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Jewel strolls along with the group, heading for the pond. "Right. The people from underground caused the pit. Then they closed it and we filled the pit with water. Well, it was our idea, and we did some of the work. But really, Bruihu probably did at least as much of the work as we did. He's really nice and helpful. I like it when he stops by. But we know he's busy. He doesn't stop by much."
Jewel is surprised by the response. She answers, "Not entirely. The was a blast, like an explosion with dust in the air. When we went to see what happened there was huge pit and a lady drider there. And there were a couple of dwarves that also climbed out. Well, the lady drider didn't want to leave the hole open to their city. They closed it at the bottom. There wasn't dirt in the area to refill the hole, so we worked to redirect some water from the river to fill the hole. And another channel from the hole back to the river so the water in the pond wouldn't be stagnant. Bruihu helped a lot with digging the channels. Do you know him?" "Why? You sound upset."
"Party crashers? Zephyrus invited us, and then told us there'd be someone, you I assume, that might be able to train us?" "I guess he didn't realize how bad I was with the pipes. But we didn't crash." "Hey. Do you like to swim? We built a really nice small pond, and got some of the guys to build a floating dock for jumping, and a swing for diving in to the water." She pauses a moment, then adds, "The pond was to cover a pit into the underground where some drow live."
Jewel wants to take offense to how she had been told to practice where she wouldn't be heard.... But, she had made some rather offensive sounds with the pan flute. Even to her own ears. She has to stifle laughter to Tarjun's question. She does smile and quietly replies, "Birds and bees, flowers and trees." "Wearing clothes and hiding in dark rooms to make babies? I think the adults refer to it as 'civilization'. And no, you aren't 'the weirdos'! Our parents really wouldn't have seen it as appropriate for us to be there. We aren't adults.... So I wonder if we should be getting back home. Tarjun, What did you actually tell our parents that we were doing?"
"Er.... OK. But where can I practice that Zephyrus won't hear me and be insulted? I can't get better if I can't practice. And I'm pretty terrible so I need practice."
Jewel accepts the pan flute back but her face brightens with the question. "Well, we're hear because we need help. And obviously I need more than just about anyone." "We want to be able to play music. And Zephyrus?" She hopes that she is saying the name correctly. No need to add more insults! "He said that a really good music instructor here might be able to help us. I know we can't ever be as good as you. But I'd like to be a little less terrible!?!" "I'd like to be able to play with my familiar. but she doesn't even like the sounds that I make...." She mentally calls Chirp down to her shoulder. "See? She was keeping her distance until I stopped." She activates her feral speech hex. "Sorry I play so poorly. I'm asking the girl here to help.
Jewel stops and hides the little instrument. "I'm sorry. It's not the flute. It's me. I just don't know how to play it! Tarjun is better. He's played for people before. He actually got some to pay him money for his music."
Jewel sits down nervously and takes out the Pan flute that Tarjun had made. "I'll try. But I just got this today and never played any music before...."
She stops after barely more than a few notes. "Tarjun is much better. Not as good as you though."
Jewel scrambles to her feet and quickly follows after Tarjun. They'd been offended by his music? What chance did she have, unless she got really lucky and 'accidentally played the right notes.... "I'm coming!"
Jewel grits her teeth at Clara's comments. Hadn't she ever watched a birth? They both lived on farms and there were animals other than just the chickens. And even the chickens.... The hens sometimes struggled to pass an egg! Jewel had watched lots of wild animals and assumed it was similar for humans. Considering the size of a human baby it couldn't be easy or painless.... She glances at Gertrud but just keeps her mouth shut. They were too little to get pregnant, now. but they were too close to be so clueless! With the invite to shed clothing Jewel gets more uncomfortable. She looks around at the fey creatures, nymphs and others and sits down quietly. She does reach for a couple of the ripe fruits, but only just barely nibbles. Looking at Tarjun she sees that he isn't quite so reserved. Maybe she should leave so he could enjoy the nymphs? Had he actually told their parents? What had he actually told their parents? She realizes that she has very little appetite.
Jewel hears the discussion, the subject is.... "Pregnant? No! But we're just little.... That's not possible. I've seen the animals. But we're not adult! Um. Maybe we shouldn't?"
Jewel walks along with Mrs. Johnson. ”Tarjun told our parents. I was trying to get Clara to put her pants back on. She, uh, well she said that she wasn’t going to be oppressed by cultural norms anymore and to free the butts from the tyranny of pants. She glances ahead at Clara. ”I’m not sure what she meant. She’s not normally….” ”Reason? Well, Zephyrus said he was going to introduce us to someone that teaches kids how to play the pipes. I tried…. Well, I wasn’t any good, but I told him I had just started learning. He played his pipes. It was, enchanting!?! I mean really good! And he said there was a celebration in the woods.” ”Is he a Satyr? He says he’s a faun. Are fauns dangerous? He seems friendly.”
