The longer you were here, the longer you wondered if there really was an appeal to hunting with a pack.

You were surrounded by yapping wolves, all of them trying to get you to tussle while Bartolomeo had wandered off to shift. This pack in particular didn't like tearing up clothes and tended to strip before a shift but with humans here, they were willing to be a bit more modest than what was apparently normal. Shanks was right, casual nudity was a common thing among the supernatural, especially shifters.

A wolf bumped your shoulder and you finally gave in out of annoyance, tackling them and tumbling through a patch of grass until you landed on top of them. They were about the same size as you but they weren't quite as lithe. In a one on one fight, you could take a werewolf out easy.

Or you thought so until you saw Bartolomeo come padding out from the trees. He was unfortunately bigger than you and looked like a solid wall of muscle. His frame was slim but you could see the deadly potential under his thick layers of fur, which were a strange greenish color. You had to assume that green was in fact, his natural hair color. It was odd though, your fur didn't change color to match your natural shade, it stayed the normal jaguar orange with the white underbelly.

He snapped his teeth at the packmates closest to you until they all finally backed off, giving you the space you'd been wanting.

"So what now?" Usopp asked.

"They hunt." Shanks answered with a shrug. "Their beasts tend to only come out once a month and they like to run free when given the chance."

"Can we join?" Zoro asked with genuine interest.

"If you can keep up." Shanks chuckled. "I think Benn and I will stay put in case someone unwelcome makes an appearance."

"I'm staying too then!" Luffy said.

"I don't think I want to join in on a hunt." Usopp cleared his throat akwardly. "Here seems pretty safe anyway."

In the end, everyone seemed fine with staying put, even Zoro after he'd been convinced that he wouldn't be able to keep up with the pack.

When everything was settled, Bartolomeo gently nudged you with his nose and pointed out towards a patch of trees. You hadn't caught a single scent around where you were now but maybe he had. So you let him lead to his chosen destination and fell in step slightly behind him. It'd be considered rude to him and the rest of the pack if you ran level or ahead of him so you were careful to keep your strides just short enough to keep you at his hip.

When you were unable to hear your friends anymore and had gone far enough into the forest to have trees surrounding you completely, you became more in tune to the wild energy in you. It was almost pulsing with the same energy every single wolf gave off. For some, it was weaker than others and you quickly understood that marked them as weaker members of the pack.

Scents seemed stronger and sounds were easier to detect. Even in the oppressing darkness, you could see every movement clearly. The feeling of the wolves behind you, itching to run something down, spurred your own instincts on until you were fighting to keep your pace. You wanted to strike out and hunt by yourself, like any normal jaguar would, but you understood the need to stick with the pack, enough to control yourself at least.

When you reached the spot Bartolomeo wanted to be at, he paused to scent the air. The entire pack did the same, noses raised up with a few pressed to the ground, all of them looking for the next unlucky victim.

There was nothing nearby, you could tell as much but maybe they were more hopeful of this spot having higher activity with the local prey. You grunted at Bartolomeo to get his attention before jumping into the nearest tree. Your claws hooked in place and you pulled yourself up until you reached the closest branch to slink out onto.

If you were lucky, you might be able to see some kind of movement from up high. It was a little unconventional when you had such a sensitive nose at your disposal but it kept you near the pack and still gave you a chance to help with the hunt.

Bartolomeo let out a couple yips from down below but when you looked down, he was back to searching for a trail. That had to be him letting you know he understood what you were up to.

Your spot was handy but it wasn't quite high enough and didn't allow for you to twist around for more of a 360° view, there were no other close by branches you could get to without going higher. So you did, moving up a few more feet until you reached branches that wrapped around the tree perfectly and could still hold your weight at the same time.

Human you would have never considered doing this but as a feline, you were more than happy to do something like this. You twisted around your branches, circling the trunk of the tree as you stared out into the forest. Leaves covered about half your vision but you were sure if there was anything on the move nearby, you'd see it.

Sure enough with a bit of patience, you caught a flash of something followed by a few thuds of heavy feet hitting the ground from farther off. You focused in on it and to your cat's delight, saw a small herd of deer, headed by a buck with a large rack of antlers. You didn't realize how starved you felt until now.

Carefully, you picked your way back down the tree and found the pack a short distance off, still unable to find something to hunt. Lucky for them, you did.

A few short chuffs gained their attention and Bartolomeo came trotting up to you inquisitively. You weren't quite sure what would be an okay way to have him follow you so you did what you thought would be the least rude option and nipped at his shoulder before turning towards the right direction and walking a few steps, pausing and looking back to make sure he was following. After trying it a couple times, he understood and walked with you, the rest of the pack falling in line behind you.

