I nodded in agreement, because you were the fastest runner, the better hunter and you stood a good chance of surviving outside our shelter alone.
The first
time you returned, you wouldn’t let me look, you covered your face and arms,
handed me the deer you’d caught and went and sat quietly in the corner. I bled it, skinned it, cooked it, but you
barely ate anything, just enough to keep you alive. The deer could have lasted longer, but my
appetite got the better of me. I couldn’t
stop eating. Pretty soon, you had to go
out again. I muttered under my breath that
perhaps it was my turn to take a chance, to go into the open, but you shook
your head fiercely and I was somewhat weighed down with food.
You were
gone a long time. I thought maybe something
had happened. Your people weren’t particularly
happy; you’d gone against their wishes when you’d taken up with me. Perhaps they had become dissatisfied with just
punishing you by isolation, by leaving you out of the hunting groups, depriving
you of the protective gear that kept the vicious rays of the sun off you... Maybe
they’d thought of something worse. I
hoped not. I was getting so hungry.
I was relieved
when I heard your footsteps, but I didn’t like the stagger in them. This time you showed me how the sun had
burned through your skin, that parts of your arms were bleeding and your once beautiful
face was scarred. You’d only managed to
catch a rabbit this time, you apologised for failing me and cried.
I was
determined I would go out next time, even though I'd eaten so much recently it made
me puffed out to even stand. I couldn’t imagine hunting, I was sure my
growing belly would slow me down, but I was determined I’d do it for you. However, when I woke from a long sleep, made
deeper by eating all of the rabbit, you’d gone. Somehow, I seem to recall being half asleep
and you whispering to me that you weren’t sure if you had the strength, but you’d
try, you’d really try.
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