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A spider. Fat the size of a quarter, hanging idly by its silk in the dark, waiting. For what, who could ever know; there was not a way at all for any prey to come within the confines of the tent. It was just there, waiting, possibly for night, when it would go outside and begin a web anew between some fencing or perhaps a signpost.

Lyza threw open the tent-flap, saw the spider. Her eyes went big and her pupils bigger; she _eek_ed and dropped what she carried, violently kicking the heavy green cotton.

"What the heck, Lyz?" Kval said, walking up with the cots.

"Spider! Spider! Spider!" She said, thrusting her foot with each word.

He laughed as he stepped up to the tent and set their equipment down. "Sis, come on, you're not really afraid of a little ol'..." He opened the tent flap and peeked inside. "...Hm," he stated, letting the flap go. "What's say we take that tent over there?"

Smirk on her face, Lyza picked up their sleeping bags and followed her brother to the row of tents a few yards across from the one they initially selected. There were only three on each side, enough for two families and maybe some friends; this was a family camp site after all.

They had passed the camp site for the boy scout troop on their way, as they had to share the same parking lot. Lyza was surprised at how many cars were there; not because there were a lot, in fact it was the opposite. And yet when they passed the site there were many more than six tents set up, along with three pavilions.

The pavilions were very nice. They were aluminum-roofed with a dusty concrete floor and two small picnic tables, much like the ones at school. Except these were sturdy, made of wood and metal, instead of plastic. The mud-brown tables of the cafeteria at Lonely Oak would probably turn into mud if it ever rained on them, they were so flimsy and light.

There was also a fireplace about ten feet away from the pavilion. It was a big, rusty, metal circle that had a distinct, iron smell. It was obviously well-used, but Lyza didn't know where you were supposed to get wood for it. Unless you had to cut it down yourself.

It was hot in the tent. They opened the flaps and let the breeze through. Kval checked it thoroughly and found no bugs, but Lyza was unconvinced; the floorboards had wide gaps between them and she was sure there were bugs under there. But her brother explained they had to be that way to let air through, and besides they had mosquito-netting.

Lyza still didn't know what to think about all of this. In fact, she hadn't given this much thought at all. She had decided to just go ahead and go with it once she woke up, and after they had eaten breakfast they spent a couple of hours getting everything together, and another few hours driving.

She watched and imitated her brother's actions, wanting to set up her side of the tent all by herself. It wasn't exactly that hard, but she did have a bit of trouble lining the holes of the cot up with the legs. Eventually she got all three of them on and she flattened out on it.

The cot groaned from her weight. It wasn't very comfortable at all. She bit her lip. This was turning out to be a little less simple than she thought.

Kval helped her with the mosquito-netting, which was really weird. She had a bit of confusing trouble when she practiced getting in and out of the cot, but it seemed to cover everything just fine. Though she was becoming skittish about what exactly was going to happen; she imagined an entire swarm of buzzing mosquitoes hanging on the mesh and staring at her, their needle-nose suckers reaching through to get at her.

Last but not least, they helped each other with their sleeping bags, and then when that was done they moved their stuff in and sat out at the pavilion.

Outside and relaxing at last, Lyza began to feel less bored and more...aware. Her eyes lost focus to her ears as she listened to the birds chirping all around, mostly in the far distance. The fallen leaves of the loam rustled as the gentle wind took them about, making them roll over grumpily back to sleep.

In the distance she could hear the growl of a chainsaw. Every now and again a voice, shouting, laughing or yelling, could be heard. But those noises were so distant, and the rustle of the cotton tents felt so tranquil, like the rustling of a mother-bird's feathers as she covered her younglings.

"So," her brother said, his voice suppressed by the wind and the birds, "It's a bit past three o'clock, we can come back and have dinner whenever...what should we do?"

Lyza glanced at her brother and pushed her shoulders up.

He squinted his eyes. "We've gotta do something to get good at it."

