Atisia (marten spirit guide) is visible :3 I just wrote as if no one has arrived yet, so people can get the most posts out of this! Post order: free
Tools and ploughs were strewn on the ground in front of her, where she waited for the tribesmembers to arrive. They were already late for planting season, but it was not a catastrophe yet, not so long as they could still get those seeds planted. Three workhorses stood ready, but Ulilohi was not certain how they could be used: only two of the ploughs that she had brought were made for use by a horse. Otherwise there were plenty of tools to till and ready the ground by hand. Atisia scurried over the different tools and tut tutted at their quality, not quite up to par with the work of the Great Tribe's craftsmen. "They will do, Atisia." she muttered to him, only for him to hear. He nodded and continued to tut at them, and she sent her eyes rolling skywards until he shot her a look to make her moderate herself. Tools were tools, and they needn't be pretty to work, but she dared not tell him so.
The sun was already high, and the councilwoman found herself impatient. The large lady was not afraid of getting her hands dirty at all, in fact she was eager for the workload. It gave her pleasure to make use of herself, and to feel the burn of tired muscles when she went to sleep at night. Not since her last training session with the spear, moons ago, had she felt that satisfied. She found her body aching to be used and to be exhausted and rested, and she stood waiting with a huge smile on her face. Still, she had taken into consideration that not everyone would enjoy the task. Hidden away in a packed under a nearby tree were meat and fish treats and drink, ready for whenever they would decide to take a break.
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Wojciech (Wisent spirit guide) is visible. Jaroslaw is also present
She'd only heard of the agriculture project a few days prior. Jaroslaw had heard word of it, of course as a farmer it was inevitable he'd be left out of the loop. He'd commented on the fact that the tribe would need to work quickly in order to have the seeds grounded in time, the season for planting had passed by, but it was doable. Io truly had no idea that Jaro knew about farming, but perhaps that was because last time Io had seen him he'd had no career track in mind and she'd left before he'd chosen one. They'd spent most of the previous days and nights catching up, apparently Galileo had also returned. But in annoyed she'd switched the conversation to something else.
The pair walked side by side quietly, the large grey pelted male dwarfing the smaller, coyote hybrid. Casting a shadow over her face. Her snowy fingers were wrapped tightly around the spear Ulilohi had gifted. Jaroslaw was already coated in dirt from his own work and Io wasn't particularly bothered about staying clean. They'd volunteered due to the availability of horses here and as a dutiful Elan Soquili she made herself abundant. Walking towards the councilwoman, both hybrid's smiled. 'Uli, good morning...' Io said gently, Jaroslaw offering a silent, but none the less polite nod of his head.
Told that Aniwaya was working on sowing crops and needed help Hadley had swiftly volunteered. Entering in he was uncomfortable at first, feeling rather out of place among the pack members. He was an outsider here, even if he was an outsider that had come to aid the pack in it's work. He stopped where the pack's leader, Ulilohi if he remembered correctly, stood among the available tools. She wasn't the only one there, other pack members standing ready to help with their spirit animals standing there.
Awkwardly he moved over, tail and ears low with respectful submission. Hello. I've come to help. If anything needs doing... His voice trailed off, uncertain of what he should be doing to help. He rather liked Ulilohi, if the marten's sharp tongue made him a tad nervous. Most things did though, so he mainly ignored the unease life put him through and concentrated on making himself useful.
Word Count :: 345 :: Mihewi is visible (and curious too). Luna is clueless about many of the purposes of the horses for the life of the tribe, so don't smack her, please.
It was due time for the pack to gather for the first step of the agriculture project, and Luna was more than excited to do so. She got rid of her skirt and tied her hair so they wouldn't get in the way as she worked, and made sure to take a quick drink before gathering with the rest of the pack in the crops. Mihewi followed her, remarking the state of the soil. It needed to be removed since it was too hard from the AniWayans walking on it daily. The green-eyed female agreed, but didn't linger on that thought for too long. Instead, she approached the chieftess and the group already gathered there. Besides her, only three other members had arrived, included the woman who prepared the feast the day of the announcement. One of them was clearly a foreigner, and carried himself as such, timid and submissive. She was surprised to see an outlander among them, but grateful at the same time for the extra hands.
