There wasn't much flesh on his prey but Adrian paid it no mind. That thrill of the hunt, the quick burst of energy release and satisfaction of making his kill, had been enough to satiate his shift.
However, as he bit through fur, flesh and bones, the stench of fear and distress pheromones was overwhelming. He knew he was at the center of attention, felt eyes on him from all around.
Especially so from the two males in front of him. Charles had wisely taken a few steps back, but the new male that Charles had called out to as Darius, had simply sat down.
Adrian hadn't been that distracted with his hunt to not have seen the man's shift. Darius was like him, but stronger. More powerful.
More dangerous.
Darius' raptor had been larger, heavier than Adrian's own shift. While Adrian had the impression that he could outrun the man thanks to his lighter build, he's stand no change against the powerful muscles that slowed the raptor down.
He wasn't worried about the adults that were approaching, knew that he outmatched them. But even if Adrian lashed out and fought them, he knew how quickly he could get overwhelmed by them.
His shift was massive and intimidating but if they all rushed him, catching him off guard, they might realize just how easy it would be to incapacitate him.
After all, semi-hollow bones were easier to break than most shifters full bones. Which why Adrian had always been wary of large groups or a single powerful predator.
His dead sibling was the proof of that, as he had easily been torn apart by that bear while, technically speaking, he could've survived if he had shifted before attacking.
Adrian had no idea why his sibling had even been in his human form to begin with. Perhaps he had anticipated the bear to be slow-moving, sluggish.
Perhaps he had wanted to toy around with the bear, to anger it and dodge its attacks before turning it into a meal. That was, until the roles were reversed and his sibling died screaming.
Tearing off a chunk of flesh and bone, Adrian threw his head upwards, allowing the motion and gravity to guide his meal down his throat.
His teeth weren't designed to chew and grind his meal to an easy to swallow mush. They were made to rip and tear, to shred the flesh into manageable chunks.
Then he just tossed his head back, allowing gravity and his powerful stomach to do the rest.
His meal finished quicker than he wanted, knew he could eat more if he really desired to. There were only few who would be able to stop him.
Neck feathers ruffling, Adrian looked back at Darius before shaking himself out. He snorted, lowering his head so his muzzle was within range of his leg, claws scraping off whatever gore had spilled over his lips.
"Don't worry about that. We'll head to the bathhouse that is designed for our shifts, so you can clean off." Darius spoke gently, drawing Adrian's attention back to him.
Adrian was surprised that the small fox kit was currently within Darius' lap, shivering Adrian's feet thudded on the floor. He lowered his head, nostrils expanding as he inhaled, analyzing all of their scents.
Charles leaned back as much as possible, tongue flicking over his lips in rapid succession. Adrian didn't need to analyze his scent to know he was nervous. The fox kit itself was shivering and whimpering, hiding against Darius' stomach to avoid Adrian's gaze.
The man himself however, didn't back away in the slightest. He allowed Adrian to lean in, nostrils flaring and inhales audible.
He even lifted his chin, baring his throat as Adrian nudged it, the membrane flicking over his eye for a moment before he snorted.
Rearing back, Adrian shook his body, ruffling his feathers on his winged arms before he started preening them. Darius chuckled, making Adrian look up briefly before he disregarded the sound and continued preening.
Only when his feathers were back to tip-top condition and within their original position, did Adrian stand to his full height.
He realized most, if not all of the prey had retreated safely within the buildings. Several predators, mostly adults, were still lingering outside.
And all their eyes were on Adrian.
Adrian let out a little thrill in the back of his throat, too soft to be a growl. Merely a sound of interest... curiosity.
His eyes widened, hackles raising instantly as a similar sound escaped Darius. Adrian shuffled his weight, claw tapping on the floor, backing off when Darius handed over the little kit and took a few steps forward.
Within the blink of an eye, the man shifted, shaking out his own feathers while Adrian watched him carefully.
The Utah raptor snorted, feathers ruffled in his hackles as he slowly approached Adrian. Adrian hissed warningly, crouching slightly, not in submission.
But to coil those powerful muscles within his legs, preparing to pounce if need be. Adrian didn't want to; he could tell just how powerful the raptor in front of him was.
However, surprise jolted through his body when Darius called out... and Adrian could understand the croon perfectly.
"Calm. You are not my prey."
Adrian snorted in shock, shaking his head to get rid of the pins and needles feeling of his feathers bristling.
It had been a long time ago since he had been able to vocalize. Speak within his animal form and be understood... the last time was in fact with his siblings before they were killed off.
So to have someone be able to speak to him in a manner even his beast understood, was thrilling, exciting.
