Somebody just back of you while you are fishing...

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

...is as bad as someone looking over your shoulder while you write a letter to your girl. --Ernest Hemingway

Thursday, May 13th
Day 347, early morning
Bank of the Pontarlier

Continued from here.

After an unsettling conversation with Iblis (another kind must exist!) in the form of Danika, Jarmyn is joined by Leah and offers to teach her how to fish.

---

She gives me the widest, brightest smile at the idea of learning to fish. She'll be knocking boys over with that smile in a couple years, but right now it just makes me wish that Verite'd smile at me like that. Like she used to.

She thanks me, though what she's doing that for already, I don't know. I reel the line in and go over to her, holding the pole out. "You want to hold this for me while I find some more worms?" Figure she might be all right with fish, but worms would be a bit much for her. "There's a hook on the end, so keep your fingers away from it."

I walk a ways downstream and find a couple earthworms under a rock. It's getting too late in the day to find them. Should have pulled a bunch before I started fishing. Walk back to her holding them. Really hope she doesn't scream or anything. I pick up the hook. "Um, you don't have to watch if you don't want to." And I get the worm on the hook as fast as I can, managing not to stick myself this time. "Now, come over to the bank and we'll throw it in the water."

Jane would be somewhere near her age right now. Never got to teach her how to fish. Not going to think about that.

[CLOSED]

Comments

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

I watch with interest as he does something with the pole and the line comes back on it's own. Then Jarmyn offers it to me. You want to hold this for me while I find some more worms?There's a hook on the end, so keep your fingers away from it. I nod and take the pole in one hand. It feels odd in my hands like it keeps trying to fall out. I take a couple of steps closer to the river and move my hands a bit to hold on better. The line keeps moving as well and I watch the hook as my new friend warned me.

I also keep an eye on what he's doing, as he pulls up a rock and then grabs whatever was under it. And I also watch when he puts the wriggling little thing on the hook even though he said I didn't have to.

Now, come over to the bank and we'll throw it in the water. He says and I walk very carefully down to the water, the line and its hook keep moving and I need to move carefully if I don't want to slip on the grass. I wish I had taken my shoes and socks off already like I normally do before getting this close to the water.

I look over at Jarmyn, "So how do I throw it in the water? I know I'm supposed to keep holding the pole..."

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

Not as squeamish as I thought, I guess, by the way the way she watches me put the worm on. No so sure how to get it to the fish, though. She doesn't do anything silly like throw the pole in, though.

I wish I had some proper weights, or a proper pole to start with, but this one of working well for today. I pick up the line a couple feet from the hook and swing it around gently. "Try and get it as far out in the water as you can. Like a sling." She probably doesn't know what a sling is, though.

I hold the line out to her and step well back. "Don't hit yourself with the hook." Maybe this wasn't the best idea, but she's into it now. "And if the worm falls off, you can have another one."

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

Jarmyn tries to show me what to do by taking hold of the line and swinging it gently while telling me, Try and get it as far out in the water as you can. Like a sling. I frown as I try to figure out what he means by that. But he's holding the line as if I am supposed to take it so I do and I start to swing it gently like he did. Don't hit yourself with the hook.

"I won't." I'm watching carefully and the hook never comes near enough to be a problem. I think maybe I am supposed to let it go when it is farthest away from me so it will fall into the water so I do that. It falls and goes into the water and I look up as he tells me, And if the worm falls off, you can have another one.

"Is the worm that important to catching fish?" Now the hook is in the water I can't see the worm on it anymore so I don't know if it fell off or not. The rod feels a bit different with the line in the water, but that's probably because the water is thicker than the air and moves differently.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

She gets some pretty good distance on the cast when she finally lets the line go. "Not bad for your first time." I settle myself down on the grass next to her. "Now we just have to wait for the fish to come along."

She asks me why the worm's important, which is something I'd have thought would have been in those books. "Fish like to eat worms, so it makes them want to swallow the hook. And then when they do, it sticks in their mouth and you can pull them out of the water."

