The evening had gone quickly after Ambrose had finished molding bricks. All throughout dinner Reenie had asked repeatedly when and what story he was going to tell her and over and over he said that she would just have to wait until her bed time to find out. While this was true, it also gave him plenty of time to come up with a story in the meantime.

  After regaling the girl with his story of an orphan boy who became king of the forest, he made his way back to him bed and let the weight of the day’s tasks overtake him, dragging him into unconsciousness. The next day, after breakfast and his morning wash, he checked on the two tasks he had left to progress. From the heat still emanating from the mud casing of the charcoal pyre he guessed it needed maybe a quarter day more, from the look and feel of the bricks he thought they would probably need the rest of the day to dry.

  Since his two current tasks had not reached a point where he could actively continue them and with Trelen saying that they still needed longer to work on more support rods, the only task he could think to work on was the path that Ros had been slowly clearing. The edge of Ambrose’s land was about a quarter chain from the main path that led towards the city. Ros had started the path about the same distance from their camp and had made a surprising amount of progress. About half of it was cleared enough that it was becoming easier to see its boundaries. The main thing that was still preventing it from being a proper path and one of the main things Ros couldn't do while looking after her children, was trees.

  The axe felt just a sturdy in his hands as it had yesterday as Ambrose swung it at one of the trunks. While felling trees with force runes was a lot quicker and admittedly more fun, since Gro-lag was in no position to make more bone runes for them to use, it made more sense to ration the ones they had. Especially for when Trelen needed more ore.

  He was taking a break after getting though his fifth tree when a small giggle caught his attention. He turned to follow it and saw a sight that brought an instant smile to his face.

  "Hello, look at you."

  Crawling up to him with a big smile on his face was Gren-Lag, who once he reached him, turned on to his bottom and raised his arms. Ambrose picked him up and raised him into the air, eliciting a squeak of a laugh.

  "I thought you would like to see his little achievement." Ros said, standing a few steps from him. "Though I didn't think I would be able to surprise you with it?"

  "Yeah, I guess I was off in my own world."

  Ambrose was surprised as well; he hadn't noticed Ros walking up to him at all. Being ‘off in his own world’ was a slight fib, saying he was thinking about a thousand things at once would probably be more accurate. The more his development of his land expanded, the more he found himself worrying about what he had to do next and more importantly what he might be doing wrong.

  "So, when did he start crawling?"

  "This morning apparently. It was a bit of a shock when I turned from the spot I usually leave him and he was right by my feet." She said, with a small laugh. "It's going to make keeping an eye on him a lot more difficult."

  Ambrose's face dropped slightly. "You will have a safe home for him soon, I promise."

  Ros gave him a pitying smile. "I know you will, you are all working so hard."

  At the mention of their whole group, he suddenly noticed one missing who he assumed would be with Ros. "Where's Reenie?"

  "Currently enjoying herself smashing rocks helping Trelen, she had developed a bit of a fascination with them."

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  Ambrose gave a small huff of a laugh. "I'm glad, but I am a bit surprised at how close they have gotten with everyone."

  Ros looked a little guilty at the comment. "The poor thing has been through a lot, that can leave you very… closed off." She paused for a moment and Ambrose could see sadness wash across her face for a moment. "I came over for a reason other than to let Gren-Lag showoff." She gestured for him to follow and he did.

  She started to lead him back along the path. "When I was making breakfast this morning, I noticed that our food situation is starting to look a bit worrying."

  "Really?" Ambrose replied quickly.

  "When was the last time anyone went hunting?" She asked, leadingly.

  Now that she had mentioned it, the last time he could remember Gro-Lag bringing anything in was just before he had left for the city with Arlon and they had all been too busy to go since he got back.

  He gave a long sigh. "How bad is it?"

  "We have enough salted meat for maybe three days but we have no fruit, nuts, berries or fish."

  Ambrose put his head in his hands. "Ok, I guess me and Trelen can take a break and go fishing and gathering."

  "Fishing would be good but I tried to go gathering the other day, from what I can see we have taken most of what this part of the forest had to give for the season."

  He stopped walking as he took in what she had said. He hadn't even considered that they might use all the forgeable food they had available to them. He swore under his breath.

  "Not to make it worse but we only have about ten days before Arlon comes to collect her deer." She said, flatly.

  He swore again, this time very much not under his breath.

  "Come on, I can't really help us now but I have been working on something that might help in the future."

  She led him through the woods; towards the area they had been clearing for her and her family’s home. As they did Ambrose immediately noticed what she had been doing. Just off from where the main building was planning to be built the ground had been dug over, leaving the earth soft.

  "You did this all this morning?" He asked, impressed.

  "After his initial crawling debut, Gren-Lag had a good long sleep, which combined with Trelen watching Reen-Ge?n-Lüg, I had some free time." She put her hand in her pocket and pulled out a small handful of green plants. "I found some wild carrots that had gone to seed, I thought I would try them first." She paused and seemed to think for a second. "If that's ok with you?"

  Ambrose, a bit surprised at her hesitance, nodded emphatically. "I have been thinking we should start a farm since well… since I first got the land."

  Ros gave a wide smile and nodded. "Ok, if you can get me some other bits from the city; some onion seeds, or potatoes I can try to grow them too."

  "I will probably need to head there to get us some supplies to tide us over anyway." He said with a shrug.

  She continued to smile at him and then looked out at the small farm she had begun. "I have always wanted my own farm. Just like my da."

  "Your da was a farmer?" He asked, reflexively. He winced once he his brain had caught up with what he had said. Ros had been very private about her family and from what Gro lag had told him, he could understand why.

  Ros continued to look wistfully as the patch of land but nodded. "He used to grow all the produce for our village. Got us through more winters than people could count I was told." She gave a small giggle that broke at the end into what Ambrose almost felt was a sob.

  "Ros, Gro-Lag told me a bit about your family. I'm so sorry."

  "Why are you sorry?" She said, turning her head slightly towards him. "From what you have told me about your upbringing, I doubt you were part of the lord's court who ordered that our land belonged to him, who when we resisted, ordered we be rounded up and executed one by one."

  Ambrose felt bile rising in his throat. "How old was you?"

  "Seven. I only survived since they kept the younger women till last. Gro-Lag's tribe heard about what was happening and sent a rescue party." She gave a sad smile. "That was the first time I met the man who would one day be my father in law." She turned fully to him and he could see the tears in her eyes. "I watch everything I had in the world taken from me. When I had my daughter, I swore that I would never let her ever experience that."

  They both stood in silence, tears slowly falling from Ros's large green eyes. Ambrose stepped forward and quietly wrapped his arms around her. She stiffened for a moment before relaxing.

  "I promise you Ros, I swear on my life and the forest itself, I will never let that happen to her or Gren-Lag."

  She stayed being hugged by him for a moment before moving away and wiping her eyes. She bounced Baby Gren-Lag and laughed. "Aren’t you lucky to have an uncle like Ambrose."

  Ambrose gave a small laugh and ruffled the baby’s hair. "Uncle Ambrose. I like that, I like that a lot."