Private Tales Sliver of Time

[Baise]

"On occasion," he replied. Valthar grinned at her and bent down to unlace his boots. "Normally when forced to. You can swim in the sea, but not the inland waters until you want to feel your own lunges freeze."

Valthar only had one set of boots and he was loathe to leave them on the waterside. He trusted her judgement, however, and placed them next to hers.

"The sand is odd between your toes," he said with a concerned frown.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel's face was a picture of mild horror at such a thought and she wriggled her toes in the wet sand beneath the water to remind herself that she wasn't having to experience that just yet.

"You don't have..." Miri looked up and then trailed off as the realisation hit her. "You walk in the snow barefoot?" She looked up at the sky and then back to him with a laugh. "I am going to absolutely freeze aren't I?"

 

[Baise]

"Oh you can't walk on snow barefoot for long. Good way to die," Valthar replied. "The ocean is warm - well you would hate it. Its warm compared to inland. So the coast isn't always under snow. If you fall through the ice inland and go under the water shock can kill you pretty quick."

He stepped out into the water, letting it up past his ankles.

"Whilst here it is quite cooling."

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel grimaced again and rubbed at her bare arms even thinking about such a horrific way to die. She had been in the Spine during winter and she had barely been able to deal with that. Perhaps it would be a wise idea to invest in a lot of underlayers for her journey.

"Furs are at the top of my list - do you think they do fur lined underwear?" She looked amused at the prospect. "Do you think you're going to struggle with the cold now you've been here for so long?" Miri wondered further out too to join him in the deeper waters.

 

[Baise]

"You'll want thick wool," Valthar replied, sailing right on past the joke without even a glance in its direction.

"I...maybe. The heat is not as bad as when I first got here. I'm sure it won't take long to get used to it again."

He curled his toes beneath the water. The pebbles were smooth and shifted with his weight.

"You're set on the trip then?"

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miri gave him a side glance when he didn't mention the joke but she said nothing. Her eyebrows did pull down a little into a small frown though and she turned her attention to the sea about her feet. The water was so clear that she could see the small little fish that ate the algae off the rocks in the shallows. After a moment she bent down and picked up a shell to inspect a little closer.

To his question she began to nod and then paused. There was just something about his tone.

"I am. Though, if you do not want to me to come and see you I don't have to," she looked at him now so he could see the expression on her face. "I understand if you want this to just be a one, albeit extended, time deal," a slight shrug of her shoulders. Sometimes it was the way with men who were away from home. She would not judge.

 

[Baise]

Valthar turned to face her directly, canting his head to one side. He could respect her pragmatism but it still seemed that it would have been hurtful to express that he wanted no further contact from the elf.

Water sploshed around his feet, disturbing the fish he had been watching. Reaching out, he wrapped his hand over hers and the shell she had taken.

"No matter what has changed between now and that time, I would be glad to see you again Miriel," he said firmly. Assuming of course, he thought to himself, that he even made it that far. The first half of the journey had not gone well.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel held his gaze for a while longer and then very slowly nodded. She had wanted to be sure and not trample into a situation in his home that would cause some kind of pain or grief to him and others. With that settled she let her lips curl up at the corners and she turned their hands over so that the shell fit into his hand instead.

"Well then that's settled. I probably won't chance it until you're summer time anyway, it will be winter here as well and my work is quietest then," she closed his fingers around the shell. "Have you seen these before? They're called conches, you blow in them and they make a loud noise, like a horn."

 

[Baise]

"What was in it? Obviously we have shells in the North," he replied, "one of the bigger boats goes south to dredge up mussels but I've never seen anything this big."

Or as colourful, he thought to himself. He turned it over in his hands, looking for where to even blow into it. It was nice to have such a relaxing moment. He had lived such a peaceful life and the last months held precious few of these.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

"Probably some sort of crab, in truth I'm not sure. It was something a friend once showed me. You blow in here," she pointed out the small hole in the side of the shell. "They say sirens use them during their wars instead of trumpets," it was little stories like that Miri preferred to learn on her travels rather than things like what had once lived in the shell. But then as a fishermen she could understand why his first thought was that.

"I don't think I've had mussels before," she tilted her head slightly, thinking back over her travels. Eating something slimy from a shell had never really appealed to her.

 

[Baise]

Valthar laughed again, turning the shell over in his hand again.

"If you come and stay with me I am afraid you will come to know many ways of cooking everything that comes out of the ocean. You will have to stay with me too. The town is not very welcoming of outsiders. Sorry."

He wasn't sorry about the part where she stayed with him. He would keep her warm enough.

He pulled the conch up to his mouth and made an off-key squeal.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel fell about laughing at the noise that came from the shell.

It took a while for her to stand up straight again and she still held her sides. Tears glistened on her cheeks.

"Don't apologise," she said as she wiped them away and took a shaky breath. "It would save me money to stay with you rather than an inn. Having an elf with you won't... damage your reputation or anything will it?" She canted her head to the side for a moment before returning her attention to the conch again.

"Try blow from here," she pointed to her diaphragm. "Like you would a horn."

 

[Baise]

"Because I blow a horn so often in my pursuit of fish," he replied. He clearly saw the funny side as well, though it had taken a moment to sink in and the frown to become a laugh.

