Hetalia: The Fifty Stars

Chapter 16: Crockett

Tennessee. The 16th state is mostly known for his music industry and country roots. Among the Southern States, he's well-known for being the country playboy with terrible puns. Other than his obnoxious flirting and guitar playing, he's also a great hunter thanks to his training under David "Davy" Crockett.

"The King of the Wild Frontier" is not only a famous hunter, but also a folk hero, a frontiersman, a soldier, and a politician in 19th century America. Born in Tennessee's home when it was still a part of North Carolina, Crockett lived to serve his state both in the militia and in government. In midst of Crockett's lifetime was when Tennessee, then a youth, met and grew up under the man. For Tennessee, Crockett was both a mentor and a father figure.

After being the only one in the Tennessee delegation to vote against President Jackson's 1830 Indian Removal Act, his vote grew unpopular among the people of his district, causing him to lose his seat in the 1831 election. Frustrated with Jackson's successor winning the 1834 election along with losing his Congressional election in 1835, Crockett said to his former constituents as quote, "You may all go to hell and I will go to Texas." And so Crockett left Tennessee to support Texas's independence. For sure, Tennessee would never forget the day he saw his mentor for the last time.

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The sun was setting when I found her. Her large, russet brown eyes didn't seem to notice me at first. Alone, she was busying herself behind the elms and oaks, admiring the quiet, orange atmosphere of the autumn woods. Her head peered upward, observing for a moment a blazing sky of gold with streaks of rose pink swirling around a row of white, puffy clouds. At that moment, I thought on leaving her alone, letting her roam around peacefully to herself.

The rifle grew warm in my cold hands. For this pretty doe, this would be the last time she would see the forest this beautiful ever again.

Carefully taking a step forward, I crept closer behind a thick, dark red shrub. The dark crimson and rotting brown leaves softly crunched underneath my leather boots. I became aware of the noise as I did my best to stay quiet and hidden from the unaware creature. Fortunately she continued to stare at the sky and treetops, paying no attention to the youth in the background.

I drew my rifle and stood up in a stance. My left hand held the barrel as I steadily aligned the stock to my right shoulder. My right hand gripped the stock as my right index finger floated above the trigger. I took a deep breath, closing my eyes in a calm manner before locking them onto the oblivious creature.

Her head suddenly lowered itself to the ground. With her long, graceful legs she began to amble along the forest floor. Without taking my dark blue eyes off her, I guided my rifle, keeping the weapon locked onto her. As she stopped in her tracks, her left ear twitched toward me. Just as she lowered her head to the ground, I pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The gunshot echoed against my ear, spreading throughout the entire forest. A flock of black birds squawked in shock, scattering out of the trees in a flock away from the loud boom. An eerie silence followed as I was left to take in the moment. Staring straight ahead, the doe I hunted was long gone. However, she wasn't lying on the ground. She was dashing off beyond the trees before disappearing behind a large hill, still alive to see another day.

"You missed again," a voice grumbled behind me.

I turned around to see my mentor standing behind me. He had on his usual tan hunting suit and coonskin hat. His brown eyes looked upon my tired figure as his frown persisted once again for the third time today. This past week I've been off my game. This deer should've been an easy one. I was only about twenty feet away without being noticed in the slightest. And after all that training, I haven't been able to get most of my shots in.