Just Another Day

With the twang of a bowstring and the solid thwock of the arrow connecting with its target, the buck never changed direction and instead collapsed to the ground.

The cub cupped her wings to break her flight and land. She poked the protruding arrow curiously.

"A feathered stick?" She mumbled to herself. She had been trained only to hunt by her claws and was not familiar with any weapon. The Sylvan saw it as a disgrace for a young and healthy kurach to hunt with anything other than their own bodies. Aside from the occasional ceremonial knife awarded to the most capable hunters, she had never even seen a weapon before.

"Cub?" Dai rode up to her and the fallen game quickly. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine." She looked up to him. "Why do you ask?"

"You dropped out of the sky so quickly I was worried I had shot you instead."

"Nah, you missed me," she said absently as she watched him gather the buck. "When can we eat it?"

Dai suppressed a grimace at the calloused nature of her inquiry. "I will dress it tonight," he said and draped the buck across the saddle of his horse. "Why did you dive?"

"They were going the wrong way," the cub said hotly. "I had to fix it."

"No, they were going the way I needed them to go," Dai said patiently. "It's easier for me to hit their broadside and know they will die quickly rather than take a chance missing them from the front or causing them to suffer."

"Oh," the cub muttered.

Jakko came up beside her with his tail wagging, obviously pleased with his performance.

"Quit rubbing it in, Jakko," the cub grumbled.

"Would you like a ride back to camp?" Dai offered her.