Tweak

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Tweak says, "turn your head and cough"

Vesper (Ava Janeczko) (ofvesper) wrote in nomadspast,
@ 2013-03-02 15:46:00

Entry tags:

Who Vesper and Orion
When November 2015
Where Forest, past Cano territory.
What Meeting a fellow hunter in the forest
Rating TPD

Her father's old bear fur coat nearly swallowed Vesper whole, but Vesper didn't much mind. The cold was settling thick and she knew that game would be scarce in the next few weeks. Not that her family needed to worry. The smoke house had done some quick work to a wild pig she had found and the deers she and Livy managed to drag back home to prepare for the winter were dried and ready to eat. There was more than enough root vegetables they had grown and attended to in the deep forest. They'd have enough this winter if they were careful.

The extra hunting was for her 'friends' and for trading during the winter. Not that she would find much now. Small rodents being far too brave and hungry and if she was lucky, perhaps a deer or two. Root vegetables and other edible plants still were on the table, though Mom and Livy were better at figuring out other uses for plants. But it was simply just her today going through the dead leaves and the naked trees. A bright orange ribbon served as her warning vest though she had seen more and more Cano not use their hunting vests to warn other hunters they weren't game.

It was approaching noon when she took a seat on a log, unfolding the dried trail mix and venison she brought for lunch. Her eyes studied the local area, signs of deer marked here and there but were decidedly older than a few days. Vesper sighed, fishing out for her cross and rubbed her thumb against it as she murmured a prayer of thanks and one to give her strength and perseverance.

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primitive_soul
2013-03-06 12:24 am UTC (link)

"Only once?" the hunter asked, going for a joking tone so the mood didn't turn dark. "I could never have been a nun. My temper's too quick and I only have so much patience when I'm not hunting. I couldn't have spent all that time praying and all that."

She paused, wondering if that bordered on offensive, then added, "I do meditate, though, usually when I'm out in the woods. Being removed from people means I talk to myself more often than not, so I've gotten kind of adept at finding my third eye or whatever you want to call it. I guess it's not too different than being cloistered, just with more chances of meeting a man. Or a woman, if that's what you want."

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ofvesper
2013-03-06 04:22 pm UTC (link)

"My temper is like... uhm." The young woman looked at her gloves a little longer to consider her words. She wasn't quite nervous but rather thought at this moment. "It's slow, and long burning, y'know? I can take mostly anything but when it gets to be too much? I'm like Mount St. Helen's." Vesper sits a little straighter up and smiles, "Its not always praying, not all the time. They do good works, too. Though maybe they're right, the Order isn't exactly the most active with the outside community."

Hardly to Vesper. Being apart of the clergy was a terrible sacrifice but a worthy one and not everyone could do it. Not even her, apparently. "Meditation is good, apart of prayer is that and another part is communication if you wanna believe that." The tiny smile suggests she understands faith is a hard concept. "Either way, meditation is good for the soul and the body. I prefer guys myself -- so I think. I've only just kissed." For a moment she's not sure if she should say something to Orion to suggest that she's not homophobic and always silently disagreed with the take of the Church and their opinion of the act of homosexuality is a sin. She settled not to say anything at all and let actions speak for themselves.

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primitive_soul
2013-03-06 05:56 pm UTC (link)

Orion got a little bashful at that. Her own lack of experience was something she felt made her stick out like a sore thumb among her peers, or at least it had before the lights went out. She wasn't sure how she felt about it now.

"I'm, uh, I like both sexes, but girls more than guys," she admitted shyly. "I guess your church has rules about that, but maybe in this new world the rules could...change?" The sentence tipped up at the end, making it into a question, and the hunter altered the position of her bow where it rested between her shoulderblades. Vesper didn't seem like the type to condemn her, but you could never be too careful.

"You can't be that much older than I am. Why did you want to become a nun?"

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ofvesper
2013-03-06 06:42 pm UTC (link)

Funny enough, Vesper only felt strange about it now. When she made that decision to become at 15, it was more her choice than anything else. But now it was odd she was still choosing not to much about it. Vesper knew she was pretty enough and skilled enough as a 'wife'. But beyond a crush on a Lawu, no one moved her all that much.

"Well, the offical rule is that sexual identity is not a sin, but acting upon the desrie is a sin because." She makes a face at the rule, not at Orion, "But ... " Another thoughtful pause, "I believe that God doesn't waste time condemning acts that don't hurt anyone. Especially not now, not when so many people are suffering." She takes a side glance at the direction towards the town proper, knowing not everyone believed the same thing.

