82nd Fall
Again Food appeared to hold himself in the sky, a pendulum waiting for his next orders. Ife approached the rabbits this time on foot, having slid herself off Tizi and allowed the horse to graze. Her brother was also mountless, and the two Windstride siblings slipped through the grass low and carefully. Quietly Ife notched an arrow onto her bowstring; it was all she could do to stop herself whispering another prayer and scaring off the rabbits.
Of which there were several. Clearly a warren was nearby though neither Ife nor Royce had spotted its entrance yet. That was little import however, as hopefully Food would once again be successful in his kill.
After glancing to Royce, and receiving a stern but approving nod from him, Ife blew on her whistle again. The rabbits were more alert than the quail earlier, and almost immediately they stopped their eating and glanced around themselves. One of the larger rabbits, possibly a buck, raised its forepaws up and and sniffed the air.
Ife did not see Food until he landed on the rabbit, but in those fractured ticks she saw how her falcon twisted himself at last moment to grip hold of the escaping doe. Instead of landing on his feet cushioned by the body of the rabbit, he thudded into the earth on his side. The Inarta rushed forward, pausing only to train her arrow on the writhing rabbit that Food struggled with. After letting the arrow fly into the rabbit's head, she stooped own and examined Food.
The bird seemed more shocked than injured, though his right wing was held in an unnatural manner. At the worse he could have broken his wing - rendering Food useless in terms of hunting and in great agony. Ife could only hope that he had simply bruised himself, though she was finding breathing a particular challenge at that moment.
"Royce, get Food's hood from my yvas bag, please." Her voice was strained, and Ife kept her focus on the writhing bird rather than face her brother.
After Royce had dutifully received the falconry hood, Ife swiftly attached it. She unlatched the bottom buckle and slipped the hood over Food's eyes before reconnecting the clasp to fit snuggly under his head and around his neck.
