With swift movements, she climbed up the nearby tree, Leaping down into the stream.
One of the smaller deer was sipping from the stream, but its instincts were telling it something was wrong.
Just as it pulled its head back up, Ariel crashed down onto it, blood gushing from its neck as she bit down into its neck.
As she picked her head up, She saw the deer already scattering as she expected.
"Let's see what you can do…"
one of the deer was running, bobbing around the trees, taking irregular patterns, when a paw came from behind a nearby tree, slicing into its face.
It fell onto the floor, blood covering one of its eyes. Jairo came from behind the tree, his paws shaking.
'I…did it.' But he could hardly focus, his stomach was taking over. He had to kill it, eat it now. Too much time had been wasted already.
…
As Jairo regained consciousness, he saw the deer, its head completely bitten off, its neck nonexistent.
'Who ate that?'
A question he deep down knew that answer too, but he questioned it nonetheless. he had just woke up. He didn't have control.
Just then, the call "Jairo!? What is wrong with you? You let the others get away."
just then, she saw how zoned out he looked, with the blood covering his mouth. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah." He lied.
"Well, I killed two others, so it wasn't all for nothing, but now I'm a little tired as well."
Jairo nodded. "Nice."
Ariel looked at the deer and then back to Him.
"Would you like me to cut up and heat the deer?"
he nodded again. the taste of iron making him question everything. It tasted disgusting for his human mind, but to his wolf body, this was regular. not worth mentioning.
Minutes pass, and all parts of the deers are cut up, with the more satisfactory meats all sitting next to or just above the fire, with the unsatisfactory ones thrown to the wayside.
Some ribs and thighs were roasting above the fire.
Ariel turned to him, with an awkward look. "Remind me to never bring raw meat around you again."
Jairo shook his head. "I'll be fine." He was still very shocked however. This was his first time truly taking life. And he wasn't even fully aware.
seeing him looking genuinely out of it, She popped up next to him. "I know you're lying. I don't know what you're going through as, you won't tell me, but I'll try to help you through it without knowing what it is."
'Wow, that was the nicest thing she's said to me all day.' Jairo looked at her as he began feeling refreshed. He got the fuzzy feeling in his chest.
Just then she stood up, putting a hand on her breast that were wrapped in a cloth. "After all, it is said that me immense charm is contagious. Just watch."
His ears perked up. It was nothing but idiotic rambling, but it was making it easier to get through the day reguardless.
As they ate, Jairo looked to her, tearing into her meat like a madman. The ones that she was eating were medium rare, while the ones he was eating were well done. His bites looked like a dainty girl, trying to look cute compared to hers.
With how loud she was being, it was almost like she was challenging him to eat more.
'I won't lose this either.'
–—Minutes later—-
Jairo felt like his stomach weighed fifty pounds. He groaned and leaned his head back on the tree behind him.
Ariel was done eating, yet she looked completely normal. "Alright, that was a good meal."
She turned to look at him. "Do you just lose to everything? Even in death, the deer kicks you're ass" she said, letting a smal laugh slip.
Jairo didn't find it funny at all.
Ariel pulled two sacks from her waist, and began putting all the meat they they had cooked inside of it.
Putting half in hers, and half in his. "Let's get out of here."
as they began walking back home, Jairo asked Ariel something, turning and looking to his back.
"What is your goal in this life. What do you want to do?"
She turned and looked at him with surprise.
"Is it not obvious? I want to inherit my father's place in this Village, and become a strong warrior, protecting all."
She then sighed loudly. "Though if you wanted a real answer from me… I want to explore, travel and see everything this world has to offer.
I heard there is a race of water people so beautiful, they make you drop everything in persuit of them. Maybe show one off to my people. Discover something new.
This place is all I've ever known, and while I love it…it gets stale after a while you know?
"Yeah Jairo said nodded." Stale was what he could describe his past life. He would be perfectly fine with this one if he wasn't set to die in two weeks.
As they got to his home, Ariel got further and further, giving him a nod and a smile before departing.
As he went back into his home, a certain feeling swelled in his chest. It was many at once…but one thing above all. Impatience. He could not wait for tomorrow.