Darren walked through the forest, steps strong and sure in his gray sneakers, placed with deftness and grace. For a well-muscled man, he was certainly lithe. A black sleeveless shirt and well-fitted, faded orange jeans showed this fact off.
The forest was shady, cool, and as he walked through patches of sunlight his light brown skin shone with warmth, hands swinging slightly at his sides, hazel eyes calmly taking in every detail.
It was his daily hike, a quiet, almost meditative endeavour. It was about twenty minutes in length, maybe thirty if he strolled, in a loop that circled back on itself. He made it a little different every time to keep it interesting, but it was the same basic areas.
Today, though, he had a little extra time before work. He went off the beaten path, certain of his sense of direction, down into the ferny, weedy undergrowth and towards a river, and further off, a glade or clearing of some sort, seemingly small.

Suddenly he heard a gunshot, a report loud enough to almost seem right next to him, though he knew this wasn't the case. He grimaced and slapped hands to his ears, looking around. Worried, he started forward quickly, scanning the ground and trees as he loped along the river.
And then he saw it; a brown wolf, bleeding profusely from the shoulder. No one in sight, he noted. Perhaps it had been an accident, though he doubted it...why would you try to kill a non-game animal, and not in hunting season too??
Shaking his head, he trotted forward, slowing gradually until he was a few feet away, inspecting the wolf to see how it was responding, careful not to look it in the eyes.

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James

I knew being shot wasn't great but then again it wasn't the first time that something like this had happened. I heard a sound of footsteps and knew that it wasn't the one who had shot me because this person wasn't one that I knew because of their scent. I knew the one who shot me was near by though. I backed away from the guy keeping my injured leg off the ground as I watched him, I had my ears pinned back in a devencive move so that I could defend my self if the worst was to come my way. I let out a low growl letting him know that I wasn't playing around.

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The wolf backed up and growled, pinning his ears. He spread his hands slightly and said soothingly, "Alright, alright I got it. It's fine."
He backed up a step and looked around, trying to see anything. A thought occurred and he darted behind the nearest tree, hoping maybe the shooter would show themselves. After a couple of minutes, apparently too focused or intent on the wolf, the shooter crept forward through some large bushes, trying to get closer for a better aim. He was not far away at all.

Moving as quickly and quietly at the same time as he could, he moved towards the man. The shooter was steadying his rifle to his shoulder and looking down the sights, headphones on as Darren came up on his side. He only had a chance to start and turn his head slightly before Darren grabbed and turned the gun, the other man's finger jerking the trigger. It went off into the air, deafening in volume. Ears ringing, he tackled the man to the ground, struggling to coordinate himself with the shock of the gunshot.
The man punched dropped the gun and pushed against him and then punched his jaw. Darren grabbed onto his shirt as he lurched sideways, dragging them onto their sides. The shooter tried to climb on top, but he kneed him in the balls, hard, and shoved him away. The man wailed and bent into the fetal position, and Darren spread him out, getting on top of him and pinning his wrists.

The man was whimpering, but he shouted at him.
"What are you doing?! This is illegal activity, what the fuck!"
The man shook his head slightly, eyes screwed shut.
"WELL?!?!''
"I...w-was hired! It's not my-"
"Fault? It most certainly is!"
"I got paid...a-a-a-"
"A lot! I'm sure! I don't give a shit!"
The man beneath him squirmed and whimpered again, finally opening his eyes to stare towards the injured wolf. Darren jerked his wrists up and slammed them down into the soil. The man's ice blue eyes darted to him, glossy with pain and shock.

"Get the fuck out of here," he grunted, letting go and shoving off the man's chest to propel himself to his feet. He picked up the gun and slid the strap over his shoulder as the man started to get up. He noticed that he had the rifle over his back and he began to protest, but Darren cut him off.
''Leave. Now,'' lifting his arm to point towards the edge of the forest.
The man nodded his head vigorously, slowly making his way to his feet and shuffling off.
Darren spat, sneering at the man's back, and then turned to go back to the injured canine.

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James

I watched the situation and what had happened, I had no idea what had been going on and I never expected the guy to even go out of his way to protect me. I limped over to him guessing I could trust him a little so long as he didn't do anything that I would see as a threat. I watched him closely as I came over to him wondering why he had protected me like that when he could have let that guy take me or even let him kill me. I laid down acting submissive to him showing him that I wasn't going to hurt him.

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It was pretty cut and dry for him - you didn't injure or kill animals for no good reason, and you didn't break an important law. He didn't take chances with people like that, or people with guns, especially unarmed. Which he often was, but he did have a concealed carry license and a shotgun and two pistols himself.
He slowly walked to meet the wolf, seeing that he was a lot more trusting now. He always marvelled at how smart animals could be. This seemed a bit beyond that, though...he couldn't put his finger on it.

Crouching down and sliding the gun off of his back, he reached out towards the injured animal, shifting a little closer to try and see the wound better. it looked like it may have gone through, but there was no way to tell without getting the wolf on his back and moving his limbs aside to see the inside of the foreleg.
"Alright, I gotta call...somebody..."
His voice petered out as he realized he didn't have any numbers that would be appropriate, nor friends who could help; shit, he didn't even have the time to run and get his car, if said vehicle could even drive in this kind of terrain. Which it couldn't. At all.

He released a string of curses under his breath, then stripped his shirt off, edging closer, keeping his body relaxed and eyes off the wolf's eyes.
"I just want to bind the wound, we can't have you bleeding out..."
Keeping up a soft chatter would normally allow an animal to feel more comfortable around you - he knew that much atleast. Not much else really, but that much he had learned.
Normally he was not such a bleeding heart either, animal or human, but something about this animal drew him in, and he also felt obligated after saving its life to...well, finish saving its life.
He just needed to get his shirt around the offending wound and tighten it, then he'd figure out what to do after that...perhaps if the canine let him do that, he would also let him carry it to his car. That would be a long trek with a dying wolf in your arms, though.

(Feel free to powerplay him binding the wound if James is accepting of that)

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James

I soon enough went and stood back up not knowing what he was planning but I didn't think that he was going to think of carrying me mostly because I guessed I didn't want him hurting himself, I kept my injured leg off the ground as I watched him, I could guess that he was planning on binding the wounds in some day. I knew the wounds were on my shoulder and leg on the same side. After a small while I hand the wounds wrapped with his shirt since I could guess that he didn't have any bandages, I went and laid down again starting to feel tired.

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Darren finished wrapping the wolf's leg, and when he tried to lay down, he shook his head and scooped him up gingerly, a fairly easy weight for him. The wolf seemed on the light side, but then again, he still knew little about animals.
With the wolf as secure as he could make it, he started loping back up towards the trail, careful of his footing. He'd get it to the car, use his phone to look up the nearest vet, call that vet...then take the wolf there. After that, well...pay for the expenses, then...he didn't know. You save an animal's life, and then just let it go again?
The thought made him sad.

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James

I listened to the call a little and knew it wasn't likely to be good since I really hated both vets and doctors. I likely wouldn't leave the guy just in case he ended up getting hurt by that hunter from before or the people who send the hunter after him. I closed my eyes hoped that things would be alright or if the guy would just leave him in the forest again. I had kinder hoped to stay with him for a bit.

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