Yo ho ho, exploring we will go. (Closed)

by **Sable Baggywrinkle** on January 22nd, 2012, 4:41 am

Bouncing the spear over one shoulder, Sable had recovered it to feel useful when the net had been taken off her hands, the woman watched with wide-eyed interest as Alexis went to work. Just like a sponge she soaked up the setting.

“That’s okay, I never catch anything ever when I try any method.”

Not quite completely true, but it sounded fun rolling off the tongue and seemed an appropriate response. Tipping the precariously perched girl into the sea also seemed like an appropriate response to how she’d set herself up. But that would disrupt dinner. A sly expression crossed and vanished from her face as the fisherwoman straightened and glanced over before settling into a comfortable waiting position.

Like Alexis, Sable wasn’t very good at sitting and doing nothing either. So when Aluria popped up, just as Sable was getting ready to instigate something, anything, with her companion, the woman brightened and leapt off the railing to accost the newcomer. Ah, Alexis, saved from something probably unpleasant, but amusing, by the bell. She was going to shove a harpoon bolt in the Aluria’s hand, point her to the mounted tool and see what happened.

“I’ll be right back!” she belatedly tossed over a shoulder to Al, golden curls flashing in the afternoon sun as she headed off to implement her plan. But she stopped mid-stride at the unexpected sight of the girl’s butt replacing her face as she leaned over the railing to haul in the catch. Rushing back to witness the triumphant moment, Sable clapped the sailor on the shoulder vigorously and beamed at her success.

“Great job! Now you just got to show Aluria how you did that! I’m going to go swimming,” Sable informed them cheerfully, unaware that the youngest sailor was looking for a little acknowledgement. Oh those two, accidently saving each other from her attempts at self entertainment. With no more explanation their hostess skittered back over to the Sparkle, shed her shirt, and leapt over the railing.

Sib followed just a splash behind with an air of resignation, clearly assuming herself to be a babysitter of sorts. The sea swallowed them up, their only traces fading rings of white. With a lungful of air, and feeling the comforting bite of Laviku’s domain surrounding them, they used the hull to guide their descent. Below and on the other side of Al’s ship, the dazzling swarm of silver fish revolved and reformed as various predators lazily meandered back and forth before shooting into the fracas with teeth bared. A few stragglers darted here and there, cut off from the group. Alexis’ must have been one such fish.

Quickly returning to the point of entry for another breath, the duo dove once more and followed the safety of the hull down. The fish seemed to migrate, for it couldn’t be called swimming how their ball of whirling silver undulated and contracted and swayed this way and that, just out of reach. The salt water burned fiercely, she’d forgotten her goggles. They were more for safety’s sake than anything, but Sib provided a nice alternative. When any predator, mostly small fish with big teeth, skirted too closely, the little otter beat intently upon the skull of her Svefra. The bubbles from her first surprised scream surfaced on the far side of her own ship, away from the other girls. After that, between breaths, Sable suspected that Sib beat her a little too readily.

Recalling the last lesson she’d received in spear fishing while diving, the woman clung to the hull, waiting for a fish to swim near. There would be no stalking, not in the open sea like this, for there wasn’t anything to hide behind except the young otter. And she wasn’t fat enough for that yet. She would have to hide, let the fish get used to her, and then throw when one was close enough. For a good fifteen chimes the duo surfaced and descended, Sable finally getting the confidence to swim down without pulling herself along to a nice little perch in front of the keel. With her feet clamped anchoring her to the ship, the neophyte idly swept at the water to keep from losing position, the hand with the spear holding it cocked and ready.

There! A fish swerved in. And then out again unmolested. It was just too fast. Several more prime candidates passed this way, Sable doing nothing more than twitching indecisively. What if she threw it and it bounced off? Or stabbed the thing and fell out? Though it seemed like a good idea to try until something miraculous happened and a fish swerved near enough for the likelihood of success to outweigh the risk of having to swim after the spear should she miss, the little otter finally started amusing herself by stuffing barnacles down Sable’s pants. The Svefra took the hint and gave up.

