12th of Cylus, Arc 719
It was the fishing gear, more than anything else Praetorum had brought, that turned out to be the most helpful. All of the adult survivors of the storm were at least adequate hunters, but one, a bijaq nicknamed Tess, was an accomplished fisherman to boot. On the first trial she went out fishing, she brought back a brace of small fish, each filled to the brim with tiny eggs; on the second, she brought back what looked like an over large leaf, but turned out to be a flatfish of some sort. And on the third trial...
"She's been gone a while." Rorik muttered, worrying at his bottom lip.
"It's only been a few breaks." Kira told him, setting up a cooking fire on the damp sand. The nature of the tidal marsh meant that they could only cook during low tide, which in turn meant that Tess had to go quite a bit further to find a suitable fishing spot. It was less dangerous than hunting the various animals and monsters of Maiden's Refuge, but still risky.
Praetorum said nothing, busy plucking a heron one of the others had caught. Most of the children were still inside the ship, playing or napping, but a couple were hovering around as the adults prepared dinner. Allie and her brother Tony were working on the other wing, plucking out feathers one by one, occasionally throwing them at each other. Derry, the part Avriel boy, was also sitting with them, although he'd declined to help pluck the bird, his own feathers fluffing up at the thought.
"I'm just saying, if she doesn't show up by the time we're done, maybe...." Rorik trailed off.
"If she doesn't show up. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
"Do you really think Tess might not come back?" Derry asked, staring up at Praetorum with worried wide eyes.
"She did say she wanted to catch a lot of fish this time, that's probably why she's taking so long." He assured the boy. "We don't have to worry yet."
It was a bit of a hopeless platitude. Asking Derry not to worry was like asking the sun not to rise—it did happen, but only very rarely. So under Praetorum's watchful eye, the boy worried as Kira finally started the fire, as Praetorum finished preparing the heron to roast, as they set the bird on the fire.
By the time the bird was done cooking, even Kira was starting to get concerned. "It's been too long." She muttered, carving the bird into pieces for everyone. "After we're done—"
A voice called out from the trees, interrupting her. "Sorry I'm late, spent ages fighting with this absolutely massive trout."
An indistinct figure appeared in the shadow of the trees, and Derry leaped to his feet. "Tess!" He cried out, and barreled towards the figure.
"Derry, wait!" Praetorum scrambled to his feet, chasing after the boy. He hadn't forgotten Kira's warning, that some of the creatures in this place could mimic common. The boy went charging through the trees, shoving away foliage, nearly tripping over a patch of mushrooms as he made a beeline for the shadow.
Praetorum put on a burst of speed, scooping up the boy in one arm while the other pointed his scythe towards—
—a very surprised looking Tess, holding a huge fish in both arms. Derry wiggled out of his grip as Praetorum breathed out a sigh of relief, and threw himself at the woman. "We were worried you wouldn't come back!" He wailed, as Praetorum herded them back towards the safety of the fire.
There was a lot of scolding as the trout cooked, and Derry very sheepishly promised not to run off again before wedging himself as close to Tess as he could. "He's very attached to her." Praetorum noted to Kira, popping a crisp fin into his mouth.
"Mhm. They got close on the journey here. I think she's planning on taking him. Mentioned something about her partner wanting a child for a while."
Praetorum glanced over at Tess, looking fondly down at the boy under her arm as he picked at his food. "You're probably right." He smiled at that. "Best of luck to them."
"She's been gone a while." Rorik muttered, worrying at his bottom lip.
"It's only been a few breaks." Kira told him, setting up a cooking fire on the damp sand. The nature of the tidal marsh meant that they could only cook during low tide, which in turn meant that Tess had to go quite a bit further to find a suitable fishing spot. It was less dangerous than hunting the various animals and monsters of Maiden's Refuge, but still risky.
Praetorum said nothing, busy plucking a heron one of the others had caught. Most of the children were still inside the ship, playing or napping, but a couple were hovering around as the adults prepared dinner. Allie and her brother Tony were working on the other wing, plucking out feathers one by one, occasionally throwing them at each other. Derry, the part Avriel boy, was also sitting with them, although he'd declined to help pluck the bird, his own feathers fluffing up at the thought.
"I'm just saying, if she doesn't show up by the time we're done, maybe...." Rorik trailed off.
"If she doesn't show up. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
"Do you really think Tess might not come back?" Derry asked, staring up at Praetorum with worried wide eyes.
"She did say she wanted to catch a lot of fish this time, that's probably why she's taking so long." He assured the boy. "We don't have to worry yet."
It was a bit of a hopeless platitude. Asking Derry not to worry was like asking the sun not to rise—it did happen, but only very rarely. So under Praetorum's watchful eye, the boy worried as Kira finally started the fire, as Praetorum finished preparing the heron to roast, as they set the bird on the fire.
By the time the bird was done cooking, even Kira was starting to get concerned. "It's been too long." She muttered, carving the bird into pieces for everyone. "After we're done—"
A voice called out from the trees, interrupting her. "Sorry I'm late, spent ages fighting with this absolutely massive trout."
An indistinct figure appeared in the shadow of the trees, and Derry leaped to his feet. "Tess!" He cried out, and barreled towards the figure.
"Derry, wait!" Praetorum scrambled to his feet, chasing after the boy. He hadn't forgotten Kira's warning, that some of the creatures in this place could mimic common. The boy went charging through the trees, shoving away foliage, nearly tripping over a patch of mushrooms as he made a beeline for the shadow.
Praetorum put on a burst of speed, scooping up the boy in one arm while the other pointed his scythe towards—
—a very surprised looking Tess, holding a huge fish in both arms. Derry wiggled out of his grip as Praetorum breathed out a sigh of relief, and threw himself at the woman. "We were worried you wouldn't come back!" He wailed, as Praetorum herded them back towards the safety of the fire.
There was a lot of scolding as the trout cooked, and Derry very sheepishly promised not to run off again before wedging himself as close to Tess as he could. "He's very attached to her." Praetorum noted to Kira, popping a crisp fin into his mouth.
"Mhm. They got close on the journey here. I think she's planning on taking him. Mentioned something about her partner wanting a child for a while."
Praetorum glanced over at Tess, looking fondly down at the boy under her arm as he picked at his food. "You're probably right." He smiled at that. "Best of luck to them."