[SOLO] Hunting Lessons

[Teigra]

"Stay low. Silent and still. Watch and wait for your opening," he coached in a low whisper, eyes fixed on his pupil, hers on the prey ahead. This would make attempt number...well, Kane had stopped counting at this point. As the number of failed lessons grew, so did his frustration.

But he'd had frustrating hunts plenty of times before. The patience that came from such training, even if he'd had to teach himself the same lessons he was trying to pass on, would keep him at it until either she proved to be a complete lost cause, or she got it at last.

He wasn't sure which was more likely first.

She'd proven to take to some lessons easily, while others seemed she'd never grasp. Sneaking quietly, keeping her footfalls silent, slipping from shadow to shadow and remaining undetected...she'd taken to it like a fish to water. Kane had been secretly pleased, thinking maybe the brat wouldn't be so useless afterall. He'd not been happy about it, but he'd started trying to teach her in an effort to make sure she wasn't going to be the burden on him that he had feared. He'd accepted the he was stuck with her for one reason or other, but he'd still tried to dump her off on Takeko so that he could continue hunting for himself as he always had, without the added burden.

"Kane, she's your daughter. Why don't you teach her? Whether you like it or not, she is yours, and I'm sure she takes after you, at least in some part. Why not give it a try?"

The memory of the conversation floated through his mind as he watched her, crouched low on all fours, a look of intense concentration on her face. There was also frustration there, he could see it, in the way her brow furrowed and she scrunched up her nose right before she'd throw a fit normally. This was the issue; she'd continued time and time again to fail in making a kill. Granted, Kane had a couple of advantages over her, aside from size and experience. At her age though, he'd not remembered having this much trouble with his early hunts. He wondered just how much his instincts and retractable claws had made a difference.

"Breathing slow, but not shallow," he whispered near her ear, watching her consciously trying to follow his orders. She'd have to adapt so that these lessons weren't conscious thoughts, but pure instinct, if she were going to learn to hunt like her father one day. He hoped she would, if only so he didn't have to keep doing all the damn work here. "Wait for your opening...then spring."

She tensed, then released the energy like a coiled spring, sailing through the air to land on top of the grazing rabbit. Kane had high hopes for this attempt, and almost allowed himself a smirk before things went horribly wrong again.

Vika hadn't even expected to hit the rabbit, given how many times she'd missed already, either due to her own clumsiness, or the prey hearing her and bolting before she could even get close enough. When her leap landed her right on top of the animal, she was as surprised as the prey. So much so, she forgot what it was she was supposed to do next. There was a tussle, a whirling of fur and stripes, then the rabbit slipped free of the child and bolted for freedom. Vika was left sitting on her bum in the dirt, perplexed as to what had just happened.

An angry snarl preceded a blur of blue and silver that descended upon the fleeing prey, a squeal of dismay cut abruptly short. When the creature went still, Kane re-sheathed his claws and dropped the carcass from his fangs. He whirled on Vika with a feral snarl, about to snap another rebuke...then stifled his frustration to simply growl, "It's getting late. Enough for today."

Vika stared, wide-eyed. It wasn't as if she hadn't seen Daddy hunt before; she liked the tasty animals almost as much as he did. It was why she tried so hard to please him when he finally showed some interest in teaching her to hunt with him. Besides, it was more time with Daddy. And yet, moments like that, she saw the wild predator he could be, and it scared her a little.

More upsetting though was the disappointment she saw in his glare.

The little nymph child pouted, hunched over and staring at her hands as her father stalked off with unnatural grace to prep their dinner. Why couldn't she do this? She tried so hard! Daddy made it all look so easy; so why couldn't she get this right, even once? She just wanted to help. She didn't want Daddy always having to catch dinner. She could catch her own dinner!

Only, she couldn't. Not anything that could possibly run away from her anyway. Picking fruit from the ground, or berries from bushes certainly didn't count. While she didn't mind some of that as well, she was definitely her father's child...she needed meat. And besides, it wasn't fair that he always had to hunt for both of them. She wanted to help; she really did.

She just really, really sucked at this.
 

[Teigra]

Kane had gathered some medium sticks for a small fire, only enough to roast the meat and provide a little heat. They'd have to camp out here tonight, as late as it was. The sun was just setting, but they were too far from home to make it back tonight, though. Home being Takeko's home. The kid was still a little too 'soft' to live out in the wilds all the time, as her father preferred. But, a night of camping wouldn't be the end of the world. He wouldn't always roast the meat either, but the nights had been a little cooler as of late, and while 'warm off the carcass' was sometimes enough, the thought of a little fire-roasted rabbit in his stomach was too tempting for Kane to pass up.

He did a quick cleaning of the kill with his claws, then speared the meat on a straight enough stick for a make-shift spit. The rest of the kindling was piled with some dry grass and straw, and the tiger demon set to work starting a fire.

Vika sat by herself nearby, unwilling to draw attention to herself at the moment. Only when the fire was started and the meat slowly cooking over the open flames did she move closer with some reluctance. Uncharacteristically silent, she poked at the dirt with a stick, lost in her own thoughts rather than pestering her father with inane chatter. He was fine with this.

