by pocarii » Thu Sep 20, 2012 10:30 am
A small form lay curled up in the corner of the tent, back to the entrance, gentle breathing the only sign that the form was alive. Another bundle - almost the same size - lay up against the slightly larger one, breathing slightly heavier though not labored. The first rays of sunlight revealed the two sleeping bodies to be human and canine curled up together to make almost one large form. A ray of sunshine landed on the face of the girl through her mask, awakening her immediately. A small yawn escaped her lips as she carefully removed herself from the adolescent Rottweiler beside her. His narrow, cloth-covered muzzle landed with a small thump onto the light green fabric of the their temporary home. The Rottweiler rolled leisurely onto his back and revealing a dark brown underbelly.
The girl stealthily made her way over to a pair of light brown, run down army boots and a large, black fanny pack, slipping them on her feet and the pack around her waist. In said pack contained a single dagger (sharpened to point with a rock), a slightly stale piece of bread, a single compass, and one half bottle of drinking water. The girl winced as the tent was unzipped, looking at the sleeping dog over her shoulder before carrying on. 'Just a little bit of scouting. They'll never know I'm gone.' she thought, resealing the tent and adjusting her mask to better fit her head. Two feet beside her lay another dark green tent, silent and undisturbed. A large, black falcon sat perched on it, eyeing her with one critical eyes. She put a finger to her lips before slowly stalking towards the trees surrounding the two tents. She had just made it to her first one.
"Madison." The girl froze to in her tracks, closing her eyes with the popular 'busted' expression on her face. She slowly turned around and ended up facing another boy her own age. His dark brown eyes stared down her hazel ones with the same critical eyes his falcon had used, arms folded across her chest waiting for an answer. His mask was sitting unused in his The girl lifted a had in a stoic wave, adding a small smile to sweeten the deal. The boy's stance did not change and her face and hand both fell back to their original positions.
"K-Kai. I didn't know you were up this earlier. You should put your mask back on-"
"Where are you going." It was not phrased as a question. The girl's face hardened and she looked him dead in the eyes.
"Hunting. Without Rocco. I may be a girl, Kai, but I'm also a bandit. Don't try to stop me." The boy moved the fingers of his open hand to pinch the bridge of his nose in obvious frustration. The girl flinched, as if ready to apologize, but stood her ground as he spoke again.
"You know it's dangerous for you to go -"
"I -" Madison prepared to argue before the lecture continued but was immediately stopped by Kai's finger held in the air for silence.
"Let me finish. You know it's dangerous for you to go......alone." The girl's eyes brightened and a genuine smile spread across her face. "I will come with you, but Rocco and Falcon will come - OOMPH!" He didn't have time to finish before a smaller body ran directly into his stomach and arms around him.
"Thanks Kai! You're the best. Rocco, Rocco wake up boy!" The girl fled for her tent where growling and barking had begun. The boy tried to act annoyed at such noise giving away their position, but he couldn't help but laugh at her overall energetic attitude during such a dismal time. His own attitude had been rather dour the past few months. A nod at the large black bird sent the falcon flying onto his master's open shoulder. The bird itself had been rather troublesome to keep alive and it was still rather weak, but Kai had a rather light, thin piece of cloth wrapped tied lightly around the bird's nostrils; enough to keep most of the fumes out of the way and loose enough to allow Falcon to open his beak just enough to insert food. But the mask was only temporary, and the bird could not continue living in such away for the rest of his life.
The two young adults met up again about a minute later, Kai with his own fanny pack with exactly the same contents as Madison's. With a unison nod, they trekked off into the forest with nothing more than the crunching of leaves. Rocco walked beside Madison with a lopsided smile; Falcon flew ahead, the eyes in the sky as always.