[Sanctuary] It's For The Birds! [Open]

[Raiha]

That night, Raiha was settled on the torn-up floor that would be the base of the mews, reclining against Asim as she drew in the sketchbook in pencil, looking up at the stars from time to time, as if to draw further inspiration from them. Now that they had had a complete workspace with which to work, the measurements and drawings made a lot more sense, and now Raiha went back to the ruler constantly to make sure her lines were straight. The way she saw it, two rows of flights, each opening to the middle aisle. Her and Asim's sleeping quarters would be in the back, at the end, to try to keep sharing the walls and use as much use out of the precious wood as they could. This would work out. She knew it would.

Oh, I don't know... I'll lay on you it's a very good bet that a fall off of that roof would hurt, Kanikra commented. Could break something. A leg. An arm... maybe a bag or with just the right timing, a neck...

Don't even think about it, Raiha hissed. Don't even think about it, Kanikra, or I'll...

I'll be dreaming about it... and so will you. Sweet dreams, Raiha.

~

When chores were done and the team was ready to go, the Akontak dug in with the rest of them to get the second level underway. Once all the wood was separated and stacked, Raiha helped where she could - helping double check the measurements of the staircase-to-be and on the wood itself, holding ends down, taking turns with the saw, bringing buckets of nails over to Kavala. In the meantime, she helped pass things up the ladder to Asim to get started on the second level, transferring planks from the pile that had been earmarked for the floor of the new mews. When a sizable supply was built up, the long-legged girl scurried up the ladder with a bucket of nails. That, she felt, would do to start.

Armed with a carpentry square, Akontak and Kelvic started the frame. The framing of the floor began with two planks, end to end, nailed together. Two more joined them, nailed together, then four, then six... and slowly, slowly, one could see the ribcage that the supports formed as more nails were hammered in. More planks had to be fetched from the pile, the framework measured and marked with pencils, and planks nailed into place. With the skeletal supports done, the wooden floor would be able to go on top of it. Sanded right, she could pad through the mews without slivers in her bare feet, and sand would absorb the waste and dry it up and could be raked out. She would just have to be mindful about checking the anklets - the sand could get under there and irritate, but with enough precautions... it should work out. She wiped at the sweat covering her face as she surveyed the handiwork that the group had accomplished. So far, so good. By the time they were done, the framework was firmly secured, and Raiha was feeling a smidgen more confident about construction work. Doing this framing wasn't quite that hard. It was tedious, required a lot of effort and concentration, but there was something rewarding in the work and knowing that it was shaping the mews. It was being part of something... and that was a strange feeling for her after spending so much time by herself.

The next step was to get the hardwood flooring planks up and nailed down, and when that was done... because Raiha didn't trust herself not to trip over her own feet and break her neck on the supports underneath, and secondly, because it would be a lot easier to work on. The hardest part, Raiha found, was making sure she hit the planks underneath while she was nailing the boards down. You only had one shot at this, because otherwise you were putting additional unsightly and wasteful holes in the floor. But when you found your row... really found your row... it wasn't quite so bad. They were just about done laying the floor when Raiha stuck her head over the edge where the stairwell was. "How goes it on your end?"

[Kavala]

With Raiha and the kelvic bear working on the flooring, it made it easy for Kavala with Awstens help to plan out the framing. Basically, since the roof was gone, the pair of them had to build the walls on the second story, plan out the windows, and then throw them up before Raiha put down the floor. Kavala took careful measurements of the upstairs dimensions and decided on eight foot walls (since Raiha was tall and so too were most of the Akalak). The four outside walls would be the main supports, but then the two walls running down the middle of the mews dividing the space lengthwise into two rooms and a wide hall would make up the other. A perpendicular wall marking off Raiha's sleeping quarters would provide inner support for the roof as well. So after taking careful measurements, Kavala started constructing the four outside walls.

They went together easily using eight foot two by fours that were framed out and divided into four foot wall sections. Each side was then carried up the stairs, held into place, then nailed firmly to the floor. Temporary supports were nailed onto the floor securing the walls upright until all four were in place. Once the outside framing was done, she added the inner walls placing Raiha's doorway dead center of the hallway halfway down the section. Truthfully the birds didn't need that much room, so Kavala planned the living space to be equal to the upstairs. It made Raiha's personal quarters slightly smaller than a normal guestroom or staff quarters but it was still comfortable and she had her birds right at hand. The only thing Kavala truely worried about was escape in case of fire. A rope ladder and some large easily escapable windows would do the trick, so as soon as the inner cross wall went in, Kavala took a break, added the windows carefully to her sketch, and went back to planning.

