
Number of People 21+: 5
Number of People 8-20: 0
Number of People 0-7: 0
Number of Animals: 0
Servings Needed: 5
Number of Seeds Allowed: 5
Next Visit to Ancestors: This post
Yemons: 50
Troy watched as Natalya and an Haiden left to hunt, fighting off the unease string in his stomach. Haiden was a nice enough guy, but he always seemed to be glued to Natalya's side, even outside of their shared duties. While he had no reason to distrust Natalya, he was not sure how much he could trust Haiden. Sure, he had been with them for a year or so, but the two of them had spoken markedly little for being two of only five people.
He shook off the feeling, and set off to find Blaire, Haiden's sister, and the closest thing to a best friend he had outside of Natalya. Plus, being Haiden's sister she was well suited to advise him on this specific problem. He tapped on the doorframe of the hut before pushing aside the moose hide that provided a little protection against the weather. The walls of the hut were lined with shelves, on which their few supplies were carefully packed. The meat and tallow from the moose, hare, and mutton Natalya and Haiden had brought back, as well as the corn, potatoes, and carrots his untrained eyes had managed to scavenge from the surrounding land. It wasn't much, but it was nourishing.
The other side of the hut held the few things they had managed to bring with them, or make. A flimsy bow, some traps made of moose sinew and willow branches, and several daggers. It was not much, but everyone was becoming more and more inventive as time went on, as evidenced by the traps Natalya had made of what many others had considered scraps.
Dragging his eyes away from the traps, he smiled at Blaire, who had been sharpening one of the daggers when he entered, "Hey, Blaire. Everything look up to snuff?"
"I'd say so, but Haiden still always forgets to fully clean his daggers when he comes home. I'll have to get Natalya to mention it to him, he insists I don't know what I'm talking about." She rolled her eyes in mild frustration, cleaning the dagger's edges on a scrap of sheepskin before placing it back in it's sheath and setting it with the others.
"That's, actually something I'd like to talk to you about." Troy hesitated, trying to put his words in order, "Do you..do you think Haiden thinks highly of Natalya?"
Blaire looked up sharply, sensing the unease in his voice, "I would say so, as a hunter at least. But now that you mention it, he has been skipping dinner with me more often and giving excuses of helping her with some chore or other."
"Hmm." Troy mused, "I mean, that is the truth. I'm normally helping her with it as well, and they are normally chores that require only four hands, if you understand me."
"I do," Blaire mused, "If it is any consolation, she never seems very eager to see him. It is fully one sided. But still, unfortunate as they do have to work together."
Troy pursed his lips, mulling over his options, "I suppose there's no real solution at the moment, is there?"
Not necessarily," Blaire cautioned, "I think we may have some luck if we can encourage him to spend time with Veasna. And I know you mentioned you were planning on proposing soon."
"I was," Troy agreed, "But I don't want it to seem that I am proposing to fend him off."
Blaire scoffed, "You think Haiden applies that much critical thought to the actions of others? No, I would do it. You planned to do it in what, a week? No point putting it off because my brother cannot get his head on straight."
"Fair enough," Troy admitted, "This is why I'm always glad to have you Blaire, even if your brother is a pain."
"No more to anyone than to me," Blaire chuckled, "Now you worry about finishing the preparations for your proposal, and I'll manage my brother. Veasna were going to take a picnic lunch to the lake in a day or so anyway, I'll drag Haiden with us."
~~~
The first rays of the sun had just barely escaped from between the mountains when Troy was already up, his bedroll quickly cooling in the morning chill. It would be hours yet till Natalya reached over to find his spot empty. He had much to do, and needed all the time he could get.
The camp was silent as he slipped out, collecting one of the tanned sheepskins as he slipped out. The peaceful hum of birds and insects was shattered by a whispered, "Morning."
Troy jumped what felt like a mile, whirling to face the sound, the sheepskin brandished in front of him.
Blaire looked at the bundle of fluff, then up at Troy with bemusement, "Oh no, my allergies. You've fended me off brave warrior!"
"What have you been doing awake?" Troy hissed, pulling Blaire away from the little camp.
