Two Graves - The Song of Nephiah and Brelyna

Chapter 14: The Pup and the Giant

"Hey there, little pup." The girl opened her eyes. Rays of morning light were shining through the window, a man kneeled at her bed, softly running his fingers through her hair. She rubbed her eyes and recognized the kind face smiling down at her. "Hey there, papa wolf." She smiled, still in the process of waking up. "Do you know what day it is?" She sat up and turned to let her feet dangle off the bed. "M-hm!", she nodded energetically, looking at her mother who was leaning in the doorway.

He got up and sat down on the bed beside her. "Well? What day is it then?" She looked up at her father, who was sitting to her left. "Heart's Day!" She grinned in anticipation, they always did something special on this day. "That's right. The day that we make sure those we love know it. And you know what else is special about today?" She shook her head still smiling up at him. She knew exactly what he was going to say but she loved to hear him say it. "Eight years ago to the day, the love of my life was brought into the world." He touched her nose tip with his finger, she giggled, the mother smiled at the tender scene. "Now I hear you've been busy." She stopped smiling and looked at him with big eyes. "I hear you chased a rabid stray off the Sarethi Farm yesterday. Did you?" She slowly nodded. "Despite our warnings and what we told you about wild animals? How dangerous they can be?" She nodded again. "I heard you stopped it from attacking her sister. You kicked it in the nose as it jumped at her?" She stopped nodding, just looked up at him. "Well." He looked at his wife. "Since we can't do anything to stop you from your heroics..." He looked back at her. "I might as well show you how it's done. Today, you're going hunting with me." The girl gasped, then screamed in ecstasy, throwing her arms up and falling around his neck. He laughed and picked her up as she squeezed him tightly.

The door of the little farm house opened and he stepped outside. Morning fog was hanging between the trees, the rooster gave off his cry. He put her down. "Go on, little pup, get your practice bow." Without hesitation she ran to the shed beside the garden. The mother stepped up behind him. "Please don't go too far.", she said to him with a worried look. "She wants to go. Has been practicing with her bow for weeks." "Many rabid animals have been spotted lately. Just be careful." He kissed the back of her hand. "We will."

The girl came running back, little black pigtails bouncing up and down. She held a child sized bow and a few wooden arrows with rounded tips. "You can leave your practice arrows.", the father said. The girl handed them over, he went back into the house and returned with a hunting bow and a quiver full of iron arrows. "Want to go hunt some game, little pup?" "Yes!" She turned and ran into the woods. "Nephiah! Wait up!" He looked at his wife and laughed. "I guess there's no stopping this one." He ran after her.

They were walking slowly through the forest, pockets of fog still lingering in the trees and between the bushes. "So a rabid dog, you say.", he said looking down to his side. "Mhm!" "And you chased it off by kicking it." "In the nose!" "Weren't you scared?" "It was just a dog, papa.", she said focusing on the woods, trying to spot animals. "Nose works for everything.", she added. He looked at her, he was just a little bit proud. "Huh.", he said and looked back in front of him.

Cracking of wood was heard somewhere close by. They instantly stopped and looked around carefully. A deer was grazing a few meters away, it's back turned to them. He slowly crouched down, she looked at him and mimicked his movements. Her heart started beating faster. He took an arrow from his quiver and handed it to her, she looked at him with excited eyes. He whispered. "The head or the neck." The arrow had a sharp iron tip. She primed her bow and began to aim. "Just as we practiced. Hold it steady, aim just above your target, hold your breath, release." She aimed carefully, watching the deer's every movement. The world around her seemed to have fallen silent, it was only her, the bow in her hands and the target in front of her. She squeezed an eye shut, held her breath and fired.