Kel groans as he leans back in his chair. He's been sitting there all day, handling taxes for the family shop. “I hate math.” He mutters.
“You're the one who said you'd do it for extra pay.” Hero mutters, setting down a plate on his desk.
Kel grunts, grabbing a piece of fruit from it. “I know, but it's so boring.” He says, mouth full. “You don't think they'd mind if I take a break, do you?”
“No, but make sure you tell them you are. And eat before you leave.”
Kel nods, “Yeah yeah, I will.”
——————————
“Mamá! I'm going out!” Kel shouts.
“Where are you going? And don't shout, your sister is asleep.” His mother asks, walking into the room.
Kel stumbles as he hurries to put his shoes on. “The hiking trail. Figured I'd go out today for a while, since it's nice out and not as hot as an oven.”
“Alright, just stay safe. And be back before midnight.”
“Mhm, yup.” Kel mumbles, grabbing his spear from beside the door.
“And don't track blood in the house, please. It's very difficult to get blood stains out.”
“Yeah, I'll try my best.” Kel opens the door, “I'll be back soon, love you!”
Once out of the house, Kel begins running to the forest. He never actually goes on the usual hiking trails. I mean, why would he? All the good prey are nowhere near the trail.
Speaking of, he heard rustling not too far away from him. Rustling and a small screech. Could be a rabbit. Could also be a rabbit getting killed.
But that just means there's a larger animal stalking it. Kel follows the sound, careful to not make any noise. When he discovers the source of the rustling, he finds that it's a large bird, like a really large bird. It seemed to be eating something, presumably a rabbit.
Kel slowly raises his spear above his head, hesitating slightly. This was a bird larger than any other he'd seen. And just by the size of its wings, it must be even larger than Kel.
It could kill him if the spear only damages it.
….
Before he can hesitate any further he throws his spear, watching it pierce the wing of the bird. What he didn't expect was a human scream.
He jolts backwards, watching it turn around. It wasn't a bird. It was a Harpy.
It was glaring at him, breathing heavily. Before he had a chance to act, the Harpy launched itself at him, pinning him to the ground.
Its teeth were bared at him, sharp and bloody. Soon, it'd probably be Kel's blood on its teeth.
Its hand was placed on his neck, but no pressure was put into it. Shakily, Kel reaches up and grabs its wrist. “Please. Don't kill me.” He whispers.
It tilts its head, angered expression faltering.
“I'm sorry. I didn't know you were…” He swallows the lump in his throat. He was terrified. Harpy were ferocious creatures. He's heard stories from his family about them being harsh and merciless.
He was going to die, wasn't he?
“I-I can pull out the spear. I'll bandage the wound. Just please, please don't kill me.” Kel begs, trying to lift the Harpy's hand away from his neck.
The Harpy blinks, it's pupils dilating. Slowly, it moves away from him, standing up.
Kel sits up, staring at the creature looming over him. Half of its body was covered with feathers and its feet were those of a bird. It was as large as his family said, it was actually the same height as him, if not slightly taller.