"When you said you were getting up at sunrise to start the flower garlands, I knew you wouldn't have enough time. Especially since you've never made one before. I've been up for maybe an hour collecting the fresh flowers for you, they're all in bowls of water at the moment and should start blooming any time now. I hope you managed to make that needle after all?"
"It took like ten tries, but I have two of them, incase one breaks." Troy murmured, smiling at the thought of how lovely the garlands would be strung up in the willows by the lake.
"It'll only break if you're rough with it," Blaire whispered back, "Plus, you still need to weave the arch from the willow wands, and you can't take them from the trees we're putting the garlands in, you'll have to take them from the other cluster across the lake. That'll take longer than you think, so give the needles to me and I'll handle the garlands."
"Are you sure? I don't want you feeling like you have to do everything, I can manage it." Troy insisted, digging out a folded piece of sheepskin and handing it to Blaire.
"Oh don't worry, you'll still have plenty to do." Blaire laughed, taking the needles, "I'm just helping you get it all done on time, now get out of here and get twice as many willow wands as you think you'll need."
~~~
"Haiden, I really don't have time today." Natalya brushed past the other hunter, materials for the new batch of traps balanced precariously in her arms, "I have to get these sorted before lunch with Troy, which is very soon."
"Oh, why do you always spend so much time with Troy?" Haiden huffed, "It's almost like he doesn't want you to have friends or something."
Natalya shot him a venomous glare, "That's quite enough of that. You know as well as I do that he doesn't care who my friends are, plus there's only five of us. And on top of that, I spend so much time with him because he's my boyfriend. Do you have an issue with that?"
"Oh, come on Natty, you know I didn't mean it like that."
"Natalya."
"I'm sorry?" Haiden glanced at her in confusion, unsure what he had said wrong.
"My name is Natalya, not Natty." The Hunting Chief tossed her honey gold hair out of her face and glowered at Haiden.
"Troy calls you Nat all the time, what's the issue?" Haiden attempted to offer a casual smile, but halted upon seeing her expression.
"The issue is you seem to have forgotten that I am your boss. I am in charge of you. You do not get to dictate how I spend my time, have an opinion on my relationships, or refer to me in ways I deem inappropriate. I like you Haiden, you're driven and talented. But you are also stubborn and cannot take a hint. I. Am. Not. Interested in you. And I never will be." She paused to take a breath and tuck her hair our of her face, "Now if you will excuse me, I am going to go sort these materials. Alone."
Haiden stared in shock as she walked off, confusion written clearly all over his face. He was still standing frozen to the spot when Natalya emerged from the storage hut and went to meet Troy, who was waiting for her at the edge of camp with a wicker basket.
~~~
"What was that all about?" Troy whispered, taking Natalya's hand in his.
She rolled her eyes, "I've been trying to gently get Haiden to leave me alone for weeks, and he just refuses to take a hint. So I had to spell it out."
Troy released a breath he did not realize he was holding and smiled, "Well, at least it's over with."
"Thank goodness for that," Natalya agreed, leaning into him to try to peer into the basket, "What did you end up packing for lunch?"
Troy quickly shifted the basket to his other hand, "Oh, you'll find out. I think you'll like it."
Natalya playfully pushed him, "Oh, don't be a spoilsport, what is it? I've been waiting for a week for you to tell me."
"Then I'm sure you can wait a few more minutes can't you?" Troy teased back, "The willows aren't far, come on."
~~~
"Troy...." Natalya was speechless when they rounded the bend. The willows were bright with light colored flowers, the branches dripping with coils and coils of blooms. The arch, perfectly between the two largest trees and framing a view of the crystal clear lake, was interwoven with the largest of the blooms, the stems twisting among the willow wands into a thick blanket of green, studded with bright yellows and purples and pinks. "When did you...?"
She turned to look at him, and he smiled, "This morning, it's why I asked you to sort the new supplies."
"I wondered, you normally like to handle that," Natalya murmured, looking back at the sight in wonder, "But..this is lovely, but it seem a bit much just for a lunch don't you think?"
