Tsukistar's Training Grounds

Ettie, sometimes, was a bit of a silly werewolf. A silly werewolf who was prone to getting into trouble, every once in awhile.

Today's incident started out in the Smiley Sands - the pack sheltering from the heat under a sizeable Chromillia. Ruffian, Duchess, and Princess were in a little dogpile amongst the roots - having taken to getting a nap in, before they'd move on to their next location.

Ettie, however, wasn't as idle. How could she be, when she had so much energy left in her little body? She wanted to keep moving! She wanted to go, go, go..! But - at the same time - she didn't want to force her pack to get up and move, if they were feeling tired and hot. So, what was a wolf to do? It was hard to play tag or hide-and-seek when it was just yourself, after all.

At first, it started as simple pacing - her running circles around the Chromillia. Claws digging and kicking up sand as she patrolled about, tail wagging and tongue lolling as she panted. Getting up and moving around was fun, as always - why else did the pack often move from place to place? And yet... Even if it did burn off excess energy, it was missing something - something more Exciting! Maybe if she just went faster - sprinting about with reckless abandon - she'd figure out what it was she needed?

(That, or she'd tire herself out before she reached that point - but really, who cared? Running was nice, at least!)

It didn't take long for Ettie to figure out what it was that she wanted, however - as amidst her pacing and sprinting about, the sand would shift underneath her feet, causing her to lose her balance! With a yelp, she was sent tumbling down a slope - rolling, rolling, and rolling on down the side of the hill that the Chromillia was set upon. Though startling at first, it didn't take long before she came to a stop at the foot of the slope - blinking owlishly at the sky, laying on her back in the sand...

... But before long, she'd begin to laugh, tail wagging side-to-side in the sand. That was fun! Lots of fun! She wanted to do that again!

Wasting no time, Ettie would scramble her way back to the top of the hill - and once she reached the peak, she'd giggle as she went into a somersault - rolling on back down! Again and again, she'd take to climbing up the hill, then proceed to roll back down - be it a somersault, or sideways. Who cared, if she got a little dizzy from it all? It was fun, lots and lots of fun..!

But, in not watching her surroundings, Ettie would end up rolling straight into trouble after some time. She wasn't sure if it was her fifth, tenth, or even twentieth roll - not that the young werewolf was counting - but she'd go up the hill, roll on back down...

... Only to find herself tumbling straight into something, that had blended in with the sand. The ground began to lurch - and Ettie yelped in surprise, her first instinct being to scramble for footing so that she could get away and reassess the situation. However, in all of her flailing, her claws caught on something soft - and in response she could hear a bellow from some creature ring out, almost deafeningly-loud. Before Ettie knew it, something slammed into her - and the werewolf would be sent reeling, tumbling across the sand.

Pain bloomed across her side - blue blood dripping and soaking into her fur and the sand below, from where she had been raked by massive claws. Though they had not caught deep, it still hurt - especially with bits of sand already getting into the cuts - and it still bled a noticeable amount. Ettie could not help a soft whimper as she staggered to her feet, dazed and in pain. What had happened? What hit her?

As a shadow loomed over her though, Ettie would be met with her answer: a Terreden. The beast towered over her, trumping her in size (and likely strength by extension) many times over. It was clear that it was unhappy - a low rumble rising up from its throat as the feelers around its nose twitched. And what had it so unhappy became clear by the bleeding scratches over the front of said nose - clearly, Ettie's claws had caught onto it whilst she had been scrambling to her feet!

Realizing her mistake, Ettie's ears tilted back as she backed away - "Ettie sorry..!" She spoke, trying to reason with the beast. "Don't mean hurt!"

It became quickly clear that the Terreden was not interested in listening, however. The massive beast's low rumble would rise into another bellow, as it lashed out with its claws - forcing Ettie to scramble out of the way in a hail-mary dive. Sand was thrown every which way in the wake of the Terreden's strike, raining down upon beast and blobling both - and Ettie had to squint her eyes to keep the sand out.

Her side blazed with pain, from sand and movement alike... However, she couldn't stay still for long - because before long, the shadow of another impeding clawstrike would loom above her once more. Instead of diving wildly though, she'd instead manage to dart out of the way - circling around the terreden's side, to try and get out of its range. But it would kick out one of its legs instead, forcing her to simply back away, as she folded her ears back and snarled warningly - adrenaline beginning to pump, instincts weighing the odds between fight or flight.

