She felt a little guilty this time. It was becoming all too easy for her to slip away. She had been on the trail of the grouse for a while now. It had gone past a lot of berry bushes just like her mom had told her. She wished her mom was here now. It wasn't that she didn't want to wait for her parents. It's just that they were so darn busy all the time that they were never around to ask anyway. So she just went by herself.
Her tail wagged when she found a feather. She had to stop it. She was just so excited that she knew she was getting closer and she knew she was going the right way. She had learned after the first few times that she had to slow down now, and maybe even start crawling, but not yet she didn't think.
Lenora was missing again. Lorelai was beside herself, and she spent her day wandering the forest, searching for any trace of her, but of course, there was none. The young Mystic leaned up against a tree, tears beginning to fall. She felt like a failure as a mother. What if something terrible had happened to Lenora? And still, she could not bring herself to leave the forest. She was truly pathetic, especially now.
In the distance, she heard movement. Lorelai looked up, nervous again, and she called out, "Who... who's there?"
Asara was truly growing close now, poop! Hello? She knew that voice, it was Auntie Lorelai! She wasn't very happy since Lenora went exploring again. She knew she'd come back, she'd be sure to talk to her talk to her when she was done. It'd be okay.
"Shh... Auntie, its just Asara I'm hunting, so close!" She tried to hush her before her prey could be startled away. Something rustled nearby, she flattened herself and went silent, switching into a slow crawl, ears flattened to her skull.
Lorelai registered her niece's voice almost at once, and she calmed, quieting herself. She didn't want to ruin the girl's hunt. Instead, she crept forward carefully, to watch the scene unfold. "I know you can do it, Asara," she murmured to the girl's retreating figure.
Auntie Lorelai always believed in her. She smiled and kept her body from wriggling happily with the praise. She was so close now she could almost taste it. It was quiet now and the girl continued her crawl forward, moving aside the brush delicately with one paw so she could see beyond. There were not one, not two, but three of them!
She set her eyes on the biggest of the bunch. They weren't far off now. She had learned a lot from all her hunting trips so far. Stay downwind, hold still, chase away from dens, don't let birds fly.
That was the biggest rule that she had learned that would help her now. She couldn't let her bird take flight or her hunt would be over. She had to stay quiet and sneaky. The girls body crept closer and closer. The grouse shuffled restlessly amongst themselves, almost as if they sensed a predator lurking nearby.
At this sign the girl wasted no time, she was close enough now that she ran at full speed and with one great pounce she was atop her chosen prey. There were feathers flying and bones cracking. In a matter of seconds the other two grouse were gone and with a triumphant howl Asara stood over her kill, beaming brightly.
Lorelai kept pace with the girl, though she kept a good distance away so as to not scare her quarry. The Mystic herself was not a very apt huntress, unless it was small game. She lacked faith in herself and her abilities, but with the right encouragement, she could hunt well.
She watched as the girl stalked the birds, and the subsequent chase was brief and Asara's howl rang out excitedly. The Mystic stepped forward, grinning broadly, her tail swaying lightly behind her back. "Great job! Think you can help me get another one? I'm no good at birds."
Auntie Lorelai caught up quick! She could already see her after she'd finished her howl. "
Yes, of course, birds are easy so long as you keep 'em on the ground!" She was excited that she could actually be teaching and helping someone, but first she really wanted to eat.
last from me for this thread. I'll tag you in a new one. <3
After Asara had finished eating, Lorelai would spend the next couple of hours with her, hunting and tracking more birds to bring back home. It felt good, to be watching the children. She decided to start watching them more — on the days there were not hunting, sparring, or patrolling, of course.