Demesne Patron EX SS 22 – The Mighty Hunter Returns (Patreon)

"You need my help?" Karina said.

Shana nodded, even as she glanced sideways to make sure her cousin was nearby. The younger girl was still sitting on the bench Shana had put her, swaying impatiently. "Binder Lori asked me to plant some tubers so we can transfer them over to River's Fork. However, I do not know how to raise tubers, or where I may find some to plant and grow." Karina had gotten used to the strange way Shana talked, so she just nodded. Some of the other children still looked at her strangely, but no one really made fun of her about it anymore after Shana had knocked Big Yerart to the ground by throwing him over her shoulder.

Then she'd become popular for being able to throw people over her shoulder, as long as it was on top of something soft. People had gone to Lord Rian when they'd started bringing blankets and bedrolls to the old shelter in the middle of the day, but once he'd seen what it was for, he'd just told them to do it in the dungeon square floor and fold up the blankets and bedrolls to be thicker.

"Well, if Wiz Lori said so, then I suppose I can help you," Karina said. She'd been thinking of finally going seeling again, since the big fursh seemed to have finally come back, but she supposed she could do that any time now. "We can check if any of the tubers in the Dungeon farm are ready to be dug up. If they are, we can clear that planter and I can show you how it's done. "

"No, I do not think she meant I need to plant more tubers in the Dungeon farm. She specifically said I was to plant more tubers where there is space. I believe she intends me to find spaces not already being used for anything."

Karina frowned in thought. "Well, we used to plant tubers outside, but we don't really do that anymore because of the chokers and we have the Dungeon farm now." She'd thought a Dungeon farm would be bigger, but Wiz Lori was still digging it out, so it would probably get bigger still.

"Do you still remember how it was done?" Shana asked.

"Oh, it's not that hard. We just need to get rid of all the rocks and turn the soil over so there's a little air in it," the farmer's daughter said. "I'll show you."

"Will we be needing tools? I believed I am authorized to use a shovel."

"That would help, but we don't really need it. We'll need an old stick, though. One of my old seeling rods should do."

"What for?"

"How else are we going to soften up the ground?"

"…I believe I will requisition a shovel."

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Once they had their tools—Shana didn't have any trouble getting a shovel that hadn't been used to much out the latrines—they went off to find someplace they could dig up. It wasn't easy, though. A lot of the easy places already had something planted to grow there, like tubers, vauang, sharrods, nigrum, or some of the plants they found that could be used to spice the food and didn't make anyone sick or colorbrained. Other places were either in the shade, the ground was too hard, or was somewhere that people walked through where they'd be trampled. Not that they couldn't plant them there, but it would be hard keeping people off. They'd need to make some kind of fence, which would be more work, and people might still trample through it anyway. Such plots would be too small to really plant anything anyway.

"We could plant the tubers behind the—my house," Shana suggested, watching Yoshka, who was running around in circles, waving her hands in front of her as she pretended to be a beast. "It's sunny on that side, and no one really goes there, so we shouldn't have to worry about them being trampled."

Karina considered that, and nodded in agreement. "Okay, let's build it there."

The place wasn't the worst for trying to start a little vegetable garden. There weren't any tree roots to dig through since the place had been cleared last year, but the ground was rocky, and soil wasn't very good. Still, the ground was level and sunny, or at least it would be when it wasn't raining. The two of them got to work, first marking out a rectangle that wasn't very big. Karina knew they shouldn't overextend themselves, since they'd have to dig fairly deep to plant tubers properly.

Once they had the boundaries of the planned vegetable garden, they set to work using the pointed end of the seeling rod and the shovel. Karina showed Shana what to do, turning up the ground to loosen the soil. Since they both had tools, it wasn't that hard. Certainly easier than trying to do it with her bare hands or a rock she'd picked up. However, they had to dig down to at least halfway up their shins. While tubers didn't need to be that deep, doing it this way would let them get the most tubers from one planting, so they'd get a lot of food.

Karina and Shana soon fell into a rhythm, Karina using her stick to stab down into the soil to loosen it, then Shana using her shovel to pry the dirt part so they could dig it out. Yoshka played in the dirt that they had finished with, picking rocks from the ground and throwing them at the back wall off the house to watch the things bounce off. Starting from one corner of the plot they'd marked out, the systematically moved down row after row, digging up the soil as they went. It was slow work with just the two of them, but Karina was used to working like this, and Shana didn't complain, so she must be used to it too.

Still, Karina was glad when she heard the calls going out signaling that lunch was ready. They put their tools inside Shana's house so the things wouldn't get lost, then headed down to the laundry area to wash their feet with warm water along with many others.

