The smoke of the cookfires soon drifted down to the slight depression that surrounded the Great River. The scents of fresh vegetables mixed in a tantalizing broth filled the noses of the women, and the boys alike.
As the smell hit Saa'rok's nose, he rose to his feet. That scent told him the broth was ready and the meat would be needed soon. Their work complete, there was no reason to delay getting the kill promptly to the village women to add to the stew. It was rare his father entrusted him with a task, and he didn't want to disappoint with tardiness. Even more so, he wanted to prove his leadership to Chatok. He was the older boy after all. He was responsible. The last thing he wanted was to lose the respect of the future chief.
"Come Chatok, let's get this meat to the village. The Women need it for the stew. " Saa'rok said, trying his best to deepen his voice and sound commanding. Sound deserving of the boy's respect.
With a grin, Chatok rose to his feet. The younger boy certainly felt tired from his hard work, but with the meat prepared and packed, he couldn't help but feel pride at the fruits of his first hunt. "Will your father think I did a good job? Do you think I can do anything better?" He said to Saa'rok, looking up at the older boy with an eagar look.
Saa'rok smiled. The boy was asking *him* questions. Saa'rok felt pride, he was becoming a man. "I think you did well, Chatok. However, I would aim higher on the animal next time. Shoot for just below the jaw for a cleaner kill. You do that, and Nequi will be proud." Saa'rok replied. He felt more pride at being able to confidently help the boy improve.
"Ok!" Chatok said with excitement.
Looking up, Saa'rok again locked eyes with Maa'ti, who was drying her naked form on the shore. Blushing slightly, he noticed her eyes studying him back. Confidence elevated slightly from instructing Chatok, he stretched his arms in the air to give her a bit of a show. Saa'rok felt the satisfying pull of his toned muscles. Their slight definition popped gently from his form as he tried his best to flex what muscle he had developed.
His eyes stayed on the girl, watching her turn slightly in embarrassment as she began to dry her long hair. Oddly, Saar'ok noticed something awkward about her movements. She didn't quite know what she was doing. It was as if she'd never dried such long hair before. He snorted slightly. "If you're gonna have long hair, at least learn to take care of it" he said under his breath. His eyes widened at his own comment.
Reality suddenly crashed down and A jolt of fear filled Sarah.
"Wh-what happened?" she said aloud, eyes turning to Chatok for any hint of understanding. The boy started back, confused before giggling slightly at the absurdity of the older boy acting so weird.
'What do you mean?" Chatok said.
Sarah fumbled for a response. Her mind was changing quick and cleaning that deer was clearly a mistake. She had lost herelf for about 20 minutes. She needed help and needed to act. Her eyes turned back to Maa'ti. The last Sarah checked Maa'ti was the only one with a grip on her old self.
"Maybe she can still help,,," Sarah said. Looking down, she noticed her skin was beginning to darken. Soon there wouldn't be much left of her old self. Time was ticking fast.
"Ok, I just need to talk to Maa'ti, then maybe we can find a way out" she thought, as she wordlessly began to walk towards the girl. With each step, she noticed something nagging at her, however. The job wasn't complete. Closing her eyes, she sighed. Like before, she was overwhelmed by that nagging sense of duty she had in the back of her mind, duty to her tribe, duty to make her father proud. Gritting her teeth, she turned back towards the boy. "Chatok, can you finish this? Just pack the meat and bring it up to the village. The women will take it from there. Can you handle that? " She said.
The boy's face lit up. Chatok relished being given such responsibility. "I will!" He said confidently.
Sarah smiled, unable to suppress the foreign, yet still present sense of pride at having earned the boy's respect.
Wasting not a moment more, however, she turned and began to make her way towards Maa'ti. With each step her skin darkened further, the shade deepening in lock step with her growing panic.