Bowing her head low, she approached Ulilohi first. "Osiyo Ulilohi, dohitsu?" She asked, testing the language that she was slowly getting to know. Then, turning towards the others, she grinned in a playful manner. "Ready to get our hands dirty?" As she spoke, Mihewi shook her head, believing that her cargo was sometimes a bit too cheerful for the usual demeanor of the Great Tribe's healers and priests. But soon other matters catched her attention, and she found herself examining the tools too, nodding in approval as she regarded them as acceptable for the task they were about to perform.
Meanwhile, Luna observed the surrounding area, looking for another person coming by to join them. More people were going to arrive, that was for sure, but they would have to wait for that. Seeing no problem in doing so, she sat cross legged right on her spot, feeling the impact of the sunlight on her furry skin, and wondering how on earth were the three horses standing beside the group going to be useful to them.
Shanta had heard that they would be planting the crops today and had gotten a full nights rest. The sun was getting hotter and any work in it would be tiring. She loved being outside and working, it reminded her of her old life. The ranch with her family always held a place in her heart, and now she could use the techniques she had learned from her family to help her tribe. Shanta was finishing up in the stables, just cleaning up and making sure the animals had water. She left her shawl at her hut and was rebraiding her hair. Her fingers moved through her hair rhythmically, leaving a braided trail behind. She made her way across the territory to the crop fields. Belle was already there, Ulilohi had gotten her and Jack a while ago. Her steps were quick and long, she didn't want to be late to help her pack mates. As her fingers neared the end of her hair, she tied the braids end and let it fall behind her.
As she neared the gathering wolves, she assessed the scene. There were a handful of wolves already here, tools were laid out, and the horses were standing under a nearby tree. Instinctively, she went to the horses. Belle spotted her and whinnied softly to her. Shanta's lips turned up in a smile and she patted the mare as she got closer. "Bonjour mon Belle." she whispered the her favorite mare. Then she turned to the gelding, "Ah, hello Jack." Her smile held as she stroked his face and scratched between his ears. She got lost in the horses for a moment, then she caught sight of Ulilohi and Luna. Making her way over to the two females, she called out to them. "Osiyo Ulilohi, Luna." She kept walking until she was within a few feet of the two. "I'm here to help, like everyone else. I was just wondering what you have planned for the horses and how I can help." She would most likely stay to help with all the work, but the horses were her strong point and that's where she'd be most useful.
Atisia (marten spirit guide) is visible :3 Post order: free
The councilwoman smiled warmly at them as they arrived one by one, first came Io, and shortly after Hadley arrived to help as well. The brown-pelted giantess greeted them both with a raised hand and a broad smile, nodding at them in acknowledgement. "Osiyo, Io, Hadley. I'm sure we'll need all the help we can get!" She was not always great at small-talk, but the silence was quickly interrupted as more people arrived. Luna and Shanta both greeted her formally and she answered them back, glad to see more capable hands pour in. "Osiyo Luna, tosigwu!". They all seemed excited to get going, and the councilwoman didn't delay: if more arrived later, they could always join in as they went along. "Okay, so I've gathered some tools here for tilling -- and I've also brought three of our horses, though I only have two ploughs for them, as it turns out." The councilwoman gestured towards the horses standing ready, patiently awaiting activities and chewing on brought-along feed meanwhile. Atisia coughed on her right shoulder, and Ulilohi added a sentence, hastily. "I am not sure how to use them, but I thought perhaps some of you would know?" She was not a farmer, nor would she ever be, though she looked a workhorse in body. Their tools lay in a pile waiting, but Ulilohi was fishing for information: if any of the others knew how to operate the ploughs, their work would be much easier.
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Wojciech (Wisent spirit guide) is visible. Jaroslaw is also present
Io waited quietly while other members trickled into the clearing one by one. Jaroslaw shifted his weight several times, fidgeting almost not stop every few seconds, stopping only under Io's scrutinising gaze and then restarting his movements again. He was not particularly used to remaining still and so he appeared somewhat childish in his silently polite twitching manner. As Ulilohi began explaining Io nodded, speaking up when she said there were only two ploughs for three horses. 'We can easily swap them around if one gets tired. Saves going back to the stables after all' she mused, letting her fingers reach out to pet the horse's manes.
