Heat waves had already started rising from the ground when Miw-Sher and her company of hunters had set out for the nearest non-nomadic dwelling of her peoples. Laden down with several weeks worth of dried meat strapped on to each of their backs; the going was slow. Each loped at an easy-going pace that would maintain them for miles as they spread out into formation; wolf familiars to the forefront in a roughly triangular formation, while the humans followed several hundred meters behind, making sure to run along the pawprints their counterparts had left behind.

Sweat dripped down Miw-shers nose as she hiked the pack on her back higher and tried to ignore the constant burn in her lower leg muscles. By tonight they would make camp with others and have fresh food, civilization, and a weeks rest before they would once again traverse the wild in hunt of food.

The sun sank lower and lower in the west, turning the sky to vibrant reds and golds as the hunters continued their weary trek. Miw-sher had already lost her footing on the unforgiving hot sand twice, stumbling as she tried to regain her balance and readjust the pack that slipped from her back each time. At each sounds of her lost footing Ashkii would stop and look back over his shoulder, causing the two wolves in his wake to do the same. Once he was sure everything was fine, all the wolves would start their run once more.

Just as the sun was melting past the lay of the land, one of the hunters traveling with Miw-sher let out a shout and pointed to the just discernable pointed tips of Munan dwellings. At the sight of their resting place, all the hunters gained their second wind and began to quicken the pace, eager to finally get some news and rest. The wolves left their formationand began to spread further and further apart, gaining speed so that they could circle the encampment before the humans arrived.

In the distance, Miw-sher could just make out the shadowed form of a person along the outter ring of the dwellings. Squinting she tried to discern what matter the person seemed so engrossed in that they didnt not appear to notice the 6 shapes on the desert moving closer and closer.

The day had grown late, but the heat still beat down on her. Rashida wiped her forearm over her forehead, ridding only a small portion of the sweat beading upon her brow. She released a sigh before returning to her work. Her gaze fell onto the bone that she was carving into a sword. It wasn't up to the same standards as her father's works, but she was still only an apprentice to the craft. She would need many more years under her belt before she got even close to the level of skill that her father possessed.

It wasn't that she didn't notice the group approach their settlement. She could hear the pounding of feet on the sand coming closer. But she was determined to finish her current project before the day closed and it was time for sleep.

For a while longer, she worked on shaping the sword's blade. When she took another pause to clean the sweat from her face, she glanced at the coming group. She didn't recognize any of them. Nomads, she thought, setting aside her work as she stood.

Miw-Sher stopped when she was several feet away from the standing woman. She had never seen her before at this settlement before, but then again she wasn't entirely sure that her hunting party had ever stopped at this one either. The two hunters on either side of her watched the woman for a moment warily before skirting her and walking on towards the center of the stand of housing.

Staring down at the bone blade on the ground she took a moment to silently evaluate the work. By any standards it was a beautifully carved blade and seemed to be almost done. Unsure as to how to broach any topic with a complete stranger, she kept her eyes lowered to the blade and dropped her leather pack to the ground, hastily untying her spear shaft. Holding it out in front of her she motioned toward a long crack that was begining to make its way towards the center of the spear, "You can . . . fix this?" she asked haltingly as her mind raced to find the words.

Ashkii padded almost silently to her side and yawned flashing all his teeth before settling to the sand at her feet. Heaving a sigh, her eyes traveled down his dusty coat; having him at her side always felt right, something about his presence made her feel complete and gave her more confidence in a situation she wasn't used to.

Rashida swallowed when the hunter halted in front of her. Usually, travelers that stopped into their settlement would speak first to their leader about arrangements for their stay. She wasn't entirely sure what the woman wanted until she pulled out a spear with a crack in it. Her amber eyes stayed focused on the woman as she reached out a hand to take the spear.

"It's possible," she said softly as her gaze flicked down to the spear. "Though my father could do a better job in mending it." She wasn't used to hunters asking her to make or repair their weapons. Her father was the one that handed work to her.