Framing walls were easy. The roof was more complicated. Kavala planned a pitch and then carefully began to construct the tresses that would hold up the roof. They needed eight of them, perfectly pitched, and carefully cut into the correct angles to merge together and form a strong surface. The tresses went up, carefully, utilizing Aweston and several recruited Akalak boys from the city. Then, sheets of wood went up to cover the roof itself, spanning the tresses. Then, the roof tiles could be put back up, set in place, and fastened carefully. Once that was done, Kavala didn't have to worry about anything else.

All she had to finish up was the outer walls and covering the inner walls, painting, and dressing the rooms as were fitting a set of mews. Raiha could be left to decorate her own room, but Kavala would definitely help build the furniture. Then, afterwards, she'd swear off swinging a hammer for a while to make sure she'd rested her wrists.

So.. with the roof done, the walls framed, and the stairway completed, Kavala called it a day. Raiha and the kelvic had made great progress on the floors while she was doing the easy framing, which took quite the load off Kavala. "We're good. All we have to do was report in the morning to finish the inner and outer walls, put on siding, and decorate. We've made great progress today and saved a great deal of money reusing the roof." Kavala said proudly.

[Raiha]

"We did good," Raiha agreed, stretching out on the newly installed floor, her chest rising and falling as she looked at the roof. Every part of her body ached, but at the same time, it looked good. They had done very, very well - this was something they could, and should, be proud of. With the partitions up and the slats, the birds would feel secure, and it would be just right for them to be looked after. She wasn't even two-tendays in Riverfall, and already she had helped build an addition. She'd never done anything to that extent before, and she was paying for it now - the Akontak was exhausted. She'd be good after a night of rest, but she wasn't even thinking about furniture. For her, the floor worked. She had a place to stick her hammock? Life was good. "We did really good."

Still, their work was never done. Raiha got up eventually, though, helped by Asim as she stood on her own two feet again and shook her shoulders out. Time to put a meal on the table for all of the hungry workers. Raiha and Asim... well, mostly Asim, had wrestled plenty of salmon out in the morning before they had gotten chores done. Once they were scaled and gutted, they could just rub them with some butter that had been whipped with finely chopped fresh herbs and set them over the fire to cook. Combine them with some root vegetables, and maybe some of the leafy ones, and they had a feast on their hands, suitable for the hungry hands who had been hard at work.

With that done, and the horses looked after for the night, Raiha was more that ready to curl up in her hammock to sleep.

~

The next morning, after the chores were seen too, found Raiha on her hands and knees on the new hardwood floor, leaving markers with small pebbles to denote where the partitions and doors would go, just wanting to see how it would look when they got it done. She was pleased with the dimensions of the mews as they were turning out so far - neither she nor Asim needed lots of space when they would be mainly sleeping in it. Asim, after all, had had a cave den, and Raiha a room in Mura. This was more than adequate for her needs. She was unsure of touching the siding before the windows went in. She hadn't wanted windows in the flights, as nice as it might have been to have some natural light in, it would be annoying if there were owls rehabilitating in there . Besides, the door to the mews could be kept open most of the time anyway to allow the natural light in that way.

That way, at least, she could start putting the siding in on the inside where she knew there definitely wasn't any windows framed, planned or otherwise, and went to work with the hammer and nails. She could well imagine Uzima, munching moles in a stall that had been abandoned for the day, was wondering just what all of the racket was over there, and complaining mightily about it. But, Raiha thought as she lined up nails along the board and pounded them in with a hammer, just wait until the goshawk saw this. It might even remind her a bit of the mews they had left behind back in Mura. Are you feeling nostalgic for the land of maidens fair? Kanikra scoffed. Don't waste your time. They all breathed a collective sigh of relief the moment you left.

Thanks, Raiha whacked the nail with the hammer, giving it a few more good thumps to make sure it was in there before dipping into the bucket for another one of the nails that had been forged on the premises and lined it up towards the next stud of the frame, beginning to bang that one in as well. But no... not really. I kind of miss Mother, but... She felt far more at home here. There was an odd sense of peace that came from Riverfall - if only because she knew almost everyone here could defend themselves from one malevolent blue-skinned female.

