A New Hunter

[bullseye14]

Porthos stalked quietly through the new land, giant paws making barely a sound. Other cats had been here, that was true. Was one of them a male? Yes, yes he thought so. Ooo, a challenge! How exciting. He hadn't had a good fight in a while.

The tawny cougar had spent a bit of time wandering the land, searching for some prey, but all he had found was horses and deer - all of which had been in groups. That was no good. He had even visited a mountain range, but had no luck in finding his favorite food - the Bighorn Sheep. Of course, he hadn't found any Mountain Goats either. He preferred the former, because of the small amount of hair on their bodies, but the other worked in a pinch. The best thing about the Mountain Goats and Bighorn Sheep was the adrenaline rush he got when chasing them - they always led him up tall mountain faces. Deer weren't that much fun, though. Sure, they jumped and leapt over things, but they were easy to cut down. However, he would have to eat eventually and they would have to do.

For now, though, the large cat was determined to find the source of the Puma scents and possibly harass them, if he felt it necessary. Porthos moved along so quietly that he even began to doubt his presence. He stalked through the shadows, avoiding the spring sun for fear that it would give him away. The cougar saw the mouth of a cave and was approaching it as quietly as mortally possibly, hoping to sneak up on - "snap!" Oh bother, he'd trod on a twig. Now what?

[Swede]

Tsaara lay in the cave, resting. She had recently taken down a young stallion, one who had been weak and given little fight. A very easy kill, and one that had brought her condition back up to par. She was brooding on Argon's abandonment, and had absolutely no wish to be disturbed. So when she heard the snap of a twig outside, her head lifted and her lips curled back in a silent snarl. Her sleek body rose lithely, toned muscles rippling beneath her silvery coat, and she paced to the mouth of her cave. Her amber eyes smoldered at the sight of the intruder.

Taking an easy step into the light, she flattened her ears against her head and addressed him directly. "Leave if you know what's good for you," she snarled, menace in every tone. "This is my land and I will not be tolerating any foreigners here." She was angry; he had much cheek in waltzing into her woods, her cliffs, and threatening her space.

[bullseye14]

Porthos' brown eyes scanned over the female cougar's body. He was not too big on spending time with other cats, but he never objected to seeing a fine-looking female every now and again. This tawny cat was the perfect example of a cougar in its prime. Long, snake-like tail swishing lazily, he casually stepped closer to the female Mountain Lion. "Good day to you too, ma'am. If I may say so, it's quite a pleasure to run into such a fine-looking female." Was he flirting? Nah, just blowing smoke; flattering. "Your land, you say? How is it that you are so lucky as to have such a fine land to yourself?" Okay, he really didn't consider the land all that fine, but he did want to stick around long enough to find out if there was another male cat. He was feeling like a fight today.

[Swede]

Her amber eyes narrowed, and she hissed. "Shut up," she spat at him. This was ridiculous; he was behaving almost as Argon had, when she'd first met him. False flattering, sugar-coated lies. That stupid idiot; he had waltzed into her territory, haughty as you please, eaten from her kill, and then attacked her. And yet he had somehow stolen her heart. Well, I won't let it happen again. This one was even more presumptious.

"Lucky? No luck involved. I claimed it, I've defended it against a plethora of intruders. And I'll keep you out too. Final warning: get out. Now." Her dappled back arched, and the puma gave him a snarling glance. Tsaara wasn't in the mood for games, and if he continued to taunt her, he would suffer for it.

[bullseye14]

Porthos jerked with surprise. Who had soured this female's meat? By now, he had figured out that there wasn't a male in the picture - he would have joined them by now if there had been one. Was that the reason for the p*ssy female? Was she just intent on defending the land on her own? He supposed that he would just have to pick a fight with her. What a shame - he had been looking for a real fight. He had never fought with a female, but he doubted she could give it to him. Still, couldn't hurt to try.

"Now, now, you really should exercise some manners, m'lady. I haven't done anything to harm you have I?" he snarled, crouching lower to the ground, ready to pounce. Who would strike the first blow?

