The Hunter

Tobias was much smaller than other boys his age. Although they’d all been reduced to skin and bone through years of hunger, his was the most miniscule of statures. His family had lived in the Common Hall all his life. He had barely left its dreary, windowless confines. He slept there. Ate there. Played there. Schooled there. Although, school was a generous term for the instruction that he and the other boys received. More, it was warnings. Horror stories of the things that happened to those like them when they ventured out. Only the fathers went out. To hunt. To keep them alive.

Tobias sat beside his mother but resisted her desire to nuzzle into him. He wasn’t a baby anymore, despite his size. He watched his father crouched by the front door. Anticipating. Across the expanse of the Kill Zone, past the Wall, through to the opening into his sitting room, they could see Lord Christopher. He was sleeping in his favourite Chesterfield chair. The kind you wouldn’t normally be allowed to touch. A good chair in a good room. But of course, the Lord could touch it. He could do whatever he wanted. Hettie made sure of that.

Hettie wasn’t there this morning. She had left the Lord’s meal outside the sitting room. A bowl of rich stew, beckoning Tobias and the others. Daring them to try their luck. It was highly unusual for Hettie to leave the Lord’s food unattended. Years of thieving by Tobias’ community had made her cautious. She would normally make the meal, then serve it to him immediately. Her carelessness today was a stroke of luck.

Tobias’ father was on duty this morning. Most days the hunting resulted in a few measly scraps - potato skins and soggy cabbage plucked from the rubbish, or small pieces of bread found on the floor. This day held more promise. The glorious smell of the gravied lamb made Tobias’ stomach growl in desperation. Today, their meal could be something to remember. Tobias watched his father’s shoulders twitch as he moved forward, preparing to move out into the Kill Zone. His mother reached out, clasping her husband’s shoulder gently. Turning and pressing his face to hers, they paused, lost in a brief moment together. “Be careful darling, please” she pleaded, her voice cracking with fear. He nodded gravely and turned back to the door, creeping forward.

Crossing the Kill Zone exposed the hunter on all sides. He would have to summon all his courage to sprint across it to reach the relative safety of the Wall.  From there, the hunter could rummage for scraps in the rubbish, or, if he was particularly brave, attempt to steal food from within the Lord’s quarters.

Tobias’ father began to run across the Kill Zone. His legs moved so fast, they were a blur. Pride mingled with fear in Tobias’ chest. He couldn’t imagine being a hunter. Didn’t ever want to cross the space between his own home and Lord Christopher’s. But he knew he would have to one day. It was his destiny. When his father’s days of hunting were over - when he was too old, or worse, failed to return from a mission - Tobias would carry the torch for his family. He would have to provide for them. He had no choice. “You’re braver than you know”,  his father would always tell him. “That you’re scared just proves you’re not a fool”.

His father had passed the middle of the Kill Zone. He was just moments from reaching the Wall. Heavy thudding shook the floor beneath Tobias’ feet. His heart began to pound.

Hettie.

She appeared between his father and the Wall, blocking its safe haven. Tobias watched with horror as his father scrambled backwards, turning to run back towards the Common Hall. But his speed was no match for hers. She was so much bigger.

A whooshing whistle and a dark shadow. Her huge weapon came down on top of his father with a sickening thud.

Silence.

Tobias’ mother stood frozen next to him. She did not speak. She did not breathe. Tobias began to beg silently. Please. Please! Be ok…

Hettie lifted the rolled newspaper off his father. She leaned her giant head down to look at him, and giving a satisfied snort, straightened up and walked away. Tobias felt icy cold. His feet shook violently. His body shivered. He stared at his father, lying motionless in the middle of the Kill Zone. Nothing seemed real. This couldn’t be happening. He couldn’t be gone!

A twitch caught his eye. Then another. He realised his father was still moving. Tobias’ elation intensified as he saw the distinct rise and fall of his father’s chest. Breathing! He was still alive. There was still a chance. He knew Hettie would return to collect the body. Would scoop it into the large wedge-shaped device she used to dispose of the hunters. He didn’t have much time. Perhaps only a minute.

Tobias sprang forward. His mother screamed. “Tobias, no!” He didn’t turn. His only thought, to help his father. To get him back to the Common Hall. Tobias was fast. Not as fast as his father, but faster than the other boys. His lightness meant the effort was easy for him.

He was flying.

He reached his father, his heart pounding. Resting his hands on his warm chest, he leaned close and whispered. “Father?” Nothing. His father continued to breathe faintly but didn’t wake. There was no time to wait. No time to think. Tobias clasped his father’s tail in his teeth and began to drag him back towards the hole into the Common Hall. He was not a strong boy and his father was limp and heavy. He could barely move faster than a trot. He was running out of time. He could hear Hettie’s steps as she made her way back to the Kill Zone to collect his father’s body. His heart thudded as he pulled harder, willing himself to speed up.

Tobias sensed the danger before he saw it. His fur stood on end. His feet tingled. A shadow loomed overhead as a gust of wind blew him sideways, stumbling. Something soft grazed the top of his head, then landed in front of him with a thud. His vision was suddenly filled with thick, caramel coloured hair. Terror gripped him as his gaze travelled upwards. From the large paws adorned with nails sharp as razors, to the long, clear whiskers that were now twitching with anticipation. Past the flat snout with its salivating mouth, to the menacing almond eyes that were now fixed on his.

Lord Christopher.

Adrenaline surged through Tobias.

He didn’t want to die.

He didn’t want his father to die.

He heard his mother screaming his name as Lord Christopher swiped one large ginger leg towards him. But Tobias’ tiny size made him agile. He ducked under the striking paw, one pointed nail grazing his cheek and opening a stinging wound. The pain focused him. Surging forward, he ran through the gap between Christopher’s splayed forearms, underneath the giant belly and out the other side, tearing across the Kill Zone’s final few feet. He could see his mother. See her terror. She was wailing, her small hands clutching at her cheeks. She started to step out of the hole towards him. “No!”, he screamed. He pulled harder, willing himself to reach her.

Something pulled him backwards and off his feet.  Horror filled him as he looked back and realised his father’s body had now disappeared under the paw of the great ginger cat. Christopher’s nose was pressed down. Snuffling. Breathing in the scent of his father’s last gasps.

Tobias lurched forward, sinking his teeth deep into the soft padding of Christopher’s paw. He tasted the metallic blood and felt himself lifted into the air. The great cat shook his paw, trying to remove the mouse pup that was now attached painfully to its tip. With one last flick, Tobias was thrown back to the ground, hitting hard in the middle of his back and coming to a rest beside his father. Rolling over, he pressed his forehead against the older mouse, forcing him through the hole and into the depths of the Common Hall.

Tobias slumped to the ground, breathing heavily. His mother flung herself on him with deep shuddering sobs. “Tobias” she wailed, “why did you do that?” She squeezed him tightly, kissing him on the top of his head. Extricating himself from her embrace, he scrambled to his father, pressing his face close to the older mouse’s ear.

“Father! Can you hear me?” The older mouse twitched. His eyes fluttered open, meeting Tobias’ own. “See”, he whispered, “You’re braver than you know”.