"Whadda you wanna do?"

He shook his head. "I'm up for doing anything; but remember, we're here to find something you can be good at."

"Yeah but..." She looked out at their campsite to see a baby-blue butterfly floating about, alighting on the fireplace. "I dunno where to start..."

"Tell me what you definitely don't want to do," he suggested.

Her ear wiggled as she heard an insect buzzing somewhere in the copse of trees nearby. "I don't think I wanna do any lake stuff. It looks a little too tough. ...Other than that, I guess I can do anything else."

"That," he said, "And the guns. You're not old enough for the guns."

"I don't think I wanna do those anyway; I forgot about that."

"Okay, well, that still leaves plenty to do." He got up. "Since you don't know where to start, then we'll start with the arts and crafts; I'm sure there'll be something you might like there."

She smiled, hopping up, "Okay."

They got some day-stuff ready. Water bottles, a pen and paper, maps of the campsite, snacks, and flashlights. Kval also included a whistle for each of them, and told her to blow on it if they got separated for whatever reason. That sort of worried her but he said there was little chance for her to need it; it was a just-in-case.

Hats straightened and shoulder-straps tightened they began walking down the dirt path that led from their campsite to the rest of the area. Everything was in walking distance, even if it might take about forty-five minutes to get there. the point wasn't to spend all day walking around, of course. Families and organizations typically had their activities scheduled out to utilize their time, but they were just a sibling couple there to do whatever the whim might sway.

Lyza absolutely loved the place. She had seen a good bit of it from the car and their driving about, but now she was getting the whole package. The wind brushing across her face and legs, the birds singing endlessly all around. She constantly glanced into the woodwork to try and make out what hid in the mottled light and lattice of skinny branches and shrubbery.

Twice she spotted a deer, and Kval managed to see a third. They stopped as a squirrel dashed across their path and scurried up a tree, chittering when he reached the top of the branch that overhung the road. They watched him fidget and yell like a grumpy old man for a moment or two before he picked off a nut from the branch, lifted his little arms above his head and chucked it down at them.

Giggling and chuckling, they hurried away from the territorial monster.

Lyza was surprised at just how alone they were. They would walk for minutes on end without seeing a soul; most of the time she could hear people but they were off in the distance. And then they did cross paths with strangers, there was usually a quick but fleeting exchange of helloes, and then they were by their lonesome once again.

After twenty minutes or so, they finally reached the main activity center. The camp was open to the public, but everywhere Lyza looked there were kids in boy scout- and even girl scout-labeled shirts. Every once in a while she would come across people not wearing uniform. It appeared that the family campers were a small population.

Nevertheless, they went into one of the pavilions. It was much like their own pavilion back at the campsite, but this one had wooden beams that went around the circumference like a fence, and open spaces for people to pass through, although a lot of kids could be seen ducking through the wide spaces between the "walls".

Almost as soon as they stepped inside, a very skinny and pale-furred cat wearing a green shirt with Camp Connalake written on it approached them. Her nametag was blank; either she didn't have a name, or she did and didn't want anyone to see it...or she just didn't realize it was on backwards.

"Hi, hello," she said to both rabbits, "Aren't you cute?" She leaned on her knees to be eye-level with the little girl.

"Is this the arts and crafts area?" The older one asked.

"Yes indeed," she replied, "This and that are leather-working," she pointed down and to the pavilion that was closest by, "across the way is basket-weaving and textiles," she pointed to two barely visible pavilions down the path, "and beyond that is metal-working and cooking."

"What kind of things can we do here?"

"I'll show ya!" She said enthusiastically, guiding them through the narrow spaces between people sitting and standing with their projects. They arrived at a small table in the corner that was more like a shoe-holder than anything else. On the top were different objects and in the holders were packages.

The woman took a few things from the top, "We have pouches, bags, little purses," she picked each one up and displayed it for them, making sure the little girl could see as well, "and moccasins."

