Silvan Sisters: The Hunt

Chapter 14

Lethal quietly watches Sybil practice. All sunrise he sat, making arrows, judging her skill. He finds her choice of the triple shot interesting. Not many hold the determination to master it, and fewer can say they carry such natural talent, but her age intrigues him most.
      Though her aim looks good, the arrow never seeks its intended target. After another stray shot misses, he puts the quiver of arrows next to her. Sybil looks at him, and he nods. Taking three of the new arrows, she notices the thinner shafts. Lining lines to the target, she shoots and each hits the center.
     This brings excitement from the little one, and the mercenary's eyes give the sense of a smile. Even though, Sybil finds it hard to tell behind his mask. Instead of congratulating her, he pulls out three more and lines up behind her.
     Helping to aim, the mercenary demonstrates how to direct them. With the new placement, he allows her to take the shot and each land near the center of a different target.
     A full sun of helping her perfect her coveted skill, finds Sybil asking if he would like to come over for dinner. Lethal pulls back, and she laughs. "As a thank you for helping me. You could use to eat," she explains, pulling at his loose form-fitted clothing. "It's Serena's turn, so you can bet it'll be good."
     Lethal considers the offer. Helping the kid meant to catch her sister's attention. Yet, he would stand an even better chance at their house. Agreeing, they pack up to leave, receiving a few whispers about the range. A daggered glare in their direction sees nothing more come of it.
     Once they reach the house, they find Serena in the kitchen. The priestess smiles warmly upon their approach. She makes Lethal think of a mother welcoming children. The idea stands out of place as she presents with the same cycles as him. He watches Sybil tell about how he helped her hone the shot and show the priestess the smaller arrows. True to the mother ideal, the priestess gives the kid a hug, saying how proud she is. In the same breath, she asks her sister to fetch the others.
     When the kid leaves, Serena smiles coyly at him, breaking the mother persona. "So, you helped her with her shot," she asks playfully. "That came about with no alter motive?" Sybil returns before she gets a response, Sara and Charlie in tow.
     The redheaded giant looks dirty, tired, and badly scraped. The huntress seems annoyed as she ignores their guest and plops into a seat. Serena pays this little mind to either, telling them to get cleaned and come eat.
      The filth of the sun offers memories he prefers not to bring to the table. Her words cut through him more than her sister's blades. Charlie could not focus on the instruction as he drown under their weight, and Sara soon became irate.
      After a quick wash, Charlie goes to his room to change. Unsure what he will change into, where he found no crone to launder. It feels mildly amusing when he sees a pair of pants neatly folded on his old quilt.
     Picking them up, he realizes these are not the pair he wore. They look bigger, longer too, than even his work clothes. He hesitates to put them on as he recognizes the weight of his excitement.
Slowly pulling on one leg, he feels an immediate difference.  Shocked by their lack of resistance, Charlie pulls them up. He looks down and bites his lip to see the leather reaching all the way to his ankles.
      A knock on the door startles him. "Well, come on, let us see them," Serena calls from the other side. He smiles sadly at the sound of her voice before exiting the room.
     The priestess looks him over, seemingly satisfied, while Sara nods approval. "He looked better in the other ones," Sybil chimes. Her sisters both laugh as they sit down to eat.
     "You know, I was beginning to think you might be right, but perhaps he will prove us both wrong," Sara says.
     Serena looks over, "Right about what?"
     "The juggling."
     "I stand by what I said," she declares. "A weapon does not make a hunter."
     "The hunter makes the weapon," chimes Sybil.
     "That's true in Serena's case," Sara teases.
     "While that may be true, that is not what I mean," the priestess protests. "A hunter requires more. Sara, could you hunt in a ball gown?" Her sister glares at her. "Sybil, why do you like the other pants better?"
     "They were tighter," kid sister says shamelessly.
     "Okay, so he needs some cosmetic help," huffs Sara.
     "He needs clothes that fit so he can move around. Until then he really is only good for juggling," Serena giggles.
      Charlie speaks for the first crone since coming in. "So, you do think I can do this?" His question gets answered with silence as the girls stare at him.
     "You know, if you got that from a single comment, we might need to rethink our plans for you."
     "Eat your food and shut up," Serena barks at her sister. "Do not listen to Sara. You never need doubt. If we did not believe you could do this, you would not be here. I am sorry you took what I said to heart. I did not mean it that way." 
     Sara chimes in when he stays quiet. "You're the priestess here. How do you get him to stop shutting down?"
     Serena looks at her with meditative calm. "I think there is more to Charlie than we realize." Lady huntress stabs her plate with her fork and cuts herself an impossibly large chuck of meat putting it in her mouth. 
     Looking to change the subject, she notices that Lethal's plate remains untouched. She turns to him, and his eyes dart away, catching little sister's attention. "Don't like rabbit," Sybil asks between greedy bites.
     "Do you not eat meat," Sara offers, trying to remember if he ate any on the hunt.
     The mercenary scoffs, "I eat meat. I don't eat in front of people."
     "Why the hell not?"
     "Sybil!" Serena responds. Getting up, the priestess turns to him, "Fix your plate." Coming back to the table with a basket, she aids him in gathering a helping likely to last a phase. She then wraps it and puts it in the basket. 
