Kyu returned to the fire sitting on the opposite side. hands cleaned the blood on pants cleaned off as well as possible and some cedar rubbed into the pocket to hid the smell. Kyu slowly eat keeping an eye on the disgruntled Sampson.

Sampson had set more meat smoking as soon as they had reached the house he flipped it over then comforted himself for sleep and in a low slightly antagonizing voice said “Vies mark on you is fading.”

Kyus eyes filled. Kyu stoped eating instead standing and going to the rock pile to sort them and their feelings out. ‘So Mom is really dead the fortes of protection has disappeared form my life and I am now left so survive with the most alfa male I have ever even herd of and he docent like me. Proper werewolf do kill the weak, am I so weak he can’t stand me but  this is my only chance. mom wanted this for me I need to make this work I need to prove my worth!. so Kyu spent the night bringing the loads of rocks needed for the smoker. having already piled up everything on the shore it was easy to collect. pulling a too heavy cart was just the punishing effort needed to cry alone in the woods as time and again Kyu had to make trips with a fraction of the weight Sampson could. 

Sampson was aware of the kids struggle but hearing the sniffles and cries thought it better to let the youth fight though this one on their own. maybe they really were part human, humans took the loss of a mother as a strike to the hart. Pack was hard to lose for any werewolf but but having a real pack was a long gone thing of the past.  Vie couldn’t have come here though she would love to run free, she would never have made it with out modern conveniences. she liked the nice things and did what she had to do to get them this was not the life she wanted. 

by morning Sampson had stoped herring the kid as he work in the night, figuring Kyu was still collecting stones Sampson went about storing the smoked meat cooking breakfast, stoping to see the progress the kid had made only to find the kid sleeping on the whole pile of rocks they had collected the day before. head resting on a rock they looked almost dead so pail in the morning light worn though tear streaks down muddy cheeks hands now bloodier the ever. it was the most pathetic and somehow impressive sight Sampson had seen. he again got the duffle, covered the kid and took the cart 

he returned late in the morning and kicked the kids boot “wake up you have work to do” something in that phrase reminded Sampson of a pup that was bought at the same time as he and Vie. the wicked memory of that kid being killed tore though Sampson and he remembered master Moses had said the same thing when he and Vie were griped by grief. “work don’t think, get stronger so we don’t have to feel the same over one of you” Moses was hard but knew how to keep a pup from wallowing.

Kyu sat up sun warmed from sleeping in the yard Sampson barked an order “grab the canvas and pull” Kyu unaware of them self did as was told to find that Sampson had Piled great mound of clay on a canvas in the cart and was now typing the cart so the canvas would slide out. 

then with out another word Sampson left to make more firewood. 

Kyu washed off with well water, then at the fire found a portion of cooked meat waiting for them, after eating Kyu took some of the cut straw and chopped it smaller then added all the ash from the fire and some more water to the clay. woking it all to gather, adding grit and ash and straw till it was a thick tacky consistency covered it with the canvas. taking a bit of twine and two sticks. knocked one stick in the ground looped the ends of the twine loosely over the sticks stretching the twine and trying to keep the second stick as upright as possible walked wrapping the stick in the perfect circle. with one of the old shovels Kyu started to dig that edge then the whole, only to brake the handle of the shovel and have to make a new one only to not know how to fasten it. so just dug using the head of the shovel finally laying down some gravel and sand from the river then the largest rocks as a bace.  starting the largest rig of the smoker the mortar  biggest rocks first and more mortar then the next ring of rocks two high, then reweting the mortar mix and cover for tomorrow. Kyu lit the cook fire and started smoking the next batch of meat doing it this way took forever! 

Kyu was half asleep by the fire when Sampson returned and started stacking wood. Kyu walked over and started helping. “I’m sorry I’m not what you were expecting but I’ll do my best to earn my place here I don’t want to be a burden.”

Sampson nodded. Kyu didn't know what that meant but kept working till the cart was empty then they sat and eat at the fire. Kyu feeling more lonely then ever before asked “would you like to see how far I got with the smoker?

Sampson nodded and they walked over to the fire pit looking beginning of a smoker.

“It’s big”  Sampson commented 

“I’d like to be able to do a whole leg of venison and some trays but I don’t fully know how to make the trays yet I think just using bones for now should be good. I’m going to make little selfs edges so whatever I figure out to span it can sit and I think I’m going to pilfer one of the big metal hooks from the rafter to put in the top for hanging the big things. the whole in the back is for air but I haven’t figured out a door yet. but any hid we want to smoke would work for a time. 

what do you think?

“Good.” was Sampson's gruff reply as he walked back to the fire to sleep.