Marriage is Murder

"For now," Kate said. She tossed her saplings on a pile. "Your 'tents' will be fine unless we get a winter storm. They're brutal here. Thats why I wanted us near the woods and near a cliff face for some additional protection. Jim, can you help find some rocks to put around in a circle and make a large fire ring? we're going to need a large fire very quickly. The forecast called for snow and subzero temperatures. And remember, Americans think in Farenheit, not Celcius. This lot thinks they're used to the cold, but they not used to this."

Lee came back, using his tarp to pull a huge load of firewood. "We'll need more than this,but it will get us started. Oh, so you're working on shelters. Good. Nice job. And Kate, you and Angus are..."

"We're making a wood shelter," she said. "Something sturdy."

"Very good," he smiled. "Oh, thats the other thing I forgot to tell you. You can earn extra 'luxuries' for outstanding thinking or achievements. You and Angus have each won a pot of coffee to share with your team, any time you choose to use it. I do have other 'luxury' items you can all win. What else would you like me to do?"

"Kindlling?" Kate asked. "And evergreen branches? Lots of them."

"For your roof or for bedding?" he grinned.

"Both," she replied.

"Kate," Lee said, "You aren't a bodyguard. You know how to handle yourself. Why are you doing this?"

"Maybe I have something to prove," she replied, hacking down a couple more saplings. Angus brought a large armful of grapevine. He took some of the saplings and trimmed off the branches and began to lash them together with the vine into a large lean-to shelter. Large enough to shelter the entire team if bad weather struck. Lee was hoping they would soon decide to send some on either a hunting party or a scavaging party, looking for either meat or for some herbs that might have survived in the deep forest undergrowth. It would take a bit to satisfactorily feed the lot of them. But he wasn't coaching them. If they needed his advice, he would give it. Other than that, he would only help when asked and with what he was asked to do.

Jim smiled and shook his head " not to me Kate " he said as he finally got a large ring of stones int he middle of the clearing. Searching the stones he found two he liked and returned to the circle. kneeling down he struck one against the other making a spark soon he had a smoldering smoking pile of kindling and he lightly blew over it till it caught and burst into flames carefully he placed two logs on the fire then more till it was lighting and warming the clearing. Jack headed out to hunt a few minuets later he returned with three rabbits Cassidy took them and gutted them burying the remains so no animal came close to the camp site. Steven pulled weak branches over the top of the make shift shelter he and Cassidy shared to stop any snow falling on to them or rain. Jack moved to make a shelter for jest and himself pulling down several small trees he tied them with one of his boot laces and laid over it several leafy branches.

"Angus," Kate said, "Shorten the shelter by half. Half our team prefer their own quarters. That means too mch wind will go through our shelter."

"Already shortening," Angus replied.

"The rest of you are welcome to share with us, unless you need yor own shelters too," Kate said.

"Not me," Lee smiled. "Thank you. I'd be happy to share with you. Shall I help you finish it?"

"No," Kate said. "No thank you. I need to do this."

"Very well," he said. Kate and Angus lashed thick evergreen branches to the frame of the shelter and over the open side in order to create a warm, enclosed shelter. They put more branches on the ground to cushion their sleeping bags and get them out of the snow. They made the shelter to be tight quarters to force body heat for shared warmth.

"Kate," Lee said, "take a walk with me, would you?"

"Certainly," Kate said.

"Go ahead," Angus said, "I'll finish up." She nodded and she and Lee took a short walk at a slow relaxed pace over a small rise and just out of sight. Angus didn't say anything. He went into the woods and found four fallen trees. He had to work but he dragged them back, one at a time, and put them around the fire so they could all site arond the fire and not sit in the snow. By then he was hot, sweating and thirsty. He opened his backpack and took out one of the waterbottles and took a drink. It felt good to do that sort of hard work again.

Jim chuckled " I'll share body heat will come in handy when the cold hits tonight |" he said and looked at the sky " clear night, gonna be cold " he said and rubbed his hands as Jack brought over the rabbits skinned and gutted Jim heard a snap and stood up moving he walked behind the shelter and walked back with a rabbit also. walking over he gutted it but kept the fur on placing it on a stick he placed it over the fire and looked at Angus " fur keeps the flesh from burning but cooks it inside " he said and smirked. Jack placed his over the fire and sat to watch. Cassidy shook her head she too had left the fur on and placed it next to Jim's in the fire as did Steven both looking at him.

" I'll keep an eye on the food" she said and sat turning it Steven stood up and went out returning several minuets later.

" I left a mark on a tree if we need to go we can use that one its close to the camp but far enough no animals will come close" he said to Jim who looked at Angus.