     Dinner takes a more upbeat tone with Sybil using his presence to tell about her sun at the range. Her excitement makes Lethal forget his hunger, or the fact that her sister seems bored, as the little one's bow bounces against the chair with every word. When she shows off the new arrows in her quiver, Sara leaves the table without a word.
Taking a seat on the porch, their lady thinks about his strange refusal. She falls on the fact that she never sees him without his hooded mask. On the hunt, it made sense. She wore hers too, but Sara can not understand why he would feel the need here in the village.
The design seems strange too. Hers wraps, showing most of her nose. His slits and pulls over, seeing only the bridge remain visible. This and the tips of his fingers make up the extent of skin exposed to sunlight. The maid considers what might cause him to remain covered in such obvious concealment. With her musings running wild, Sara leans forward in the chair.
     Lethal stands beside the door, watching her silver hair fall on her shoulders as it wraps around her face. The meal dying down gave him a chance to make his exit. Seeing her found him paused. There exist few whose skill match his own, and the mercenary admits surprise to their likeness in skill. Fighting with Sara felt like a dance, making him wish to know more about the maiden. The young archer stood his best in, and it more than paid off.
     She stands at the rail to look out at the village and he joins her. A beautiful night stretches out before them, and lights along the bridged path sparkle welcomingly. Satisfied with her willingness to allow his presence, Lethal slowly inches his hand towards hers. Sara smiles when he bumps against the side and offers him to take it.
     Inside, Sybil remains excited about her lesson, and ropes Charlie into another explanation. Not understanding half what she says, he asks to see her progress. The young maid drags him out to the back porch.
Lining the shot, she shoots at a skinny tree. Each arrow hits the center of the trunk with one at the base, one halfway up, and the third at eye level. She bows while he claps.
      Sybil skips back in the house, passing Serena, who leans against the door. The priestess smiles proudly at her as she walks by. A look at the damage brings vines retrieving the arrows and the tree to heal. "Be careful how much you encourage her. She may end up crushing on you, if she is not already," she teases.
Charlie shakes his head. The idea of the kid having a crush on him seems mildly amusing at best. Serena arrives at the railing beside him, looking out into the dark forest. "Mysteriously inviting, is it not?"
"What do you mean?" he asks.
"The forest, no matter what turn you look upon it, you can not help but wonder what mysteries lie just beyond what you see."
Looking out beyond the lights of the village, Charlie contemplates what the priestess says. The forest's mystery stands one he longs to unlock. He will now be able to, thanks to this chance, so long as he can stay on his feet.
Turning to her, the maiden priestess seems lost in a dream of her own making as she gazes out into the night. "Thank you," he says.
She looks at him curiously, "For what?"
"You and your sisters took me in, gave me a chance, and largely, in part to you, I remain," he offers.
Her face grows soft as she replies, "I did nothing I would not do for either of them."
He shakes his head. "Still, I appreciate it. Not many would do what you have."
"What have I done?" Serena smiles at him.
Refusing to get lost in her sweetness, he continues. "My father, for one. I would still be in the shop if it were not for you, then you went and figured out the sleepwalking, and now this." Charlie looks down at himself to indicate his clothes.
"Well, for starters, the pants are what I do, so get used to me dressing you. In fact, almost everything we wear, I make. The sleepwalking came easy enough. It remains up to you to do the work. And as far as your father, let me just say, I have never enjoyed telling anyone off more. Did you know he hit on me when I asked what it would take to allow you to train?" she says, annoyed.
Charlie winces when he hears this. It sounds like something the drunken fool would do, so it does not surprise him, but he still feels less than impressed. For as long as he remembers, James Ashwood took every opportunity to step out on his wife. He will never understand why she puts up with it, but to know he did that in their home and right in front of her, makes him furious with the ungrateful bastard.
"How did you ever come from him?" she asks, looking him over.
"What do you mean?" he returns.
"You are so sweet, and he is an asshole," she states bluntly and Charlie smiles.
They head back inside to hear Sara saying goodbye to Lethal. Sybil lies hunched over the table, asleep. Charlie picks her up and brings her to her room. She does not wake when placed on the bed but curls up on the mat as Serena covers her. Her messy blonde hair wraps around her face while she counts to herself, "One, two, three." They leave quietly so not to interrupt her dream.
Asking Serena for help with his rope, the priestess turns away. The thought of restraining him makes her sick, and she wishes he would ask someone else, but with Sybil asleep, she remains unable. Given her age, the idea might prove awkward for him anyway. If Sara did it, she would likely tie the rope tight enough to draw blood, seeing the responsibility to see him comfortable and safe fall to her. Regardless, never will she see any enjoyment in it.
He notices how she looks nauseated at the process. Her swift departure once finished catches Charlie off guard. It stands apparent that this really does bother her as though the whole process she did not speak. Not knowing what to do, he watches her go.
  It always just came a thing that needed doing. From a very young cycle, he endured sleeping while tied, but if it bothers her that much, maybe seeing what the fox in his dreams wants will prove worth it.
That night he dreams of running through the trees. The fox tries to gain his attention, but Charlie refuses to chase. It stops, flicking its tail in the grass. When he still does not come after it, the creature walks closer, staying out of reach.
Master Lomri offers his hand to lead him to a calm pool, motioning him to look in. A large black wolf stares back. Jumping away from the reflection, he wakes up.