[Swede]

She laughed shortly. "Manners? Pot kettle black, kitten. Remember, you never asked permission to come prancing through here, and you still haven't taken the hint and left. A gentleman would never intrude on a lady's space, would he now?" Quite abruptly, Tsaara's demeanor stiffened angrily. "Very well, kitten. But if you insist on making things complicated, allow me to make this plain. You are not the first who has disdained me. Many have considered themselves my superior. Well, I don't know what sort of females they have where you're from, but they must be pathetic things. My kind are better than that." She snarled at him, glaring at him unblinkingly. She was no weakling, nor would she be treated like one. She was queen of the forests, not one to be taken lightly. This was just another stupid male who considered himself high and mighty. Another one of those idiots who would walk away, tail between his legs. She never lightened a blow.

[bullseye14]

Okay, so she had a point. Porthos was the one intruding on her territory, not the other way around. But how was a cat to get some territory of his own without challenging for it? Did it really matter that he would stay for a few months and then move on? Not if he won, it didn't. 'Shame, really, that I have to challenge such a pretty cat. She really is delightful to look at - I hope I don't leave any scars...'

Porthos would be the first to admit that this femme was no weakling. She was powerful, fit, angry and full of attitude, which would make for quite the challenge. The male cat was up to it, though. He had challenged bigger and stronger cats than her; and most of them were males.

"Now, challenging you wouldn't be much fun if you were the pathetic kind, would it?" he sneered.

[Swede]

She gave him a smirk of her own. "You're even dumber than I thought." So he wanted fun? Well, he wouldn't find it here. Not with Tsaara. She wasn't fun; she was vicious. Perhaps he would change his mind when her fangs were sunk deep in his neck. Her eyes flickered, voice layered with amusement. "Tell me," she said mockingly, "Have you ever bothered to try fighting a female? Or are you one of those who thinks that males are always stronger, more dangerous? Because then you have been sadly misled. Fighting males is easy; females, however, typically fight with both strength and intelligence, rather than, well..." her smile grew wider. Strength, they call it... but I wonder... it's a rare thing to find a male with any such thing in him... But she allowed herself to keep that remark silent, taunting him in her mind.

Still mirthful, the lioness said, "Challenging, are we? You should have just come right out and said so. That way, you would already be gone by this point, and I could go about my business as usual. Unless you aren't sure? Feel free to back out, kitten. You won't get a chance later." The corner of her mouth twitched again, the tiniest of smiles revealing itself.

[bullseye14]

Porthos matched her laugh with one of his own. "Strength and intelligence, eh? You say that as if males don't fight with the same. Unless, of course, you've never fought a male? You see, females may be strong and smart by, say, an herbivores standards but I've never fought one that can match the strength of a male cat." The male cat remained crouched down, prepared to meet her attack with one of his own. Surely her temper would boil over any moment now? "Maybe you'll change that, though. You seem to be rather... talented," he smirked. Porthos, back down from a fight? Never. Maybe he was being foolish, maybe he was being a jerk, but a cat had to live and, for now at least, Sunshine River was where this cat wanted to reside.

[Swede]

Tsaara snarled again. "Idiot. I've fought more males than I care to count. All of them were just as c.ocky as you. None of them lived up to their looks. And I doubt you will be any different." She rolled her eyes. Typical male behavior; always so egotistical, heads full of hot air. And then she came along and punctured them. But by now, she was frankly sick of this moron. He had been trespassing for too long, this episode was getting dragged out. My dear, you are getting soft. You used to just chase them out without another word. But there was always that hope that Argon would return, that he had not vanished forever. Foolish hopes; she hardened her heart against them. She was a lioness, no weakling. Memories of the past belonged behind her, futile longing played no part in her life. Her eyes narrowed, staring intently at this intruder; then, swiftly, silently, she attacked. Her lithe body sprang from the ledge, jaws opening wide, fangs glinting, claws extended. It was time to end this.



ooc: blah.

[bullseye14]

Porthos had been expecting the attack, and yet, for some reason, it came as a surprise. Maybe it was the fact that he had almost convinced himself that he liked this femme -or maybe it was that he was arrogant enough to believe that he was winning her over. Either way, he had subconsciously half expected he and this female fall in love and settle down with each other. What kind of irrational thought was that? Love would never happen between the two; not now, not ever as far as he was concerned.

And so it was that he was found scrambling away from the slicing claws and biting teeth of the other cat, barely jumping out of her way in time. In fact, he was sure he felt her shoulder brush against his side as he dodged to his right. So much for pouncing at her or meeting her attack. This female was surely going to provide a challenge of the likes he had rarely ever seen. Emitting a seemingly angry roar, Porthos wheeled around and faced the female cat, once again admiring her lithe form. 'Perfection,' he foolishly thought. This male cougar was so confident in his fighting abilities that he doubted he would ever taste the bitterness of defeat. But it was quite possible that fate had defeat in store for him nonetheless....

