[Activity] Passing the Buck

[Will Stanton]

It was a calm, cool, moonlight night on campus; the kind of night that might feature on a postcard if you looked in just the right direction, the light from the lighthouse reflecting over the open sea.

Through the woods on the outskirts of campus, a four-legged figure dashed and ran, galloping between the trees and leaping over fallen logs, clearly feeling itself on a perfect night for a run.

((open))

[Leo Eskandari]

Eyes opened in a shadowy space between two large trees, shining eerily in the dark. Their owner watched the four-legged form as it drew closer.

[Will Stanton]

For a moment, the four legged figure stopped on a fallen log, and Leo got the full view -- an eight-point buck, silhouetted against the moon. It's ears twitched for a moment; waiting in the moonlight.

[Leo Eskandari]

Leo instinctively rose from his napping position into a crouch. He wasn't in touch with his wild side enough to actually attack random wild animals but a chase couldn't hurt, right? As such, he kept low and waited for a chance to catch it off guard.

[Will Stanton]

The deer paused, it's ears twitching again as Leo moved into a crouching position.

And then it was off, darting back the way it came, jumping around trees as it went.

[Leo Eskandari]

Leo couldn't resist the urge to lunge out after it and give chase on all fours. Deer were faster but he was, at least, getting better at moving that way than he was when he chased Sam through the same woods.

[Will Stanton]

The deer worked to try to widen the gap between itself and Leo. With the benefit of speed on it's side, it tried to get out of the woods as quickly as possible -- the open fields of the quad would be a far superior place to outplace a slower predator, if it could work its way there.

[Leo Eskandari]

Leo figured he had human intellect on his side and worked to predict the deer's path and cut it off at the edge of the woods by use of an alternate path with fewer trees in the way to slow him down.

[Will Stanton]

A bit of clever cunning and a bit of cunning cleverness caused Leo to cut to the outside, where the deer was headed towards. For a moment, it looked like they were going to crash into each other head on, before it jumped nearly at a 90 degree angle back into the woods, looking for another escape path.

[Leo Eskandari]

Leo surprised himself with a sharp turn of his own, though it mostly for the miracle he didn't go rolling across the quad like a furry log. However, he lost a lot of speed and quickly lost sight of his quarry. He kept going in the same direction, trying to use his other senses to pick up the trail.

[Narrator]

Wildlife wasn't uncommon at the fringes of campus, so there were plenty of trails to follow. What was uncommon was a white-tailed deer -- those don't live in the UK, so unless this one was commuting, it didn't belong here.

It also made the trail easy to follow; it stood out like a sore thumb. It wouldn't take him too long to spot the thing in the distance, either, taking a break to drink from a stream.

[Leo Eskandari]

Leo channeled his inner lion and slowly stalked closer, ready to pounce at the first opportunity. He wanted to see how close he could get. It was too bad there was no tall grass around.

What are you doing here? Are you a shifter?

[Will Stanton]

Again, as Leo got just to the edge of potential pouncing distance, the deer's head shot up, ears twitching once more.

[Leo Eskandari]

He all but froze, moving glacially slow as he tensed for his pounce. Then he sprang into motion, forelimbs spread to grab his quarry rather than claw it.

[Will Stanton]

Leo reached for one leg, and grabbed it! Success! The deer tried to jump out of the way, but couldn't quite make it.

This meant, of course, that Leo's forelimbs were full and could not immediately respond to another one of the deer's legs aiming a kick towards his face.

[Leo Eskandari]

He had just enough time to think that he hadn't thought things through before he got a hoof in the face. He yowled and let go to hold his face.

"Sonovabitch!"

[Will Stanton]

The deer scrambled, legs flailing wildly, and then dashed off again, away from the predator.

[Leo Eskandari]

Between getting kicked in the face and seeing his prey run yet again, something triggered his instincts and he chased after the deer with a growl and renewed vigor.

[Will Stanton]

In the trees, Leo was more agile and quicker than the deer, and his earlier attempts to cut him it off had ruined the "escape out the back" plan. They were quickly approaching the edge of the forest -- or, more accurately, the fence that bordered campus just before the road. Maybe the deer could clear it in a jump, but it at least forced it to slow down, giving Leo a chance,,,

[Leo Eskandari]

Leo lunged again, this time with jaws prepared to bite down. Instinct was winning out, it seemed.

[Narrator]

Leo's teeth wrapped around the deer's neck, as the two tumbled to the ground.

There was a crack as Leo sank his teeth into flesh, the coppery-iron taste of blood filling his mouth as he clamped down on his prey.

[Leo Eskandari]

His inner beast reveled in its delicious triumph for a long moment. Then his eyes went wide as he realized what he was doing. He immediately let go and scrambled back, spitting out blood.

"Ohgodohgodohgodwhatdidido!" he said in a rushed jumble, eyes shaking with horror.

[Will Stanton]

The deer thrashed around on the ground. Briefly, it shifted back into a green-haired boy, bleeding from the neck, before shrinking and twisting into a raven, which went up, up and away...

[Leo Eskandari]

"I'm sorry!" he yelled after Will.

"I'm sorry..." he said quietly with tears in his eyes, feeling like a monster.