Vermillion Dawn

[3] What If

"We're on picker duty again!" Mizzy announced, her pigtails bouncing with every step. She had been waiting for me to get done with Rincho.

I laughed, ruffling her hair with my hand when she came to my side. The top of her head barely reached my midsection. Although she was still growing, I wouldn't be surprised if she barely reached five foot in height. She swatted my hand away, sending me a playful glare.

"Are you ever going to stop calling garden duty, picker duty?" I teased, taking the supply basket from her small hands.

She crinkled her nose, "We have to pick weeds out of the ground and pick the food," She looked up at me with a dead serious expression, "Picker duty."

I chuckled, shaking my head, "Okay. I'll never see gardening any different, thanks to you."

She pulled an apple from her pocket and handed it to me, "Its the only thing I could get, the guys chased me off."

I smiled, "Thank you, Mizzy." I bit into the delicious fruit, my stomach growled in appreciation. It wasn't much but it would hold me over until lunch.

We made our way down the trail that led to the creek. It was the best place to plant any produce. Soil was naturally rocky this far up the mountain but we discovered soft soil near the creek bed. I figured it was from years of erosion, or constantly being watered. Nonetheless, it was perfect to churn some soil with animal manure and the watering was natural.

I was notorious for over-watering plants. I just couldn't resist trying to perk up their dry appearance and I ended up drowning them on accident. Mary had given me a cup with an exact measurement if I ever needed to water anything. She was getting tired of nursing new plants from seeds and then I would kill them within a week.

Honestly, I was never much of a garden girl. I didn't like being on my knees, in the dirt, for hours on end. It just wasn't appealing. Besides the fact, it hurt my back like hell. Sure, I'd sit in the dirt for an extended amount of time to hunt animals, but the end result was satisfying.

I didn't really care if gardening produced food just like hunting, I'd rather have my quiver on my back, stalking my prey. Green leafy plants did nothing, they didn't even move. I was bored of it. Sometimes, I'd get a kick out of poking the plants for fun. However, Mizzy was absolutely thrilled about gardening. She talked to the plants as if they were people. Bless her innocent little heart.

I watched Mizzy carefully open the makeshift gate and we entered the little garden. The men had rigged up a wire fencing when deer kept eating the plants; but now we hadn't seen a single animal near camp. I was forced to ride farther and farther out every morning. I wondered what would become of our camp if we couldn't keep our food supply.

With a resigned sigh, I set down the basket of supplies. Mizzy was instantly digging through it, searching for her favorite little garden hoe. I took in the green plants sprouting from the dark soil. They looked healthy and happy. My face fell into a frown when I saw several weeds growing in the rows. We had just weeded yesterday, how persistent were these weeds?

"Don't forget your gloves, Mizzy," I chided. She was already bounding off to start working.

Mizzy spun on her heel, "Oh, yeah."