RP:Fishing on Lake Frysta
Lake Frysta
After venturing for some time down the path, you finally reach a large clearing as the secretive mountain path opens up to reveal a hidden lake among the frosty hills. Mostly frozen over, the sizable lake surface is spotted by a sparse number of ice fishing huts. It becomes rather apparent that the ice must be of considerable thickness to support these giant-scale fishing shanties; the largest among them lined along the northern wall by various designs of fishing poles which appear to be for sale. To the west, a semi-solid water fall spills over low cliffs, capped with a thin layer of glistening ice.
Hildegarde had already spoken to Saghani, renting a little fishing boat that would easily sit four humanoid creatures and whatever spoils they managed to capture from the icy lake. The boat was considered small by giant standards, probably only capable of seating one and whatever they managed to catch. The knight was wearing a leather tunic, greaves and her mithril boots. She was quietly sorting out her fishing supplies: a spear, a rod, a bag of bait and a separate pouch of hooks. The Silver seemed to be at absolute peace besides the lake, quietly excited to go fishing and enjoy the calm waters of the lake. There was a blanket in the boat, a little bag of supplies: tidbit snacks, really.
Satoshi has little trouble locating Hildegarde, and vice versa, when both are in Frostmaw. She'd heard from more than one chatty citizen that the knight was planning to spend the day fishing, a venture that's put some spring and haste into Satoshi's step so that when she arrives upon the lakeshore, it's with a childlike glee. Fishing! It's been too long since the kit has fished, and longer still since she'd done it out of necessity to live, rather than an idle hobby. Having lived the majority of her life in the cruel Xalious mountains, Satoshi is no stranger to hunting and fishing for survival, but that was before she became undead and now she'd fallen out of practice with the sport. Satoshi is eager to rekindle that flame, and so heartily waves down Hildegarde once the knight is spotted. "Mithril~." Some of the eagerness dies then, Satoshi spying the boat being loaded with supplies. The magus fixes the craft with obvious suspicion, and a hint of uneasiness. "You're going out in that..?"
A scuffling and snuffling from nearby announces Frysta's arrival, the polar bear having fallen behind to taste-test a dead animal he'd happened upon. Bloody chops are still being happily licked as the bear lumbers up beside Satoshi, glancing between magus and knight.
Hildegarde turned at the call of ‘Mithril’, offering Satoshi a broad smile and a little wave of her hand, “M’lady,” she offers in greeting. With a glance to the boat and a little frown, the knight wonders what could possibly be wrong with her choice of boat! “What’s wrong…?” she asked, looking at it again. It was a sturdy little thing, it’d hold their weight and it’d be pleasant enough. But perhaps it’s not the boat itself, perhaps Satoshi is afraid of it being out on the lake. “Are you afraid of being in boats, m’lady?” she asked, with just a whisper of a smile. “Did you expect to go fishing whilst on the back of a Silver dragon?”
Satoshi has never quite outgrown her cattish habit of disliking open water, and has only ever trusted it when on large vessels--like pirate ships. A little fishing boat? The magus shudders and shakes her head, a movement imitated by Frysta. "I typically fish from shore, or out on the ice itself. Don't you worry about that thing toppling?" Satoshi's nose scrunches up in distaste at the thought. It's almost as if she doesn't afraid of being submerged in water, an odd trait for a cryomancer to carry. Frysta doesn't seem to care, one way or the other, and begins padding toward the waterline. Polar bears don't need boats or ice to fish, as he makes clear when he plunges into the frosted water and disappears beneath the rippling surface.
Hildegarde shook her head while stealing another glance to the boat, “Not really… I don’t expect to be catching anything so big that it might topple my boat, nor do I anticipate being wild in my movement. Plus… I can swim!” she smiled, “So I’m not too afraid of the boat toppling. If you’re afraid, however, we can stick to the shore or ice-fishing, if you like,” she said softly. “Whichever you prefer to do, we shall do it.”
