Chores were routine by now. The company was pleasant, at least, and they finished quickly. Then they grabbed their packs and set off to the southeast. This was a less traveled direction, and with a bit of a hike they could make their way down from the mountains into the foothills, where Trev hoped the game would be more plentiful. Those slopes were also densely overgrown with scrub oak, and they also brought along sacks to harvest as many acorns as possible.
That would be a priority whether or not they found any game, since acorn flour would make a decent stable once the tannins were properly leeched out.
It turned out to be a good thing they set out with that goal in mind, because hunting was a bust. Between the cold driving game down into the valley, the refugees who’d been tromping around the area scaring everything away, and the fact that Aspen Hill residents might’ve already overhunted the area, he didn’t see any good opportunities. Not even any critters or varmints worth putting in a pot.
On the other hand acorns were plentiful, to the point where it would probably be a good idea to talk to Matt about directing foragers this way. At the very least he was going to organize an expedition with as many members of the shelter group as possible to unleash their inner squirrel. This was something the older kids could do too, a way for them to be useful. But for now he and Deb filled their sacks to bulging and started home, backs hunched under the weight.
“Is it true your aunt baked a cake?” she asked as they toiled up a slope, sweat streaming down their faces that was quickly swept away by the strong winds.
Trev smiled slightly. “You’ll have to wait and see.”
The dark-haired woman gave him a level look. “Never joke around where cake is concerned. I might just have to stab you with my fork.”
“What would you do if I told you the cake was a li—”
“Don’t!” she snapped, although she was obviously trying not to smile. “That line’s been used to death.”
“Too bad the internet’s not around to give us any more fond memories.”
Deb’s smile finally broke free. “Maybe we could build our own little internet using string and all these acorn caps, like those telephones every kid’s made at some point.”
His own smile turned into a grin. “Okay we definitely need to get some cake in you, because that’s talking nuts.”
She groaned. “That was a pun worthy of Alvin.”
The climb turned too strenuous for banter at that point, but the silence was companionable as they continued. As they got closer to town they waved a greeting to the defender on sentry duty and got a wave in return. Trev stopped in to chat with the man, mostly to help relieve his boredom after long hours standing watch, before they continued on.
Soon they were home, and it was party time.
Knowing Mary’s personality, the family had settled on a smaller get-together with just family and friends. Mostly the shelter group, the Tillmans, and the Watsons. Even that small gathering was intended to be short, and then the extended family would retire for a more relaxed evening watching a movie and playing games Mary enjoyed.
There was in fact a large sheet cake Aunt Eva had made, but to Deb’s disappointment with so many people everyone was limited to a small square. It was a simple yellow mix made with fresh eggs and topped with canned frosting, but after so long eating scavenged greens, venison, basic staples, and stale store food it was delicious.
Mary was the oblique center of attention, everyone congratulating her and wishing her well but not crowding her. She seemed to enjoy the attention in small doses from people she was fond of.
Although there were others drawing clumps of conversation. One of them was Sam, seated in a chair to avoid exerting herself. Everyone knew she was only weeks from her due date and might go into labor at any moment, and people kept dropping by to talk about it.
One of those was Scott Tillman as his family arrived. While his wife and daughter were still wishing Mary a happy Birthday, little Jen shyly holding up the family’s present for the young woman, the man came over smiling broadly. “There’s the expecting couple!” he called, shaking Matt’s hand and leaning down to give Sam a hug. “Enjoying the party?”
“Aside from wishing for a bigger piece of cake,” Matt replied. Sam elbowed him lightly in the side, and he said. “By which I mean it’s the perfect size and Mrs. Halsson is amazing for making it.”
“I look forward to even a mouthful,” the older man replied, chuckling. He nodded to Trev and the others standing nearby, then glanced down at Sam again. “How are you feeling?”
“Pretty good right now,” Sam replied, sharing an amused look with Matt. Trev had been there long enough to get their amusement. The concern was sincere, and he was sure it was appreciated, but that was also the first thing everyone asked her. But on the plus side, at least Scott wasn’t asking-
“So have you picked a name yet?”
-that. Deb snorted, and Trev bit back a smile, and Matt exchanged another amused look with his wife as he answered. “For a boy we’re torn between Hubert and Sir Awesome. For a girl we’re thinking either Bird of Paradise or Princess Penelope.”
Sam jabbed his ribs again. “Matt!” She gave Scott an apologetic look. “If it’s a boy we’ve settled on Edward Jonathan Larson. Give him both his grandfathers’ names. If it’s a girl we were thinking Chloe Olivia or Olivia Chloe.”
“She wanted Olivia, I wanted Chloe, so we decided to use both,” Matt supplied. “We’re still trying to decide the order.”
Catherine, Tam, and Jen joined the group then, leading to another round of the same questions and more quiet amusement from everyone watching. Then Lucas, clearing his throat leading to coughing a few times, announced. “Thank you to everyone who brought parents. Mary is ready to open them now, and then we’ll sing the birthday song and have cake.”
At that everyone gathered around Mary, who didn’t seem to mind as long as she had presents to focus on. Few of them were wrapped or even had tags, and friends and family volunteered which one was theirs as she picked each up and inspected it.
They were mostly small things from family, either useful or homemade and decorative. Lewis had a pack of toothbrushes and a tube of toothpaste for her, while Jane gave her floss and mouthwash. “Not that we’re implying anything,” her brother said to chuckles from everyone; basic toiletries were getting harder to come by, and all the more treasured for it. In the same vein her parents hadn’t advertised their own gift, which were feminine hygiene products purchased from the visiting trader. Those had been surprisingly costly, due to unsurprisingly high demand.
Jim had carved her a small but surprisingly well done wooden cat, curled up with its tail over its nose. Linda gave her an assortment of scrunchies and clips for her hair. Trev’s mom gave her a set of beeswax candles while his dad gave her a small pillow stuffed with wool. The Watson family gave her a padded footstool they’d upholstered with hide from one of their goats. The Tillman family gave her a ski mask and goggles for the coming bitter cold. The Larsons gave her a glass cube with a 3D image of a rose inside. Deb gave her one of those little multitools with the scissors, nail file, and penknife.
As for Trev, Mary had mentioned a couple times that she wanted to try archery as opposed to learning to shoot, mostly because she never intended to use it and didn’t want to waste their ammo. So he’d cleaned up one of the crossbows they’d gotten from the bandits, as well as a dozen arrows, and with Lewis’s help had done maintenance on it so it was in good shape.
All in all a pretty good haul, although this was a big milestone for the young woman. As Linda less than subtly pointed out while everyone was enjoying their cake.