But before any further blows could be dealt, the cavalry would arrive. Charging down the hillside, barking and howling, Ettie's coalkanines would come onto the scene - huddling around their pack leader protectively, charcoal-drawn fangs bared as they kicked up a ruckus.
A ruckus that had the terreden reacting by backing away, in fact. The massive beast would swing its head around to regard the group - the feelers around its nose twitching as it tried to assess the sudden situation. It was hard to say whether the beast knew exactly how many creatures were before it, or if it - with its closed eyes - could only attempt to guess, from the overlapping bays of the pack...

... But either way, with both sides backing away from one another, it seemed that it would decide that this was not a fight worth the effort of standing one's ground on. Thus, turning around, the terreden would lumber away at what could be a somewhat urgent pace - for as slow as most terredens normally were.

And in turn, Ettie would waste no time in leaving the other direction - ushering her pack along with her, even if Ruffian seemed eager to give chase to the massive beast. She didn't want to try her luck against something so big and so dangerous, either - especially not after being injured so suddenly.

Duchess would whine as she shuffled around to Ettie's injured side - nuzzling against the werewolf's hip, to which Ettie would smile softly, patting the coalkanine's head. "Is okay," She reassured Duchess - briefly scritching the violet coalkanine behind one of her horns. "Will heal."

Reaching the shade of the Chromillia, Duchess and Ruffian would stand watch as Ettie curled up amongst the roots - taking the time to tend to her wounds. Her tongue ran over her fur, cleaning it of blood and sand alike - and she paid special attention to the claw wounds that ran along her side. Though she might have lacked in proper medical knowledge compared to more civilized bloblings, she understood the basics of at least making sure to keep foreign material out of the wound - and to stop the bleeding...

... Which, it would be Princess who aided in such - the normally lazy coalkanine soon arriving with a large trailing clump of threads from a Poffdula tree, bright and colorful. Though it wasn't proper cloth, it still worked to help staunch the bleeding - and Princess knew that much quite well, being perhaps the smartest of the three coalkanines. "Good Princess," Ettie praised with a wag of her tail and a nuzzle as she took the clumps - pressing them to her side.

Safe to say, Ettie was going to need some rest before they'd continue on - and indeed, as the bleeding slowed, the adrenaline faded, and the thumping of her core calmed, her eyelids began to grow heavy from a creeping exhaustion... Yawning wide, she'd rest her head against her folded arms - her pack snuggling close and careful, as they'd settle in to sleep.

Though things could've gone a bit better, it - at least - did help to ease little Ettie's boredom from sitting around. Silver linings, right?

Ettie, for many first meeting her, would regard her as pretty cute. Certainly, she was a werewolf - with all of the sharp teeth and pointy claws that you'd expect of a predator. But as far as the average blobling might know or care, she was more like a friendly stray puppy than something you'd find stalking in the night - it's hard to ever imagine her being able to hurt something.

But, for all of her cute tailwags and friendly barks and joyous laughter... She was - at heart - still a wild animal. A wild animal who desired food (though bloblings didn't need to eat, this fact had yet to occur to her,) and a wild animal who had to feed her fellow packmates. And sometimes, just scavenging from the flora you could find out in the wilderness wasn't going to cut it. You couldn't expect to find a Poffdula tree or Lambfruits around every corner you looked, after all.

And thus, every so often, Ettie and her pack would hunt. Or to be more specific, Ettie and Ruffian - Duchess didn't seem to have the heart to hunt other creatures (though she would still eat whatever she was offered,) and Princess preferred to stay near Duchess' side.

Today's wanderings had brought them to the Colorwave Coast and Dampwater Darks - particularly the grassy white plains that surrounded the biome. Tracks in the earth, as well as missing clumps of grass, painted the clear picture of a pack of Skitterspuds having been in the area - and as Ettie sniffed the air, she could tell that they had been through here relatively recently. They wouldn't be too hard to find - likely just over the crest of the gently-rolling hills beyond, even.

And ultimately, that meant Food.

Wordlessly, Ettie chuffed as she turned her attention to Ruffian, nodding in the direction of the scent trail. The coalkanines understood - Duchess and Princess finding a spot to settle down, whilst Ruffian joined Ettie's side. Perhaps, once the pack had time to grow, they'd be able to have a larger hunting party by extension - more packmates to help track down food. But for now? Just the two of them would suffice.

And thus, they'd set out - prowling slow and low to the ground. Though Ruffian's dark coloration made him stand out amongst the grass, Ettie's white fur blended in perfectly. As long as she kept her darker colored wings folded close, she could hide amongst the taller patches of grass with ease. Which, all lended well to the duo's usual strategy, for hunting Skitterspuds.

