Closed [Bronze Wood] A Desperate Chase

[Barn]

34th of Summer, 513 AV Midday It wasn't that hot of a day, truly, but to Barn and her pure black coat it was as if Syna had decided to boil the Suvan. She laid in a patch of shadow, tongue out and panting. Her firey eyes shone slightly. One paw lifted, claws unsheathing as the cat gnawed on them. Barn licked the same paw and dragged it over her face and ears. The beads around her neck dedicated to Akajia shifted. Blasted heat. Suddenly the Kelvic went absolutely still with the exception of her ears, which flicked and rotated. Was that...? Yes, it was. A chipmunk not too far from her. If she was in human form a wicked grin would've crossed her face. The cat lifted off the ground silently, padding forwards. Barn doubted chipmunks could climb trees. Her stomach barely brushed the grass, tail kept low and eyes locked on her prey. The chipmunk just had to look up, didn't it? It darted away and Barn gave chase. She nearly smacked into a tree three times, finally driving it out into a small clearing. The cat leapt, pouncing on the rodent and sinking her pearly claws into it to hold it still. A swift bite to the neck ended its misfortune, and she set about enjoying her meal. It wasn't an easy catch, however, with Barn's muscles quivering and chest heaving. She was definitely out of shape. This is what I get, she thought, for lounging about in Syliras all day. The feline finished off her prey and settled down for a nap. She wouldn't get any sleep.

[Wade]

Wade stomped out of the trees, his teeth set and eyebrows lowered. He aimed a kick at the roots of the tree and cursed at it. "If there was just one petching rabbit that didn't have a third eye sticking out the back of its head!" he snarled. He was dirty, scratched up, and two of his arrows were missing. Conspicuously missing, also, was an animal slung over his shoulder.

Wade sighed deeply. As the air left his lungs, so too did his rage. Depression settled over him and pushed him into a sitting position against the very tree that he had cursed and kicked a moment before. He held a hand before his eyes and turned it over as he tried to count the many tiny lines of blood. He pulled a thorn from one of his knuckles and ran his tongue across his dry lips.

He sighed once again and cast his eyes about him. He was used to getting a little beat up out there in the wilderness. He had begun to understand it as kind of a toll for being allowed to hunt there. In fact, he was a little lucky he hadn't yet been mauled by something. He bore no bite marks from an angry wolf or anything like that. The woods just sought to give some calluses to the once soft hands of a youth who had spent his life inside the walls of the citadel.

Unfortunately, today those callused hands were empty. Wade stomach growled to remind him that he was still allowing himself no meal before heading out into the woods, just to give himself a little more motivation. He had begun to accept that life was not easy out from under the protective wing of his sister. He just wished it wasn't so hard some days to catch just one scrawny rabbit.

"Shyke," Wade muttered, pounding his hand against the ground.

Wade tensed as he suddenly heard something not far off. He climbed to his feet and drew out his bow and an arrow. He set another arrow in his teeth for easy access and crept toward the noise. His depression from just a moment before was crushed by his rising hopes. He had one more chance to bag an animal before calling it quits.

Wade turned a corner and his eyes settled on a small black cat. He cocked his head as he regarded it, frowning. It was a less-than-ideal animal and Wade wasn't sure if he'd even get much meat from the little fellow.

Still, he was frustrated after a long, fruitless day and would take what he could get. Wade drew back and fired at the cat, aiming for its torso. He felt his hand spasm as he let go of the arrow, though, and knew it would fly harmlessly high. He cursed and set the next arrow to his string.

[Barn]

Barn jumped what felt like three feet into the air, hackles raised and tail puffed up. She let out a meow of surprise, but didn't run. Who shot at her!? Rage flooded the small cat and she whipped her head around, spotting the hunter. The fury dissolved into fear, seeing the next arrow notched and aimed at her. "Woah, what the petch!? No need for that!" It took Barn a moment to realize he couldn't understand her. She shifted into human form, crouched and put her hands up in a 'no shoot' stance. He was young, but his hands were calloused and there was pain and sadness in his eyes. He looked hungry. Why else would he try and shoot at cat, other than hating the animals? And why in the Bronze Woods? There was plenty other prey she could smell. "No need for that, friend!"

[Wade]

The cat leapt up into the air, totally on the alert at Wade's first missed shot. Unexpectedly, however, the cat did not immediately try to dart away into the protection of a nearby bush. It certainly had the speed to evade the aim of as poor a shot as he and an animal's first instinct was always to run instead of attack. That gave Wade pause as his arrow fixed on the cat, keeping it on the string for a few surprised moments.

It was as good a shot as an inexperienced hunter like Wade could ask for. There was nothing between him and his target. The distance was so small he could probably have hurled a rock and hit the cat between the eyes. It was standing completely still. Still, Wade was awed by the fact that it had not scampered off at his first shot.

