4
Eep wandered through the dense forest, tracking Guy's movements as well as she could. But Guy had a habit of staying very quiet, staying out of sight, and moving quickly. She would lose him, but then find his trail again, only to lose it once more. She spotted a strange looking contraption, something that didn't blend in with other things she had seen. She could see the large rock weighing down a tree branch, the loop hole on the ground that was slightly covered with debris. It was one of Guy's traps. She knew he was very close by now. Guy didn't stray far from his traps; he was probably not more than a mile away, close enough to be able to hear if his traps went off. Eep moved on, following the trail. The sun was setting, the cold closing in, but a flickering light caught her attention. It was high up on the side of a mountain, behind a large boulder. I ran up to it, trying to see through the cracks of the boulder that was wedged in tightly. I scratched some of the dirt out of the way, hoping to see better.
…
I jumped awake as I heard scratching and movement just outside the boulder. I sat up, pulling out my knife. Belt huddled behind me, only peeking out slightly. I slowly stood up, reaching down and picking up a small log, fire blazing at the end.
"Hello?" A voice called out, making me jump. I slipped on the fine dust coating the floor, falling hard. It was Eep, but she was back in the cave with her family!
"Eep?" I called out, standing up. Belt poked his head up, a smile across his face.
"Guy!" She answered, pushing hard against the boulder. It shifted, but I had arranged it in a way that it could only move from the inside.
"Eep, stop! Only I can move it." I said, pushing hard against the massive rock. It leaned to the side far enough for Eep to slip through. She instantly grabbed me in a bear hug, squeezing the breath out of me. As soon as she let me go I gasped in a huge breath, coughing in the process.
"Sorry." She smiled and then looked around. "I thought you hated caves?"
"I do, but I can't stay out in the snow the entire time." I said, sitting down by the fire. The inside of the cave was considerably warmer than outside. "Plus I need a place to keep my food."
"Oh. It's snowing now, you know?" She said and I nodded, dreading what morning would bring. I was very tired though, I desperately wanted to get back to sleep. I lay down on my side, facing the fire, and closed my eyes. Belt curled up against me, purring as he fell asleep. I put my hand over him. I heard Eep lay down on the other side of the fire.
"Goodnight, Guy." Eep yawned and I opened my eyes in surprise. It had been a long time since I had heard that. I smiled and closed my eyes again, sighing deeply.
"Goodnight, Eep."
…
My empty stomachs growls woke me up in the morning, also waking up Belt, who proceeded to shove against me as he settled into a better sleeping position. I looked over at my fire. It had died down to a smolder as usual, but I was still surprised to see Eep here. Her dad would be very worried about her.
"Maybe we should hunt?" Eep said, looking over at me. I sat up and stretched, yawning deeply. Belt was asleep on my lap and I picked him up in my arms, standing up.
"Not yet." I said, looking over at her.
"But isn't that hungry?" Eep said, sitting up.
"Yes, but I'll be fine. I have work to do anyway." I told her and pulled the Boar towards the fire. I took out my knife and started to skin it, Eep instantly scooting over to watch. I cut away a piece of fat and handed it to her. "Try this."
"Whoa." She said as she swallowed it. "What is it?"
"Fat." I swallowed a large chunk. "It's very good on an empty stomach." I cut away the skin to the boar and set it aside. I carved large slivers of meat and fat away from the bones and set those aside to. Eep looked at them, a look on her face that concerned me. I stood up just as she jumped towards them, knocking us both over. I hit my head on the hard floor, stars exploding in my eyes.
"Leave it alone!" I said, holding my head. "We have to save it."
"Save it?" Eep asked and then gasped lightly as she saw the blood on my hands. I had a cut on the back of my head, but nothing serious.
"Yeah, for the winter. We'll need it and lots more." I said sitting down next to the boar again. I pulled all the good pieces of meat and fat away from the body, also cutting the tendons. I could use them as string or rope. I turned to the skin, flipping it over so that the fur was on the inside. I put my hand on it, using the knife to cut widely around my fingers and wrist. I took my hand away and got out the bone needle and bits of leather. Eep just watched in awe the entire time.
"What are you making?" She asked and as I started sewing.
"Gloves."
"Gloves?" She asked, confused. I lifted my hand up, the new glove on and ready. I covered my hand and went all the way down to my elbow. Eep reached out and touched it, her eyes wide. "That's really cool."
"Mmhmm, and here's the other one." I raised my other hand.
"Why do you need gloves?" She asked as I put my knife away.
"Because the snow is really cold." I said and started to put the pieces of meat and fat on the roots sticking out of the ceiling. The dry air and heat from the fire would dry them. "I'll make you some too if you want."
"Yes!" She said, picking up the skin scraps. She tried to fit her hand on them but they were too small. I looked over at the bits of deer skin leftover from my jacket. I had decided to change it up and use the baby bear as the inner layer to my coat, but now with Eep being here, I debated on making her a coat with it. I'd be colder, but at least she'd be warmer. I looked over at her; her large frame would take up all of the skin. I looked down at myself, noting that my smaller size would save some of it and we could use it on another thing.
"Come on, I need to check the traps." I said and headed out of the cave. I slipped past easily; Eep had to push her way through. I ran down the side of the mountain and into the dense forest. To my disappointment, nothing had set the traps off last night. I sighed and headed towards the berry bushes I had found earlier, hoping that I had maybe missed some.
"Look at these!" Eep said excitedly, picking some black berries off of a bush. I grabbed it out of her hand.
"No! Those are poisonous. Be careful of the black ones, only the ones with a lot of seeds on them are good." I explained and she nodded. I tossed the berry away and moved on to the creek I was fishing at earlier. I sighed as I saw it with a layer of new ice over the top. Eep grinned happily and jogged down to it. Her toe touched it and she slipped instantly, falling onto her back and sliding across it. Belt and I laughed as she tried to stand but continued to fall. I had missed the moments with my family when we went skating. I had fallen in once though, that was terrifying.
"Guy, help me!" She called out, falling onto her face. I jogged down the side of the hill and slowly stepped onto the ice. I slid across to Eep, her face dumbfounded and jealous.
"How did you do that?" She said, trying to stand again.
"Here, I'll show you." I said, holding out my hand. She took it and I helped her stand. I led the way across the ice, starting out slowly and then beginning to speed up. Her face was bright with happiness as she let go and slid across the ice. But the happiness was shattered when I heard a loud growl. I looked up at the top of the hill to see a large dog like creature, its lower teeth jutting out the sides of its mouth, beady red eyes glared at us. I grabbed Eeps hand and pushed her off the ice. We ran up the side of the hill, the animal following. It slipped on the ice, giving us a head start. We dashed back to the cave as fast as we could. Eep made it first but I tripped over a rock, sprawling forward. I managed to catch myself, but the sudden movement knocked Belt off of me. He fell to the ground and started rolling down the hill in the snow.
"Belt!" I yelled, diving after him. The animal jumped on top of me.
