'I haven't seen a cave bear in years,' Solaban said. He'd been standing close by, listening. 'There aren't many around here anymore. Have you really eaten cave bear?'
'Yes,' Ayla said. She considered mentioning that cave bear meat was sacred to the Clan, eaten only for certain ritual feasts, but decided it would just encourage more questions that would take too long to answer.
She looked at the lioness, and took a deep breath. It was big and would be a lot of work to skin. She could use some help, and observed the four young people who had been asking her questions. None of them had used spear-throwers, but she guessed that might change now, and though they hadn't landed a spear, they had been a willing part of the hunt and exposed themselves to danger. She smiled at them. 'I'll give each of you a claw if you'll help me skin this lioness,' she said, and watched them smile back.
'I'll be glad to,' Palidar and Tivonan said almost simultaneously.
'Me too,' said Morizan.
'Good. I can use the help.' Then she said to Morizan, 'I don't think we have been formally introduced.'
She faced the young man and held out both her hands, palm up, in the formal gesture of openness and friendship. 'I am Ayla of the Ninth Cave of the Zelandonii, Acolyte of Zelandoni, First Among Those Who Serve The Great Earth Mother, mated to Jondalar, Master Flint-Knapper and brother of Joharran, Leader of the Ninth Cave of the Zelandonii. Formerly I was Daughter of the Mammoth Hearth of the Lion Camp of the Mamutoi, Chosen by the spirit of the Cave Lion, Protected by the Cave Bear, and friend of the horses, Whinney, Racer, and Grey, and the four-legged hunter, Wolf.'
It was enough of a formal introduction, she thought, watching his expression. She knew the first part of the formal recitation of her names and ties was probably somewhat overwhelming — her associations were among the highest ranked of all the Zelandonii, and the last part would be completely unfamiliar to him.
He reached for her hands and began his names and ties. 'I am Morizan of the Third Cave of the Zelandonii,' he started nervously, then seemed to be trying to think what to say next. 'I am the son of Manvelar, Leader of the Third Cave, cousin of …'
Ayla realised he was young and not accustomed to meeting new people and making formal recitations. She decided to make it easy for him, and ended the formal meeting ritual. 'In the name of Doni, the Great Earth Mother, I greet you, Morizan of the Third Cave of the Zelandonii,' she said, then added, 'and I welcome your help.'
'I want to help, too,' Galeya said. 'I'd like to have a claw as a memory of this hunt. Even if I didn't get a spear into any of them, it was exciting. A little frightening, but exciting.'
Ayla nodded in understanding. 'Let's get started, but I should warn you to be careful when you cut out the claws, or the teeth; don't let them scratch you. You have to cook them before they can be safely handled. If you get a scratch, it can turn into a foul wound, one that swells up and suppurates with a bad-smelling discharge.'
She looked up and noticed in the distance that some people were coming around the jutting wall. She recognised several from the Third Cave who had not been with the first group that joined them before. Manvelar, the strong and vigorous older man who was their leader, was among them.
'Here come Manvelar and some others,' Thefona said. She had obviously seen and recognised them too.
When they reached the hunters, Manvelar walked up to Joharran. 'I greet you, Joharran, Leader of the Ninth Cave of the Zelandonii, in the name of Doni, the Great Earth Mother,' he said, holding both hands out.
Taking both hands in his, Joharran returned the short formal greeting to acknowledge the other leader. 'In the name of Great Earth Mother, Doni, I greet you, Manvelar, Leader of the Third Cave of the Zelandonii.' It was a customary courtesy between leaders.
'The people you sent back came up and told us what was going on,' Manvelar said. 'We've seen the lions around here the past few days, so we came to help. They were returning regularly and we were wondering what we should do about them. It looks like you have taken care of the problem. I see four, no, five lions down, including the male. The females will have to find a new male, now; maybe they'll separate and find more than one. It will change the entire structure of the pride. I don't think they will be back bothering us soon. We need to thank you.'
