Flashback Going the Distance (Kaie)

[Tinnok]

Her eyes widened as the girl shot off through the foliage, faster than the huntress had anticipated. She didn't have the cassowary's body to aim for, but she did have the rustling foliage left in the awkward bird's wake, a good focal point for her shot. The half breed drew back her second arrow, gave it just a breath, worried that the bird might zig and zag and dodge her shot, then let the arrow fly, arcing it upward ever so slightly so that it would curve up and over the small girl who would make for a poor prize in a hunt.

And then she herself followed suit. While Tinnok thought herself quick on her feet, both Kaie and the bird had a good head start, so she dashed through the foliage, throwing her bow over her shoulder and snatching up a dagger in case it was needed, unsure of how the hunt was going to go.

Unbeknownst to the half breed she had arced her shot too far up, instead of hitting the bird again in the torso or rump the arrow caught the cassowary in one leg, slowing it's movements just in time for Kaie's spear throw which sailed shakily but solidly through the bird's wing into it's side.

Tinnok stumbled into a small clearing to find the girl looking over her handiwork with her spear. The bird, hit in three vital places was half slumped onto the ground, breathing heavy, a choked warble seeping out of its throat, knowing this was the end. Tinnok felt a pang of sadness in her heart, that such a strange, yet beautiful creature's life would end hear, snuffed out into blackness, in part because of her hand.

"Kaie, you have hunted before yes?" She said quickly, striding across the ground, dagger in hand. Yellow eyes blinked calmly. The cassowary chirped pitifully, blood leaking out of three holes, one substantially bigger than the others.

The huntress knelt by the bird, forcefully pressing its neck to the ground, voice growing soft. "I thank you friend, your death is to feed others." And with that the keen edge of her blade dug into the soft flesh of the bird's throat, puncturing up through his beak into the brain that lay below the brightly colored crest atop the cassowary's head.

Tinnok spent another moment over the lifeless corpse, offering thanks to Caiyha for the bounty she provided within the jungle wilds, before slowly removing the dagger from the bird's cranium, hand covered with blood and other extremities. "You should always try to finish your prey as soon as you can. They should not suffer in life, and then Dira can take their soul to the next plane of life all the quicker."

She wiped the blade upon the cloth covering her chest, then turned to the girl, ripping out her spear and handing it back to her. "I do not suppose you know much about feathering and skinning birds large or small, aye?"

[Kaie]

To say the little Myrian was overwhelmed with joy would be quite the understatement. It seemed no matter how long and hard she practiced her spear work with Keikyo, her skills never yielded results. Every beast was too quick and nimble for the poor shot to hit it. Her hurls were futile and resembled some kind of mangled catapult than anything admirable. It had to be by Myri's will and Caiyha's sympathy that such a shoddy attempt even landed near the bird. Had Tinnok failed in her second shot, Kaie probably wouldn't have stood a chance. Nonetheless, it was slain and she would more than happily bathe in the glory of the moment.

"Aw, look at that! We got it!" She howled triumphantly with unbridled glee, shooting a fist skyward in victory. Without hesitation, she scampered toward the suffering creature like a rat to a carcass. Kaie crouched behind its back and away from potentially defiant feet. Her head cocked from one side the other like a buyer might when analyzing a blacksmith's weapon. Really, she was just basking in the biological destruction her spear caused.

"Yes. I've hunted before. Never took this kind of bird down before though," She responded honestly without looking up from her observation of wounded flesh beneath feathers. Her hunts usually were in the presence of her uncle, Keikyo's father, or sometimes one of her aunts. Truthfully, she had never ventured after prey by herself let alone wound one successfully. Most of the time whichever clan member accompanied her would be more worried about her scaring away the quarry than anything else. Kaie wasn't about to let Tinnok in on that detail, though.

