Collecting lumber, swinging a hammer, foraging for supplies… It was all very laborious work. For days the Russian had been giving it her all. With her eyes on the prize nothing could slow her down, her pack needed something that the Russo knew she could give them. Despite the less-than-desirable way she came to be a member of the pack, the place was growing on her quickly. Her pride wouldn’t let her admit it to herself but the more time she spent within these lands the more it began to feel like home, and ever since the Dark Lady’s speech about Salsoa being family she had begun to look upon these strangers as kin. There were things she wasn’t sure she would ever agree with, but that didn’t matter. With family, everything different except for the heart – and Salsoa had heart.
Thunk… thunk… thunkthunkthunk! The hammer pounded against the salvaged nails, forcing them into the wood to join the planks together. She was finished with about one third of the platform of the small dock she intended to build. The going was slower than she would have wanted, being only one woman with only the basics of carpentry skill, but it was going nonetheless. What she lacked in building experience she more than made up for with her knowledge of boats and docks what with all her time spent sailing, and hoped that what she produced in the end would be sufficient enough for a low-traffic dock.
“Shipments you vill not hold,” she said to her project as she lined up two planks. “But people? Yes. For a vhile anyvay, until ve can do better. Maybe vill get crew to make better.” She spoke to her project softly, muttering half to herself but mostly to the supplies she manipulated. A lot of love and care was going into this project, and maybe if she did good enough, once they got a boat she would be allowed to row… or maybe even sail…
Her eyes drifted away from the wood that she gripped in one hand while she grabbed the hammer. They shifted to the gentle waves of the bay, and took on a far-off look as she imagined what it would be like to be out on the sea again. Maybe even to reach that island over there and explore the unknown…
“Sookin sin!” She spat in Russian as she brought the hammer down a little too far to the left and pummelled the back of her hand. She jerked her hand away but the rough edge of the old nail caught her palm and left a deep gash. She shrieked another curse and put her hand to her mouth, catching the blood as it started spilling from her palm and trying to soothe the sharp ache.
She had been watching the Russian (Or at least that's what she assumed by the accent) for some time. Odessa had left the dreaded areas with her book in hand and another she had found. She had spent hours scribbling medical notes down, she had found a map of nova scotia and a book of medicinal herbs and flowers and she was trying to jot down where they possbily were. Odessa had also noted down the ingrediants that were not indegeninous to her home and had also made rough plans to venture to freetown to find them. They were still very rough however as she had no wished to venture past the borders any time soon. Though if anyone else was going she would either acompany them with there permission or request them to look out for the items while they were there. Either way she'd need to get her supplies before she could do any real work. Traders came often enough around these parts and the few exotics she owned were traded from them. Along with Keshi.
While her eyes were diverted from the female and her mind was off in the clouds, a yelp ascended into the air. It was loud and urgent enough to pull her from her dreams. Odessa stood, piling her books into her satchel and desending from where she sat. 'Are you okay?' she asked, her voice almost silent as she approched. She was shy but this was to be her co-rank. Tending to the pack's injuries and ailments. She spotted the blood and later on the deep gash. 'I can tend to that if you'd like' she added, her hands fiddling with the straps of her satchel.
The mottled girl opened her bag to find the pot of aloe she carried around with her. 'This is aloe, it helps heal cuts'. She then produced some bandage, 'And I'm guessing you'll want to carry on with your work' Odessa lifted her hand, gesturing to the white gauze.
Liliya was shocked when a woman with fur the color of shaded slate rushed to her aid. She had been so absorbed with her work that she hadn’t even known the woman was nearby, and for a moment she forgot all about her pain. Although she was starting to think of the pack as family, sometimes it was the family you’d rather avoid. Being so low-rank in the pack made it quite inconvenient to be around others, often having to take valuable time away from her work for proper posturing and acknowledging of others’ ranks. At least now that she was becoming known to her pack and everyone knew that she gave the proper respect she had to spend lest time showing her subordinance and more time getting things done.