It was soon Jaroslaw's turn to offer up help, stepping forward for beside his hybrid mate and speaking, 'I can help with that'. His hand was lifted up almost shyly as he directed his gaze to the large brown council woman. A woman who match his in height near enough. While he wasn't quite clued up on how to used a horse draw plough, he knew something about hand held ploughs and hopefully Io would be able to help with that.
The diverse group stood at the ready, waiting for Ulilohi's instructions. Hadley was a craftsman, not a farmer. He didn't have the skill necessary to be able to truly help with this project. That certainly wasn't going to stop him from trying though. He smiled at the leader's cheerful greeting. His presence was welcomed, even if he wasn't a tribe member like the other wolves were. Glancing over Hadley did his best to be polite to the animals running around, knowing they were spirits of some sort. Talking to small animals never had been a strong point for him, especially as they'd never talked back, and certainly not with the intelligence these ones displayed.
Shrugging his shoulders Hadley looked over the horses. They were fairly strong, good for work. Hadley had seen Dixie and Wayne harness the horses up a few times, but they had never plowed. Been used for pulling boulders, wagons, and other items, but not that. Hesitantly he spoke up, suggesting the partial idea. Perhaps they're attached like they would be to a wagon, then guided? That could work. He didn't know that it would leave the plow dragging behind instead of turning up the ground.
The young man stood on the edge of the land, until everyone started gathering. He rushed up at that point, anxious to get to work. He might have missed a couple of what everyone said, but eventually he got the last snippets of it, and seemed to understand the gist of it. He looked at the horses with a kind of sympathy; if nobody knew what they were doing, more or less, it seemed cruel to have them pull such heavy ploughs. Still, he'd never really seen a workhorse at work before. He'd only ever seen them ridden. O-osiyo. he managed. That was perhaps the only word he knew in the language most of them seemed to speak back and forth, in-between english. I er.. he started bashfully, scratching his head. He noticed Luna and Shanta and Io - familiar faces - and at that he managed to regain his confidence. I can 'elp with the tools. My fam' used ter grow their own food all the time. he explained.
Frodo hopped off towards where the tools way, his lithe paws running over the iron and metal, almost fondly. He listed his assets, knowing at once what he would choose. I'm quick an' slick an' well nifty...but I aint strong enough to lug no dead weights...so, let's see 'ere. suddenly, his paw clicked together and curled around a small hoe, no bigger than his forearm - light, but strong. It was good steel, not pretty copper or heavy iron. With a practised flick of his wrist, he flipped the hoe in the air so that it spun until he caught it again with a gentle grip. Where do we start? he grinned, his strong form made for hard work and effort, therefore wanting to be a general extrovert constantly.
Everyone pitched in to aid Ulilohi in her (lacking) understanding of the horse's contraptions, much to her liking. Her hands clasped together in front of her as Hadley quickly suggested their use, and Io's friend Jaro offered his hand in working them. The councilwoman nodded happily and moved closer to the horses as if to make an attempt at using them, when Frodo, as well, approached them and confidently professed his competence. With that, Ulilohi quickly realized that she was outclassed in this situation, by more than she had anticipated. The thought came with a large wash of relief, because she was not entirely competent enough to lead the project, or so she thought herself, anyway. She was a workhorse, true, but that did not mean she had paid attention when the Itse's and the Priests had attempted to teach her their people's agricultural ways. "Ulilohvsgi! You all know so much— I am hardly needed." The sentence was uttered half playfully, half seriously, but she did mean it. And it was a positive thing: sometimes, she had to re-discover that though the ones she surrounded herself with were not of the Great Tribe, that didn't mean they could not be home, trusted, friends. Here were tribesmembers so competent they did not require leadership, she was convinced of it. At least for this task. "Perhaps if Jaro and Hadley can discover how to use the horse's plough, and Frodo can teach the rest of us to use the other tools? Unless you have other preferences -- we have two ploughs for the horses." Her gaze jumped from one to the other to look for their support or rejection. If they were not happy with their given task, this would be the time to speak up.
