Azalea I got up early again the next morning and once again joined them for a run. The sky was overcast and Rich told me that a storm would be moving in the next few days. This time we ran around the lake, the training center and the field. I remembered to keep my back turned towards them as I made my way back in the house. The kitchen smelled azaming as I passed through and I couldn't wait til breakfast. As I showered I thought about how I could show my appreciation for them taking me in this holiday and an idea came to me from the conversation we had with the butcher. He said that most of their meat came from the usual sources - cows, chickens, pigs and sheep- and that unfortunately when they settled here over 400 years ago, most of the larger game moved out of the area. As the settlement expanded into multiple towns they continued to push the animals out. There were some wild wolves and the such, but not things like deer, elk, wild boar or even bison. On occasion one migh

Azalea I dozed for about an hour before we made it back to town around 4am. The town was dead quiet. As he backed into the dock behind his store I saw his younger brother and son come out to help. I asked that he send them in for a few minutes while I got the top ones out - the less people to witness my powers the better. He agreed and sent them in to make more space for what we had grabbed. Once they were inside he opened the back of the truck and I used my powers to lift several elk off the top of the pile and on to the tarp that was laid there. Once the stack was short enough that Corey could grab them, he called out his brother and son. Their eyes were huge as they saw how much we had brought back. Together we began bringing in the animals and placing them in groups. He left the deer in the truck and the bison on the tarp out back for last - not having enough room inside for them just yet. After looking over everything he told me that there was enough here to send a

Alex Rich had called me to the pack house as I was going about my morning. When I got there there were three huge boxes right outside the front door with Rich standing next to it holding a letter. I saw the delivery truck drive away as I approached. "Good morning. It appears that Alpha John has sent his thanks to us for keeping his daughter this Christmas. I am honestly a little surprised as I figured he would be upset, but instead he sent two wild hogs and a whole crate of wild caught seafood as well as some gifts for her. I've taken those in the house, but if you could arrange for the hogs to go the butcher I would appreciate it. I'll let Karla know about the seafood. I guess this year's summer solstice will have all kinds of good food this year," He said smiling. "Of course," I replied before linking to Corey asking him to send a few men and his truck to grab the hogs. Rich went back inside and I waited for Corey to arrive. "Now I'm curious as to where these fatties ca

AzaleaNeither of us moved at first, too lazy I suppose until I jumped off the bed and said "I'll race you to the kitchen" before running to the door and throwing it open. I ran down the hallway with Cassie laughing right on my heels. The twins were on the stairs chatting with their dad blocking the whole staircase, so I jumped up onto the banister and slid down making Cassie cry out "Cheater!". I had always wanted to do that since I was a little kid but had never been to a place that actually had the right kind of stair case. I had been thinking about sliding down it since the first day we got here. I was laughing too much though to stick the landing and ended up landing on my butt at the bottom."That's what you get," she stated as she rushed by me. I jumped up quickly getting back on my feet before turning and waving to her brothers and father who were now laughing at our antics and dashed after her. She had made it to the kitchen before me and was already pulling out the thi

Azalea It was fun to watch. It looked like the twins took this one thing seriously- they had already begun to set up ice block walls in the clearing outside the hall. I'd have to remember to ask how they did that. You could see they each had a few young men and women around each of them, making piles of snow balls all along the insides of the walls that were being built. I hoped we would get the chance to watch. On the other side of the clearing was a huge mountain of snow. "What's that for?" I asked Cassie, finishing my drink. "Oh that's for them to slide down. You sit on the little plasitc sled and they push them off and they go all the way to the bottom. Do you want to try it before they get here?" She asked, seeing my interest. "Is it safe?" I asked dubiously. She laughed and grabbed my jacket handing it to me as we walked up one side of the hill. She walked me all the way to the top where Jared and a few others stood and said "We're here to make sure it's actually s