Refreshing

Writers: Eimi, Paula
Date Posted: 12th August 2017

Characters: Merlish, Eilomar
Description: Eilomar shows Merlish his old swimming hole...
Location: Harper Hall
Date: month 13, day 14 of Turn 8
Notes: Notes: Follows "EFH-HH: Toiling with the Soil

Merlish pulled her wide-brimmed hat a little further down over her eyes with one hand while her other held onto the crook of her husband's arm. "Is this the path down to the swimming hole?" asked, reaching a break in the long grass that seemed to run off into the trees.

"Yes, it's," Eilomar assured her, proud that he still remembered the route to the swimming place. "It's bit overgrown, perhaps people don't come here so often any more." He remembered spending a lot of time there, swimming, splashing or just hanging around with his siblings and friends. "The trees have grown much larger," he noted. He was carrying a basket. Taking lunch with them (and those bubblies) was his idea.

Merlish wondered how different it had looked in her husband's youth. It was almost incomprehensible to her that he remembering a time before even her father had been born! "When was the last time you came here?"

"It was...long time ago, when I was still an apprentice or young journeyman. Suddenly it wasn't so fun any more," he seemed sad when he said that.

His wife could hear the melancholic tone, and made her feel such pity for him. "But it sounds like you enjoyed it so much!"

"I did. But when there were first many and then there was just three of us.. there was too many memories, too much to do, I had to become responsible for my younger siblings," Eilomar sighed.

"After the Plague," Merlish said, more as a statement than as a question. To her, that was ancient history. To her husband, it was still fresh in his mind. Plague, Thread, the burning of the Hall... What his generation had seen. "Then I think I we should come down here to the river any time you feel like it. To make up for lost time. And one day, maybe we can teach our children to swim here."

"And as time goes by, you kind of forget it," Eilomar said to her first statement. "That would be wonderful. A time to make some new memories."

"Well, that is what we are going to do today," she said, looking up at him with a cheerful smile. Merlish was determined that her husband would enjoy himself. It was important that he not only exercised more, but that he didn't realize he was doing it! "Oh! I can see the water through the trees!"

"Yes, there it is," Eilomar pushed all those sad memories aside. "The water is usually rather cold. Should be refreshing after all that garden work."

"Yes, I believe so!" She scanned the bank thoughtfully. "Where shall we spread out our blanket? In the sun so we can dry more quickly? Or in the shade to stay out of the sun?"

"I prefer not to burn," Eilomar said. He was originally a blonde as his blue eyes indicated.

"Shade it is, then. I think that tree there would serve nicely," she said, pointing to one with large, spreading bows and a nice wide trunk to lean against.

"Yes, looks perfect," Eilomar agreed. He found sturdy branch at the right height and hand the basket there, so the tunnelsnakes and other creepy crawlers wouldn't get in to it.

"Swim before eating?" Merlish asked, looking longingly at the water. She wished she _did_ have a swim suit. But she would have to satisfy herself with watcher her husband swim while danging her toes in the water.

"Yes, you should never swim with full stomach," Eilomar said and stripped down to the swimming boxers she had whipped up for him.

Merlish kept on her hat, but took off her sandals. After carefully hitching up her dress to around her knees, she used her belt to retie it at the shorter length. "Why don't you go first? I need to see how deep it is."

"Alright;" Eilomar said and bravely went to the bank and stepped into the water. He hissed. "It's colder than I remember."

"It will feel the perfect temperature soon," his wife assured him. She watched as he waded in. "Does it drop off at all?"

"Yes, it does, around...here," He was suddenly waist deep. "If you get that way, there's a rock under water," he pointed to his left.

"Oh, perfect, thank you. That's just what I need." Now knowing where to find shallower water, she stepped tentatively into the river. "Shaaa...." She stopped herself before she finished that word. Swearing was not ladylike! "You weren't kidding when you said it was cold!"

"Refreshing, isn't it," Eilomar said, he had a layer of fat as an insulaton. He crouched to get rest of him wet before starting to swim. He discovered that swimming was one of those skills you never really forgot. After moment of splashing and floundering, his muscles remembered what they were supposed to do.

"It is," she agreed as she looked longingly at him paddling around. Until she had made an appropriate swimsuit for herself, her knees were as high as the water would go. Shards, though, it looked nice. "You are an excellent swimmer, husband."

"Thank you, dear," Eilomar replied and rolled to his back just to float. "Funny, I never went to swim while the Hall was in Dolphin Cove."

"Maybe you are more at home at a river. Faranth knows I prefer it to the ocean. It's just so... vast." In fact, the thought made her shudder.

"You're right, you can't seen the opposite bank of the sea," Eilomar replied, although real reason had probably been all those dragonriders gallivating around, with their trim and nearly naked, tanned bodies. He would had looked like a bloated, pregnant, beached shipfish among them.

"I think swimming in the river today was an excellent idea," she smiled, breathing in the fresh air. No hint of salt and fish, just could clean oxygen.

"Mmhhm," Eilomar murmured an agreement. Eventually the cool water drow him off to the shore.

His young wife had anticipated his need and had waded back to prepare their lunch so that it was ready for him when he had enough of swimming. "Lunch before bubblies?" she said, passing him a plate of salad, cold meats and cheeses.

"Thank you, I've worked out an apetite," Eilomar replied. He dried himself off before sitting down to eat. And if he sniffed a little at the salad, he was too hungry to really complain.

"Was it as pleasant as you remembered?" Merlish asked, hoping this was just the first in many such picnics they would enjoy in this pleasant little spot. It was a nice walk away from their cot, too. Just long enough to get in a fair bit of exercise, but not so long that her husband would consider it such.

"it was," Eilomar replied while wolfing down the lunch. "I can't believe I've stopped doing it all those Turns ago." Perhaps he would be slimmer if he hadn't.

"Shall we come back on the rest day? Wouldn't that be lovely?" she suggested, pulling out the bubbly pies, but not giving one to him just yet...

"Why not," Eilomar replied, his eyes on the bubbly.

"Oh good!" she said with an enthusiastic smile. "Would you like a bubbly, my dear?"

"Yes, please," Eilomar replied like a good boy. She only had to hang that bubbly in front of him and he would follow it to the other end of the continent.

Last updated on the September 2nd 2017

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Refreshing