Speaking of Skitterspuds... Indeed, just beyond the hills, there was a small cluster of them. Three of them, to be exact - a newly-forming pack, from the looks of things. The soft whistles they'd make to one another could be faintly heard from the duo's spot atop the hill, not yet noticed by the pack below. The duo wasted no time in getting into position - Ruffian hunkering down, as if prepared to pounce, whilst Ettie began to creep off towards the side. And as the young werewolf got into position to flank...

... Ruffian charged. Snarling, barking, howling, the black coalkanine would kick up a ruckus as he charged the pack, drawing the attentions of the three Skitterspuds to him. Initially, the pack was alarmed, going on the defensive as they stumbled back and away. One of them - likely the leader, with it having the largest tail of the three - would snort and stamp at the ground, head lowering to brandish the spikes atop it threateningly. This display had the other two Skitterspuds huddling a little closer for protection, clearly not as bold as their leader was.

Ruffian, however, was undeterred - yapping and stomping about, and faking a charge towards one of the smaller Skitterspuds, which prompted it to stumble back and shy away... Which put it in the perfect position, for Ettie to charge at it from roughly behind.

As the werewolf burst out from the tall grasses to tackle into the smaller Skitterspud's side, they'd be sent rolling across the grass; even if Skitterspuds were a sizeable creature compared to Ettie herself, she had the element of surprise. The other two would be startled at this - being presented with a proper predator, they began to turn tail and flee.

Which left the smaller Skitterspud to a fight for its life - having come to a stop on its side, it'd try to kick out and claw at Ettie to force her away. However, the werewolf was tenacious - snarling low as she continued trying to wrestle it down, her teeth snatching around one of the wrists of the beast. It bucked and flailed, but Ettie hung on - waiting for the Skitterspud to tire out, so that she could overpower it.

But indeed, with the Skitterspud's size, it'd have the upper hand - being just able to pull its arm free of Ettie's fangs, even if bloodied. It'd manage to push back against her snout, where she in turn would grab onto one of its front legs and one of the spikes on its back, with either hand. She pushed hard to keep it shoved down to the ground the best she could - growling low with exertion all the whilst.

Ruffian, however, would not leave Ettie to bring down their prey solo. Coming in, the Coalkanine would bash one of his flat-bottomed paws against the Skitterspud's head, stunning the creature.

And whilst the Skitterspud was dazed and confused, Ettie took advantage of the opportunity provided - shaking her head to push away its hand, before bringing her jaws down to close her fangs around its throat, just beneath the ring of spikes around its neck. It would buck and heave in response, in one last-ditch effort to get away from the duo - and yet, as Ettie bit down hard...

... Before long, the Skitterspud would fall still.

It was a few long seconds before Ettie would pull her fangs loose - panting, jaws dripping with blood, paired with some superficial scratches across her snout, shoulders, and chest from the Skitterspud's claws and panicked flailing. But as she caught her breath, and as the thumping of her core settled, she'd smile over to Ruffian. "Good Ruffian," She praised, still slightly breathless. "We call pack, then eat!"

Indeed, it only took a pair of howls from the duo for Duchess and Princess to come running - and with a catch like this, it was sure to keep them all fed for a couple of Numbers. They would be eating well, today...

As the Numbers passed, Ettie would - over time - become more and more aware of something. Namely, that not every Blobling who hunted or fought, used weapons that were a natural part of themself. Not every blobling had claws or teeth like she did, after all - and some would even use thrown weapons to fight and attack from afar. It was something that she could theoretically get plenty of use out of, especially for hunting flying creatures.

Another thing she'd often become aware of, is that hunting often left her with a number of materials that she just... Didn't wholly know what to do with. Skin, bones, feathers, etcetera - things that you weren't likely to get much out of eating, unless you were something like a hyena - which neither Ettie nor the rest of her pack were. A good example of this were the spikes from the Skitterspuds she sometimes hunted - which, even a single specimen could provide her with a large number of these.

Where did these two things come together? Namely, in the direction of makeshift weapons! But of course, just because she took a branch from something such as a Bleeding Heart tree and sharpened it into a javelin, it didn't inherently mean that she could put it to efficient use. Even if she used it to try and chase down prey, she'd throw it - only for the spear to inevitably go wide.

Practice - both in crafting, and in throwing - would likely be a necessity. And to train, Ettie would take to settling down amongst a few trees, at the edge of the Sourglow Swamps.

