Guardian

Waiting. It was always waiting. In the darkness, to the side - eyes to the parts in the grass, the shadows as the moved. She blended in well so no one seemed to know she was there. She'd gone from open hunting to waiting.

Sitting in the grass to the side, just below the shadows of the trees as the others roamed about her. Passing her easily as she kept still as stone as to not scare them, let alone alert them that she was even there.

Now and then there would be ones that caught her attention, that made those muscles tense to coil. Instinct urging her to stalk after it within those shadows - yet still she remained. Pulled back to that spot by a tether she didn't ask for. Something was wasting away in her but for now she was surviving.

Surviving wasn't just enough - wild creatures need the thrill of the hunt. The adrenaline rush of stalking prey, the thinking on your feet while also thinking twenty steps ahead to capture the prey. Faking it was pointless, once you knew what you could do it was hard to pretend not to want that again. False prey was hard to chase, it wasn't the same as something that was out to keep just out of your reach. Something that was aware of the hunt and would turn the tables, keeping the space between you just to find your weakness and try to use it against you.

So she sat watching, letting the breeze of passing creatures part the tall grass allowing her to see past. Watching them all as they came and went, still as stone in the shadows of the tree. Waiting for something that didn't seem to exist anymore.


Over head in the tree he sat. Guarding her, far more visible then her, intentionally so. His presence kept the others at a set distance. They didn't breach the circle of what they assumed was his jumping reach to them. They all saw the prize below the tree, stilled in the shadows - but they also saw her keeper who kept watch above her.

Unlike her, he wasn't afraid to move when he saw motion, adjusting his position as needed when any thing seemed to find a place where they may slip in to tempt her. Just that gaze down on her and then to the approaching bait - judging if he was going to move or let her handle it.

Now and then he'd simply watch, imposing over them as they skirted close to her. He'd watch curiously on as she remained unmoved, unbaited by whatever it was. Sometimes her head raised which would make him shift to a lower branch, closer to her should she need him. Anymore though she was still, her head eventually lowering back to its place.

So he kept his place above her, watching, protecting to keep her safe - only moving when it seemed something may get too close.



It had been sometime since anything brushed past, some time since the grass parted to show anything beyond a field mouse scampering by. Since her fur had been warmed by the sun, since she moved and stretched those muscles. No longer was it just waiting that now kept her in place, it was uneasy discomfort in if she could still hunt that stilled those muscles.

She longed to stretch out in the meadow and stood finally. Her eyes never moved up from the path ahead of her. Only as ear flickering back as she heard his paws hit the ground behind her - remaining near. She didn't bother to look forward anymore, only the path below her paws as the blades of grass parted allowing her passage.

The warmth of the midday sun rolling across her back was welcomed with a stretch of those front legs and yawn as those muscles relaxed. Each stride helping lessen the tightness that had set in from remaining still for so long. Further to the middle she pushed, she could hear somethings scampering near by - moving out of her way as they saw her, yet they weren't acknowledged by her.

Once she was sure she had found the middle of the space, where the sun would always warm her no matter the time of day she laid back down. Stretching out against the ground, savoring the smell of the crushed grass below her - she rolled in it for a moment, breathing in deep of the earth and savoring the scents. Fresh and clear - something she had missed while hiding under that tree.



Her motion was a surprise, but he wouldn't leave her. As she moved he followed, just a few paces behind. Ears up as he watched the path she took - the space and birth given to them as they moved from that shady tree to the middle of the meadow.

Now it was the others that receded to the shadows, keeping distance in fear over the fact she had finally moved. He could see the curiosity of some, but they soon would see him and only keep moving to where ever they were heading. He was making sure he caught the eye of anyone who lingered on her too long. His gaze telling them to keep moving as she paused.

While she rolled, enjoying the new space - he began making a path around her. Circling at a distance that wouldn't disturb her but that kept the others from thinking about reaching for her. Only now and then did he pause as well to enjoy the sun soaking in to him, relaxing muscles as he afforded the the chance.

It was never for long, as the motion of those who now had to go around kept him moving. Careful calculated pace kept so that no one ever got too close. So no one could see those scars below her fur, so no one could ever cause new ones. Cause even mighty creatures can still be wounded. Something learned the hard way sometimes.