◜♠◞ Food was essential to the survival of living beings. Some were acquired easily and naturally, and some you had to fight and scrap for. Now, while the Beauceron may have made a tasty meal for a hungry Ocelot any day, today was not the day to try and find out.

Snarls and yips erupted from the dense canopy, echoing all throughout the vicinity and bouncing off the walls and trees. By the time one could track down the source of these noises, the Beauceron could be seen slamming the wildcat against a tree. He [sup]raised[/sup] his hackles, muzzle gnarled, ready to strike again if this fucker came at him once more.

It seemed that the Ocelot had gotten the message, though, and it had stumbled to its paws. It was obviously injured from the brawl, and with one last look at the canine, it bolted through the undergrowth in the opposite direction.

Triumphant, Bugsy raised his head, still panting through parted jaws. "That's right, fucker! Keep runnin'! Try me again and I'll eat ya' whole!" He barked after it, giving a snort and swiping his pink tongue over his freshly-scratched muzzle. His wounds weren't bad at all; it certainly wasn't anything that he wasn't used to.

Now... just where the hell was he?

◜♠◞ Bugsy, still grabbing hold of his breath, took a step backwards and turned to the side where a youthful voice caught his attention. That was the last thing he had been expecting to hear. Nonetheless, he was willing to detail his victorious brawl to the young tiger cub, "I beat the shit outta' that guy, didja' see that?" The canine obviously did not bear any mind that this was a child and that he was swearing in front of him. Then again, nobody had bothered to censor themselves in front of him as a pup, so why should he? It hadn't hurt him.

The Beauceron fixated his gaze onto a newcomer, a fellow dog. He was glad that this guy was unfazed; the last thing he needed right now was a total buzzkill. He gave a ruff in response, "Ah, don't know what I'm doin' here actually. I was just mindin' my own business when shtik drek[sup]1[/sup] thought it was a good idea to attack me." When you warranted a Yiddish insult from him, then you knew that you were on his shitlist. "I sent 'em running. That was a hell of a fight." Bugsy flashed a toothy grin that was very faintly stained scarlet.

Had the Beauceron come across this place accidentally? Well, yes and no. Bugsy had realized that there were scent markings here, though before he could decide on what to do next, he had been attacked by that hungry Ocelot. However, he hadn't known that there had been a large, established clan living here. He had only lived in one clan ever in his life, and that was the Ascendants or whatever they were called. Bugsy had ditched that joint a few weeks ago, and now he had yet again stumbled upon a commune of animals.

Bugsy looked down at the Raccoon who had made his presence known. He was tempted to make a witty comment about his appearance, but for now, he had decided against it. Perhaps in the future ( of course he would; teasing others was what he did best! ). Answering his question, he shrugged and gestured over his shoulder to beyond the borderlands. "I dunno. That way." As far as he could tell, that Ocelot had not been friendly, nor did it seem civilized or tame. It hadn't carried the scent that these guys had.

Now that that was all sorted and done with, Bugsy decided to ask, now that they were all here, "So, who the hell are all of you? And where is.. this?"

1. Shit head