Just Another Day

But one day, a little visitor arrived in his life. As Jakko was out roaming as was his wont while the cattle grazed lazily in a shallow valley, he had caught sight of a jackrabbit. As he had prepared to give chase for a bit of mid-morning fun, a girl dove from the sky and killed the rabbit. She was a kurach, with grey, furry ears and tail, sharp black nails on her fingers and toes, and black wings arching from her back.

The girl was hungry and had been stalking the very same jackrabbit as Jakko. He was not aware of how hungry she was and wanted to play. He lunged forward and grabbed her rabbit. She pulled back, trying to reclaim her supper. Oh, but what fun Jakko was having! He tugged back, wagging his tail and growling playfully. With a skilled yank, he broke the jackrabbit free from her grasp and began to run away.

The girl ran after him, yelling threats and curses as he pranced away. His master heard the shouting and was quite surprised at what came huffing and panting up beside him. It was a young kurach cub unlike any he had previously seen. Her hair was brown with blonde tips and forelocks, unlike the Heyen whose hair was either solid brown, red, or black. Her wings were pure black like raven wings, instead of like the Heyen's wings whose resembled that of one of the many hawks that glided overhead. She was considerably paler and was much more temperamental than the gentler Heyen. She ceased chasing the dog when she came across Dai.

"That dog stole my dinner!" she growled to him in an accent much closer to his own than the Heyen accent.

"It's a bad habit of his," Dai said. Jakko had been raised in the wilderness and often seemed to think he still had to struggle for his meals.

"Rats," she huffed and placed her hands on her hips. "Well I'd better get on the wing and far enough away I can keep the next one." She glared out over the hills, her ears have cocked in concentration.

"Jakko's my dog, so perhaps I could make it up to you?" Dai ventured. It was so strange for her to be hunting alone at her age.

"Seriously?" she asked, dropping her arms and some of the hostility.

"Of course. I don't have another rabbit, but I have some salted pork."

"Bleh, I don't like salt. Can you cook?"

"Jakko prefers my cooking to his hunting," Dai said tiredly. Jakko had also stolen Dai's dinner many times. Although her dislike for salt surprised him. The Urych especially loved salt and often licked at his arms and neck on hot days.