• "Ugh it took you long enough!" said Oliver, who was waiting for his best friend Zoeoutside her little three bedroom cottage.
    "Sorry, Kathrine took my arrows," explained Zoe, rolling her eyes. Zoe was the oldest out of 6 kids, while Kathrine wa the second youngest who wanted to be just like her role model, Zoe, who took care of getting the food for her family with Oliver. Both of them were 14 years old and had lots of little siblings that their mom's had to look after while their dad's worked the long hours in the factory, so it was up to the two of them to get food for each of their families.
    "You know that that wouldn't happen if you hid them well. That's what I have to do with Lenny." Lenny was the middle child in Oliver's family who, just like Kathrine, wanted to be just like the oldest child.
    "You know that there's not a place Kathrine wouldn't look," said Zoe.
    "What ever. We'd better get going, the sun's already rising and chances are, Meridith and Chandler already took our tree," Oliver said in a disgusted tone. Meridith and Chandler were two of the very few city kids that went out hunting, but according to Oliver, they were the only two that didn't know the meanings of "territories" and "boundaries."
    So with that, Zoe and Oliver broke into a swift and silent run to their tree. When they were about half way there, Zoe saw Meridith running wide eyed like she was being chased by something. Zoe was about to stop and ask what was wrong, but then thought better of it and picked up her pace.
    "Faster!" she cried breathlessly to Oliver. They could both hear padded feet hitting the dry dirt on the ground now.
    "Mountain lion," Oliver and Zoe whispered. Mountain lions were very rare in the forest, adn the only person who has survived an encounter with one is an old half crazy man name Beau. Nobody could ever seem to use their weapons right when face to face with a mountain lion.
    Now all three of them could see the tree. It was the only tree that had branches that wouldn't break from under you when you sat for hours waiting for game to shoot at.
    The lion was right on Meridith's tail when Oliver and Zoe reached the tree first. They both got up the trunk just in time to hear a sickening crack. Looking down at the base of the tree, they saw Meridith's dead body being pulled into the bushes by the ion who had hunger in his eyes.
    "What a horrible way to die," whispered Zoe, "but i guess that's what happenes to the animals that we kill to."
    "Just be thankful it wasn't your neck that snapped," Oliver said, patting Zoe's arm.
    "Yeah, or your's," breathed Zoe, leaning against the tree for support.
    "I'll set up some traps in a little while. I don't want to go down and find that I'm the prey instead of the predator this time," Oliver said, shuddering at the thought.
    Zoe nodded in agreement while they positioned themselves on the thick and sturdy branches.
    "I wonder how her parents are going to take it," Oliver said after a couple of minutes, "I mean she is their only child."
    "I bet it'll be hard for them. And for Chandler too because I mean the two of them were like this," said Zoe while twisting two of her fingers together.
    "Yeah, I mean if I would ahve suddenly lost you I-" said Oliver, but suddenly stopped short, embarrassed by what he was about to say.
    "What?" Zoe prodded.
    "Never mind," Oliver said, shaking his head, "I think the coast is clear, I'll be right back."
    "C'mon Oliver, we've known each other since we were in diapers! You know that you can tell me anything," said Zoe, her curiosity getting the best of her.
    "It's not important, I mean really, you'd just find it cheesy," grunted Oliver, half way down the tree already.
    "Hmph! Fine," said Zoe, pouting now.
    Rolling his eyes, Oliver made his way down the rest of the tree and said to Zoe, "I'll only set two of the traps just in case Killer Kitty decides to come by and destroy them. I can't afford to buy any more for now."
    Nodding in agreement, Zoe watched her friend leave the tree to set the traps, feeling, for the first time in her life, afraid of being left alone in the forest.