Episode 1 - A Family Affair

Cani, as usual, was first awake.

She sat up and stretched as she glanced down at her happy little family. They were sleeping soundly in the little makeshift shelter that they constructed in the midst of the night to keep them safe from any prying predators.

As she glanced away from them and out and into the surrounding area Cani couldn’t help but feel empty and. . . sad.

It was Destiny’s idea. Destiny was her old sister and the clan leader. After spending two years in the country life, surviving on wild-berries and hunted meat Destiny had decided that it was time to return to the city and take there chances there.

Although Cani was a city girl—she was born and raised there—she had doubts about the whole ‘idea’. Why? Because

1) there wouldn’t be any animals to hunt there

2) most of the buildings would already be taken and they’d have to live on the streets.

3) what if the place was in ruins and when they got back their own territory is already taken

And 4) they’d have to adapt all over again, when they were already used to there wild life.

Cani was too busy concentrating on these facts to notice her best-friend, Belle, come out from the shelter to sit next to her. Silently Belle rested her head against Cani’s shoulder.

‘Are you nervous too?’ Cani asked.

Belle shrugged. ‘I’ve never seen the City, so I guess then, I am.’

Oh, right, Cani thought. She almost had forgotten how they found Belle, on the verge of starvation and dehydration when they escaped to here during the revolution. Belle was a country girl, she was born here and learnt how to survive in the wild—long before they even met her. Belle knew things. She was an excellent tracker and an even better friend. She was also extremely loyal.

After sitting there like that for a while Belle finally removed her head and stood, glancing down at Cani and silently pulled her wavy brown hair into a tight pony-tail on top of her head.

‘Time to go hunt?’ Cani asked quietly.

‘Mmm,’ Belle nodded. She glanced back at the shelter where Asbel was just waking up.

Usually Belle, Matt and Asbel would go and hunt in the early mornings and spend most of the day out. Sometimes Destiny and Cani would come with them and leave one of them at the shelter to rest and protect it from any enemies.

Now they couldn’t spend all day foraging and hunting, the three of them would leave to find something while Destiny slept and Cani gathered everything. They would then come back early and they would leave for the City, just like that.

‘Bye,’ Cani called to Belle once she had finally woken Matt up and they headed off into the woods together.

Belle waved back at her but she quickly disappeared. Bow in hand, quiver of arrows on back with a Swiss army knife in case anything went wrong, hair tied back and pale skin gleaming underneath her brown tank top and board shorts. Belle was definitely a fighter girl.

‘Have they left already?’

Cani glanced behind here where Destiny was just waking up. Her long blonde hair was a messy with dried leaves and twigs in it—but as usual her older sister was beautiful than ever even if she was wearing an old blue dress with a large black belt and thongs. She made the dress look like the next thing in Marie Claire Magazine. Too bad that didn’t exist anymore. It was Cani’s favourite.

‘Yeah,’ she said, answering Destiny’s question. She ran a hand through her own chin length blonde hair and felt, suddenly, bare and in need on something long to drape over her shoulders.

Destiny rubbed her eyes and yawned. Once she’d finished fussing with her hair she glanced over and noticed the stern look on Cani’s face.

‘What’s wrong?’ she asked.

‘You know what.’

Although Destiny nodded Cani felt to need to fill her in.

‘Why do we have to go there,’ she pointed in the direction of the hills which the City was over. ‘We’ve made a good life for ourselves here, why do you have to go and stuff everything about like you always do.’

Destiny raised her eyebrows. ‘Did you seriously just say that to me?’ and then she shook her head and sighed. ‘You knew this had to come someday, Can, and since I’m tribe leader what I say goes.’

Cani narrowed her eyes. ‘Yeah, without any thought about the others and their opinions.’

‘I did ask the others,’ Destiny frowned. ‘I asked Belle and she said she’d love to know what the City looks like, Matt said he can’t wait for it and Asbel—’

‘Would agree to anything you say,’ Cani cut in. ‘And Belle personally told me that she was afraid of the City and Matt said he was just getting used to life like it is now.’

Uh-oh. Cani could feel her voice cracking. She knew she was going to cry and she was desperately trying not to. She knew that everyone always viewed her as a ‘princess’ and that she cried all the time over nothing.