The second the half breed took a knee beside the fallen bird and spoke kindly to it in thanks, Kaie felt a blanket of shame shroud her whole body. A feeling of disappointment in self tainted her conscience. Internally it felt like she was waiting for a clan member watching from the brush to storm out and knock her upside her head. How could she forget to show a treasure of the Goddess of Nature gratitude? The young girl convinced herself she had fixed her mistake with a silent prayer just as Tinnok slit its throat. Her companion might've taken notice, for not a moment later did she offer a bit of important advice to the girl. All of which Kaie showed understanding and agreement with a stern nod.

"Got me there. Keikyo always does that stuff because he's afraid I'll screw it up or taint the meat when he guts it," She admitted sheepishly, grinning in a short of embarrassed fashion at the older girl. After a pause she shrugged her shoulders with a hopeful sparkle to her eyes. "Will you teach me?"

OOCSorry for the delay! Holidays got the best of me for a little bit I'll I'm coming back full swing this week! Thanks for your patience!

[Tinnok]

She hadn't wished to admonish the girl for her actions, but realized it had happened that way. She had always been attuned to Caiyha's realm, it was silly of her to expect that all children would be even at a young age. Tinnok rocked back on her heels, grinning at Kaie as she asked her to teach her how to skin the bird.

"Well...Actually, I asked because I don't really know much of it either. I mean most birds you have to pluck before getting to the meat, but we can't just sling this fellow over our shoulders and haul him back to our clans."

She glanced, smile straightening as her eyes focused on the cassowary. They couldn't carry it, but she didn't want to simply cut the choicest parts of it and leave either. That left spending time plucking feathers away from a fresh corpse, bound to attract predators. Tinnok frowned. If she were alone, she would probably risk the plucking, but that was more out of fear of being accused of some sort of inadequacy from her family than anything else. But with a much younger child, even a Myrian one, the option seemed more clear.

"Kaie..." Tinnok opened her mouth, closed it, then smirked. "I have a proposition. We can either cut up the bird now and take everything we can carry back to your clan and mine own, or, we can dig a hole for this fellow and bring our clans to him, praying to Caiyha and Syna watching above that no one finds him and digs him up between now and then. What do you want to do?"

She was doing it again, giving the child the choice, helping her along. Part of her felt wrong, and told her that it was wrong, perhaps that any little nudge like this wasn't doing Kaie any favors in the long run, but part of her felt better to know she was getting to make hunting choices, older aged decisions that had never been afforded her.

oocSuperb apologies for this delay, I should have Tinnok shoot me through my laptop in the leg so I have no excuse not to post on her lol.

[Kaie]

She quietly sighed a breath of relief at Tinnok's confession. Her embarrassment ebbed to remove whatever redness lingered on her cheeks. At least she wasn't the only one who found the task a bit over her head. More so, there was quite a bit to decide on exactly how to extract what worth was to be reaped from the fallen prey. Kaie could see that fact written clearly in the frown that the half breed wore.

When she finally spoke of the predicament, it was in no way how Kaie expected it. Tinnok being the obvious senior between the two of them, being offered the chance to make the decision of their next move was quite a shock to the youth. Her brow knitted together in a moment of confusion before she realized it was indeed her reality. Lips pressed into a hard line as she contemplated the presented options. It was imperative she made the right one. It wasn't really even the haunting shadow of potential failure that hung over her like an ax. More so, it was the mere fact she had no intentions of letting the older girl down. Half breed or not, Kaie couldn't shake the utter desire she possessed to prove herself capable. Someone adequate.


"The beasts of the jungle have a better nose than you and I. It would be a blessing from Caiyha to get a meal that easy. On top of that there's a chance we could screw up finding it again. Best we not leave it behind," She offered, speaking her own thoughts and working out the kinks as much as she was conversing with the half breed. Amber eyes glanced over the Cassowary critically. Strange how it almost seemed that with Dira's embrace the feathers seemed to lose some of their coveted luster. Then again, maybe she was just seeing things too philosophically.

