[PRP] Preparing for Winter [Calico x Black Comet]

[NymiiNym]

Calico grunted as he pulled against the large torso, feet slipping in the snow. While most of the meat for winter had been stored a few weeks back they still dragged in a few kills a week for later. As much as he tried to preserve the meat he couldn't do it forever -- there still was some expiration date, just extended. He had decided to take it upon himself to drag the meat to the holding area. He was the only Cook, and often Calico felt like he needed to prove his worth.

He knew his job mattered, of course. Everyone had to eat and they preferred to eat something tasty, but Calico hadn't yet acquired the ability to make fire. He had seen quite some time ago a raccoon and wolf pair actually heat their meat, and ever since he had a chance to taste such a thing he had fantasized about replicating it. Herbs were great, but nothing compared to cooked meat.

Until he had something that revolutionary he felt behind the others. Anyone could toss some herbs on meat. It wasn't hard, by far. Sure they'd need to learn what was safe to eat and what tasted good on which meat, but that could be learned. Now fire? That'd change everything. Until he had that, though, he would push himself to prove his worth to the others.

Still... the meat was heavy and struggled to pull through the snow. Deer carcass was heavy, and Calico wasn't a Hunter or Guard. He grunted as he let go of the meat, exhaling lowly. Whew, this would take awhile!

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

She padded gently to the area she was told to go, navigating her home like the back of her paw until the outskirts. She was late, no matter how much she had rushed to get there, she wasn't familiar enough with this area to arrive on time. She felt guilty about it, the job being so important for the whole pack. The Boss had asked her to assist the pack's cook with preparing for winter but even when she had arrived late well... This wasn't what she expected.

She distracts herself from the failed first impression to just watch the wolf she was supposed to be helping. Nice bright colors against the white snow, the orange-ish browns pleasing to look at and bringing her eyes to his otherwise camouflaged body, with a pudgy belly telling of his job: He was cute and terribly in need of help.

A smile comes to her face as she looks at the wolf, his struggles with the deer carcass amusing her. She will announce herself and help as soon as he takes a break, but no sooner: she was enjoying building herself up to help him. Something about being able to swoop in and make it easier when he needs it just makes her feel good on the inside. She won't think too much about it.

When he sits back to take a breather that's when she approaches. Keeping her steps quiet, the only thing to alert her presence before she speaks is the soft almost silent crunching of snow, "Hello, are you Calico? I was sent to help by Big Bad, how may I assist you?"  

[NymiiNym]

He physically jumped as a voice spoke, head snapping to find the speaker with wide eyes. Oh wow, he hadn't heard her at all! He recognized her instantly, tail flicking once in greeting as his stiffened form softened. Aaah, yeah! One of Black Bone's kids. Well, kid wasn't really the right word anymore, and as someone as young as Calico himself he had no room to talk. His cheeks flushed as a short laugh left him, eyes returning to the carcass.

"If I said no I feel like the lie is obvious," he admitted. Big Bad had sent help after all. He felt partially embarrassed -- it was obvious he wasn't the strongest. Still, he'd take the offer regardless. There was no shame in someone helping! He had just hoped to impress the others by doing it himself, but that was a moot point. He barely could drag the damn thing.

"Oh, you're... Black Comet, right? I'm -- you know that, gosh. I could use the help. I'm trying to get this to where we've been storing the meat in the snow, but... uh," he grinned sheepishly, shrugging a shoulder. "I could use the extra paws getting it there."

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

She chuckled at his admission, finding it more like a small joke with it's phrasing. She met his eyes and a small smile flashed across her face in return for his sheepish one, "Well, that is what I'm here for. Let's get this deer moved, shall we?"

It may have taken her a second to figure out the best place to help him move the carcass, but once they were both ready to begin the dragging she took the lead out of habit. It was still a struggle, she may be strong and agile but she is no guard or assassin: merely a scout in the eyes of the pack. An obvious difference could be felt in their jaws though, the strain of such of heavy creature distributed between the two.

When the majority of distance was closed, she gave him a sign to stop. She lets go of the deer and let's her mouth relax for a second before speaking, "I wanted to make sure we were going to the correct place before going any further."

She moves her paw in the direction of what she believes is the preserving area, "Is that it?"

Black Comet laughs softly as a thought comes to mind, "I do believe by the end of this, even surrounded by cold, it's going to get a little warm. Might have to roll around in the snow afterwards. How many do we need to move?"  

[NymiiNym]

"Wonderful," he breathed, taking up his end of the carcass. She took the lead and he let her, relieved to feel the weight shift into a more favorable heft. Something he could actually manage. The sign to stop came right as his mind began to drift to recipes he had stored away, eyes snapping to and jaw gratefully releasing the meat. Oh, ouch; he'd feel that later.

"Yes, it's the right way. We're almost there. The ground is frozen, but I've pre-dug some spots to place the meat into already. You'll see snow swept around and large holes; we'll drop them in one of those." His paws hurt from the digging. He had dug for hours, it seemed, and he shifted to hide his raw and sore paws from sight. No need for her to notice and worry, if that was her thing.

