Silver Falls see you in myself
#1
Asking to meet out by a waterfall was kind of a vague request, and that thought had only really occurred to Tabby while she was on her way there, armed with stacks of raw meat of various types. The other girl, Kaly, had said she would raid the butcher’s out this way. Tabby didn’t really have the cash to hit up a butcher, but she did go to the nearest store to the falls and pick up a little of everything. A couple of chickens, some pork, some beef, a whole leg of lamb (which wasn’t cheap!!). She didn’t really know if Kaly would take exception to anything on the menu, though she was pretty sure as long as it was meat, a snow leopard could eat it. Jackals would eat pretty much anything. Kaly could easily have just brought trash from home and the jackal would have been her best friend for life.

Waiting at the agreed spot, she began to feel nervous. Was she here too early? Too late? What if it was all a ruse and no one was coming? Or several leopards were coming to tell her to stay away from their territory? These were just silly thoughts, of course. She was just alone out here meeting some strangers from the internet. What could possibly go wrong?

As she pondered this, a figure came into her field of vision, a girl whose strikingly dark hair caught her eye first. Was that her? Raising her arm instinctively, she gave an awkward wave, something she could brush off as stretching in case that wasn't her.
#2

Outfit+large cooler on wheels



Kaly was running a little late, the butcher taking his sweet time to get he cuts she asked for. It was a mix of ribs from both cow and pig and then some small cornish hens for easy chomping, a couple of links of sausage for fun, and then a pile of various steaks for them to enjoy. The animals should be well and happy with this meal offering to be nice to each other though she really was not worried about Snowie.

Arriving with the cooler dragging behind her, Kaly would give a wave of her arm as she approached. It was easy to catch the scent of canine in the air so she knew she was on the right track as she made her way over.

"Hey! Sorry I'm a little late the butcher was trying to tempt me with more and more and...it's very hard to say no to meat nowadays. It's nice to meet you Tabby, " she told her with a warm smile as she would hold her hand out for a shake.
#3
Why hadn't Tabby thought about bringing a cooler? Besides the fact that she didn't have one, obviously. And that jackals didn't particularly care how hot or cold their meat was. Did it matter much for snow leopards? She supposed she'd find out. "It's nice to meet you, too!"

As she shook Kaly's hand, in the dimming light she caught angles of the other's face that seemed weirdly familiar, something in her complexion and her shape that seemed like she ought to know her, but found herself thankfully distracted from that wonder by the fluffy flash of fur and her jackal's ears perking up and pointing straight forward like radars, interested in a bouncy new playmate. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad?

"How, uh... how do you want to do this?" she asked right off the bat, looking between her bag of goodies and the cooler. It still felt weird to just pile meat on the ground and have at it.
#4
Kaly would give a smile as she shook her hand getting a little bit more of the strange canine but not much aside from the color as she would let go and then just pop the top open of the cooler. The stare she got made her brow raise some but she shrugged it away as she took her bag and went to put it off to the side.

"Could just head off to give each other space and them for post-shift wobbles and to not outright attack each other," she suggested, trying to think of the best way to introduce an overly excited snow leopard to a jackal. This was going to be fun and she was eager for it but man the shifting pain was something she still hated. "You ever get used to the shifting process? " she asked her. It was something Kaly just accepted but she wondered if those who had been at it longer got used to the feeling of your body rearranging all the time.
#5
Well, yeah, it made sense to give each other space to get the shifting out of the way but she doubted either animal could get a cooler open.

...maybe the snow leopard could with prior knowledge of the cooler? Although with Kaly being kinda new to this, maybe not.. then Kaly opened the cooler and she just hoped it didn't get chewed on later. This was going to be a mess of meat and fur! But hopefully her jackal would play nice.

Smiling sympathetically, she dropped her bag of meat to the ground. That could at least be ripped open, though she didn't really trust her jackal not to eat paper and plastic. "It gets easier," she said hesitantly. "It still hurts but you learn to deal with it. And it gets faster, the more you do it."
#6
"The pain part...I hate it so much. Being the animal, not so much. Snowie and I are figuring each other out still but turning into her is no picnic, " she told her with a small laugh at that one. She had hoped that it might get a lot easier but she'd deal with what she got. It could be worse honestly but she'd manage it somehow.

