It was a cold day, one that found Jayari bundled up in a fur-lined coat and hat. Her mare, Zala, was a little annoyed by the cold white stuff on the ground, but Banyur horses were strong and stocky and built for the climate so she tolerated it, even if she let out the occasional snort, breath frosting in the air, that let Jayari know of her displeasure.
"We're almost done," Jayari said, patting the mare's neck as though Zala could understand half a word she said. "Just a few more lines to check, then we'll go home."
Five fat hares were already tied to the saddlebags; it had been a fruitful day! And as she rode Zala through the snow and over a stream, she dismounted and headed to check one of the last snares--and cursed.
That one had had a rabbit, but from the looks of it, the snare had been tampered with. And by the footprints she saw in the snow around it...it hadn't been an animal.
"Again?" It also hadn't been the first time. Two of her other traps had shown the same signs, over the course of the last few days. Whoever was doing it was bright enough not to take too much; they were trying to be smart about it, but not quite smart enough.
With a sigh, she mounted Zala and turned her to head upstream, where the final snare remained. "Clever bastard. I swear, Zala, I'm gonna find this thief, and when I do..."
She trailed off, because that was when a dark shape in the distance caught her eye. She squinted, trying to make out the shape. She couldn't see any distinct features from this distance, but she saw just enough to know it was...unfamiliar.
Her eyes narrowed. Perhaps that was her thief.
Either way, it was a trespasser.
"C'mon!" she said, spurring Zala into motion, and they tore off over the grasslands, leaving a cloud of snow in their wake. Reaching behind her as she rode, she drew her bow and had an arrow nocked before they even reached the stranger, drawing to a stop several yards away.
Far enough to be safe, close enough the wind would carry her voice--and her arrow.
"You there! Halt!" she shouted in Duhjari, for she had never learned Common, having kept to her group all her life.