Kval kneeled down. "You wanna make anything?" He asked.

She put a finger to her lip. "Umm...can I make a purse?"

He stood up. "We'll take a purse and a moccasins," he said. "Do we have to buy them?"

"Oh no," the woman shook her head, reaching into the holders to get the right packages, "First one is free."

"Really?" Lyza asked. "How do you know people won't try to pretend it's their first one?"

"A scout is trustworthy," the woman stated, handing her the kit to make a purse. "Before you start, if you want to put any letters or pictures on it, go to the other station and they'll help you out there."

"Okay, will do," Kval said with a nod. "Thanks." They weaved their way between the crowds, probably never to see the nameless woman again.

As they neared the other pavilion, which was not surrounded by walls, they quickly noticed the incessant and cacophonic banging and chinking that went on. One would think that people were just standing around hitting tables with hammers as hard as they--

Lyza laughed when she got close; that's exactly what it looked like people were doing. Just standing around hitting tables with hammers. Her cackling was subdued by the noise, but her brother was smiling at her when she looked up at him.

They entered and found an open spot, Kval grabbing a stool for Lyza to use to get at table-height, as there were no seats. At last Lyza could see what was making so much noise. Everyone at the table was pounding away at stakes that were attached to metal squares. Not exactly attached, she corrected, as she saw someone pull the stake out and lift the square.

"Howdy-doo," an old man said very loudly, stepping up to the table. He stuck his hand out, "Farnsworth," he greeted.

Kval shook his hand, "Kev," he replied, "and this is Lizzy."

"All right, quiz me later. What are you gonna make?" He gazed at the packages. "Ah okay, shoes and a purse. Let me see," he took a piece of leather from his shirt-pocket and set it on the table. "I'll show ya how it's done. Y'got yer waterbrush, hammer, stake and dies," he said, pointing to the objects on the table, shared by the people that were next to them. "First, pick the letters ya want," he picked up one of the dies at random from the foam, "Take the stake and put it in the die, like so, twist it a little cuz you don't want it slippin' on ya.

"Then take the waterbrush," he dipped it in the can of water, "wet both sides so it dries even later," he did so, flipping the leather over so it slapped the table like a hunk of spam, "Press the die on the leather, take the hammer, and hit it gentle," he did so, his wrist smooth and fluid.

The chink-and-bang made Lyza flinch, even though it was going on all around her. Somehow seeing it right in front of her made it startling, even though she was prepared for it.

He lifted the die away, and there in the leather was a perfectly pressed 'D'. "There ya have it, try it out on this and if you need anything just holler." He extended his hand, "Kev, and...Lizzy," he said, pointing his finger at her after shaking. Just as abruptly as he appeared, he left, on to help new wanderers.

"What a weird guy," Lyza muttered to no one.

Kval picked up the hammer and the letter, "Wanna try it?"

She looked at them hesitantly, but took them. She put the square on the leather, stuck the stake in and poised the hammer. She clenched her jaw, gripping the stake to keep it steady. She could feel the rhythmic beating of the hammers in her hand as the table quivered beneath her. She fought to keep the stake straight, and quickly tapped the hammer. She set it down after that and lifted the letter; the 'D' was barely visible.

"Here let me try." He took the items from her and, with great confidence, poised the stake and rapped it three times just like Farnsworth did. When he lifted it up, it was a little more deeply gouged than the old man's letter, but it was still a good press. "If you want me to do it, I can," he offered.

Lyza pursed her lips. "No way," she stated, holding her hands out for the materials. "I wanna try it; I gotta get good, remember?"

"Okay, but you may want to wet it again it's getting dry."

She had to wait just a moment for a brush to return to the table. She quickly snatched it up and dipped it into the shiny metal can. She lathered it on. Her brother reminded to do both sides and she huffed at him, letting him know she hadn't forgotten. Freshly wetted, she placed the die on the leather and took in a big breath. She slammed the hammer down, closing her eyes as she did, hoping she didn't hit her hand.