It only took a quick second to survey the woman while she spoke and surmise that they were equals. She came to her aid and gave her the choice, not demand. She didn’t automatically touch her. The girl even seemed a little shy… A trait Liliya once exhibited far more often than she did now. It made her smile.
And with the memory of her younger self came a surge of pain… but this wasn’t emotional pain, it was physical. She winced and looked down at her hand, her eyes flicking from the bandages to her bleeding palm. The blood was beginning to mat her fur.
“That vhould be very helpful, I think.” She nodded slowly, her gray eyes moving back towards the woman’s face and a small half smile played on her muzzle. “It burns like cheap vodka.”
She’d never gotten an injury this deep from working before – any cuts she’d received had been superficial scrapes – and she had no clue how to take care of it. She probably would have just washed it with sea water, used an old bandana, and been done with it. That probably wasn’t the best way to take care of a cut from a rusty nail.
“Vhat is your name, one who vhould help me?” She asked as she held her hand out to Odessa. “I am called Liliya Russo.”
Liliya spoke of vodka, and while Odessa knew what it was she had never tasted it. What she heard of it she didn't want to try it either. Especially if the Russian used it as a metaphor to her injury. She nodded, simply as she held out her hand. Odessa took a large scoop of the cream onto her fingers and began to layer it onto Liliya's hand. 'My name's Odessa. Odessa D'Angelo'. She spoke her surname with extreme pride. She was related to Larkspur D'Angelo, a high ranking member of the society. Who in turn was mated to Eris Eternity, a leader no less. Who was close friends with Sirus Revlis, the Boss. That was something she held dear to her heart. Especially with her lower rank.
'Sorry if this stings a bit' Odessa apologised softly, keeping her eyes on her work, only letting them dart up for a milisecond. The mottled girl cleared away the balm. She unravvled some gauze and set to wrapping it around Liliya's palm. 'It may be a bit stiff' she said, repeating what she had read in her books, putting a personal term on it. 'If anything looks... wrong, with it come and see me. And if the gauze gets dirty just wash it' she smiled calmly. She hoped she had done a good job. 'Here' Odessa said, 'Keep the pot of aloe and spread it on every day until it clears up'. The mottled femme gazed at the smaller cuts, 'Oh and with the smaller ones, washing them with some saltwater should help them. Though anything large needs a bit more care'.
As the aloe was spread onto her wound it both soothed and agitated the cut. The cooling, healing properties of the salve began to work at once, calming the flame within the wound. A moment later as it soaked in and began to take root in the open flesh she felt a tingling sensation. The woman wriggled her fingers and flexed her palm, testing it out for a moment before letting Odessa wrap the bandage around it.
She detected the measure of pride in Odessa’s voice when she spoke her name – it was the same pleasure Liliya herself often spoke her own surname with. The name D’Angelo struck a familiar chord inside her as she remembered the visage of the man she’d once angered just weeks into her membership in Salsoa. The memory also called another face to mind – that of the startled slave who had gotten her into that whole mess. She dropped her eyes, dashing the awful memory from her conscience, and then returned her gaze to Odessa. It was nice to be able to look someone in the face for once.
“Is strong name,” she complimented as Odessa affixed the bandage to her palm. “Is sturdy, powerful, like Russo. Your pride is good, you have good heritage.”
When she wrapped the bandage firmly around her hand the pressure calmed the last of the pain, the injury was now nothing more than a dull annoyance. A smile cracked her muzzle as she inspected the wrapping, pleased with the results. “Is much better now! Thank you.” But grateful as she was she didn’t feel like it was right taking the entire pot of aloe. She shook her head, waving her hand. “No, no, I couldn’t. Keep for later.” But she saw a sincerity in Odessa’s eyes that eventually made her accept the ointment. She smiled thankfully as she took it from her.
“Salt vater should be no problem, I am in no short supply of that,” she joked as she turned to look at the bay. “But somehow I think this is not what you are meaning.” She laughed softly; it was a strangely feminine sound for the Russian. Time was changing her, and she was rarely the gentile creature she had been in her youth.