Jewel slows down when she realizes that she isn't going to catch Clara and get her to put her pants back on. She continues following her, watching to try and keep her out of trouble. She's tempted to throw her pants in a mud puddle, but doesn't see one.... "Zephyrus? How far is it to your party? We need to wait for Tarjun.... I think I see him. ??" In the distance she also notices Clara's parents. Should she warn Clara? Suggest that she get dressed? Hmm.... "Hi Mrs. Johnson, Mr. Johnson. Um. Here. I couldn't stop Clara to get her to put these back on. She's, that way." She just points.
Jewel grabs Clara's pants and chases after her. "Clara! Put your pants back on. You shouldn't be running around like that in front of Tarjun, or Zephyrus. What would your mother think!?!" Jewel calls back to Zephyrus, "We probably should tell our parents before we go wandering off in the woods. If we get lost again and don't return for several days they'd be upset. Tarjun? Can you go tell them, and Mrs. Johnson. I've gotta catch Clara before she runs over to the lumberjacks and embarrasses herself in from of Jack!" "Clara! You can't go flying away half-naked!"
Jewel feels a tug to do something totally wrong for her. She struggles with the impulse but stops before she embarrassed herself. "Good to meet you Zephyrus. Are you traveling? We've never seen you, or any of your kind before." "Tarjun is right. That music was great. It did sound almost like there were more players than just you. Do you teach how to play the pipes?"
Jewel steps in front of Tarjun hoping to stop any trouble. "Tarjun! Stop. We don't know him. Maybe that's normal for him.... You don't always wear a shirt. And clothing over fur might be strange."
Not recognizing the voice Jewel spins around. Obviously holding the pipes she just looks at the strange, man? "Ah. Me? I'm trying to learn how to play them. My brother just made them for me, but I'm afraid.... I mean, obviously I need time to learn them." Assuming the creature is magical, since he just 'appeared', Jewel loses a bit of her concern. "I'm Jewel. My brother there is Tarjun. And our friend is Clara. What should we call you?"
"Are you a Satyr?"
Jewel listens to Tarjun's tune with a wary glance at her pipes. She considers the different pitches with Tarjun's finger positions. Maybe?
She has trouble keeping up but doesn't get too many notes wrong. Chirp joins in, matching Jewels performance.... "Chirp. Sing to match Tarjun's music. I'm just learning so I'm making mistakes...."
Jewel watches as Tarjun carves the pipes. At first she's curious, but gets bored after a while. She glances over at Clara, surprised that she was patiently waiting. Maybe she really did want to make music? But the drum wouldn't be musical.... It was more for keeping time. Wasn't there a drum that made different pitch sounds? When Tarjun was done with the pan flute she takes it almost reverently. He had really done a great job. She calls Chirp down so show her the little carving of the bird. Chirp lightly pecked at it.... "See Chrip. That's a pretty good picture of you!" Clara calls for her to 'Try it out' and Jewel nervously moves the pipes to her lips. What if the sounds she makes is just raucous noise!?!
At first there is little more than the noise of her blowing on the pipes. She tries to get the angle right, the correct amount of air blown across the pipes, or through them....
"Thank you Tarjun! Obviously I need a lot of practice...."
Hearing the end of the conversation as she approaches the pair Jewel smiles. "Yes, of course I was working with the trees. None of the guys were talking though. Maybe Dwayne told them not to?" "Anyway. A simple instrument would probably be best. Something easy to make and for Tarjun to teach me. Maybe a pan pipe? Or something like what you play? You can teach me, right?" "And I'll ask Chirp to sing along with us...."
Jewel feels a little disappointed that the guys were too busy to talk, but accepts it. Maybe Dwayne has given them more strict rules recently? She has finished what she wanted to do with the saplings and returns to see what progress has been made with Clara's drum. She slows down a bit as she gets in range of the drumming sounds. Maybe Mrs. Johnson was right and they should practice a mile or more away from the farms so they weren't upsetting any animals. She alters course to chat with the chickens. Activating her feral speech hex she calls out, "Hi girls. Are you all OK? That pounding isn't too scary is it? It's just Clara. And the piping sounds are Tarjun. No danger."
