(Archive) Learning to fish

The Valley Shore

You stand on the valley shore of the river. The river itself flows noisily beneath the bridge. On the opposite side of the river you can see the steep forested slopes, with a trail winding up and out of the valley. To your west is a birchwood, looking quite wholesome and inviting. Behind the as yet leafless, but budding, trees, sheer cliffs close in until there is nothing but an impassable gorge. North of here are some pleasant, open meadows. A trail leads east and up a steep bank towards the Last Homely House.

The cloudfilled sky above spills its rain down upon you, the droplets making a soft pitter patter on the ground.

Contents:

Penniavas

Obvious exits:

West leads to Among the Birches.

Bridge leads to On the Bridge.

Northeast leads to Front Yard.

Penniavas is sitting on the edge of the bridge. This would be unusual for many, but the young Elf had a fishing pole in his hands, just staring at the water with half closed eyes. He stifles a yawn, and peers into the rushing waters before relaxing again on this quiet early morning, rain dripping off his hat.

Walking slowly - wandering, even - Ivrennin holds a scroll in her hand, wrapped in cloth to protect against the rain. Her expression is one of thought, perhaps she is pondering over the contents in that scroll? Whatever it is, she cannot fail to notice the figure of an elf by the river, even as she nears the bridge. As she steps on, she calls out a greeting. \"Good morning,\" she says, and the wind carries her voice along with it.

Penniavas stirrs a little bit and turns that way. He blinks and smiles, swinging his feet over the edge to sit up right as he calls back \"Good morning! How are you today?\" he asks in his cheerful tones \"I am doing fine myself. The fish are only nibbling though, they are not very hungry. But that is fine, I am enjoying this anyways I must say. Very relaxing. Do you fish?\"

Ivrennin smiles at the exuberance of the elf before her. \"I am doing well, thank you for asking,\" she replies, and then shakes her head ever so slightly. \"No, I do not fish, though I have read about this craft a number of times. Do the fish in this stream usually bite? Or are they constantly well-fed?\"

\"Only read about it? \" his head tilts a little bit under the hat, then he looks into the water \"It seems the rain makes them come up to bite, but if you do not get up early enough, they are fed before you can lure them to bite.\" he explains \"But they bite about average I suppose, for the entire river\'s length. They are not as common here though, preferring to move on to quieter places. Did you want to try?\" he asks, guesturing to the pole.

\"Could I?\" A sparkle grows in Ivrennin\'s eyes as enthusiasm surfaces in her, rare for an elf her age. \"It is strange that I have not tried, in all my years, but I suppose there is a first time for everything.\" She steps closer to Penniavas, bending down to sit beside him, and looks to him for guidance. \"How is this done, then? I must cast out the pole, and then I wait?\"

Penniavas grins and waves her over. Then he looks to hand her the pole \"Well, you dont HAVE to cast out. The line is in the water but if yo want to... there may be fish deeper out.\" he points to the middle of the river. \"Just hold it with both hands tightly, and lift it up carefully, then kind of toss the end forwards.\" he explains, guesturing with an invisible fishing pole. \"Be careful not to swing sideways or you may hook me instead, and I would not taste good in lemon sauce!\"

Penniavas smiles a little bit and states \"It takes some practice. Just try again.\" he lifts the line out of the water to help her. \"Did you want me to uh, put my hand on yours and show you?\" he asks.

Ivrennin nods as she readjusts her grip on the pole. \"If you could do that, it would be a great help.\" Her smile widens and a laugh escapes her as she prepares to try again. \"I do hope to be more successful this second time.\" Turning her glance towards Pennivas, she gestures to him, an invitation in her gaze.

Penniavas grins back at her, nodding as he puts a hand over her top one. \"okay. Just like a swish as though shaking out a towel... up and back, then straight forwards!\" he lifts the pole, then guides her hands to snap it forwards briskly, the string hissing overhead.

Finally, a degree of success achieved. The end of the string plunges with a soft splash farther out into the river, near enough to the middle. Merriment dances across Ivrennin\'s face. \"You are indeed an accomplished young elf,\" she says. She leans forwards, as though to peer through the water, even as her hands remain unmoved from their position on the fishing pole. But unbeknowst to her, the scroll that she so hastily tucked into her skirt slips out ever so slightly with her movements. Turning towards Penniavas again, she asks, \"and now, we wait?\"

Beaming, Penniavas nods in approval and relases her hands \"Yes, pretty much. There is bait on the hook and if a fish is hungry, you will see the end of the line bob and pull as he nibbles at it. When it gets REALLY excited, give the line a really good jerk\" he guestures again to explain \"And then we\'ll go from there. Just dont let go! \"

And so Ivrennin settles into waiting. But not long after, a slight movement of the end of the line is seen, and she seems to feel a tiny pull on the pole. Once again she leans forward, and once again the cloth-covered cylinder slips out just a little more. \"Is this what you mean?\" she wonders. \"The line bobbing just so?\" Her voice is full of excitement at learning something new.

\"Yes!\" Penniavas whispers back \"Not yet though, when it starts to bob very deep. \" he puts a hand on the pole again, ready to jerk, his muscles wired and tense as he watches with a wide grin. His green eyes were locked on the bobbing line.

