I awoke early, opening my eyes with a start.
Last night...
Covering my face, I hid a wide smile.
Wait, what was I thinking? That's completely ridiculous. Absurd.
My bare feet touched the cold stone floor. Another thought flitted into my head and preoccupied me.
Just yesterday, I'd gotten my ankle fixed, but not entirely. What had the healer boy said? I was going to 'limp for a while' right?
Then why did I feel no pain at all?
Strange.
Unwrapping the layers of bandages, I studied my ankle.
Not a scratch.
Weird.
I rotated it, expecting at least a twinge of pain or something. Actually, I distinctly remembered it hurting...Right up until I'd taken a bath in my temporary room. After that, I don't recall any real discomfort. None at all.
All of my limping from yesterday was merely a formality...
Tentatively changing from my sleeping attire, I experienced no pins or needles. The only pain I felt was when I stubbed my toe on the bed frame.
Deciding to get rid of the cumbersome bandages, I carefully cleaned and dried them. Then I recoiled the strands up, tucking it in my bag to investigate later.
Slinging on my jacket, I made sure to bring the gloves from the closet. Catching sight of a different jacket hung on the chair, I wondered who it belonged to. Did I bring in another jacket yesterday?
With a start and a pang of guilt I remembered.
It was Dakota's! How could I have forgotten? He must be freezing outside! I got to find him, it's way too cold out to walk around in just a long sleeve shirt.
Tiptoeing past the hall and to the door, I paused.
I should probably work this out first.
How was I going to find him? I didn't know where he stayed, much less where he'd be by now. I could try asking the others, but how? Ray and Jerry...I didn't know what their trade was yet. Brooke was probably in the kitchen.
I'll start there then.
Opening the door, I stepped outside. Someone had already cleared most of the snow on the paths away. The sun was still rising, casting a rosy glow on the clouds.
Though today was a break day, the Lupine were up and about, tending to their needs. As they say, 'the early Lupine gets the bone.'
Or something like that.
I wandered over to the dining hall in search of breakfast and Brooke. Entering the building, I stood to one side, scanning the massive room.
My guess was correct: Brooke was arranging various loaves of bread in the corner of the room.
There she is.
"Hey, Brooke!"
She turned, catching a glimpse of me. Brooke smiled, gestured me over, and ruffled my hair.
"Hi. Just sorting through some rolls. What's up?"
Raising the hack as an answer, I added, "What's for breakfast? I'm starving."
Brooke lit up in a way only a cook could when talking about her favorite subject: food.
"The bread is over here, obviously, and we have some butter and jam on that table over there. There's always goat's milk available. Today's special is biscuits and gravy at the counter. We also have packets of mountain tea and freshly brewed coffee. Careful, they're hot! And over here are the greens like spinach, salad, carrots and celery, etcetera." She grinned, finishing her ramble. "Does that answer your question?"
I nodded slowly, a bit overwhelmed. "Yup, that does. I'm going to grab a salad and stuff. Be right back in a sec."
After setting my plate down to dig in, Brooke took a break and sat next to me.
"So," she prompted. "How are you liking the Lupine camp? Is everyone treating you okay?"
I didn't have to think twice before I replied, "It's great! This place is so big and spread out. I haven't met that many people yet, but everyone's okay so far."
"Glad to hear it. So who's jacket is that?" Brooke questioned, obviously knowing the answer from the glint in her eye. "Where'd you get it from?"
Choosing my words carefully as to not give anything away, I answered, "It's Dakota's, he let me borrow it last night. I'm trying to find him so I can give it back."
I could tell she was trying not to hide a grin.
Regaining her composure, Booke informed me of his whereabouts. "He'll be at the archery ranger, knowing him. Never gives up a chance to improve, that one. It's past the hunters' housing. They're at the edge of the woods to the west. You'll know 'cause they put up recent kills out in the snow to preserve or something. Unsanitary if you ask me. Don't worry about stepping on any, there's a long dark fence all the way around. You can smell it anyways..."
Cutting her long reply off, I thanked her. We parted ways, off to pursue different goals.
A bit confused by all the directions, I ended up walking in circles for a bit. Thankfully, a helpful couple managed to point the way out for me.
I knew I was close when I heard the twang of arrows being released from their bows.
The archery practice range was outdoors, a couple of shacks bordering the area. Full of quivers of arrows, I assumed. One thing different from your normal archery range, though, was that the field was littered with debris.
Trees, broken trunks, even a pond. Throughout the range were the standard target practice boards. Made from improvised moss and dried grasses, they stuck up everywhere.
Basically, the range was a forest out of a forest.
