Judas let Mana have her way, her needle-sharp fangs tenderizing the flesh of his ear so that he yelped, although more for show than anything else. He wanted to make her feel good about herself, make her feel that she held the world between her paws. Because, for him at least, it was true. Her breathless laughter cut through the oceanic wind as she leapt out of his reach, prancing proudly before him, a satisfied grin on her lips. He feigned annoyance, but couldn't hide his smile as he shook out the sand and sea foam from his pelt, his eyes following the pup as she danced her jig of triumph. When he spoke she only half-listened, her reply teasing, before she lowered her front-half into a semi playbow, creeping forwards to look up at him, somehow proud and wheedling at the same time. It was no wonder the girl got everything she wanted whenever she wanted it. He could no more refuse that face than he could refuse a hunk of fresh meat. She joked with him again, nipping at the air beside his shoulder fur and laughing loud and long. He sighed, resigned to his fate,

“Lose to a girl!? Hardly! Fine, I will show you what I can do, but be careful not to look directly at me – my skills are so sharply honed that they often blind the watcher with wonder. Also, try keep your witchy cackles to a minimum, or else you'll scare the prey.”

His voice took on the ingratiating tenor of an older brother showing off to his younger sibling, full of vanity and pompous self-assurance. If only he had listened to that old saying, pride comes before a fall. It may have stood him in good stead. As it was, he cast about the beach, his eyes coming to rest on a young gull whose plumage still showed up ruddy brown against the golden-whiteness of the sand. It stood on the fringe of a small group of adults, busily pulling apart a rotten jellyfish, its eye-watering stench strong enough to keep even the wolves at bay. It was a perfect target, concentrating on the task at hand, oblivious to the pair of lupine wraiths observing it. Smiling to himself, Judas dropped into a crouch. He was careful to hold himself as low as he could, whilst at the same time keeping his belly fur and tail from brushing the dune beneath him. Step by step he beganto stalk, pausing every so often to check that he was still downwind. He could already taste the iron tang of fresh blood on his tongue, and his pelt prickled with excitement. A few more steps and he would be within leaping range.

Suddenly, a cry from above rent the relative silence of the beach, too late highlighting Judas' mistake. He had forgotten to check the sky for other gulls, who took severe joy in ruining wolf hunts, especially when their own species were the intended prey. A large white male swooped in low, scattering the others. The young gull took off, Judas leaping after it as high as he could. His jump was spectacular, of that their could be no doubt, but he was still out of range and he merely clipped a pinion feather with his claw on the way down. He landed on his paws with a grunt, the sand giving way beneath his right hind paw so that he collapsed in a heap. Cackling stupidly, the birds flew into the distance, although not before one took aim and released a white missile onto Judas' head. He gave a startled cry when the world turned white, his eyes burning from the ammonia in the guano, which he only managed to remove after several swipes at his face with his front paws. Only when t he pain had subsided, did he realise what situation he was in. His skin burnt hot with embarrassment, his ears slicked back and his tail low as he stood square, faced away from Mana, refusing to meet her eye. Bird droppings still dripped unceremoniously from one ear, sand clinging to the rest of his face where he had smeared the excrement attempting to wipe it away. The pinion feather's shaft caught in the sand, holding it in place, its very presence taunting the young wolf. He narrowed his eyes at it, thinking of the enjoyment he would get from eating it. Today was not going as well as he planned.