Satoshi is still giving the boat looks that suggest she's sure it's about to try and bite her, but at Hildegarde's words she shakes her head hard enough to flatten her vulpine ears. "Non, non~. Use your boat, you obviously are comfortable with it. I shall do as Frysta does, and follow in the way that suits me best." Which is to say, when Satoshi takes a step into the water, it's only for her boot to press upon newly formed ice. Where the magus' feet fall, the waters freeze to forge a pathway onto the lake--a pathway that by all rights and logic, should be far less trustworthy than a little boat, and yet Satoshi is at perfect ease waltzing on ice. From beside the ice, Frysta's head breaks the surface and shakes, shedding water droplets everywhere when the bear growls around the fish clamped firmly in his jaws. "C'mon, Mithril~," Satoshi calls from a few paces offshore, arm waving to Hildegarde, "the brute is already ahead of us by one fish, we can't lose to him~."
Hildegarde would be lying if she said she wasn’t relieved by Satoshi’s choice, as she did prefer the boat to the other options. It felt a little more relaxing than the other options, a little slice of something that was her own; her own sovereign little state of being, really. A small island of peace. The knight watched for a moment as Satoshi wandered onto the newly formed ice and wandered outwards, calling her out and to commence fishing. “Ah, he won’t stay ahead for long,” she promised, as she pushed her boat out into the water – wading out slightly into the cold – before hopping into the small vessel with a contented sigh. Opening her pouch, she set a worm to the hook and dropped the line into the water. “Patience is key,” she said, mostly to herself. That said, the Silver leaned back and waited for the first fish to come to her hook.
Satoshi's patience is different from Hildegarde's. Where the knight sits still and quiet, waiting for that telltale tug on her line, the magus paces and prowls on the edge of her ice, fluid as a river and poised to come crashing down like a waterfall when the time is right. Rarely has the kit ever used a fishing pole to catch her prey, instead using the weaving patterns of her movements and tails to entice fish to the surface, where she can strike with claws. As Satoshi turns for another pass along the ice, she glances at Hildegarde with ears half-cocked. "Y'know. I always imagined you fished in your dragon form, diving under the waters to gobble them up quick. Do you prefer this method? Is it more efficient?"
Hildegarde watched the water quietly, waiting for any signs of movement. Indeed, the glimmer of scales can be seen; carefully nosing towards the bait on the end of her hook as if it is considering gobbling up the bait waiting there. The Silver merely watches it, internally urging it to accept the bait. “I do fish in my truest of forms, yes,” she answered after some thought, “but only when I am considerably hungry and know I shall not be seen by locals. I wouldn’t want them to think I’m poaching too much of their food source, after all.” The knight paused, “It’s… calming. It’s better this way. In my truer form, I am thinking more about the hunger and what I can eat. But like this, I am thinking more about the quiet and the peace,” that said, the fish accepts the bait and she feels the tug on the fishing rod. Gently, she begins to reel it in, only pausing when the fish struggles so greatly it threatens to break the line. She waits for the fish to fall relatively still again before beginning to reel it in once again. “It’s not about the efficiency, Satoshi. It’s about the relaxation and the quiet. I… It’s relaxing for me. My father taught me,” she admitted.
Satoshi has ceased her pacing, and even forgotten about persuading fish, as she listens to Hildegarde. Crouched on the edge of the ice with head tilted to one side, the magus simply sits and listens, expression perplexed yet intrigued. It isn't that Satoshi is unfamiliar with concepts of relaxing, it's a favorite passtime of hers--especially when she should be working. But fishing to relax? That's a new one. For Satoshi, fishing had always been a means to survive, and sometimes to satisfy an urge to hunt without expending excess energy. "I've... never fished to relax, myself. Your father taught you? Can you... show me?" As she speaks, the kit inches closer, and even puts a tentative boot on the edge of Hildegarde's boat. She's fairly certain this alternate means of fishing probably includes having to sit in the worrisome vessel.
Hildegarde reeled in the fish with a smile, gently easing it off the hook and placing it at the very end of the boat: the little space specifically made to store the catches made. The Silver looked to Satoshi, “You did it for food, then,” she filled in the gap, hand extending towards the ice to grasp it and try and keep the boat steady enough for Satoshi to come aboard. Her hand left the rod and extended to Satoshi, in case she might want a little bit of assistance or guidance in regards to boarding. “Of course,” she smiled. “It’s all about patience,” she told her. “We’ll start with the rod, it’ll keep your balance better than the spear.” She handed the rod over to Satoshi, “So… We bait it,” she said, hand dipping into the pouch to collect a fresh hook which she attached to her line and then speared the worm through it. “Once ready, you lower the line into the water. Hold that,” she gently attempts to reposition Satoshi’s hands, “both hands now, and keep a hold of it. Now you wait.”
