Remember that warning for animal harm?

"Watch where you're going, Sceyh."

Ichigo was roughly shoved to the side, nearly dropping his armful of spears as he tripped over a partially exposed root. He ground his teeth together, but hung his head and waited for the man to go on his way. He knew better than to challenge a Trelis. Though, just by looking at the man's bulging gut – he could barely make out his breechcloth under the roll of fat – he knew that he could take him in a fight. The rest of the tribe would be outraged, however. He would lose even if he won. Being shoved wasn't a valid reason to start a fight. He cursed the brown paint that he was forced to wear on his arms, chest, and face. It marked him as a Sceyh, the lowest class of warriors in the Hunter tribe. He was a step up from a slave, but sometimes treated no better. So, he kept his eyes to the ground until he was sure that the man had gone on his way, then adjusted the spears in his arms and continued on to the storage tent. His arms were already sore from that morning's training, from withstanding a couple of tyro-warrior's sloppy blows. At the end of the practice all the dull spears and training swords were shoved into his arms, and the rest of the group left without a word.

The storage tent was communal and thankfully almost always empty. Ichigo stacked the spears in a neat pile and set the swords beside them. He stretched his arms above his head, a few joints popped satisfyingly. The air inside the tent was musty thanks to the humidity outside, but he thought that it was better than the certain stink that most Hunters carried around. He slowly walked around the piles of odds and ends. An old helephant tusk that was sometimes used as a horn during celebrations, jars upon jars of spices that were probably stolen during a raid, dusty pelts, old eating bowls and empty storage jars. The Hunters used to be nomadic, but they hadn't moved for a while, at least not since Ichigo joined the clan. He doubted that they could move all of this stuff anyway. The clan chief had even started to build up his tent by adding a wooden floor and additional rooms. He didn't think that they were going anywhere anymore. That was good, it meant less raids on other tribes. Less war and death. They still sent out small bands of warriors made up of mainly Summas and Drangas, sometimes a Trelis or two. They returned with slaves, animals, and other spoils.

A sudden round of yelling from outside jarred him from his musing. His head whipped around to the entrance and he saw flashes of shadows as people began jumping up and down. A celebration? He frowned, wondering who had killed what – or who – this time. Two children brushed past him as he stepped out of the tent. The tribe was gathering along the pathway which lead to the centre of the village. He followed, a bit curious; another brawl wouldn't have gathered such attention. He managed to find a spot that wasn't too crowded and froze upon turning his eyes to the middle of the path.

Ichigo felt sick to his stomach as he watched two heavily muscled Trelises dragged their kill through the village, sweat mixed with their blue paint as it dripped down their bodies. The rest of the tribe lined the rows between the tents, cheering and screaming in celebration of the kill. The smell of blood hung in the air and Ichigo tried to make himself as small and invisible as possible. He hated when the Hunters did this; usually parading kills through the village was reserved for the larger prey like great elks. Prey that could feed the tribe for weeks and left blood stains on the earth that would take months of rain and people walking about to erase. It was a barbaric tradition, but the Hunters were a barbaric tribe. The sound of chains clanking and a body being dragged across the ground mixed with the tribe's cheers seemed to be magnified in the late afternoon's heat. His stomach churned as he raised his head, expecting to see the bloodied fur of an elk, but his breath caught in his throat and his chest clenched.

It wasn't an elk. It was a dragon.

He wanted to wretch at the sight. It didn't look that old; it wasn't terribly big and its scales were small and smooth – un-weathered by travel, battle, or other trials of life. Ichigo clenched his jaw; the dragon hadn't been a threat, not to the tribe or to anyone; they weren't threats anymore. He watched with growing anger as it was dragged along by a rusty iron chain clamped around its broken neck. There was a gaping hole in its chest, blood seeping between deep green scales and trickling onto the ground. One of its wings was twisted, bent back and dragging against the ground, and a few of its spines were missing. He hoped that it had put up a good fight before it went down. And he scanned the warriors dragging it for any injuries. But then, he spotted something that had him gnashing his teeth and balling his palms into fists.