"Tah, there you are," Galef said as she cupped her hands to splash water down at her feet. "We were looking for you two. Where have you been?"

"Were you two off kissing?" Aliya teased.

"Shana asked me to help her make a tuber garden," Karina said, flicking some water at the annoying pink-haired girl. Aliya simply stuck her tongue out at her as she danced out of range, laughing as she left the laundry area with her shoes in hand.

Shana nodded, carefully washing her feet so she wouldn't splash anyone else. "Yes. Karina has been very helpful in this regard." Some boys giggled at her words, but no one actually said anything.

"Why are you making a tuber garden? We already have a lot of tubers," Galef asked.

"The Great Binder assigned me to do so," Shana said, "so I shall. Yoshka, hold up your skirt so I can wash your feet." The younger girl did so as Shana knelt down, then mischievously let the skirt fall over Shana's head. "Yoshka, don't do that, your skirt will get wet."

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After lunch, during which Shana fussed over her cousin and made sure the newcomers from River's Fork ate—and didn't try to take bread to hide in their packs—Yoshka joined the afternoon game of patintero downstairs in the dungeon square floor, where she'd probably be for the rest of the day. Karina and Shana went back to the plot with their tools and continued working. Without Yoshka there to distract Shana, the Lady Binder seemed able to work faster than before. It had also rained during lunch, which seemed to have softened the ground enough that Karina was able to get her stick in easier. The two of them managed to finish even faster than she had thought. Karina had been sure they'd have to continue the work tomorrow

"Tomorrow, we'll do down to the Dungeon farm and get some of the tubers are being sprouted, and get them ready to plant," Karina explained as they took a bath at the end of the day, washing off the dirt and cold in the water of the bath. The floor around them was dark grown, and they were careful to keep the dirt sloughing of them from going down the drain, where it would clog the pipes. "Best to get that ready for when we're done. Then we have to go over the plot and take out any rocks." That would be more hard work. They'd need to gird their skirts and tying the fabric around their hips to bare their legs to the thighs so they could get down on their hands and knees to remove the largest stones and other hard objects from the dirt of the garden plot. "When that's done, we'll have to go down to the river and dig up some of the sandy river soil to mix it in with our garden dirt. We'll mix it up with dirt from the waste pit too, so that the tubers will have something to grow on."

"I see," Shana said, using soap and water to wash her legs. Her hands and face was darker than the rest of her from the day's work, and it would probably get darker still tomorrow. "Then we will be able to plant the tubers?"

Karina nodded. "We'll put a little dirt over them, then when they start growing, pile more and more dirt on them. That way, we'll have a lot of tubers. They'll need to be watered s the ground doesn't get dry, especially since they're getting a lot of sun."

"How long will it be before they are ready to be harvested?"

"Eight to ten weeks," Karina said promptly. She might only be able to count up to ten, but that was all she needed to count the important things. "Then we can dig them up and either eat them or plant them again, although summer tubers aren't going to be as big, since it'll be hot by then. "

"Oh. I see." For some reason, she didn't sound very happy about that. "Would we be able to dig them up earlier and replant them to grow more tubers?"

"No, you should never do that," Karina said firmly as she soaped her arms. "Tuber roots are very delicate when they're growing. If you disturb them before the tubers are ready to be harvested, they might die and all that work will go to waste. I know what you're thinking, but until they're ready to be harvested, tubers can't be used to plant more tubers."

Shana nodded slowly. "Here, let me get your back for you."

"Ah, thank you." Karina turned her back on the Lady Binder. "There's no need to hurry the tubers. We have plenty of food."

Shana's hands touched her back, slimy with soap. "Not in River's Fork," the other girl said as she began scrubbing Karina's back. "It's part of the reason why the children are slowly being brought to live here. There have been problems with the food supply, you see."

Karina straightened, almost turning around. "They don't have enough food?"

She remembered the feeling of painful emptiness in middle, how her inay and itay grew so thin giving their meals to her and her brothers and sisters. How it hadn't been enough to stave away the aches, and she'd had to ask Wiz Lori for water over and over again just so that she'd feel full…

"Yes," Shana was saying. "That's why I'm planting tubers. The Great Binder intends to use them to plant more tuber's in River's Fork so that there will be another source of food. However, I'm not sure that will be enough."

Karina sat silently. Her hands had come up to clutch at her stomach, even though it didn't ache and gnaw at her from inside. Eventually, she said, "Do you have seels in River's Fork too?"