'We didn't think we could pass them safely, and didn't want them threatening Caves in the vicinity, so we decided to chase them away, especially since we had several people with us who could use spear-throwers. It's a good thing we had them. Even though he was badly wounded, that big male attacked again, after we thought he was down,' Joharran said.
'Hunting cave lions is dangerous. What are you going to do with them?'
'I think the hides, teeth, and claws have all been claimed, and some say they want to taste the meat,' Joharran said.
'It's strong,' Manvelar said, wrinkling his nose. 'We'll help you with the skinning, but it will take some time. I think you should plan on spending the night with us. We can send a runner ahead and tell the Seventh that you've been delayed, and why.'
'Good. We will stay. Thank you, Manvelar,' Joharran said.
The Third Cave served a meal to the visitors from the Ninth before they set out the next morning. Joharran, Proleva, Proleva's son, Jaradal, and new baby daughter, Sethona, were seated together with Jondalar, Ayla, and her daughter, Jonayla, out on the sunny stone front porch, enjoying the view along with their food.
'It would seem that Morizan is taking quite an interest in Folara's friend, Galeya,' Proleva said. They were watching the group of not-yet-mated young people with the indulgent eye of older siblings with families.
'Yes,' Jondalar said, with a grin. 'She was his backup yesterday during the lion hunt. Hunting together and depending on each other like that can create a special bond quickly, even if they didn't land a spear so they could lay claim to a lion. But they helped Ayla skin out her lioness, and she gave each of them a claw. They were done so fast, they came over and helped me, and I gave each of them a small claw, too, so they all have mementos of the hunt.'
'That's what they were showing off last night over that cooking basket,' Proleva said.
'Can I have a claw for a memento, Ayla?' Jaradal asked. The youngster had obviously been listening closely.
'Jaradal, those are mementos of a hunt,' his mother said. 'When you get old enough to go on hunts, you'll get your own mementos.'
'That's all right, Proleva. I'll give him one,' Joharran said, smiling gently at the son of his mate. 'I got a lion, too.'
'You did!' the six-year boy said excitedly, 'and I can have a claw? Wait until I show Robenan!'
'Make sure you cook it before you give it to him,' Ayla said.
'That's what Galeya and the rest were cooking last night,' Jondalar said. 'Ayla insisted that everyone cook the claws and fangs before they handled them. She says a scratch from a lion claw can be dangerous unless it's cooked.'
'Why should cooking make a difference?' Proleva asked.
'When I was little, before I was found by the Clan, I was scratched by a cave lion. That's how I got the scars on my leg. I don't recall much about getting scratched, but I do remember how much my leg hurt until it healed. The Clan liked to keep the teeth and claws of animals, too,' Ayla said. 'When she was teaching me to be a medicine woman, one of the first things Iza told me was to cook them before they were handled. She said they were full of evil spirits, and the heat of cooking them drove the foulness out.'
'When you think of what those animals do with their claws, they must be full of evil spirits,' Proleva said. 'I'll make sure Jaradal's claw gets cooked.'
'That lion hunt did prove out your weapon, Jondalar,' Joharran said. 'Those who just had spears probably would have been good protection, if the lions had got closer, but the only kills were made with spear-throwers. I think it's going to encourage more people to practise.'
They saw Manvelar approach, and greeted him cordially.
'You can leave your lion skins here and pick them up on your way back,' he said. 'We can store them in the back of the lower abri. It's cool enough down there that they should keep for a few days; then you can process them when you get home.'
The tall limestone cliff they had passed just before the hunt, called Two Rivers Rock because Grass River joined The River there, had three deeply indented ledges, one above the other, that created protective overhangs for the spaces below them. The Third Cave used all of the stone shelters, but they lived mainly in the large middle one, which enjoyed an expansive panorama of both rivers and the area around the cliff. The others were mainly for storage.