But nothing, Kanikra said firmly. You don't need them. Not any more. We've got everything we need right here. We really should go looking for our father later. You've put it off long enough.

I know, Raiha switched hands with the hammer to give her other arm a break, putting the next board up. She would get those top nails later with the footstool, but for now, she was going to do a dozen planks, then come back and get the top nails in. That would work just fine, she felt, crouching and holding the board in place with her shoulder as she lined up the nail, parallel with the nail of the board beside it, and began to tap it in. It took a bit to get into the motion of things with the hammer, but she was getting there. By the third plank, she was back into the swing - ha - of things. When she had that dozen planks attached to the framework, Raiha hooked the stool with a booted foot, put it on the third plank from where she had started, and started to drive the nails home. Soon. Soon. Just let's get this done, first.

When she got as close as she dared to the window-frames-to-be, Raiha and the Kelvic went to work on the partitions that would divide the flights and form the walls. Those were simple enough, and they could be pre-built and then secured to the walls. The front walls and doors would come after. But the partitions were easy enough - they were slats nailed tightly to a plank with no space between them, as to keep the inhabitants from fighting with each other through any gaps. When the siding was done, the wooden 'framing' bits would be attached - that was, two blocks of wood attached to the wall, then nailing the partition nailed to those blocks. That would hold them steady. They were on a roll.

So far, so good.

When the windows went in, Raiha left the partitions and went back to finishing the siding on the interior of the mews. This wasn't so bad, Raiha found - the work that she was doing was easy enough, and it was good exercise. I want to get a mace. Think of all the practice we're getting just swinging the hammer, Kanikra remarked as the pressure built up between Raiha's ears. It wasn't a headache caused by all of the hammers that were swinging, but it was Kanikra's way of pressing a point home, and what began as a throbbing ache was soon an ominous pounding.

Why would you want one of those? Raiha didn't like the idea at all. Her sister could bludgeon someone with it. And the headache wasn't helping as she mentally grappled with her, trying to push the headache away. It wouldn't work - it was going to be there to stay as she gripped the hammer's handle and hit the wall instead of the nail, and grimaced, beginning to work the nail in again.

Why do you think? One day, those Suvai are going to be the death of us, Kanikra retorted, the headache not going away at all. This was going to be a very lousy day.

[Kavala]

The morning came upon them clear and bright, which was a welcome thing. They had too much to do today to let Riverfall's sometimes uncertain weather bother them overly much. Siding, floors, inner and outer walls... then paint and decorations. The crew had arrived early as well. Some of them were there to help with the hardwoods which would be nailed onto the living quarters. The mews portion received stone which was easy to wash off and sweep out. Kavala let Raiha take care of the wooden floors while the local stone mason put in the pavers for the actual mews himself.

She started on the exterior walls getting that ready for Raiha to tackle siding later that day. The rough hewn plants went on easily, smaller than the expensive sheets that they often needed but far more sturdy. Once the exterior walls were on the second floor (she needed the scaffolding), she then began bringing hay up into the room and stuffing it into the walls to insulate the structure from the long cold winter. Once the walls were stuffed inside, she began laying on the finer grain of wood. This time, rather than up and down, she laid the planks on lengthwise for a more beautiful look indoors.

Carefully driving nails into the studs front and back, with Aweston's help they were able to get a rhythm going and before long the interior walls were completed just as Raiha started on the siding. The roof was done, soon enough, so too were the interior and exterior walls and floors. All in all it was a long day, one in which they only stopped for brief meals and a break at midday. It was clear though that they wouldnt' get Raiha's stuff moved in, the paint done, nor the mews set up before the next day.

Calling it an early evening, no one lingered on the Veranda after dinner. Instead, everyone set off to bed with the notion of getting up early. Kavala knew what was on her agenda. Paint, both exterior and interior, and then bringing in perches, adding mews doors, and helping Raiha carry furniture upstairs to free up the downstairs quarters. When they woke bright and early, Kavala had it all ready so they could tackle the paint. She'd also ordered scones from the bakery to be delivered mid morning with fresh cream so everyone had a good meal to carry them through until lunch and dinner.

