Shana had a quick bath as Karina went to collect her brothers and sisters from Shana's house. The bath was mostly because Shana would be sitting next to Binder Lori this morning as the work hadn't been that intensive yet. Karina hadn't even broken a sweat. The baths were full this morning, as they'd been all summer. Many inside weren't taking a full bath, but rather simply pouring a few ladles of water on themselves and giving their faces a quick wash to remove morning oil and quickly cool them.

She entered the dungeon, feeling the cooler air inside blowing around her as she passed through the entrance, the familiar sensation of the binding meant to keep out bugs making her hairs rise and tingle. Inside, she nodded in greeting at people she knew—which was everyone, because unlike Binder Lori she had no problems remembering people—as she made her way towards Binder Lori's table, which was only not officially known as 'Lori's Table' because Binder Lori had apparently not seen the need to officially name her table. Still, if she did, everyone was sure it would be called that.

Binder Lori and Rian were already sitting at the table, the former leaning back on her chair and clearly enjoying the backrest. They were in the middle of some kind of discussion as Shana walked to the small bench next to the chair and sat on it, keeping her back straight. She nodded towards Rian, who nodded back but didn't break off what he was saying.

"—where the sawmill would be. When will you be able to put in the stone foundation?"

"If they're really done, I can do it after breakfast. Are the fittings for the saw ready?"

"Been ready for a while now. They're ready to install it as soon as there's solid ground to put them on. It will take a couple of days, I'm told, and some of the beams will need to be buried into the foundation to secure them."

Binder Lori scowled, but that was all. "Is there a plan for how the fittings will be installed?"

Rian nodded. "A basic one. Once the site had been finalized, the carpenters have been preparing the beams to accommodate the site's dimensions. There's only so many ways you can attach a water wheel to a circular saw, after all."

Lori grunted. "Is this sawmill really necessary? We've done well without one before now. "

"Did you need to become a Dungeon Binder? You've done well as a Whisperer before then."

Binder Lori glared at Rian, who simply smiled brightly at her. "That doesn't answer my question," Binder Lori said with gritted teeth.

"You already know all the benefits setting up a sawmill, and eventually a gristmill and drophammer will give us. If you want us to cancel the project and have all the work the carpenters and smiths did go to waste, just say so."

If anything, Binder Lori's glare grew more intense. Rian just kept smiling as Wizard Taeclas and Rybelle passed behind him before sitting down on the bench a bit away from Rian so that Umu would have somewhere to sit. Their hair was still wet from their bath.

"Good morning, Shana…lorre!" Wizard Taeclas managed to add before Binder Lori corrected her. "Good morning, Rian. Could you tell her Bindership I wish her a good morning too?"

"Tae wishes you a good morning, your Bindership."

"Noted."

"Good morning, everyone," Shana acknowledged as she settled down to wait for the food to be ready, watching the kitchen past Mistress Rybelle.

The slight movement of Binder Lori's head might have been her acknowledging Shana's greeting or merely adjusting her seating position. Her gaze was still focused on Rian. "And you're sure that the sawmill side is above the spring flooding?"

Rian sighed. "Yes, it's above the flooding. You checked. If you're still dissatisfied, you can just keep adding rock to the foundation until it's as high as you want."

"That was never in question."

"Then why—no, no, not going there…" Rian shook his head. "Do you have enough stone or are we getting new plots excavated in the dungeon farm?"

Binder Lori visibly considered that, looking towards Wizard Taeclas, who smiled at her and waved. "Given the increased productivity of the dungeon farm, expanding its infrastructure now would be prudent."

"Should we try to add the metal contacts Taeclas spoke of to the new plots? After all, if we're going to be building new ones anyway… "

"Did a dragon drop gold on us that I'm unaware of?"

"No, not like that. You know those poles that Taeclas and Shana—"

"Shanalorre," Binder Lori corrected. Shana was sure she'd heard her full name more times in the past year than she had all her life before then, and all because of Binder Lori.

Stolen novel; please report.

"—Shanalorre use, right?" Rian said as Ninang Riz, Mikon and Umu arrived. "Why don't we make one sized for the farm plots downstairs? One big wooden frame that can cover a whole plot, with wheels and ropes to raise and lower the wire lattice. That way, Tae and Shanalorre can have the convenience of having metal contacts without us needing to use as much metal. The stone walkways between the farm plots can take the weight of something like that, unlike the fields outside—"

"Stop," Binder Lori interrupted as Mikon reciprocated Wizard Taeclas' enthusiastic greeting, while Umu did the same with Rybelle. Rian stopped. "Rian… I will not be entertaining any new projects at the moment. Making new farm plots is strictly for the purpose of excavating more stone. Right now, focus on completing the sawmill so that it's well underway and you can be spared to go to Covehold Demesne."

Rian sighed. "Yes, your Bindership," he said as he shuffled to the side slightly to make room for Umu as Ninang Riz and Mikon sat at his other side.

Binder Lori nodded, then turned to Wizard Taeclas. "Would his suggestion of a large lattice actually be useful?"

"Good morning, your Bindership!" Wizard Taeclas said cheerfully.

