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Prompt: Winter is at the door, and there isn't much time left before it claws its way in. If you haven't started preparing for the bitter cold and lack of resources, it might be a very lean season indeed. Are you confident in your preparations? Are you scrambling to scrounge up what you can? Maybe working in a group would make things easier... Whether your 'taur thinks they have sufficient supplies and shelter or not, one thing is certain: winter will arrive regardless
Oh, how could she be so scattered?
When morning had come to greet Ziva that day, she met it with a relaxed and bright smile as she prepared herself for the day and ate a meal at her leisure without a singular care in the world apart from the usual. Some preparations for the salon, checking on her garden, maybe taking a run; the day was open to her and she couldn't wait to spend it well. It wasn't until she had stepped out of her home to check on the plants that decorated the face of it that she noticed something that would quickly change her plans entirely; a few small, white flurries were drifting down to the earth from above, Ziva looking up to sky to see a cover of clouds that were dusted in grey.
Oh no.
A sudden sense of urgency, if not bordering on the beginnings of panic, the centaur turned right back around and re-entered her home with new purpose; a big woven basket was strapped on her back and a large leather satchel bag was pulled across her shoulder, a determined gaze on her face as she made a mental note of the things she needed to try and accomplish today. Her first step in it all was actually quite close; her gardens.
Stepping through the back door she entered her lovely little plot of land, looking around at the natural beauty that surrounded her and feeling just a little bit sad. With the coming of winter, so many of the lovely flowers would lose their petals and die or go dormant; the colors would be faded and gone, at least for a time, as would most of the wildlife that migrated or slept through the cold. Ziva couldn't help but utter a sigh of regret but she couldn't linger on it for too long, turning herself instead to the half of her garden that was dedicated to produce that she grew. So much was ready for harvest, if not over ready, and she'd gotten a little too caught up in other things. Thankfully a quick inspection told her that they were just fine for harvesting and for trading, which was good as she'd need them for today. As carefully but quickly as she could the produce was harvested, picked by hand or cut with a knife she specifically used for this. The leather satchel grew heavier with each bundle that she took care of, soon brought in and sorted into what she would keep for her own stores and what she would use for trade. One task done.
Out the front door once again and her hooves were moving, galloping down the way so that she could get into the village and move systematically through each place she needed to be. Keeping herself at a fast trot, Ziva traded her care-grown harvest for a variety of supplies that she could not readily have ready herself; flour, sugar, eggs and the like were all basics that she did not supplement herself as she did not have a farm but it was nice to be able to exchange what others needed for what she required, especially as it gave her a chance to speak with others...even if her time was a bit pressed. There was no helping the fact that she wanted to be as friendly as she could to the other taurs that she met. As much as she wanted to stop by her salon today, it was at the bottom of her priorities for the day as she rushed to and fro, place to place and hither to yon. Sometime later she was a bit breathless but yet another task was accomplished.
Galloping her way out of the village and into the woods, there was yet one more task she had to accomplish; reaching into the basket on her back she retrieved from it a quiver of arrows and a short bow, her pace not slowing as she knocked an arrow and drew it back. Bright eyes were alert as they searched through the foliage, her pace not slowing as she waited for the sign she was looking for. There! Her running had spooked out a rabbit, releasing the arrow towards it with a silent prayer for the lives that she would take in order to sustain her own. First it was two or three rabbits, then a flock of birds she managed to startle that she had a bit of a time shooting at as they took flight. Each arrow that flew was let loose with a prayer, respect given to the land, the gods and the creatures themselves in thanks for blessing her with sustenance that she would repay with care for those who needed it. Doubling back on her path she would retrieve her kills, gathering them into the basket on her back. Ziva would be certain to give proper thanks in a ritual once she got back home, knowing that this would not be the last time she hunted before winter truly took hold.
As the hours passed and a few more arrows found quarry, the centaur's steps gradually slowed. The chill was starting to finally set in through the rush of adrenaline, a light dusting of the snow flurries already coating the ground and the brush as Ziva made her way through the trees so that she may find her way back on the path to home. Of course it would have been that, in her rush, she forgot to wear her cloak. Oh well; a bit of chill would be her penance for her negligence. No doubt there were a fair few she had encountered today who likely thought that she was a fool, if not utterly careless for her rushing and lack of preparations. She wouldn't have blamed them, either. After all, here she was; worn out, scattered and her mane full of debris from the forest in her rush. Surely, she looked quite the sight, trotting her way by the river curiously so that she could gaze upon her reflection...and laugh at the vision of herself. Thank the gods she was heading home now.
Let this be a reminder to herself from now on to be far more mindful of the seasons changing, lest she be caught like this again or worse. It wasn't the end of her preparations, of course. Even now, as the cloudy skies were faintly colored by the setting sun, she was planning things out in her mind so that the rest of her preparing would not be quite so stressful.