Diveen was something of a blur in the back of her mind anymore. She’d been…negligent, to say the least, of her duties there. Truthfully, she hadn’t spoken to any of her pack members since spending the day with Coszcotl, and that seemed like a lifetime ago. Lately she’d been keeping to herself, not even sleeping at home. Just sort of existing in the free lands, mostly avoiding strangers and working through her thoughts. If any of them could see her now, they’d see that she had gotten thinner, though more muscular from frequent travel and lucky hunting. All in all, the fields had been good to her.

The sun was slowly tucking itself into the horizon at her back, and she had tucked herself into the gently bobbing grasses. Other than the quick shifting of her eyes, she was still. Beyond her, a raccoon waddled from place to place, occasionally pausing to scratch at the ground or at his own pelt. Some minutes passed, the fading evening breeze occasionally ruffling the fur of predator and prey, and then Fathom got the upper hand. The raccoon turned to investigate some sound in the distance, exposing his back to her, and she was on him in a flash. Her steady paws drummed the dirt only briefly; he never even had a chance to see her close in.

She stood over the fresh kill, a little stiff from the wait but otherwise at ease – there hadn’t been a struggle. A simple bite to the neck had rendered him immobile, without even drawing blood. She nudged him once or twice to be certain he wasn’t faking, took a quick survey of her darkening surroundings, and only then began to eat her meal. It wasn’t the tastiest thing she’d ever eaten, but she’d definitely had worse, and a rumbling stomach made everything more palatable.