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Post by Kaeldra on Sept 8, 2022 19:26:41 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
It was a beautiful greenleaf day, the cold of leafbare fully forgotten. Ducky and his sister had caught a large squirrel to share that morning, which they made quick work of. After they had groomed their fur to perfection, Loon found a nice flat rock to sunbathe on, and so he was left to his own devices for entertainment. Of course, he could have joined her, but his paws were restless. He wanted to explore the area a bit.
The black and white tom wandered aimlessly, drifting through the trees and inspecting stray pine cones as he went. He was peering into a hollow tree stump when a loud croak made him jump. He turned, looking for the source of the noise and seeing nothing.
Croak.
Ducky spun in the other direction this time. He scanned the needle-covered forest floor, frowning when he still didn’t spot anything.
Crooooak.
Aha! There it was. He padded up to the creature, a rather fat toad, and blinked curiously at it. It stared at him warily.
“Hi,” he said. When the toad didn’t reply, he extended an inquisitive paw. Right as he was about to make contact, it leaped a tail-length away.
Ducky followed. He reached out again, confident he could poke it this time. Again, before he could, it hopped indignantly ahead.
Ducky grinned. This was kinda fun.
ulla
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Riley
Head of Advertising
349 Posts
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Post by Riley on Sept 20, 2022 5:28:26 GMT
Dusk had always been proud of her stalking. It came naturally to her, slipping from shadow to shadow, pawsteps light and silent as death. It was a little harder to be completely silent in the marshlands, as each step forward had to be fought for. But she'd learned to work with it, masking her splashing about among the other noises of the marshes.
So it didn't surprise her one bit that she wasn't noticed. She'd been tracking this fool for a fair while, waiting for him to make a kill so she could steal it. Her gaze focused on his pelt, patience starting to dwindle but not yet run out. Dusk grinned toothily to herself when he found a frog. She just needed to wait for him to make his kill before she could make her move. And so she waited. And waited.
That focus of hers turned to a confused tilt of her head. He'd greeted the toad. GREETED it, like it was a friend he hadn't seen in a while. He even tried to bop it, following when it tried to run away. Finally Dusk had to say something, rising from her crouched position and moving to be seen. "What are you doing?" she asked, masking her confusion with an irritated frown. "Just kill the darn thing instead of playing with it."
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Post by Kaeldra on Oct 2, 2022 22:34:17 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
Ducky was about to prod the toad one more time when a shape suddenly materialized from the shadows, snapping at him. He stared at her with confusion, eyes wide.
“Why would I kill it? We’re having a good time together. Right, Mr. Toad?”
He looked down at the toad that was glaring at him with a look that said it most definitely was not having a good time. Ducky shrugged.
”Anyway, what’s your name? My sister and I are passing through here, so we don’t know many cats in the area yet. My name’s Ducky, it’s nice to meet you!”
He grinned widely at her, excited to have found a potential new friend so quickly. Mr. Toad was great and all, but it was tough to hang out with someone when they didn’t talk.
ulla
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Riley
Head of Advertising
349 Posts
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Post by Riley on Oct 29, 2022 5:31:38 GMT
Dusk felt a flash of satisfaction at the wide eyes of the pest in front of her. Appearing from nowhere was a favorite trick of hers and to see the reactions it brought about was always a favorite of hers. The following question though made her scowl. He wasn't afraid or shocked at her suddenly being there. He was confused. Though from the look of him confusion wasn't exactly rare for him.
She could only gape as he actually questioned the toad on if they were having a good time or not. Thankfully he didn't seem to make up an answer, or else Dusk would have worried for his mental state. He DID question her about her name though, and Dusk scoffed. Names had power, even out here, and she wasn't about to give hers to this stranger who was far too cheerful for the pine forest. "Fine. If you're not going to kill it, I will!" she snapped, glaring down at the amphibian.
She raised a paw with claws unsheathed, entirely about to bring it down on the toad's head, but said toad started bounding away. Dusk cursed audibly and started after it, deciding to ignore the idiot for now.
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Post by Kaeldra on Nov 10, 2022 2:52:01 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
Ducky frowned when the she-cat ignored his question, instead rounding on the toad with a determined scowl. Once again, the creature began leaping away into the trees, this time without pausing between hops.
“See, he likes playing around like that. Makes you think you’ve got him, then– bam! Off he goes.”
Wanting to know more about the strange cat, he followed the two of them, walking around the other side of the toad to help corral it.
“So what brings you to this side of the woods? Do you live nearby? I don’t know if we’ll stay here much longer–my sister doesn't seem to like it here all that much and I can’t say I blame her–but for now it’s pretty neat!”
ulla
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Riley
Head of Advertising
349 Posts
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Post by Riley on Nov 19, 2022 8:19:12 GMT
Was he-? He was. Ducky was FOLLOWING her. Even worse, he still thought the toad was playing. Was he messing with her? Nobody could be THAT big of an idiot. At least he was trying to be a helpful idiot though, traipsing to the other side of the toad to cut off it's escape.
He was STILL talking though, and Dusk finally had enough. "Help me catch this stupid thing and I'll answer some questions. Until then, shut up and concentrate!" she snapped, taking her eyes off of the toad to glare at him.
It was only for a second, but a second was enough. A splash made her jerk her head around, but it was too late. The ripples in the pond showed where the toad had disappeared to, but no matter where Dusk flicked her gaze to, she couldn't find it again. Dusk slowly turned her gaze to Ducky, eyes narrowed into furious slits, before she uttered one single word. "Run." Then she lunged.