She received a flat look in turn. "You said that already."

"I know, I just wanted to greet you properly! Let's see… well, if the lattice has enough wire, it will probably help. The problem will be moving it from plot to plot. Rian said something about wheels, and… I suppose that will work. Having people carry it will probably be tiring work, since they'd need to hold the frame for both me and Shana… lorre. I think Shanalorre and I will work faster using just the poles, as long as it's in the dungeon farm. Something like what Rian described might be better for the fields outside. Right now we're having to walk around the outside of the fields. Those crops will start maturing when I activate their meanings, and then they can be cut and we can start claiming and imbuing the crops behind them."

Wizard Taeclas shrugged. "As it is, your Bindership, while we're slowly making the crops mature faster, I don't think it will be in time to plant another crop for a second harvest. At least, not if we try to do all of the fields."

"What do you suggest, then?" Binder Lori said as Shana saw that the kitchen was starting to serve food.

Sliding from her bench, she went to join the line. She was soon joined by Mistress Rybelle, Mikon and Rian, the latter two bickering good-naturedly.

"—don't need to do this, Rian," Mikon said. "I can get the food."

"We have a schedule, it's my turn," Rian said. "Besides, she's still talking to Tae. That should keep her occupied. You two go first, Shana, Rybelle. You and Tae have been up longer than most of us, you need your food."

"Thank you, Lord Rian."

"Thank you, L—I mean, Rian."

"Shana, you know you don't need to call me 'lord', right? You're a Dungeon Binder, you outrank me."

"Noted, Lord Rian."

Rian shook his head, yet he smiled as he did so. At least he didn't say anything about how the demesne had the most adorable Dungeon Binders.

They waited only briefly in line, despite Rian's protests and attempts to keep people from letting them go ahead of them. Shana agreed with him in principle—she was perfectly willing to wait her turn—but if she was being allowed to get to food faster… well, she had a little cousin to take care of.

"Rian, come on and help me pick up Binder Lori's food," Mikon said, nodding in acknowledgement at all the people letting her pass. "You were just saying it was your turn, remember?"

"It's still wrong," Rian muttered, even as he nodded at all the people letting him pass. "They got here first, they should get their food first."

"We're not getting food for her Bindership, Rian," one of the men in line—Bonn the chandler—said. "A happy Binder Lori is a happy demesne."

"She's never happy, you know that. The closest she gets is 'not annoyed' and 'asleep'," Rian retorted, but he was smiling as he said it.

Breakfast was stew, bread—unleavened, either to let the culture recover or because it was faster—and a selection of fruits all dripping water and slightly bruised from the cold in which they'd been stored. Shana took only enough for one since she didn't have to get food for Yoshka, but she did take one of the jars of chilled water to bring back to their table so that Rian and Mikon would have less to carry.

When she returned to the table ahead of everyone else. Binder Lori and Wizard Taeclas were still talking.

"—reorganize the fields to optimize the Deadspeaking we have available," Binder Lori said. "We'll lose a little surface area to the pathways, but the accelerated growing cycle should mitigate the loss."

Shana set her food on the table, placing the jug of water on the table where Binder Lori could reach it. Giving thanks to the Dungeon Binder for the bounty before her seemed nonsensical when she was one of the Dungeon binders in question, though since there was seel meat in the stew, she mentally gave thanks to Binder Lori and Karina, who were the ones most likely to have caught it. Then she began eating.

Next to Shana, Binder Lori didn't cease speaking to Wizard Taeclas even as she chose one of the bowls of food covered with a disk of bread that Rian had put in front of her. "Could you still use the poles if the wire lattice is a bit larger? The reorganized fields can be as long as they need to be, the limiting factor will be their width since each row will need to be wide enough for you to claim with the poles."

"I don't think it's a good idea to make the pole any bigger, your Bindership," Wizard Taeclas said, glancing at her wife and giving her a grateful smile as Mistress Rybelle put down the bowls of food she was carrying, before reluctantly turning back towards Binder Lori. "I might be able to carry it, but Shanalorre wouldn't be able to."

Binder Lori blinked, before turning and looking at Shana. She seemed to see Shana's arms for the first time as Shana stopped eating in case Binder Lori addressed her. "Perhaps she can get someone to assist her?"

"Karina is already helping her in the mornings," Rian said, and Binder Lori turned her attention on him. Wizard Taeclas took the opportunity to turn and give her wife a quick kiss and a half hug, pulling her close, before quickly turning towards her food and starting to eat. She usually didn't need to rush, but this morning it seemed Binder Lori wished to speak to her, and Wizard Taeclas was one of those people who gave her food her undivided attention—unless her wife was involved. Shana usually lost awareness at that point until they noticed and restrained their behavior slightly. "If the pole is any bigger and heavier the two of them wouldn't be able to handle it anymore."

"Why is Karina assisting her?"

"Because Shana has trouble handling the pole since it's so much taller than her and she only has two hands, obviously."

Binder Lori looked towards Shana again. After some time, she sighed. "Very well, we won't try to change the poles."

Shana returned to her meal.