Her hands went to her hips – one fist still wrapped around the jar – and she gazed out over the wavy sea to peer at the island in the distance. “Is beautiful sight, no? Is like a paradise there, I think, the land surrounded by vhater. We vill get there, I vill be makingk sure of that. Maybe you come with me first, on my little boat’s maiden voyage to the island.” She bent down and deposited the container of salve on the ground as she picked up the hammer, then straightened up and smiled at Odessa. “You helped. I vill tell them that. I vill tell them, ‘the D’Angelo, she is useful. Useful like Russo.’” She tapped herself gently on the chest with the butt of the hammer and her grin widened as though she had bestowed a great honor upon the woman. “How can I repay you the favor, D’Angelo woman?”
Liliya spoke of pride and strength in her name, to which Odessa blushed at. She did have deep pride in her name, it gave her status, at least in her mind, where her rank didn't. 'Thank you' she said calmly, bowing her head. The Russo girl acccepted the salve happily, this pleased Odessa as it meant not only had she offered an immediate solution, she offered after care too. 'I live in the communal areas, at least for now, so if you need anything thats where I am'. She smiled, brushing a strand of dark heard away with a silver hand.
She gestured out to the bay and commented on how she 'Didn't think that's what she meant'. 'Oh, no, no. Saltwater from the sea is fine, probably stronger too' Odessa commented happily. 'Yes, it is beautiful' she answered, pumpkin eyes gazing out past the dark, spirals of smoky brown. 'The boat, your making that for the island, right? So you can transport the mushrooms that grow there?' She had heard little about this, but she was as inquisitive as ever. The Russo woman spoke of passing on the all trues tales of her help to... well that wasn't discussed, but by 'them' she assumed she meant people who held important ranks within the pack.
Liliya invited her on the boats maiden voyage, when it's construction was final. To this she nodded enthusiastically, 'I'd like that very much' she answered with a gentle smile. 'I've never been on a boat before' she had only travelled over land before, on a horse and on foot. It would be a learning curve, when the time came. In all truth water travel made her nervous but if she gained the chance to travel to Liliya, a honed sailor, it seemed as if that was enough to calm her mind. Finding a pro to guide and protect her. It was as if having Liliya by her side would save her from the unruly waves. Until then she was more than happy to stare out to it's every changing landscape.
'Do you need any help?' Odessa asked, standing up and dusting her shins down of any dirt her usually pristine fur had collected while she was at work. To her subtle joy there was very little. 'I... I mean I don't know how much help I would be...' she added smiling. Odessa was undoubtably made for more logical work that anything labourious. She even gone as far as to chose a horse that would give her very little pull when she rode him as she had far from the required amount of physical strength to control something as large as some of the horses she'd seen other people control. Keshi may have not been anything too look at, with his all too long legs and thin face, but he was docile and well mannered, with no wish to stir up any trouble. He was just perfect for littl Odessa, who she herself was flawed. She couldn't hunt like Salvia and she had nowhere near the height Pan had, but her medical skills were coming along nicely.
Hmm. So, the sea had the power to heal, too? Liliya looked at her hand as she thought about washing the wound with seawater. How peculiar indeed. “She really is a merciful mistress, eh?!” She said loudly as she turned a bright smile to Odessa. Every day the great bay was surprising her, and every day she came to revere the ocean as though she were some type of mystical goddess. She shook her head gently in amazement, making a click click click sound with her tongue to snap off her surprise.
“Yes,” Liliya nodded. “I make boat for island. But I heard nothingk about mushrooms.” She raised a brow in question, peering at Odessa out of the corner of her eye. “How is it that we do not have boat to get there, but we know mushrooms are there?” Her eyes pierced Odessa as though she truly wanted her to explain the absurdity, but Liliya understood that it probably wasn’t Odessa who made up the rumor. After a moment she shrugged. “Silly things. Maybe there was boat I did not know of. But I tell you if I build boat when there is one down the way I vhill not be very happy…” She paused in thought, then added. “Actually, two boats vhould be very good for us I think.” She offered a firm nod, sealing the thought.
