Hotaru's offer was as generous as her heart, and Kel opened his mouth to decline on habit, shying away from the thought of taking charity. But... she was also a friend. One of the few he could claim on this world, and he could tell that she meant her words. He closed his mouth and swallowed, then nodded with a hesitant smile. "I... I'll take you up on that. If you'll let me pay you back in meat and hides," he added impulsively, not wanting to take advantage of her kindness without showing how much he appreciated it, and offering the only coin a poor hunter had.
She wasn't the only one facing heart problems after his near fall. He was used to scampering around in tall trees, and the occasional slips and accidents that happened high up in their branches, but always before the winds had answered his call and lowered him gently to the ground. The little breeze that followed him about now might have been obedient but it lacked the strength to do anything so meaningful, and he was both frightened and subdued by his near miss as he nodded, dry-mouthed and shaky, at Hotaru's question. He was okay... but it had been a far closer thing than he wanted to think about.
The house was taking shape between the three of them, small but cozy high up in the tree, and sturdy enough to withstand anything the mighty forest giant itself could. Sam's willingness to take on the finger-twisting weaving and Hotaru's quick thinking at using her size to their advantage brought the smile back to the hunter's eyes as he nodded eagerly. "I can show you," he agreed toSamuel 's offer, and went to the pile of cut palm leaves, demonstrating how to take their stems and loop them over the pole and back through a slit near the leaf's base, anchoring them into place and laying them close together to overlap and keep out the rain. Much to his surprise, Sam caught on fast and was soon working away in the shade. The red head's hopes paid off, the task going smoothly and, if anything, at a better than average clip as he made each pole of fronds sturdy and thick.
Kel needed to get the roofing frames in place before Hotaru could affix the poles to them, but his earlier near-fall had left him shaky and unstable. Where once he had scampered fearless and free around the structure, now he moved with hesitance and an overabundance of caution. Several times he slipped, luckily only falling a few feet to the tree house floor, and picking himself back up with raw determination to finish the job. It was... not a particularly good job, the roof frame constructed poorly from his lack of confidence and too-timid hammering. He would be lucky if it lasted more than a season before needing to be reframed.
For now, though, it was (just barely) strong enough to support Hotaru 's weight as the crisneia poles were hoisted up the pulley to her waiting hands, to be fitted over the roof frame. For her, slow and steady did the trick, the job facing no major obstacles but being accomplished with no particular flair, either. Efficient, effective, and, eventually complete. The tree house had a floor and walls and a roof, with windows that could be open for ventilation or shuttered against bad weather.
"I know it's getting late," Kel admitted as the shadows were lengthening in the jungle in the jungle around them, though light lingered high up in the trees where they were. "And if you want to leave now I understand. I'll owe you - in meat, or hides or future favors. The last thing I wanted to get done today was to make it a bit more... well, comfortable, if you feel like staying. I thought maybe a table or two, or some counters anchored to the walls. A couple chairs..." He trailed off sheepishly. "And maybe hanging a curtain or two to divide the space into rooms. It's just me, so it doesn't need to be anything fancy."
You can leave now if you want, having accomplished three rounds OR you can stay for the bonus round ;D
1. Hanging curtains to divide the space up
2. Building a table and chairs
3. Building shelves
No post order! Almost done!
She wasn't the only one facing heart problems after his near fall. He was used to scampering around in tall trees, and the occasional slips and accidents that happened high up in their branches, but always before the winds had answered his call and lowered him gently to the ground. The little breeze that followed him about now might have been obedient but it lacked the strength to do anything so meaningful, and he was both frightened and subdued by his near miss as he nodded, dry-mouthed and shaky, at Hotaru's question. He was okay... but it had been a far closer thing than he wanted to think about.
The house was taking shape between the three of them, small but cozy high up in the tree, and sturdy enough to withstand anything the mighty forest giant itself could. Sam's willingness to take on the finger-twisting weaving and Hotaru's quick thinking at using her size to their advantage brought the smile back to the hunter's eyes as he nodded eagerly. "I can show you," he agreed to
Kel needed to get the roofing frames in place before Hotaru could affix the poles to them, but his earlier near-fall had left him shaky and unstable. Where once he had scampered fearless and free around the structure, now he moved with hesitance and an overabundance of caution. Several times he slipped, luckily only falling a few feet to the tree house floor, and picking himself back up with raw determination to finish the job. It was... not a particularly good job, the roof frame constructed poorly from his lack of confidence and too-timid hammering. He would be lucky if it lasted more than a season before needing to be reframed.
For now, though, it was (just barely) strong enough to support Hotaru 's weight as the crisneia poles were hoisted up the pulley to her waiting hands, to be fitted over the roof frame. For her, slow and steady did the trick, the job facing no major obstacles but being accomplished with no particular flair, either. Efficient, effective, and, eventually complete. The tree house had a floor and walls and a roof, with windows that could be open for ventilation or shuttered against bad weather.
"I know it's getting late," Kel admitted as the shadows were lengthening in the jungle in the jungle around them, though light lingered high up in the trees where they were. "And if you want to leave now I understand. I'll owe you - in meat, or hides or future favors. The last thing I wanted to get done today was to make it a bit more... well, comfortable, if you feel like staying. I thought maybe a table or two, or some counters anchored to the walls. A couple chairs..." He trailed off sheepishly. "And maybe hanging a curtain or two to divide the space into rooms. It's just me, so it doesn't need to be anything fancy."
You can leave now if you want, having accomplished three rounds OR you can stay for the bonus round ;D
1. Hanging curtains to divide the space up
2. Building a table and chairs
3. Building shelves
No post order! Almost done!
