Curious Trappings

by **Graham Whipmane** on December 17th, 2015, 12:15 pm

21st of Winter, 515 AV

It was a chilly morning on the sea of grass, and Graham was sincerely regretting his decision to hunt. He was cold, his coat drawn tight around him, and he was still groggy from waking so early, his eyes itchy and his head foggy. He had been sincerely sorry to pull himself from his tent, leaving behind the warmth and comfort of his thick blankets and his beautiful wife. Cato, on the other hand, seemed to be in high spirits as she cantered around a ways from Graham, tossing her mane and weaving patterns in the long grass, blowing cloudy gusts from her nostrils. Graham sat cross legged on a bare patch of the cold earth, his bag to one side, his bows and arrows to the other, taking a long moment to let the cold chill wake his tired body.

Word had come in early that morning from scouts and hunters, of a greater than usual abundance of rabbits foraging and frolicking on the Sea of Grass. Graham was determined to get a head start on the other hunters, thus his earlier-than-usual hunt. He had been planning for some time to make use of his limited skills in webbing, and had decided that today was as good a day as any to start, after all, he needed as much practice as he was able to get if he was going to be Ankal someday.

Breathing deeply Graham sat cross legged on the outskirts of his pavilion, and slowly began to relax his body, concentrating first on his broad shoulders and his neck. He carefully concentrated his mind on unwinding and relaxing his muscles, letting his shoulders drop down low, and his neck bend slightly, dropping his head lower, his chin almost touching his chest.

When he was finally completely relaxed and his breathing was slow and even, Graham began to turn his attention further inward, feeling the warm buzz of djed flowing sluggishly through his body. Gently, he coaxed the djed to move faster and spread, pushing and pulling with his mind until he could feel the magic pooling in his stomach and tingling in his fingertips. His eyes slid open, and Graham gazed down around his body, his eyes lingering on the gleaming and glowing threads of djed that wove around him, and his own connection to the web. Webs spread from his Pavilion as well, connecting Ife, his mother and father to the web, as well as all his other family members. The only one that would be absent would be Mirella, his youngest sister and the only family member that was not yet bonded to a strider.

The web itself was a sight that was sure to take his breath away, each and every time he witnessed it, and with a reverent sigh, Graham reached out to tug gently at the closest thread, watching the vibrations ripple along its length into the distance. With a slow smile, Graham pushed forward along the thread, his consciousness peeling out of his trancing body to fly along the thread at a dizzying speed. He slowed, put off and startled the high speed, and took a moment to get his bearings. He hadn't travelled too far from his body, or Cato and with a satisfied glance back in his bodies direction, he moved forward, swooping along the web a fair distance from his body, eye's scanning the plains around him in search of rabbits and warrens.

by **Graham Whipmane** on March 4th, 2016, 6:40 am

It wasn't long before Graham saw the first signs of rabbits amongst the scrub. A plump grey rabbit was wondering along through the grass in front of Graham, foraging for berries, and chewing on green grass shoots. Graham watched for a while, enjoying the opportunity to simply sit and observe nature for once. After a number of chimes of quiet, peaceful watching, the rabbit began to move on; clearly satisfied with the amount of berries it had gorged itself on.

Graham slide easily along the web after the rabbit, following it into a thicker patch of grass less than a hundred meters away. The rabbit darted through the thick grass easily, leading Graham to the beginning of a trail, worn by many little rabbit feet. At the end of the trail, the rabbit seemed to disappear, and it was only as Graham drew closer that he realised he'd been lead straight to the rabbit’s warren.

Smiling at this success, Graham began to backtrack along the web in the direction he had come, keeping an eye out all the while in search of other animals that he could hunt along the way to the rabbit’s warren. He was careful not to wander around too much on the way back to his body, lest he get lost along the web, and he was surprised by how far he had come. It had seemed a short trip when he had been focusing on the little rabbit and enjoying the weightless glide that travelling along the web granted him, but in reality it would likely take him just under a bell to reach the warren.

When Graham reached the familiar land that surrounded his Pavilion, he was struck with the desire to test just how fast he could travel along the web. Just as he was about to test the idea, his father’s warnings of the dangers of losing one’s self in the web and over-giving entered his mind. Frowning, Graham thought of Ife and their future family. It wasn't fair to her to be so selfish and reckless, so with a put upon sigh, Graham carefully moved back to his body, releasing the djed slowly as he slipped back into the physical world.

Graham awoke to himself slowly, and though it was not dissimilar to waking up in the morning, it was only his body that was groggy with misuse. His mind was as swift and active as ever, and it almost felt as though his mind was moving several paces ahead of his body. He took it slow as he began to sit up, and his body began to come back online, his muscles reawakening and his heartbeat quickening from the slow, lazy thump that had maintained while he explored the web.

Sitting straight, Graham stretched his neck to the left and then to the right, rolling his shoulder slowly as he pushed himself to his feet. He gathered his bow and bag, checking inside quickly to ensure that he had remembered to pack his traps. They weren’t something he’d ever used before, but the shopkeeper that had sold them to him had given a quick crash-course to the basic use, and Graham was fairly confident that he knew what he was doing.

With the essentials packed securely, and his bag strapped to his back, Graham set off, picking his way through the Sea of Grass in the direction the web had taken him.

by **Graham Whipmane** on March 4th, 2016, 12:27 pm

Graham kept a careful watch out for branches and other signs of wildlife that he could add to the days haul. The branches were important for later on when he reached the warren, and it was a very specific branch he needed. First and foremost he required a larger branch that had grown into prongs, similar to a Y shape as well as an array of smaller branches and twigs. By the time he was half way to the point that he had seen the rabbit, he’d already gathered plenty of smaller sticks and branches, his bag weighed down by the creaking wood.

