once again bit into its neck and held on tightly. The doe slowly began to stop thrashing, and after a few moments Asher finally let go. He then looked to StarFire with a slight smile. "Good job. Now.." He took a step back, and then sat down before nodding once to the deer. "Ladies first, of course."