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 Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 8:43 am
 Patience. It took patience to wait for a decent meal, sometimes. Marshrush stood at the edge of a mostly clear pond, waiting for the little mud-skipping fish to come out of hiding beneath a gnarl of root. Once it did, he would have his supper, and that would be that. No more waiting, no more rumbling stomach. He could move on to other things. Food came first. Or would have, if the stillness hadn't been interrupted by the hoof-fall of another kimeti. A vibration so faint that most wouldn't notice, but Marshrush had been staring at the water, saw the little ripple that shivered across the surface and knew the fish felt it. He'd have to wait even longer now. So he lifted his head, exhaling sharply, and looked for the one with the clumsy hooves. "If you've come for food, don't bother waiting here. You'll go hungry."
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Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 9:10 am
 My Tracks had been walking for what was little more than a few hours since she left her den. It was a ritual for her, to go wherever her hooves deigned interesting, to trod wherever she hadn't with the certainty as if she had. Her wandering eventually took its toll on her, and her throat felt parched. She'd taken to searching for a cool drink to quench her thirst and when she finally did spot a pond, she intended to pay the buck standing by the water's edge no mind as she approached. But he addressed her and she was now obligated to respond. Her ears flicked in annoyance, "I came to drink," she replied, continuing towards the water. "Or shouldn't I bother with that as well?" She eyed him, a brow raised questioningly.
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Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 2:13 pm
"Not from this pool," Marshrush answered without so much as a tail flick. "There's a fish in this pool and it's mine." It would be when things got still and quiet again, anyway. Who knew how many more hours he'd have to stand over the water for that. His ankles were beginning to ache.
He twisted his neck, though, craned it a bit, and spotted a smaller pool half a dozen paces away. "Looks like there's clear water there." Mostly clear at least. Drinkably clear. Probably. He flicked an ear in that direction, pointing the way.
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Posted: Fri Aug 20, 2010 7:31 pm
My Tracks should have simply nodded her head and headed for the smaller pool to leave the buck to his hunt. But why should she have to take the extra effort when she was thirsty enough as it was? She tossed her mane with a haughty huff, "I'm not interested in fish," she declared. Then added "For the moment. I just want to drink."
She made it perfectly clear, by the way her gait grew heavier, that she had no intention of leaving this pond until she quenched her thirst.
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Posted: Sat Aug 21, 2010 9:37 am
She wasn't leaving. She could be as dry as an old branch, for all the concern Marshrush felt. She could be dry anywhere, not just at the edge of the pool he'd staked out. Heavier footfalls just meant that the antsy little skipper would wait even longer now to come out of hiding.
Marshrush stared at the water. Stared at the doe. Stared at the water and gave in with a sigh, pulling back to get his hooves out of the water, at least. If he was waiting, no reason to soak longer. "Stomping around means it won't come out at all. Not for either of us, interested or not." Something she should have known.
Still, since opportunity had slipped away from him for now, he nodded toward the pool. "Might as well drink your fill. Couldn't scare it any more, now."
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Posted: Sat Aug 21, 2010 9:55 am
The doe wasn't interested in the fish. She still wasn't interested in it. She'd only suggested it because she did not suffer refusal very well especially when the pool in and of itself belonged to everyone. And as everyone included her, My Tracks reasoned (mostly to herself) that the buck had no right to tell her to go elsewhere. But she wasn't about to tell him that.
So instead, she marched up to the water and leaned down to do as she intended. Once her throat was no longer parched, she raised her head to scan the water for signs of the supposed fish. "Perhaps the fish can be scared out of hiding if it thought it was no longer safe to stay put," she casually thought out loud. Of course such a tactic would only work if there was someone was ready and waiting for the fish's forced eviction.
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Posted: Thu Aug 26, 2010 8:35 am
The buck's ears twitched and he looked at the water again. The skipper had no doubt practically buried itself in mud by now. A glance up at the doe and he asked, "Going to try stomping it out of there? You'll step on it." He would, anyway, given his luck today. "Mash it even deeper into the mud. That or pound it into pieces..."Pieces would make it easier to share. Not that he had plans to share. She said she didn't want the fish. Still, he wouldn't miss a piece if it was already torn into shares and she happened to take one. He guessed. It would only be fair if she stomped it.
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Posted: Sat Sep 25, 2010 3:58 am
My Tracks let out an undignified snort at his statement, red eyes narrowing at him. "I will not step on it!" Even if it was very, very likely she would as the doe had an unconsciously heavy gait to begin with. With a flick of her ears and an agitated swish of her tail, she marched into the water none too gracefully. "I'll show you! Just be ready to catch it when it comes darting out," she huffed, wading through the water, hooves pounding into the water-soaked soil of the pool. Subtlety was clearly the last thing she had in mind.
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