66th of Fall, 515 AV
He had corralled his first sheep. Kyo wiped the sweat from his pounding head --how long would these headaches last?-- and held the rope that looped the sheep's neck victoriously.
He had been going to the Pride every day that he could manage. Learning, mostly, and helping Lightning and Ramsay --and Thunder, that bully-- with their flock of sheep. His duty was to shadow Lightning and see what she did. He had his own set of herding calls that Ramsay had made up for him and which he was now learning. There were only a few --technically more but most were repeats-- but sometimes he still forgot them. Whenever he did, Lightning was sure to let him know. He rubbed his neck where the she-dog had once daringly bitten him on the ruff for running the wrong way and letting a ewe escape from the rest. He had not made that mistake again.
But now! Now he had caught a ram, and even a wild one, all on his own. Lightning would have to be impressed. No more biting. He thought that she might even be proud of him. Ramsay too. When he saw them again.
This morning he had gone over to the Pride like usual and Ramsay had not been there. Thunder and Lightning had, but he could not ask them in human-speak to see where Ramsay was, or at least he could not expect them to answer. He had gone to talk to some of the other Drykas shepherds, and they had said that Ramsay was talking with the big boss. In trouble. Said Kyo was not good enough and should just go away. Said this was a sport and an art --whatever that was-- and hard work that outsiders should not play at, and especially not under a bumblefuck --again, what?-- like Ramsay. If Kyo wanted to work there, he should work for a real man. And one of the fellows had stepped up, arms crossed, face in a smile that Kyo had not liked. Not at all.
Kyo asked to see Ramsay again and the man put a hand on him. Kyo had shrunk back, not wanting to be trouble, not understanding this opposition. They had laughed. Said he was like his master. Said neither was fit to be a worker there.
He had asked what to do to be considered fit. They had said he had to bring in his own animals, without help. A lot of them. Bring them to the man that had stepped forward, named Andre Sunshadow. Bring him animals, one each a day for several days, using only a piece of rope, and Ramsay would not be in trouble and Kyo could work happy for the Pride. The animals were wild ram, wild boar, wild cattle, wild horse, wild Strider, and whatever glassbeak was.
So Kyo had left, and now here he was. He had gone into the grass, alone, and found a group of wild sheep near a sunken watering hole that was almost all dried up. Andre Sunshadow needed a ram, which was a male. There were a few males in the group. Kyo had chased as a coyote all the morning until he had finally separated one of the males from the herd. Then he had taken the rope, figured out how to tie a loop in it, and took to chasing the ram in human-form, trying to loop it. That had not worked well until on accident he had caught its horns. He had jumped in --getting a stomp on a bare human foot that hurt very badly-- and wrangled the rope all the way around the ram's head. Now he had it, and just had to walk it back to Endrykas, and the first day would be over! Ramsay would be okay.
With his breath finally caught and his head pounding so hard he thought his eyes might pop out, Kyo began to walk back towards the city, rope in hand, maybe limping a little on his hurt foot. He went a few paces before the rope tugged in his hand, and he almost dropped it. Confused, he looked back. The ram was not walking along nice like the animals at the Pride, but was resisting. Kyo tugged harder on the rope, and the animal gave a bleat and gave a hard yank. Kyo, not expecting this, stumbled back towards the sheep.
"Come!" he said, and began to walk again, this time scowling. The animal dragged its hooves into the loose layer of top soil, digging in, and he ended up plowing twin rows through the short-clipped grass. Kyo stopped, already starting to pant again, sweat running into his eyes. He wiped it with an arm. "Come come come!" He tried once in each language he knew the word for. But the sheep just looked at him with its odd-shape square eyes and lowered its head a little, maybe an intent to attack or resist some more. The coyote-man sighed and shook his aching head.
It was not going to be an easy trip.