"You're right as always," Troy's voice shook a little, and Natalya turned to measure him, but froze at what she saw. Troy was on one knee, holding a woven box filled with sheepskin. Perched in the center was a dark oakwood ring, polished to perfection, with a thin maplewood inlay that sat in the very center. The ring was delicate, yet clearly thick enough to withstand decades of wear.
"Natalya, will," Troy's voice caught in his throat, but it didn't matter. Natalya threw herself at him, hugging him so tightly he could barely breathe.
"Of course I will Troy!" She exclaimed, half sobbing in her excitement, "I was afraid you would never ask me, of course of course I will!"
[ Verander has three fasting posts left ]
[ Natalya and Haiden hunt ]
[ Troy attempts to gather food ]
[ Blaire patrols the borders ]
[ Veasna goes on a scouting patrol ]
[ Troy asks the ancestors to send a new villager ]
[ Verander claims X2 gold jewelry, 35 servings of food and 14 random materials from the advent through day 16 ]
[ Notes: Verander villagers only have natural hair, skin, and eye colors, and are all shapeshifters ]
[ Verander is being transfered from the site to CS, this is their first CS post ]
- Head Chief
Troy Verander | Male | 24
↪ Shifts: Guinea Pig, Hawk, Brown Bear
Shaman
Name | Gender | Age | Knowledge Points
↪ N/A
War Chief
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Warriors
Blaire Rocans | Female | 22
↪ Shifts: Mouse, Badger, Puma
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Scout Chief
Veasna Griffith | Female | 23
↪ Shifts: Vole, Sparrow, Coyote
Scouts
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Hunting Chief
Natalya Grosh | Female | 23
↪ Shifts: Deer, Fox, Wolf
Hunters
Haiden Rocans | Male | 24
↪ Shifts: Quail, Hare, Wolf
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Gathering Chief
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Gatherers
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Apprentices
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Testers
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Caregivers
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Children
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Elders
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Name | Gender | Age
↪ N/A
Ally Villages
Village Name | Username
Village Name | Username
Enemy Villages
Village Name | Username
Village Name | Username
Border Villages
North | Village Name | Username
East | Village Name | Username
South | Village Name | Username
West | Village Name | Username
Food Storage
Mutton | 2 | 3 servings
Hare | 1 | 1 servings
Moose | 1 | 10 servings
Venison | 0 | 6 servings
Corn | 1 | 4 servings
Potato | 1 | 3 servings
Carrots | 2 | 3 servings
Strawberries | 0 | 1 servings
Apples | 0 | 2 servings
Cherries | 0 | 1 servings
Item Storage
Item Name | amount | uses left/craftable
Item Name | amount | uses left/craftable
Pets
Name | Gender | Age | Type | # of times bred | [url=link]Looks[/url]
Name | Gender | Age | Type | # of times bred | [url=link]Looks[/url]
Mentors
Mentor | Apprentice | Profession | No. of training sessions
Mentor | Apprentice | Profession | No. of training sessions
Deceased
Name | Cause of Death
Name | Cause of Death
Family
Name and Name | Kids
Name and Name | Kids
Village Name | Username
Village Name | Username
Enemy Villages
Village Name | Username
Village Name | Username
Border Villages
North | Village Name | Username
East | Village Name | Username
South | Village Name | Username
West | Village Name | Username
Food Storage
Mutton | 2 | 3 servings
Hare | 1 | 1 servings
Moose | 1 | 10 servings
Venison | 0 | 6 servings
Corn | 1 | 4 servings
Potato | 1 | 3 servings
Carrots | 2 | 3 servings
Strawberries | 0 | 1 servings
Apples | 0 | 2 servings
Cherries | 0 | 1 servings
Item Storage
Item Name | amount | uses left/craftable
Item Name | amount | uses left/craftable
Pets
Name | Gender | Age | Type | # of times bred | [url=link]Looks[/url]
Name | Gender | Age | Type | # of times bred | [url=link]Looks[/url]
Mentors
Mentor | Apprentice | Profession | No. of training sessions
Mentor | Apprentice | Profession | No. of training sessions
Deceased
Name | Cause of Death
Name | Cause of Death
Family
Name and Name | Kids
Name and Name | Kids