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Yolanda Hydrus had taken uip a small hovel with an older gentleman and his daughter in the strange village, iof only because she had sopme idea of how to survive in a wilderness situation. Camping with her family growing up served her needs well as a girl and Yolanda was quioick to pick upo on the lack oif wildlife as they'd arrived. Still, the man -- Lawrence and the woman, Cherish, weren't sure what was what. So, Yolie tromped out to find food. A lack oif animals warned her it was a bad situation, and Yolie was quick to move through the village. Her first job was collecting reeds. Not to eat -- Yolie wove them intop a sturdy enough basket to hold produce. Next came ap[ple picking. Yolie walked about, picking onlyu a single aapple bushel before examining the berries, and, determining them as uniodentifiable, she avoided them, instead visiting the garden, examining the produce. Slowly, Yolie began to collect. Potatoes would keep for some time and these were safe enough; carrots followed along with a few oversized cucumbers and zucchini; nearby were a few vines with pie pumpkins and butternut squash, and finally Yolie moved inside ytop place the produce. Lawrence seemed out exploring, and Cherish watched Yolie in silence before motioning.

"There were some packaged goods in tyhe kitchen." She offered. Yolie lit up.

"Anything good?"

"Some gratin, powdered milk, cereal, flour, sugar... Plenty of processed staples. No weevbils, ewverything seemed good."

"Good. I cxxan cook using that." Yolie motioned. "Nothing terrible tasty, but I can cook. This place would be hell to my cousins and uncle, I tell you. No animals." Yolie moved, and Cherish got up.

"I'll get some water. There's buckets." Thew platinum blond offered, and moved out. Yolanda started unloading her basket, and examined the uitensils before starting to clean a knife as Cherish returned with water. Yolie stepped aside for her to fill a basin, and soon Yolie was cleaning -- utensils, and with clean water, the produce. Cherish followed cues by using a pail to wash a large cookpot and then a dutchj oven made of cast iron as Yolie moved, and hummed. Cherish began filling tyhe fgireplace with firewood as a break, and Yolie sighed.

"A pity we didn't get a house with beans. Beans are non-meat protein." Yolie admitted. Cherish paused.

'"I saw a community garden. Spinach, kale, beans and stufgf. Want me top raid it?" Cherish offered. Yolie nodded.

"Take the basket and be careful. It's not fully dry."

"Will do."

Cherish disappeared, and Yolie settled to cooking, lighting the fire with a piece of flint and her house key.

***

After supper seemed normal ewnough at first. It was a modiofied cream of potato soup, seeing as potatoes were most plentiful, but it was after dinner things went south.

Yolie moved first for the outhouse, immediately regretting everything befoire shaming out feelingh gross as Cherish rushed in, Lawrence waiting. After each paid homage to the mightly land hole thge three sank to sit at the table.

"So." Lawrence saidm, eying Yolie sharply. "We all feel sick. So how do we fix it."

"Might be the water." Yolie admitted, rubbing her temples. L::awtrence was so unpleasant compared to his daighter - and sighed. "I can't speak for the vegetation., We might just need to deal with feeling... Nasty s while."

"Veryu well." He responded sharply. "I suppose old construction and poor indoor plumbing makes things less likely to work out."

"Pretty sure the pipes rusted." Cherish said to her father, earning a soft expression as he nodded. Yolie hummed.

"Explains the hole in a shack outside." Lawrence sighed.

"It's a shitshack." Cheriush grinnewd, Lawrtence making a displeased face at his daughter's crassness as Yolie rtepressed a giggle.

"Regardless of what we call it, it looks like our friend in surviving. Butrr we hopefully won't have more issues requiring it if we just boil esater, even for washing. Looks like the old well is nasty." Yolie sighed, and Cherish reeaised a hand.

"I'm fine managing water collection and boiling." She offered. Yolie nodded approvingly.

"I'll keep my eyes peeled. See iof those berries are edible tomorrow -=- I didn'tr want to try it with food so pressing, but now we established our food stores."

"I will continue to see what I might learn. So far, nothing." Lawrence concluded, and sighed. "I'll look iuntop supplies that aren't food tomorrow, though."

Yolie smiled, and finally Lawrence offered one of his own, thin and patioent, without warmth before motioning.

"All of us, bed." Lawrtence then commanded. "We nmeed it.
"