89th day of Summer, 511 AV
Estimated, 9 or 10 Bells
Na'oni and Thia sat crouched behind a bush, being as still and patient as they possibly could. Na'oni was smiling; as soon as the most recent storm passed, her mother had given her a mischievous grin and grabbed a practice bow and quiver from the barracks. Wearing little but the essentials, she and her mother ran into the wet jungle to hunt. Na'oni could've sworn she'd seen her mother grow a pair of tiger ears for a split second before she'd pulled her behind the bush. As she sat, she concentrated on the sounds of the jungle, the chirps of birds, whirs of insects, and the peeps of frogs; the jungle was alive and so was she, breathing in the scent of growth and life that hung in the forest. She thought she heard monkeys far above her head and she gazed up into the mysterious green canopy that gave up no secrets as to the location of them.
A rodent scurried by, too fast to catch, and then, quietly, her mother passed her the bow as she pointed out a large lizard skittering into their view. Na'oni swallowed and studied the lizard for a second before her mother silently gave her an arrow. Guiding her hands, she helped her child steady the bow and removed her hands. Na'oni breathed in deeply and as she slowly let the breath out, she let the arrow fly, just like she had seen her mother do before.
Unfortunately, nobody is perfect when they first start learning and she was no different. While her arrow struck the animal in the rear, it wasn't a fatal shot by any standards and the thing shrieked and flailed it's limbs. Thia did nothing and just gave Na'oni a look, hoping she would know to finish it and moved forward with her as she moved to do so. Na'oni knelt down, one knee on its body, and put her hands on either side of its scaly head. With one hard twist, she heard the neck snap and it's body slowly went limp. "You need to eat it's heart and give its blood back to the earth." her mother said as she watched over her actions. Na'oni first cut its throat with the offered dagger, feeling blood pool around her knees. She then brought the knife to its chest and slowly carved it open.
She reached inside the warm cavity, and felt around until she found its heart, yanking and pulling with all her might until it came loose and she landed on her rear holding the bloody organ. Staring at it for a moment, her mind wandered slightly. This..just this..it's all that keeps us alive. This tiny little heartbeat.. Raising the heart to her lips, she sent a prayer of gratitude to Kihala and Caihya before sinking her teeth into the juicy meat.