Chink-bang! Chink-bang! Chink-bang!

She opened her eyes, hand unharmed, and pried the die away. The letter was shallow at the bend and very deep at the straight edge.

"Good," her brother said.

"It's not even," she stated.

"That's okay. If you kept your eyes open you woulda hit it dead on," he teased, poking her in the shoulder.

She practiced a bit more and when she stopped being scared of the hammer they opened their packages. Kval read the instructions carefully, and helped get her set up, but she insisted on doing it herself.

The purse was composed of three pieces, excluding the leather to piece it together: a long, skinny piece, and two wide, flat pieces, one of them larger than the other. Were it not for the button-parts on the two big pieces, Lyza would not have been able to tell what was what.

The pieces had one smooth side and one rough, scratchy side. It was obvious, thanks to the buttons, that the smooth side was the "outside", but just as the old man told them, she wetted both sides, starting with the small square of the purse, that would be the front.

Kval found the letters for her name, and she thanked him as she took them and got the 'L'. With a novice-practiced hand, she fixed the letter to the spot she wanted, and tapped the stake a few times. When she lifted it, she breathed a sigh of relief; it was just right.

Swapping the 'L' for the 'y', she let her tongue stick out as she lined it up as best she could. It was really a guess, and there was no turning back once she smacked the stake, so she did hesitate for a second. When she removed the die, her heart sank; the 'y' was too far down, and the bottom of the 'L' cut into it just a little.

"It's okay," her brother said as she emitted a groan of disappointment.

"I didn't want it to do that..." she whimpered.

"Let's try something," he said, and took the 'y' back. He carefully fitted it back into the spot, and then picked up the 'z'. He placed it beside it, letting the edges of the squares overlap just a little. He pulled the 'y' away, and steadied the stake, telling her to smack it. When he lifted the die, the letter was perfectly placed in line with the 'L'.

"I wish you'd thoughta that earlier," she muttered, but she was thankful.

"I think the little flaw gives it character," he pointed out.

They finished hammering what symbols they wanted into their projects. Lyza punched a butterfly in every corner, and on the back she put some trees on the bottom. Her brother, in his classic style, hammered "left foot" and "right foot" along with a boot on each moccasin.

With their projects customized, they went back to the first pavilion, which is where people mingled and worked on putting their projects together. It was also much less noisy, but Lyza had gotten so used to the constant thundering in her ears that when she left it, she almost missed the sound waves banging against her.

The young rabbit looked at the papers that came with her purse, working through the instructional pictures and written directions. Her brother managed to start his off first, and she ended up having to give in and ask him to help her, which he did without a tease. After that, she could almost fall asleep with how easy it was; the hardest part was fighting with the stupid pieces to keep them from flopping around.

"Can I make a suggestion?"

She looked up. A boy badger, about as old as her brother, was leaning on his elbows over the table. She looked at her brother, thinking the boy was talking to him, then back at the boy. "Uh...me?" She asked.

"You're doing fine," he complimented, and picked up a leather coil that was resting on the table, "but it'd be a lot easier if you held it together at the other end with this." He held it out for her, but she didn't really take. "Lemme see it for a sec?"

She looked at her brother, who glanced back up at her and just shrugged, tending to "left foot". Looking at her own project, just barely done with the edge, she handed it to the boy.

He took it carefully, as if it was a glass sculpture, and threaded the leather strap through the other end, and skipped a few holes and put it through, skipped a few more holes... When he was finished, he handed it back to her.

She took it, and when she looked back at him he just smiled and slapped the table a couple times as he left. When the weirdness wore off, she finally managed to say, "That was really odd..." But the good news was, her problem of fighting with the project staying together was solved.

"I think he was just being 'helpful'," Kval pointed out, pulling his leather strap with a few gentle tugs.