"Well, all things considered, I did not make it home until after two a.m." She brushes her hands together over her plate, any remaining crumbs to fall there instead of her lap. "And we did not sleep for a while after that."

Oh yes, now that she has his permission? His pack will end up with a considerable amount of comfort items that weren't in the pack initially. The canned goods (with their weight) will be gone, replaced by lighter-weight packages. Meals cooked, easily eaten cold. Others wrapped in tin foil to be placed in the fire.

Small containers of spices, other things that would make a meal, and a night so much more cozy. Lifting her pack and his, she checks the weight, and then again after she had added tarp and blankets to both. Tucked away next his flint and steel were waterproof matches. He also gets the small
first aid kit.

Both packs are readied, and wait by the front door and Mara is standing in the sunlight, looking out the kitchen window when she hears him moving back to the front of the house from the bedroom area. She hasn't bothered to change, after all, what is one night or two in the forest?

"I am ready when you are, my friend."