Chapter Text
Rio had never expected to be a good hunter. In Piltover, hunting was something rich people did for fun, as a way to show off that they were outdoorsy and owned nice things. It felt weird for hunting to be a real necessity in Terbisia, but Rio proved to be a natural. She made a full size crossbow, Ratchet, specifically for hunting, and was quite proud of her work; Ratchet had a custom crank drawing lever that allowed for fast reloading without compromising draw weight, and which was not nearly as cumbersome as a separate spanner. She was exceptionally versatile for a crossbow, and she had become an extension of Rio like Zapper and Pow-Pow before.
All this came together to make Rio one of Terbisia's best hunters, which came as something of a surprise to her; hunting wasn't loud or colorful, and while it was briefly exciting, it was mostly uneventful, even boring. Mostly it was wandering through the woods for hours on end, following tracks and listening to animal calls, sometimes never to even see another living thing. Where Jinx might have found this dull and lit the forest on fire, Rio now found it soothing in a way that little else had been for her.
There was never much in the way of wildlife in Zaun, but out here, in the woods around Terbisia, the world was alive with infinite detail, hiding behind every corner: Water skimmers in the creek, frogs by the pond; Rain on the maple leaves, moss on the stones; Mist low in the hills, sun between the clouds; Dew on the spider web, beetles in the bark; Dandelions in the grass, ivy on the pine.
Hunting with Ratchet felt like the culmination of everything Rio had made here. More than just the practical matter of providing meat and furs, it granted her a sense of community that she thought she'd destroyed long ago. She was helpful, she had a purpose, she had a role beyond "public menace." Hunting made her feel like she belonged.
Today, Rio was hunting for something specific: tomorrow was Lux's birthday, and Rio was determined to make her venison stew. Granted, Rio didn't know how to cook anything more complex than a grilled cheese (a skill the usefulness of which dropped of significantly without the readily available presence of processed cheese), but it's the thought that counted. In honesty, Rio had no idea what to get Lux for her birthday. She was practically a princess. Rio had nothing to give her that she hadn't already received, so a homecooked meal would have to do. Now all she needed was a deer.
She had been on the trail of one all morning. She wasn't experienced enough to tell its age or size by the tracks alone, but she was pretty confident it was a deer, which was good enough for her. She followed the trail over hills and through glades, across creeks and around old stone ruins.
Up ahead she finally spotted it: a young doe, grazing on some shrubs. Rio froze mid-step, barely breathing. It was maybe fifty feet away; well within Ratchet's reach, but also well within the deer's hearing. Rio slooooowly set her pack down and took Ratchet from her shoulder, the whole while never taking her eyes off the deer. She put her foot through the stirrup and pulled the spanning lever back, one agonizing click at a time, praying it wouldn't startle the deer.
A final, terminal click indicated the bow was drawn. Rio loaded a bolt and raised Ratchet to shoulder. She aimed down the barrel and let instinct guide her.
THWACK!
The silence of the forest was shattered when Rio pulled the trigger. The deer yelped and skipped in a panicked circle for a few steps before collapsing. Clean kill, straight to the heart. Rio let out her breath and picked up her pack. The doe was on the smaller side, but it should be enough for a stew.
Rio drew a knife from her belt and got to work field dressing. She cut its belly, pelvis to neck, and started scooping things out. She heaped them into a pile, and already crows were gathering to watch and wait their turn. One cawed out to its fellows and she flinched.
A few minutes later and she was ready to go. Rio washed her hands with some water, then took a drink herself. She lowered to a crouch and took its front legs in one hand, hind legs in the other. She hoisted the deer up onto her shoulders, and headed back to town.
-
This cooking business was harder than it looked. Rio had gotten a recipe from Ebba, but half of their instructions made no sense. What the hell was a "pinch of salt?" How much was that supposed to be? When she tried to clarify, Ebba just said "measure by taste" and "follow your heart" and other equally unhelpful things.
She didn't expect it to take so long either. It was a good thing she had done the skinning and butchering last night, because apparently stews had to simmer for hours. And that wasn't even to mention the time it took to dice the meat and chop the vegetables. All told, it took most of the day to make the stew.
There was nowhere to cook in their quarters, so Rio prepared the stew in the communal kitchens with everyone else. Her secret was well safe from Lux though, because the kitchen was about the last place she would look for her. When the stew was finally ready, Rio realized she would now have to bring it to Lux somehow.
She decided to pick up the pot with a couple of thick gloves and very carefully walk home with it. She set the stew on the table and covered it with a lid, hoping it would keep warm until Lux got home. She was teaching today, and classes should be ending soon. One agonizing hour later, Lux finally returned.
"I'm back," she said, coming inside and hanging her cloak. She sniffed the air and frowned. "What's that?"
"Surprise," Rio said shakily and lifted the lid off the pot.
"Is that stew?"
"Happy birthday."
Lux's eyebrows shot up. "Did you make that?! For me?!"
"I know you're probably used to, like, gold and jewels, but uh," Rio rubbed her arm, "back home gifts were hard to come by, so we did birthday dinners instead. I know it's not much but..."
Rio was interrupted by Lux practically tackling her to the bed. "Oh thank you! That's so sweeeet!" she said, giving her a big wet kiss on the cheek.
Rio was taken aback by Lux's enthusiasm. "You really like it that much?"
"This is the best gift I've ever gotten," Lux said with absolute sincerity.
"You might want to try it before you say that," Rio said with a light chuckle. She peeled Lux off of her and poured a bowl for them each.
Lux sniffed the stew and examined it in her spoon. "Venison?"
"Just caught it yesterday." Lux raised her spoon to her lips and took a testing sip. She couldn't hide the look on her face when she tasted it. Rio laughed and said, "Still your favorite gift?"
"Absolutely," Lux said. "It's something you made for me, with love. It's sharing your family traditions with me. I mean, you hunted the damn deer yourself!" Lux smiled at her warmly. "No jewels can compare to that."
Rio was blushing now. "Even though it tastes like shit?"
"Even though it tastes like shit." They both laughed and Lux took another sip. "Actually it's not that bad. Too much garlic I think."
"Meat's too tough," Rio said, chewing on a piece of meat for far longer than was comfortable.
"I think it needs to cook for longer, to make it tender," Lux said.
"Oh?" Rio said with some snark. "Do you know so much about cooking too, you who have never once cooked your own meal?"
"What, and you have?"
"I'll have you know, I make the okayest grilled cheese in all of Zaun."
They laughed and elbowed each other from across the table. Things started to get out of hand once Rio began flicking vegetables at Lux, and it only escalated from there. By the end of the night, at least some of the stew had made into their stomachs.