"If you have something to carry it in, we could see if we can learn to gut it ourselves now. Bringing the meat back we have would probably be better than letting our clans fight over who got what,"Kaie concluded her decision, hoping her voice sounded far more confident than she felt in making the choice. Then again, if neither of them had a game bag, digging it up would be the better choice. It was never really a good idea to run around the jungle with warm, bloody organs in one's hands...


OOCNo worries! I just got caught up with some of my more neglected threads too.

[Tinnok]

Tinnok did not have a game bag, per se, but she did have her large pack, mostly empty save a water skin and a few dried nuts, side pockets could hold feathers and smaller bits of meat as well. Sliding it over her shoulder and under her quiver the half breed dropped it next to the body and nodded.

"Alright...self lesson on gutting begins I suppose." She smirked, yellow eyes focusing in on the birds disproportionate form. "Well there is going to be more meat in the thighs and chest than anywhere else. I'm not very interested in any organs but the stomach..." She paused here. Tinnok knew of hunters cutting away the stomach, emptying any half digested contents from it and using the lining to make things like water skins, small bags, or other things, but didn't truly know how to do this either.

"So I suppose we should start plucking." She sat down cross legged upon the ground, opening up all the pockets of her bag. She began pulling feathers out upon the bird's chest, near where the spear had gotten it in it's side, making a small, but growing pile of feathers next to her, and peering around every now and then, much like a bird, wary of any nearby predators. If they had to defend their kill she at least wanted to be ready. Glancing over at Kaie she watched her bend over the Cassowary. It wasn't speedy or interesting work, so it seemed best to insert a bit of conversation.

"So...your clan, I do not know much about them." Great, really good job, I mean that wasn't even a question. Tinnok's gaze flickered back down to her work, a small patch of pale puckered flesh appearing around the spear's entry wound.

[Kaie]

Kaie's eyes practically sparkled when Tinnok agreed to her suggestion. It wasn't really the fact the older girl decided to agree with her that made the girl smile to herself. The half breed had given the young Myrian the chance to take the lead and make a decision and go along with it, an opportunity the youth never expected to receive. Not then. It did not grant her a false sense of superiority either. No arrogance that seemed to already plague the girls her age. Just gratitude and the sudden realization Tinnok was very different from the rest, and not just because of the obvious. Already Kaie was beginning to respect her, blood aside. Perhaps her age made it easier to accept the older girl as she was. The seeds of racism were planted but not yet nurtured enough for deep roots to grow. It would be very unlikely that the young girl would forget that day.

"Sounds good to me. Stomach is all yours," She replied with an easy going shrug of her narrow shoulders, mirroring Tinnok as she descended beside the bird to begin their work. Propped up on her knees, Kaie leaned over the bird and started plucking. It took a bit more force than she had anticipated, actually, but never did she voice her thoughts to the older girl. In fact, she might not have said anything more at all had the half breed neglected starting a new conversation. It was enough to rip the Myrian from her careful study of a vibrant feather.

"My clan?" She asked rhetorically with a gentle smile, quirking a brow at her hunting partner before returning to plucking. "The Cutthroat Shadows are like most clans. We call Blessed Myri our mother and worship her throughout the day. Everyone dreams of being a Tiger Rider and Fang Leader in the military, and we hate the Dhani with every bone in our bodies," She began easily in a casual voice, only snapping her head up from the kill to give Tinnok an almost apologetic look at the mention of hating Dhani so fervidly. However, she did not linger on the potential offense long. "Our name comes from what the barbarians called us when there were more of them to hunt. I think we were called something else before but no one really remembers. We value stealth and appreciate the night for the advantages it gives us in the dark."

Kaie gritted her teeth at a finicky feather that refused to detach from the bird. Her hand pressed against the still warm body of the Cassowary so she could finally wrench it free. Then she wrung out her wrists irritably before she returned to work.

"You said before you were from the Tempered Steel, right? Your clan lands are kind of close to ours?"

