Prairie Rats For Dinner

Evening slowly rolled in across the range. Stjarna had settled down next to the fire while Álarr worked on another of his healing projects. Star's interests skewed more toward hunting than toward healing and so she spent her time looking out across the plains and wondering if there was anything nearby that would be worth hunting. She could hear the crickets humming away but she wasn't keen to eat those unless she really needed food. She'd caught and eaten crickets before and while she liked the crunch they tasted like mucus. Crunch snot balls. Yuck! She much preferred meat when she could get ahold of it. Of course right now at her age she ate what the adults caught. She was very much interested in becoming a hunter, but there was still a lot to learn. Not to mention the limitations of her small frame. It would be a lot easier if she was older.

Speaking of meat… her bright blue eyes noted a little head poking up out of the ground and then another. Oh! She recognized those creatures, they were called prairie dogs. She hadn't been able to catch one yet but maybe that would be worth another try. They were kind of tricky to hunt because every time she got close one of them would start screaming and then they'd all dash down their holes. With practice she was getting better at stalking so maybe this time around she'd be able to get close enough to stand a chance. They were getting more active in these evening hours, she noticed some of them scouting around for food after looking to see if there were any predators. If she could just manage to spring between one and its hole, but of course there were many holes and no doubt if she blocked off one escape the prairie dog would race for another. There was a slight breeze but for the most part the air was still. Even so, Star was glad to know that she was down wind of it. This was her first time hunting solo and she'd need every advantage she could get. She debated asking Álarr for some pointers but she really wanted to do this herself. If she could succeed it would be so cool to take this back to the older man.

Stjarna laid in the shadows of a nearby tree, continuing to watch the prairie dogs, hoping a solution would come to her. She continued to watch, soon noting that one of the prairie dogs seemed a bit sluggish. It moved slowly and more gingerly. As far as she could tell she didn't see any outward injuries but perhaps it had some sort of illness that was slowing it up. That would be her target. While watching she also started to get a feel for where the burrows were. Time to start stalking. Stjarna sheathed her claws and started to creep forward, sticking to the taller grasses and brush as she moved. Her cat-like paws helped her to walk silently. She moved deliberately, taking great care in how she placed her paws. Tonight she showed great patience for her age. It probably helped that she didn't really have anything to do tonight and Álarr's projects often took awhile.

Star got about as close as she dared then settled down in the grass, her legs coiled beneath her in preparation. Now she watched and waited some more, eyes fixed on the weaker prairie dog as it continued its foraging, moving farther and farther away from its original hole. Star waited til the rodent was the farthest it had been between the nearby holes and then she sprang. Stjarna kicked off hard, launching herself toward her prey. Her paws beat the ground, ears alert as one of the prairie dogs sounded the alarm. Her target turned and ran. Her paw darted out, claws stretched wide as she snagged its hind legs, causing it to stumble. The prairie dog swerved away from her but with another pounce she was on it. Her fangs latched on the back of its head, her claws digging into its sides. With a swift and powerful bite she cracked the creatures skull and had herself a meal.

Beaming, Stjarna picked the prairie dog up in her jaws and trotted back over to where Álarr was working on his project. She couldn't wait to show him what she'd done. She managed to catch this rodent all by herself! Star arrived back at the fire where she set the prairie dog down and grinned at Álarr. "Lookit! Look what I caught!” She just had to show him before she ate it and she doubted there would ever be a meal quite as sweet as the first one she had caught herself, even if it was only a prairie dog.



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