It had happened one fateful night. It was in the middle of winter, with heavy cold winds that'll tear through any fur or feathers. Those cold winds also brought along freezing cold snow. The type of snow that stuck to your skin, that made your skin turn wet, and in turn made your skin turn to ice. It was the type of night that only bad things could happen in. Death, sickness, starvation, you name it. But, something good actually happened on this sort of night. Something really good.
A certain grey and white aerial was making his final rounds for the night. He wanted to make sure no one would dare sneak up on him while his guard was down in this cold wintery night. But...he...he was also taking one more look around for his master. His owner. He had to be here. He had to be around here somewhere. He has to... But then where is he?!?
Acheron was making his way back to his cave to dry off from the snow, and to get warm with the furs he had stripped off from a hungry bear that he caught earlier. His master wasn't the best master, but there's one thing he appreciated when it came to his master. And it was that he taught him well. He taught him how to hunt any type of prey no matter the size, weather, or number. And, how to fight. Two vital things he needs in order to survive.
In any case, as he was making his way back he caught something on the edge of his vision. Wait... What? That's not normal. It appeared to be a light blue and green color. That's not any normal prey. Maybe a kukuri? But why would another kukuri be out in this sort of weather? Especially a tiny baby, judging by the size. Maybe it got lost from it's loaf? Maybe it was abandoned?
The first thoughts that came to mind was that he should just let it go. Surely it's loaf would come back for it. And he does not want to encounter some angry kukuris and it's parents.
But then...why would they just leave it in the middle of this snowy weather? A baby kukuri could easily die from this weather... Hm... Well, he suppose he could take a look...
Though he knows he's going to regret this big time.
Acheron swooped down to the snow rather gracefully. He kept his distance from the light blue and green figure in the snow. He can never be too careful. Maybe this is ambush. A trap. Maybe some humans wanted to use a baby kukuri to lure out some other kukuris and then trap them. Oh, this was such a bad idea. Such a horrible idea...
Wait...
That's not a kukuri. Not even a baby...
That's a centaur! A baby centaur!
Well, he wasn't expecting that, that's for sure. Centaurs are so rare around these parts. Even in the parts that they normally live in they're starting to go extinct thanks to humans and other massive predators snatching them up as prey or pets. They're becoming more and more rare as the days go by.
So why...is there a random baby in this forest?
Wait... Wait a moment... Are those chains?!
Acheron gasped and he stepped through the snow, his massive paws stomping and crunching in the harsh snow. And that's when he got a good look at this centaur. He was definitely a baby, probably only a few years old. He had a pale blue lower body with a tiny tiny messy cut tail that had green furs throughout. Throughout his body was green patches that had stitches sewn onto his body. Including his face. His blue and green hair was very messy and unkept. And... Yeah, he had chains around his neck, ankles, and wrists. His small body was littered with bruises, wounds, and whip marks. And... There was something on his chest. A marking... Acheron looked closer only to gasp at seeing...a certain symbol. It was of a circus tent. And on the bottom of that was a series of numbers. He knows that circus tent logo.
For a long time now there has been a circus that his master would warn him about whenever he went out hunting by himself. It was a circus that loves to kidnap and steal other kukuris and creatures to use for their shows. Whoever they stole...never would show up again. The circus was ruthless in their trainings for these shows. Day in and day out they would whip the creatures to force them to jump through hoops, or to run around with a ball on their backs and snouts. They would never rest...until they fall and can't get back up. Only then would they be shoved into a cage and be forced to get up within a few hours time. Rarely did they ever ate, or get treatment for their injuries. So this baby...was from that circus.
How did he escaped with these chains on him? How did he escaped at all?! He's never heard of anyone escaping that place.
But that's not important, what is important is that he has to warm up this centaur. His skin is freezing cold and his lips were blue. He has to get him warm and fast.
The aerial used his claws to gently scoop the unconscious baby into his paws. Then he flapped his wings and took off.
