Earth's Children 6 - The Land of Painted Caves by Jean M. Auel

Author:Jean M. Auel
Language: eng
Format: mobi
ISBN: 9780307886651
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Published: 2011-03-28T18:30:00+00:00

2

Ayla saw the heavy paw of the lion moving, and caught her breath, wondering if the big male could still be alive with all the spears in him. Then she recognized Wolf’s bloody head working its way out from under the huge limb, and rushed toward him, still not sure if he was injured. The wolf squirmed free of the forearm of the lion, then grabbed the paw with his teeth and shook it with such vigor, she knew it had to be the blood of the lion on him, not his own. Jondalar was at her side the next moment and they walked toward the lion together, smiling with relief at the wolf’s antics.

“I’m going to have to take Wolf to the river to get him cleaned up,” Ayla said. “That’s all lion’s blood.”

“I’m sorry we had to kill him,” Jondalar said quietly. “He was such a magnificent beast, and only defending his own.”

“I feel sorry, too. He reminded me of Baby, but we had to defend our own. Think how much worse we would feel if one of those lions had killed a child,” Ayla said, looking down at the huge predator.

After a pause, Jondalar said, “We can both lay claim to him; only our spears reached him, and only yours killed this female who stood by his side.”

“I think I may have hit another lioness, too, but I don’t need to claim any part of that one,” Ayla said. “You should take what you want of the male. I’ll take this female’s pelt and tail, and her claws and teeth as tokens of this hunt.”

They both stood silently for a while, then Jondalar said, “I am grateful that the hunt was a success and no one was hurt.”

“I would like to honor them in some way, Jondalar, to acknowledge my respect for the Cave Lion Spirit, and show gratitude to my totem.”

“Yes, I think we should. It is customary to thank the spirit when we make a kill, and to ask the spirit to thank the Great Earth Mother for the food she has allowed us to take. We can thank the Cave Lion Spirit and ask the spirit to thank the Mother for allowing us to take these lions to protect our families and our Caves.” Jondalar paused. “We can give this lion a drink of water so the spirit won’t arrive in the next world thirsty. Some people also bury the heart, give it back to the Mother. I think we should do both for this great lion who gave his life defending his pride.”

“I will do the same for the female who stood with him, fighting at his side,” Ayla said. “I think my Cave Lion Totem protected me, and maybe all the rest of us. The Mother could have chosen to let the Cave Lion Spirit take someone to compensate for the pride’s great loss. I am grateful She didn’t.”

“Ayla! You were right!”

She spun around at the sound of the voice and smiled at the Ninth Cave’s leader coming up behind them.

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