The mates continued to march towards the valley. Rutilus was hungry, but he could handle it. Whiteclaw, by contrast, was NOT in a good mood. Between her hormones, hunger, and his unceasing insistence that they mate, she was pretty mad.
The fact that the trip into the valley was over rough terrain didn't help, either. After some hours, Whiteclaw had stubbed her toe on a boulder and roared in pain.
"What's wrong? Are you okay, my love?" Rutilus said.
"Oh, now it's back to 'my love' now that I'm in pain? I walked into a rock and hurt my toe. I need to rest for a while."
"By all means, rest." Rutilus said. She looked so beautiful when sleeping, he thought.