Strange Fruit

Chapter 7: Strange Fruit

Tansy prepared the ram for cooking. Pepper collected more water. Root gathered wood for a fire. Tansy was in the middle of gutting the ram when she heard Pepper's cry of distress. She whipped around to see what was wrong. Tansy froze, eyes wide with fear.

Behind Root, who had leaned down to pick up another stick, a mountain lion was poised to attack. Drawn by the smell of blood. Pepper and Tansy were horrified. Even if they called out to Root, he wouldn't hear. Any sudden movements might set the beast off. He stood up.

The beast pounced. Root cried out in alarm. Pepper screamed. Tansy hurled her spear.

She killed the mountain lion but she wasn't fast enough to save Root from its claws. The girls ran over and rolled the beast's heavy body off of him. Pepper applied pressure to the wounds. Tansy retrieved the cord and the plantain leaves they collected yesterday from the backpack. They removed Root's jacket and the layers underneath, and washed the deep slashes on his back with clean water. They crushed the plantain leaves in their hands, applied them to the wounds, then removed their jackets and shirts, folded the shirts in half, and tied them over his treated wounds as a bandages with the cord.

The girls put their jackets back on and made it their business to make sure nothing else was about to jump out at them. While Pepper guarded Root with the knife and shovel, Tansy took her spear and searched the surrounding area. She found the mountain lion's tracks and traced them up a ledge jutting out of the rocky walls of the canyon. She found the small opening for the cave that had been its den. As far as she could tell it had been alone. She climbed back down the ledge and checked around the water and a little deeper into the canyon for more tracks. There were some by the water but none farther in. It looked like that mountain lion had been the only one in the area. They were safe, for now.

Pepper was too distraught to leave Root, so she stayed with her brother while Tansy looked for more medicinal herbs. Venturing farther into the canyon, she found a few yucca plants, and Manzanita berries. And that was it. After a certain point there was just dirt and rock. Tansy left quickly. She didn't like that part of the canyon. Even the smallest sound made a large echo and it was very difficult to find the original source with the way it bounced around. It was eerie and uncanny.

She left the berries with Pepper, who had calmed down enough to finish gutting the ram so it could be cooked before it spoiled. Somewhat reassured by this, Tansy continued her hunt for herbs in the woods outside the canyon. When she returned with more plantain and firewood, Pepper asked her to gather materials to make a shelter while she cooked. The mountain lion's den would have been good, but there was no way they could drag Root all the way up there.

Tansy made several trips to get everything they needed for the shelter, filling her pockets with anything edible that she found along the way. She stopped to eat when the meat finished cooking. They set some aside for Root. He had passed out but he would be hungry when he woke up. Their shirts were soaked through with blood. It was clear he needed more help than their limited resources would allow.

They were about to remove another layer of clothing for more bandages, when another silver parachute floated down to them with a plastic red box. They opened it. It was a first aid kit. The girls were ecstatic. It must have cost a fortune. They quickly thanked Finnick, Mags, and everyone who had contributed to the purchase of such an extravagant gift. They immediately went to work on Root's back. They removed their makeshift bandages and cleaned his wounds again with water and an antiseptic. Then they applied a powder that was supposed to help stop the bleeding. They stitched him up and applied a healing ointment. It was a good thing Root had passed out, or it would have been hard to hold him still for all of it. They thanked everyone again.

By the time they finished caring for Root, twilight was upon them. So Tansy and Pepper set up the shelter. They used thick branches, the plastic sheet, leaves and other debris to make a lean-to around Root, making sure there would be space for them, too. They ate a dinner of raspberries, wild spinach, elderberries, miner's lettuce, and dandelions.