Caracara's Hunt

After running till night fell, he had been beyond exhausted. It would have been better to find shelter before calling it a day, but he had realized that being able to see didn"t mean that he could find the way. Despite his better vision, the night changed the world, and he could not recognize the road he had traveled only once.

Once that became obvious, he had simply ventured deeper into a forest where he wouldn"t be disturbed and lay down to sleep. There was nothing he could do about creating a shelter for the boy, so he had lowered him by his side and acted as a wind shield for him.

Mutallu moved and accidentally punched him in the gut once more. Arawn glanced down at him with narrowed eyes. Was this his reward for saving the boy? Being hit?

In a moment, Mutallu"s head cleared up and he sat up. His eyes quickly scanned the surroundings before settling down on Arawn"s face.

"You saved me," the boy said as if it came as a surprise.

Arawn nodded, wondering where Mutallu was going with this. It had only been a natural reaction to save him, was it not?

"Why?"

"Or not…"

"You don"t like me, and I don"t like you. Why would you risk yourself for me?"

The boy"s face was full of confusion and frustration as if Arawn had violated some intrinsic rule of the world. Instead of being happy to be alive, he actually found faults with it.

There could be no explaining it for him, however. To make sure he knew that as well, Arawn growled low in his throat. By then, he no longer even bothered to try and form words. It was an exercise in futility.

"Why don"t you change back then?"

"Do you think I wouldn"t if I could?" Arawn asked in his head, but none of that could be seen on his face.

Mutallu waited for a moment, but the answer did not come, and he stood up with a shrug. That single motion almost sent him tumbling to the ground. His feet were wobbly and barely held him up.

"Where are you going?" Arawn asked in a growl.

Both of them were badly injured and could not show up in public. Their coats were stained with blood and shredded in places while injuries marked most of their skin.

Mutallu had lost a lot of blood and was still as white as paper. It was amazing that he could find the energy to stand up, let alone think of walking.

"I"ll owe you one, but no more. I—"

The boy turned to glare at Arawn while saying that, but it was more than he could manage. His balance went off center, and he tumbled to the ground with a heavy thump.

With a loud exhale, Arawn pushed himself to his feet. It didn"t hurt to move, but his muscles were lethargic and unwilling to perform. He actually needed to think about each limb when he used them to ensure that they worked properly.

It was good that he had all the time in the world. By the time he reached the boy, Mutallu had only managed to sit up with a red face. The blush was harder to see with his dark skin tone, but it was still there.

Arawn stopped right before him and growled straight in his face. "If you think I"ll let you go off by yourself and starve or bleed to death after I spent so much effort to save you, you"ve got another think coming. Try to leave again and I"ll carry you by the scruff!"

The boy leaned back with his eyes wide open. There was genuine fear in them that made Arawn feel uncomfortable, but there was nothing he could do about it. If he didn"t ascertain his status as the leader, there was no telling what Mutallu would try to do. His pride would never let him accept help from someone like Arawn.

A droplet splashed on the ground, and Arawn blinked in surprise. Was he salivating? Pulling back a bit, he licked his teeth to clean them up, but it hadn"t been a good idea. At the sight of the long canines, Mutallu"s complexion went paper white.

Still, Arawn was more troubled by his own reaction. He hadn"t been thinking about eating the boy, had he? Then what in the world was that hunger in him?

When he focused on his stomach, he realized that he was ravenous. When had he eaten last? It had to be more than a day ago, and he was injured as well as exhausted. His body needed a lot of energy to continue, but he hadn"t given it any food to get it.

"Did you save me to eat me?" Mutallu asked in a shaky voice.

Arawn whirled around and stalked away. He wasn"t going to eat humans, no matter what anyone thought or even what his own body desired. That was just not going to happen.

There were no other humans for kilometers around them, so Arawn had no qualms about leaving Mutallu alone for a time. He needed to think and fill his stomach before he did anything for which he would never forgive himself.

In a nearby clearing, a couple roes with children were grazing. They didn"t smell as tempting as a human, but Arawn ignored that. He bounded over and s.n.a.t.c.hed one of the young roes. The others escaped, leaving him alone in the clearing with a b.l.o.o.d.y carca.s.s.

Arawn dropped it to the ground and licked the blood off its hide before beginning his feast. The raw flesh wasn"t tasty per se, but it wasn"t bad either. It filled the void in his stomach.

Once he finished, there was nothing but the bones left of his prey. "Isn"t it a bit too much? How much will I have to hunt to feed myself from now on?"

The idea of changing back crossed his mind, but despite what he had thought earlier, he didn"t want to turn back just yet. While in the beast form, he was faster than a horse and stronger than any human. This was all that kept him and Mutallu from being caught by the king"s soldiers.

On his way back, he smelled a sweet scent on the right and found a black cherry tree. The berries were ripe and ready for picking.

Unsure if they were edible, Arawn broke off a small branch and brought it with him while remembering the way to the tree. Unlike him, Mutallu would probably know if they were okay, and the youth needed to eat something too.

When he returned, Mutallu was still in the same place. He sat on a patch of gra.s.s while examining himself. His clothes were in an even worse shape than before since he had torn off strips of cloth to wrap up the worst of his injuries.

"You"re back?" he asked in surprise when he saw Arawn.

With a nod, Arawn put the branch of wild black cherries in front of him. Then, feeling a little conscientious, he sat down and lowered his head.

"It"s for me?" Mutallu wondered while picking the branch and bringing it closer to himself. After a quick examination of the leaves and the berries, he wolfed down the latter.

It wasn"t much, but he looked satisfied and tried to stand up again. He was a lot more successful this time and not as shaky. Still, Arawn wasn"t going to let him waste his energy on such pointless shows of willpower.

Murallu frowned when Arawn came to stand by him and pointed at his own back. "I don"t need your help. I can—"

In answer, Arawn growled at him and pointed at his own back again. When the boy didn"t move, he opened his jaws to take him by the scruff.

"All right, all right! Don"t eat me!"

Arawn lowered himself to make it easier for Mutallu to get on his back while feeling dejected. He really had no plans to eat anyone…

They traveled for half a kilometer before reaching the black cherry tree, and Arawn let Mutallu fill his belly with the berries. They weren"t the most nutritious food, but better than nothing.

After that, they set off again. The sun was shining bright in the sky, but the trees absorbed most of the light and prevented it from reaching the ground. This wouldn"t have bothered Arawn, but the constant bushes, fallen trees, and long-reaching branches did.

Soon, he returned to the road and made much better time. His pa.s.senger could also finally rest instead of having to fear for his well-being with every branch trying to snag him away.

Another good thing about the road was that Arawn recognized it. They were without a doubt on the way to Val"s father"s mansion. A day or two more, and they would reach it.

Yet life was never as easy as one expected. When Arawn reached the place, it was teaming with the king"s soldiers. They were both inside the compound and outside, scouring the surrounding forest for only they knew what.