Grabbing a couple of nice-sized leaves from the tree overhead, Kane removed the medium cooked bits of meat from the flames and separated them onto the two make-shift 'plates.' "Here. Eat," he quipped briefly, setting one in front of her with a decent portion, before turning his attention to his own. There was little ceremony in the meal, Kane plopping down on the ground and spearing bits of meat with his claws, then delicately eating each when it had cooled a bit. It was an odd quirk that he'd always had...when he ate raw meat, he did so straight from the carcass, no concern for the blood and mess of eating it in such a manner. But when he did cook something...his table manners seemed to shift abruptly. Oh, he ate with his fingers, but in such a delicate, neat fashion one questioned if it could be the same Pae'il.

Not that he tolerated any harrassment over it. He didn't like eating in front of just any Pae'il for that reason.

He was finished long before Vika, who picked at her food. It tasted good, it was just...she wasn't raised in the same sort of 'fight or die' mentality as her father who spent much of his life in the wild. She took her time in eating, enjoying her food, rather than rushing to finish before scavengers could close in. A concept she couldn't even fathom. Still, she kept her silence though even when finished, drawing her knees up and staring into the fire.

Kane eyed her oddly, noting the strange behavior. Normally, she'd be trying to talk his damn ears off by now. Even if she'd been upset by his reprimands today, she'd normally pitch her fit, scream and cry a bit, then get it over with and move on. What was she dwelling on over there? Narrowing his eyes at her, he tried to decide if she was up to something, plotting something...then sighed, rolling his eyes. "We'll try again tomorrow."

Vika nodded silently, still staring at the fire. After a few more minutes, she stood up and moved away from the fire. Making a small pile of grasses, she curled up on her side, with her back to the fire, and stayed there. Kane raised an eyebrow at the odd action. For a child who frequently threw a fit when she didn't get her way, and loved attention and noise, she seemed strangely sombre tonight.

Alone now, Vika curled in on herself, hidden from her father's piercing gaze. She couldn't help it; she tried so hard. She just...couldn't do this. She didn't know why. Maybe her little baby fangs were too small; maybe she needed claws like her Daddy; maybe...she'd never be able to do this, 'cause it was just something she was horrible at. Unbidden, tears gathered in the corners of her eyes, and though she tried to shut them away, they trickled down her cheeks and dropped to the earth. Yeah, she threw a fit now and again, using her tears to get her way, but this was different. These tears were for herself.

Kane poked at the dying fire, noting that it wouldn't last much longer now. Fine; he'd rather not leave one burning all night anyway. As the flames lowered, slowly fading to burning embers, he felt more in tune with the night surrounding him as the added heat and light were removed. A creature of the night, he was at home here, more than anywhere else on the Isle. He was synchronized with his surroundings, ears tracking the tiny noises of small, nocturnal animals, keeping their distance from the two Pae'il and their fire. His eyes actually sharpened as the darkness fell, glittering and reflecting the moonlight at just the right angle so that his eyes appeared to glow. He even picked up the scent of...

He turned on the child, eyes narrowing at the telltale scent of salt. Oh great, was one of her tantrums incoming? Damnable child. He never understood why her screams seemed to shatter any patience he had with her, filling him with anger and the urge to do violence.

Not that he ever had, of course. She was only a child...his child, apparently. The worst he'd ever done to her was trying to return her when she'd first been dropped upon him, or maybe in trying to abandon her to his mother's care. Either probably would have actually been doing her a kindness, he thought, rather than leaving her with him. He had no idea what he was doing with a child.

He watched her carefully, then sensing no further action from her as she remained silent, he cocked his head, puzzled. Not a tantrum then? Hmm. Continuing with his own business, as if paying no attention to her and seeing if she'd prompt him for a reaction, Kane started smothering the embers with dirt. He watched for a time, assured that the fire wasn't going to flare up again, then stood and stretched. He crossed towards the forest, some distance from the sleeping child, watching her out of the corner of his eye. She'd curled in on herself tightly, though once in a while, she'd seem to twitch, and she kept her face hidden. She didn't want to share her silent sobs.

Kane watched her discretely for a moment, seeming to stare out into the forest beyond. Then, he sighed and shook his head. 'I'm getting soft,' he thought.

Vika was getting tired of crying, and she'd nearly run herself out of tears. Still, she shook silently. Oh wait, the fire was out. And it was getting chilly. That explained it. Her sobs had been replaced by shivers and she tried to nestle deeper in her pile of grasses and leaves for warmth. In only a moment though, she was surrounded by warmth...and softness. Bewildered, she opened her bloodshot eyes to see a veritable mountain of dark fur, broken occasionally by silver stripes. She was used to her father's tiger form, so she wasn't scared...but she was surprised. She'd never seen him use it when not hunting or needing to move quickly through the forest.

The tiger let out a grumpy-sounding huff, curling around her before dropping his heavy head onto his crossed paws. He continued to stare out into the forest, like a silent, watchful guardian. Vika was focused on the warmth of his soft fur, only hesitating a moment before snuggling into his side to hide her face once more.

It was a few minutes before he felt her relax, hearing her breathing slow and become more regular. Only then did he risk a glance down at her, curled up at his side. Ah well...they'd have to find a way to get through this together. Seemed they were stuck with each other.