Tisis

Coming home (N)

After returning to the cave, I first walk over to the washing bowl and clean the blood I got on myself, when that stupid bastard tried to jump me on my way back.

I also clean the bone knife Sirus had carved from the remains of one of the more formidable opponents we encountered.

After cleaning it, I hold it into the light flooding in from the entrance and marvel once again at the craftsmanship Sirus developed since we came here.

Its blade is straight like an arrow and the edges and tip are sharp like a razor.
I remember how easy it was to ram it straight between the eyes of the critter.

Only problem with these close combat weapons is, that it's one heck of a pain to clean up all that blood gushing from the wound...

I hang the chunk of meat I cut out of the critter to finish bleeding over the rack and look out of the cave entrance.

...any minute now.
Any minute he'll come back...

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The heck is taking him so long?!
I've been waiting for like...what, an hour now?
No...no, calm down, Nym.

You're waiting.
Waiting always feels way longer than it really is.
It's...it's probably only been like ten minutes. Or twenty...or...

But it's no use.
A sense of unrest has taken hold of me and I begin to worry.
What if something happened to him?
What if...if something finally got the jump on him?
He's somewhere out there...alone...and what's even worse, unarmed.
Maybe hurt...or even worse!

I walk towards the exit to take a look at the stand of the sun.
It's already halfway towards the horizon...I'd guess three o' clock or something.

Where was it when I came here?

I curse myself for not paying better attention, but it must have been a while ago already, seeing how the meat stopped dripping already...I'll need to get to roasting it soon, before the critters spoil it rotten.

I just want to turn around, when a high-pitched scream pierces the silence.

Within a split second I've forgotten about the meat, run back into the cave, pick up my bow, my arrows and check, that the knife is still on me.

That was a human voice, I'm sure.
Didn't sound like Sirus, but maybe he isn't as alone I thought him to be after all...though I could have sworn that the girl would be way too scared to leave that heap of metal.

Now a whimpering noise has taken the place of the screaming, but it's as good an auditory cue as any else.
That it hasn't turned into a blood curdling dying scream yet probably means, that they're still both alive and well.

Curses! Why is my heart beating so fast?
I mean...I guess I am happy to be seeing Sirus again and all that, but this...this is just ridiculous!
Stupid hormones! Quiet down in there!
He's not even the same species as I am!

I take a deep breath and calm myself down.

Alright Nym...focus. You're not going to drop everything and jump at him the instant you see him, you're not going to cry and you're going to be a reasonable and rational adult now, you hear me?!

I follow the voice and eventually find the two of them between a few trees, Sirus bowing over a wolf-type predator.
The tree in front of the creatures head has a very defined stain with a few tiny pieces of white slowly running down the bark.

After scanning the immediate surrounding for more threats but coming up empty, I approach Sirus, who apparently is trying hard to tear a piece of meat from the creature.