[SRP] Fluffy Thoughts of Cubs

[Kathryn Dragonna]

Athena stretched and listened to something pop as he did so. For most that would be a sign they were getting old, for Athena that was a sign he had a good life. He had run until he could not run anymore, playing with his cubs the day before, and now he was paying for it. His legs burned, his joints popped and yet all the lion could do was grin. This was what made life great.

The big fluffy lion gave himself a shake and stood tall surveying the area around him. Nothing seemed out of place, and the others were all still napping. It was the perfect time to go stretch his legs and think for a while. Maybe he would stay out all day, maybe he would come back within a few hours. Who knew with Athena? He certainly did not know most of the time before he went and did.  

[Kathryn Dragonna]

With the new litter of cubs around, his first litter that he had sired, he was not likely to stay out too long. He wanted to be there for the cubs and was not sure Niade was adjusting to the idea of actually being a mother very well. Perhaps she would decide at some point to stay around and help raise the cubs, perhaps not. He hoped for their sake, Niade would visit them often. Athena did not mind raising them himself; that had been the original agreement anyway.

Athena smiled to himself as he padded through the small group of sleeping forms. Niade was usually near the den as the cubs were not ready for her to leave yet, Zenobia was usually curled up near her son, and the others would scatter themselves wherever they felt like at the time. Most of them stayed close to the main group and thus close to Athena and that made Athena quite happy. He dearly loved the company.  

[Kathryn Dragonna]

Athena was mindful of where he placed his paws as he crept. He did not wish to disturb anyone as he went. They needed their sleep and he wanted to have some time to himself. If he was lucky he would be back before they woke. If not, he would be back shortly after. He was not too concerned. Time was not what really would matter in this.

Skill, both in creeping out unnoticed by the others, and in catching one's prey, would be what truly counted today. Well, not entirely, if one thought about it. Athena did have a nasty habit of charging and barreling his prey over when hunting. That was not really skill so much as dumb luck and too much weight. The male lion would not admit to it being too much weight. He argued it was just fluff.

Athena got to the edge of the sleeping forms and gave a smug grin to himself. Mission one accomplished, now onto mission two. He trotted out into the distance to find himself prey to hunt. Zebra and other such sized animals were a little big for a single lion on his own to take, though Athena had done it before. He would be better off sticking to something a bit smaller and just hunt a couple times before he called it a day.  

[Kathryn Dragonna]

Athena trotted along at a more brisk pace now that he was out of the danger zone on disturbing the others with the noise. He passed a few rocks and a tree along his way. The fluffy lion noted these as landmarks to get back to the others more easily. He also noted the direction he was traveling, of course, but having landmarks made it all the easier to find his way later, especially if he was tired after his hunt.

There were some signs of herds nearby as he went and when he figured he was close enough he could hear them, he crouched down and started creeping slowly again. The grass where he was towered above his crouched form as he moved forward as silently as a shadow. One rather small herd of antelope. There was an older buck lagging behind the others. The younger buck and females seemed more inclined to ignore the creature than anything else.

Athena eyed up a few little ones and then went back to the older male. Best to take that if he could. The others were in too small a group to do much to protect the older male that was falling behind, but they were too clustered to be able to pick out the young without risking being trampled when they panicked. While Athena might be willing to risk a bit of injury to provide for the others, especially his cubs, he did not want to unnecessarily put himself in danger of being killed.  

[Kathryn Dragonna]

Athena waited and watched for a bit. He had to judge his strike for the right time. It would do no one any good if he charged too soon and missed his kill all together. The idea, after all, was to catch his prey so the others and himself had something to eat. Missing just tired him out and gave him nothing to show for it. He especially did not want to get injured and have nothing to show for it. That would have been embarrassing and painful.

While he was watching, Athena saw the gap between lag behind and others get just a little larger, and the older buck came right into a nice position for him to strike. The lion prepared and sprang, sprinting for the target and giving a roar to warn off the rest of the herd. He knocked the buck over, catching the rear of it, since it moved wrong. Had it fallen or some other mishap because of the scare, he might have missed it completely.

Athena pinned down its rear and leaped onto the front haunch. He needed to kill it before it managed to catch him with a hoof or an antler. The antelope kept throwing its head and Athena had to swipe at it with a paw to bat it away from actually getting him. He was not liking how this hunt was turning out. The swipe bought him the time he needed to rip into the throat and end the creature. With a sigh, Athena let it bleed out and when it was done, he started dragging it back to the others. That had been a little closer than he liked, but at least they had a decent meal to show for it.