Hauling herself out, water sloshing back into the sea in a great rush, Sable chucked the spear onto the deck and soon followed. Immediately, the loss of Laviku’s embrace sent chills skittering over droplet-glistening skin as she lay on the gritty wood near the railing, looking at the sky but speaking to her God.

“Well, I see you weren’t feeling genero-“ Sable retched around a mouthful of slime. Coughing and sputtering, the woman rolled port, slapping at her face. For any interested parties, Sib had followed the lanky failure out of the water with a squirming silver poisson, which she then dropped on Sable’s blabbering maw.

“Disgusting!” she reprimanded the suddenly cherubic little fur ball. “I’ll have you know that I could have caught one all by myself! Just you wait, I’m going to get y-“ And that’s when she remembered there were other people around. The girls. Laying one last glower on the otter, those self-deriding blue hues turned to search Al’s ship for the humans in question.

And then she tried to catch the flopping fish in order to bring it over to pool with their catch. The slippery beast bucked and rolled, slapped and sopped, but Sable was hot on its tail by the cabin, against the mast, around the helm, but always this close to grabbing it. Which of course she finally did. So what if it took her resorting to leaping bodily atop the thing and pinning it against her stomach to get a hold of it. In the end, there it was, slightly smaller than Al’s, and brandished cheerfully to present to her undoubtedly bemused companions.

“I got it, guys, don’t worry!” All that was left was for Aluria to whip this into something edible. “Did you get anything more?” Oh. And she put her shirt back on, too.

by **Alexis Whitewave** on January 23rd, 2012, 9:05 pm

Alexis looked up and across at the youngest of the three, having heard Sable’s request. Alexis watched as Sable walked across her ship and dived out of view before turning back to face Aluria. ”Right then, you ever fished before?” she asked the young girl, beckoning her over to her own casinor. As soon as Aluria got across a dripping net was thrust into her hands and Alexis was behind her, leading her over to where she had caught the first fish.

”First you have to set up the net.” Alexis informed her, as though she was some sort of expert. In truth Alexis was not an amazing fisher, only good enough to keep herself fed if even but Aluria didn’t need to know that her teacher was not all-knowing the ways of fishing. She turned round to face Aluria and leaned back on the rails. ”It’s not too hard, the floats keep it up and the weights pull it down.” she explained, pointing to the named features and demonstrating as best she could with her hands. ”Give it a shot. After that we wait.” she finished, ending on a somewhat flat note. It was clear that Alexis was not fond of this method and so she wandered off.

”Call me if you need any help.” she called back nonchalantly, leaning her head back to look at the skies. Her blonde hair fell back from her face having come out of their ties.

by **Aluria** on January 28th, 2012, 8:31 pm

"Right then, you ever fished before?"

Aluria moved towards her beckoning hands, expecting to be taught something about fishing. Instead, the woman thrust a soggy and smelly net into her hands, and she grimaced in disgust. She looked at Alexis, and sighed. This was no time to be picky, because if she wanted to eat, she was going to have to learn to catch her own food. She looked at the net again. It looked pretty worn down, with fine green thread that was changed to an almost brown-esque colour, but she didn't think about it. She followed Alexis to the railing where she caught the medium sized fish.

"First you have to set up the net."

Duh, she thought, rolling her eyes. But, she was still a bit thankful that she was teaching her how to fish. She didn't know what she would have done if nobody would teach her.

"It's not to hard, the floats keep it up and the weights pull it down. Give it a shot. After that, we wait."

She started to get up.

"Call me if you need any help."

She walked off to some place on the casinor as Aluria stared at her, and then turned her gaze to the mess of a net that she was now holding. She sighed, and proceeded to attempt to fix the mess of a net. She refused to call for help.

by **Sable Baggywrinkle** on January 29th, 2012, 3:06 am

Rubbing bloodshot eyes with the back of a damp wrist, the buoyant captain skipped nimbly across the gangway over to Aluria, fish tucked under an arm until she came close enough to present it.

