the archers companion.
The sun was starting to set and she was becoming more and more anxious.
She'd been tracking this deer for nearly an hour now, and it was still evading her. She hadn't eaten a proper meal in two days, just snacking on berries she found on her way. A deer this size would feed her for two weeks or so, given she set up a couple of campfires to cook all the valuable meat right away. She needed this kill. And she needed it before the sun went down.
The wind died down and she climbed up to a secluded spot a little higher up off the floor. It was completely silent, nay the usual bird chatter. Finally, the creature was standing in a clearing, sunlight filtering through the trees to frame it in her line of view perfectly. She grabbed her bow, fed in her arrow, had the deer in her aim... when suddenly it leapt away.
She shoved the bow and arrow under her arm and jumped back down the forest floor. "What the fuck keeps spooking you?" she muttered under her breath. She would just have to give up on this kill for the night. She had to keep hiking to try find a place to sleep for the night. Hopefully a solution for food would come to mind on the way there.
Then, a loud thump. She looked across to her left to see the deer on the ground, fighting to get up.
Bow, arrow, pull, release, hit.
"Yes!" she gestured her fist in success.
She ran over to the fallen deer to start carving right away. Coyotes were common around these parts and the scent would attract them quickly. She had to get in there first to get what she needed, and then leave the rest for nature to divide.
As she approached, she saw a a chunk of flesh had been ripped out of it's back left leg. Had it been injured the entire time she was tracking it? Is that why it finally fell? Either way, she'd got it eventually. She would just avoid the meat from that part of the body.
As she got the knife from her backpack and started cutting into the flesh to get the entrails out, she heard something move. Twigs snapping and leaves rustling off to her right. She sat up, knife at the ready to give a warning cut to any predators. She waited a few moments. No more sound. She got back to carving, even quicker than before. This had to be an in and out operation.
She was slicing along the backstrap, concentrating hard to make sure to get the most out of the best cut, when she felt something, a presence behind her. She could hear fast breathing that didn't belong to her. She could sense the air changing with the weight of another body. She brought her knife close, and moved her weight onto her toes, ready to leap up. She turned quick and shoved the knife out in front of her, only to stab empty air, and to instead be confronted with a fawn carolina dog, wagging it's tail and staring blankly at her.
She put the knife down by her side, crouched back down, and held her palm out. Some of these dogs were wild, others were tamed. She wasn't sure which type this was. Either way, she had to establish a truce. She had food to get and shelter to build. The last thing she needed was a fight.
The dog sniffed the ground in front of her and began to approach. She looked down toward the knife sitting by her waist. Just in case. The dog gave her palm a sniff, and then several big licks all the way up to her elbow. She let out a laugh and gave it a scratch on the head.
"Jesus you scared the shit out of me pup. You play nice and I'll let you at this fresh meat, but I got here first so you gotta wait your turn, ok?"
The dog moved to sit beside her, and let out a small bark.
"Okay, glad we're agreed"
She covered the rest of her cuts in beeswax wraps and stacked them up in her rucksack. The light was fading fast, she'd just have to settle and set up camp nearby.
"Well, that's me done little'un. Go wild. Maybe we'll cross paths again soon"
She set off toward higher ground, searching for somewhere secluded and hidden.
Twenty minutes later the sun had dipped below the horizon and the temperature with it. The sky above was pink. A promising sign for the next day at least.
She looked around at the space she had found - there were a few trees and bushes around that could help disguise her campsite. The ground, with a little clearing, was flat enough. It would do for the night.
She used a large fern to sweep away some of the twigs on the ground, enough room to put down some tarpaulin to set up as a living space. She tied the edges to some nearby trees to keep it tight and make sure she didn't wrap herself in it with her restless sleep. That had happened a few times.
Next came the roof. As long as the area was larger than her base sheet then she shouldn't have any issues with the rain dripping directly onto her face as she slept. Again, another rookie mistake back in the early days.
It was nearly dusk and she needed to make sure the meat didn't spoil. She gathered the wood she had swept, found a couple of logs nearby, and grabbed the lighter out of her back pocket. Let there be light (and heat).
With a hint of breath, the fire crackled away.