Miw-sher stood a few minutes digesting the new information. She had assumed from the bone blade laying on the groud that this girl before her was the main weaponsmith in the small town; it was hard to wrap her mind around the fact that there might be more. In her small traveling group alone, she was the one who had a craft in making things out of the sand they were always traveling on. The others excelled in things vastly different but still necessary to make the hunting party as efficient as it was.

"You can teach me to fix this?" she asked as she motioned to the spearshaft again. If this was not the main smith in the city then there was bound to be some down time between the things she mended and made, and nothing would be more useful then learning how to completely repair her main weapon.

"I will be staying here these next 7 days" she called over her shoulder as she walked between structures to get towards the center of the settlement "you find me and tell me what you want for the classes and repair".

More important things had to be done then just chatting to a timid seeming female; first thing was lodging for her hunters.

Amber eyes blinked at the hunter in surprise. She had never thought of teaching another, especially when she was just an apprentice herself. The corners of her lips twitched into a small grin. She liked meeting those that wanted to learn about the carver's craft.

"Meet me here tomorrow," she called to the woman. Reaching down, she snatched up her sword and her tools. She would have to finish her sword at another time. She needed to decide the cost for her work and time.

As she walked back to her family's hut, she examined the sword that she had been crafting. I just hope I don't disappoint her with my level of skill, she thought.

Stopping, she turned on her heel and leved a cursory glance at the young female smith, "tomorrow is good" she stated before turning once more to her task.

Stepping into the center circle of the dwellings she immediately sought out her traveling companions. Her eyes resting on each of them for a few moments before searching the rest of gathering Munans and animals to find the next. Satisfied that they were all accounted for Miw-sher stepped into the center of the roughly circular gathering of people and dropped her pack. "What news?" she asked in a strong voice causing the whispers and general chit-chat to cease.

When no one spoke up, she leaned down and began untying her pack, lifting small leather bound package after package out of the bag and laying them down in small piles. After the leather bound packages were all out, she withdrew several pelts and lay them in neat piles according to size and what animal they were from. Lastly, she withdrew several palm sized vials of glass filled with a few different shades of liquids.

"What news and wares?" she said once more with a slight curve to her lips and looking slowly through the crowd one person at a time.

Rashida entered the hut as the smells of a delicious meal invaded her nose. She glanced around before walking over to her mother. "Hamadi and Jabari haven't returned from their hunt?" she asked, noting the absences of her two older brothers.

"Jabari is still out," her mother answered as she stirred a put of stew. "Don't pull your sister's hair, Sokkwi!" she shouted, hearing her daughter cry out in pain.

"Hamadi returned?" Rashida asked and walked over to her younger brother. She gripped his ear and yanked on it.

"Ow, ow, ow!" Sokkwi whined, trying to pry her fingers from his ear.

"Stop giving Mom a hard time," Rashida ordered. Once he agreed, she released his ear.

"Hamadi is visiting with his lady friend," her mother answered with a knowing smirk. Hamadi had been courting a woman from their village for months.

"I see," Rashida said as she nodded. She left her mother to finish making their supper and walked into her father's workshop. Sitting on a stool, she showed the sword to her father. It was their custom to talk every night about their work.

The next morning Miw-sher woke up refreshed; it had been a long time since she had slept on anthing more then the ground and a rolled up corner of the leathers she carried things in. Stretching she leaned over and gave Ashkii a hearty tap on the hindquarters before pulling herself to her feet to get a good look around at the mornings activities.

Few people moved around at this time of morning and she took the chance to limber up and then run a few quick laps around the outter ring of the village. Satisfied hat her muscles were woken up for the challenge of the coming day, she dug around in her pack bringing two large pieces of dried meat forth. She tossed one to Askii before wandering off in search of the bonesmith, gnawing on the chunk of protein as she slipped past dwellings with sleeping Munans.

Remembering the agreement that she had made the previous day, Rashida woke early the next morning. After gathering up her materials, she grabbed a roll from the basket before she left the hut. She bit into the roll. The crust was hard, but the inside remained soft. It wasn't the greatest of breakfasts, but it would at least hold her through the morning.

