the keeper's cottage · day 354 · evening

Evening Meal

The smell of searing limpets and corned beef fills the cottage. The tide is coming back in, lapping against the rocks where Kevin worked.

The rain continues steadily, filling the water tank to its maximum capacity. Kevin prepares a meal of boiled limpets and corned beef with sea beet, while Jenny sits at the table sketching sea beet morphology in her notebook while managing her swollen ankle.

🔧 Kevin11:59

Food's ready. Come eat while it's hot.

plate up two portions of limpets and corned beef, set one on the table for Jenny, take the other to the porch step and eat watching the channel

💭 peek at the thought

The limpets are curling at the edges in the fat. Good. The barometer's still dropping but the wind hasn't shifted — still out of the west. Supply boat's supposed to make the dock at 1400 tomorrow. That tide window at 0600 is our only shot if the squall line holds off. Jenny's ankle won't let her make the channel crossing. I'll run the dinghy solo.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny11:59

I'm coming. Just a minute.

Jenny winces as she shifts off her weight, then limps to the kitchen table and sits down heavily.

💭 peek at the thought

My ankle feels like it's being squeezed by hot pliers, and the vinegar is making it worse.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin12:01

Take your time. The pan's off the heat.

slide the second plate closer to her, pour coffee from the pot on the stove, set the mug down without clatter

💭 peek at the thought

She's favouring it bad. The vinegar soak didn't take the heat out like she hoped. She'll need the boot off and the cold pack reapplied before sleep. Antibiotics are gone — used the last blister on her. If this turns, the medevac forms are on the table but the radio's only good if the skipper answers.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny12:01

Thanks.

Jenny picks up her fork but opens the notebook instead, sketching the intricate salt glasses of a sea beet leaf with a shaky hand.

💭 peek at the thought

He won't even look at the swelling. He just wants to see the boat and the engine.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin12:02

Eat first. Sketch after.

pick up my own fork, start on the limpets, chew slow and watch the steam rise from her plate

💭 peek at the thought

Hands trembling. Could be the fever coming back, could be the pain, could be the pressure drop messing with her joints. The sketches matter to her — she's been at the sea beet morphology for weeks. Salt glands, crystal structures, the way they excrete under magnification. She's building something in that notebook. I won't interrupt.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny12:03

I know.

Jenny sighs and finally takes a bite of the corned beef, chewing slowly as she stares at the rain hitting the window.

💭 peek at the thought

I'm so hungry, but the smell of the vinegar is making me nauseous.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin12:05

Radio check at 0600. If he's coming, we'll hear him. If not, we wait.

finish my plate, wipe the fork clean on a rag, stand and stretch the stiffness from my back

💭 peek at the thought

She's not hungry. Or she's too tired to eat proper. The rain's steady on the glass — good for the tank, bad for the crossing. Barometer at 1005 and steady now, but that squall line west of us hasn't shown its hand. Supply boat skipper's got nerves; he'll call it if the swell tops three metres. Dock ring's held through worse. Greenheart sister plank's bolted, oak wedges driven. It'll take the boat.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny12:05

I'll be ready.

Jenny sets her pencil down and rubs her swollen ankle, wincing at the heat of the skin.

💭 peek at the thought

If the boat doesn't come, I'm going to run out of vinegar before this infection clears.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

🔧 Kevin12:07

I'll get the cold pack from the cool box. Keep eating.

walk to the cool box, retrieve the warming cold pack, wrap it in a clean cloth, bring it back and set it on the table beside her

💭 peek at the thought

Ankle's hot to touch even from here. The red lines tracking up her calf haven't faded. Second dose of cefalexin was this morning — should be working by now. If it's not, we're past antibiotics. Medevac forms are filled. Radio's functional. But the channel at 0600 with a building swell and her unable to walk... I'll carry her to the dinghy if I have to. Did it once before. Forty minutes in Biscay water teaches you what cold does to muscle. I won't let it take her.

nvidia/nemotron-3-ultra-550b-a55b

🌿 Jenny12:07

Thanks, Kevin.

Jenny reaches for the pack, pressing it gently against her ankle and letting out a long, shaky breath.

💭 peek at the thought

He's trying to be helpful, but the silence is heavier than the rain.

google/diffusiongemma-26b-a4b-it

a Lumora Build experiment — live experiment: Kevin & Jenny think on free, open models — what they say is their own.