Chapter 1

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  • Dedicated to My friends who are all Deer Riders at heart
                                    

Hunter stared out the window of his bedroom into the forest. His parents had taken him on vacation to Schwarzwald for the spring break. He was bored in the little cottage they had rented and didn't feel like walking. His iTouch had died on the car ride and his older sister was using his charger for her stupid phone. He slumped onto the twin and sighed. I suppose all I can do is take a walk, he thought and put on his sneakers.

After a while, off the small trail, he noticed movement. He kept quiet and watched intently. Three girls and three other things appeared.

First came a taller one with a brown leather jacket and black hair swept back neatly. She had a loaded silver bow and a matching leather quiver sat on her back, filled with black arrows. A belt of knives came from shoulder to hip. She beckoned the others to follow her, along with three ponies, Hunter thought, at least, that was what they were. 

A girl with wildly curly auburn hair held to twin melee knives. They looked long and deadly. She wore a black coat.

The last girl was very small and had short caramel hair. She had a dreamy look about her and her bow was in her quiver. A short broadsword hung in its sheath on her side. She wore a furry animal skin dress that came to her knees. Her feet were hidden by the shrubs.

They all looked about a year below him. Perhaps twelve or thirteen.

Then, the auburn-haired caught him staring.

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Graceline always had had sharp eyes. She noticed that boy faster than the others. She motioned to Ivie and Valerie and pointed. Brill glared with her amber eyes at the dark-haired boy and muttered "Filthy, polluting human." under her breath. The boy stood like a deer, staring into headlights. Valerie quickly dashed to him. Ivie swung from some low branches to the boy.

"Just who the hell do you think you are?" Graceline asked. 

"Uh-"

"What's your name?" Valerie inquired cautiously while patting Brill gently. Lite and Brindle Star knew also to be quiet.

"Hunter Krabè." he backed up slightly, on his guard.

"Should we take him to camp?" Ivie suggested, now out of her dreamy nonsense state and into a Deer Rider's.

"I don't know. If he escapes, he'd tell everyone." Valerie said doubtfully, keeping her fingers on her bow, ready to fire.

"Can we- should we- kill him?" Graceline asked.

"Hm, I really don't know." she put a finger on her chin thoughtfully. "I'm going to ask Brill and the deer. Stall him."  she whispered into their ears at last and took them by the reigns, which they never really used. She disappeared behind a cluster of tight birches.

"So why are you in our territory?" Ivie prodded.

"I was just walking, heck, I didn't know it was your territory." he put his hands up.

"Well, I suppose you shouldn't..." Ivie thought about it. He came slightly closer and said a bit more quietly, "Are you guys Deer Riders?"

"How the he- how would you know what we are?" Graceline asked, startled. He shrugged. "My mom told me the legend. I thought it was a bunch of BS, but, well, here you guys are."

"We're girls." Valerie pointed out as she came out of her concealment. The canopy of green above started to glow. The sun had come out. "Oh, yeah." Hunter blushed. 

"Anyways, that's beside the point. We're taking him to the site. The elders can deal with him." she stated. 

"Yeah, okay- wait, WHAT!!!!?" Hunter exclaimed. Valerie judo flipped him and Ivie started tying him up. Graceline, the strongest of them, heaved his body onto Lite, the strongest deer, and the three girls headed back to the camp.

Poor Hunter.

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