Ivrennin\'s eyes are similarly glued to the end of the string. It bobs up and down, more and more, until more of the line is bobbing with it. \"Now?\" she asks, a little breathlessly, as she is fascinated by the movement of the line. \"Do we jerk it now?\"

\"Yes... right... NOW!\" Penniavas snaps, his hand reflexively gripping tighter and giving a mighty pull backwards, almost forgetting she still had a grip on it.

Ivrennin\'s arms go with the pole as Penniavas jerks it up, and the powerful momentum pulls her back as well, her legs lifting slightly and her body arching back towards Penniavas. \"And now? Reel it in?\"

Penniavas nods \"Yes! Start to wind it on! Keep it tight though, he\'ll try and pull free.\" he notes, keeping a tight grip as he leans over to help. \"Let him pull a little, then pull back, like a tug of war with a rope.\" he advises.

Her fingers working furiously, Ivrennin grips the reel and winds it, letting the line relax at intervals. The fish struggles fiercely as she attempts to keep it on the line without having the line break. She lets go, and winds, and repeats this, but suddenly her fingers stumble and the fish appears to be winning the tug-of-war. \"Oh dear!\" she exclaims.

THe young elf\'s hands reach out quickly to help hold on, grunting \"He\'s very strong! LEt the point of the pole point towards him or it will break. If we can wait him out, he will get too tired. \" he explains, voice tense, excited as she was almost as he tries to grip the pole above the grip, awkwardly.

Stuck in that awkward position, Ivrennin holds on tight, unwilling to let this first fish get away. She follows as he says, keeping the pole pointed towards the fish, letting Penniavas have control of the situation. But she does shift her hand slightly, giving him more space for a proper grip.

\"Thank you. My, he\'s strong! Perhaps we should let him win!\" he notes at the weight \"Either that of we\'ve caught a log!\" he pulls as well, the rain not helping as he focuses on what it was that had the line, which was stretched thin and tight until water dripped off it.

\"Do you think we should let it go?\" Ivrennin asks advice from Penniavas who has far more experience in fishing than she has. Water falls into her eyes now, dripping past her brows to the tip of her nose. Meanwhile, she still continues to hold and pull at the pole.

\"Give him a few more minutes, then I think he will have earned it.\" decides Penniavas, a little reluctant to give away such a fantastic fish. He slowly pulls the pole back, then forwards again, never letting the line slacken as the water froths and splashes \"That is definitely no log I think! \"

Nodding in agreement, Ivrennin lets her back relax slightly, curving as the tension ebbs out of her. But her arms remain tight and she follows Penniavas\' movements. \"As they say, beginner\'s luck, that such a fish should be caught on my first try!\" The tumult of the water seems to diminish slightly as they continue the push-pull pattern.

\"Aye! Caught, but can we keep? \"Penniavas laughs a little as he pulls harder, the string straining. He reaches down to wind the string a few times, but the handle creaked \"... I think he may yet get away! Hold on, or you will fly back and strike the bridge!\"

Ivrennin\'s eyes widen in alarm and she holds on tightly. The wind strengthens and blows the rain away from their faces even as the torrent abates slowly but surely a welcome blessing indeed. \"Now what?\" she asks, the muscles in her slender arms fully taut, as can be seen under her pale skin.

\"Well, we keep on trying to pu-\" Penniavas is cut off as suddenly the line snaps, the pole jerking back and striking him right in the forehead. His eyes cross a moment as he lands back on his elbows, stunned from the blow.

\"Ai!\" Ivrennin cries yet again, her brows crinkling slightly. The scroll in her skirt rolls out onto the bridge as she quickly twists to face Penniavas. Putting the pole aside, she lifts her legs onto the bridge and leans over Penniavas, reaching to touch his forehead with the pads of her fingers. \"Are you hurt, young one?\" she asks, her expression worrisome.

Putting fingers to his forehead, Penniavas looks surprised as he blinks a few times. Then he lifts his head and looks at her \"Yes, I think so. It mostly caught me off guard. I\'ve never had a string break like that before!\" he does not seem worried at all.

Ivrennin visibly relaxes, a small sigh of relief escaping her. \"Not even when you first learnt to fish?\" She brings her hand down, lifting the pole and what is left of the snapped string, and offers it to Penniavas. \"If any lasting injury should come to you, it would be on my account,\" she remarks, brushing some water droplets from the tip of her nose.

\"No. I did not catch any fish like that.\" he sits up again and rubs his forehead, a little red mark forming \"I had the pole pulled for my hands... please, do not worry about it. I have taken worse.\" he tries to reassures her, taking up his fishing pole \"I have lots of other line for the pole at least. Did you have fun?\"

\"I see,\" Ivrennin replies, stretching out her legs as she talks. \"I did have fun, very much so. It is not every day that I get to learn something new, much less something as thrilling as today\'s encounter. I have not had such an experience in many years.\" She smiles, gratefully and joyfully. \"I must thank you for this opportunity.\"

Penniavas climbs to his feet as well beside her, picking up his pole \"we can try again, when the sun is shining.\" he promises \"For now, I should go inside and let you go to where you were going.\"

Nodding, Ivrennin gathers the errant scroll and draws herself up as well. \"I would like that,\" she says in agreement. \"When will you be here again?\"

\"I come here every day early in the morning before breakfast. You can always find me here.\" he bows to her deeply \"I should be off now! Take care!\" he waits for her response to leave

\"Navaer! Until we meet again,\" she says, inclining her head in response, even as she turns to continue along the bridge, her face alight with amusement and the contentment of discovery.