The warmth of a new spring. The snow thawing from everywhere but the highest peaks of Lost River, the scents emerging fresh from the growing grass, the leaves and grass and twigs that were originally hidden under a crisp blanket of white, sparkling snow, but were now poking up through the cold to show their faces.

The Long Broken was on its way to that time, though still frost covered the rough bark of the dead trees. Fell yawned, curled up close to a warming rock, though the chill seeped through her fur to her skin. Her brother, Upland, was close, pressed up against her flank. That helped ward off the cold a bit. Lifting her head, she observed the chilly morning. Fog settled heavily in dips in the ground, and the bases of the trees were obscured by it. The cold stung Fell's nose, and she was tempted to tuck it back under her tail and fall back asleep.

A realization came with a thrill of excitement, and sleep was forgotten. She would be hunting today! Her first hunt unguided by her mother and father! Of course, Tor and Colston would be watching to make sure she didn't get too hurt, but still! She turned her head and nosed Upland, who let out a small woof of protest. The yearling nudged harder, and Upland lifted his head, blinking at his sister with amber eyes, nearly at their full intensity now that they practically looked like full grown wolves.

"Fell, what in Lost River-?" He muttered, squinting at her through sleep-glazed eyes. The light tan yearling placed her lanky paws over Upland's shoulders, grinning.
"Hunting! We're going on our own hunt today!" She panted happily, her warm breath coming out in small puffs of air. Immediately, her brother's eyes lit up and he shouldered her off of him. Upland shook out his coat, prancing on the hard rock below his paws.

"Hunting! I nearly forgot! And Mother and Father won't lead it this time!" Upland bounded down the frost-sheathed slope, his paws flinging up cold earth in his excitement. Fell chuckled lightly shaking out the frost from the tips of her own guard hairs, which were coming along nicely, light tan, nearly like her mother's, and trotted down the hill after her brother at a steady pace.

Tor and Colston's scent trail from the earlier morning was faded by the cold, as well as the thawing snow, but the small imprints that were left were fairly easy to follow. Upland sprang ahead, his tail held up high as he bounded along the trail, stopping only when Fell had fallen behind too much.
The pawprints in the cold, stiff grass were easy to see, and Fell leapt ahead as the scent grew stronger, seeing her mother, Tor, sitting at the edge of the expanse of the broken trees.

Her head turned, her amber eyes turning to her two pups. Tor's tail thumped softly against the cold ground, and she nodded for Fell and Upland to come up beside her. Upland shouldered past his sister, panting and hardly noticing his breath puffing out into the open sky. Fell padded up beside him, giving a well-earned, but good-natured, nip behind an ear, and Tor barked a small warning to her daughter.

"Fell, play nice. You aren't pups any more, your hunting teeth are coming in now." Said their mother in a stern voice, though her eyes still smiled. Fell huffed and sat down, scratching at a burr that had caught in the underside of her coat. "We found the scent trail of an elk herd. They're low on numbers, and frailer from the long winter, but still be careful, okay?" Tor leaned toward her pups, showering the two yearlings in rough licks. Fell yelped in protest, still sounding more pup-ish than she'd like, and pulled away, rubbing a paw over where her mother had ruffled the tawny fur.

"We'll be fine! I promise!" She growled, but was glad that Tor would be there to watch them. Upland was reassuring their mother, but something caught Fell's attention. Colston, or at least, the absence of her father.

"Where's Colston?" Fell interrupted her brother, turning back to Tor. The yearling's ears flicked back. Fell and Upland's father had never really paid attention to them much as pups. Sure, he'd protected the den when strangers and predators came to raid it, and held up the territory. However, Tor had always been the one to play with them or bring back extra things, when she could. Oftentimes, the pups' mother would be working on territory as well, leaving the two to come up with their own games and comfort. It brought her and her brother closer together, Fell supposed. Still, that nagging hope that today would be the day where her father finally saw her for what kind of a wolf she could be, and not just a pup, was tugging at her fur.

Her mother flicked an ear, then nodded down the slope toward the heavily forested area below. Fell could only barely see the grass bent and broken around the trail where Tor must be implying her father went. A hard determination filled the yearling, and she nodded. "We'll keep safe, Mother!" Fell promised, trying to sound mature. What came out was more of a pup-like yip than she'd wanted, but Tor stood up proudly and nuzzled the side of her daughter's face. Fell took a step back and glanced back down the slope into the fir trees where the elk herd awaited them. Upland was already edging along the trail, impatience kicking at his paws. Fell took a few steps, then picked up the pace to follow the elk scent. Her mother barked out as she disappeared into the shadowed, cold forest.