Graham kept a careful watch out for branches and other signs of wildlife that he could add to the days haul. The branches were important for later on when he reached the warren, and it was a very specific branch he needed. First and foremost he required a larger branch that had grown into prongs, similar to a Y shape as well as an array of smaller branches and twigs. By the time he was half way to the point that he had seen the rabbit, he’d already gathered plenty of smaller sticks and branches, his bag weighed down by the creaking wood.

Graham paused when he reached the point that he had first seen the rabbit, crouching to rustle through the grass in search of the berries he had seen while travelling on the web. A stout, thorny bush was nestled amidst the grasses, its leaves stiff and a dark emerald green and its berries bright red and glossy. Graham took his time collecting the berries, careful to keep his hands clear of the sharp thorns. The last thing he needed was a scrape that would easily become infected.

Once he had picked a small pile of the berries, he set down his bag, fishing around inside in search for a small drawstring bag. After much rustling and a few splinters he found it and gathered the berries inside. He tied the strings of the bag to his belt and straightened, pulling his bag back onto his back before moving on.

He intensified his search for the perfect branch as he got closer to the warren, and finally his efforts paid off as he found the bare remains of a small tree. The branched were dry and easy to break, so Graham snapped off his Y shaped branch, taking out his hunting knife to trim away the smaller secondary branches along the arms.

Satisfied with the branches, Graham set on again towards the warren, keeping a careful watch for the natural trail. He wanted to be careful and stay a fair way away from the warren in order to keep its inhabitants from being too frightened by his presence. Hopefully once he set his trap and left to a distance, the rabbits would relax and come out from their little home without such a long wait.

The rabbit trail looked fresh and regularly used, much to Graham’s relief, and he could see droppings and signs of foraging along the little path. There was a thin layer of frosty snow that had settled along the trampled grass, and in that Graham could see faint rabbit tracks.

Walking a fair way from the opening of the warren, Graham set down his bag and pulled out the sticks and branches he’s collected and set them down on the frosty ground. Beside them he set down a coil of copper wire. Carefully Graham unwound a length slightly longer than his arm and bent the wire back and forth until it snapped. Next he made a small loop on one end, twisting and winding the wire to secure it, and then he fed the other end through the loop, creating a noose.

by **Graham Whipmane** on March 4th, 2016, 1:36 pm

Graham set the noose aside and moved to start setting up the branches. He took the largest branch first, the Y shaped one. Setting it down in front of him he trimmed the edge so that it was even and would sit neatly with all the branches securely on the ground. Moving to the trail, Graham began to dig the branch into the ground, making a secure upside down Y. The open space in the Y was positioned over the centre of the rabbit trail, creating a funnel.

Due to the cold, hard winter ground, the large branch was fairly unsteady, and Graham reached back for the other twigs he had gathered, using them either side of the branch to support it and make it more stable. He was careful to keep his touches sparing and light, knowing that the more he touched the trap, the more the rabbits would be able to pick up his scent.

Next, he took his wire, and wrapped the free end around the Y branch several times, securing it in a knot once the noose hung at the appropriate height. The noose hung roughly two inches from the ground, and with a few careful tweaks, Graham arranged it to hang perfectly in the centre of the Y branch.

Finally, Graham dug two shorter branches into the ground under the noose in an X shape. They would stop the rabbit from slipping under the noose and would force the rabbit to squeeze through the gap in the middle of the branches and directly into the noose. He remembered at the last moment to untie his little pouch of berries, and he upended the pouch above the trap, letting them scatter over the ground. Graham smiled at his handy work and took a step back, gathering his belongings. Once he was ready and he’d checked over the trap a few more times, Graham moved away, walking for a few chimes in a straight line until he was out of sight of the warren and his trap.

With a tired sigh, Graham flopped down into the grass, sitting back comfortable and craning his head back to check the position of the sun. It was reaching midday, and so Graham opened up his pack once again, fishing around for the preserved food he’d brought with him. He took his time eating, and once he’d finished he repacked his belongings, making his way back over to the trap.

He approached slowly, looking ahead carefully to catch sight of the trap. He wanted to check on the trap while remaining as far away as possible, just in case he had yet to trap any of the rabbits. Luckily enough, there was indeed a plump grey rabbit struggling in his trap, its head and one of its front legs caught in the noose. Graham rushed forward with a celebratory cheer, tossing his bag to the side, and seized the rabbit by the scruff before it could wiggle its way out of the trap.

The rabbit squealed and kicked fiercely, baring its little teeth. Its eyes were wide, the whites showing the entire way around, and Graham felt a pang of pity for the little, harmless animal. It wasn’t often he was this close to his game when it was still alive, which was something he preferred and appreciated when bow hunting. With a quick, deft movement, he snapped the rabbit’s neck, ceasing its desperate struggles immediately. Delivering the killing blow with his bare hands was much different, and Graham felt an uncomfortable shift in his stomach as he took the life of the innocent little animal.

With a sigh, Graham unwound the copper wire from the branch and picked it and the rabbit up, moving back to where he had dropped his bag. He laid the rabbit down gently, determined to show respect to the little animal. He removed the copper wire from around its little body, stowing it away in his bag, before bowing his head over the rabbit to thank Caiyha and the rabbit for their sacrifice. Satisfied, Graham pushed himself up to his feet and re-slung his bag across his back, stooping to pick up the rabbit, holding it by its back legs. Usually he would have field dressed the little animal, but on such a winter day it was cold enough to keep the rabbit fresh until he returned to his Pavilion, where he could do it in the safety of his own home.

by **Ssezzkero** on March 16th, 2016, 5:09 pm

SKILLS

LORES

NOTES

Solo Curious Trappings