“I got this for you.” But instead of handing it over, she added it to the net Al’s fish waited in. “If you haven’t caught anything, I’m sure there’s enough from those two. Why don’t we go cook them up?” Sable suggested, dripping on the worn deck. “Where did Al go? I never got to tell her about her family. Besides, I’m dying to hear why you’re not with your pod. We can all chat while you show us how to make something edible. I eat more ash than meat when I try to cook,” she confided, nose curling in disgust.

by **Alexis Whitewave** on January 29th, 2012, 6:03 pm

Alexis only heard snippets of Aluria and Sable’s exchange but it was enough to bring her round from where she stood over to where the other’s were.

”Catch anything Aluria?” she said with a wry, knowing smile. Alexis knew well that Aluria would not have caught anything, but it was fun to mess with her. Alexis was the youngest of her family and therefore was always put down and teased. It was the first time that she had the chance to pick on someone younger than herself and Alexis would not let it slip away from her.

by **Aluria** on February 1st, 2012, 9:33 pm

“I got this for you. If you haven’t caught anything, I’m sure there’s enough from those two. Why don’t we go cook them up?”

Aluria looked up from the mess in her soaking lap, and smiled at Sable. How considerate! But Aluria wanted to at least try to fish before she gave up. There was no way that she was going to untangle the net and not use it. She was almost finished with it, too. Even though she still had absolutely no idea what to do with it when she was finished.

“Where did Al go? I never got to tell her about her family. Besides, I’m dying to hear why you’re not with your pod. We can all chat while you show us how to make something edible. I eat more ash than meat when I try to cook,”

Aluria stiffened. What about her pod? She didn't feel very good about telling them about how she ran away, even if the pod didn't really care. She tried to change the subject.

"Well, Alexis stalked off to who knows where. I'm sure she'll show up soon," she said matter-of-factly, avoiding eye contact. She kept her head high, in case she suspected she was uneasy. Her face became stone. Speaking of which, Alexis was coming now.

”Catch anything Aluria?” She smiled at Aluria as if she were teasing her. "Haven't finished untangling," she replied, holding up the net as proof. She was almost finished, though... a few untangling over here, a few over there. She was finished in no time. She got up, and took the net to Alexis. She still had no idea what to do.

"How do I use this thing?"

by **Sable Baggywrinkle** on February 2nd, 2012, 3:04 am

Sable swallowed a smile at the frustrated girl, ‘stalked off’, hmn? As the snarky teenager in question reappeared, the amiable captain of the Sparkle bent to fetch the net holding the fish. Using a knife retrieved from some undisclosed location, she leaned over the railing behind the struggling fisherwoman and proceeded to begin preparing them. Clear distaste for the task scrunched her features into an unattractive frown. It had been hoped that this would be Aluria’s responsibility.

Blue eyes occasionally strayed to the two young ladies, wondering how the tension betwixt them would pan out. Ooh, maybe it would get really bad and they would end up scuffling. Built in entertainment. The fights between herself and her sister had been a source of many a great story back with the Tempest’s. Sleek bodies surfaced to boldly lay claim to the viscous remains of the fish floating in the water beside the hull. Huh, an unexpected perk.

“Better hurry, I just baited your net for you if you ever get it down there.” With that helpful tidbit, Sable sauntered off to her own ship, fish meat in hand. “And if you don’t hurry, you’ll both be eating charred black ash courtesy of yours truly.”

by **Alexis Whitewave** on February 2nd, 2012, 3:57 pm

Alexis rolled her eyes at the struggling Aluria. She took the net off her and went over to the ships’ edge, grinning a little at the passing Sable. ”Right, you watching?” she said, twisting her head back to look at Aluria.

Alexis held up the net in front of her, gesturing to the different parts and briefly explaining what they did once again before turning back to the sea to set up the net. She found it much easier to use than the nets she had been taught to fish with, which were huge and caught shoals of fish at a time. This one seemed much like a miniature version, ‘casinor sized’.