Eggs. They were carrying eggs – each the size of a man's head and as shiny as polished stones. One Hunter held two and another one followed holding a third above her head and shouting in celebration. That dragon had been a nesting mother; this had probably been her first brood, judging by how young she looked. He had to turn away. That was four dragons taken from an already scarce species. He closed his eyes – lest he see red and jump into the parade to save the eggs. He would be killed instantly if he did that. Those eggs were someone else's kill. Stealing them would be an offence punishable by death; he had heard that law repeated over and over. He had seen mean fight to the death in Tova combats over stealing prey. He took a deep breath and turned back to the parade. But instead of watching it he stared at the ground, at the blood soaking into the dry dirt and the scratch marks left by rough scales and claws. He knew that he wouldn't be able to get the image out of his head for seasons to come.

The crowd pushed him along, forcing him to follow the Hunters to the clearing in the centre of the tribe. The chief usually presided over the Tova in this space, training sessions took place here, marriages, trials, tribe meetings, and when an animal large enough to share amongst the tribe was caught, a huge fire was built to cook it in front of everyone. A few selected Sceyhs were already building a fire, setting up logs and dried grass in the middle of the clearing. They had brought out the war drums, carved out of tree trunks that spanned two men wide and covered in elk hide. The drummers beat a heavy rhythm that had Ichigo's head throbbing, and dancers in colourful, giant masks carved from wood jumped and spun around the fire pit. He wrapped his arms around himself as he was jostled and shoved, pressed up against sweaty, dusty bodies that were howling joyously and jumping in time with the drums. He looked up to the sky, the first stars of the night already twinkled at him and he wanted to sneer in response. The stars were supposed to guide and look out for the creatures of the Obrijan, and yet another dragon had been slain.

Dragon Hunters were a race of eons past. There was no use for them when dragons themselves were becoming creatures of myth. They ran from humans rather than attack them. They kept to themselves. Ichigo pushed his way to the edge of the crowd. If tradition didn't dictate that he be present for the celebratory fire he would have gone back to his tent or taken up his sword and made quick work of a tree or two. He raked a hand through his hair and went to stand as far away as was acceptable. Sceyhs were expected to be furthest away from the fire anyway, at least until they had earned the respect of the tribe. He had never wanted to be at the centre of attention anyway.

The drum beat grew faster and Ichigo could picture the Hunters preparing to set the dragon on fire. His stomach turned, feeling like he had eaten spoilt meat or drank dirty water. Smoke rose up from the centre of the crowd and the cheers grew almost deafening. Ichigo kept his gaze focused on his stained, leather moccasins and worn leggings. Though, his breathing quickened each time the fire crackled and a log snapped from the heat. He ground his teeth together as he heard a loud crash, signifying that they had thrown the dragon into the fire. He wanted nothing more than to run away. He wanted nothing to do with this sickening ritual. He would put up with it when it was another animal, one that could be used for food, or for its hide or horns, but not this. This was just senseless killing. Wasn't it enough that they had killed the dragon? They didn't have to burn her body as they sang and danced around the putrid flames. He knew that they would crack the eggs with rocks, sometime during the celebration. He wouldn't be able to stomach watching that.

A small hand was threaded into his and he nearly jumped before he realised that it was his sister. She was chewing her bottom lip, brown eyes watery.

"Don't let them see you cry, Yu," he mumbled in the trade tongue. Less people were likely to understand.

She hung her head and scrubbed at her eyes with her free hand. He saw her shoulders heave with a deep breath before she looked up, forcing herself to focus on the dark smoke, and clenched her jaw.

"Three eggs," she muttered, also in Trade. "Three lives that will never see the light of day." Her eyes flashed. "That's three more times I will never forgive this tribe. And once more for the mother."

Ichigo shook his head. "Not here." His tongue felt too heavy for his mouth and the smell of the smoke was suffocating. "Here we celebrate."

The three Kurosakis had been living a lie. Ichigo didn't think he was very convincing; he was still a Sceyh at the age of twenty-one, even though he could hold his own against men classes above his. The Hunters called him coward and faker, but he wouldn't let that bother him. He had made a choice at nine years of age, and had regretted it almost every day since.