[Swede]

Tsaara landed on her feet, and spun to face her opponent. The lioness paced back and forth, silently, eyes searching. She was watching him, taking in the slightest twitch of muscle, looking for a way to get at him and watching for any impending attack. Her claws were still extended, prepared to slash through tender, living flesh, to break fragile skin and let the warm blood seep out. He was a cougar, and therefore inherently more intelligent than those idiot herbivores; though she still didn't rate him much higher than a rabbit. She never blinked, never missed a movement. She was ready for whatever he decided to throw at her.

[bullseye14]

Unlike his opponent, Porthos chose to stand still and watch her every move. Pacing had never been his style, which was weird for a cat. He preferred to save his energy for the fight instead of wasting it on mindless walking. For several minutes he stood, eyes locked on Tsaara, claws extended and mouth hanging slightly open. The warm summer air was completely still - not even a single leaf on the trees moved. In fact, the only movement in the vicinity was the female cat's as she paced back and forth, back and forth. Were he fainthearted, the loathing in her glare would have made Porthos tremble. She sure was peeved off at him. Had she always been like that or had something or someone created this reclusive cat?

He wanted to be patient, but the adrenaline pumping through his body pushed Porthos' mind to be hasty. Momentarily, he crouched, giving himself the leverage that he needed and then he attacked. A mighty scream ripped through the air as he soared, razor-like claws flashing, toward the femme.

[Swede]

His stillness irked her. When hunting, she could lie motionless for hours in the underbrush, quite patient. But when fighting, movement kept her blood flowing, her muscles warm, mind clear, sense alert. Tsaara She had seen the slight tensing of muscles on his part, but he was swift enough that she barely caught him in time. She reared back on her haunches, hissing madly, and met his battering paws with massive swipes of her own. His momentum was more than she had bargained for, however, and the trespasser's claws snagged across her shoulder. She slashed towards him in an effort to disengage. Three steps backward, just out of range, and she glanced to her left. A pair of symmetrical, parallel lines, beaded with red. So he gets first blood. But the lioness would get the last. The pain was faint, as though coming down a far tunnel, imperceptible and easily ignored. With a snarl, she leapt towards him, fangs gleaming and claws seeking living flesh to sink into.

[bullseye14]

The femme's counter-attack was expected, but her motions were still enough to throw Porthos off course a bit. Hey, it was hard for a cat to keep his balance in mid-air, so he couldn't be judged. At one point, the female land a nasty blow on the tawny male's foreleg - she did not hit him with her claws, but it was hard enough to leave his leg aching. Porthos landed from his attack, stumbling a bit as he did so. Ignoring the slight ache of the blow, he again faced his opponent, happy to see the blood blossoming on her shoulder. 'First blood!' he though.

In a flash, Tsaara had launched herself toward the male cougar again, lips drawn back to reveal her ivory teeth. This time he was prepared for it and instead of fumbling out of range like an i.diot, he rose to the challenge. Raising himself on his back legs, he met the female's attack with a roar. Unfortunately, one of her slashing paws broke through his defences and caught him on his short muzzle, just below the left eye. Porthos leapt to his right and out of her range, thinking 'That was close' as he went. It had not taken the other cat long to draw his blood, but he thought to himself that he would to his best to prevent her from touching him with her claws again. This cat was strong, but he was a male - surely that gave him some advantage?

Not wanting the other cat to get another blow in, Porthos darted toward her, lashing out with his claws momentarily before jumping backward.

[Swede]

She hissed angrily. He was arrogant, this one; seemed to be laboring under the belief that, as male, he was supposed to win, deserved to win. His stance, the look in his eyes, all said the same thing to her. But he, like so many others, would be re-educated. And he would bear physical reminders to show for it. Tsaara allowed a hint of satisfaction to creep into her mind at the sight of his own blood wetting the fur on his face. But it did not distort her focus. She would not celebrate until he was either miles away, or dead by her paw.

His attack was to be expected; this was a fight, after all. She was prepared for it, and all she really got was some battering on the leg that rose to protect her. What really puzzled her was the instantaneous backing away. Was he a coward as well? He had sustained no damage at all, and yet fled as soon as he attacked. Well, that was not her business if he was afraid; in fact, it was good. Fear led to mistakes; he wouldn't be as difficult as she'd expected, after all his talk. The cat almost smiled- almost. This fight was not yet won.