Look at her holding the pole, wondering if I should take it from her. Decide not to, because then how will she learn. "When the fish bites, the line will jerk. Just watch for it."

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

I smile and can feel my face getting a bit warm when he tells me, Not bad for your first time. Then he sits down next to me. Now we just have to wait for the fish to come along.

Since I have no idea how long this could take I sit down too. And I start taking my shoes and socks off because maybe I can put my feet in the water and let Pontarlier know what I've learned since the last visit. The pole makes this hard to do, so I end up putting it under one of my arms while I pull my socks down. Jarmyn is answering my question about the worm though, Fish like to eat worms, so it makes them want to swallow the hook. And then when they do, it sticks in their mouth and you can pull them out of the water. When the fish bites, the line will jerk. Just watch for it.

I have one sock off and am working on the other when I feel a sharp tug and the pole slips out from under my arm. I grab for it and almost catch it but it falls into the river.

"Sorry!" I call out as I kneel on the bank and reach into the water, feeling Pontarlier reach out to me as I reach for it. I also now know exactly where both the pole and its fish are. I know where all the fish in this part of the river are. It is no trouble to have the river gently push the pole closer so I can grab it.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

She sits down beside me easily enough, tucks the pole under her arm, and starts taking her shoes off. That's not a bad idea. I start working on my own boots. I'm paying attention to them and not her when the line jerks, and of course the pole would go flying right away from her into the water.

"Shit." I scramble to the edge of the water, but she's already there, hands in the water. The pole's out of reach until she stretches her hands out under the water, and then I could swear it floats against the current right into her hand. "What the--" I shake my head. "Let's get back from the water, sweetheart." If she can't fish, she probably can't swim.

I go back to the pile of our shoes, thinking hard. "How did you do that?"

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

Jarmyn says a word that I think must be one of the bad ones that men aren't supposed to say around women but he doesn't apologize for it like Maryk or Liam would. he's very close by me at the water's edge and i'm glad when he moves back, What the-- Let's get back from the water, sweetheart.

I straighten and stand up with the pole carefully in one hand, holding the line in the other so that it and the fish on the end don;t swing around randomly Then take a careful step back towards him and our shoes.

He has a look like he's trying to figure something out and then he asks, How did you do that? At first I don't know what he's asking about but then I remember what just happened. My face gets a little warm.

"It was floating away from me so I asked Pontarlier to bring it closer." I look up at him hoping that he won't get upset about it. "The river listens to me, and often does as I ask." Not always but most times.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

"You asked the river to bring it closer?" I repeat, feeling like an idiot. "And it...listens to you?" I'd say right off that she's a bit cracked, but for the fact that I saw the damn pole float backwards myself.

I sigh. "Are you a goddess?" She does look a lot like Verdi. Maybe they're sisters or something. Really need some coffee right about now.

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

There is something odd in his voice as he repeats my own explanation back to me. Then he sighs and asks, Are you a goddess? No one has asked me that in a while. Not since I talked to Glass and Kate and Hermia about gods. Kate asked if I was a god, and goddess just means a female god.

I shake my head at him. "I don't think so. It depends on how you define a god." I remember the talks with Hermia and Nanse-kam, "Does the word naiad mean anything to you?"

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

Watch her carefully as she shakes her head. I guess if she doesn't think she's a god then she probably isn't one. But what the hell would I know about gods at all? "Sweetheart, a month ago, I would have sworn there weren't any such things as gods at all. Can't very well define them now. And no, I don't know what that word means."

I sink down on the grass and pat the spot next to me. "I'm being rude, sorry." Really hope she doesn't take offense and tell the river to drown me or something. "So you always been able to talk to the river?"

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

He's watching me really carefully, Sweetheart, a month ago, I would have sworn there weren't any such things as gods at all. Can't very well define them now. And no, I don't know what that word means.