Satoshi is in learning mode, and thus Hildegarde will find her completely compliant to be guided. Still, there is a degree of rigidity to the magus' tails and body language as she settles into the boat, glance constantly moving and wary. Her balance may be superior to most, but her distrust of the wooden craft is clear. Satoshi would much rather be on treacherous ice, the element that has never attempted to toss her into the waters. As her grip tightens on the fishing rod, a forlorn look from Satoshi is sent to the ice then, Frysta emerging from the water, clambering upon the frost, and beginning to devour a second fish. Occasionally the polar bear peers over at knight and magus, trying to figure out the purpose of the sticks being held over the water. Silly two-leggers, you catch fish with your fangs, not twigs.
Hildegarde quietly spoke, “Don’t look at Frysta, don’t trouble yourself with what he’s doing,” she then looked to the rod, “you just focus on the water.” The knight settled her gaze on the water and kept her voice at a whisper, as if speaking any louder might scare away any fish, “You’ll see the glitter of light, the scales in the water, but don’t get excited. Just wait. When you feel the rod tug once, don’t bother. When it tugs a little, then you can start to reel it in. But if the fish is fighting, just relax your grip. Slow the reeling to a stop and wait for the fish to stop fighting so vigorously, then start reeling it back in. You keep doing that until it’s up and out of the water,” she explained. “You catch one fish by doing this and I’ll tell you a secret.”
Satoshi grows deathly still. The magus is many things, a mimic, a predator, a student, among them. If Hildegarde wants to see a creature of infinite patience and calculation, she needs only look at Satoshi, the fishing pole held in her hands with the same certainty and lightness she carries Asorial. Amber-flecked gaze sits unwavering upon the water, peering into its depths, tracing the shimmer of scales and gauging the distance. Every inch of Satoshi emanates an aura of watchfulness, the placidity of a river before the crocodile strikes. "You'll have your fish, Mithril, and I'll have that secret~." Talk about motivation. Dangling a secret in front of Satoshi's nose is more tempting than a worm to a fish. Hook, line, and sinker, Hildegarde.
Hildegarde knew very fine well that a secret would be enough motivation for Satoshi. That was all the bait Hilde had to provide in order to catch Satoshi’s attention, really. Indeed, while the knight wore her heart on her sleeve, there were plenty of secrets and truths of her past that had never been told nor said terribly much about her family as there was always the fear of some hunter or other going in search of them. “Then show me,” she said quietly, settling her gaze upon the otherwise still water. The fish has been weaving in and out in a sort of zig-zag motion, as if trying to delicately approach the worm on the hook. Within a few minutes it’s close enough to grasp it and yet it still hesitates… before finally snapping at the worm and impaling its lip upon the hook. The knight says nothing to urge Satoshi, this is her hunt.
Satoshi's grip tightens when the line is tugged, and instinct tells her to swiftly yank upwards to draw the fish straight out of the wa-- no, no. Hildegarde said to begin reeling, slowly and gently, guide the fish toward the surface. Pushing aside reflex, Satoshi's brow furrows as she follows the knight's instructions. Little by little the fish draws nearer, dorsal fin breaking the surface, and the magus' tail begin writhing in her excitement, until the line grows too taut. The fish, easily the length of Satoshi's arm and thus powerful in its element, gives a mighty tug suddenly and breaks the line with a clearly audible snap. Satoshi is sent tumbling backwards with the sudden loss of resistance, to end up sprawled across the boat's seats, line-less pole in one hand and an owlish look on her face. And flopping weakly atop her is a tiny, hatchling Black Sun Koi, mouth gasping and translucent fins flailing after it's been sent sailing from the bigger fish's mouth and out of the water. Dumbfounded, Satoshi picks up the baby fish by its tail and dangles it in front of Hildegarde in a questioning gesture. "Does this count..?"