Suddenly the cat transformed into a naked woman, crouched defensively on the ground. She calling out a polite version of "Don't kill me."

Wade rolled his eyes and cursed his luck even as his shoulders fell in relief. He actually let his bow and arrow drop to the ground. He wiped an arm across his forehead, his hand wrapping around to cover his mouth as he leaned against the tree.

"I-I'm sorry," Wade muttered. "I didn't... Shyke that was close."

[Barn]

Surprisingly, he didn't shoot her out of shock. He had probably seen a Kelvic before. Barn lowered her hands, watching his shoulders fall and the bow drop. He looked so tired... She crept closer, stretching out one hand to touch his knee. "Are you okay? Do you need some food, or some water?" So young, and so tired. Taking one hand in hers, she pressed the back of her other to his forehead. He wasn't feverish. Just exhausted. "It's okay, it's okay. You didn't know. No harm done." She purred, but it wasn't the continuous vibration like in her cat form. No, this was more of a separated rumble, having to pause and take a breath every once and a while. The 'purr' was loud, loud enough for a human to hear, and her throat moved with the pauses. She really hoped he wasn't going to go into shock. "What's your name? Mine's Barn."

[Wade]

Wade half-heartedly tried to fend off the woman's concerned touch with one arm, though he needed the other to steady himself against the tree. Relief was just pouring through his whole body. He looked up at the sun as he tried to gather his scattered thoughts. He wasn't sure who it was he needed to thank for keeping him from unsuspectingly killing a Kelvic just for dinner.

"I-I'm fine," he said. He fixed his eyes on the Kelvic's own. She was so concerned with how he was doing even after he'd come so close to killing her. She was very quick to forgive despite that she had come so close to being just a cold corpse on the ground. "My name is Wade. Are you all right? I swear I did not know, or I would never have..."

Wade chewed on the inside of his mouth for a second. "Look, I'm truly sorry." He put a hand on the woman's shoulder as he struggled to come up with a way to make amends for his actions. "Is there some what that I can make it up to you?"

[Barn]

Wade. He looked relieved that he hadn't shot her. It wasn't his fault, he just looked hungry. "I'm fine, I'm fine. It isn't your fault. Don't worry about it. Do you need something to eat? I can probably catch a bird or a squirrel. Maybe even a rabbit. It'll take at most half a bell. You should try to walk more quietly and mask your scent next time, I'm sure the hunted could smell you from the other side of the Wildlands." That last part made the cat Kelvic smile a little bit, her grin pointing out that it was meant to be a joke. She could smell his sincerity. Poor thing. I mean sure, she had a brush with death. But she hadn't lost her life, had she? And he was just hungry and desperate. On a different day she would've carved lines down his face with her claws, but she felt forgiving today.

[Wade]

Wade laughed at the joke and sniffed himself. He could detect just a bit of the stench of sweat but knew that the denizens of the wilderness were quite adept at picking up the most faint of scents. Perhaps that was his problem? Wade cocked his head as he thought about it but decided that it was more an issue of shaky aim and clumsy steps that warned the animals of his approach.

Wade smiled. "Hunger isn't an issue, really, I have food back at home," he said. "I've, uh, gotten into the practice of not eating before I head out so that I can have that extra little push." Wade looked into the woman's eyes thoughtfully. "However, I would like to perhaps follow you on a hunt, though. It could be very educational for me." He swung his arms out wide. "Though, of course, that would put me even more in your debt!"

[Barn]

"That may be why you aren't having much luck. You can't focus on an empty stomach. Don't worry about the debt, by the way. First one's free." Following her on a hunt... She smiled. Good luck with that. Trying to follow a cat on a hunt was like trying to catch smoke. Always slipping through your fingers. He was welcome to make an attempt, though. She disappeared in a swirl of lights and reformed as the black cat she knew she was. Flicking her tail, Barn trotted towards the trees. The Kelvic glanced back at Wade, baring her teeth as if in a smile. "Well come on then, boy. Time's a-wastin'!"

[Wade]

By the time Wade rubbed the lights out of his eyes the woman before him had transformed back into the little black cat. He felt a pang of guilt upon seeing the innocent animal he'd tried to turn into a delicious meal. However, the cat seemed to hold no fear as it happily headed towards the trees. It smiled mischievously back at him and he wondered if this was not so much a hunting lesson as it was a game for the cat. He could imagine how much fun it would be to lead a hunter on a wild goose chase.

Wade figured he owed the cat that much at least, if that was what the cat intended. He stretched his sore limbs and picked up his bow. He cast his gaze in the direction of the arrow that had disappeared into the undergrowth but decided it would be rude to make the Kelvic wait. He nodded to the cat and followed after her.