Turning from Odessa, she knelt in the sand and moved one plank over the other. She tried to clasp the planks with one hand but found it wasn’t as useful to stabilize the lumber now that it was injured. Her gaze returned to Odessa once more. “You vhill be of much help, I think, if you hold this here so I can fix that nail. Keep your hand back though, you are not wanting to end up like me. Tight, I vhill hit it hard.”
She poised the hammer and waited for Odessa to do as she instructed, thankful for the help. Without the woman there her progress might have been done for the day, but thankfully she could keep going with just a little help. While she waited for her peer to get situated she spoke dreamily of the sea.
“There is nothingk quite like being on a boat. The ocean, she is a beautiful sight when you are out there at her mercy. She has smiled upon me many times and she has earned my respect. Many sailors anger her and she is quick to show them who is boss. Is rare a sailor lives to tell about angeringk the lady of the sea. But on boat from here to there you not have to worry. Will be modest row boat, but vhill just give you a taste of sailing the waves. Is not like horse or cart or your own feet. Is extraordinary. You vhill like… at least, if you have the stomach for it!”
'Yes' the mottled girl agree softly, brushing her hair away with a regal sweep of her grey gloved hand. While she'd never rode on a sea faring vessel before but she'd certainly been swimming before, close to the banks of course, she was no fish when in water. She had a genourous amount of respect for the sea, and an almost matching amount of wonder lust.
'Maybe I've heard wrong then' Odessa said, giving it consideration. 'No, it's probably that they're going to grow them there now I think about it'. She crossed her arms and pursed her lips as she looked out to the sea. Listening in was her one vice, though she never listened into anything important and when she did it was usually a mere accident and if it wasn't useful she'd most likely forget it. It was a bad habit, something that wouldn't help in any promotions.
Odessa knelt down again, taking a cautious hold of the nail and placing it where instructedm giving a simple nod to Liliya as she spoke. Odessa leant back away from the plank and the nail as far as her arm would let her. Her ears flattened down, then flicked up again as Odessa swore her bravery.
Sorry for the wait! I had a vacation last weekend and am getting back into the swing of things. =) Word Count :: 300+
There might have been fear in Odessa but if there was the Russo woman didn’t heed it. The only reason she had whacked her own hand was because she had been daydreaming about the sea, but with someone else’s extremities at risk she wouldn’t dare be so careless. Her keen eyes focused on the nail she was to drive into the wood as she started it off with a few gentle taps to bore the point into the lumber. A moment later, she swung her arm mightily and drove the nail into the material with only a few quick strokes. She smiled and nodded as she grabbed another nail and repeated the steps.
“Looks good. Now these.” she nodded approvingly at the joined edges and then lined up another plank and started over as she continued on about the island. “That would make much sense. Is probably ripe land fertilized by birds and other creatures. I bet is very ready for farmingk on it. Maybe you can find more plants for salve. Did you make salve or do you trade it from someone?”
When Odessa was ready, she drove the nails into the wood again between thoughts, sure to only work when she wasn’t distracted by conversation. After those stakes were bored deep into the wood she raised her head and looked at Odessa with a sudden thought. “Hey, do you know where is tradingk market? I could use some more materials to build with. And I have half the rope for a fishingk net I think vhould be useful for pack but not enough for good, big net.”
She cast her eyes aside – hammer of course halted for now – to set her gaze upon the woven rope that sat in a neat fold nearby. When the woman’s arms grew tired from slamming away at the dock she would sit, rest, and knot the rope while she listened to the waves.
'Both I guess' Odessa explained, keeping her pumpkin eyes fixed firmly on Liliya's hands. 'I trade for some, either the salve itself or the ingredients, if it's the ingredients then I make the salve myself. And what I can get from around here I make into salve. If it's needed of course. Somethings need to be prepared differently. Like...' she paused, trying to think of an example. 'Like Valerian. It's good in either oil form or root form. The oil form is good for those who don't wish to ingest it, rub a bit on you neck and it calms you, same as eating it'. Odessa paused, glancing to the sea. 'Though I intend to perform tests to determine which is more efficient. Not that it matters, not really. Which for it's taken in is personal preferance'. She shrugged, unable to think of anything more to say. Her gaze turned to the sea again, her orange gaze watching the snow crested waves roll in and out. It was a peaceful, but still daunting scene.