Alexis leaned over the rails and started to set it up, explaining a little better than she had the last time. ”You put these in first.”[b/] she said, gesturing to the small weights attached to either corner of the net and leting them fall into the water. [b]”And then you put these in last.” she said, letting the floats fall in. She secured the net within a few more seconds and then stood up straight once again.

”Now you wait until you catch something. Simple enough for you?” she said condescendingly, patting Aluria’s head before once again leaving the girl to her own. She went to find Sable, who seemed to have taken the rest of their catch. Once the eldest of the three, Sable, was found Alexis wandered over to her, glancing back at Aluria for a moment.

”Aluria can cook, so she know how to gut fish right?” she asked Sable. ”Ask her to save the bits we don’t eat for Lynn.” she said with a nod towards the confused looking dog, who was looking aimlessly around Alexis’ ship, not entirely sure why there were so many strangers on it and if she should attack them or not.

by **Aluria** on February 4th, 2012, 1:01 am

"Um... right," Aluria replied, eyes stilled filled with confusion. She got up and dusted herself off. It's time to fish, she thought with a smile. The warm ocean breeze brushed past her, causing her light hair to be lifted. She felt great, being on a ship, without her pod members and instead with good friends. She closed her eyes, and tried to remember the good times she had spent with Alex. Her thoughts lingered on one specific memory, the one where Alex and her had been swimming off the coast. The memory was still crystal clear...

Aluria opened her eyes, and suddenly she was gazing at herself. She watched as a younger version of herself sat on a wooden deck, laughing at her goof of a brother play. She saw that the girl loved the recognition she received from the boy, and she longed for that feeling as well. Aluria silently observed as the girl stood up, dusted herself off (as she had done just now), and dive rather ungracefully into the shining water. Alex splashed some water into her face, and his emotions made it seem like he was teasing her. Aluria looked back at the girl to see her splash back at the boy, and in a frenzy of excitement, the siblings swam for the coast. They looked like they were having fun, she thought, before realizing that she was talking about herself...

She opened her closed eyes, and this time gazed longingly back at the shore, which seemed so far away now. For one moment, her gentle eyes seemed to glaze over as she lost herself in thought. But she redeemed herself, and shook herself until her hair was in a silly disarray. She picked up the now readied net, and carefully followed Alexis' instructions. She leaned over the rail, and slowly lowered the small weights, and soon after, put in the net. She then lowered the floats, and watched as it bobbed up and down in the waves. She sighed, and slumped onto the side of the railing, feeling rather exhausted. There was much to do.

by **Sable Baggywrinkle** on February 8th, 2012, 11:57 pm

Sable looked guilty for a moment, freezing next to Al as they headed back to the Sparkle. Apologetic blue hues rested on the dog’s skinny, hungry form for a minute.

“I already cleaned the fish, I didn’t know you’d want the guts.” But a solution occurred to her immediately. “Hey Aluria, catch two fish, we’ll give the spare to Lynn!” So what if the girl didn’t really know what she was doing. The net was doing the hard work, and Alexis had watched her set the fishing tool up. “Oh, and a third one, for Sib! You’ll be a pro by the time we’re done with you!” Sable assured the girl with an infectious grin before she nudged Alexis down into her cabin.

“Do you know how to cook?” Without waiting for an answer, she offered the butchered meat slabs. No, she wasn’t the best at cleaning fish. Large chunks of the meat had gone the way of the guts. Probably why there were so many fish swarming the side of Al’s ship where she’d hung over to clean them. Like she’d said, the area was baited if Aluria could get the net in. Even being scared by its presence, the smell of food would probably be too much to resist.

The small galley was the third doorless door in, on the left. A cramped table with stools was stowed in the corner, and as Sable sauntered in she nodded to it in invitation for Alexis to make herself comfortable.

“Your family wants to know when you’ll be home, they miss you,” the lanky woman began, fiddling with a small oil stove that she clearly didn’t use frequently. With Sirroco gone she was becoming cognizant of how much she’d relied on him.

oocSorry about the delay ladies. After we eat, I'm going to start another thread where we arrive at Black Beach Cavern and get started solving some mysteries!