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Post by Kaeldra on Nov 19, 2022 18:02:13 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
Ducky fell silent, wide-eyed as the she-cat snapped at him.
Wow, touchy, he thought, though he knew better than to say as much out loud. He had learned from experience that some she-cats had vicious tempers, and usually saying less was for the best.
Then there was a soft plunk that brought them both up short, and they turned their gazes on the pond in unison. Little ripples spread out from where the toad had jumped in, the creature nowhere to be seen.
“That silly guy,” Ducky laughed, his commitment to silence forgotten. “I guess he prefers hide and seek. The water here is kinda nasty, but I know how to swim, so maybe I could...” he trailed off, feeling the she-cat’s furious gaze on him. Ducky glanced over, meeting her eyes, and the rest of his words dried up on his tongue. She was mad. Like, mad mad.
While he wasn’t the sharpest thorn on the bush, Ducky knew when he had overstayed his welcome. Unfortunately, he didn’t have time to turn tail and run -- as she had so helpfully suggested -- before she was lunging at him, knocking him to the muddy forest floor. He writhed wildly, panic flooding his veins, and kicked out blindly with his hind paws.
“Don’t kill me, please! My sister would be all by herself!”
ulla
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Riley
Head of Advertising
349 Posts
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Post by Riley on Dec 9, 2022 6:42:48 GMT
Ah, so he wasn't just slow intellectually. He was slow in reflexes too. Ducky (and seriously, what kind of ridiculous name was that?!) hadn't even turned away to flee before Dusk was on him. She had him pinned by the chest, claws extended and gripping. Not enough to rip fur and flesh, but enough that if he tried to rip away instead of wriggling around like the worm he was, he'd leave a piece of himself behind.
"Don't kill me, please! My sister would be all by herself!"
Dusk snarled wordlessly down at him and lifted him up by the claws to slam him back down on the ground. "I suspect I'd be doing her a favor!" she hissed down, yellow eyes blazing. She had no intention of ACTUALLY killing him, of course. She was a brute, not a murderer. Still, she had to get her point across somehow. "Do you have ANY idea what you've just done? I haven't even in two days! That frog I was going to steal from you was going to be my evening meal! I-"
rumble gurble
Dusk froze as her stomach audibly growled. She stared down at Ducky before huffing and letting him go, walking a little away to curl up on the ground. "Just. Just go away and leave me alone." she growled pathetically.
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Post by Kaeldra on Jan 17, 2023 7:09:10 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
Ducky thrashed as the she-cat slammed him once more into the ground, blood roaring so loudly in his ears he could barely hear what she was saying. Something about food and Mr. Toad and lots and lots of anger. In some very small corner of his brain, he noted that it probably wasn’t that important to know the individual words, since her actions were speaking loud and clear.
Then a loud gurgle broke through the fear and fury, and suddenly the she-cat froze. In the next moment her weight was gone, leaving Ducky to stare dazedly upward for a moment as he tried to figure out what just happened. Had that been her stomach?
Gathering the strength to sit up, he glanced over to see the she-cat huddled in a small ball several tail-lengths away.
"Just. Just go away and leave me alone." She growled at him, but the words lacked their previous bite. Suddenly several things clicked together in his brain. She was hungry! That’s why she was so grumpy. Ducky knew he was no conversationalist when he had an empty belly, so it stood to reason she’d be no different. Making up his mind, he got to his paws, doing his best to shake off the dust and mud.
“Hold on, wait there. I’ll be right back!”
And then he sprinted off into the pines, hoping he wouldn’t be gone too long.
ulla
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Post by Kaeldra on Feb 6, 2023 2:28:00 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
It took longer than he had hoped to find what he was looking for. Ducky had needed to run halfway across the pine forest, it felt like, before the scent of something edible drifted past his nose. Crouching low to the ground, he scanned the forest floor until he spotted the blackbird hopping among the pine needles.
Ducky crept forward slowly, pulling himself along silently before he was in striking range. Then with a powerful leap, he flung himself at the bird and quickly delivered the killing blow. He stood up and shook out his fur proudly, the bird held fast in his jaws. Now to get it back to her! He really hoped she was still where he’d left her, or at least close by, because he was still rather full from the squirrel earlier.
After another dash through the woods, Ducky slowed to a trot as he neared the spot where he thought he’d found Mr. Toad. For a heartbeat his spirits fell, and then he saw her, curled up at the base of a pine tree. Padding over, he dropped the blackbird a tail-length away and nosed it toward her.
“Hey, I got you this. Sorry it took so long, I’m not used to hunting here. I hope you don’t mind feathered prey–”
ulla
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Post by Kaeldra on May 6, 2023 20:15:47 GMT
Ducky || he/him || 22 moons
Ducky watched with wide eyes as the she-cat greedily pulled the blackbird toward her. She didn’t seem to care at all for appearances as she ate, more concerned about getting as much of the prey as she could into her belly before… what? It wasn’t as if he would take it away; he’d hunted it specifically for her! But he supposed not everyone thought so clearly on an empty stomach.
The tom was speechless as she crunched bones and spat feathers, until finally she seemed sated, pushing the scant remains away. She looked almost pained as she thanked him. Indigestion maybe? It wouldn’t surprise him. She had eaten that thing quicker than he could say “mouse”.
“Dusk! That’s a good name.” He said brightly, pleased that she was a bit more amicable now that she had some food in her belly. His plan was working! “Y’know, it sounds kinda like my name! Maybe we’re long lost relatives,” he mused, wondering about the implications. Her fur was even a similar pattern, though the colour was different. Maybe he was on to something!
ulla
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