Hildegarde watched the spectacle with complete surprise, but not disappointment. The Silver is obviously impressed with Satoshi’s first attempts with the fishing rod, as it can be a difficult thing to master at times. And even so, Satoshi was up against a big fish: not the best of choices for a beginner! The Silver had braced her hands on either side of the boat to steady it as the Queen’s line broke and she sprawled across the seats. As the hatchling as lifted upright, the knight laughs but she nods, “It does count, yes. You may choose to toss it back over or to keep it, if you wish,” she smiled. “But you did catch a fish, in a sense, so… I suppose I owe you a secret,” she said, finally extending her hand so the eidolon could pull herself upright into a sitting position. “Now, you must promise not to laugh,” so it was an embarrassing secret, “but when my father took me to the lake to fish for the first time ever… I was just a child. Bear that in mind. So, we began fishing. He gave me my rod, a smaller one for a child, and so I did as I was bid: waited patiently for the fish to come along. So… my line starts to tug and I reel it in; I’m reeling it in so hard I can feel my arms getting tired,” her hand was performing a miniature reeling motion, “and up comes this beautiful fish!” she smiled at the thought. “I was… I was so excited that I had caught this fish, that I pulled it close to my chest and gave it such a big hug… that I killed the poor thing! Ohh, I was so distraught, I cried for a week!”
Satoshi sits back up, with help from Hildegarde, with the tiny fish still in hand. She's eying the little creature, considering tossing it back into the waters until it gives another frantic flail. So small, and yet so determined to keep fighting, there is a certain appeal to the little fish that prompts Satoshi to release it--not into the lake waters, but the waters of her scarf. The tiny koi does a few elegant turns before drifting about to explore its new home, where other, bigger fish can't make a meal of it. Pleased by this, Satoshi returns her attention to Hildegarde, the knight now having three audience members--fox, fish, and bear--listening to her tale. When it ends with the demise of Hildegarde's first catch, Satoshi bites her lower lip to hold back a laugh, although her whiskers are left trembling with the effort. "I... That... Aha~, poor little fish! Ah, Mithril, clearly your heart was as big then as it is now, to mourn a catch~." A small chuckle comes from Satoshi, the magus grinning. "I imagine you've got many of those such stories, growing up with such a big family."
Hildegarde watched as the little koi performed some elegant turns within the scarf, the knight secretly pleased that Satoshi chose to keep it and spare it from the much larger fish who continued to prowl near the boat as if it thought the little koi might be released soon. But the knight smiles upon hearing Satoshi’s response, obviously a little bit relieved that she didn’t just burst into laughter. “Oh, I was heartbroken when it died!” she confessed. “I didn’t realise it would happen.” Hilde smiled, “Plenty of stories, yes. Big brothers doing stupid things, big family dinners. Ever had a family dinner with dragons? It’s big,” she laughed. “Grandparents being sweet. Flying for the first time… So many stories.”
Satoshi listens, clearly enraptured, until Hildegarde's question is offered. A slight frown, born of thoughtfulness, crosses her face before the magus shakes her head. "I've never had a family dinner, with or without dragons. Elementals don't exactly eat, or form familial bonds. Until recently, it's always just been myself. It takes some getting used do, doesn't it? I mean, the rest have had some practice. Kasyr has a brother, a former mate, and children, Svilfon his wife, you've got your whole brood, and such~." Satoshi's amused tone of voice suggests she is not bothered by her solitary existence, but rather she's in wonder of those who have kin, while trying to learn how to act like them. "Oh! Grandparents! What are -those- like? I don't know of anyone who has grandparents aside from you."
Hildegarde , like Satoshi, is evidently enraptured by Satoshi’s response. She is curious about Satoshi’s past, she wants to know more about it but she is unwilling to enquire heavily about it: as if perhaps worried she might offend the Queen in asking far too much. “Svilfon has a wife?” she asked with evident surprise. She never thought of the wizard as being married, he seemed far too… busy and restless to be the sort to settle down. Mind you, Satoshi was not a restful sort and she had married. It was nice to learn bits and bobs about the people Hilde had come to know and love. “Haha! They try and feed you a lot,” she admitted with a broad smile, “or make you loads of clothes! Oh, honestly, my grandfather insisted on giving me gold every time I went to visit them. Actually, I think my grandfather and grandmother knitted a cosy for me when I was but an egg… I think it might still be at home, now that I think of it.”
Satoshi has grown more at ease in the boat, distracted as she is by her conversation with Hildegarde. She finds the whole discussion fascinating, gaze fixed on the knight with a wide-eyed quality. The description of grandparents, however, has the magus beginning to frown. Feeding, giving clothing and gold? Why, Satoshi does that to most of the Coterie, as well as Hildegarde! It's enough to make the kit laugh suddenly. "By that description, I'm some sort of grandparent myself! I suppose that's better than being no parent at all, eh~?"