She unwrapped the venison and started cooking the largest steaks over the fire. It smelt divine. She pulled a bit off halfway through - medium rare was her favourite degree of doneness, but it wasn't exactly practical. She had to cook it well done for it to last longer. But she liked to treat herself whenever she could. It's the little things.
She let the venison cool down on the beeswax paper, and decided to have some of the shoulder for dinner tonight. It had been a long couple of days. She licked her fingers and threw the bone out into the forest. Something out there could use it.
She leaned back and gazed into the embers of the fire. Who knew when all of this would be over. But at least she was here, now, alive, breathing.
Across the campfire she saw movement. She pulled the knife from her backpack and stood up. She stood tall and wide to make herself look larger. In this part of the forest she could be up against anything.
And then, the pit patter of paws and very happy looking dog with the bones of a deer shoulder in it's mouth appeared. It was the carolina dog from before.
She laughed and put her head in her hands.
"You're gonna give me a heart attack little dude. Jeez. You following me?"
The dog presented the bone in front of her and looked up, as if seeking approval for this gift it had brought.
She pat his head and clicked her fingers. "Come here." and pointed to her side.
The dog came to sit at her hip.
"You could be a useful companion if you're this well trained. And you do seem to be quite the connoisseur of venison. What do you say, you wanna join this one person gang?"
She unfurled her sleeping bag and pat the space beside it. "You can cosy in here. We'll protect each other."
She lay down and looked up. The dog was sitting over her, looking out toward the forest. She watched the shadow of the dog dancing in the light of the fire until she finally drifted off.
When she woke up the next morning, he was curled up beside her.
-------------------------
The truth is, the little carolina dog had been following her for a couple of weeks now.
He'd stay close by, out of sight, not wanting to impose on or spook her.
She had led him to fresh water, helped him avoid the vicious coyotes and given him her scraps.
He had hidden her tracks, chased off some foxes chancing their luck, and left some rabbits around for her to find.
All without her knowledge.
He had seen her struggle with the deer for an hour or so. And so, he finally decided to make his presence known. They could work together, harmoniously. He'd no longer be a shadow, but a peer, a friend, a team mate.
Together, they could take on this strange world.
Plus, belly scratches are really good.
She'd been tracking this deer for nearly an hour now, and it was still evading her. She hadn't eaten a proper meal in two days, just snacking on berries she found on her way. A deer this size would feed her for two weeks or so, given she set up a couple of campfires to cook all the valuable meat right away. She needed this kill. And she needed it before the sun went down.
The wind died down and she climbed up to a secluded spot a little higher up off the floor. It was completely silent, nay the usual bird chatter. Finally, the creature was standing in a clearing, sunlight filtering through the trees to frame it in her line of view perfectly. She grabbed her bow, fed in her arrow, had the deer in her aim... when suddenly it leapt away.
She shoved the bow and arrow under her arm and jumped back down the forest floor. "What the fuck keeps spooking you?" she muttered under her breath. She would just have to give up on this kill for the night. She had to keep hiking to try find a place to sleep for the night. Hopefully a solution for food would come to mind on the way there.
Then, a loud thump. She looked across to her left to see the deer on the ground, fighting to get up.
Bow, arrow, pull, release, hit.
"Yes!" she gestured her fist in success.
She ran over to the fallen deer to start carving right away. Coyotes were common around these parts and the scent would attract them quickly. She had to get in there first to get what she needed, and then leave the rest for nature to divide.
As she approached, she saw a a chunk of flesh had been ripped out of it's back left leg. Had it been injured the entire time she was tracking it? Is that why it finally fell? Either way, she'd got it eventually. She would just avoid the meat from that part of the body.
As she got the knife from her backpack and started cutting into the flesh to get the entrails out, she heard something move. Twigs snapping and leaves rustling off to her right. She sat up, knife at the ready to give a warning cut to any predators. She waited a few moments. No more sound. She got back to carving, even quicker than before. This had to be an in and out operation.
She was slicing along the backstrap, concentrating hard to make sure to get the most out of the best cut, when she felt something, a presence behind her. She could hear fast breathing that didn't belong to her. She could sense the air changing with the weight of another body. She brought her knife close, and moved her weight onto her toes, ready to leap up. She turned quick and shoved the knife out in front of her, only to stab empty air, and to instead be confronted with a fawn carolina dog, wagging it's tail and staring blankly at her.
