Efron sniffled and finally raised his head from his arms, facing his friend hesitantly with still-watery green eyes, studying her as if to determine the sincerity of her words. He seemed torn between placing faith in the future and remembering how he had lost that faith in the first place.
Gretel gave the violet yearling a genuine, determined grin in response. Things will work out for both of us as long as we don't give up. It won't be easy, and we're bound to make more mistakes along the way, but all that matters is what we learn from them so we know better next time. “Everything will be okay,” the wyvern assured him confidently.
Efron’s tears fell once more, but this time with something akin to relief. He wiped them, then hugged her securely, stifling another sob.
The white hatchling's battered body reflexively assumed it was under another attack from the sudden physical contact, and for a split second she was overcome with fear; as a solitary quadruped, hugs via arms weren’t a natural experience for her. But Gretel just as quickly understood he meant no harm, so she drew in a breath and released it in a sigh to relax. The embrace reminded her of the burrow she had sheltered in last night, and that comparison brought her a sense of safety. She eased into his hold, letting him cry it out.
“Do you want me to hunt that rabbit down for you?” Gretel offered after they had finally pulled apart.
The young revealer considered it. “I think I might be able to catch it on my own, if I hunt my usual way…” He hesitated, glancing her way as if awaiting her approval to act.
Gretel stared him down intently with her best impassive expression. He can't keep waiting for others’ permission to let him survive! I'm not going to influence that for him anymore. He needs to figure it out for himself, or he'll never gain independence!
He frowned a bit anxiously, but when his stomach growled for the second time, he couldn't afford to wait for her to answer him. Without any other option, Efron walked off to a small berry patch in the more dense part of the forest. After plucking a few, he stalked over to the rabbit hole his prey had escaped to earlier. He kneeled out of sight beside the entrance, then scattered the berries in front of it.
Gretel’s keen eyes noticed the familiar glint of his gemstone that had presumably been restored by now. Almost instantly the rabbit was forced to act on its suppressed impulse by coming out to inspect the berries.
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Efron immediately lunged at his prey, snatching it in his hands and finishing it off with one swift bite.
She beamed with pride, but when he once again looked to her as if for confirmation that he was allowed to eat it, Gretel quickly dropped her smile and sat with clear indifference. The wyvern could tell he was the slightest bit frustrated by her lack of feedback, but ultimately, he couldn't resist taking a bite. After that, hunger overpowered any self doubt he had left, and he finally ate it in earnest.
“I'm gonna go hunt too, okay?” the wyvern informed him. She reared up and spread her wings in preparation to fly in search of some birds. The second she flapped them, the motion caused her back’s injury to flare up and she cried out in pain, dropping back down.
“Gretel, are you okay?!” Efron rushed to check on her.
“Y-Yeah, just sore,” she muttered, more angry than hurt as resting there let the pain ebb to that dull ache which had persisted since yesterday. “It'll heal in a few weeks. No big deal.” …If I can figure out how to eat in the meantime, that is…
“Want me to find another rabbit?”
She hesitated. I still don't like the idea of eating something that was manipulated into letting itself be hunted… But what other choice do I have? The last time I tried to live off of berries and vegetation, it made me puke. Wind types just can't digest that stuff.
“Gretel?” he asked again, more concerned when his friend hadn't answered him.
Scavenging on this island would be risky, since the only other predators are too big for me to fight, and I'm too hurt to flee; if they catch me looking for their leftovers, I'll be killed for sure. The striped wyvern's hot pink eyes looked toward the highlands. After the threat of Efron's cousin, I can't risk going near them in the highlands either. So… what else can I do?
Gretel sat up and wrapped her tail loosely around her paws, the spade-shaped tip of it twitching irritably. She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she hadn't even noticed Efron had left her side until he suddenly returned with a fox that he dropped in front of her.
She jumped. “You hunted this? Just now? That was fast!”
His green ears lowered shyly as if he were abashed by the passing compliment, until he seemed to second-guess himself. “I did, but… I also had to use another reveal for it. S-Sorry… I know you said you didn't want to eat prey that was hunted that way, but… that's really the only way I can hunt consistently…”
Gretel exhaled through her nose. I guess the method of hunting prey doesn't matter too much if it's hunted all the same in the end. “Thanks, Efron,” she murmured. Out of the corner of her eye as she ate, she saw him gaze up toward his old society too. His expression was as difficult for her to read as it always was, but Gretel could hear the slightly unsteady breaths he emitted, and noticed he was trying to steady them.
He's scared… the young wind type recognized, but he's determined not to be. She felt herself smile slightly.