Althea couldn't believe it when the howling stopped. All was silent, save for the unearthly songs of winters whistling breaths, tapping at the door. It was with breathless relief that she leaped up to greet her strange guardians, returned from the hunt.

They each took to bed without voice, exhausted from the night's battle and the work they had to do in preventing another. She was once more left alone in the quiet of the cabin. A thankful prayer slipped past her lips as she settled back onto the stool. Tending the fires once more, as she'd done all night. Heating the metal poker in case a weapon was needed, And to keep the light and warmth from dying for when the hosts returned.

She let herself breathe again, and felt her tiredness. stifling a yawn, she let Fear try and keep her awake, in suspicion of treachery. But Fear was sound asleep, worn out from clamoring against the Wolves. She felt her eyes drop like stones, sinking her into the dark pond of rest. The Danger was over, for now, she was warm and safe, warm and safe, at last. At long last.

She was already asleep when the figure of a man lifted a heavy bear pelt, wrapping it around her, before wandering off himself and diving into a dream of his own.

Filled with the tones of bells and sweet names whispered, a promise to keep, someday.

It was deep into the morning by the time anyone felt like rising. Tolan groaned as he awoke to the cold air of the humble cabin. He cast aside the blankets and grumbled for a bit.

He thought about kicking Vir awake but thought better of it. They'd need him in a good mood if they wanted to be ready for the long drive ahead of them.

He groaned at some of the claw marks left by last night's incursion, the small marks itched in places and he winced to touch them. He threw on a shirt and fumbled about from his boots.

He waded through the malting snow, Autumn's last coals of warmth flaring up once more after the harsh winds of Winter, and sat down on the outhouse seat to relieve himself of a different burden.

Finishing his business, he stood to pull up his pants and felt cold hands grasp his skin. He rose, startled, and then let out a sight, it was his cold hand that had touched him and not some stranger. He sighed again and stood to leave. He had much work to do this morning and not much time to do it.

Wandering back into the house he passed the fireplace and shared a startling moment with their guest, flushing a harsh red as Tolan ran off to the bedroom. Returning to with proper attire, she still largely avoided him for the rest of the day.

Vir was up later and joined Tolan in working, the animals needed to be fed in preparation for their planned leaving. They also had to finish securing the fence and clearing the area of debris from around the area. Several trees had been toppled by the Fires, knocking down others at the edge. Some could be used, others were charred beyond use in places.

They stopped for breakfast, a simple stew made from preserved jerky and dried vegetables and some small loaves of bread, and started once more.

They had to move and cut the logs to planks for storage for when the spring came around and sales would be needed. Just because they had a long trip ahead of them, didn't mean the work didn't need to be done. The saw moved to its familiar rhythm of back and forth as they burned through as many of the tall masts of wood and bit into the stockpile that had been set aside beforehand,

They were forced to make the boards by hand instead of sending them to a mill, the only river with a current strong enough to turn the wheel was the Blue Horn river, and that had been the lair of the Prawn, and they were still trying to rebuild after it collapsed during the fighting. So they worked to carve each fallen tree into a flattened plank, by hand.

The village carpenters could smooth the rough spots out since delivered, but Tolan gave a certain pride in taking that burden away from them. It spoke to his workman's pride.

He and Vir threw another board back onto the pile, the work was back-breaking but the moments kept them warm in the fading heat of the cool air. Vir raised his voice.

"Tolan? Why are we doing this? I thought we would need our strength for the journey? Why are we splitting logs and leveling planks? We'll have time for this later when we return."

Tolan sighed "Because Vir, the work must be done, Homes will need to be rebuilt and restored. We have our Work, we must do it. That is all."

"Making planks on the Eve of Winter? Where is the sense in that? We might as well try and sell the warped branches we find. The Logs can survive the winter. Planks will twist and bend. What good will that be? Were not making boats here!"

Tolan sighed, all this complaining. It's not like they hadn't done this before. Throw up a shed and use it to keep the wood dry through the winter while they worked. They were only a handful of lumbermen who worked this Mountain, so the village wouldn't be starved for wood. But to work this hard was simply a part of him, he couldn't imagine life otherwise.

He looked to the sky for guidance and then turned to give his answer. "We'll finish this set, and put the rest in the sheds. We'll then get the sleds together for our journey to Serpents Bend. We'll have the rest of Winter to finish work here, then we can launch into the spring season ready for the next haul. It won't take long to finish our task in Town. We should only lose a week's worth of daylight."

Both Tolan and Vir huffed at that verdict, but it couldn't be helped. Time was Time, and it would take time to travel to and back from the Serpents Bend. Nothing would change that, except good weather and a quick advance.

A scent of smoke drifted along with the air as they glanced about. Tolan looked a bit surprised and Vir gave a relieved smile. "It seems our Guest, has decided to prepare lunch," Tolan grumbled, Vir laughed and clapped him on the back. "I wonder if it's better than yours, cause I might try to keep her if I can." Tolan scoffed. "She has her home, and it's not here. Besides, You can't do anything without something going wrong, imagine how it would feel getting nagged in a foreign language, or insulted?"

Vir gave a cheeky grin "But If I can't understand her, Then It'll never bother me!"

Tolan huffed "Yeah, but she could call you any name she likes and you'd be a fool for not knowing the difference. You'd be the biggest laughing stock in two countries!"

Vir frowned " I hadn't thought of that."

"Of course, you didn't, now, let us indulge in some of this lady's strange cooking."