Angus sat down in front of the fire with a long slender sapling that he and Kate had not used in his hand, taking a break, deciding to warm himself. "Help yourself, Jim," Angus said. "I put Kate's sleeping bag towards the inside of the shelter. I took one of the outside walls to try to insulate her a little. My guess is that Lee will take whatever space is left. Those rabbits will take awhile. And I doubt it will be the only time we want to eat today. That will hold us awhile, though." He drew out his hatchet and did some shaping on the sapling and then switched to his swiss army knife and began carving on the sapling.

Lee came back alone and looked at what Angus was doing. "That is rather ambitious," Lee smiled. "Do you think you'll get it done?"

"Gives me something to do," Angus said. Lee laughed. "Where's Kate?" Angus asked.

"On a training activity," Lee said. "She's alright. You worried about her? Or did Robert assign you to look after her?"

"He didn't assign me to anything," Angus said. "I care about Kate. I end up spending a lot of time with her."

"Relax," Lee said. "I've got this."

Jim chuckled and nodded " I'll take the far wall we'll box her in with our heat I don't want any frost bite getting to her" he said finding his soft spot for Kate again he took the sapling and slipped out of his boot a small Swiss army knife since he'd left his regular one with Robert, he started to whittle not sure what it would be yet. " yeah might teach Jackie to listen to some one with experience and not just go half cocked " he said turning he saw Lee return and breathed out as he said Kate would be fine " so..what you got planed for the rest of us?" he asked hoping to get a heads up on what there tasks would be for the next day.

"Then I'll take whatever's left," Lee smiled. "And you're right. Robert would much prefer we try to return her in one piece. Kate is taking a walk towards what Kieran thinks might be a hot springs a short ways from here. If there is a natural hot springs, it might be useful. I pointed her in the right direction and..."

"You sent her on a wild goose chase," Angus sighed.

"No, I didn't," Lee frowned.

"You knew she was trying to work off some tension," Angus began. "And then..."

"And then I sent her on a walk by herself to work off some of that tension. She's not doing anything she didn't want to do. And yes, we do think there might be a hot springs here. Its in the new land Robert bought. And in this weather it might be useful. We needed to check it out sooner or later. Might as well be now."

"She is without her magic and unarmed!" Angus was furious.

"I offered her her magic back," Lee said calmly. "She refused. I gave her my hunting knife. She is not unarmed. I offered her a muggle pistol and she refused. If you want, I'm sure you can catch up with her."

"Busy," Angus said, working on his project, relenting his protectiveness and allowing Kate to make her own choices.

"Probably a better thought," Lee said. "Kate Lupin is one of the most capable women I've ever known. Let her stretch her talents a bit. Its why she came." Lee knew that Kate was upset with some of them and felt like they had wanted to abandon their jobs for a number of various reasons. She was a mother, a grandmother, and a wife. And she had felt almost like they had stepped on her entire family. Angus was protective of her. He hadn't liked the way that the others had treated Brian and Khaat and Robert. And he wasn't sure where their loyalties were now.

Jim listened and sighed " she is a strong willed woman you can't make her do what you want" he said as he continued to whittle at his piece of wood he knew and felt the same he wanted to kick some asses across that clearing namely jacks were butt for how he acted in front of Robert and Kate and Khaat " so whose butt gets it first...I could put a suggestion to you" he said looking at Jack as he finished speaking. Cassidy moved next to the fire in her hand she hand the skin from one rabbit turned insides out using them like gloves.

" I forgot my gloves , bad move on my part " she said looking at them all and sighing deeply.

"I figured someone would either lose a pair or forget them someplace," Lee said. "Don't feel bad. Its the most common thing to go wrong in a winter survival exercise." He opened his pack and tossed her a pair of gloves rather for subzero temperatures. "Sorry, but you have your choice of gray or gray. And it would be better if you had your fingers two days from now if we can help it."

"'You part seer or something?" Angus mumbled, trying to deal with his frustration. He'd seen Jack do a lot of idiotic things but this topped them all. "I've been working longer with any of them except for you, Jim. And this is completely unacceptable. I want to see Kate knock his teeth out. For starters."

"I doubt she'll do that," Lee smiled. "You do all realize that to survive this, you will have to find a way to work together. And I can make this winter survival thing go on as long as I like. And without your magic, you all won't have any choice. So--shall we get this out in the open now, or shall we just simply try to pretend its not there and extend the subzero weather indefinitely?"

"Not till Kate gets back," Angus said. "She has a right to be here if we're going to take the lid off this can of worms."

Jim looked at lee and chuckled he would agree " I agree wait for Kate then e can get started " he said finishing his whittle he placed it into his pocket for later. Cassidy chuckled and took the gloves " thanks " she said taking off the skins and placing them down next to her. Jim picked them up and looked at them he handed them to lee " not bad for a beginner I'd say" he said " at least she thought about keeping her fingers " Jack took his rabbit off the fire turning it he placed it back down.