I stepped back into the woods just in time to hear a cart rushing this way. Ducking down among the roots of a tree, I peer through the underbrush. As I thought it's the two kidnappers rushing back toward the capital, good thing I didn't go that way.

  I watched warily as the small cart pulled by two mules approached when the cart reached the crossroad. One of them yells, "stop, I smell the brat he might be nearby."

  Hearing him shout, my heart skipped a beat, and I barely stopped myself from sprinting off into the woods.

  However, when my panic almost got the best of me, the other growled back. "Noway the kids not stupid enough to come back this direction. He probably ran straight into the woods in a panic and got lost. This close to the badlands, he is likely in some beast's belly by now. Now shut up, we gotta report to the crown prince."

  The first shrunk down at the older one's rebuke. "What are we going to tell him? If he finds out, he will have us killed and were relying on this score to get us through the winter."

  Use your brain. "We will tell him that the kid woke earlier than expected and we dumped his corpse at the edge of the badlands. To be safe, you keep your big mouth shut and let me do the talking."

   I clenched my fist, listening to them, as their cart rolled by my hiding spot. Stupid heads, Dad won't let either of you live. If they had a brain cell between them, they would have run to the border of the Mad king's land. Yes, they will get drafted into his invasion force, but that still gives them a higher survival chance than Dad or my brothers will.

  To be safe, I waited in place for fifteen minutes, in case they turned around to check the younger kidnapper's nose. When I am ready to move again, I let out an involuntary yawn. Looking up through the trees, I see the moon high in the sky. I need to sleep; I thought. Good thing it's still early fall, I won't freeze sleeping outside. Turning in place, I scratch the tree, that's roots I have been hiding amongst. Then, with a deep breath for courage, I square up my shoulders and begin heading deeper into the woods. Looking for a tree with wide branches. Doing my best to keep going in a straight line, I scratch every tree I come near so I can find the way back in the morning.

   I did this fifteen times before I see an enormous black tree. It would take ten adult catkin to reach around. Scanning the branches, I see one with a wide semi flat branch about halfway up. Luckily, the tree is only around thirty feet tall.

  Lowering myself, I sprint forward and leap as hard as I can, catching my claws on the lowest branch around eight feet up. Unfortunately, I didn't get a good hold and had to scrabble a bit to get better purchase with my claws. When I get a good hold I dig into the bark with the claws of my feet and swing onto the branch searching for my next destination. "There!" Whoops gotta keep quiet, Mom said there are wolves in these woods. My next branch is only four feet up and slightly around the curve of the trunk. Getting my footing again, I fling myself toward the branch, this time landing on top like a, well, like a cat. This continued four more times before reaching my little perch tired I lean back against the trunk.

  However, when I did, my back fell through the vines climbing the trunk and I landed inside the tree. Frozen in shock, I sat there a minute before I regain my bearings and look around, claws extended. But it's too dark pushing my tail between the vines, I pull them aside to let in more moonlight. Heaving a breath in relief, I relax it is just a hollow in the tree, probably made by a bird long ago. The hollow is four feet side to side and back to front, so whatever bird made it was massive. After I calmed down, I poked into the debris pile in the back. All I found was a single rat that I quickly caught and twisting the neck. Killing it instantly, and for the first time in days, I smiled.

  "Dinner time," I say as I pull a small pan and a flat red stone from my pack.

  "Okay, how hard can this be," I watched Mom cook lots of times. Once one of my older brothers even let me watch while he skinned and gutted a small deer. Pulling out an old pocket that same brother threw away, I get ready to stab the rat. Wait, what did he do again? Maybe cut the head off yeah that's right, so I chop down on the neck. But all that happens is my blade bounced off after squishing the dead rat a little. Weird big brother made it look easy. One chop and the deer's head fell off. Maybe I am doing it wrong, I'll try sawing instead. however, that also came away with no result. All I managed was to break bones inside the animal.

