4
HARLOW
When I wake up in the morning, Rukh is gone.
Huh.
Normally we wake up tangled together in the furs for some pre-dawn snuggling and a before-breakfast quickie, but this morning, he's nowhere to be seen. I rub my eyes and peer out of the cave, but no Rukh. Probably fishing, then. Maybe he woke up with a burning need to get some fish in or something. We're still not great at communicating yet, and a lot of what goes between us is guesswork. With a yawn, I wrap the few furs we have tightly around my body and stoke the fire. The coals have gone down while I slept, and I poke them until they get hot once more, then work on setting up the makeshift tripod we have for heating water.
I wish we had more things. I've taken for granted just how many supplies there are back at the main cave, and how hard everyone has worked to make those supplies. When I think of how much time I have to put in just to make a cooking pouch, I have a whole new appreciation for those giving, thoughtful sa-khui people who took a bunch of humans into their homes, no questions asked, and fed and clothed us.
Rukh thinks of them as the enemy, but they were always kind to me. I've made my choices, though. I'm with Rukh now, and that means starting over in all ways.
I pad to the entrance of the cave, my toes curling on the icy rocks, and peer out, looking for my mate's broad shoulders and long, wild hair. I don't see him on the beach, either, but it doesn't mean that he's not around. He's probably gathering food. I wet a soft scrap of leather, take a quickie bath with the melted water, and then add a bit more from the trickle in the cave. Once my pouch is full, I add the last few leaves for hot tea and get dressed. Maybe while Rukh is fishing, I can find some of the plants that the sa-khui always used for tea. I can start our supplies there, I decide. Leaves are easy. It's everything else that's daunting.
One thing at a time, Harlow, I remind myself.
I head out to the cliffs, noticing that Rukh's spear is gone from inside the cave. Definitely hunting. The sight of it missing actually makes me feel a little better, and I concentrate on picking leaves for tea. I'm proud of myself for actually recognizing several of the plants that cling to the cliffs here. It's weird, because for an ice-covered planet, there's a surprising amount of greenery to be found if you know where to look. There's the not-potato trees that grow incredibly tall stalks, but there aren't any near the beach that I can see. There are all kinds of vines crisscrossing the rocks and growing into the crevices. And I know that if I go up into the mountains, I can dig under the snow and find all kinds of strange, wiry plants that somehow grow despite the cold and the gray, weak sunshine.
I gather leaves until my little pouch won't hold any more and my hands are full. I look around for Rukh again, but there's still no sign of him. I can't let that worry me. He knows what he's doing. Next time, I'll tell him that if he heads out he needs to take me with him. I need to get better at hunting, too.
No sense in being angry about it, though. And I'm not, really. I'm just frustrated that our communication is falling down again. It's one thing I wish we were both quicker at. There's so many things I want to say to him, and I can tell he wishes he could talk to me more. We're getting there, but we're both impatient for more. Thinking about Rukh and words I can teach him distracts me, and I'm back at the cave and spreading out leaves to dry before I know it. Near the entrance of the cave, I see the piles of seaweed I scavenged from the beach, and I lay them out to dry, as well. When they dry up, they harden into thick reeds that can be braided and woven into baskets, and the thought of making my own is exciting.
Storage. Who'd have thought I'd be so damn thrilled for storage? Blows my mind.
There's a lot to get done, though, and I can't sit around. With that thought in mind, I get to work.
By the time I gather my last handfuls of leaves and have them spread out on a fur near my tiny fire, I realize it's almost dark.
No, scratch that, it IS dark. The skies are just bright because the stars are shining overhead. It's completely dark out and the moons are up. And there's still no sign of my mate. I kept busy all day, because sitting by the fire and worrying doesn't do me any good, but he's never been gone for so long. I can't help but panic a little.