She took advantage of his retreat to gain momentum in pursuit, hind claws providing ample traction in the soft, loamy soil. Rather than leaping at him, she aimed low, body hugging the ground as she sprang, aiming for fragile throats and soft underbellies. And if he protected himself from that, well, maybe she could take a chunk out of his leg instead. He wasn't providing much fight; this was practically like hunting. All she had to do was bring him down.

[bullseye14]

The strike and run routine didn't appear to have done much good - his paw had struck her leg, but nothing more. Porthos was thinking out a new approach when the femme attacked, this time rushing for his throat insted of pouncing into the air. Unlike the first time, Porthos did not retreat, but met her head on, lashing his knife-like claws toward her face, her legs, her neck - in short, anything he could reach. Malice glinted in her intelligent eyes as he met them for just one moment. There was a history there, a tragic one, filled with love and loss. But that was not his business, not today. Had the two been more civil when they had first met, they may have walked and talked together - sharing their life stories as they went. Civility, however, was never going to happen. Not as long as the two were busy battering each other around, drawing blood and rejoicing in it.

Porthos felt his paws make contact with flesh and fur, though he wasn't really sure what he had hit. He just hoped he had defended himself from the razor claws of the femme - the last thing he needed on his record was a defeat made by a female cougar.

[Swede]

A scream erupted from her angry throat as pain spread along her jaw line and upper shoulder. He had vicious claws, she would give him that much. But surrender was not a part of Tsaara's plans; these were her lands, and no stranger was going to waltz in and drive her out. Pain or no pain, she had no choice but to continue on. The lioness's pride simply couldn't take a defeat on her home territory.

She spent perhaps a second, channeling the pain into pure hatred. Then, her massive paw swiped furiously at the stranger, claws extended like the razors they were. She attacked viciously, biting and slashing whatever she could reach, listening for a telltale whimper of pain or crack of bone, scenting the air for fresh blood, any sign that she was causing damage. She wanted him out, out, and was quite prepared to kill him if he refused.

[bullseye14]

Porthos had barely registered the femme's scream when she lunged at him. The tawny male hissed and met her furious attack, but regretted it a moment later when he felt her razor-like claws rip his chest open and then felt her ivory teeth tear precious fur from his scapula. He managed half a scream before angry claws again found his skin - this time slashing his muzzle wide open. Things had suddenly taken a turn for the worse. Porthos backed away from the other cat, attempting to defend himself with his own claws the entire time. The female's forelegs seemed to follow him everywhere, though and he was soon bleeding in multiple places. But the straw that broke the camel's back wasn't blood - it was the crunch of his ribs. A splitting pain ripped through Porthos's body, starting with his side and flaring to every fiber of his being. Tsaara had broken one of Porthos's rib which was just enough to destroy the last of his resolve. As much as the male cat hated it, he had to retreat. He did not stand a chance against the angry femme.... but he would be back. He'd swear to that fact. One day he would come back and take this territory for his own. No one beat Porthos more than one. NO ONE.

[Swede]

Tsaara hung back, panting. Her anger had made quite an impact, but it came at a price. The offensive had won, but she had not been able to defend herself against his counterattacks, and as a result frightening slashes marked her face and shoulders. The panthress paced back and forth across the tumulted battleground, stopping occasionally to lick a wound or inspect a battered paw. She drew up to a halt, amber eyes focused intently on the male cat. "You should have listened to me," she hissed, "And left when I gave you the chance. Perhaps then we would both be in one piece, and I would be blessedly alone. Next time, I promise you that I will kill you." With that warning hanging in the air, she turned and swept back up the short incline into the cool depths of her cave.

[bullseye14]

Porthos hissed at the female's retreating form. He had half a mind to pounce on her and have done with it, but he controlled himself. His injuries were the reason he had ended the fight to begin with, so why would he even consider starting another one? Limping the entire time, the cat ran until he reached a point that he knew he was safe. There the male cougar stopped to nurse his injured body and wounded pride. How could he let a female cat beat him? How?

(OOC: Bad, bad post, but oh well!
I s'pose I'll use Porthos to harass some horse herds (with their permission) for a while. Not much else to do with him until he's healed.)

[Swede]

ooc: okiedokie, in that case I'll lock 'er up!