Week Three - Sheep Sheering

The sound of yelling in the distance reached her ears. She looked up in the direction of the noise, curious. Together with the shouting came the smell of people and creatures, both repelling and alluring. Still, she could feel how hollow her stomach was, and she could almost count the days since she had last eaten - though at the moment numbers were very vague and senseless. The wolf had gripped her harder and closer as she starved, instincts flooding what humanity she had clung to. There was no way she would be able to think rationally.

I hunkered low, my tail sticking straight out, and tried to figure out more about what was going on. Despite sniffing at the incoming air for some time I wasn't able to figure out anything more than that there was a large gathering of people and livestock. If I was able to get closer I might be able to see what was going on. Decided, I padded quietly through the forest. I didn't know where this pack was located but I knew I could trust my nose to guide me, and that they were most likely in the same direction that the wind was coming from.

The tracking was simple, and the distance not too great, so that she reached the edge of the grounds within a few minutes. There, she could now see that there were a lot more humans than she had initially thought. However, to her delight, there were also a lot more animals. Cows, chickens, pigs, and sheep were all spread around the grounds with little attention being paid to them. All she had to do was get into the pens and then drag off the animal. Simple enough.

I listened intently, my ears pricking up to catch any sign of my opportunity. The closest things to me were cows, but I didn't want to be battling a fully grown cow at the moment. Starving as I was, I knew I couldn't take it down by myself and I had no pack to aid me. A pig or chicken would make too much noise. That left the sheep. My nose twitched and a corner of my mouth rose. I hated dealing with the wool, it always got stuck in my teeth and nose and eyes. Still, the meat would be well worth that struggle.

Luck was with her, as she discovered, for at that moment there were a large group of humans surrounding an area from where sheep's calls could be heard. Fuzzy clumps were scattered by passing people and by the slight breeze that would sweep through the area now and again. Shaved? The word floated through her head as she knocked one poof of wool away with a hand. Better for her, then, since there would be less wool to deal with.

I tried to step as lightly as I could, determined to not attract attention unless I must. My target was a slightly smaller sheep near the edge of the pen, the wool had been fully removed from it and it was staring away from me. The wind was to my favour, blowing towards me so the sheep were blind to my presence. I crept closer until I was right next to the fence. The sheep still didn't notice me, so I struck.

She leapt over the fence, using one hand as a pivot to push herself past the sheep. The thing was startled and about to cry when she fell on it, her jaws snapping shut on its throat. A vibration ran through the animals throat and into her head but she just bit down harder, silencing it. With blood leaking from the animal's throat and down her own neck, she looked at the fence again. No good, she couldn't drag the dead animal over it. There was no way out except for the gate - and that meant running into the crowd of people.

I knew they would be after me soon anyway, and so I decided that moving now was better than running later. The sheep was heavy but I dragged it on, my jaw starting to ache and I propelled our two bodies through the open gate and into the middle of everything. There was a moment of silence before the world exploded around me. Screams, yells, sheers, hats, everything rose into the air and were hurled at me. I kept running, kept dragging my prize alongside me, hoping I would be able to find a gap to leap out of this madness and get clear. I found it, finally, between a stunned man and a screaming girl. People were blocked by the two forms and that allowed me to race between them, teeth still locked in the throat of my prey.

She ran out into the woods, thankfully not being followed. At one point she thought she heard a gunshot, but couldn't be sure. For all she knew, that could be her paranoia causing her to hear things. All she knew for certain was that she had finally caught food. Letting the sheep fall to the ground, she crouched beside it and started to tear into the carcass. Blood welled beneath her teeth and hands as an instinct deeper than that of the wolf caused her to tear the flesh from the bones using her hands. Alone, she settled to her feast.