Astoria Pendridge

Five

Yesterday and the day prior, she had hunted it in the afternoon. Now, she was hunting it in the morning.

Her golden eyes watched the creature. A deer as tall as her current self, rummaging through the forestry ground with its head bent while it chewed on grass; but its stature could only be described as small when compared to the countless trees that surrounded it and bloated the land. The trees she was hidden upon.

She watched as the thing walked upon dirt to nibble at another patch of grass, chewing near the base of a tree while she stayed upon one of its large branches. She held her breath, ridding herself of any extraneous motion while her naked form was hidden between large leaves.

It bent to obtain another mouthful, the perfect chance. 'Too preoccupied to think, and when you strike, it will take at least a moment to register the situation and rise back up,' that was what Pendridge had said.

She jumped from the tree.

It took precious moments for the creature to process the sound of her feet leaving wood, and the shake of leaves but when it did, when its head raised and its figure flinched to begin its sprint and escape, she was already atop it.

"Gotcha!" She yelled, landing roughly on its back.

She hugged the deer in her embrace, riding it as it trashed about, shaking itself to throw her off. She however, didn't give it the chance as her lips opened and her fangs pierced into its neck.

Then she pulled, tearing a huge chunk of meat from its frame. Its figure slowed. She took its hand in her grasp and twisted it with all her might, the missing chunk of muscle and bone from its neck allowing her to complete the task easier.

The deer collapsed onto the forest floor.

Astoria grinned, crouching over the dead creature as blood flowed from it and her mouth. Though she looked like a pre-teen now—having grown to 5'2—with her brazen red hair extended behind her like a mane, it had only been a few days. Such a short time had changed her body significantly.

She was now fast enough to keep up with a running deer, and strong enough to wrestle it to the ground. Of course, she did neither when she hunted for one. Simply put, as Pendridge had taught her, there was no use wasting that much energy when she could simply track the animal from its footprints, and its scent left from bits of fur rubbed on trees, and then catch it in one swoop.

"I wonder when I'll find an animal with an aura. . ." She muttered, disappointed. Though Pendridge had taught her how to check if a living being had aura or mana, a natural skill for a Guardian Beast, she had never found one even now.

'Granted, Pendridge probably wouldn't let me hunt somewhere where they could be ones yet.' It was no wonder she had yet to see what could be considered a 'monster' and had only killed animals so far. Though he was often cold, Pendridge seemed to truly care for her.

She shook her head and opened her mouth, biting into the skin of the deer and pulling back to reveal more meat within. Then she dug in. As she chewed her morning meal, glancing at the sky with a satisfaction only hunting it herself could bring, a gentle wind blew at her side while the crunch of paws against dirt rang.

"Oh there you are, Pendridge!" She turned to the wolf immediately, smiling brightly with lips red from blood. "How did I do?"

Pendridge blew air from his nose. Not exactly a scoff, but not exactly nothing either.

"Passable," He said.

"Hehehehe," Astoria giggled at the odd praise of the Guardian Beast. As always, he maintained a rather cold tongue.

She bit into another piece of meat, ripping it from the deer, then spoke while chewing this time, looking somewhat like a chipmunk.

"What am I hunting this afternoon?" She asked, gulping.

"A wolf," Pendridge replied as it paced until it was right beside her. "As always, I shall help you track it while teaching you along the way. When I determine I have helped enough, however, you shall be on your own."

Though slightly taken aback at the notion that she would be hunting another wolf, and at his calmness, Astoria softly nodded. It seemed it was time for tougher opponents.

She extended a hand forward.

"Here you go, Pendridge."

"What are you doing?"

"Giving you some meat?"

The wolf narrowed his eyes as he stared at her bloodied palm, a slab of meat atop. He lowered his head and sniffed at it.

"I am not eating that. You should eat to your heart's content, you need to grow."

"I want you to eat it though."

Pendridge frowned as his eyes glanced over her.

"You will need to go swimming once more before your hunt," He said. "We cannot have you trailing a wolf with blood on you. It would pick it up immediately."

Astoria nodded.

"I understand, but don't just change the subject. . ." She pouted. "I still want you to eat what I hunted. Didn't you give me a free meal when I was first born? I want to give you something too."

"I am not a pet, I will not eat from your hand," The wolf growled.

Astoria's golden eyes stared into his, shaking. Her lips trembled.

"Why?" She asked, blinking her eyes as her face tensed. ". . .do you hate me?"

Pendridge frowned as he took a step back. Then scoffed and came back forward.

"Humph. I shall accept your offering, after all."

He lowered his head and gingerly ate from her outstretched hand. Astoria laughed joyfully, her expression brightening immediately, patting his head and running her hand over his iron-colored fur. It was actually the first time Pendridge had allowed himself to be patted, and she relished every moment of it.

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