Mr Hat Story

~Sampi1 on deviantART.com

I always wake up with the sun in my eyes, with the feeling of being probed in my gut. Then i remember where i am, who I'm with, and how we must live here.

My name is Natalie Watkins. I don't know how old i am exactly, but around 20. I've been here a long time, maybe 2 years. maybe 3 years. I do know i was 18 when i ran to this desert to escape the claws of... well... i don't really know. I'm here with my brother, Jared. He's 23 ish, 21 when we got here. Then there's Josiv, and i don't know how old he is, but i know he's the youngest here. Then Kat, who was 15. And Tori, 19. And Christanav, 25. There's basically my family.

The sun's peeking over the mountains, so i should go get water before it's too hot. I wake up Kat and Josiv. Josiv groans, as he does every morning, because he must go with us, the youngest, to get water while Jared and Christanav hunt and Tori tends the fire and the house we have. Kat hits him with the pillow and he silently wakes and slowly begins to follow us. "You'd think after 2 years he'd finally get use to getting the water..." Kat whispers as we shouldn't be too loud to awake Jared and Christanav, as they came home late yesterday and need their rest.

"Remember, he waited up for them last night, he must be tired too. Give the kid a rest, all he wants is to be like the guys." I say watching Josiv search for the water jugs.

"Weren't they gonna take him the next time?" Kat said grabbing the pull-cart and bringing it so Josiv could load it.

"Shh, we can't say anything about that!"

I help Josiv with the big pot and we set out. Josiv gradually wakes up as he launches into the grand story of the guys return last light with an Antelope and a huge, he stressed the size, pair of dirt snakes. Oh Tori will love that. She hates snakes.

We get there, load the water and wash the dirt from our skin. Josiv, energized by yesterdays catch, manages to catch a bird with his hand. "Natalie! Kat! LOOK! I caught it all by myself, yessiree all by myself. You probably didn't know that i was good enough to catch a bird with my bare hands!"

"Let it go! You're hurting to poor thing!" Kat screamed as Josiv shoved it into her face.

"You can only keep it if you still help us with the water." I said, ending the eminent dispute between Kat and Josiv over the safety of the bird.

"OK! Man this will be great! I have my own bird and OH MAN! I'm gonna teach this bird to hunt! Have you ever seen those? The birds that go and bring back prey to their owners? I'm gonna teach it to be like that! OH MAN!" we actually had a basket which we made a makeshift cage, which Josiv modified so 'his bird' wouldn't escape. And me and Kat groaned as we listened to everything his bird will do in the future. Poor bird.

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~falcon-ryder on deviantART.com

We got home there was Christanav's hat laying on the rock with his pair of broken sunglasses on top. We smelled the scent of Tori's cooking as we reached home.

Oh right, our house. It's one of those abandoned dirt structures built into a wall of rock. We have the 'kitchen' that's the only room laid with stone on the floor, so that it can be cleaned and good for cooking. we have the fire pit in one corner, as well as a grass cushion for Tori to rest on after cooking and cleaning all day. Then that's linked to the front room, where Christanav and Jared sleep, to protect us. And where Josiv sleeps, so he can be with the guys and protect us 'fair maidens' when they're gone. Also we have our thistle cover to put over our door as if the steep climb isn't enough. Then there's the our room, which me, Kat and Tori sleep. It only fits our mattress of grass and a few sheets woven from this one long-leaved plant. Then we just have the garden room, with slits thin enough to discourage birds but plentiful enough to grow some simple things. There are rooms everywhere, even one across from the girls room that we use when we get sick. In there is just a matteress and a small window on the left side.

We don't use many of the other houses, some have broken and frankly, we just don't have enough people to really inhabit more that what we already do.
but they're there, and we all have our little nooks we hide in when we've had too much of each other. but back to what was going on.