The daggers felt right in Ais hands. She took in a deep breath, letting the green scents of the forest fill her, then exhaled. She could do this. She wasn't going to spend her life hiding in a hole. Whoever she was before didn't matter right now. Now was when she chose who she was going to be.

No matter what that person would be, they would not be a coward.

As they walked Tal very slowly managed to teach Ai how to track. Exactly what signs meant what animal was a bit confused, but it couldn't be helped.

"Br'hourou orou yao qaa'nq?" Tals sharp voice cut through the air.

Ermine had split away from them, his hand resting on some scratches on a tree, at the same height as his head. Ai didn't need to be an expert tracker to know whatever left that, it was big.

"I am qaa'nq a hunt a'nou." He muttered, never looking in Tals direction.

"You q'nab rhab do'nqouraot rho at, da you bo'n a qou qarroud?!" Tals voice got shrill at the end.

She clearly wasn't happy with the idea of Ermine hunting whatever had left those marks.

"I'n qaa'nq a da a." He stated, before his voice went softer. "I 'nououd rhat Tal. The hunt, the rotrh. I ba'n' rou nytourl qou rhor, rot nou."

"You go'n' da o hunt raqou rho ora'nou. You 'nououd tanoudady a bogrh yaor dogq." Tal was griding her teeth, but the venom had left her tone. Ais head moved back and forth as she watched the exchange.

Ermine shook his head before looking right at Ai.

"And brha barr bogrh rhour?" He asked.

Tal turned to look at Ai too, biting on her lip.

"Rhourou not dou-"

"You 'nououd a bogrh rhour. I q'nab brho I'n daa'nq." He stated, moving his hand down to the hilt of his sword. "Rot nou."

The silence stretched until Tal gave a short violent nod of her head. Ai really wished she knew what they were saying, and why she was part of it. Ermine gave a small smile before turning and quickly disappearing behind one of the vine curtains.

He had gone to hunt something, and Tal didn't want him to. And for some reason she was in the way of his hunting or something. Or maybe in the way of Tal going after him. It was clear from the dark expression on her face that she didn't want to be stuck with Ai.

Well, Ai thought, she was just going to suck it up. Ai wasn't that bad to be around. There wasn't much going in the way of conversation, sure, but she wasn't a complete bore. And at the end of the day, Tal didn't need to like her. She just needed to teach her everything that she needed to know. It would just be easier if she liked Ai.

After he left them Tal spent her time in silence, striding through the forest so fast sometimes Ai had to jog just to keep up.

Then they came across some tracks that made Tal stop and crouch down in the undergrowth. Ai followed her example.

Lots of small hoof prints, only about half the size of her palm.

"Bou hunt." Tal was making motions at Ai. "Bou hunt-" She tapped her fingers against the ground.

We hunt indeed, Ai thought, we are the predators and they are the prey.

From then on Tal was bent low, scanning ahead of them as well as the ground. At one point she stuck Ais fingers in some faeces, which made her nose wrinkle. Then Tal said hot and Ai knew she was showing her how to tell that they were getting close.

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Then they saw them.

The creatures were like miniature horses, only coming up to Ais knee but still quite sturdy looking. Their coats were all a dappled grey, and they nosed the vines eating the small berries that hung at the ends.

Tal tapped on her shoulder. She wanted her to go up - climb the tree...then jump on one of the horses? With her daggers?

A little uncertain, Ai nodded that she could do it.

She shoved the daggers in her belt and scrambled up the tree. So long as she didn't think about it much, it wasn't too hard.

Peering over the branch she was perched on, she let out a slow breath. She was so high. Was it even safe to jump from this height?

No pain, no gain, she guessed. It wasn't high enough to die from. And Tal had that magic gel if anyone got hurt anyway. Slowly, begging the horses not to look up she maneuverer herself round the trunk of the tree. Eventually she reached the desired branch. It was thick, and went right above a couple of mini-horses near the centre of the herd. There were only about fifteen of them.

Controlling her breathing, Ai crept along the branch with feline grace. Below, Tal had prepared by knocking an arrow to her bow. She would take advantage of the split moment that Ai dropped. The point when the herd would all be, momentarily, still. If she was good, she could get in two kills.

Ai was ready. She couldn't be any more ready. Jump! Just jump! She kept thinking positive thoughts. Ok, she was going to do it. Now! Ok, maybe not then. But...now!

This time she finally got her legs to release her. She was falling, her daggers both out, one aimed for each horse.

Then she hit. Something shrieked - something pushed past her but she couldn't tell what because her whole world was swaying. Her knees hurt.

It took a lot of rapid blinking, and a few deep breaths before she was back in reality again. One of her hands was wet.

The dagger, still clenched in her fist, protruded out of the back of the horses skull. Its eyes were empty, and its expression blank. No accusation. No struggle. Just alive one moment, gone the next.

The other dagger was gone. A few moments of searching revealed it sticking out the side of another horse, this one had made it a couple of meters away. It would've kept going too, were it not for the fletched end of an arrow sticking out of its rib cage.

Tal must've shot it down.

Congratualtions! You have killed a Rou Horse and gained 10XP! Progress to next level 16%

Congratulations! You have contributed to killing a Rou Horse and gained 5 XP! Progress to next level 21%

The unwelcome blue boxed popped up in front of her face again. She ignored them.

Instead, she pulled her dagger out of the skull of the horse with a wet sucking sound. She thought she would be more freaked out. Or traumatised, especially after her nightmare. Oddly though, now that she could see it in front of her it seemed more real. Less of something to be scared of.

Animals die. Sometimes it would be by her hands, sometimes by another. It was nothing compared to...

It was easier than she thought it would be. More controlled despite her less than graceful fall. She felt oddly...empty. All the adrenaline had left her body, and now she was just sat there.

Tal walked into Ais line of sight, walking over the horse. Instead of yanking the arrow out, she called Ai over.

A faint frown crinkled her brow before Ai scurried over.

Tal took her hand and placed it over the body of the horse, her own on top.

"Rhouor nou tbarat." She called, then looked pointedly at Ai. Ai repeated it.

"I allour a you rhou ralou I rhorou oqou'n. No lroutrh trhorr dou botoud, and no da'nou roul dourha'nd." They said.

The body of the horse shimmered once, then seemed to collapse into nothing. Not quite nothing.

Hovering an inch or so off the ground was a dappled grey pelt, a few chunks of meat, hooves and bones.

"Thankyou." Tal told the air as Ai stared. Tal pinched her leg.

"Thankyou." Ai repeated, not entirely sure whom, or what she was thanking. She would like to think she was thanking the animal. She had taken its life, and it would not be murder. This was hunting, and there was no hunt - no life without prey. Its life had ended so hers could continue. She wouldn't let it go to waste. And that felt right.

The next time, Ai alone had to say the words (with a good bit of help). Probably because this one was her kill alone. Tal handed her a small bag, that unfolded to be remarkably large, to put her loot in. Ai felt slightly guilty for being so proud of herself.

But she was. It was great. She got herself food. She knew how to magically make corpses disappear. She almost felt like she could do her own magic. The feeling was intoxicating.

Nothing dampened her mood. Ermine had waited at the gate to the village, and walked with Tal for a little while before leaving. He had either finished his hunt early, or given up. Ai didn't care.

When Brandi let Ai cook her own meat, that she had hunted, her small smile grew ever wider. Even having a long lesson on words didn't dampen her mood.

Her night wasn't peaceful, but she didn't wake up screaming and she didn't need anybody to hold her hand. She was going to count that as a win.