She put the knife down by her side, crouched back down, and held her palm out. Some of these dogs were wild, others were tamed. She wasn't sure which type this was. Either way, she had to establish a truce. She had food to get and shelter to build. The last thing she needed was a fight.
The dog sniffed the ground in front of her and began to approach. She looked down toward the knife sitting by her waist. Just in case. The dog gave her palm a sniff, and then several big licks all the way up to her elbow. She let out a laugh and gave it a scratch on the head.
"Jesus you scared the shit out of me pup. You play nice and I'll let you at this fresh meat, but I got here first so you gotta wait your turn, ok?"
The dog moved to sit beside her, and let out a small bark.
"Okay, glad we're agreed"
She covered the rest of her cuts in beeswax wraps and stacked them up in her rucksack. The light was fading fast, she'd just have to settle and set up camp nearby.
"Well, that's me done little'un. Go wild. Maybe we'll cross paths again soon"
She set off toward higher ground, searching for somewhere secluded and hidden.
Twenty minutes later the sun had dipped below the horizon and the temperature with it. The sky above was pink. A promising sign for the next day at least.
She looked around at the space she had found - there were a few trees and bushes around that could help disguise her campsite. The ground, with a little clearing, was flat enough. It would do for the night.
She used a large fern to sweep away some of the twigs on the ground, enough room to put down some tarpaulin to set up as a living space. She tied the edges to some nearby trees to keep it tight and make sure she didn't wrap herself in it with her restless sleep. That had happened a few times.
Next came the roof. As long as the area was larger than her base sheet then she shouldn't have any issues with the rain dripping directly onto her face as she slept. Again, another rookie mistake back in the early days.
It was nearly dusk and she needed to make sure the meat didn't spoil. She gathered the wood she had swept, found a couple of logs nearby, and grabbed the lighter out of her back pocket. Let there be light (and heat).
With a hint of breath, the fire crackled away.
She unwrapped the venison and started cooking the largest steaks over the fire. It smelt divine. She pulled a bit off halfway through - medium rare was her favourite degree of doneness, but it wasn't exactly practical. She had to cook it well done for it to last longer. But she liked to treat herself whenever she could. It's the little things.
She let the venison cool down on the beeswax paper, and decided to have some of the shoulder for dinner tonight. It had been a long couple of days. She licked her fingers and threw the bone out into the forest. Something out there could use it.
She leaned back and gazed into the embers of the fire. Who knew when all of this would be over. But at least she was here, now, alive, breathing.
Across the campfire she saw movement. She pulled the knife from her backpack and stood up. She stood tall and wide to make herself look larger. In this part of the forest she could be up against anything.
And then, the pit patter of paws and very happy looking dog with the bones of a deer shoulder in it's mouth appeared. It was the carolina dog from before.
She laughed and put her head in her hands.
"You're gonna give me a heart attack little dude. Jeez. You following me?"
The dog presented the bone in front of her and looked up, as if seeking approval for this gift it had brought.
She pat his head and clicked her fingers. "Come here." and pointed to her side.
The dog came to sit at her hip.
"You could be a useful companion if you're this well trained. And you do seem to be quite the connoisseur of venison. What do you say, you wanna join this one person gang?"
She unfurled her sleeping bag and pat the space beside it. "You can cosy in here. We'll protect each other."
She lay down and looked up. The dog was sitting over her, looking out toward the forest. She watched the shadow of the dog dancing in the light of the fire until she finally drifted off.
When she woke up the next morning, he was curled up beside her.
-------------------------
The truth is, the little carolina dog had been following her for a couple of weeks now.
He'd stay close by, out of sight, not wanting to impose on or spook her.
She had led him to fresh water, helped him avoid the vicious coyotes and given him her scraps.
He had hidden her tracks, chased off some foxes chancing their luck, and left some rabbits around for her to find.
All without her knowledge.
He had seen her struggle with the deer for an hour or so. And so, he finally decided to make his presence known. They could work together, harmoniously. He'd no longer be a shadow, but a peer, a friend, a team mate.
Together, they could take on this strange world.
Plus, belly scratches are really good.
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