However, she smiled then, warm and sure, "I wanted to help people and help them find themselves and their connection to a Higher Power. I hate to see people lost and I felt this would be my way of helping them while being connected to God." Vesper fiddled with the belt for a moment. "I know I sound corny."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-06 06:56 pm UTC (link)

"It's not corny," Orion said slowly, looking up at the sky for a second. "I'm not sure if I believe in God. My faith was always shaky even before the Pulse, and what happened during and after that time kind of destroyed whatever was left of my trust in a higher power. I guess if you can still believe after everything that's happened, that's something worth noting."

She looked closely at Vesper's expression to see if she was offended by that, then continued with, "There was a prayer group that met every week when I was in college, but I never went. I was always worried they'd try to save my soul, and I might have resented it. Does that sound awful?"

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ofvesper
2013-03-06 11:03 pm UTC (link)

There's a warm smile as she listened, "It's hard to believe in something when the world ends. And there really isn't much we can blame. When it first happened I thought it was an attack. China or Russia finally did something and that was easy to blame. But by the time..." She tilted her head to consider and her eyes half lowered to recall memories, "By late summer, 2013, we all realized it happened everywhere and not just the United States and nothing could be explained but an act of God. We meaning the town." And what little was left of her Parish, the local nuns and Father Jim and Father Carlos had been old. Both had died and most of the nuns died too or left to Los Angelos in the Spring of 2013.

"I'm sorry you felt that way but I'm not surprised you do. Some people who are religious do push. I can't deny that. Some want to truly help you and others... just want this power over you and confirmation they're right because they're scared. You can't push an epiphany on people. It comes and it creeps and blooms on it's own." Vesper considers what the town has to offer but she won't say anything. Not yet. "So it doesn't sound awful at all."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-06 11:57 pm UTC (link)

Orion allowed herself a small smile, then finished off her apple and tossed the core into the grass near the trunk of a tree. "I was really hoping not to offend you," she said. "I have this habit of stepping in it without knowing it until it's too late, so I'm glad I didn't say the wrong thing by accident."

What she didn't say was that she'd thought it was war too, that somebody had finally pushed that big red button and started a fight they couldn't stop, and reality had proved to be worse than what she'd feared. Now the world was what it was, and she just had to get along as best as she could.

"Think you'll get any game today?"

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ofvesper
2013-03-07 12:30 am UTC (link)

"I'm... pretty hard to offend. Believe me, that was the nicest conversation I've had with an agnostic since this whole thing started." She waves it off as she stretches out her legs. Buck skin pants and well loved snowboots are exposed. It's close to winter now, the store bought summer clothes are put away.

Vesper could deal with the new world, watching the ashes spin in the air. It all seemed easier to deal with and probably because she spent a year from communication. Though she would dearly miss .. so many of the trivial things.

"I... I don't expect to get much besides a rabbit and if that. I'm not really prepared for much else with this coat. It just gives me comfort."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-08 12:34 am UTC (link)

"I like the coat," Orion remarked, nearly reaching out a hand to pet the fur. But it might have seemed presumptuous, so she kept her hands to herself. "Where'd you get it?"

She'd probably find out it was an heirloom or something, and then she'd really feel stupid, but Vesper did seem very attached to the garment. It was unusual to find someone who valued something deeply enough to hang onto it in these days of only keeping what you could comfortably carry, but hell, she'd been wrong before about what people valued.

"I wish I had a coat like that, if only because it looks really warm."

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ofvesper
2013-03-08 01:11 am UTC (link)

"Thank you," She smiled down quietly at the coat, memories happy and flooding in her mind. "My mother made it for my father. Dad bagged a bear two springs ago. He was a hunter and forest ranger."

Vesper worried her lower lip for a moment. Five months ago Thomas caught a 'cold', it was a the flu, and it just gnawed at his immunity. The coat reminded her of him.

"It's super warm. It's just meant for a man that's 6'3, not a girl who's 5'4. I'm not good enough to shoot a bear with a bow and bullets are rare but I wouldn't mind one that fit me."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-08 06:22 pm UTC (link)

Was. That meant the man was no longer with his family, and Orion had to clamp her mouth shut to keep herself from asking whether he had died before or after the Pulse. She'd hate to open old wounds with a thoughtless question, and it likely would have only served to point out her own losses. Best to leave it alone.