[Raiha]

After a quick wash, and breakfast, Raiha got to work on the floor. The floor was the last thing on her agenda for the day that she actually had experience in, and so she was going to get it done before tackling the harder jobs that were going to require learning. Her mews that she had built for Kefi had been easier, especially considering the climate, and that the project hadn’t been as complicated or as big as this one was. She had simply built a solid structure on the ground that already had a bit of shelter. Here, they had been adding a whole new level. And Raiha had to admit that it boggled her mind. Architecture was not her thing. She had always had respect for anyone who attempted projects like this, and the last several days, ever since they had gotten started, had taken it to a whole new level.

The brilliant thing about working on the hardwood flooring was that when she got started, nothing had to be cut. Everything was checked with the square to make sure it was level, but the cutters had done a great job – the boards were level, smooth and straight. Checking the tops and sides proved that there was no warping of the planks, which was just as important. Once she had the pieces in place and nailed down, pulling one of them back up to remeasure it or adjust it was just asking for trouble and disaster. Kavala’s mantra had been ‘measure twice, cut once’. How right she was. Raiha, armed with the measuring string, got into it, lining up one board at a time, making sure it was square in the corners before beginning to hammer in the nails to secure them in their place. Plank followed plank. Almost as soon as the wood was carted up the stairs, it was worked into place, and the next piece brought up. Once they were at the far wall was when Raiha measured over and over and over again… and once more for good measure.

Thanks to the vigilance, the final piece fit tightly into place… with no room to spare. Thrilled, the Akontak got started on the next row of hardwood planks. With the light streaming in through where the windows would go, she stood back – mindful not to get in the way of the pavers – and surveyed their handiwork before going back down to sawing and straightening up the edge of a board to square it off before bringing it upstairs to begin the next row. Soon enough, the hardwood flooring was done to where it was supposed to be, where the pavers would meet it with their work. With the siding going on top of it, it practically trimmed itself. That meant she was going outside to start putting on the slatted sides.

This, Raiha found, took a lot of practice. The bottommost slats took repeated tries as she flipped her braids and scowled, and tried again. It took coaching and assistance, but with Asim helping keep it level and attaching the siding, it went on as they migrated further up the ladder towards the roof to finish it. They went around the windows, which were being worked on. Once everyone had retired to the Verandah, Raiha ate, had her herbal tea, and just as quietly headed off to go do her chores to prepare for an early night. It didn’t take much for the young Akontak to curl up while Uzima munched on her dinner.

But she was up early and good to go, the deep sleep helping with the exhaustion that came from doing hard work from before sunrise until after sunset. One day, when this expansion was done, she was going to sleep for another day. She’d pick a day some time after Kavala had rested up, and then she would just sleep through it. The idea thrilled her. But first, this had to get done. Painting, the mews had to be finished – Raiha, as was typical of her, was more concerned about getting those done, even if Uzima was at present their only resident.

She got started on the interior painting first, because only once that was dried and aired out could they start bringing in the furniture, what little of it there was. Raiha didn’t need much. She hardly needed a bed when she had a hammock, but the low bed worked for her, especially when Diallo came and climbed up in there with her. There was a chest at the end of it for her belongings, and a table and some chairs. Some shelves could go up. The hammock, as always, would go in the corner, albeit coiled until it found a use. But who knew what the future held? She may well want it at some point, or need to put it somewhere else when the weather became amicable to the idea of sleeping outside.

Raiha hadn’t thought that the inside needed painting, even if it was only the living quarters that were being painted – she had been happy with the natural, wooden look – but once they got started on it, she found she liked where it was going. It offered an interesting contrast from the rest of the rest of the new level, and something for the eye. She hadn’t ever been much for decorating like that. Even back in Mura, the older she had gotten, the more her room had gotten the look of someone just passing through. Her room here would likely look the same for awhile yet. Not intentionally, but it was just the way things went.

When they’d finished the interior painting, she started on the perches and the logs for the mews. While the paint dried, they could work on those and get the doors on, and then go outside and work on the painting of the outside of the building. But for now, she put only the basics in there – perches. Everything else would have to be added or taken out when birds came in. But for now, with the perches in place, the doors went on their hinges, and Raiha could turn her attention to working on the paint outside. Kavala had the misfortune of discovering, though, that sometimes when Raiha passed by – if the Konti wasn’t busy measuring or doing something crucial, the Akontak’s long fingers didn’t mind ghostly tickling her side when she passed by. She didn’t do it all the time, but it was something she found a little levity in during the hours as one blurred into the next as she whistled from time to time. She knew, of course, that she was opening herself up to retaliation, but that, perhaps, was half the fun.

