Nelu settled down by the pine tree as he watched the fire burn it's way down to hot coals. There was a chill in the autumn air but at least the wind was dying down as the sun started its downward course. He was keen to get some pine pitch made that could be used for the torches in the castle hallways. Turning his attention to the pine tree, Nelu examined it for places of injury where the sap could be easily gathered. He searched for a few moments then found a good spot where the sticky sap was leaking from the tree. Taking one of his finished bowls from his travois he carefully set it down on the ground below the injury. Hunting around on the ground he found a small stick and took it in his jaws. Carefully he stuck the stick into the injury and started gathering the sap into his bowl.

Coran made the decision to head southward and reconnect with Jynn to try hunting some new species. The sun was getting low in the sky so Coran opted to settle down for the night and do some crafting before getting an early start the next day. As he looked for a place to settle he noticed the smoke from a fire burning nearby. Perhaps someone else had set up camp? He arrived to see a young man who seemed to making pitch. Oh how perfect! "Excuse me, may I join you? My name is Coran Adravendi and I'm looking for a place to settle down for the night. I can't help but notice that it looks like you're making pine pitch?"

Coran waited to make sure he was welcome before he wandered over to a nearby tree. It was young with many shoots and suckers collected around the base. He seized one of the larger ones and worked at chewing it off before carrying it over to the boy.

Nelu's ears perked up as he heard someone approach. He turned, stick still in his mouth to see a manapproach. Nelu smiled politely and set his stick down to rest along the edge of the bowl. "Certainly, my name is Nelu Carpathius. Are you a crafter as well?" He picked his stick back up and continued scrapping the resin into the bowl. When Nelu felt he had enough to get started he set the stick down.

He scooted the bowl closer to the fire before taking the stick and maneuvering some of the ash from the fire into the pine sap, stirring gently as he did so, causing the color to darken. He looked up at the other man, curious to see what he was doing.

Coran set the stick down between his paws. "Thank you, Nelu. I'm something of a crafter I suppose. Well, I'm trying to learn anyway." His focus would still be on providing food for his pack but he didn't want to let much of a carcass go to waste either and that meant finding uses for the bones, hides and other remnants. Leaning down Coran used his teeth to start stripping off the extra leaves and branches. He wanted to have a good smooth stick to form the body of the spear. It was mostly straight and while not perfect he felt it would work well enough.

Picking one end for the front and one for the back Coran bent his head to chew on the end of the spear. He worked his teeth in carefully to create a notch he could use to add the spearhead. Licking the bark from his teeth he looked to the boy once more. "I wonder, may I borrow a small dab of your pine pitch when you're finished?"

Nelu considered the man's response and nodded. He supposed the same was true for him. While he was becoming quite skilled with pottery and clay work there were a number of other pursuits that were still knew to him. This was only the fourth time he'd tried to make pine pitch. Using another stick Nelu trotted back over to his pine sap. He hooked the bowl and gently moved it from the fire to a stone where it could cool. With the stick still in his mouth he gently stuck it in the sticky, tar-like mixture. Rotating the stick he carefully gathered the substance onto the stick before setting the un sticky end down in the dirt to hold it up while it finished drying. When it was done he'd just wrap it in a scrap piece of hide and store it that way. When it was time to use the pitch he'd heat it over a fire to soften it back up.

Nelu glanced back over at the man as he asked if he could use a small amount. Nelu nodded. "You may. What is it for exactly?" He glanced at the stick that the man seemed to be fashioning into something.

Coran continued his chewing, using his claws to test the width and springiness of the slots he'd created. To his delight the young man agreed to let him use some of the pine pitch. "I'm working on a spear but I'd like to try and use pitch to attach the spearhead." Coran leaned the spear against a larger rock so that the end stuck up before grabbing a small stick and carefully scooping a dap of the softer pine pitch left in the bowl.

Coran took the pine pitch back over to the end of the spear and lightly pressed the pine pitch into the notch. He then set the pine pitch down and picked up the bone pearhead he wanted to use. He carefully pressed the back end of the spearhead into the notch, using one of his paws to hold the spear steady. He held the spearhead into the spear until the pine pitch dried enough so that the spearhead wouldn't move out of place.