Practice Makes Perfect
A vignette written to accompany a wonderful little stream sketch from FaeSeiren (https://www.furaffinity.net/user/faeseiren) featuring Sakara and Kuveli getting up to some much needed practice, it seems. Well, you can't expect perfection on your first try... Or your hundredth. You can see why Kuveli prefers his sling when he's hunting. But as Sakara and just about everyone else in the tribe tells him: "A hunter without his spear is like a shaman without magical mushrooms." You can do it, it's just not recommended.
Thanks so much again to FaeSeiren (https://www.furaffinity.net/user/faeseiren) for doing this, it is incredibly cute.
Practice Makes Perfect
Vignette by SakaraFox
Art by FaeSeiren
Golden light streamed through the palisades of grass as the sun sank behind them, swallowed by the mud as dusk settled over the rolling fenland. The wind was calm, perfect for Kuveli to take another shot.
The little fox hopped forward, the marshy earth like a sponge beneath his muddy footpaws. It felt strange, like he didn't know his own weight, and that he might stumble. But nonetheless Kuveli sucked in his breath and focused his icy-blue eyes on his prey.
A crooked birch sapling stood on the opposite bank, divided by a stinking pool of brackish water at least ten paces wide. From its bare branches was hung the skull of a deer, bleached white in the sun, beneath which was a shaggy, old skin from which most of the fur had rotted away. It was a target built by his big brother and some friends.
Why they had built it knee-deep in a mire was a mystery to Kuveli. The shaman said mires were sacred places, not to be underestimated. Perhaps it offered some seclusion from the rest of the tribe, in this place where the grass grew so tall that the little fox couldn't even see over it.
"Wait!" Barked Sakara, who placed a paw on his little brother's shoulder.
Kuveli blew out a frustrated sigh, letting the heavy spear fall to his side. What could it possibly have been this time?
"You'll throw-out your shoulder doing it like that," explained the older fox as he crouched down to Kuveli's level. "Lift it up again, let me show you-"
"Why do I have to throw a stupid spear!?" Kuveli snapped, and tossed the spear carelessly at his feet. They both watched it splatter into the mud, then disappear into the black, fetid water.
Sakara huffed and knelt in silence for a few moments, clearly just as frustrated as his brother. His eyes were closed, but the furrows in the fur on his forehead betrayed his souring mood. When he rose to a stand, the furrows vanished, and a half-hearted smile returned to his lips.
"Little bud, I know you like your sling," he began in a calm and understanding tone. "I've seen you hunt rabbits with it, you are a good shot, but you will not be hunting rabbits forever."
"I know," Kuveli sulked as he plonked himself down and buried his face in his knees. The mud already caked his patchwork skirt, but he ignored the discomfort. "You've told me a thousand times already, and I don't-"
"Practice makes perfect," the older fox said, the phrase seeming to strain his voice. He was as tired of hearing it as Kuveli was, but still, the young kit of ten summers still had a lot to learn.
Sakara let his brother sulk for a while longer, turning his head towards the clouds. The sky was beautiful, a great canvas of purples and oranges, like a meadow full of flowers. It helped to clear his mind of all the day's stress, all the chores and hard work, all of it was in the past. Now was the time for just him and his brother, and he wouldn't let these moments turn sour.
"C'mon little bud, just one more and we'll head for home."
Sakara reached out an open paw, with which he gently flicked the little fox's ear, eliciting a grumble and an annoyed glare. But Kuveli quickly softened and accepted the offer, taking Sakara's paw and letting the bigger fox haul him upright.
"Can you show how to-"
"Nuh-uh, you tossed that offer in the fire," Sakara teased with a chuckle, and ruffled his little brother's head scruff. "You show me how to do it if you're so good."
Sakara flashed a toothy grin at Kuveli as he hefted his own spear over his shoulder, waiting patiently for Kuveli to do the same. And seeing no point in delay, the little fox followed suit, snatching another spear from the pack on his brother's back and gripping it tight.
Yet, Kuveli hesitated. Something didn't feel quite right, like the spear was off-balance somehow, but it looked just right. He glanced at Sakara again, but his brother was too focused for his expression to let any hints slip.
"On three, little bud!" Yapped Sakara excitedly, hoping to encourage his little brother.
But Kuveli was caught off by the sudden shout, and fumbled, letting the spear slip backwards slightly in his grip. In his panic, the little fox didn't think to readjust himself, and decided to try and throw it anyway.
He stuck one arm out in front of him and leaned back, ready to put his full weight into the throw. Then he sucked in his breath once again, his chest heavy. Every sense was focused on that skull.
One...
Two...
"Three!"
With all the grace of a majestic dance by the bonfire, Kuveli took a great leap forward and, with all the might his scrawny little body could muster, loosesd the spear.
Kuveli watched with wide eyes and bated breath as the spear sailed from between his fingers, and...
Immediately took a nosedive.
It landed point-first in the water, causing a small splash where it sat, sticking straight up out of the water. A monument to his utter failure.
His heart sank deep in that moment, so ravaged by embarrassment that he wanted to hide between his brother's legs like a newborn kit. But a hearty laugh and a firm pat on the back stopped him, just about.
"We aren't spearfishing, little bud," Sakara teased cruelly, before bursting into another fit of laughter.
Kuveli let out a meek growl and stared his brother dead in the eyes, to which Sakara covered his face and tried, and failed, to stifle the endless laughter.
"It's not that funny!" Kuveli snarled and kicked a clump of sodden earth at his big brother.
"You're right," Sakara wheezed as he brushed the mud from his leather legging. "I shouldn't laugh, you're still a little lad. You'll get the hang of it, with time, I promise."
Wiping a tear from his eye, Sakara then offered Kuveli a genuine smile and rubbed his back in reassurance. Then, without missing a beat, he suddenly lifted his spear and, as quick as a bolt of lightning, hucked it so hard that Kuveli heard the wind whip past them.
As if to rub dirt into his wounded pride, they both watched in silence as Sakara's spear flew as true as a hawk, and hit dead on the skull. There was a terrible cracking sound as the stone tip surely broke, and the skull split completely in half.
"I promise, little bud, you'll be as good as that one day."