He had waited and waited, but his mother had not come back that night twelve years ago. He had tried his best to be strong, taking care of his sisters – finding them food and shelter, but winter was fast approaching and although the Obrijan never snowed as heavy as the lands of the north he knew that he wouldn't be able to keep both himself and his sisters alive. He had sought out the nearest tribe, but the tribe had turned out to be Hunters. He remembered thinking long and hard. His mother had risked her life get them away from the Hunters. But they couldn't survive on their own and he didn't know how long it would take to find another tribe. So, he had chased away the black dragon that had helped him by throwing rocks and yelling until his voice broke and he started to cry. The look it gave his he would never forget, those huge, sorrowful, amber eyes stared at him confused and fearful. He had allowed himself a few moments to mourn. Then he went to the Hunters. They had made him fight for his first meal, throwing him in a pen with two starving chickens and an angry war hound. He had killed animals before, but never in front of a crowd and ever before had anyone cheered as his knife tore through feathers, fur, and flesh. It made him feel sick. He killed because he had to, not because he thought it was fun. But the Hunters seemed to take pleasure in blood, battles, war, and killing. He had known from that moment that he would never fit in with the tribe. But he had been given a tent and some furs for his sisters, so he buried what his mother had taught him at the back of his mind and pretended to be one of the Hunters. To this day it still made him sick.

Yuzu was angry, furious even, when they got back to their tent. She was usually the mildest mannered of the three, but tonight she went around their tent in a huff. Ichigo watched her silently, unsure of what to say to make her feel better. He was mending a hole in his leggings – he would need leather for a new pair soon, but before that Karin needed a new tunic. He bit the thread with his teeth after tying a knot and set the fishbone needle and thread to the side. Karin was also watching Yuzu, chewing the inside of her cheek and tapping her fingers against her sheathed sword.

"Yuzu, we need to talk about it," she said at length.

Yuzu took a deep breath and wiped the smudged, brown paint from her face. "I know."

Ichigo frowned; they weren't talking about the dragon and her eggs. "What happened?"

Yuzu turned to him, her gaze was hard. Ichigo's frown deepened and he felt every muscle in his body tense.

"I was... proposed to."

Ichigo's mind drew blank for a few heartbeats. Karin's fingers tapping echoed loudly in the silence of the tent. Yuzu's jaw was clenched tightly and she was wringing the hem of her tunic. Proposed to. Proposed marriage. A tight knot formed in Ichigo's chest at the same time he started to feel cold all over.

"By who?"

Karin's tapping sped up.

"Oswon."

Ichigo drew in a deep breath trough his nose. He knew the man, a Sceyh like them, but as bloodthirsty as the rest of the Hunters and with none of the skill. He had seen him in battle a scant few times, but he was at every village feast and festival, shoving the other Sceyhs to get to the food and drink. Ichigo had seen him more drunk that sober; there was no question as to why he was part of the lowest class.

Yuzu was not going to marry him.

"You can't-"

"I wasn't planning to," Yuzu cut him off sharply.

Karin's tapping stopped suddenly. "But you can't beat him either."

Yuzu's shoulders sagged. Ichigo's body grew colder. Yuzu had the right to decline the proposal, but that had to be done through Tova. Any woman had to fight for herself the same as a man did. Oswon was asking for her life; she had to prove that she could take it back. She had five sunrises after the question was asked to decide. There weren't many spontaneous proposals in the tribe as the answer was either marriage or combat, and it was also a reason why the classes didn't mix. It wasn't impossible to marry up a class, but Hunters didn't like to marry anyone much weaker than themselves. Marrying weaker was seen as shameful.

Ichigo hunched over and rubbed his temples. Oswon knew that asking Yuzu would be an easy way out. She did not have the strength to say no. He already had a low opinion about the man, but now that he wanted to force Yuzu's hand he was disgusted at the mere thought of him. He knew he wouldn't treat her well either, the marriage would be ruined from the start. He had thought that Yuzu would be safe. Hunters wanted strong wives, wives who could go into battle with them, who could compete with men and win. Yuzu carried around a long knife but it was just for show. He had never seen her use it and he knew that she had never wanted to touch a sword in her life. No Hunter would dream of marrying her, or would even look her way. He had thought that he would be having the problem with Karin, but he knew that she could hold her own against the other Sceyhs and a few Kiths as well.

