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Rayle took his statements to mean that they were indeed far enough away from the tribe. Crouching, she pushed something against the ground that sparked, and used a bit of burning grass to light the lantern.

"...Bedding?" She shook her head, chiding, "I did not bring that many supplies! I plan to sleep on the ground!"

She laughed at him as she took off her pack. "Please tell me you at least brought food. I have some, and a recurve bow." He could see that plainly enough now that the lantern was lit. Her pack was small but packed to bursting, which made room for the large gutting knife, the bow, and the quiver strapped to the outside and to her. The bow itself was small like many recurve bows from his tribe. It suited her size and the moving that they would be doing, though a longer bow would have offered more in range. They would not be bringing down antelope with a single shot from that bow. Rabbit, then.

After staring at the flame for a moment, she turned to him suddenly. If he was talking, or about to talk, she interrupted. "What is Tok? You said that we were going there. I mean, I know it's a country, but..." But their people had been moving away, to the east, for generations, and so knowledge of Tok had become less important. Not only that, but they had never had direct relations with the nation, only met up with some of their country folk on the fringes of the nebulous border. Tok had never persecuted them like Feretris, and at one point the border had been known as a good place to barter. To Rayle it was just a name, but it may not have meant much more to Khael-Danis. All things considered, he had a slightly larger chance of possessing intimate knowledge of the fox-riding Kokiri, small reclusive people who inhabited the woodsy foot of the mountains that separated Tok and Feretris.

(you can make up whatever rumors you like xd for him to believe or not to believe)

Rayle's lips had parted slightly, but his question plucked the strings of her mind. "No," she said, standing up. "Dusk is past. Better to wait until dawn, now. Perhaps a few hours of sleep would do us both good, and we can travel until the heat of the day tomorrow." Rabbits would still be out, eating, at dawn, and the natural light would give her a chance to sneak up on them without warning.

She had forgotten whatever else she had had to say, and let out a yawn. Their small camp was soon unpacked, considering that she didn't believe in bedding or tents, and she found herself watching the stew hungrily. She hoped he could cook worth a damn.

Rayle started, her drowsiness disappearing in an instant. "I can hunt," she said for no reason in particular. "And I can scout. And you can heal. We will probably need all of our skills if this is to be a long journey."

(this post feels somewhat incoherent but it will serve to pass them some time at least)

That seemed reasonable to Rayle, so that night and the next morning went exactly as the shaman had said. Now down to the business of survival, Rayle did not talk much. When she did talk, it was to ask Khael-Danis questions about Tok that he couldn't answer. Her questions became rhetorical as she realized that he really didn't know any thing about the place. The next day or two was a disappointment to her as she came to this realization.

On the third day they came across a herd of antelope. Rayle ordered the shaman to crouch in the long grass with her. "There may be cats," she whispered, and it was understood that she meant very large cats. The young woman scrutinized the grass around them, but her eyes kept returning to the herd. Not that they were starving after three days, but that last thing that she had caught was that rabbit on the first morning, and one of these beasts would ease their food burden for much of the journey.

The problem was lions and her small bow. She might be able to kill an antelope if she was extremely lucky. Most likely if she hit one, they would all start running of course, and she'd have to try to hit it again. Then they'd probably have to track it as it bled to death, assuming that she didn't miss. It seemed like a long-shot to Rayle, yet her eyes kept returning to the herd.

Rayle crept forward until she came to a place with no grass, which would have offered no cover. Drawing back suddenly, she made her way back to the shaman. "There are many foot prints here. Days old." It hadn't rained since before they had started out, and the antelope wouldn't be there if the smell was brand new.

"If we follow them," she suggested, "they may clear up. But they may also lead us to trouble. If we don't follow them, then trouble may sneak up behind us." She paused, giving time for her words to sink in.

"They seem to head east, the way we wish to go." Rayle wasn't much for subtlety. If Khael hadn't been her elder, she probably would have put it even more bluntly. She was a curious person, and in her eyes there were more reasons to follow the tracks than to not.

Well, there was the game. She could still try to shoot one, but the stampede might further muddy their clues. As this thought entered her head, Rayle bit her lip and stared at the antelope longingly.

The girl was standing straight in the grass, plaining visible as the rest of the antelope bound off. She was frowning, her bow already back on her back, since apparently she didn't need it. The shaman had likely killed meals for others before, and not gotten such a sullen reaction. But never before had he killed for a hunter.

She crossed her arms. "Then I suppose you can dress the animal too, shaman?"

Rayle, already scarfing down some of the meat, looked at him as if he were a talking monkey. She quickly singled out the one thing he'd said that made sense to her: tell him about herself.

"I am a hunter. The rest of my party is still out here, some where, but I had to return home because I was injured. I have hated being stuck still with the other villagers." That last word was said with contempt. At no other point in remembered history could their people have been called villagers, but now it fit. Every one should be moving, always moving, even parties with children.

"Now we are a small party, but we may become more if--" She sucked in a deep breath. "I would even join another tribe, perhaps Demere? if we were to run into them."

Rayle stuck up her nose, thinking his speech long. "I would not abandon you unnecessarily, but some day you will not need me. It will not take that long to get to Feretris, perhaps under a week if we travel quickly."

(My general plan was to have them run into the dragons helping Feretris exiles, but the RP may be shut down before that sweatdrop )