"There's one more after this. The Hunters were bountiful today," a smile touched his features as he looked up at her, noticing her startling aqua eyes. Pretty. "Maybe a snow fight would cool us off, too," he added, his smile reaching his eyes. It was nice to have company.

"I was mixing a berry treat for tonight earlier. Afterwards would you care to try it? It's the least I could do as a thank you."

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

She gives a short nod to the instruction of wear they are storing the animal, and then her shoulders seem to sag a little at the mention of a second one. Comet doesn't mind doing some heavy lifting, but she's just not looking forward to the potential of moving her next job to the following day.

The movement to hide his paws caught her eye, and she's curious as to why: He surely couldn't have dug the storage area by himself. That would be taxing on a singular wolf, he had to have requested to receive help? Everything she witnessed of him earlier was beginning to make sense, opening her eyes to the fact he didn't do that: of course dragging a carcass would be harder on you if your paws were hurt. She doesn't make a comment on her realization yet, allowing him time to believe it wont be brought up again.

Her ears perk up at the words "berry treat", and though she was paying attention to him before, they have moved to be pointed forward and alert in his direction. "The snowball fight would have been fun on its own, but a berry treat as well?."

She gives him a small smile and though she is speaking in such a way her voice is quiet and controlled you can hear the excitement in it, "How dare you tempt me with such a delight! Shame on you for winning too."

She laughs quietly again while preparing to begin dragging the carcass again, a small excitement present in her features now, "You have known me for such a small time and yet you spoil me. With that as my reward, I am ready to get this finished whenever you are."  

[NymiiNym]

He grinned ear to ear, laughing merrily. It was the least he could go, really!

"Count it as a favor returned," he answered, tail wagging rapidly as he nodded and returned to the task of dragging the kill. Together they reached the spot relatively quickly, although Calico could feel his jaw protesting. Once they had tossed it into a hole he stepped back, exhaling sharply as he stretched his jaw.

"Wow, this is my workout for the day," he mumbled before padding to grab the second, checking behind him to ensure she was okay and ready.

"How's your jaw? Mine's totally killing me. Do you think the Healers might have herbs for that?" He was half serious, laughing as he bounced in the snow briefly, gently kicking up snow her way. "We're almost done, and then I can quickly scoop up that treat!" He licked his lips, grin reappearing at the memory of the sweet concoction. He was sure she'd love it.

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

She rubs at her jaw, and then stretches it, repeating the process until the strain seems to slip away. She laughs at his comment, and follows him to the next deer. Giving him a nod as a sign that she's ready whenever he was, she was about to start dragging again when he continued on with his question.

She paused in her ministrations and looks at him,"Oh, my jaw is fine. It will probably be a little sore later, but nothing too bad."

She didn't quite catch on the the joking side of his question, always one to take health in a serious light. She answer's honestly, "And yes, they do actually. It's mostly stuff for swelling and strain from over use, but just a little bit of those can actually help in the recovery of muscles that get used often."

She shakes her head making sure any snow that would have gotten on her face from his playfulness shakes off. She makes a mental note to get him back for that once their done with the job, and then smiles at the thought of the sweet he has in store for her. "Well then, let's get this done."

Once again, she takes the lead grabbing the deer and hefting it over the ground. She probably takes more of the weight on than is strictly necessary this time: wanting to get to the dessert sooner rather than later. They dropped the carcass into the next hole, and with quick efficiency she begins to cover them with the surrounding snow.

She takes a break to look at him and remembers the state of his paws, "Why don't you rest? You did a lot of this by yourself earlier, and I can finish this up rather quickly."  

[NymiiNym]

Calico left out a short huff of amusement as she began to honestly answer his joke, ears twitching. Well, he might as well stop by the Healers den after.

The next trip seemed to go faster, and for a moment Calico wondered if she was shouldering most of the weight. They deposited the carcass and he flopped into the snow, welcoming the sharp cold against his heated skin. It seemed Comet had a similar idea, and with her request he glanced up, tail flicking.

"If you're sure," he answered, having intended to immediately get up until she spoke. His paws folded, digging them into the snow for relief as he settled into the white sheet, watching her. He had seen her before; a few times in fact. She clearly looked like her father. If he hadn't been told who she was related to he would have known in an instant.

"It's going to snow for awhile, it looks like," Calico murmured, half to her half to the sky. His head raised, ears twitching as a snowflake drifted onto his nose.

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

Her movements slow down as she looks at him when he speaks, she smiles as she witnesses the snow flake place itself on his nose. There's just something ridiculous and yet great about it that she can't help it. She goes back to her covering as she speaks, "Yes, it seems that way. I hope it doesn't last for too long though."

