Excalibur's Seven | ✓ [LGBT]

~ 6 ~

FOR A WOMAN AS tough and as willing to kill her fellow human beings as Selene, she was surprisingly averse to killing deer. She'd tried it before, but it was far too much work for an animal that didn't have the will in its bones to hurt another creature. All the tenderness in her heart was reserved for animals, at least the ones not raised on a farm for the purpose of milk and slaughter. Still, she avoided farm work as often as possible to avoid getting attached to her future meals.

And, also, Morgana sent her a chilling glare every time she even mentioned killing anything but fish, so real meat was completely off the table. She knew how protective the Sídhe were over nature, even the Winter Court. There was no way in hell she'd give Morgana any reason to get back at her, even if that reason was hunting a couple squirrels for food.

Morgana and Chalice were both happy with berries and leaves found throughout the forest, and once the faery had stopped entertaining Kit's need to argue with someone, he went with the druid to gather. Kit and Selene got to work stabbing their swords in the river on the off chance that they might catch enough fish for the rest of them. The fish were large in these woods, but they were few and far between and catching them with swords was a difficult task.

She got one before Kit did, though, which made her oddly proud. She didn't know why everything felt like a competition to her, but once they'd both caught one, she made it her mission to get Eurion's lunch before Kit could.

It seemed he caught on, because soon they were shoving each other out of the way, even wrestling whenever they found one swimming under the water. It probably wasn't wise, as it usually just served to scare the fish away, but it was nice to see her nephew smile for once.

Finally, it was her who caught the last fish, but she was repaid with a bitter splash to the face. It quickly turned into another fight until Morgana called to them and they finally stopped.

Eurion was awake again when they got back to their site, where Chalice was already lighting a fire. Kit had somehow managed to gather the wood for it earlier while he was fighting with Morgana, so at least he was being productive in his anger.

"I got one for you," Selene said as she held up the fish to Eurion. She felt an odd sense of relief when the thief nodded in approval, like she was hoping she would accept an apology.

She and Kit got to work gutting and preparing the fish to go over the fire, and she didn't miss Morgana's darting eyes, focusing on anything other than what the two of them were doing. He seemed to be getting along with Chalice, the two of them just sat in silence sharing berries and other fruits found in the woods.

The rest of the hour was silent as they filled their bellies and regained their energy. Chalice checked Eurion's wounds and place a silent spell on them, and as they carried on with their adventure, Eurion stayed propped against Chalice's lanky frame the whole way. For someone as sturdy as the thief, Chalice could hold her up well. They never once asked for help.

By the time the sun was high up in the sky, Selene finally thought to ask where the hell they were going.

"You think I don't feel her?" Morgana asked. "She's practically my sister, and she's one of the most important faeries we have. I know where she is."

It seemed less effective than either her or Kit going to the castle and finding out where the soldiers were. But upon further reasoning, she realized the others at the castle probably wouldn't be too pleased with her, much less the Prince, and if the men were so far into the woods, it wouldn't be likely their location would be known.

"Did it really take you that long to figure all this out?"

Selene jumped, stopped in place and fixed her sword at him. "How the hell did you know what I was thinking?"