"Good hunting, you two!"

The chill of the cold, spring morning was thicker here, where the sunlight only dappled the forest floor, the shadows of the trees falling over the two yearling's coats. Fell's tail swished and after a few minutes of following the obvious tracks of the small elk herd -- the broken twigs and grass stems, the hoofprints on the softer patches of ground, the scrapes across the bark of trees where an elk had rubbed up against it -- Fell bent down to find the scent. The ungulate's scent trail was strong. They were close. Upland's tail twitched upward, and Fell halted in her tracks, immediately spotting a slight movement ahead. They nearly blended in completely with the forest, the sunlight dappling their hides. Fell could see the elk's breath puff out, just as hers and Upland's was. Living elk, the lifeblood of Lost River.

Fell took in the sight of the elk herd before taking charge. She slowed her pace and walked forward, Upland close to her side. Scanning the elk's ranks, the yearling soon saw one that had clearly had a rough winter. It was frail, though hard to tell with the fur along its neck and flanks so thick from the cold weather. Fell turned to her brother, her pale yellow eyes lighting up. Upland's eyes were bright as well. He'd seen their prey. With a shared nod, the two littermates started toward the elk.

A cow barked out a warning as it saw the two wolves, and the elk were immediately on guard. They didn't move yet, despite their weakened state. Though, with only two yearlings, they could stand their ground. Fell crept closer, and the targeted elk tried to edge closer to its herd, eyeing the two wolves. Upland's paws hit the ground as he took a few quick steps forward, trying to intimidate the herd into fleeing. Their prey would tire quickly, was the shared thought between the two siblings. The bull elk, his antlers shed so there wasn't much more than two small stumps on his head, took a few steps toward Upland as well, and Fell swallowed a whine. They were close to the target elk now, biding their time, breathing quickly, evenly. The elk was breathing quick too, but in short pants of fear.

Another cow that was flanking Fell's prey moved toward the center of the herd. Now was the best chance she and Upland would get. Feinting forward, Fell leapt for the elk's thin legs, teeth bared. Her paws hit the ground; she barely felt them. Grabbing hold of the targeted cow's shoulder, she felt a surge of triumph and dug her teeth into the ungulate.The elk reared up, barking, and Fell saw the blur of Upland as her brother joined in the hunt. The thunder of the herd's hoofbeats sounded in her ears, deafening her momentarily. A hoof struck her hind leg, and she winced, but tried to hold on as her quarry began to flee as well. The elk kicked out its leg, hitting Fell in the stomach. It wasn't fatal, but it broke Fell away from the ungulate's shoulder and she stumbled to the ground. She sprung up quickly, immediately bursting into a run after the elk. Upland was harrying it, nipping at the elk's flank and trying to get it to run off from the herd.

The other elk were pulling ahead, leaving their herdmate to its doom. Fell, ignoring the ache of the strike, surged forward to join her brother, grabbing at the elk's leg. She held tight, the elk now limping as one of its back legs was held in the yearling's jaws. It barked frantically and kicked out, hitting Fell in the cheek. She yelped in pain, stumbling again. Dirt and grass blinded her as she lost her footing, falling, tumbling to a stop and watching the dust thrown up from the herd as it retreated. Upland was still going after the elk, but glanced over his shoulder at his sister, hesitating in his run.

'No, go on ahead- this is our first kill! Just go after the elk!' Fell wanted to call out to her brother, but the shock and pain from the elk's kick kept her from that. Upland took a glance back at the elk, and slowed, turning to Fell. Fell shook her head and pulled herself up, immediately trying to sprint for the elk again. It was gaining ahead despite the wounds, but Fell pushed, nearly stumbling again. Upland blinked in concern as his sister tried for the prey again, and ran to her.
"Fell, no- you're bleeding-"

A gray and brown blur streaked across from the shadows of the fir trees toward Fell's kill, and a wave of disappointment hit the yearling. She slowed beside Upland, panting. The wolf lunged for the elk's throat, bringing it to the ground. Fell debated going to help her father, but she knew that that would only end up with her getting yelled at. It might end up that way anyways. Upland licked at his sister's face, and she winced slightly. The pain was already fading, the blow had been more shock than hurt, and though she could taste a bit of blood in her mouth, nothing was seriously hurt.

Colston stood over the elk, and the ungulate went still as he held it down. With a final bite, the elk was dead. Fell took a couple steps forward. Her father glanced up, disappointment written directly on his face as his cold, yellow eyes fell onto his daughter.