She glanced away and forced the tears to leave.

She was totally not expecting Destiny to crawl over and put an arm around her tiny frame.

‘Oh Cani,’ she breathed. ‘I’m sorry, but you’re kind of outnumbered.’

Cani shrugged her sister’s arms up and quickly stood. Frustrated tears were falling down her cheeks now. She angrily brushed them away before turning back to Destiny.

‘You can’t tell me what to do,’ she snapped. ‘You can’t!’

And then, feeling just like a over-emotional Princess, Cani ran off into the distance.





Matt was trying to stay as quiet as possible.

Belle had allowed him to come and watch him hunt today instead of just standing by a river bank and throwing a spear at any fish that came by.

He knew it was because there actually wasn’t any river or creek anywhere near for him to show off his great fishing skills. But Matt would rather think of it as Belle finally taking a liking towards him.

She now stood about two metres away from him, she was hiding behind a tree, her bow and arrow raised in concentration at a boar which was feasting on a dead raven.

He couldn’t help but grin. As soon as he first set eyes on Belle he felt something for her. Sure she was unconscious and almost dying but the way she kept control, the way her wavy brown hair fell over her bare shoulders and her blue eyes looked like they were laughing. He knew he had fallen—hard.

It had been almost two years since he first say her. He’d kept quiet all that time. Because Belle was exactly like a deer. It was the way you had to spend ages coaxing the deer over, and then, if there were any sudden movements, the deer would go running off and you’d have to start all over.

He didn’t want that same scenario to happen between him and Belle.

No. He was going to get it right this time.

She had finally moved one hand back and was ready to strike out. Matt leaned in closely. He wanted to capture everyone moment of his first time watching the girl hunt.

She’s just so—Matt was quickly snapped out of his dream-like staze when he looked down at something tickling his arm and noticed a large spider. It had to be about the size of a tennis ball, two of it’s hairy legs where raised up at him.

Matt, startled, gave out a shout and ran straight towards Belle who was staring after the boar who had made a sudden run for it.

‘Matt!’ Belle shouted, smacking him on the head with her bow.

Matt lifted his arm and started waving it at her. ‘Spider!’ he shouted and rubbed his arm on a near-by tree. He was giving out frightened little gasp until Belle took his arm and examined it.

The spider was almost off. It had created a single webbed thread and was hanging down. It was about the size of a small marble.

Belle glared at him and squished the little bug with her fingers before hitting him on the head with the bow again. ‘You made me loose my hunt because of a spider?’ she snapped, raising an eyebrow.

‘I—I hate spiders!’

Great, he thought, staring at Belle’s angrily and disgusted look. You’ve made her angry and appeared to be a wuse, she’ll never fall for you now.

He told himself to shut up and quickly followed after her and up the slope into a large open prairie field. In the distance he could see a couple of wild rabbits scurrying into their burrows.

‘Think you could catch one?’ he asked, hopefully.

Belle snorted and shook her head. ‘Naw, they’re too fast, although if you manage to get one for me I might forget everything.’

Matt grinned and started to head for one when he realised it was a joke and fell short, blushing.

‘Come on,’ Belle said, still shaking her head. She pointed to the west. ‘That’s the way we came, there are footprints still on the ground,’ they began walking that way. ‘You’d better wish that Asbel caught something.’

‘Yeah,’ Matt mumbled, trying to keep up with her quick pace. Belle had the most magnificent pair of long legs he had ever seen—he’d be kind of intimidated if she was taller than him, but fortunately he was a few centimetres taller.

‘What do you think?’ Belle asked suddenly. ‘About the City idea, I mean.’

‘Um,’ Matt glanced at her, trying to work out if she cared or not. He couldn’t really make out what she was feeling so he just said, ‘It’ll be a good change but I don't think I’d really suite it.’

Belle glanced at him. ‘I thought you were a city boy?’

Matt rubbed his neck ‘Yes, but I love the country even more, it’s so great here filled with endless opportunity. . .’

She’s smiling, Matt said and was suddenly filled with glee. He knew it was because she thought he was stupid or show off. But he’d rather think that it was because she was finally taking a liking towards him.