"So want to head off to our corners to preserve some dignity and then let the two goofs meet have lunch and play? And probably wreck the cooler but it was cheap so, " She said with a shrug and a wave of her hand as she overly didn't care if the cooler survived.
#7
She wasn't sure she'd have described the jackal as a goof, but then maybe that was the perfect way to describe the little twerp, always digging around in garbage and annoying other canids. This was definitely going to be a new experience, playing with a leopard. Big, fluffy and playful. Or she hoped so, anyway. Otherwise things could go terribly wrong. Then again, Tabby had decent-ish control now, and could sometimes pull Jackie McGrump back if she needed to.

"Yeah; see you later," she said, taking in a deep, steeling breath and turning away to find a good spot to shift. She wasn't sure the reassurance about the cooler was all that reassuring, but... eh, it wasn't her cooler.

Finding a little nook to change, she took her clothes off and stuffed them into her backpack, which she hid in the bush and just hoped no one (human or otherwise) would steal it. For some reason, her inner beast needed a bit of a shove this evening, but she soon felt her responding to it, grimacing as her bones started to snap and cartilage took on new shape, ears began to shift in place, hooked teeth replaced her own pointed canines... the change was never easy, and it hurt like a bitch, but hey, she didn't feel the need to screech any more, so that was a plus...
#8
Kaly gave a nod and a smile as she headed off. She stripped easily, stuffing it into a bag she left. She had left the windows down in her jeep to crash in later so she wasn't too worried about anyone finding her.

It took no time at all to let Snowie come out, she was always willing and able, ready to go and just have fun because of course it had been days (two) since she had been last out to cause some form of mischief.

Kaly wouldn't hear the other shifter changing, the sound of her own body rearranging into the fluffy feline until she was flopped on the ground panting after a solid fourish minute. Kaly would take the lead for the moment, taking Snowie to where she had left the food to let her sit and wait for the Jackle to appear form wherever she shifted. Snowie could smell the other were and was curious, her nose twitching and the sound of sniffing rather audible as the cat was mostly staring down the cooler. She wanted to be inside it but there was stuff inside it.

Sticking her head in, she would dip her head in and chomp on a piece of steak and start to happily tear into it while just laying on her belly and holding it between her large paws.
#9
A few minutes later, in place of the practical effects student there stood a weird-faced coyote-looking fox-ish dog thing. A golden jackal, reddish in colour with stubby tail, giving a big ol' stretch and a yawn, the scent of both mat and cat in the air tantalising... but she was gonna take her time getting comfortable, first. Sniffing the little nook where she stood, giving herself a good shake down from nose to tail. Going to the bathroom a little too close to Tabby's bag for her liking, just so all the other canids knew she'd been here.

After all that was done, she became interested in the meat, though her curious trot was stopped in its tracks, halted like a bird flying into a freshly cleaned window, a paw hovering in front of her as if she was pointing at the snow leopard. Cat was big. But jackal was hungry, and jackal was clever, and also jackal had knowledge of good meat in the plastic bag nearby, so she crept towards that, figuring it was far enough away that she could dig into it no problem. The first thing into her drooling maw was a pork chop, which she scurried away with to what she thought was a safe distance, watching the snow leopard cautiously. If the cat was nice, maybe this would be a beneficial companionship. If not... she was going to have to get sneaky.
#10
Snowie was happily chomping and tearing at the steak she had, swallowing pieces until she saw the strange dog. A little chuff left her in hello to the strange dog as it snuck up and took some meat and then retreated a bit. Was it scared of her? Snowie saw no reason for it to be scared, currently her only goal was to empty the container to sit in it and so the feline would gulp down the meat and stand up to start pawing at the container.

She bumped and nudged and pawed at it until the thing finally tipped over and spilled out the contents in a squishy meaty mess but the container was empty now! The big paws batted at it, trying to get it upright but she only managed to make it flip over and close itself. A sad chuff left her as she flopped on it, trying to now think of how to open the plastic thing to get at the inside of it. Was there a trick? Snow leopard brain had no clue and would look up to the doggo and chuff out in help!
#11
What was that weird noise the leopard was making? It wasn't quite a growl, it wasn't a bark... but it didn't sound aggressive. Weird. Weird animal! The jackal continued to be cautious as she worked to figure this thing out, happily grabbing a lamb chop and crunching into it, the bone left in nothing for her big curved teeth. Good for her diet! Tabitha might not be too happy about having to digest it, but Tabby was taking a back seat right now, so Jackie had her fill of bones and bits of grass and leaves.

But the fluffy big cat was making that weird noise again, uselessly batting giant paws at the box she'd just emptied of meat. Why did she care so much about a box when there was meat? That meat looked kinda more interesting than the stuff in the plastic bag, and it was all out on the ground now. The cat didn't present a threat, having seen her and not really reacted much. Except for that noise.