He carefully deliberately, sitting on the ground and patting the ground. I guess he wants me to sit down next to him. I take a couple more steps that way and sit down too. The pole with it's fish is a bit of a problem but I get it arranged so I don't have to keep holding the line and can lean the pole against my knee. "A naiad is a female river spirit, usually considered the daughter of a river god." I tell him, then I tilt my head as I consider what else he's said about gods and such. "What happened a month ago to change your mind?"

I'm being rude, sorry. So you always been able to talk to the river? I smile at him, "I don't think it was rude. I always ask people questions about things and you didn't ask me anything I don't want to answer." I notice I've still got one sock on and gently pull at it.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

I listen as she explains what a naiad is, and I guess that's what she is. That gets me thinking about what it is exactly that we're doing here. "So, the river god, huh? Is he, um, going to object to me sitting here fishing in his river?" With his daughter, who is young and pretty and doesn't really seem to know a lot about the real world. Goddess, what have I gotten myself into?

And then she would ask after what made me sit up and take notice. "I met a girl, and she made me believe." And that'll do for now. None of the gods I ever heard of were very nice to each other, and I don't want to bring any trouble on Verdi. Still care for her, even if I can't bring myself to go see her.

Just as well she doesn't think I'm being rude. Sure she could do all kinds of nasty things to me if she did.

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

So, the river god, huh? Is he, um, going to object to me sitting here fishing in his river? Jarmyn asks with some worry. I shake my head, "No, he doesn't bother himself much with things like that. Or most of anything humans do." I've never thought of calling Pontarlier he before, but if Jarmyn wants to call my creator the river god that's okay with me. And so is his choice to call Pontarlier he for this conversation.

I met a girl, and she made me believe. Is all Jarmyn has to say about what made him change his mind about gods. I raise one eyebrow at him just like Karina does when Maryk is being really evasive or said something she disagrees with. "But what did she do, to make you believe?"

I get the sock off my foot and toss it over to the pile with the rest of my things.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

Nice to know that the river's got the kind of god that doesn't meddle too much with regular people. Just hope he decides to stay that way.

Have to think of something else roundabout to say in answer to her question about Verdi. Seems that simplest might be best. "She heard my prayer." And can't help but smile, though the thought of it makes me sad. I have to talk to Verdi, even if she eats me, even if she shuts me up in her cellar and cuts me up into little pieces.

Not going to think about that now.

I sigh. "You're not going to catch anymore fish with nothing on the hook. But...I bet you could have as many fish as want if you asked the river for them." And wouldn't that be something to see.

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

And just like Maryk, Jarmyn gives in and adds more. She heard my prayer.

I want to ask him what he prayed for but maybe that would be rude so I don't. He sighs and points out, You're not going to catch anymore fish with nothing on the hook. But...I bet you could have as many fish as want if you asked the river for them.

I think about that. It probably would be easier to catch fish if I could feel where they were and it would probably be easy enough to have Pontarlier push one towards my hands. "Probably I could do that." I look towards the water. "Are you asking me to try?"

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

Glad she doesn't ask me anything else about Verdi. I'd rather not talk or think about her still.

Looks like she's thinking about the river and ways of getting it to give the fish to us. Never thought she'd actually do it, though. My eyes widen at the thought of fish, I don't know, maybe floating up out of the air. "If you want to?" I say cautiously. "Will the river god mind if you let me have, say, half a dozen?"

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

Jarmyn's eyes get wide and his voice is careful as he says,If you want to? as if it's a question. Then asks a real question, Will the river god mind if you let me have, say, half a dozen?

" I don't know," I tell him as I get up and walk over to the river, "So I'll ask." I step into the river just enough to cover my feet. "Half a dozen is the same thing as six?" I ask just to make sure I got it right.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

Oh, she's going to ask the river god. Well then. I'm tempted to get as far from the bank as I can, but there's a lot of water in that river. If her father comes after me, I'm not sure I could get far enough away. Goddess, how do I get myself into places like this?

