The three suns were beginning to sink below the horizon, and their dim rays filtered between a thin canopy of leaves, barely giving enough light for a human to see by. The atmosphere of the forest changed as the nocturnal animals left their homes and the diurnal ones sought shelter for the night. At this time, a pair of rabbits, both covered in brown fur, crouched in the grass of a small clearing with a thin layer of grass, having one last meal before returning to their burrows. Suddenly, a stone shot through the air, crushing the skull of one rabbit before glancing off past its corpse and knocking the other unconscious. A figure walked out from the trees, his white hair seeming to glow in the faint lighting. Reaching down, he lifted the unconscious rabbit from the ground, killing it with a sharp jerk of his hand. He then grabbed the other by its hind legs, healing the remains of its head until the wound looked like it came from a normal sling. Turning, he left the clearing, entering the darker area beneath the trees. After walking a short distance, he came upon a tree slightly taller and thicker than the rest, and set the two rabbits down. With smooth, practiced movements, he seemed to flow up the trunk of the tree. One by one, more dead rabbits fell from the canopy to join the two he had just killed, until around ten formed a pile at the bottom of the trunk. Then, the figure returned to the base of the tree, surveying the fruits of his hunt.
Fenrir cocked his head. Indeed, ten rabbits would be enough for every member of the caravan to have two fifths of a rabbit, along with the bread that the travelers had brought. It would be plenty enough for a satisfying meal. However, it was definitely not normal for a person to be able to hunt this many; likely, the guard who would usually do the hunting would only catch five rabbits at most, which would be barely enough to sate the travelers' appetites. Ten rabbits was a completely unusual amount. The boy realized that he might have been a bit too enthusiastic in repaying his benefactors' kindness.
After a moment, Fenrir shrugged. The members of the caravan already knew that he had at least some Fae blood in him, so even if they were a bit surprised about his hunting prowess, they would not be too surprised. It would probably help that he had already left the camp for an unusually long amount of time, so they would assume it took him quite a bit to get so much food. Fenrir picked each rabbit up by the hind legs and tied the ten rabbits into five pairs. Then, he quickly slit all their throats with magic, and slung the pairs over the branch with one on each side. The rabbits' blood would drain by the time he came within close proximity with the camp, so the smell of blood would not draw any predators too close.
Lifting the branch, Fenrir covered his head with the hood of his cloak and began walking back to the camp.
~~~~~~~
Rokvur worriedly paced the camp. Fenrir had left almost two hours ago, but he had yet to return. The man worried for the boy's safety, and cursed himself for not sending Yu, the guards' hunter, to go with him. After all, even if the boy was of the races of the forest, bandits would still be a major threat, and if he came upon a demonic beast then it would all be over. Chewing his lip in worry, Rokvur thought about the boy's enthusiasm to help the group, and his paternal instincts raged at him once more for allowing Fenrir to go alone. Honestly, the boy reminded him far too much of his son.
"Who goes there?" called Yu, who happened to be on sentry duty. Rokvur immediately began to strain his ears for a reply, praying that it was Fenrir's safe return.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
"It's me," said an enchanting and familiar voice, "I brought food."
The tension left Rokvur's shoulders as he sighed in relief, glad that the boy had not run into trouble. However, his eyes widened in the next instant as he beheld the bounty of Fenrir's hunt.
As the guard captain gaped, the boy's posture seemed tensed and worried, as if he was waiting for praise. Upon noticing this, Rokvur couldn't help but think back to the boy's eagerness to be of help. 'He really is just like a child...' he thought as he smiled warmly and said "Good job. We'll be able to eat well tonight."
~~~~~~~
The tension left Fenrir's body and he smiled, glad that there was no suspicion in Rokvur's voice. He noticed a strangely familiar expression on the man's face, though, and after a moment he realized that it was the same look his parents had had whenever his acted childish. After pondering the reason for this for a moment, Fenrir mentally shrugged as he decided that it was probably unimportant.
"Here, I'll help you clean them," said Yu, the hunter, as he reached out an open hand. Fenrir realized that Yu had that same expression on his face, and after a quick look he realized that, in fact, the entire traveling group, minus the two nobles in the carriage, were looking at him with the strangely warm gazes, and his confusion intensified. Had he done something childish? He didn't think so...
Fenrir handed half of the rabbits to Yu and cleaned the other half himself, skinning and gutting them with swift, efficient movements. Yu looked impressed as he watched, thinking that he clearly had much experience with hunting.
When they had finished preparing the rabbits, Fenrir impaled them on stakes and placed them by the fire that the others had started while he was away. Opening a leather satchel by his side, he pulled out some herbs and sprinkled them over the meat. The boy had taken the satchel from his dimensional storage to serve as his only luggage when he had been about to join the caravan. His fellow travelers looked on, slightly surprised by his cooking ability. In fact, one of Fenrir's four generals had carried the sin of Gluttony, and the boy had made it a habit to cook for him, improving the already high skill level that his mother had imparted on him.
After a while, a delicious aroma suffused the area around the camp, and the others gathered around Fenrir, salivating as they watched him cook. When he declared that the food was done, his fellow travelers fell upon the food like a pack of starving wolves. The boy made sure to save one rabbit for the nobles still in the carriage, and told the others that he had already eaten, so he didn't need one for himself.
With a chunk of dry, hard bread in one hand and a piece of rabbit in the other, Rokvur told Raz "When we're done eating, the Lord and Young Miss will come out for their dinner. The Young Miss acts..." Rokvur made an awkward face, searching for the right words. "A bit hostile," he finished, "But she's actually quite a nice girl, so please don't mind it."
Soon, the travelers had finished eating, and three of the guards went to the carriage. They pulled a polished wooden board from the roof, and four short posts from the corners of the carriage. Then, the guards placed the posts in four slots on the board, and then a table with elaborate carvings stood beside the carriage. Another guard walked to the merchants' wagons and took out two sets of fine utensils, along with two well-crafted napkins and some plates, made two place settings on the table. The rabbit was placed on a plate, and a wedge of cheese and a loaf of bread were plated beside it. Two glasses of water were placed by the place settings, and chairs were taken from the merchants' wagons.
Rokvur knocked gently on the door, politely saying "My Lord, Young Miss, it's time for dinner."