CLOSED | Heart that is broken, beats still unceasing; An ocean of sorrow does nobody drown.

[nadasharillen]

WHO: Nari & Cade (and open to Simon and any of the Chantry Relations peeps if they want to stop in sometime!)
WHAT: Carving of the new statue of Andraste
WHEN: Mid Harvestmere to Mid Firstfall
WHERE: Chantry Forest
NOTES: Cade the walking CW!

The morning finds the sun beginning to shine through the trees and a cool breeze ruffling the canopy. It has begun to carry the first promises of winter, and the shadows are seeming less inviting, but the sun grants enough warmth that shivers are still rare.

Nahariel is already there when Cade arrives. In contrast to her usual leathers, today she's dressed for comfort--although not abandoning her color palette of dark greens and browns. She has, however, abandoned her shamefully beloved boots to the side in favor of the grass between her toes. A bevy of coarser tools are laid out in the grass nearby; a two handled saw leans against a tree, a shovel, a woodsman's axe, and it's cousin the adz nearby. The Dalish artisan is staring with a thoughtful frown at the spot Cade had marked for their project, but turns at his approach.

"Morning!" she says, her grin quirking up, "Ready to begin the search for Andraste?"

Comments

[nadasharillen]

The elf nods at his thanks, snorts a laugh in response to the comment and then briefly darts her eyes towards him, her eyebrows lifting for a moment before her face returns to its previous amicable ease. Did he just make a joke?

"True enough," she says, lowering herself to the ground to lean her back against the rest of the fallen tree. The rough of the bark, the birds, the smell of the forest, the ache of hard work in her arms that lessens slowly as they sit, the almost companionable quiet--it was good. It had been a while since all those things had come together. A long while.

When the ache in her arms was gone and she'd cooled enough that the breezes that ruffled the leaves made her shiver rather than smile, she leveraged herself to her feet.

"Plenty more time to rest when she's in place. Ready to see if the cart'll hold?"

[onlyhymns]

Giving a single nod of assent, Cade groans to his feet again and awaits instruction. Being the bulkier of the two (not that that's saying much), he's prepared to do most of the lifting, but is as determined to do an amazing job as he is to not make an ass of himself in front of one of the few people who are kind to him.

[nadasharillen]

Getting it up on the cart was nearly as difficult as it had been cutting it, even with the aid of a small ramp cunningly built into the cart. Tired as they already were, the two had more than enough determination to roll the heavy section up onto the cart. Nari managed a muted ragged cheer when the trunk finally settled into place, looking pleased with herself until she remembered there was still the business of carting it back to the clearing.

Luckily it wasn't too far, the ground was fairly flat, and where it did slope, it sloped towards their goal.

"Another break, or shall we press on?" the elf asks, scrubbing the sweat from her tattooed brow with the wrap she'd tossed aside earlier.

[onlyhymns]

"Let's go," Cade decides, getting himself in position to do most of the pushing, arms braced against the cart's handles. He gives it a tug, realizes he'll need help to budge it, and laughs weakly. "If I sit down I'll never get back up."

[nadasharillen]

And go they did, with some fairly serious difficulty. Nahariel joined Cade at the handles, setting her feet securely and pushing until they both strained and then pushing a bit more. Finally, the wheels creaked forward, momentum was gained, and the three of them--Nari, Cade, and Andraste--made their ponderous way to their chosen glade. Levering it upright was no easier, and by the time it stood pointing towards the sky the Templar knew three or four more Dalish curses than he had to begin with.

Or at least he could be pretty sure they were curses, given the circumstances under which they were uttered, and the utterer's quick darting glances of light embarassment that followed each one.

But it was done. At least this part. Giving up pretense of energy, Nahariel let herself lie back in the springy grass of the small clearing with a heavy whuff of breath. Her eyes sought the shapes of sky between the leaves, the small wheeling groups of seabirds, and then finally dropped to the side to seek out Cade to pump her fist weakly in shared victory.

"Good work. I think maybe... we should start tomorrow."