Trotting over, she paused about two jackals' length away, sniffing the air between them and filling her nose with the scent of the meat pile on the ground, and a little of cat. Was there something more interesting in the box? She didn't get it at all! She gave a little sneeze of confusion, then picked a piece of meat from the pile to eat where she stood, shaking it like she'd just caught herself a rat to munch.
#12
Truly, Snowie was not bothered by the small canine. It didn't seem like it was going to do anything to her so why the heck would she care? She wanted in this box. Why? She was a cat, there was no reason why she just wanted it and would not be happy until she was inside it.

Snowie would wrestle the plastic menace as the canine approach the mess of meat, her bright blue eyes looking up at her as she tilted her big ol head to the side. Another hello chuff left her. Her paw raising and falling in a pawing like wave to the other were who was focused on munching.

She would slip off and pick up a sausage and start to eat that, tugging and ripping off her own chunks as she had no need to try and take whatever food the dog had.

After a sausage much, she went back to the cooler, smacking it some to try and see if the bottom popped open like the top had done before.
#13
What was that noise? Should she try to imitate it? All she managed was a sneeze, spraying blood and bits of chewed-up meat onto the pile in front of her, so maybe she shouldn't try that again. She'd just speak in jackal-speak and the weird fluffy thing could deal. And did she... wave? Like a trained seal? Weird. She was used to other canids, to coyotes and wolves (though the latter to a much lesser extent). So this was all a very new experience to her. Still, as big as the creature was, she seemed gentle, so the jackal's confidence grew quickly. She swallowed the chop easily, then sat for a moment to watch the leopard batting at the cooler, licking a paw to clean off blood and bits of flesh from her sneeze before.
#14
The sneeze had the sides of the cat's mouth lifting in a grin as she let out another chuff, repeating it to try and get the canine to do the same. She had been so close since it was all through the chest and nose.

The cat was trying to get some sort of attention from the other one who seemed happy to just eat but Snowie wasn't interested in food really but in just playing and so she would move closer to the jackle and reach a paw out to her and try and boop at her face if she didn't move away.

The movement wasn't aggressive, just playful as the cat let out another sound as she left the cooler alone for the moment, her focus on the canine now.
#15
She was almost certain she couldn't physically make the noise that the cat made, and when she tried the fluffy thing... showed its teeth a bit? Which was a big danger sign to a canid! What confusing signals she was giving! So far it had seemed as though the giant fluffball was docile, wasn't going to attack her with those huge heavy paws, and the jackal got a little too comfortable, sitting, relaxed.

The leopard took her opportunity, raising her shovel-like paw and bringing it down against the jackal's face. Danger! Why?? She gave a surprised yip and tumbled, rolling over after losing her balance and quickly pouncing to her feet, body wound up like a spring, trying to assess the scale of the threat, ready to fight of she had to, or run if it was serious.

If she recognised the next action as play, she'd simply frolic and bounce, yipping her weird-shaped head off.
#16
Why couldn’t the jackel make the same sounds? To Snowie, it wasn’t that hard to do and she didn’t get why the other animal couldn’t make such a fun sound! She did try again, a hello hi how are you chuffing sound coming from the feline as the canine sat down. Was that a good thing?

When the canine yipped and tumbled, it made Snowie all the more excited as she dropped down into pounce position, not attempting to go forward at her but just wanting to play. The feline was purring a mile a minute from this, hoping that she’d try and bat at her as well.

The long tail of the snow leopard was flicking around excitedly, ears perked towards the canine in excitement.
#17
The leopard arched herself to pounce... and paused, like she was play-bowing. Hey! The jackal knew that body language! So the cat was being playful! Slowly, the jackal wagged her stubby tail, barked happily, and lowered herself into a bow, inviting her playmate to make a move.
#18
Happy sounds! Happy canine sounds that had her purring more as the doggo got into her own playful position. The leopard was grinning basically as she got lower and then took a playful leap and jumped on her, wrapping her paws around her midsection to hold onto her as the cat gave a playful nip to her ears- your move doggo!


Pounce hit!

#19
The Jackal was fast, but the leopard was faster, taking a great leap at the little canid and clamping her around the middle before she could bolt away! And then, to add insult to injury, she gave a chomp to her big, triangular ears! No fair! Jackie gave a yip of surprise and another of irritation, but she managed to squirm around in the leopard's clutches and raised a paw to bat the fluffy demon right between the eyes, hoping it would make Snowie drop her so she could speed round her in a wide circle. Zoomies!


paw hit!

