At Work

Keleero had been hard at work stretching part of the mountain wall out over the dirt and grass just outside the caverns, to give Juniper a crude 'garden' space. It had been exhausting work, especially with the cold and the stench of blood nearby, so Keleero was more than grateful to go inside. Someone had started a small, but warm fire in the Beacon Room's middle and three of the furs had been put up over the three tunnels leading away from the Beacon Room. It left the room almost warm, but only almost.

Keleero silently set to work on shaping a twisty smoke tunnel in the room's ceiling. The cave wasn't filled with smoke yet, but it would be if he didn't do something about it. Making a tunnel that let more air out than in was close to impossible, but he did his best to make the draft as small as possible without being useless as ventilation.


OOC: The stench of blood refers to the two deer being butchered by No-Sting and whoever else wants to have helped her. The butchering will be done in a minute (they've been at it for hours) but I'll give it a post or two more before No-Sting enters, for elves inside the cave to move about a bit first.

OoC: I assume Rokuta's player is still busy, so I will write Rokuta busy with something.

~*~

Badger had taken some time to fish with Rokuta, but eventually, they had returned to the cave with three fish, caught from the current. They were medium-sized, shiny-scaled things. The two had seen it better to gut them outside and leave the guts to the bond animals -- animals would get rid of the unwanted things. Badger returned just in time to hear something about smoke.

"Oh, smoke reminds me..." she said, "I think we could also prepare the fish by smoking it."
At this time, Rokuta had found something else to do, but Badger wanted to stay inside. She eyed around, looking for No-Sting -- there was something she wanted to ask the tuft-eared elf. "I mean, I eat fish raw, but the plainsrunners sometimes smoked their fish and meat ... I, uhhh..." Badger looked a little timid at the elves gathered, "I am not sure how they smoked their fish."

Keleero started as Tinder offered him water. "Oh, eh, thank you." He made no comment about her fire magic as she spoke of it. No reason to bring up bad blood. "It won't be much work to get some air tunnels. I'll just rest for a bit."

He took a seat by the fire, taking in the joy of sitting on a fur. The low number of them around the caves up until then had been a strong reminder of how lost they were. Keleero basked in this touch of civilazation.

Badger's question about fish called his attention away from the warmth of fur. "I know how to cook and preserve food in some ways. I can't promise it will taste great, but I do prefer my food...not raw." Hoping he hadn't insulted anyone, he hurried to follow that up with: "Tinder, you know fire. Do you know how to use it for cooking as well?"

At Juniper's comment about soil, Keleero frowned. "I'm not sure what more can be done. Is there a different between soil and soil?" He had no experience with gardening. The earth he'd shaped the new cave around seemed good enough, if cold and covered in snow, but maybe there was different kinds of soil?

Tinder sighed in relief when Keleero diplomatically avoided bringing up the sensitive topic of her magic. She was aware of her less than popular standing amidst the other elves. Tinder wouldn't apologise for her previous behaviour. She was proud after all, but she was willing to offer a helping hand until she found her feet. If Keleero was willing to be civil than she was willing to start anew too.

Tinder shrugged her shoulders when Keleero took a seat to rest. She was amused that he, despite his seeming anxiety over her firemagic, took so readily to sitting beside a fire. She supposed fire was less dangerous when it was merely sitting there burning in makeshift hearth. She smiled wryly, shoulders shrugging nonchalantly when Keleero tactfully talked about cooking.

Tinder wandered around to the far side of the fire. She cast another small piece of dried wood into the gently burning flames. "Subtle", teased Tinder. She glanced across the fire to Keleero. "Certainly. I know how to smoke for curing, roast for tenderness, poach for flavour and sweetness".

Tinder absent-mindedly passed her hand into the flames. She grasped one burning log, its bark black and spitting, as she rolled it over inside the fire, fearless despite the heat. She adjusted other pieces of burning firewood too, heedless of the danger, as the flames licked at her skin. "You won't need to eat meat or greens raw, Keleero. I like my food cooked too, though I can eat it raw too. I suppose that I just like the taste. It's sweeter and less bloody".

