Cylus 17, 719
Auya crawled out of the tent she shared with Laramy and his family. It was early still, and cold. Terrible time to be working, but she wanted to have everything done this cycle. That meant dealing with some frigid weather. Laramy was a bit gruff this early, his wife and kids were sleeping in, as usual. Spirits were high though, for today started the proper building of their home. It was the agreement she made in exchange for them accompanying her on this move, in exchange for Laramy becoming her business partner. The first place to be built would be his family's home.
And Auya was more than okay with that. The kids deserved a place to sleep and play that was warm and comfortable, Gerty deserved a sanctuary for when her panic attacks got to be too much. Their house came first, then Auya's new workshop, then her home, and then finally her shop for selling goods. She had ideas for things beyond that, but for now, one thing at a time.
Laramy offered her a skin of old, cold tea. It was too early for breakfast, Gerty would make that later. Auya and Laramy were always up and working before that. Auya drank it down, ignoring the deep bitterness of it. It wasn't good, but it had that morning kick that the two of them craved. She took her half, Laramy finished it off. She looked around at their clearing, all the trees in the area she wanted to build on had been felled, all the stumps pulled, the foundation carved into the natural stone of the area. It was nice, his house would be built on effectively one large, solid rock. The metal poles for supporting the logs were in place.
Their lumber was laying in sorted piles, all cut down to workable sizes. They had thick boards, slotted logs, thick square posts, so many different types they thought they might need. And Laramy was insistent on a log cabin type house. That was fine by Auya. She'd need to preserve some of the wood for the floor of workshop and for miscellaneous use in her main shop, but most of it was going to Laramy's house. That meant she was happy to build it as big as he needed.
Once Laramy grunted, signaling he was awake enough to get to work, Auya smiled. "Right, let's get to it." She rolled up the sleeves of her working dress, and walked over to the first pile of logs. These were the sill logs, the biggest logs, hewn in half. They still needed to carve the holes in them to fit to the poles. But first was moving them.
Auya moved to the first one, Laramy at the opposite end, they were a coordinated team after all these trials of felling and carving together. They bent at the knees, two breaths, and on the third, the lifted together. Laramy was stronger than Auya, but she was no slouch. She grunted under the strain, keeping a good grip under the heavy half-log. She let Laramy lead the way, and she followed as the tail. They moved slow, knowing better than to get in a hurry. This was his home, it had to be right, not rushed.
The first log was deposited next to the foundation pins, and they returned for the rest. Soon, all the sill logs were in place, and the rest of the family was waking. Break time. Gerty got a fire going, and the kids chased each other around laughing. The smell of bacon and eggs and coffee filled the air, and even though cold, it was pleasant. There wasn't much talking going on, nor was it needed. This was their morning ritual.
Auya heard some horses and carts on the nearby road, leading from Mistral to the other villages, and the kids were playing down at the riverfront, hollering about seeing a boat. Auya sipped at the dark, bitter coffee, waiting on breakfast to finish, sitting on her own log around the campfire. Laramy sat upon his log, watching his wife with the eyes of a man who fell in love with her every morning he woke up next to her. And she looked back at him with just as much affection.
Auya broke the peace, "Ready for a proper kitchen, Gerty?"
The woman smiled, "Of course. Though cooking on a fire like this is nice too."
Smiling, "Once my forge is built, I'll get make you a nice big stove."
Gerty's smile broadened. She'd always been a city girl, so she wasn't used to roughing it like this. But she had high hopes it would all work out. And their little camp settle back into its peace as they waited for breakfast to be finished.
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