He turned to face Yuzu, looking down at her thin arms and small hands. He could teach her how to use her knife, but they didn't have long to prepare.

"Oswon is big, but he isn't strong," he said in comfort.

Yuzu looked down at her lap, her shoulders began to tremble. Karin rushed to her side and put an arm around her. The back of Ichigo's throat tasted bitter. He stood up, clenching his fists and headed outside, only stopping to grab his sword.

"Ichigo," Karin called sharply, "don't do anything foolish."

He looked over his shoulder at them and shook his head. He wouldn't. Not tonight at least. He only returned to the tent once his hands were sore and bloody and a few trees had lost their bark. He would need to borrow Karin's whet stone in the morning. The twins were sleeping when he got back, curled up together like they used to do when they were younger. A small smile flickered across Ichigo's face as he cleaned up as best as he could in the dim light of the embers in the fire pit. He bandaged his hands and sat down on his sleeping mat of dried grass and pelts and tried to come up with a plan. They could run away, but he knew, with nesting season upon them, the Hunters had scouts all over the forest already searching for dragons. They would be found and executed as deserters. It was not his place to attack Oswon either. He could kill him, but the punishment for killing out of battle or Tova was death. And who would protect the twins then? He dug his fingers into his hair and pulled. There had to be a way out. Yuzu could not marry this man; he would end up killing her before long. He could think of nothing. He fell sideways on to his mat. Even after hacking away at the trees he still wanted to hurt something. He drove his fist into the straw, feeling compacted earth beneath. He couldn't think of anything. There was no way out.

They would have to teach her to fight. And hope that Oswon would be drunk during the Tova.

...

Oswon made the mistake of jeering at Yuzu when the three Kurosakis were together the next morning. Yuzu ignored him, but his voice grated Ichigo's nerves. He had to focus on not attacking the pig of a man. He almost succeeded.

"Listen to me," Oswon slurred already drunk, or on his way there. When Yuzu continued to ignore him, he bumbled over and grabbed her arm. Ichigo reached for his sword, but Karin grabbed his hand, with a firm shake of her head, even though he was also holding her own sword. The colour had drained from Yuzu's face, but Ichigo was relieved to see her fingers twitch towards her knife.

"You're lucky that I proposed to marry you," Oswon continued. "No one else would want someone as weak as you. I'm doing your family a favour-"

Ichigo didn't know how it happened, but he found himself forced to the ground by several Hunters. He tasted dirt and blood in his mouth and he was yelling every curse he knew both in the Trade and Hunter tongue. Oswon was also on the ground beside him, but he wasn't moving. Ichigo hoped that he was dead.

...

He was forced to his knees as the chief strode up to him. His arms were crudely bound behind his back but he shoved the woman holding him away and snarled at her. He would have gotten to his knees by himself. The sun beat down on his bare back and neck and he kept his gaze to the ground out of respect. He didn't want to put himself or the twins into any more trouble. A sizeable crowd had formed around him, but no one spoke. Ichigo could see his sisters out of the corner of his eyes. They were also being watched by a pair of Dranga. He clenched his teeth together.

The chief stopped in front of him, flanked by the three strongest Dranga warriors covered in white paint. Ichigo stared at their dusty moccasins, as sweat began to form at the back of his neck.

"Your name, Sceyh," The chief boomed.

"Ichigo Kurosaki."

"And your offence."

Ichigo ground his teeth. "I fought a clansman."

The chief hummed, a deep rumbling noise. "Were is the other?"

"He is recovering," the Summa woman holding Ichigo spoke up, "he was in no condition to be before you, Chief."

"You did this?" The chief asked. "Why would you attack one of your own tribe?"

Ichigo dug his fingernails into his palms. "It was not unprovoked. He... he...my sister," Ichigo's throat tightened in anger. He stopped talking and stared at the dirt.

One of the Drangas stepped up to the chief and muttered something into his ear. "I see. Can your sister not fight for herself? You insult her by taking her battle from her."

