[SRP] Pelt seekers (Junius x Ryuu)

[Tanakako]

Well... here she was again... Lifting a paw as if expecting a pelt to simply turn up under it she scowled at herself. Ever since this silly exercise had started, she had been falling over pelts left right and center... The whole damn pride had gone mad and her...? Mad right along with them. Scoffing at herself she turned her back on the flat expanse before her. No, she wasn't going to look. No more.

Wait... whats that? Nosing a rock she scowled at the bit of fur she could see.

She was just as foolish as the rest of the colony, apparently.

Quote:

4,2,4
4: A large, luxurious pelt from a hyena. Worth 3 points.
2: A fair quality jackal pelt. Worth 2 points.
4: A large, luxurious pelt from a hyena. Worth 3 points.
= 8 points

 

[Tanakako]

He had heard about a secluded mountain colony in the area and had started to explore, not really curious but well... he was bored. Then he had run into a rogue on his way to the colony. Apparently they were seeking pelts and expected any visiting rogue to bring them? Or that was what it sounded like when he had asked the stranger who had not even stopped to put his mouthful of pelts down long enough to answer, but had forced Ryuu to try and decipher his mumbled words as he scurried off along the mountain path.

More confused than anything he had simply scooped up the first few pelts he saw out of the snow and kept climbing. Intrigued despite himself and determined to get to the bottom of this strange phenomenon. Two of his pelts were small and useless, but the third had been quite the lucky find, a jackle killed by the cold and frozen solid. It had taken some work to skin it, but he hadn't done too badly.

Now he just had to find this strange colony. Though the higher he climbed the more he assumed the pelts were to wear, or the entire lot of them would freeze to death up here....

Quote:

1,3,6
1: Small, torn and barely useable. Worth 1 point
3: Small, torn and barely useable. Worth 1 point.
6: A fair quality jackal pelt. Worth 2 points.
= 4 points

 

[Tanakako]

It had taken quite a bit of work to unearth the frozen body from under the rock, but once she was done she had the carcass of a hyena spread out in the snow. Good eating and the pelt was almost untouched. However, she had tried to open itup already and the lump was frozen stiff. Leaving the body she scouted round for a sharp implement to help her, finally locating a piece of stone that looked like it could do the job. Returning to her find she set about carefully cutting away the thick fur, loosing herself in the task.

Only belatedly did she scent the trace of warm leopard coming along the path, and only then because the wind was directly behind the stranger. He, for it was certainly male, smelt of warm sand, hot sun and... frozen fur? Leaving hr skinning she stood and moved to the head of the path. He had to come up this way to get to the colony.

What crazy rogue would climb this high up the mountain?  

[Tanakako]

Climbing had never been a problem for him, but holding onto three pelts, one quite big but the other two liable to slip away without him even noticing, wasn't so easy. Stopping to readjust his grip on the smaller two pelts he clamped his jaws determinedly, after all they were so full of holes a few more wouldn't matter, and resumed climbing. Claws extended to give him better grip on the ice.

Soon enough he crested the small cliff and scrambled over the edge to stand, shaking his coat free of ice crystals. The vibrant splash of red up ahead was hard to miss and he peered through the blinding brightness of reflected light at her. A female leopard, and from the looks of the mess behind her, she too was skinning a pelt. But she looked.... settled, suited to her hostile environment. A hostility that matched her current expression... She had to be one of the colony members.

Padding forwards he set his skins down and dipped his head, tail up and head high he stood proud, a male in his prime. Not about to back down.  

[Tanakako]

Oh great... Another one... Heaving a heavy sigh she eyeballed his furs. Not even much of an offering either, to come all this way with them. Wrinkling her nose she studied him again.

"You come to trade?" She asked begrudgingly. The last few visitors had been lions and while she knew they had not been her enemy, they had set her normally bad mood to unusually dark depths and now she was in no temper to handle yet more ignorant strangers.

His puzzled look only annoyed her further. "The furs..." moron she added under her breath.  

[Tanakako]

A grumpy girl for sure... He watched her frown deepen, turning quickly to a black look that left him in no doubt as to her opinion on his arrival. Ah well, he knew more than one touchy female of his own species. It seed to be a trait leopardess' cultivated.

Unfazed he gathered his furs and strode forwards until he stood right in front of her. Setting them down again he nodded. "I heard your colony was looking for them." Glancing behind her he studied her efforts. "I see you are doing the same. But...." Ignoring her outraged expression he stepped past her and went directly to her half-skinned hyena. Settling down he rolled the body over, discarded the rock and set his claws to the furry belly. Within moments he was nearly cutting strips of fat and frozen flesh away from the pelt which he kept carefully stretched with his other paw.  

[Tanakako]

Outrage flooded her as h simply walked past, totally ignoring her! With a violent snarl she dashed past, planning on challenging him and sending him packing but he continued to calmly ignore her and with a few claw swipes was making better progress with the carcass than she had been. Swallowing her roar she ground her teeth together, claws flexing in the snow even as she stood, watching him with a kind of angry, reluctant fascination.

Belligerently she had to admit he was an expert at his work. The skin coming away without a single new tear, the fur on the other side untouched. The meat underneath may have been frozen, but he handled it with an easy confidence that made her wonder if he was a rogue at all, or had originally come from a similar place, high up in some other mountain range somewhere. Not that she was going to ask, that would send the entirely wrong message that she cared.  

[Tanakako]

Slowly and carefully he worked to get the pelt off the frozen bones. The hyena had been in excellent condition when it had died, making him suspect it had simply got stuck up here and frozen solid over night. It had probably tried to shelter under the rock he had spotted as freshly dug over.

After quite some time he snipped the last connecting thread of meat and pushed the carcass to one side, carefully spreading the pelt out fur side down, checking for any rips or tears. Only a few previously inflicted marks. Good.

Pleased he turned it over and smoothed the fur free from ice crystals. It was a beautiful pelt, thick and covered in a delicate pattern of sable swirls. Finally he stood and moved back out of the way, letting the leopardess claim her pelt back.  

[Tanakako]

Junius had been reluctant to settle down. She didn't like this cocky stranger and his domineering ways but equally she was a poor skinner and wasn't about to try and claim otherwise. So she had little choice but to sit and wait for him to do whatever it was he planned. Unwillingly admiring his skill as he worked she stood and padded closer, though only when he finished and had stepped well back did she actually advance to claim back her pelt.

After examining it from head to tail, which he had managed to keep on, impressively, she huffed and looked up at him. "Well.... it looks good. Thank you." reluctantly offered words felt strange to her and she eyed him again, frowning.  

[Tanakako]

But once a more he ignored her hint to leave her alone and simply nodded his head in return. "You are most welcome." Moving back to his own furs he picked them up then hesitated. Padding back towards her he set them down. "I do have one question... where do I hand these off?"

Her deeply put upon sigh made him want to grin, but he controlled it, knowing she most likely wouldn't appreciate the emotion. Finally she grumblingly offered to show him and with another dip of his head in thanks he retrieved his pelts and followed her.