Tinder frowned when Keleero spoke of different types of soil. "Of course there is", she said patiently. "Water drains fast through sand, so nothing much save cactus and other desert plants grow well in it. Not much fertility. Clay soils hold water, but drain poorly, drowning a plant's roots. Silty soils are in between, usually being part sand and clay. Not ideal, but better than all sand or all clay soil". Tinder help up a finger. "Just because it looks like dirt, Keleero, doesn't mean that it's just dirt".

Juniper had fallen deep into thought, about the soil. There had been times, when they had passed the humans' settlements, in his old tribe. The tribe had been silent, kept themselves hidden, and watched. The long ones had sometimes cleared large patches of forest, burned them down -- he shivered at the thought -- and tossed seeds to the burnt and turned earth.
"I know sometimes the earth can't support plant growth. But have you seen how the saplings sprout --" his tone of voice got a bit more chilly, "-- after a forest fire?"

He pointed at the fire, then added: "I will need the ashes -- once the fire has died and cooled down, of course."

Choice took a seat next to Keleero with a grateful smile, happy to be acknowledged in anyone and still riding the high of fulfilled Recognition. "I do indeed. I've gotten quite good at making daggers and darts, though nothing bigger than that I'm afraid. Flint would be the best to work with, do we have anything like that?"

He looked around the room, both looking for an answer and particular face. "...has anyone seen Nettle?" Worry began to gnaw at his gut.

Tinder smiled for the first time in hours. The stunned look on Keleero's face was amusing, but she ignored the urge to laugh. She was still uncertain about her place amidst these elves. The previous night hadn't started off very well. "It's all right. Honestly", she said to Keleero. "I thought dirt was just dirt too, until my brother lectured me on the merits of growing medicines. Highones. I was red-faced for an eight of day before I dared mention 'dirt' to him again".

Tinder nodded at Reefshadow's suggestion. "It would be good, but not all of us can hold our breath that long or dive as deeply as you. Dirt is heavy. Waterlogged dirt is heaviest. It is a good idea, but until we know more about the terrain. It might be best to wait until later, Reefshadow. Let's see what the hunters find out, perhaps, before we plan any forays into the rivers. Just to be safe".

Tinder nodded solemnly when Juniper spoke of the fire and its ashes. She wasn't sure of this twitchy treeshaper, though she answered him quietly. "Certainly", she said gently. "The ashes have good nutrients. The potash is good for making soap too. Something I learned from a friend long ago". Her expression was sad as she remembered Coia. She did not tell Juniper that her friend was not an elf. Better to keep that a secret, indefinitely.

Tinder beamed when she saw Choice again. She acted spontaeneously, catching him in an ebullient hug. "Highones bless you!" she cried, laughing as she squeezed him tight. "A recognition, Choice! You're wonderful!" Tinder released him, her face wreathed with a smile, her green eyes twinkling merrily. "We will have a cub in the holt in two turns of the seasons! How exciting!" Tinder giggled to herself, utterly pleased. "You needn't worry. Nettle is with Sunset", she assured him. "She was determined to have her fed and watered". Tinder's smile waned a little, her happiness dimming like a fading light. "Sunset and I are not speaking. It is complicated, Choice. Nettle wanted to help".

Tinder smiled gratefully at Jaseio. She nodded. "Yes, Sunset was outside. Nettle will be with her now, I think". Tinder considered Jaseio's words. "Oh, of course", she replied. "There will be ashes aplenty. I'll set some aside for you too. Give me a little while. The fire will take some time to cool". Tinder's cheeks dimpled as she beamed again. The bubble of happiness in her belly spread through her limbs until her face glowed.

"I can help you, Jaseio. I was the tanner for my tribe too. It will be interesting comparing crafts. What do you think?" asked Tinder.

OOC: Power-post - LOL, I meant that I was trying to reply all at once to four different posts in my one post.  Kinda like power-walking.  I was fast reading through the separate posts and then spending time figuring out who to reply to first before I lost focus.  Thus I was power-posting, breathing hard, and giving myself an excercise in mental gymnastics.