Looking over the saplings Jewel is glad to see all are growing well. She considers the area and thinks about what she might want to bring over next from the 'seedling' farm she had started. Dwayne mostly wanted fast growing trees for lumber. But there were also some slower growing hard woods that might be more valuable if they could be allowed space and time to grow. That would be years and she'd be into her adult years before they could be cut.... But there were a few areas that weren't convenient for regular lumber trees. Maybe she could plant them there. Dwayne could harvest them and get a bit of a 'bonus' before he retired! She strolls in the current cutting area looking at the pattern. It was almost routine now but she could practically visualize the way the men would 'drop a tree', avoiding the ones that weren't quite ready. It had taken time both for them and for her. She marks out the next three days for cutting, then looked for Clark or Tony. She liked how Tony looked, but Clark had a nicer voice. She smiled to herself when she thought about that. Maybe in a few years she might ask her mother how to flirt with the guys? She knew she was too young now, and the guys knew her age. But it was still fun to think about growing up.... When she finally found the guys she cringes a little seeing Jack with them. "Hi guys. Quick question, not related to work. Do any of you know how to play an instrument, or sing? Tarjun, Clara and I are making some instruments for us. Once we get them made I was thinking maybe we could work together to make some music? Maybe an hour or so down by the pond? We won't be any good at first, but maybe with some practice.... ?"
Jewel considers what she wants to do next. Clara and Tarjun were getting a willow branch? She thinks about the trees down by the river. She does remember a couple of willows closer, but.... She decides to head over to check on the saplings and mark new trees to cut. Tarjun and Clara weren't interested in that 'work' anyway, so this was a good time to do that. And maybe she'd have a chance to chat with the guys? She didn't want to get in trouble with Dwayne. But maybe Clark or Tony might be around?
Jewel returns with two nice sized heads of cabbage. She cuts both in half then creates some water to clean them. Once both are clean she puts them on a large cutting board and chops them into small pieces, transferring the pieces to a large sturdy bowl. She measures out the proper amount of salt for the amount of cabbage and water that she'll be using, mixing the salt into the cabbage in the bowl. Once it is mixed properly she works it with rounded mallet, smashing the cabbage and salt together to release the juice of the cabbage. As she gets it mashed proper she transfers it to the crock, adds water and presses it down to remove any trapped air. Once she has all of the cabbage in the crock she seals it and puts it aside to ferment and cleans up the work area. Moving outside she looks around. Not seeing Tarjun or Clara she spots Gertrud. "The sauerkraut should ferment for at least a week. Where did Tarjun and Clara go?"
Jewel silently chuckles as she leaves to get the cabbage. She knew that Tarjun had never paid attention when their mother had been sewing their clothes, sometimes adjusting some of his old clothes so she could wear them, and occasionally making new clothing out of cloth that they'd purchased after a good harvest. She wonders if he even knew where the needles and thread were stored....
Jewel grins at Clara's comment. The dark side indeed! "Sauerkraut goes well with sausages. But it takes a few days to ferment anyway. You two go finish the drum, and figure out what we can play next. I'll go cut two sausages and prepare the sauerkraut. I'll join you in about an hour." She picks a knife and stroke it on a stone to sharpen it, then heads to the garden. She smiles when she realizes that she's acting a lot like her mother....
Jewel smiles. "Of course. But not a barrel. A container the size of a small bucket will be fine. Only a few cabbages, and yes. They have to be finely chopped. I'll need a sharp knife." Jewel is fine with starting the recipe. It has to sit for several days before it ferments properly anyway. So Clara can play and Jewel will join later.
Jewel thinks for a moment. "Well, if you want to stay focused on cabbage, how about making some sauerkraut? All that takes is the cabbage, salt, water, and a sealed container to keep it in while it ferments." By the look on her face you think she's serious....
Jewel's laughter is too hard for her to be able to speak coherently....
"Well, I could do it myself, or ask you to do it, or ask Clara and then do it myself when she says No. I guess that's really only two options.... "Boiled cabbage. Cabbage rolls with pork or beef or chicken. Fried cabbage with various other vegetables and meat. Chop it and bake it into a pie with other stuff and soup.... Not just cabbage!:
Jewel nods agreement to Tarjun's explanation, but then adds, "True Tarjun. But you know there are several different recipes you can make with that cabbage. You don't cook, but that's variety. And it can keep cooking and mealtime interesting."
Jewel feels the same excitement as Tarjun, but tempered with reality. "Don't forget that it will cost money Tarjun. Do you have any coins from our time on the ships? They took everything you earned from your music. Did you take any back when we left the ship?" She looks at the fur. "I can work on sewing the ring on the hide. It shouldn't take too long to do that."
"So it would be like pulling a seam together on clothing? Would it need a skin on the bottom too?" Jewel looks a bit confused.
Jewel looks at the cylinder and thinks of the containers in their kitchen. That wouldn't work since the lids were all rigid.... "Well. I don't know. And the skin would have to be held tight. So hitting it won't just sink in into the drum."
Jewel is still thinking about Gertrud's suggestion for a really big drum using a dead tree 2 miles away.... "Yeah. I mean yes, we should go back to Tarjun. He shouldn't have to do all of the work crafting the drum and have to carry everything over here. Let's go back to him." She glances back at Gertrud as they leave, still thinking. What sort of skin would they use for a drum that big? As they get close she calls out. "Hey Tarjun. Mrs. Johnson suggested that we should take the drum there rather than bringing the hide here and having to cut some off. Do you have much left to do, and do you want help?"