Were trees the best target for practice? Ettie didn't know for sure - but it was certainly fun! Having a bundle of makeshift javelins at her side, the young werewolf would take to trying to aim her throws at the trunks - throwing the javelins one by one, and watching with awe as they flew. Sometimes the javelins would thunk into the side - only to clatter down. But more often, they'd bounce off in glancing blows, or miss entirely.

But, it helped that Ettie had packmates there to help and provide moral support - Duchess in particular taking joy, in running off to retrieve each thrown javelin! "Good girl," Ettie praised each time - smiling as she pet the Coalkanine on the head. And in turn, Duchess would wiggle with absolute joy, before preparing to run off after the next javelin.

Thus, Ettie was free to simply stay where she stood - throwing javelins at the distant trees, with Duchess retrieving them as if playing fetch. It was, admittedly, kind of boring after awhile - especially without anything new happening... But practice was good, even if it was boring practice, right? And Ettie became especially hopeful that her effort wouldn't go to waste, when she'd finally get a javelin to actually stick into the side of one of the trunks.

Surely, with time, she'd be able to actually hit things with her javelins. And when she reaches that point, she'll be able to hunt even more kinds of prey, all to keep her pack fed and happy!

Well well well, wasn't this a rare treat? In the pack's wanderings, Ettie would spy something up above - poking out the side of a cliff. A Lambfruit tree! A delicacy to say the least - the little werewolf had heard many good things about them, though she'd never had one before... Safe to say, her interest was piqued the second she recognized those puffy white fruits, in the tree above.

However, there came a problem - namely, that the tree was (again) growing out the cliff face, rather than at ground level. Ettie couldn't reach it from here, which meant that she'd have to climb up to it... Which, it was a ways up. And yet, given how much you could get out of a lambfruit tree, and the tales of just how good they tasted... Ettie wanted to give it a try.

"Wait here!" Ettie spoke to the other Coalkanines following after her. "Will get!" Climbing up a cliff face wasn't too different from climbing up a tree, right? She'd just have to go at it slow and careful.

The first difference that Ettie realized about climbing cliffs versus climbing trees however, was that the rocky bits had far less give underneath her claws than bark did. Certainly, it wasn't as smooth - and thus it was easier for her to find spots she could grip onto - but her claws nonetheless couldn't dig in all the same, which required her to reconsider her approach.

Rather than simply climbing up like a cat might a tree, she actually had to find handholds and footholds that she could safely put to use. Carefully, she tested her weight against a protruding rock - before pulling herself up a little higher, when she found it sturdy. Honestly, climbing up like this was actually kind of fun! If it weren't for the fact that her pack wasn't as good at climbing as she was, she'd probably be doing it more often to get around!

But at the same time, the rough and pointy stones did make her pawpads sore. She probably would need to give her hands and feet a break for a few minutes after this - but she was making good progress on the ascent! Bit by bit, she was getting higher up - and by extension nearing the lambfruit tree. It was almost within reach now - she just had to get a little closer, a little further, and... There!

Carefully, Ettie perched herself upon the base of the tree. Though they were normally on the smaller side, this Lambfruit tree was particularly large and thick-trunked - perhaps it'd been here for awhile? Either way, Ettie wasn't afraid of it snapping under her weight - and by perching here, she was free to rest her paws while she and the pack partook in their prize. Thus, plucking off a fruit, Ettie wasted no time in removing the horns and popping it in her mouth!

The cottony exterior was sweet like candy floss - but unlike candy floss, it didn't seem to quite melt in her mouth. It held its shape - and in fact seemed too stringy to properly chew away at. Trying to eat the cotton-like portion was a strange mouthfeel, but the taste was plenty good all the same. But, Ettie had heard what you really wanted was in the middle of that mess of fluff...

Thus, spitting out the now-soggy wad of cotton, she'd instead take to using her claws to pull away the cotton - she'd find what was like a tiny red berry of some sort in the center. Ettie cocked her head curiously at this - and carefully, she'd pry it out to pop it into her mouth. It tasted warm and fruity, having a jammy texture that had Ettie smacking her lips and licking the roof of her mouth like a dog with peanutbutter. Oh, indeed, this was a delicious treat - and all the work for it had been worth it.

With this, Ettie smiled down to her pack. "Pack! Catch!" She'd call - and wasting no time, she'd take to plucking off the fruits one by one as they regrew. And with each fruit, she'd then lob down to the Coalkanines - the cotton exteriors sure to keep the prize in the center safe - for them to catch and gather together. Today, they'd get to all feast together - and what a feast it was going to be..!