The temporary camp was busy on the chilly Kerah morning.  A party departed to search for food, but six tsabhua remained, milling about as they determined what to do.  Dawnbreaker and Orion wrestled, trying to push each other around, while Snowdance told Skylark about his visit to the river.  Yannikuf stood off to the side, awkward in this colony that was not his.  A brown tsab nodded to him, then stepped confidently to the head of the group.  “Yayaloc told you all that you were assigned to shelter building.  These tents aren’t bad, but I think you all can agree that they’re not very warm,” Chase called to them.  Agreement and muttering about freezing toes met her words.  “Yayaloc and I have talked.  Poet and his crew should be returning with the prefab buildings given by DPIP later today.  We think--”

The voice of a golden whelp interrupted her.  “Those weren’t warm either!” Dawnbreaker complained, stamping a foot.

Chase smiled at her daughter.  “No, they aren’t.  But we have a plan for them.”  She looked up to address the entire group again.  “We plan to make a wall out of them, facing the west from where the worst of the winds blow.  From there, we can build our homes in their shelter, insulated and warm,” she told them.  Snowdance, Dawnbreaker, and Yannikuf nodded, but Skylark looked concerned.

“Where will we get the insulation?” she called.  “We barely have any pelts.”

Chase dipped her head.  “I’m glad you asked.  Since we have some time until Poet arrives, we’re going to visit some nearby tribes and trade for more.”

Orion stepped forward from where she was hidden by the adults.  “Trade what?” she asked.

Chase looked a little taken aback, but answered, “We have some DPIP-provided medicine supplies, and a bit of extra food.  Yayaloc thinks it’ll work.”

“Don’t we need the medicine?” Orion piped up again.

“Poet and Skylark are planning an herb garden.  We’ll be okay,” Chase replied.  Orion nodded, placated.  Chase turned back to the main group.  “Alright everyone, head to the supply tent, and we’ll get ready for our journey!”  She spun and led the way, everyone trailing after her.

Snowdance nudged Yannikuf.  “Thanks for agreeing to help us out!” he said, grinning at the other tsab.

Yannikuf smiled as well.  “Couldn’t pass up the chance to see what you were going to do with this wind-blown plain.  What made you leave those cliffs, anyway?  They looked nice.”

Snowdance shook his head.  “Unstable.  They nearly killed Yayaloc when the rocks started to fall.”

“Ah.”

When they reached the tent, Chase was already handing out bundles for the tsabhua to strap to their sides.  Even the two whelps held small packages of supplies, which made Skylark frown.  “Why are we bringing youngsters?” she asked her sister.

Chase paused as she held out bandages to Yannikuf.  “We’ve met with this tribe before.  They’re friendly and peaceful.  Dawn has been wanting to see them again, and I think Orion could use the perspective.  Also, they need the chance to get out of camp.  They were disappointed when Moon and Blue got to go out foraging this morning and they didn’t.  We can’t very well leave them behind now,” she said.

Skylark tipped her head at the mention of her daughter.  Other groups, both tribes and colonies, made her anxious but she didn’t want to deny whelps new experiences.  “I suppose you’re right.”  Her tail swished, but she stepped back to allow Chase to lead everyone back outside.  Snowdance patted her shoulder as he passed, and she smiled back weakly.

Chase set a course straight out of camp, confidence in her step.  Dawnbreaker bounced along just behind her, chattering to Yannikuf about the tribe they were going to visit.  Skylark tried to sneakily listen in.

By the time they reached the tribe’s camp, Dawnbreaker had had to ask her mother for a ride on her back.  Orion pranced alongside, not yet even remotely tired, and Dawn wrinkled her nose at the other whelp when she wasn’t looking.

Snowdance and Chase led the negotiations, as they’d visited before.  Skylark hung back, winglets tucked close to her sides as if she could make them invisible.  She’d heard some natives were prejudiced against mutations.  Yannikuf took the time to explain to a pair of natives about how some of the pills they’d brought worked.  They didn’t seem to understand all of the chatter about prostaglandin reduction, but they listened politely.  Dawnbreaker and Orion were doted on and shown the tribe’s whelps.  Dawn immediately began to make friends, but after a few moments Orion grew uncomfortable with the attention and withdrew to lean against Skylark’s leg.

In time, agreements were made and each colonist’s bundle was replaced by a much heavier package.  Chase tapped horns with the tribe’s leader, and Dawn hugged the whelps she’d been talking to.  The group made their way back home, ears flattened against the wind blowing across the plains.  They made it as the big brother was setting, greeting their colony-mates returned from foraging and longer journeys.  All six deposited the pelts in the supply tent.  The little brother still shone in the sky, but all were weary, and settled in to their evening activities.

The next day began much the same as the first, with some departing and others staying.  Chase, Skylark, Snowdance, and Yannikuf met outside as soon as there was light to see while Orion and Dawnbreaker remained asleep, curled in some of the new furs.  The adults set to work digging a trench to pour concrete in, burning fires nearby to keep it from freezing.  The whelps were woken a few hours later by the sound of holes being drilled in the concrete.  They helped move the prefab walls over, and Snowdance let Orion screw some of the bolts in place while the rest held the formation steady.

Poet stared at the concrete.  “How’d you get it to dry so quickly?” he asked.

Skylark and Chase barely looked up, but Yannikuf took the time to answer.  “We used a drying agent.  Made it myself,” he said proudly.  The pair devolved into talking about the specifics of the drying agent while the rest continued to set the wall, laying out section after section and duct taping the gaps between.  There ended up being a few left over, which Chase decided would go toward a ceiling or possible future second wall.

The tents were taken down one by one and stretched over supports to form a lean-to against the wall.  Most supports were wood, but Dawnbreaker marveled at the tall bones that were occasionally being used.  Snowdance leaned in to whisper to her, “Wherever Sundrie comes from, she brought those bones with.  Said they’re ancestral.”  Dawnbreaker turned to him, eyes wide.  He nodded.

With shelters made and the edges pinned safely to the ground, it was time to furnish them.  Skylark and Chase fetched the pelts while Snowdance and the whelps gathered bedding from where the tents had been.  Yannikuf rejoined them as they began to hang pelts against the prefab wall and tuck beds in corners, forming cozy indoor areas.  There were four shelters in all, with room for four colonists each inside.  A little more space than they currently needed, but Chase was looking a little round in the middle, and who knew what Shemesh would bring?  The six colonists sat back, the wind tousling their manes, and admired their work.  It was not perfect, but it was comfortable, and it was theirs.