"Who are you?" Adrian voiced, throat shivering on the low thrill that escaped him. His feathers were standing on edge to show his excitement. Feet shuffling constantly, nervous energy gathering into his muscles.
The powerful raptor across from him shook his own ruffled feathers, stepping cautiously around Adrian. "I am Darius. Was found as a hatchling, raised here." He snorted, shaking his head. "Our kin isn't exactly known for their childrearing abilities."
Adrian tilted his head, not quite understanding what Darius meant with childrearing abilities, but he caught the gist of it. He knew there were shifter species who had more care, stayed longer with their young, if they even left them to begin with.
"Do you remember when your parents left you?" Darius asked curiously, leaning in to sniff at Adrian's feathers. Adrian froze, standing absolutely still. It was a great risk, to allow Darius so close to him; if he attacked, Adrian would have no time to dodge.
Trying his best to focus, Adrian thought back, cringing back when Darius' muzzle pressed against his sensitive feathers. "Past hatchlings... we knew how to hunt, how to take down prey but... Several seasons?"
Adrian didn't really have a concept of time. Time was a continuation of days and seasons, of hot summers followed by long, cold winters.
Times were prey was plentiful, easy to find and young. And of course, there were times where the young had grown up, had learned from their experiences and where the prey was scarce, hard to find and lean.
"I think I've experienced snow once? We were alone in our second snow." Adrian replied hesitantly, claw tapping on the floor. "They were there when the leaves fell but, one morning they were gone."
He didn't quite understand why it was so important to know. Sure, it had been a terrifying experience, where he and his siblings had called out for their parents.
But they had gotten used to their parents leaving for hunts. Originally they would return before the evening but the older the siblings grew, the longer those periods became.
They had stayed near the nest, waiting for their return. Slowly growing hungry, until they realized they were on their own. They had gathered and struck out on their first hunt and that was it.
Adrian didn't miss his parents, nor did he resent them for abandoning their offspring. He had witnessed it in the wilds, where animals lovingly cared for their young, only to chase them off, sometimes even physically.
"Come." Adrian blinked out of his thoughts, watching Darius shake his head towards the buildings, taking a step before waiting on the younger raptor.
Hesitantly, Adrian followed. Not quite fearful, but wary of the older, more powerful predator. He snorted as people made way, the ground shaking underneath their combined weight as they moved forwards.
It made Adrian's animal croon with delight. The sense of camaraderie, of pack. There was safety in numbers, both for prey and for predators.
Prey stuck together to be safe, to confuse predators with their numbers and hoped they were the lucky few that survived.
With predators, it was the opposite. It was to bolster the ranks, have multiple carnivores chasing the prey. Raise the chance of a successful hunt, the likelihood to maintain your territory without being chased off.
It was why Adrian had pressed on staying together as hatchlings. Their rate of success would go up, they could take down bigger prey and grow stronger.
Instead, his egocentric brother had slowly killed off his siblings one by one. Adrian didn't have a doubt in his mind that his brother had been plotting his death as well.
Perhaps that was why he was so pressed on attacking the bear? To enrage it and then dart away, leaving Adrian as a sacrificial distraction so he could get away...
Evidently, things didn't work out in his favor that time, leaving Adrian alone, having to fend for himself. As he walked besides Darius, he wondered how the man ended up in this place.
And a hint of annoyance ruffled his feathers, as Adrian realized he wouldn't be able to ask in his human form. Not until he learned how to speak like them.
He paused when Darius led them to an impatiently waiting Willem, holding a set of pants for them to wear. It instantly made Adrian snort, shaking his head.
He didn't want to shift back and be stuck in the buildings once more. He wanted to be out, to roam freely wherever he wanted.
"Your shift is too big to fit into the dining halls, and we won't bring food out to you." Willem growled lowly, already anticipating Adrian's line of thought before adding, "And you can't leave the compound to hunt any critters either."
Well... that is an incentive...
Adrian shifted, ignoring the muffled curse from Willem and the amused huff coming from Darius. Reaching out, he grabbed one of the pants and put it on, confused when Willem was glaring at him.
"Learn some modesty before you scar any of the kids around." The bear hissed, making Adrian tilt his head with a frown.
But, his shift was too big to fit inside to get changed and Willem was waiting outside with clothes for them....
Darius let out an amused huff, delicately grabbing the clothes between his jaws before moving behind the building. When he returned, Adrian huffed and averted his head, refusing to take any blame.
If they wanted me to change behind the building, they should've said so. Why was Willem waiting here with clothes if he didn't want me to change here?
Adrian sniffed his arm, wondering why they were so insistent on clothes to begin with. They were all shifters, shouldn't they all be more comfortable in their animal shapes?
Aren't our animal forms nude to begin with?
