18, Summer, 517
Now instead of a stream, Maria was sitting next to a pond with her feet dangling over the side, fishing rod in hand. Even though she still wasn't overly fond of fishing, it was a nice diversion from all of the guard duty, and served a practical purpose. While fishing, along with several others, Maria thought about something that hadn't occurred to her until now. The route the caravan was taking, while mostly a straight line, also seemed to hit most fresh water sources along with way. It made sense though, as Goreth and the others seemed to know the route like the back of their hands. It was only natural they'd know how to make the most use of the land.
Having only been by the pond for a few minutes, she'd yet to get a nibble, and so just sat there, watching the fish go about their business a short distance from where she was. Since movement in the water seemed to scare the fish away, Maria didn't move her feet. Both of them were in the water up to the ankle with both leather boots sitting next to her. The cool feel of the water was a nice change from the heat of the day. One of the fish swam over toward Maria, and she watched as it circled the bait for a time, than swam in and bite down.
With a smile she fought with it briefly, then pulled the catch up out of the water, and watched as the silver scaled fish flopped on the end of the line. This was the first catch of the day, and taking it off the line, Maria used a small knife she borrowed to decapitate the fish and left it laying on the bank. Putting some more bait on the line, Maria dropped it back into the water about the time Deena sat down next to her.
“Hi Maria,” Deena said.
“Hello Deena,” Maria said.
“Having fun fishing yet?” Deena said.
“It's productive...” Maria said. She watched as the little girl baited her line a few feet away and tossed it into the water, then things became silent once again. While waiting for another fish to bite, Maria began to think about the journey itself, rather than she destination. Traveling to Ravok would be an adventure in itself, and she had little doubt it would prove to be a learning experience as well. Already she was learning about surviving in the wilderness. While normally the type who preferred to be in a city, Maria was never one to pass up the chance to learn skills that might well keep her alive one day. She was also starting to wonder exactly what it was that Deena was up to, if anything. Most people weren't very friendly toward Maria, and she preferred it that way. Now this little girl seemed to be following her around for some reason. Considering how young Deena was, Maria wasn't entirely sure how to react to something like this.
Word Count: 504