She did what Liliya instructed her to do condfidently, though she was far from comfortable doing physical work. She was a gentle girl, far from the hardy Russian who sat before her, medicene suited her much better. Healing was a role that called for delicate work, unwavering care, dedication and most importantly caution. For there were some recipes that in larger doses would be fatal. Of course, even at her tender age Odessa knew which these were, and most importantly which does were considered dangerous. And each time she prescribed something, mostly to needy loners she came across, she made a quick investigation, finding out the patients weight, among other things, to determine waht doesage to use. As said before, healing was an art. As was building a good boat, but Odessa found herself severly lacking in the department.
'I get most of my stuff from travellers' Odessa noted smiling, 'I can try and get you some stuff if you can get up a list'.
Are you interested in doing a "fade to black" (end) on this? It's getting pretty old (massively my fault) and I think we got a good bit covered with them. You can put a finishing post on it if you want, or we can keep going if you prefer. Word Count :: 300+
Hmm… so the woman had the power to make healing salves out of plants, and who knows what else. This was a great power, a great knowledge, indeed. Much like Liliya could construct this dock to help the pack, Odessa could brew medicine to help improve her pack. Eventually Liliya’s work would deliver the pack to the island where they could farm the land and harvest its bounty, which would provide reagents for Odessa’s medicine. And right now, Odessa’s medicine was what helped Liliya continue her work. Their crafts were so disparate, but still they benefited one another in a beautiful cycle. It is no wonder why their kind live in these packs; there was great strength in it. Liliya cracked a smile at the thought.
“You are helpingk me much today. Maybe if you are needingk help with your medicine I can help you. I am a brave wolf, you can test your oils on me. HA-HA! But I will not be takingk anything,” she chuckled and shook her head. “Not until after it does not kill slave first. Ah… But lots of times this work is hard on me. My muscles get tight and tired, and sometimes it is like they tense and stab for no reasoning at all, even when I have day off. Maybe if you try your salve on me, and it works, you have a good salve.”
Her eyes met Odessa’s and she nodded appreciatively. “That vhould be a great help. I can make you a list and have it to you tonight, and anythingk you can find vhould be wonderful. I do not know where to find traders, and beingk so… uh… new to the ranks, I am not thinking it is a good idea to hang out near the borders unless it is my time to patrol.” She smiled and winked. She wanted to show Salsoa the utmost loyalty and prove her worth to the pack, so she was careful in her actions… save for the one time she crossed the borders to get the stock for the dock…
Odessa nodded along, intrested by the idea. It would be handy to have someone to test the salves and balms she was creating. 'I'm working on something now, for muscle aches' she informed her friend, gazing out to sea and back to Liliya. 'It should only a be a few more days before I'm happy with it'. She smiled lightly, a small assurance that she was making sure nothing was wrong with it. However she did note that it could be taken the other way, in that she was still not happy about it's effects. Still, it was only an external treatment, and would do much, if any, harm. 'Though in conjunction to these, hot baths would aid the treatment'. Hell, they could even solve the problem on their own.
'I agree. I didn't stray from Salsola for a long time, though my mother told me I'd have a better chance of proving myself if I did my share of work' she supplied. 'But still, I think it helped to make sure I brought a wroth of things to the territory'. Odessa nodded lightly, acknowledging her words.
They worked for a bit longer, then Liliya noted that she had done her share and was free to leave. Odessa had shakily accepted the idea and said goodbye, along with the words, 'If you ever need any help again, medical or construction, you know where I am'. Even though she was dire, there was no putting it nicely, at physical work, it was an offer.
You can put a finishing post on it if you want, or we can keep going if you prefer. Word Count :: 300+ 