  Staring between the rat and knife in frustration, I turn it in my hand and stab the rat. To my surprise, the knife slid into the rat easily, but why? Yanking the knife out was harder than putting it in, as it had stuck into the wood beneath the rat. Examining the knife, I notice the tip is really pointy. Turning my attention to the side of the blade, I see that the edge I was using is flat, but the other end is pointier like the tip. Narrowing my eyes, I flip the knife again in my hand, set the pointier side on the rat's neck and sliced. The blade cut into the rat with ease. "This would be so embarrassing if anyone had been here to see that," I mumbled.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  With the head now cut off, I turned my attention to the belly. Let's see, I think he cut from the neck down to the legs. Half an hour later I had messily skinned the rat and cleaned all the yucky stuff inside and buried them under the debris pile. The skin I set aside, I remember my brother seemed more interested in the deerskin, than the meat, So maybe I can do something with it. Wait, Brother also rubbed salt on it, I probably need to do that too?

  Searching my bag, I find a small paper parcel with a little salt. It's not as lumpy as big brother's salt. Shrugging, I pour it on the skin and rub it, just like brother did. That's all I saw him do, so I guess im done with that, time to cook. Cutting the rat up, I found another problem. It turns out, I also need to take the bones out.

  I sure am glad my big brother took me to watch him cut up that deer. It sure came in handy. Also, the pocketknife he threw away is pretty neat too. Looking admiringly at my now dirty knife, I frown, Mom always keeps her knives really clean. "Should clean mine too?" Grabbing my pack I sift through it again, but no luck this time Mom didn't pack a rag. Glancing around my temporary home, the rat fur catches my eye. I pick it up and wipe off the blade, being real careful so I don't cut myself, or the smelly skin.

  My Rat is now a few chunks of meat, but im still happy with the results. I throw them in the pan with a sliver of onion and a slice of the potato I found in my bag. Placing the pan on the heat stone, I focus and pour a little magic into it, and in five seconds it's hot enough to cook.

  Deeming the rat cooked it enough after five minutes. I break off a chunk of bread from a loaf mom stuffed my meat, onion and potato inside then scarf it down.

  Now even more exhausted, 'who knew making dinner was so much work.' I curled up in the back near the debris pile and fell asleep.

  Meanwhile, back in the capital in Arthur's former home, his eldest brother was standing on his balcony watching servants dispose of the two would be kidnappers. "Well, my son, I have done everything I Can, the rest is up to you. I only hope our single lesson on living in the wild will be enough for you to get started. With that power of yours it will be tough for a time, but you will grow far beyond our tiny kingdom."

  His door opened slightly and he could hear the soft patter of feet approaching then arms wrapped around him from behind. "Don't worry, our son is a survivor, he will live and in time thrive."

  "You should not be in here. If Mother or Father finds us together, they will kill you. Then who will take care of our daughter?" He said as he turned and wrapped arms around Arthur's mother. Smiling, he said, "it was hard putting on that act today, I nearly choked when Arthus spewed that line about a farmhand power."

  "Hush anyone hearing that would be worse than finding out about us, they would hunt Arthur to ends of the island and back." Chastised Arthur's mother, a worried look on her face. "Do you want to know where I sent him?"

  "No, it's better if I don't know as his heir I spend a great deal of time with him I might let something slip. Besides, the boy is terrible with directions, who knows where he will end up."

  Nodding her understanding, she lay her head on his chest and they watched the moon drift across the sky. "I saw the map he thinks he stole from the cartographer. He will learn to read it im sure... How much did that cost you, it didn't even have any locations drawn in?"

  "That map costed all of our savings, I hope it helps Arthur survive."

  The following morning I stretched lazily in my comfy hollow, slowly opening my eyes, expecting to see my bedroom in the mansion. Bolting upright in surprise, I took a moment before it finally hit me that im not home, im alone in the woods. Wait, not quite I Can hear snuffling below my place in the tree. Slowly parting my vine doorway I peer out and down sure enough a pig is nosing around the roots. The sight of the pig makes my stomach growl. However, as I looked between the pig and my little knife, I decide eating bread would be safer.

   Finishing my breakfast, I can still hear my uninvited guest, so I wait before moving on. I am not confident I could outrun a pig in the woods, and it has really pointy horns. I figured out just last night that points can be deadly.

  Peeking outside again, the pig hasn't moved far, just around the tree a little. "Fine, you take your sweet time finding breakfast, I'll read." Summoning my Grimoire. My book is as plain and nondescript as ever, but it is mine and no one else can take it away or even read it. There are three pages sofar but that's because my adventure has only just began.

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