She returned to the spot that she had chosen the day before for her work space. She took up a seat on the ground and looked around for the hunter that had arrived in their village the previous day. Perhaps I woke up too early, she thought as she set out her tools.

She brought the bone sword with her as well, but she set it aside to work on later. For now, she took out her mortar and pestle and sprinkled in some bone powder.

The sun began to rise a bit higher in the sky, warming the sand as it shifted beneath Miw-sher's feet. Stopping to stoop close to the ground, she lifted a hand full of sand before letting it sift through her fingers; feeling the weight and texture of it. She would have to collect some of this sand before she left to see how it fared in her fires.

Wandering through the camp, she at last came across the crouched form of the Muna woman from the night before. Feeling slightly abashed that she had never asked the womans name she stood quietly for a moment observing the girl use a mortar and pestel to crush fragments of bone. Deciding that any noise would most likely not cause any fatal distraction in what she was doing, she sat heavily on the ground next to the girl and pointed to herself, "Miw-sher" she said with a small smile before pointing to the mortar, "why are you doing that?".

She glanced to her right when she noticed the woman sit beside her. "Rashida," she offered her name and returned her gaze to the mortar. "It's bone paste," she explained as she reached over to her left. She picked up a leather skinned sack. Carefully, she poured in a small portion of the liquid it contained into the mortar. As she ground the liquid in with the bone powder, she lifted her gaze back to Miw-sher.

"It's for mending the crack in your spear," she explained farther. "You did want me to fix, right?"

Miw-sher sat silently for several moments thinking inwardly about the name she was presented with. "Rashida" was a strong and very Munan name and though she had never heard the name it almost felt familiar.

"Yes, to fix it" Miw responded distractedly as she held an arm out just as Ashkii rounded the corner of the nearest house. Tucking him close to her side, she leaned into his fur and took a deep smell, closing her eyes and raking the hairs with he fingers. Ashkii had his very own scent that always calmed her because it was thoroughly known to herself.

Sitting up with a start she realized what she had just done and how it might seem odd to a non-hunter. Keeping her hand on Ashkii she tried to sound non-chalant "So, your not a hunter" she syayed bluntly not sure what exactly she was asking. Irritated at her difficulty with finding words she slipped one of the glass spearheads of her weapon out of her back-sack and began to rub the edges with sand. Working always calmed her and all this sitting was making her more and more uneasy.

Rashida dipped her finger into the mixture. She pressed her finger and thumb together a few times, testing the consistency of it. A frown spread on her face when she found that she had added a little too much liquid. She picked up a handful of the bone chips and sprinkled a few into the mortar.

"I'm not," she agreed as she ground the chips into the mixture. Her mind was too focused on her work to notice how Miw-sher interacted with her familiar. "I have brothers that are hunters though. I sometimes help mend their spears and swords. Or I make new ones for them."

She tested the mixture again and was satisfied with the stickiness of it. "Spear." She held out her hand, waiting to be handed the cracked spear.

"Then what are you?" Miw-sher asked, her curiosity peaked as she dropped the glass spearhead she had been fiddling with and leaned over to grab the cracked spear-shaft. Handing it to Rashida she leaned foreward to get a better look at the proceedings. This would most likely be the most important part in the repair and she wanted to make sure she didn't miss a single detail.

"Ashkii is my only family" she said with here eyes glued to the spear, "siblings must be very nice" she added as an afterthought. "Skilled smiths to repair weapons are . . . rare in my home settlement" she added for the strangers benefit as way of explanation for her being so keen on the happenings.

Rashida took the spear that was handed to her. Her father was far better at mending cracks in weapons than she, but she would do her best not to disappoint Miw-sher with her work. "I'm a carver," she answered as she picked up the mortar. "Well, I'm still only an apprentice carver." She looked over at Miw-sher, wondering if the woman referred to something different. Like how her brothers were hunters while some other men in their village were warriors. If Miw-sher meant that kind of classification, Rashida wasn't sure of the answer.