"No, no it will be fine. We do have outsiders come through the town. You would merely find that an innkeepin in Faarin would pretend not to speak the trade tongue if the outsider was not known to anyone. That kind of stubbornness that we norden do so well."

Another attempt on the conch. A grumble from the shore as a passing merchant jumped at the sound.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

His comment had her giggling but the passing merchants reaction had her howling with laughter again. He flung a stream of words in Allirian at them but she was doubled over and struggling to breathe so much she couldn't respond. It took a moment to get herself under control.

"Oh my Gods please... please take it home," she wiped the tears again from her eyes as she stood up. "I would love to see you use this to herald your return with your bounty of fish. I think you could start a new tradition," even as she spoke laughter bubbled still beneath them. As she thought on his other words however she sobered up a little.

"I see, will they even talk to me?"

 

[Baise]

"It would scare off the fish," he replied. Despite the mirth in his eyes there was no trace of humour in his reasoning for not using it. "But I will take it home."

"They'll talk to you if you're with me and once they're used to you being there," he replied. "It is just a stubborn town. Your own?"

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

"Mmm," Miriel picked up a flat stone, rubbed the sand from it and then threw it over the waves. It bounced four times before sinking. "If you make it past the outer territory then I will be impressed. They tend to be a kill first ask questions second type of people unless accompanied by someone. But once they know you're not a threat they are very warm; they like to hear stories of the world beyond the Wilds. My mother is the worst, but it is her job as House Mother."

 

[Baise]

"Well then, at least you will make it to my town on your own if you make the trip. No one will try and murder you on the way there."

At least, he thought to himself, beyond all the orcs and braggarts between here and his home. A bit of silent treatment was small worry compared to that.

"It would be best to find a ship leaving from Nordengaard than to try the tundra. They will almost all know the name Valthar Ardullsson. And if I am not there, then they will at least want to know that I made it to Alliria. Especially my sister."

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel had found another rock and was set to throw it when the implications of his words hit home. She made a soft noise that was equal parts reluctant but agreeing. The stone managed six hops this time before it hit a rock a few feet out and cracked in two.

"Come then, let me train you so I don't have to have that be my first conversation with your sister," she didn't do particularly well with families as it was and she would be loath to be the bearer of such news to a community when they hated outsiders.

She drew one blade and shifted her stance in the tide.

 

[Baise]

"I'm sorry, that was an unfair thing to ask of you," he said quietly. He had not really thought of the implications before speaking, but now he felt a pang of guilt.

He was too pragmatic to take it back. It could be years before she visited but if he didn't make the next part of his journey then she could be the first one there to have seen him in the summer lands.

"In the water?" he asked, picking one foot up and throwing it back to make a stance. He drew Vilissë from his back and set it ready.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel inclined her head a little in acceptance of the apology but made no further comment on it. When she visited and if he weren't there it would fall to her either way. She just prayed he did.

"Yes, the sands shift and the tide pulls, it'll make you focus on your balance a little more and it'll be softer when I put you on your back," an impish smirk. "Let's see what you remember, try and hit me."

 

[Baise]

That wasn't softer it was just wetter, he thought to himself. More for her amusement than his protection. It was a warm afternoon. For him it would have always been a warm afternoon here. A bit of cool water wasn't going to dissuade him. On the off chance she didn't put him down he would probably take a dive anyway.

Valthar approached carefully, but not quietly. Every step was another splosh. He planted himself as he closed, never crossing his legs as he moved to strike. He had to push aside his nerves now he had seen her magic turn aside a blade.

It was a rather obvious feint, but he snapped the next strike for her left shoulder with some power. The axe felt better in his hands than the ones he had trained with in the morning.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel's other blade was still in the harness of her back but she proved why she didn't need it. It was an obvious feint and her sword came up gracefully in an arc to block it and push it to the side, opening his guard up. She then kicked the water sending a spray up to his face.

"Dead. Try again, Fluffy," she raised an eyebrow at him, clearly unimpressed he was hesitating again.

 

[Baise]

"Refreshing," he commented, though the stubborn nordenfiir set his features in determination.

He circled more carefully and could be heard muttering fluffy under his breath.

Valthar swung again, but pulled it short once more. He snapped his axe back to a guard hoping to catch her counter. It was naive, but he was clearly trying to adapt.

 

[Míriel Fëanorna]

Miriel tried to keep the smile off her face as her elvish ears picked up the soft mutterings over his splashing through the water. Her gaze swept from his face to his now thoroughly soaked shirt in mild appreciation. As he moved she stayed where she was, merely turning to watch him with her sword hanging loosely at her side. She did bring her blade up to block the strike but he was just a little to quick on pulling back. Even so she nodded.

"Good, but just a little too early. You want to wait until the swing is beyond the point of return on your opponent, so when my sword gets to about here," she indicated, her sword past her shoulder, more in line with her chest - the fall of her blow. "It will be harder for me to change my attack then. Again," she nodded.

 

[Baise]

"But your sword is lighter and you are quicker," he replied. It made him wonder if feinting was necessarily the best way to attack. He knew it would sound more petulant than an observation.

Valthar came in hard. Two chops using the axe in two hands. They were broad, quick swipes to try and put some distance between them.

Or to at least force her to move so she wasn't so static on the unstable ground whilst he did all the moving.