Chirp looks curious as Tarjun finally answers the question. She hops around a little then repeats the question. Before Tarjun can answer, likely with irritation...., she adds in her twittering voice, "Make it a 13 inches square." "Chirp" "I'll cut off the excess " "Chirp" "skin so it fits."
She hops about a little more, turning her head to him like she is waiting for something, then hops into the air and flies back to Jewel. Jewel listens patiently to Chirp when she returns. "Tarjun is working on a drum with green wood so we can try it. He says thirteen inches, and if that is excess we can trim it." She looks at Gertrud and smiles. "I like the idea of a big drum and hadn't though of an old stump. But surely there are some closer that we could work with? We'll search closer...."
Chirp looks at Tarjun and pulls her head tall. She chirps a couple of times, and Tarjun heres "How big?Inches?"
Jewel thinks for a moment. "I didn't think to ask.... But it should be small enough for Clara to lift it. Otherwise it would have to stay where it was built. That wouldn't make any sense!" She holds her hand out for her familiar and tells her, "Chirp. Go ask Tarjun how big the hide needs to be. In inches. He'll tell you a number. Come right back." "Hopefully Tarjun will understand that. It will need to be a thin hide that can be stretched over the drum head, and dried tight. I'm thinking a higher pitched drum would work well for Clara." "Is that what you were thinking Clara?"
"Well, you know he plays something like a flute. I don't remember what he suggested for me. I told him he'd need to teach me...." "And, well.... Clara said she wants a drum." Jewel turns to look at Clara, hoping she remembers to make the promise. ??
Jewel nods to Tarjun, leaving him to work as they head to find Mrs. Johnson. "We might want to start by promising that you'll never play the drum inside of the house...." She thinks for a few minutes. "And maybe not around any animals. If you pound on it by the chickens they might not lay any eggs for a while. That would upset several people!" Reaching the house she calls out, "Hi Mrs. Johnson! Got a minute? Tarjun has agreed to make some instruments so we can all make music. Are you busy?"
Jewel watches Tarjun chopping. This was work, but he enjoyed it so she decides not to mention it. "We can gather the pieces and take them home to be worked. I think you can make one drum with the wood green for now. Clara can enjoy it while the other wood dries. Let us know what we can do to help." She glances at Clara wondering if she will do anything other than watch since the wood is for her drum.... "Of course we still need the skin for the drum heads."
Jewel thinks about it a moment. "Dad should have a saw, and a hatchet. Good point Dwayne. Birch grow pretty slow and don't get tall like the other trees unless allowed to grow a really long time. And the wood is hard. Makes sense that it would be for cabinets. It'll take a lot of time to work it." "I'm pretty sure I haven't marked any birch trees. Like you say, they'd be too small for lumber. But I think I've seen a couple. We'll go check the shed and get something to cut one or two and get them out of the way. Thanks!" They head back to the tool shed and get the hatchet. "I think I remember two that would do. There will be several branches that will need to be chopped off as well, but we should just drag the trees here to work them."
Jewel walks up to Dwayne with a smile. "I promise that we're not going to try and take any of the men night swimming or working on another project. But they did really good work at the pond. Have you checked it out?" Seeing that he is serious she stops and nods. "And we don't want to waste any of your time so we'll be quick. I've checked the saplings and they're doing good. In a few years I think we'll have small groves growing of whatever wood you need for your customers. The hard woods grow slower of course. Heck, you explained some of that. But they won't all be mixed so you have to cut what you don't need along with what you do.... And I'm wasting time talking nonsense. We need some wood. It would be scraps for what you cut. A couple short limbs from a birch tree? And are there any tools here that Tarjun could use? Split it into thin pieces? We wants to make a drum.... for Clara."
Jewel suppresses a giggle at Clara's words. "Tarjun knows that you're human Clara.... He might like you better as a dog though." "Aren't we going to have to dry the wood before you can work it? Just like I'm having to do with my bow. Otherwise it would warp and crack."
Jewel thinks about Tarjun's words. Carving thin planks off of a live tree? Wouldn't that be like skinning a live creature? Did trees feel? "Let's go to the lumberjacks and get a log to work with. I don't think it would work to carve strips off of a tree.... What kind of wood do you want to work? Maybe Dwayne will let us use tools?"
"So how would you make the shell? Use a hollow tree? Aren't they usually dead and rotten? Or would you carve the core out of a branch?"
"And you need sticks to beat on the drum. That should be a hard wood, and straight."
"Well, of course the skin would have to be cured. Not hard like leather though. It would have to be scraped thin, and then stretched over the drum head."
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