"Well, at least you know he was a good hunter," she offered in a careful tone. "I'd never be able to bag a bear on my own, and I think I'm pretty good with a bow and arrow. But the largest thing I've ever caught is a stag last fall just as the season was beginning to turn cold."

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ofvesper
2013-03-09 04:53 am UTC (link)

Only five months ago. The wounds weren't so old and that's why she didn't quite say what 'was' meant. Marcus was gone, but he still could be alive. He was well trained, he knew the location his squadron was at. Was for Thomas 'the Bear' Janeckzo was buried in the ground.

"I don't think he planned to hunt the bear, it was rather him versus the bear. I'm pretty sure he never wanted to hurt one, he loved nature too much and they were ... he just liked them." The smile quivers a bit. Vesper doesn't care how raw the emotion on her sleeve is. Better to lose it here with a kindly stranger than back in town where someone could potentially use the raw emotion to their advantage. "I've caught deer, in fact last October I got a few. I mean, messy as anything, but I'm getting better."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-09 05:55 pm UTC (link)

"Catching them's the easy part," Orion said, waving back at the treeline. "It's getting them dressed and carved up into manageable pieces that's tough. Do you hunt by yourself or with the other members of your tribe?"

It seemed like a harmless question, and she and Vesper had kinda-sorta been doing some bonding thus far. If the other girl's tribe let her hunt alone, they might not have completely absorbed her into a hive mind situation. It was something to ponder in case she ever decided to choose a tribe.

"Going it alone is hard, but so far I think I've done pretty well. Getting here in winter was a good lesson in how things are around here when the weather gets bad. Are you glad you picked the bunch you did?"

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ofvesper
2013-03-09 07:58 pm UTC (link)

"Dad was the expert on that, he could do things fantastically. His hunting partner at the time divided the meat with him, not that there was much mind you, the bear had been foraging and was angry because he was starving. But since Dad did the killing shot, Dad got to the fur." Eyes darted to the treeline for a few moments, hunting for shadows and shapes along the treeline before turning her attention back to Orion. "I became my father's hunting partner until he passed away a few months ago," Why hide it? The conversation wouldn't make sense if she hid it, "And I have a hunting partner now. They're just much saner than I am."

Vesper had always been worried about that 'hive-mind' situation. She knew Bridget didn't much care for the fact she remained religious though there had been no quarrel. Vesper contributed to the Cano as much as the other person and when that was given, she went off and did her own thing. Like hunting right before the cold settled upon them all.

"You're surviving, you're standing up and you look pretty healthy, I think you're doing a totally amazing job." She flashed a warm smile at that. "I had that lesson during the aftermath and I know I'm lucky I managed compared to others. But it was my family that pulled through." With the next question she simply... shrugged. "It's not the perfect fit for me but I don't think any of the Tribes really are. When the territories were drawn up, my parents survival shelter was on the Cano land and since they knew how to hunt, it was a perfect match for them."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-09 10:26 pm UTC (link)

"Was it hard, having to give up just being with your family?" Orion asked curiously. She could imagine how she would have felt if it had been her who'd come through something like the Pulse to have a bunch of strangers suddenly all over the place. But maybe it was different for Vesper, who seemed like a more mild-mannered sort in comparison.

"How does your tribe do things?" she asked the other girl. "I mean, how do you divide up the work and the hunts and stuff like that? I think part of the reason I haven't chosen a tribe yet is because I'm afraid they'd try to boss me around too much, but your people don't seem to do that. Is it easier to get along with them than it would be with another group?"

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ofvesper
2013-03-10 04:55 am UTC (link)

"I don't mind it.. We had, like, over a thousand people living here and I knew a lot of them." Her lips press together, the chaos after the Pulse had simply destroyed her town and the winter after took away whomever was left. "I don't know many of the new people save by rumor or by chance. So I'm sort of stuck. I can't do much in the other Tribes and I'm not nearly as good as the other Cano." She began to stand up, not because she was ready to leave but rather she needed to stretch. "The only thing I have going was Mom and Dad teaching me how to preserve stuff and hunting."

She sat back down, hands on the log and her head tipped back to study the sky through the leaves as she considered her words. "Bridget is head strong and stubborn, but it's not... she's not unkind. She expects you to pull your share." Her teeth worry her lower lip for a moment, the prominent front teeth making her akin to a rabbit. "Not all of the Cano are he-man hunters and she understands that. Recently my sister joined the Cano and she's more of a gatherer and preserver and she's much better at it than I am. She's really made an impact and contribute to our home since she moved in, and she's a former Tawa."