"No!" Ichigo roared. There were a few mutters of astonishment from the crowd. "He knew that she could not say no, he knew that she could not match him. He gave her no choice!"

"Where is the sister?"

Yuzu was dragged out of the crowd and forced to her knees beside him. Ichigo could feel her shaking and he wanted nothing more to reach out and comfort her.

"This is not her fault-" Ichigo started.

"Silence, Sceyh," The woman holding him kicked him in the back. He fell forward, just managing to turn his face to the side and prevent from breaking his nose.

"Ichigo!" Yuzu cried, but she was silenced with a harsh shove as well.

"Your family are outsiders, but that does not excuse your actions-"

"I will not stand by and let my family be harmed. I will defend her with all that I have." Ichigo said through a clenched jaw. "That pig, Oswon, chose her only because she cannot beat him."

"Then it is her fate."

Ichigo struggled to get up to his knees. He raised his head, daring to stare the Chief straight in the eye. "I put my family before myself. If your sister was doomed to marry a lazy, pig, who runs from battle, would you stand by? Because of fate."

The Chief stared back at him. Long, greasy hair, fell past his shoulders tangling with the necklaces of teeth and bone around his neck – most of them dragon's. His elk-skin mantle was stained dark and the hem was covered in dirt. It was hard to read his face, covered in gold paint, his skin worn and leathery, but his eyes showed amusement. The Dranga warriors looked ready to kill him on the spot for disrespecting the Chief in such a way, but he held up his hand and they sheathed their swords.

"My sisters would never be so weak."

Ichigo ground his teeth together.

"But the actions of the other, Oswon Euda, were also shameful." He turned to the crowd. "There is no honour in backing another into a corner. There is no honour in taking away another's choice."

"Chief-" The woman started.

"Do you any merits of a union between Oswon Euda and Yuzu Kurosaki? Would that marriage help the tribe?"

"I do not see the fruit of such union," she said bitterly. "Neither would be able to rise from a Sceyh."

The chief grumbled and jerked his head in a nod before turning back to Ichigo.

"You are strong, Ichigo. Strong but untested. You have insulted our traditions, but you did have just reason. I am willing to let you fight for your sister," he eyed the crowd, "for both of you sisters, if you are able to prove yourself."

Ichigo held his breath. Now Karin was involved. His stomach churned violently. They were going to make him kill, make him fight, possibly many people, maybe a Dranga.

"Our tribe are called Hunters and I am sure you know the reason why. To prove yourself worthy of your family's honour, of your skill, and to absolve yourself of your crime against your clansman you are to kill a dragon – and adult dragon – and bring back its head."

He heard Yuzu gasp softly beside him. The crowd began to jeer. He couldn't, this was going to be a death sentence. It had taken seven Trelis warriors to take down the dragon yesterday. Two of them did not make it back. He also would never kill a dragon – the clan did not know this, but Yuzu and Karin did. He could not bring himself to.

He stared at the chief, a smug grin growing on his face. He knew that it was a death sentence. He was only pretending to give him a chance; he didn't expect Ichigo to succeed. Ichigo clenched his jaw and scowled.

"I accept." He would figure it out later.

"You have until the north winds blow and the morning dew begins to frost. You will bring the tribe a head, or you and your sisters will be executed."

...

Ichigo had been permitted to go back to his tent to get ready to leave. He would have to be gone by morning or the agreement was forfeit. Karin had quickly made a small fire in the pit and began to brew some tea. Ichigo recognised the blend of herbs – lavender and chamomile to relieve anxiety. They would need that. Yuzu went about to prepare dinner, but it was obvious that her mind was leagues away. When she almost cut herself cutting up some dried rabbit, Karin took over. Yuzu watched her with glazed over eyes, but when Ichigo went to comfort her she punched him in the arm.

"Don't you ever think, Ichigo!"

"I wasn't going to let you marry that disgusting fool. I did what I could."

He began to pace around their tent.

"And instead of just me being in danger, it's all three of us."

He clenched his jaw. "I'll figure something out."

"How? You can't kill a dragon, Ichigo."

He stopped pacing and sighed deeply. "I'll figure something out."

