The Caravan

The dragonborn receives some surprised looks when he offers to cook but they all turn into either accepting shrugs or embarrassed expressions when the caravanners realize that there is no reason a dragonborn couldn't cook, despite their draconic appearance.

Milly notes down everyone who expressed interest in helping out the watch, which, aside from Taz and Auras is just one man, a dark-skinned elf who is traveling with a human woman and a half-elven child.

"The forests here belong to no one, except the king," Mork says. Calling the tree growth around here a forest might be a bit of an exaggeration. The real forests are yet to come. "And he is unlikely to come down just to check on their intactness." He chuckles at his own comment, then says: "We won't need much wood as we will move on tomorrow and reach the woods before making camp again, so do not cut down a whole tree. But if you chop off some branches, nobody is likely to complain."

As Narissa heads out to gather firewood, Arphaxad and Belathor already begin preparing the meat Mork brought along, as well as the forage Milly gathered. "This is all I have," the half-orc explains. "Tomorrow, we will need to hunt unless we want to feast on nothing but nuts and mushrooms."

When Narissa returns and brings enough wood to last the camp through the night, she also joins the cooks and helps out wherever needed. Soon after, the whole caravan gathers around the fire to eat. One of the merchants, a broad-shouldered human woman by the name of Karha, even brings a large flagon of mead and shares it with everyone. There is little more than a mouthful for everyone but it does warm the travelers up from the inside as the last warmth of the day disappears with the sun, to be replaced by cold autumn winds. Wrapped in blankets and fur coats, the members of the caravan sit around the fire to eat and talk until it becomes time to sleep.

As the night grows darker and colder, the caravan only huddles together closer around the campfire, thankful for the wood Narissa gathered as it lets them expand the fire slightly.
Auras breaks into song and draws the attention of the entire caravan for the duration of her song. They all seem smitten by her performance and applaud her when she finishes before returning to their conversations.
"Good one, my friend" Mork says approvingly. "Where'd you learn that?"