She sat as she remembered, "Though they got this idea lately, and I think it's kinda stupid, that we should be living in the trees." And then her head tilted quizzically studying Orion's face, "Do you have a hunting partner?"

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primitive_soul
2013-03-10 03:12 pm UTC (link)

"Before the lights went out I hunted with my dad and my brothers," Orion said, looking down at her lap. "They're gone now, or if not gone then they're where I can't find them. I don't know if I'll ever see any of them again."

The hunter gave it some thought. Being asked to pull her own weight didn't sound like such a terrible thing, and what was she doing if not fending for herself out here? Still, she kind of chafed at the idea of someone being her 'leader' when she got along all right without that. Especially if that particular leader was stubborn.

"I'm information gathering," she told Vesper. "To see if there's a tribe that might be a fit for me."

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ofvesper
2013-03-10 05:43 pm UTC (link)

Vesper quietly reached a hand out and gently settled it on Orion's shoulder before squeezing gently before drawing her hand away, "We've all lost someone like that. Distance is a rotten thing and you just never know."

In the end, everyone had to find a leader they could mesh with. At the least those with families had to find something they could mesh with. It wasn't right, it was really ridiculous. It was almost feudalism at the core. But it's what one could do right now.

"I've only heard about wonderful things with Oma, but they're more farmers than hunters. Still, they still need hunters to supplement part of their diet. I mean, we can't slaughter cows and stuff without being able to replace the ones we butcher. Buck's an stable guy."

Vesper studied her gloved hands for a moment, "My hunting partners aren't lazy but... they're content with what they're doing. If you ever want someone to hunt with you, I'm usually in town on Wednesdays for trading for most of the afternoon. Actually, in the winter and spring months I'm usually going around and trying to help where I can in the afternoons. You can always ask, anyway."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-10 07:50 pm UTC (link)

"I'd like that," Orion said cautiously. Cautious because she wasn't sure if it wouldn't step on somebody's toes to take Vesper up on her offer and because she'd been a solo act for a while now. Still, it might not hurt to get to know someone who was native to the area. The other girl might be able to advise her on something she was missing.

"I usually get to the trading post pretty often during the colder months," she said, unslinging her backpack to pluck out another apple. "Mainly just to see if anyone's got any decent bread, but sometimes to trade firewood for extra venison. I have a cart I haul along with me every couple of weeks, but only when I have a big enough load."

This seemed like the tentative start to a new friendship, her first in a while. She looked forward to seeing what would become of it. "They know me by name at the post, so if I don't see you, you can ask for me too."

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ofvesper
2013-03-10 09:00 pm UTC (link)

"Whenever you need it," Vesper assured, she didn't want to seem clingy but she didn't want to seem callous either. Hunting with two people meant you get bigger game and she needed all the chances she could get. "For bigger game. I know some people are much happier doing it by themselves."

It was then Vesper realized the wrapping, a piece of cloth really, she left on the log and she began to fold it up to slip into her own pack. Not so much to prevent littering but to keep her reusable goods, she gotten better at that lately. "It's hard to do in the Fall, I can't even get to church those days." If she had to select the mass or her group, she often selected her group. "You might have gotten my venison a few times. That's what we used to haul into the trading post a lot."

Vesper flashes that ever ready grin, "I will, promise."

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primitive_soul
2013-03-10 09:24 pm UTC (link)

"Then I'll be seeing you around," Orion said as she got up from the log. Dusting at the seat of her pants, she reflected that it was going to be a chilly night. She'd have to cover up extra good to keep warm after she'd banked the fire for the night. Better that than wake up as a Popsicle.

"Also, if you see whatever's been at my traps, shoot it with something," she added with a hand motion at the treeline. "Predators scare away the game almost as much as humans do, so be careful, though." She crunched into her second apple as she started out of the clearing, then stopped long enough to add, "It was good to meet you, Vesper. I don't meet many people worth talking to these days."

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ofvesper
2013-03-11 12:06 am UTC (link)

"You should." Vesper watched the other woman stand up, her hands resting on the log. It would be a cold night, she could tell and the nights came much faster than she would have liked. But the bunker would be warm with the stove crackling merrily.

"I'll keep an eye on that, gun or bow. Might be easier with a gun but I'll keep trying with my bowman ship." She promised as she watched Orion head out. That smile flashed one last time before she waved, "Thank you, same with you!"

There was a warm, content feeling. It was nice meeting someone new.

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