"I already said no." The old woman's voice was firm, leaving no room for negotiation. "Rules are rules; whoever doesn't follow the rules either dies or is banished."
"Who invented these damn rules?" Duggi frowned. "Why?"
Grandma stood up. Even hunched over, even shorter than everyone there, there was something about her posture that commanded respect and authority.
"Because sleeping together brings problems. I'm tired of repeating this." Her voice cut through the air. "It brings confusion. It brings fights. It brings… other unwanted things."
'Other things. Like, sex, I imagine.'
Hawke understood. Or thought he understood. Separating men and women during sleep avoided… complications. Jealousy. Disputes. Unwanted pregnancy. Or maybe it was just superstition, some meaningless tradition.
"When the time is right," Grandma continued, her voice as firm as stone, "I decide who sleeps with whom. Now is not the time." Her eyes pierced Duggi. "End of conversation."
Duggi mumbled something inaudible. His jaw clenched, but he didn't insist. He turned to the side, patted Kuggi's shoulder to get him to move, and closed his eyes.
The cold was starting to really bite now. Night had fully fallen, and the temperature was dropping faster than Hawke had expected. He rubbed his arms harder, his hands tracing his skin, trying to generate heat through friction.
A campfire would be good now. Hawke had underestimated the cold and hadn't considered a campfire before, but now he realized: he wouldn't last until dawn at this rate.
He looked at the remains of the extinguished campfire in the center of the cave. Just ashes. Pieces of charred wood. No embers. Not even a spark.
"Why don't you light the fire again?" he asked no one in particular.
The voice echoed off the cave walls.
It was Kuggi who answered. He didn't open his eyes, he remained lying down, his face buried in Duggi's shoulder, but his voice came out clear.
"We don't know."
"What do you mean you don't know?"
Kuggi opened one eye.
"Making fire is magic. Only the sorcerer could do it."
Hawke frowned.
"The sorcerer?"
"The old man who was with us." Kuggi closed his eye again, his voice becoming more drawn out. "He had magic stones. He struck them; it made sparks. Sparks turned into fire. It was his magic."
'Magic stones. Flint, probably.'
It made sense. Striking flint or shards against a mineral generated sparks. With enough dry material, you could light a fire. It must have been a basic technique. At least in the world he remembered, or thought he remembered.
"And he didn't teach you?"
"No." The word came out simply, without emotion. "It was his magic. His secret."
"And where is he now?"
Kuggi hesitated before answering. When he did, his voice was lower.
"Dead. Or he left. I don't know. He vanished."
'Selfish bastard.'
Hawke understood immediately. That sorcerer kept the knowledge to himself. To be special. Important. Necessary. In a small group, knowing something unique gave you power. It put you above the others. It made you indispensable to the group.
But now the selfish one was gone, dead, fled, disappeared, and hadn't left behind either the tools or the knowledge. He had doomed the whole group just to maintain his status.
Jerk.
Grandma approached Kaira and Yuka. The three women settled together in a corner of the cave, sharing a large animal skin as a blanket. Grandma in the middle, Yuka on one side, Kaira on the other. They huddled together like men, seeking warmth, sharing their bodies.
Before lying down completely, Kaira looked at Hawke through the semi-dark cave.
Her eyes met his in the dim light.
"Don't worry, Hawke."
Her voice was low, but clear.
"You won't get cold like those idiots said."
Hawke blinked.
"No?"
"No." She held his gaze. "I won't let you. Okay?"
'How exactly are you going to do that?'
His mind went straight to the obvious place.
Is she thinking about... like... body heat? Sleeping together? The two of us?
His face flushed. His heart raced.
'No. She's not suggesting that. Calm down. Breathe, this is…'
Kaira stood up. The movement was smooth, controlled. She picked something up from the ground, the egg. The last egg that had survived the hunt.
"Let's go out for a bit," she said to Yuka, casually. "Enjoy the last moments of daylight." The light, coming from the moon and stars, was enough to see better outside.
Yuka stood up too. She grabbed the fur blanket and covered herself, the two of them holding it together, and they walked towards the cave entrance.
"Let's hide," Yuka explained, looking back before leaving completely. Her voice echoed. "Otherwise, Grandma or the men will devour it."
"Yeah," Kaira agreed. "Better safe than sorry."
'Or maybe you'll eat it in secret because you still think it's disgusting, but you're too hungry to resist.'
Hawke let out a dry, silent chuckle that was swallowed by the shadows.
Their footsteps faded as did the murmurs.
Silence.
Only the breathing of the sleeping men. Only Kuggi's occasional snoring. Only the sound of the wind outside, muffled by the rock.
Hawke stood there, alone with his thoughts.
And the cold growing.
'I know how to make fire.
The thought came clear, sharp, as if it had been planted there.
I know. I don't remember where I learned it, but I know. Friction. Twigs. Dry straw. Bow and drill. Or just two pieces of wood, with patience. It can be done.
I could do it now. Go out, gather dry material, use any stone to dig a hole in a wooden base. Rub a twig until it generates embers. Blow carefully until it becomes a flame.
Light a bonfire. Impress everyone and earn their respect, who knows.
Become the new "wizard".
Gain status. Importance. Bargaining power. Or...'
The alternative formed in his mind, hot, tempting.
'Or I do nothing. Not now. I'll leave it for later. I'll leave myself cold a little longer. Maybe she'll just hand me a furry blanket. Ormaybe...
Maybe Kaira will keep her promise to keep me warm.'
His face grew hot again.
'Pressed against her. Sleeping together. Body against body. Her perfect breasts pressing against...'
"STOP."
The word came out too loud. It echoed in the cave.
Duggi stirred in his sleep, grumbled, turned to the other side. Kuggi sniffed loudly. Tairo didn't move.
Hawke held his breath.
Grandma turned her head toward him.