It didn't take long for all of you to pick up the scent of the small herd and it was like a switched was flipped. The playfulness left the pack and they fanned out in pairs and sets of three, one walking almost directly behind the other. You and Bartolomeo stayed at the head of everything, right in the center with him encouraging you to take the lead. If he insisted, you wouldn't argue.

And suddenly, you felt like you were in charge. There were easily around twenty wolves, all of them watching you carefully so they knew when to make the next move. The next few minutes were filled with a tense silence. The only noticable sounds were the occasion nighttime creature scurrying around and the many soft footfalls of hunters.

While you'd prefer hunting alone, the feeling of having so many wolves at your beck and call, even if only temporarily, felt exhilarating. You could feel the many sets of eyes on you, the occasional bated breath that followed whenever you moved differently. The longer you went, the more they all felt like tightly wound machines, ready to burst into action at any second.

When the herd was almost in sight, you naturally dropped lower until your belly scraped the ground with every step. You moved slowly, using the underbrush to keep yourself hidden until the last possible moment. The wolves didn't hunt in this same way and decided to close in on either side at a longer distance. As you moved in, the buck came into view, it's sweeping antlers grazing the night sky as it twisted it's head around to survey the area.

The herd was calm, but alert, as they should be. A few does were laying down, resting, while the others picked through sparse grass, nipping up small bites here and there. The buck settled for taking a few steps in one direction, looking around, and moving again to repeat the process, ever watchful. When he dropped his head to nibble at a particularly green patch of grass, your muscles coiled under your skin and you prepared yourself to leap at it.

But a sudden yelp from a wolf off to the left startled the deer and they all shot to the right in response.

The forest exploded into a flurry of activity as you and the wolves began to give chase. The deer turned sharply inward and towards the direction you wanted when they realized there were more hunters where they were going.

You lost track of every other creature as you zeroed in on the buck. There was the vague feeling of Bartolomeo branching off to aim for the nearest doe, leaving your target to you alone. Your muscles burned wonderfully as the buck tried desperately to get away but you still closed in on it. It wasn't built to evade such large, unusual predators like you.

It wasn't long until you were almost beside it's hip, the dirt flying off it's hooves, bouncing off your thick coat. You lunged for it, latching onto it's back and sinking your claws into it's shoulders. The buck cried out and stumbled to the ground, unable to hold up your weight along with its own. Your teeth sunk into it's neck and blood immediately seeped in between your teeth to slide down your throat.

After your first hunt, when you woke up covered in blood, you were disgusted by knowing what you'd done but this time it felt perfectly fine. Maybe that was because you were in your cat form, but you had no qualms about the mess you were sure you'd be later. You reveled in the kill as you and the buck went tumbling down a softly declining hill and slid to the bottom in a heap of thrashing limbs.

You pinned it's head down as you sunk your teeth in further, leaving it unable to escape. Around you, you could hear the wolves doing the same, taking down the remainder of the herd one by one. The thrill of the hunt still lingered with you as the buck let out its last breaths and your heart raced from the quick chase. While it was a fast ordeal, it was enough to relax your cat until the next full moon, you were sure of that.

Your fangs unlatched from the buck's neck when it's eyes had glassed over, unblinking in death, and you licked the blood from your lips. Most food wasn't this good in your human form and you were dying to get a better taste of the deer. Except when you were about to bite into it, a piercing scream stopped you short right before something slammed into you hard enough to roll you.

A nearby tree stopped you from going too far, your back smashing into it painfully as you roared out in anger. You didn't care which wolf did it, they were getting a face full of cat claws. But before you could right yourself and lash out at your attacker, they went in for your throat.

You managed to get halfway to your feet before they could and they latched onto your collar instead. Teeth sunk into your flesh and you could tell they got a mouthful of fur and skin in the process. The bite wasn't all that deep thankfully but there was bone close to the surface and while you wouldn't bleed enough for it to be dangerous, the feeling of bone cracking was a poor consolation.

When you were finally able to bat at their face with an open paw, you realized you weren't dealing with a wolf. They swiped right back at you, raking their claws along your cheek and when you stumbled back, having found your feet, you knew you were in trouble. A very familiar leopard stood in front of you, teeth bared menacingly as it hissed and spat.

The wolves had stopped their hunt to close in, creating a slowly shrinking circle as they watched patiently for what was to happen. It wasn't hard to tell that the pack wasn't strong enough to fight your opponent. They knew just as much and only circled to see the outcome. You didn't know where Bartolomeo was, but you hoped he'd make an appearance soon, he was the only wolf here capable of helping you out of this mess. But for now, you'd have to fight for yourself and consider this a crash course in shifter combat.

Lucci let out a roar that shook the trees and sent any other animal that was close enough to hear it running for cover. Without a second thought, you returned the challenge with a roar of your own. Though not as impressive as his, it told him you were ready for a fight and this time, when he lunged, you were ready for him.