I considered calling Dakota's name. After all, it'd take me ages to search through the whole place. Maybe I could just walk around the border and see if I could spot him.
Thwack!
Looking down I saw the shaft of an arrow sprout from the ground. It was barely a toe away from my boot. And from piercing my foot.
Hearing a rustle, I jerked my head up. Tense and ready to retaliate, I growled quietly.
"Well, aren't you a bit jumpy today?"
The soft voice allowed me to relax. I knew who it was.
"Come on, come out you fox."
Dakota obeyed, swinging down from a nearby tree, kneeling to soften the landing.
I brushed the hair away from my face. "Show off."
He looked smug and retrieved his arrow.
Oh, that reminds me.
Slapping him on the shoulder, I scowled. "That's for almost hitting me." Then switching gears I half hugged him and added, "That's for not hitting me."
Dakota scratched his head. "So what brings you here?"
I lifted his jacket. "Here, catch."
Nimbly, Dakota reached out with one hand and grabbed it mid-air. "Thanks."
"No problem," I said and glanced around. "Too bad it didn't make it to your face. Aren't you on break? Also, it doesn't look like anyone else is here. You alone?"
He nodded, quirking an eyebrow. "Everyone else is hunting or preparing. Why, do you want to be alone?"
I glared at his implication and jerked my chin for him to continue.
"My chief said I could take a break. I'd rather practice in my free time though. Better than not doing anything in my opinion."
I fiddled with the twin knife sheaths and studied the archery range. It wouldn't hurt to learn how to use these hunting knives.
Seeming to read my mind, Dakota asked, "Hey, do you want to practice a bit with those? I never really taught you--" He hurried on, stumbling over his own words. "--not that I'm saying you don't know how, you probably know some from your upbringing. I mean--I was just wondering if..."
He trailed off, embarrassed.
I sympathized and agreed. "Sure. I never really knew how to anyways. Learning some tricks would be great, actually."
Dakota visibly brightened, and I smiled to myself. Where did the smooth-talking, brave and daring fox go? Last night seemed not to have happened.
The sun had been near its peak when I began. It was well past as we came to a stop.
"So you see, if you keep talking to your opponent then throw--" Dakota threw the knife and it scored right in the middle. "--while still talking, they usually won't see it coming until it's too late."
Hmm, that made sense.
"Like--" I aimed and threw without a pause in my words. "--This?"
He considered. "Yeah. When you get better, you can do it without aiming first. Trust your instincts. They're right most of the time. So go with your gut."
I stretched, rolling my sore shoulders.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flicker of movement.
Not this time.
Reaching for the long knife I raised it high over my head, intercepting Dakota's dagger. Catching him off guard I disarmed him the way he had Sirius, the bandit I'd spared.
Dakota raised his hands in mock surrender. "Fast learner. I give up, don't hurt me."
I responded with an approving tone. "Well, I had a good teacher."
He tilted his head. "True. Not that I'm bragging."
Smirking, I shook my head. "'Course not."
Glancing at the sky Dakota seemed to realize how much time had passed. "We missed lunch. Ah well. At least I brought a snack. Here."
He tossed a paper-wrapped package to me. "Inside there's some bread from this morning. I forget to eat lunch a lot, so yeah."
Dakota searched through his bag, apparently not finding what he was looking for.
Tapping my shoulder, Dakota mumbled. "I didn't pack enough for two. I didn't know you were going to be coming. Can I take some from yours?"
Untying the package, I hanged over a couple rolls. Taking a seat on a smooth tree thunk, I chowed down.
"Say," I asked, "What jobs are there anyway? I know a couple already."
Dakota shrugged evasively. "That's for you to find out tomorrow. Besides, I'm not allowed to tell you. Orders of the Alpha."
Instantly spotting a flaw in his answer, I shot back, "Does the Alpha want to make sure there's no bias or influence? Then you broke the rules by telling me I'd be a good hunter."
Messing with his bag, Dakota paused. "Oh. My bad. You don't have to join. I was just kidding around."
With a start, the two of us realized how late it was getting. The sun was beginning to set already.
I got up too, starting back towards the first year dorms. "Thanks for the lesson. See you at dinner."
After parting ways I spotted an unusual sight. What was that doing there?
Silently, a raven with strange expressive dark grey eyes stared. The tips of its wings were a bright white, blending with the icy background.
Shrugging it off as a coincidence, I strode off. In the back of my mind though, I saw its unwavering gaze on the back of my head.
(Side Note: Who do you pair up so far? Dakota and Melody? Anyone else? Leave your answers in the comments section!)