She finishes covering the first deer and begins her way to the second hole. She stands in the middle of his view on the way back and simply boops his nose with her cold paw. She holds it there for just a spilt second for the cold to settle in his nose from it and then returns to her trotting to the second hole, gently kicking snow towards him as a little payback and then some for earlier.

She continues to speak while she works up to continue as if she was innocent in all her actions, "I don't mind it so much, but I do vastly prefer the warmth of summer and early fall to any type of cold."  

[NymiiNym]

When she stood in his view he gasped in surprise, eyes shutting tight as cold met his nose. Oof! He shook his head, trying to free himself from the sharp feeling as his eyes narrowed her way, body lowering in a play stance. Once she had settled in the second hole he lunged, swiftly kicking up a light sheet of snow her way with a sharp bark of a laugh.

"Summer is nice, but then I wouldn't get to do this," he answered, tossing snow lightly in the air. His tail wagged lightly as he approached, helping cover the second hole.

"I'm going to be frozen at this point," he joked lightly, shaking off snow drops before returning to his work.

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

When the snow hit her side and back she froze. She slowly turns her head to watch him display he playfulness and then walk by her side, eyes following him the whole time.

Oh, he's gonna get frozen alright. Just wait till we are done Calico, you have launched a war.

"That's unfortunate, if you enjoy the season so much. Would be a shame to see happen though." She's laughs a little, as she continues to cover the deer.

"Weren't you supposed to be taking a break?" She questions but with his help it moves along faster. She was genuinely concerned over his paws, however it's not her place to tell him no. If they end up cracking from the cold work walking was going to be torture for him though.

They finish up, with her moving quickly so he can get his paws some rest, and she sits back. She looks around for a split second to see if she can put her plan into action, when she looks back at him she smiles, "Ready to go get warmed up and try the berry treat?"  

[NymiiNym]

Was he supposed to take a break? He laughed shortly, head shaking as he shrugged her way. He wasn't likely to just leave someone else to work without help! Once the work was done he curled up in the snow, tail idly flicking snow left and right as he examined his paws. Ouch. An ear flicked at her question, head raising to meet her gaze.

"Absolutely! Are you ready?" Hopefully she would like the treat itself or else he'd feel bad for making her work as hard as she had. He bounced from his spot, shaking off snow.

"Lets head over," he hummed softly, turning with zero clue to what her dastardly plan was.

 

[CaeddaMorningstar]

She smiled as she shook some of the snow off her coat and then followed when he began to lead the way. Her eyes lit up behind him when she got confirmation that the direction they were heading was exactly where she wanted to go.

There was a thin tree just barely holding up a ton of snow, a quick way to get snow piled on her target and she couldn't wait to see his face. She sped up her pace to where she walking more or less beside him, and distracted him from the obvious plan she had in mind. She kept some small talk up, asking him about something mundane like his favorite color or spice, keeping his attention until she could enact her plan.

When the time had come she had taken a second to scratch and itch she had and then pretended to lose her balance in the snow. She collided with the tree of her choice, and when he got pelted in snow she brought shock to her face: trying her best to act out innocence she did not have. Yes!

She she stood back up, taking her weight away from the tree and heard a second rustle of impending snow fall. Her faked expression soon became real as she looked up immediately to be doused with the fluffy ice. She stood there, shocked at the flakes covering her pelt, her jaw hanging open for Calico to witness.

He could very quietly hear the embarrassment and confusion in her whisper, "Oh my gosh."  

[NymiiNym]

Small talk became chatter as the two traveled back. Calico enjoyed a good conversation, eagerly offering up any information she requested and in turn repeating her questions. It was good to speak to someone else. Silky was usually his companion for the evening and he hadn't quite yet bonded with anyone else. He had wanted to, of course, but being the only cook with winter quickly surrounding them he had so much to do. He both dreaded the day he'd have someone helping him in the form of another Cook and prayed for it. Sure, he knew creative clashes were bound to happen, but having another helpful set of paws would be nice.

Until then he was bound to his duties of preserving the food and seasoning; alone. Had Big Bad noticed and sent along Black Comet to provide a new friend? Or was he simply seeking anything that passed him to assist the male? Regardless of the reasoning he was glad Black Comet had been sent over, truthfully.

And then suddenly chaos collided with their day.

In what he assumed was a break to itch abruptly turned into a flurry of snow dumping straight on Calico. He barked sharply in alarm, flattening under the weight. COLD! His teeth clattered together as his head popped up from the pile, ears pulled back as he suspiciously narrowed his eyes at Comet. Had that been intentional? He squirmed out of his trap, about to catapult his own response when suddenly Comet was encased in snow herself. He froze, in both ways, before a laugh burst from his mouth.

"Oh no -- I'm stuck between pity and feeling as if it was deserved," he laughed, shaking off the snow that pulled his fur down before pouncing before Comet, pawing to help her free.

"That was cruel," he teased, although his skin ached coldly in answer. Wow, suddenly he took back his comments about enjoying winter. "Now you look like an entirely different wolf," he added, although he couldn't say much as he was in a similar state.