It took a total of two days for the centaur child to wake up. Acheron was beginning to think that the child would never wake up. The aerial was walking into the cave two nights later to find...the child was sitting up and staring at him with terrified silver eyes.
"oh, you're awake. Good. I thought you may have entered a coma state." Acheron simply stated as he begin to tear apart the fox he managed to snatch.
And when the child still didn't say anything he slowly looked up with the fox's head in his mouth. Only to see the child silently crying from fear. He was trembling so much that his teeth was chattering. And he was gripping the bear fur so tightly in his hands that his fists were white.
"I'm not going to hurt you. If I had that intention I would've done that already while you were asleep." Acheron pointed to the child's chest, "I see that you ran away from the circus." The child whimpered. "But don't worry, I'm not going to take you back. I'm not sure what I'll do with you. But I will never take you back there."
"N... N... N-Never...ever?"
Oh! The child can talk! That's good! And he can understand him! Even better!
"yes, never ever." Acheron slowly wrapped his paw around a cup that he managed to grab from a nearby village. He also grabbed a few human supplies there too, just in case. He used his wing to dump a bit of the steaming water that was in a bowl over a fire into the cup, and then he carefully handed the cup over to the child.
"sip that to keep you warm. I'll get started on some stew for us."
"t-Thank you... but why...W-Why... Why...are you...helping me?"
"Your welcome. hm? Why?" Acheron paused, why was he helping this child? He could've easily abandoned this child and nothing would've come from it. His master would be unpleased with him that he had taken this child too. He would've insisted that he should leave this child to die in the snow. So why...why did he wanted to help?
"cause you are an innocent being. You pose no threat to me. I can tell you've been through hard times. I recently escaped from a hunter. I know how hard it is. No one deserves that life, and certainly not a child. I suppose you remind me of myself. Does that answer your question?"
He didn't hear anything else coming from the child, and he thought that was it. Their conversation was over. Oh well, that was short lasted.
But then his body froze as he felt something on his ankle. Something wrapping around his ankle and putting pressure there. He looked down to see...the small child hugging his ankle. He had scooted over, which probably hurt cause of his injuries, just so he could hug him.
"I'm... I'm sorry you got hurt... Are you okay now?"
The child sounded so heartbroken and sad, so worried and concerned. But why? They only just met. Maybe he felt obligated to be sad since he saved him? Who knows. But it was weird. He has never been shown this sort of affection before. No one has shown this much emotion for him before. No one has been worried for him like this before. What...
Acheron awkwardly bent down and he scooped up the child in his wings. Slowly he hobbled over to the furs and set him back down amongst the warmth. "Please don't move around. You need to rest." He simply said. Then he turned back around to head back continue cooking.
"and I'm alright now. Thanks for asking. What's your name?"
"M-My...name? Oh... I don't have one... What's yours?"
"you don't have a name? Well, we can't have that. My name is Acheron. Pleasure to meet you."
Acheron turned around with a cup of meat in his paws and he set it down before the child. He also grabbed a fork so he could eat it properly. Then he sat down and stared at the child.
"Stitches. Cause you have stitches on your body. That can be your name."
"stitches..." The child whispered in awe. He looked down at his body, to the stitches that covered his leg and back. Then he grinned up to the aerial and nods. "I like it!"
"then stitches it is. It's a pleasure to meet you, stitches."
"it's a pleasure to meet you too, Acheron! Thank you for saving me! And the bandages, and the food! Thank you!"
Stitches, despite being told not to move around, stood right back up again and hobbled over to the aerial. Then he suddenly hugged Acherons chest and gave a squeeze. "Thank you."
"your welcome. Now, get back to bed. Do I need to say it for the third time?"
"no, sir!"
Training for my boy, Acheron with his new handler Stitches! https://www.deviantart.com/kuku-ri/art/Acheron-10807-843032926
If you want to know more about kukuris you can go here-
https://www.deviantart.com/kukuri-arpg
