MAEA
He moved about the water like it was second nature. Maea envied the ease of it, how he didn't seem to struggle at all. She had to work just to stay afloat and keep her head above the surface as the water got deeper and her feet lost track of the stony bottom. Knowing how to tread water in a still pond was one thing; here there was a constant onslaught of waves and a strong current that tugged on her with ceaseless stubbornness.
Still, she let Sunjata guide her there without protest, and fought with quiet determination against the river as he went to retrieve the basket. A few times the waves came upon her without warning and left her coughing, half-choked and spluttering with the back of the throat burning. Still, it wasn't more than she could handle, and she would never admit to being relieved when Sunjata came back. (She really was though.)
"Really? What kind of fish?" Heaving herself up out of the water with a kick, she tried to peer over the churning surface towards the spot he indicated, but saw nothing but the glittering reflection on the waves. Accepting the basket, she considered it, and the sun - it was still high in the cloudless sky, with many more hours of daylight left to its name - and pondered the water around her.
"Indeed we are. Hm. I want to do it differently than you did..."
After a time, the slender girl filled the basket up with water again. Turning, she looked at the man behind her, and noticed that the sun was reflecting not only in the water but in his eyes as well. Her mouth quirked; an idea struck her and without pausing to consider if it was a good plan, she hoisted the basket up and right onto Sunjata's head. Water and all.
"Caught it! she whooped with a wicked little laugh.
Still, she let Sunjata guide her there without protest, and fought with quiet determination against the river as he went to retrieve the basket. A few times the waves came upon her without warning and left her coughing, half-choked and spluttering with the back of the throat burning. Still, it wasn't more than she could handle, and she would never admit to being relieved when Sunjata came back. (She really was though.)
"Really? What kind of fish?" Heaving herself up out of the water with a kick, she tried to peer over the churning surface towards the spot he indicated, but saw nothing but the glittering reflection on the waves. Accepting the basket, she considered it, and the sun - it was still high in the cloudless sky, with many more hours of daylight left to its name - and pondered the water around her.
"Indeed we are. Hm. I want to do it differently than you did..."
After a time, the slender girl filled the basket up with water again. Turning, she looked at the man behind her, and noticed that the sun was reflecting not only in the water but in his eyes as well. Her mouth quirked; an idea struck her and without pausing to consider if it was a good plan, she hoisted the basket up and right onto Sunjata's head. Water and all.
"Caught it! she whooped with a wicked little laugh.