"Sometimes it's nice," she said, turning her attention back to her work. Carefully, she poured some of the bone mixture into the crack on the spear. She paused every now and again to check it, making sure it filled properly with no air bubbles. "Other times, it's not as nice." She set the mortar down and laid the spear in her lap. She tested the mixture every few minutes to see if it had dried yet. "I remember when I was still very young, my elder brother Jabari cut my hair in the middle of the night as a prank." She frowned at that memory. Her brothers certainly didn't take after their father who was a rather serious man.

"Ah" said Miw with her brow furrowed in confusion, apparently she hadn't specified what she had meant. Shrugging a shoulder to herself, she tried once more to keep the conversation going, "I am a glasswright for my hunting party". Waving to the beads that adorned her hair and motioning to the strapped glass spearheads on her back, "I made these" she said with a small smile. "Most of the time we only use my skills when we stop to trade items though" she said musing almost to herself as she began to stroke Ashkii; "we do not generally have time to stop and gather sand to melt down on most of our hunts".

"Ah, that wasn't very nice" said Miw while turning her face away to hide the smile that was creeping up. Grinning she gave her wolf a few stiff pats, "Ashkii likes to steal my bedding and burry it half way in the sand". She laughed as he turned his face to hers and gave her nose a swift lick, eyes suddenly widening she turned back to Rashida, "Do you have a companion?".

Rashida could only imagine the difficulty of being a hunter. Her brothers often spent months at a time out on a hunt. They usually didn't stay long in the village before heading off on another hunt.

She tested the mixture again and nodded her satisfaction when it had harden properly. Next she would have to scrap off the excess of the mixture and even it out. "I spend most of my time learning the craft of carving," she explained as she reached for her scrapper. She felt around the sandy ground. After a moment, the tool seemed to jump into her hand. She stared at the tool, wondering if she had only imagined it.

Rashida lifted her head and looked over to Miw-sher. "Companion?" she repeated as she tilted her head. "I thought only hunters had companions." She glanced around Miw-sher to the wolf lying beside the woman. "It must be nice having a companion though."

A warm wind lifted the ends of Miw's hair and made the small glass beads woven into it make a soft clinking noise. Grinning at the whimsical sound she leaned foreward and watched as Rashida filled the cavity with the thick liquid, in no time at all the color was changing signalling that it was dry. "Does learning the craft take a very long time? and do you have to be chosen as an apprentice if you show promise, or did you go after the skill of your own accord?" Unfamiliar with the ways of this tribe she was curious to see how the people in the group got to where they were in standing.

"A companion doesn't always have to help in the hunt" she said softly, "many of my birth tribe had smaller companions they kept with them that were, more for the enjoyment of their company then for their use in anything". Tangling her fingers deep in Ashkiis fur she let forth a chuckle, "Ashkii prefers to be of help for his pack though, he doesn't much like the pampered companions of home".

"Hm, well, there is quite a bit to learn," Rashida answered, glancing up at Miw-sher. "And different masters have different techniques." She dropped her gaze back to the bone staff as she continued scrapping it smooth. "I don't know how it works for others, but I became apprentice to my father by choice. I always found the craft of making weapons interesting. When I became old enough, my father accepted me as his apprentice." She ran her fingers over the spot where the crack had been. A smile slipped onto her face when she found hardly the slightest indication that a crack had ever been there.

"Good as new," Rashida announced as she offered the mended staff back to its owner.

Miw let the weight of the repaired spear fall into her open hand. A small smile touching the edge of her lips, she hefted it a few times before laying it along her side and trailing a finger where she believed the crack had been. The repair had been necessary for a very long time, and hunt after hunt she had worried over the possibility of her weapon becoming useless. Assured by the fact that it seemed stronger then ever now she turned back to Rashida, "what is your price?" she asked softly.

She felt that nothing the girl could ask her could be too much since she had just given her full control of her livelyhood once again. A pack was nothing without its hunters, and a hunter was only as good as its weapons in bringing down the food for the group. Tracing a small spiral in the sand she lifted her hooded gaze to Ashkii, quirking her head at him and flashing a brief smile, "the hunt again soon" she murmured softly.