[Kavala]

Raiha, for all that she was in essence a teenager, had done beautifully helping put the mews together. In fact, that very next day she put all the finishing touches on it that needed to be done leaving Kavala only the paint to finish on the outside. The Konti let the Akontak do the things she did too because it was important to her and the mews was indeed her business.

So Kavala painted. She dragged out the ladder, climbed it, and began washing the walls the same light cream mosaic that all the rest of Sanctuary was painted in. It gave the building the illusion of blending into the summer-dry grass as the season grew late. And in the winter, against the snow, it seemed to somehow warm the place up even though color was just an illusion and gave no heat at all. Once she'd painted everything within her reach, she dropped down the ladder, moved it a few feet, and started over again. It was tedious work, but work that needed to be done nonetheless. Without paint the wood would not be protected from the rain and snow, nor from the cold that would warp it and make them replace it all too soon.

The front was soon done, and the ladder was moved into the inner courtyard to paint the backside. Then, once all the painting was done and mostly dry (she started on the outside where the paint had been on the longest, and reclimbed the ladder this time dragging shutters with her. Screws fastened the shutters in place, though they took a long time to drive through the stubborn siding. Kavala made sure each one of Raiha's mews windows could be shuttered in the event of a storm and that the shutters fit well and tight. Not only weather, but some winged predators lurked on the grassland and it was best to have the means to keep them all out.

Raiha didn't have to paint the outside. She'd find it all done when she got finished fiddling with her perches and hanging her doors. And she would also discover, when ghost fingers came tickling, other ghost fingers would return the favor. The girls worked well together, quiet, without much dialog because they weren't side by side - but they got things done. And that was what completely counted. By the end of the day, not counting the clean up around the new addition, the second story was on, finished inside and out, and ready for birds.

Raiha would have to provide those, perhaps in the spring, when she hunted hatchlings and gathered them to be trained in the mews.

Kavala smiled at Raiha when they were all done, standing together and admiring their work. "Doesn't it give you a sense of pride knowing you did this? It does me. Good job on the mews, Raiha. I think they will do us justice for a long time to come." Kavala said.

[Baku]

Thou has written, and thou has completed, so I award thee the following.... Raiha: +4 Observation, +2 Rhetoric, +2 Design(Construction), +2 Planning, +2 Rhetoric, +5 Construction, +1 Cooking, Lore: Hoping for Delayed Rain, Planning and Preparing, Enjoying Surprises, Explaining Construction and Purpose, Offering to Cook Dinner, Food Lover, Agreement in Planning, Taking Size/Space/Operation into Consideration, Collaborating the Start, Excitement in the Project, Carting Materials Around, Cooking for the Project, Constructing Stairs, Deconstructing a Roof, The Dangers of a Project Pointed Out by the Dark Twin, Building a Guest Room, Minds Eye for Decorating Before a Project Finish, Finishing Touches Asim: +1 Sneak(for a bear, that’s impressive), +1 Rhetoric, +1 Observation, Lore: Scaring Passerby’s from the Shadow: A Kelvic Pastime, Scare/Nap/Eat: A Kelvic’s Day Planned Out, Trying to Scare Raiha, Liking Intimidation and Surprising Until Bored, Scarffing on Scones, Finding a Balance Between Defensive Positioning and Relaxing, Kavala:+4 Observation, +1 Hostess, +2 Planning, +2 Rhetoric, +1 Mathmatics, +5 Construction Lore: The Necessities of Any Project: Food and Drink, Sensing Asim’s Emotions, Nervousness Over Big Kelvics, Scones of Purpose: A Bear Full of Scone Won’t Eat Konti, Offering Suggestions to Planning, Simple Pleasures Before Work, Discussing What’s Needed, Carting Materials Around, Constructing Stairs, Tiling, Deconstructing a Roof, Building a Guest Room, Framing and Windows, Finishing Touches, Finishing Touches Additional Notes: And thusly, construction is finished. Hooray for “Do-it-Yourself” projects.