Cursed

Chapter 5: Potential friendships

My heart thrashed against my rib cage, or at least it felt like it. In all the years of hunting, I had never been this unfocused. Usually hunting was the thing that made me focus the best. It made me focus on the sounds of the forest; the breaking of twigs, the cobbling water or the sounds of the communicating animals, even the silence of it all gave me information about what was going on around me.

Now, my attention wavered every time the brunette girl hovered a little too closely behind me. My body was hyper aware of every move she made, and it sighed in contentment every time she acted accordingly.

Kate was a hunter, like she said. Her steps were perfectly coordinated and as gentle as the little breeze - she never made a sound louder than a whisper.

Fingers touched my biceps, making me look over my shoulder. Kate was looking to our right, her hand slowly directing me towards the sounds of a little stream. Did she hear that too?

Slowly we crawled closer, Kate never seemed to make any kind of noise while she skipped forward and for once I sounded very loud in comparison, a strange feeling considering I took pride in my silence. With a gentle hand on her shoulder, I held her back and directed her to the ground. The green of the bramble would cover us and the fallen trunk would be a great help in positioning my hand. Kate listened to me, just like I had listened to her. It was strange to work in a team where both partners were equally in control. I had to admit that I enjoyed it.

Now all there was left to do was wait. Wait until the deer, still hidden behind the tree on the other side of the stream, would come for a drink. It would give me the clearest shot and keep the pain to a minimum.

With careful movements, I pulled off my holster and laid it down on the ground next to me. My bow was carefully positioned on the trunk, ready to use when necessary.

My eyes drifted to my right, where the smaller girl lay in absolute silence. Her eyes were stuck on the animal we were hunting. It made me smile that she enjoyed this too. For a minute too long, I kept my eyes fixed on her and let all the questions that I wanted to ask her run wild in my head. It was only when she shifted that I forced my attention back to the animal before me.

More time passed, until eventually the deer, with her four long thin legs, walked up to the water side. Without any notion of our presence, the female licked carefree from the stream. My hand tightened around the cord of my bow, and slowly I pulled it half way backwards. With carefully controlled breaths, I held on for the perfect moment.

TSJAK!

The arrow sizzled through the air with a velocity even a vampire couldn't outrun. The arrowhead disappeared inside the female's chest. She dropped down onto her knees, before falling to her side, all while I had jumped up and crossed the distance.

With my knife in the ready I jumped onto the animal and cut open her neck in one swift move - making her suffering short. I placed my hands onto her eyelids, closing them for her and repeating the actions of the human huntsman that taught me the ritual of the crossing souls.

'Accept this soul with carefulness, as she has suffered by my hands, and cannot suffer by Yours. Bring her peace in the Otherworld, as she could not find it here.'

Say it with meaning, say it in whisper to the animal and Khael, the god of the animals. The man's instructions echoed on.

When I was done and an inner peace had settled over me again, I opened my eyes. The colors of the forest seemed brighter again, and I felt my heart squeeze in delight. It worked, I was sure. The female had crossed over.

Now that her soul had safely left, it was time to prepare the body. With my knife back in my hand, I cut open its stomach and started to pull out all the intestines.