OOC:Oh my God, I'm so sorry I forgot about this one! I guess we're even now?

[Tinnok]

She continued plucking, it made her wrists sore, but the more feathers she pulled out, the easier it became. Sometimes blood would flow out if she ripped too hard. Once she had cleared a space, Tinnok took one of her finer tipped daggers and dug it carefully into the stomach, peeling away the featherless flesh in order to reveal the innards of the bird. She didn't know the names for all the innards, but the stomach was the fleshy above the intestines, and she carefully cut it out and held it, still warm in her lap. She sliced off excess guts, and wiped blood and other bodily fluids off of it, squeezing juices out of the sack. She had heard that desperate hunters would eat the contents of another creature's stomach because there was all the food digested before the nutrients were removed. Curiously she sliced open the stomach revealing some mostly and partially digested plant matter, steaming and stinking from the stomach acid therein.

Tinnok cautiously dipped two fingers into the stinking mess and lifted it out, up to her lips. Getting a closer whiff of the stuff made her stomach roil, but she opened her mouth nevertheless and pushed the matter into the back of her throat, half gagging, half swallowing the contents.

"Shyke, I think I'll stick to blood in a pinch." She muttered, scraping the rest of the stomach clean and dumping the matter onto the forest floor. She then folded up the stomach into one of her side pockets and fished out the Cassowary's heart, tossing it to Kaie before starting up on plucking again.

It seemed that she should have been born in the cutthroat shadows with the stealth bit, her clan didn't seem to understand the idea of it, at least anymore than just being quiet hunting and on patrols. As for the comment, Tinnok either didn't notice or didn't acknowledge her own lineage, though it was hard to tell which.

"Just a couple days walk I think, I know relations are not as bad as some neighboring clans, which is saying something, but I have never been there before, mostly because I don't like introducing myself to new people." Her expression was deadpan, but then broke into a wry smile at her own little joke.

[Kaie]

For a moment Kaie sat back and watched as Tinnok sliced the stomach from the rest of the bird's innards, rubbing her fatigued fingers upon her legs as if it could will the minor pain away. The sight was surely one to make any common barbarian girl's own stomach lurch. Blood oozed lazily from the cut organs, pooling in an almost sinister fashion within the Cassowary's cavities. The younger of the duo didn't seem to be bothered by any of it much. After all she was indeed a Myrian of Falyndar. She'd seen animals hung up in her village after a hunting party returned plenty of times, and gutted animals were just as frequent. What she hadn't seen before was someone seem to actually consider their prey's sloppy seconds for a meal.

Kaie made a face the moment the half breed's fingers wandered into the filth of stomach acid and goddess knew what else. Had they been starving she might not have needed to restrain the urge to protest the girl's experiment. Luckily it seemed Tinnok came to her senses before she could warn her against her idea.

"Ugh. I agree," She murmured in agreement, face still twisted at the foul scent the spilled contents gave off. In fact she had been so paralyzed momentarily by it that she almost missed the heart so suddenly thrown her way. Quick hands latched only the precious muscle before it could be tainted by the dirt, warm blood leaking from its orifices over her hands. At first she didn't quite know what to do with it but study it. When Tinnok began to speak more about their clans' shared proximity, it dawned on her to use a large leaf to lay it upon the ground above the jungle floor. However one thought did plague her then even as the older girl worked to keep the subjects light.

"They're cruel to you aren't they?" She asked suddenly, stopping her pointless fiddling with the heart and leaf to eye the half breed evenly. There was no venom or accusation, no outright sympathy. Just a statement of implied fact and a relatively stoic expression.

"I knew another one like you when I was really little. His mother was a barbarian. Some people had some weird thing for birds I think. Even his own blood really gave it to him," The child explained her sudden question the best she could. Deep down she knew there was really no going around it, yet the memory was there. It felt important. If it wasn't, she would've spat at the very idea of going on the little hunting trip with Tinnok in the first place. Even though Keikyo would dish his abuse to any half breed he came in contact with, especially one with eyes so like the Dhani, it was harder for Kaie to so easily do the same. Sometimes she almost wished she knew no better. It would be easier then.