"You're thinking about it. You're actually considering it?!" Yuzu's eyes flashed with accusation. "You told us that a dragon saved our lives after Mama disappeared, you can't-"

"I said I'll figure something out, Yu."

She collapsed on to her sleeping mat, with her head in her hands. Karin had been oddly silent through their argument spoke up.

"I expected you to be a buffoon, but not this big of one." She sighed then switched to the Trade tongue, "at least this way we have more time to plan."

"Plan?" Yuzu asked softly.

"We can't stay here. I'm sick of living in a tribe where we'll never fit in. I'm sick of all the pretending and having to act like these barbarians are my friends. Ichigo will leave first, scout the area and we will be long gone before winter is here."

Ichigo nodded. The chief said his decision was just, but it was the furthest from. The Hunters would all die in their traditions. Soon the rest of the world would discover the atrocities of their tribe. If Ichigo could play any part in their downfall he would.

Dinner was quiet, but when Ichigo began to put together supplies for his journey, Yuzu began to sniffle and Karin looked even glummer. Yuzu took care of the food. She could pack dried meats and herbs, and a few root vegetables, but he would be on his own in a short while. Karin offered to sharpen his sword and gave up her whet stone. Once the small pack was assembled and put into a leather pouch the three of them sat in silence.

"I'm going to come back for you two. Whatever it takes, I promise," he said once he couldn't stand the quietness any longer.

"We don't doubt you," Karin replied solemnly.

He sighed. "We should have left before it came to this."

"We didn't have a chance."

They fell into silence once more. Ichigo's skin began to itch. It didn't make any sense for him to prolong the inevitable. He stood up and threw the pouch over his shoulder "I suppose I should go-"

Yuzu launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He hugged her tightly breathing in deeply as her shoulders began to shake.

"I'll be back, Yu."

She sniffed. "I know."

He stroked her hair and she squeezed him gently. "May the great Cynosure guide you and keep you safe."

She drew back and pressed her pointer and middle finger to his forehead, drawing a line to the tip of his nose. He blinked; he hadn't realised that she had known that gesture. He had thought that she had been too young to remember their mother doing it. But, he found himself pleasantly comforted by it regardless. When Yuzu pulled away, Karin surprised him with a hug of her own.

"Don't be a fool, Ichigo, well any more of a fool."

He hugged her tightly. "I'll miss you. The both of you. Watch your backs and if anything seems suspicious, run. Run and hide. We'll find each other somehow."

He pressed his lips to the top of each of their heads and strode confidently from the tent. A few steps away he looked back over his shoulder to see them standing by the entrance watching him. So, he pulled on a grin and waved. He saw Yuzu rest her head on Karin's shoulder and they waved back. He kept up the confident pretence until he could no longer see the outmost tents of the tribe. Then he let his shoulders drop slightly and he reached up to rub his temples.

He had no idea what he was going to do. He leaned against a tree, fingering the sword on his back. He could go to the nearest tribe and ask for help, he was sure that there were more than a couple tribes itching for revenge. It would take a lot of convincing but it was possible to form an alliance and take down the Hunters. He looked up to see a few stars twinkling in the lightening sky. But now he was tired and it was almost dawn. He glanced over his shoulder once more deciding that he had travelled far enough to get a good head start on anyone that would follow him. But he would walk a bit further just to be safe.

Dawn broke by the time he came to a small lake surrounded by trees with thick roots. The water looked clear enough to drink and a fine layer of mist covered the surface. He could just make out the dark shapes of a family of rabbits near the shore. Here would be a good place to stop. Maybe set up a few snares, so he wouldn't have to eat the dried food right away. If there were rabbits larger predators would be around as well.

His leggings were soaked through with dew by the time he found a tree big enough big enough for cover. He was thankful for the bear-skin cloak that Yuzu had thrust into his arms at the last minute and wrapped it tightly around his shoulder as he sunk into a hollow between two roots. After a few hours rest he could track down the nearest tribe. He fell asleep as soon as his eyes closed.

Well, here's chapter two.

Any questions or concerns can be put into a review. I'd love to hear what you guys think.

- Mymomomo