Besides him, Darius chuckled, pulling his shirt down, eyes flickering with amusement. "It's not necessarily to not scar the kids, more like teaching them they shouldn't run around in the nude when in their human shape."
A snort escaped Adrian, as he could only imagine people walking around in their weak and sensitive human skin. He certainly didn't need any adults running around like that either.
Adrian glanced at Willem and was rather grateful indeed that shifters wore clothes in human shape.
"Well, at least now there's no question about what you are, so that's nice." Darius grinned, chuckling as Willem groaned in disgust.
"Yes, because the compound needed another one of your kin." The bear grumbled, motioning the two raptors ahead of him. "You already were a pain in my ass to deal with."
Darius grinned proudly at that, guiding Adrian further into the room, sniffing the air as the scent of a hot meal circled towards them.
"Hmmmm, I doubt that cougar was very filling." Darius smirked, side-eying Adrian as he added "and it seems the cooks are outperforming themselves today with some lasagna."
Las...lasagna? What is that? Some kind of lizard or snake?
"Come on Adrian. I know you're used to raw meats but once you discover the delights of a homecooked meal..." Darius trailed off, sighing wistfully. Adrian tilted his head in slight confusion, wondering if this cooked lizard would really be all that good.
--------
Darius snickered as he sat down across Adrian with his own plate of steaming hot lasagna. He could already tell that the young man was going to be a picky eater regarding anything that wasn't raw, bleeding meat.
Though, Darius could easily spot that hint of interest, how Adrian's nostrils flared with each delicate whiff. Scenting the air and deeming it interesting enough, judging by the liquid growl of his stomach.
"Here." Darius said, putting a plate in front of Adrian. He silently thanked his lucky stars that he thought ahead and asked the kitchen to cut Adrian's lasagna up, handing over a spoon as well.
Because Darius had an inkling that he would've lost his hand if he gave the young man food, only to reach to it, even if it was to help.
"You might wanna use that spoon and blow... breathe on the food or you'll burn-" He wasn't even finished before sighing when Adrian's hunger and curiosity got the better of him.
The raptor, with little to no experience with cooked foods, let alone a hot meal that just came out of the oven, attempted to shove his hand into the plate.
The second his fingertips breached the molten cheese and touched the still simmering sauce, an angry snarl exploded through the room.
Adrian hissed at the plate, membrane flicking over his eyes as he yanked his fingers back, giving them a sniff before licking the sauce off of them.
"Should've seen that one coming." Willem snorted with amusement while Adrian sneered down at his plate with venomous disgust.
Darius smiled, calling out to Adrian and showing the boy how he used a spoon on his own meal, taking a good spoonful and blew plentifully before risking a bite.
It was still hot of course, but not scoldingly so. Adrian scowled before glaring at the spoon, giving it a quick jab with his nail before deeming it harmless.
Darius decided against repeating the instructions and instead focused on his meal. While he himself had been raised within the compound, he also knew how the older the shifter was, the more frustrated they'd get if he treated them as an ignorant kid.
He knew Adrian was smart enough to learn from example, could already see the few looks thrown his way. Adrian's eyes flitted across the mostly empty room, besides the small gathering of the hyena clan on the opposite end.
The sight of everyone using utensils seemed to calm the agitated feral down, to a certain degree. He slowly picked up the spoon, jabbing it into the meal a few times before hesitantly following Darius' example and blew on the food.
Darius had to bite back a cheeky grin, as it was much like a child would attempt to blow out a candle. Even if Adrian was older than most new arrivals and had more experience in certain areas, it was painfully clear how he was lacking in others.
But the boy sure was making up for it with bounds and leaps. Darius felt a hint of pride curl in his stomach as Adrian quickly caught onto the mechanic, managing to actually blow without any added spittle after a few attempts.
"Ah, don't bite down on the spoon either! That'll just hurt your teeth. Just use your lips to move the food off of it." Darius quickly suggested, watching as Adrian's eyes flitted towards him and down to his slightly reddened fingertips before giving a hesitant nod.
He watched the young Dakota-raptor slowly stick the spoon in his mouth, a concentrated frown on the feral's face as he did as instructed.
And grinned when surprise flitted over Adrian's face at the flavors that exploded within his mouth.
Darius made a little note to thank the staff for their thoughtfulness, knowing that they always added plenty of meats for the carnivores. Naturally, the herbivores were provided with a completely vegetarian version, or a fish and seafood based version for the pescatarians.
They knew how hard it was for shifters, ferals specifically, to suddenly change their complete diet from raw to cooked meals.
So their cooks tried their best to make that transition as smooth and easy as possible. And judging from the way Adrian started to shovel spoonful after spoonful in his mouth, they succeeded once more.