"I have not seen Turrin in a long time now, and you're still here. I think it...Says something." Kaie reached her already blooded hands into the crimson frosted carcass and made a crude separation of lungs from its windpipe. This time she offered it to the other girl as if silently apologizing for bringing the subject up at all, but still unwilling to openly say so perhaps out of embarrassment. It was the least she could do.

[Tinnok]

She was perceptive this one. Tinnok would call it an admirable trait if Kaie's scrutiny and observation hadn't been directed at her and the stigma for which her bretheren had always held against her.

A long sigh escaped the half breed's nostrils, fingers finally setting into a rhythm with the plucking, dagger handle gripped tightly as she began carving away large sections of white breast meat and laying it upon long rubber leaves to wrap and carry back to camp in her pack.

"I do not blame them. They treat me well for what I am, most children like me would have been killed, sometimes I think my mother would have preferred it that way." There was no smile then.

"I like to think I will be stronger than all of them one day, their hate will either kill me or make me something great." She shook her head, then turned her golden eyes towards the young girl.

"Most children would spit on me and call me many choice names. What has being of the Cutthroat Shadows that has taught you otherwise?" She was always curious about other clans. Each had their own rituals and habits under Myri's eye, and each was a prideful and protective of their secrets and skills as the next. The Tempered Steel were one of the more humble clans, rarely ever aspiring to greatness, taking great pride in being the back bone of Myri's foot soldiers, but what of their stealthier neighbors?

[Kaie]

The youth couldn't do much else but bite her lip and lower her head over the carcass, expecting to be berated by the half breed for her audacity not a tick later. Yet no beating came like it might've from one of her kin. No shouting or ill wishes. Instead she was met with open honestly, which was the absolute last thing the pure blood might've anticipated. Amber pools fixated on Tinnok's hands as they worked the dagger into the bird carefully, and the recount began. It didn't take long for a distance stab of guilt to wedge itself into her stomach, as if the hardship and cruelty the Myrian-Dhani faced through her life within their society was her responsibility. Suddenly a part of her almost started to regret she heard the truth at all. Yet when it was Tinnok's turn for questioning, Kaie was initially speechless.

"What had taught me otherwise?" The words were more of an echo of her internal thoughts than the beginning of an explanation. Why did she dare to treat Tinnok as anything more than what their society claimed she was? The young Myrian carefully placed the organs and meat harvested onto a large rubber lead like the older girl had, and carefully began to fold the edges inward. Perhaps she could find a low hanging vine to tie it. "Being a Cutthroat Shadow had taught me nothing different than the other children's clans have," She answered grimly at first, avoiding the snake-like eyes of her companion. It was such a simple inquiry and yet Kaie had so much trouble grasping her own philosophies.

"If my cousin, Keikyo, was in my place he wouldn't have been so kind when he saw you up in that tree. He'd holler up at you, remind you what you were, maybe throw a few stones, and be gone if you were lucky. If not he'd return with his friends from the Arena to let them have at you next. It would be a game." Kaie reached her hands up and let her fingers bloody the front of her vest. For once she was genuinely thankful for all the natural noise in the forest. "But when I see another half breed I'm reminded of Turrin. I know what you all are. I know you're not pure like the rest of us, tainted by the blood of the Deyhan or worse," She continued again slowly. She shot Tinnok an apologetic look toward the end when she realized what she had been implying. Kaie rubbed her knuckles against the from of her vest once more, trying to rid her flesh of the red stains. She sighed, seeming defeated. Finally the Cutthroat Shadow child dared to look Tinnok in the face.

"But I always remember the half breed that taught me to use a bow, and I can't say the words. Kindness is a hard thing to forget."

OOC:I'm afraid this one got lost! I'm very glad I found it though.