Hildegarde laughed at Satoshi’s suggestion of she herself being a grandparent! “Well, I suppose it does!” she grinned at the thought. It was obviously quite funny, imagining a sweet little grandmother version of Satoshi. “I think they were just worried. I was the last egg and last to hatch. A good few years after my brothers,” she said fondly, “so I suppose they thought the cosy might have helped a little.” The knight was content with these memories. It was pleasant to think of her family. She missed them. “I miss them… but it’s not so bad. I have this family here. Well,” she shrugged a little bit, “I like to think of you all here as family.”
Satoshi nods, claw tracing the path her new little fish is taking in the scarf. "With all we've been through? I'm fairly certain that qualifies, eh?" Anything more the kit might have intended to say is interrupted, however, by Frysta and a moment-ruining belch the bear voices abruptly. Snuffling, the polar bear climbs to his paws, shakes himself from snout to tail, and begins thudding along the ice back toward shore. Bloody pawprints are left in his wake, leading back to the pile of broken fish bones he'd left behind. Satoshi glances from the fish remains to the departing bear, an eyebrow lofted. "I believe we're now even with him? Two and two?" Hildegarde did say the baby koi counted.
Hildegarde glanced over at Frysta, watching as he walked away towards the shore. “Yes, we are… but, I sometimes think you and I have a competitive spirit,” she smiled, grasping the fishing spear and gradually rising to her feet. “Maybe, if we go fishing again, I can teach you how to spear-fish. My brothers, Calhoun and Kenhelm, taught me how to do this,” she said, “best brace your hands against the boat. It’ll keep balance, don’t worry, but this will make you feel less worried,” she said reassuringly. With one hand extended outwards and the other held high, the knight focuses her gaze on the water and waits for the bigger – the bully – fish to pass by before swiftly darting the spear in and then out of the water, with the bigger fish wriggling at the spear point. “I think that’s three now!” she grinned at Satoshi. “And your little friend safe from this bully,” she murmured.
Satoshi does not heed Hildegarde's words, in fact doing quite the opposite now that she's been reminded she's still sitting in the boat. We'll remedy that, the magus hastily scrambling over and out of the vessel, back to the safety of her ice even as Hildegarde spears the fish. Satoshi is eying the knight with a certain degree of awe and wariness, the latter more prominent at Hildegarde's offer to teach spear-fishing. "Hmmm, perhaps we can try knitting next time~," Satoshi proposes, a narrow eyed glance given to the boat still swaying from Hildegarde's movements. Why couldn't it be a pirate ship? Pirate ships are big, sturdy, you hardly feel the little bobs and sways, and they're not prone to capsizing either!
Hildegarde looked over to Satoshi, laughing gently as she stood on the ‘safety’ of ice. “Hah! Knitting! Maybe we’ll try knitting on a boat, hm?” she grinned. “A boat isn’t so bad. Besides, if I was a dragon in the water, there’s a good chance I’d damage the pretty ice you’re standing on.” The knight pulled the fish from the spear and settled the spear down. Sitting down so she might lift the oars and gently row back to the shore, “Maybe even camping next time. Or perhaps an invitation to meet some relatives,” she smiled, wondering what Satoshi might actually prefer, not entirely sure these were serious offers or not.
Satoshi shrugs, padding along after Hildegarde with her frost-built bridge. "Why not all of the above?" Tsk, tsk, mage, you're supposed to be harboring the weapon of Wrath, not Greed. "Except the boat bit," she adds as an afterthought. "I'll find an alternate method for myself that doesn't involve putting my faith in the questionable nature of wood." Satoshi nods firmly at this before, with a hop and a skip, she comes ashore, as dry and frosty as ever.
Hildegarde smiled, “Could you not make a boat of ice?” she asked, stepping off the boat and into the chilly water – which surely filled her boots – to drag the boat up onto the shore for Saghani. “Well, whatever it is that we intend to do, I shall look forward to it. I truly do enjoy these peaceful moments we have together. It’s… pleasant.”
Satoshi matches Hildegarde's smile, a hand lifted in salute of the knight. "Then more we shall have, Mithril. Soon, soon~." Salute delivered, the kit turns sharply on her heel and strides off into the treeline, in the direction Frysta had gone. She must collect her polar bear before heading back to Vailkrin, where she's meant to be now, studying a complicated ritual. Sometimes you have to play hooky on school days to go fishing, though.