"Yeah," I call to her question about the number, putting my boots back on and standing up just in case. "Um, Leah, you know I'm planning on eating these fish. Or giving them to my friends to eat? That all right with you?"

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

Pontarlier takes the request and other information from me and gives me its amusement back. i'm glad to hear that i did get it right about half a dozen being the same thing as six. and I bend over to pull the nearest fish out when I hear Jarmyn say, Um, Leah, you know I'm planning on eating these fish. Or giving them to my friends to eat? That all right with you?

I straighten up with the fish in my hands laying in a little puddle of riverwater that keeps flowing through its gills. I turn around to face him, because I can't tell from juts his voice what he's doing back there.

"That is what I thought you wanted the fish for. Why should I mind that?" In the river fish, and other things, get eaten all the time. They even eat each other! Why else would he want them if someone wasn't going to eat them?

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

I watch her bend down and sure enough, come up with a fish in her hand. Didn't doubt she could do it, but it still takes me aback. It's just fish, just water, I know, but still. Daughter of a god.

She asked me a question, though, and it takes me a minute to put together an answer. "Wasn't sure if you...ate fish, I guess." If she didn't know what I was doing catching them, it stands to reason that she wouldn't know what I was catching them for. "I'll clean some for you if you do."

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

Jarmyn seems surprised by my catching a fish with my hands and it takes him a moment to answer my question. He says he wasn't sure if I ate fish and then offers to clean some for me if I say yes.

I nod my head and a bit of hair falls into my eyes. "Yes, I eat fish." When I was learning the words for everything, every meal was something to look forward to as Karina ands maryk would tell me what each thing was and then I'd eat a bit of it to see how it tasted. some times i'd be in the kitchen earlier and get to see Lena preparing it for eating. some things look really different before they are ready for eating.

I think quickly about his offer. "Did you want all six fish for yourself and your friends or were you meaning to let me have some of the fish I caught? Oh and where do you want me to put this one?" I add holding thwe fish I caught out to him.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

All right, so she's maybe not going to scream if I start killing the fish. Small mercies. Her next question catches me off, though. "You're catching the fish for me, sweetheart. You can have as many as you want." Hell, I'd fillet them for her if she had something to carry them home in. "I'd just like enough to take to my friends tonight." Maybe Mrs. Danvers will even help me cook them.

"Here, put it down on the grass." I tell her, when he asks me what to do with the flopping fish. I get my knife out of my boot and jab it in behind the fish's eye while I hold it down with my other hand. "You have to kill them quickly," I tell her, hoping she'll understand. "Or they suffer and taste bad." When it's limp, I slit the belly open and spill the guts out onto the grass. Really hope she's not squeamish.

[leah-pontarlier.livejournal.com]

I frown when his answer doesn't tell me anything about the number of fish he actually wants. i know i can catch as many fish as I like. I want to know how many he wants so i can then figure out how many extra to catch for my family.

Michael did say that sometime you have to ask the same question in differenmt ways to get the information.

So I try again, "Is six fish going to be enough for you and youjr friends?"

I watch as he sticks his knife into the head telling me that you have to kill them quickly and gives me two reasons why. I wonder which one is more important to him. i'm glad the fish doesn't hurt for long though i also wonder how he can tell if the fish is hurting or not. He cuts open the whole length of the fish and I watch in fascination as a tangle or stringy stuff and small lumps falls out.

[jaeresteade.livejournal.com]

I look up. "Yeah, six is enough." Which would be why I asked for six in the first place, but I'm not going to pick on the girl saving me work.

While she's busy, I pull my stringer out of the water and start taking the fish off it to clean them. I wish I had a creel to carry them back in, but I didn't come out here expecting to take home so many. Lot of things I didn't come out here expecting to do.

Danika. One more person to try and put out of my head. I sigh and try to concentrate on the pull of my knife through shining skin.