#20
The squirming would be successful as the snow leopard could not keep her hold and so the speedy little canine managed to slip away from her and then started to zoom the heck around her! She spun around in circles trying to follow her but ended up getting tangled by her own tail and tripping to lay flat on her belly for a moment before she got up to just watch, getting into pounce position again as she needed to time this right!


Hold fail!

#21
Ha! Snowie was way too slow for Jackie, it seemed! It gave the jackal a completely undeserved sense of victory as she continued to zoom around, yipping and barking happily, bouncing and lunging forward playfully at the leopard on occasion. Not trying to bite her or hit her but teasing her, taunting her to give chase.
#22
This critter was FAST, she would get down in pounce position though, waiting and watching, doing a little butt wiggle before leaping out and pouncing on the jackal again and catching her. Snowie would wrap her arms around her, a rumbling purr leaving her as she managed to catch the canine again and would effectively give a wet lick to her face!


Hit!

#23
How did the zoomies not work?! She was sure she could evade the leopard forever, but alas, she had been proven wrong, and the triumphant cat celebrated her victory by using her sandpaper tongue to scrape the jackal's triangular face. Which gave the canid the opportunity to open her maw wide and tilt her head just enough to the side to pinch the leopard's muzzle in her own. Mouthing her gently, no slicing bite. Playful and affectionate, really!


hit!

#24
IT Nommed her! A little panicked sound left her at the nomming but it wasn't painful, mostly surprising more than anything. She would try and paw at her face some but she was missing right now as her little muzzle was stuck in this muzzle! Silly canine. A happy little chuff left her as she tried to startle her to open up now.


miss

#25
Aha! Silly kitten. Of course the sly jackal would be victorious in the nomming of the snout! She was in at close range with big old jaws; how could she lose? But she was a merciful goddess; she released the leopard's muzzle and made an attempt to wriggle free, hind legs kicking at whatever they could strike.
#26
An unhappy snort left the feline into the Jackals mouth- it was truly her only defense! When she was freed from the maw, she would try and hold on but alas the canine was able to get up and free themselves from her so she would just roll onto her back with her paws in the air. The snow leopard was grinning in an upsidedown fashion as she stared at the canine, the cat like her!


Hold fail!

#27
Once more the weird expressions only served to confuse the jackal as she finally stood victorious over the cat, and she tipped her head to the left, trying to puzzle out what on earth that grimace meant. In a canid, that sort of 'smirking' look was surely nervousness, and allowing herself to be exposed so was submission. But the cat was rather relaxed, sprawled out almost happily. Well. At least they weren't fighting! Looking down on her new companion, she gave a yip of approval, wagging her stubby tail.
#28
Snowie would reach out to the jackal with her paws, lightly pawing at her face as she was purring like a motorboat zipping around the lake. She was a happy feline and watching the canine made her move and then scoot closer to bump at her before hopping up and padding over to a lump of meat and picking it up and then bringing it over to drop in front of her; Food for her playmate! Snowie herself would go and get her own because she was now rather starving after wrestling and getting her maw nommed on.
#29
What a weird, weird noise to make. Sounded like grumbling, not quite like growling. Apparently it was a noise of contentment? Or maybe playfulness, given the way she swatted lazily at the jackal's face, now wide open with huge curved teeth showing. Not aggression, not really a warning, but a deterrent to anything more than this... swiping action.

And then she sneezed, the leopard's fur tickling her sensitive nose.

She barely had any time to recover from that before the cat was back in front of her with a slab of meat! Given! Freely! Okay, she definitely liked the cat, she decided. Happily, she tore into the offered prize, clearly the trophy for her winning the playfight.
#30
The pawing would continue, she couldn't help it and the sneezing was just a silly sound that encouraged the cat to continue to play with her new friend. She liked to add to the sneezing and would aim to tickle the nose more as she ignored the slight teeth- she would move if nipped at and since she wasn't she was content for the moment.

Once she brought over the food and it was well taken, she would lay down with her own and tear at the meat, purring happily as she ate with her canine friend. This was what friend animals did right? They shared and the fact that there was plenty was more than enough to satisfy the snow leopard in sharing in the feast of free meat.
#31
Things were more relaxed now, it seemed. Neither animal seemed like a threat to the other, and though Jackie was a little aloof and confused she accepted the playful scrapping as though the leopard was just a weird oversized puppy. As they ate together, somewhere in the back of the jackal's mind, Tabitha allowed herself to feel some relief and contentment. It wasn't a jackal pack, but it was a start.
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