Page 24 of Scarred

“My hope is that all my family finds someone as kind and helpful as you to protect them until we are together again.”

“There is another witch in a different village.” Suni frowned. “I cannot remember her name.”

“I believe her name is Jo,” Gar called out. “Julian cannot stop talking about her and how she can fight anyone, no matter how big.”

Amma removed her hand from his leg and rubbed them on hers. “I don’t suppose she’s a girl who is tall, curvy, and has an attitude to match?”

“I have not seen her,” Suni said. “Mia mentioned her name and that she’s something called a battle witch.”

“Yup, that’s my cousin alright. If anyone was going to make it in this world, it would be Jo.” Amma grinned.

Gar nodded. “From what Julian keeps saying, Jo is not only happy but mated. I think Julian wants to be like her when she grows up.”

“Julian sounds like a riot,” Amma said. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

“She is an adorable calf. She brings sunshine to my family.” Suni said. He couldn’t wait to get back home and see his family. Finding Amma had soothed a part of him that he had thought would always be raw. He wanted to introduce her to his family and watch them fall in love with her as much as he had.

“I love little witches. They are so fun to watch as they learn their magic and grow up to be strong, independent women.” Amma said.

He felt the same about calves. They all had so much potential and as they gained solars, they developed into adults everyone could be proud of. “Are you ready to eat?”

“With that smell filling the clearing, yes.” Amma rubbed her stomach. “I can already almost taste it.”

“I know you found some spices, but I bet you haven’t figured out that you can eat this leaf.” He picked up one of the smaller leaves Gar had gathered and placed some of the juiciest pieces of meat on it before rolling it and handing it to Amma.

“You mean I can just eat the leaf too?” Amma asked.

“Yes,” Suni answered. “Try it.” He waited for her to take a bite and chuckled when her eyes widened. “Good?”

“The meat is sweet and juicy, while the leaf has some heat to it.” Amma took another bite and chewed with her eyes closed. “I wish I had known about this edible leaf before. It’s exactly what I needed.”

Suni liked knowing he had given her something special. “Do you not eat leaves in your world?”

“In many cultures, yes. I just never really thought about trying to eat them here. Where do these grow?”

“I gather you have seen the bushes near the riverbanks?”

“Yes,” Amma said around her food. “They have long thorns.”

“Right. If you are clever enough to avoid the thorns, you can pick the spicy leaves.” Suni rolled his own wrap and took a bite. “If someone my size is pricked, even a little, it will render them unable to move for a rotation. I don’t know what it would do to you. If you want more of these leaves, I can help.” He stuffed the rest of his food into his mouth so he could roll another leaf for Amma. When he swallowed, he asked, “Do your animals eat meat?”

“Yes.” She glanced over at her little friends and began to break off some of her meat, but he stopped her.

“There is plenty to go around without you having to share.” He took some of the raw meat and put it before the animals. The two small, strange ones squealed before digging in. Suni called out, “Gar. Rown. Enough, come eat. You can finish after.”

The two brothers washed their hands in the stream before joining them by the fire. Suni was proud of the way the young males had started to cure the skin while preserving the meat. They had even excelled at tracking, which would come in handy when they began their duties of patrolling.

“I never thought I would like to be away from home so much.” Gar rolled his meal. “It gives me the opportunity to think.”

“What thoughts?” Rown slapped him on the back of his head before dropping next to him. “You have air between your horns.”

“We are twins! If I do, you do too,” Gar snapped back.

“I know what you mean, Gar,” Amma said. “There is something about being out in nature that clears the mind. In my world, I used to hike deep in the forest and camp for a few days. The time alone would give me the energy to deal with a bunch of hyper young witches.”

“I do not know what Gar is talking about,” Suni said as he cut his eyes at the males. “He is never separated from his brother.”

“That is different,” Rown said. “We have been together since the day we were conceived.”

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