Dragoncrest Cliffs This place is all he's ever known

Berceuse was drawn to the sea early in the morning, when she knew the tide would be low. It had snowed just a bit overnight, and as the tide pulled back, more and more of the beach became blanketed in a soft, thin sheet of white snow. Her first order of business was to check her favourite tide pools- and to her glee, she found a crab in one of them. Crabs, now, were easy for her to catch and kill. She simply had to angle herself so that she could grab it from behind, and crunch through its shell. Sometimes, she pulled the claws off first, if they looked really big. 

She stashed the crab further up the beach, covering it with driftwood to keep any birds from flying off with it. She found a stick, and carried it down the beach toward the water- and with some care, she stuck it in the sand as a marker, where the water came and touched it. Satisfied that it wouldn't be knocked over by the waves too easily, she trotted back up the beach to where she'd stowed the crab, and began to pick away at it. 

She intended to see roughly how long it took for the tide to come in, and how far it travelled from its lowest point to its highest point.

From a distance, the young boy had watched her go about her business. She searched the tide pools. She collected something from one of them - a treat, maybe. He couldn’t tell from where he sat. Either way, Swordfish saw her place the stick in the sand and became confused. The young wolf watched with a heavy-lidded gaze, wondering if the stick’s purpose would be revealed. 

It was not. 

Swordfish huffed softly and rose from his sitting spot. He trekked down the beach to where the girl was. The prize he had wondered about was a crab. As he neared, he could see one of its claws poking out from where she gripped it. 

What’r ya doing with that stick? he asked her from a few feet away.

Slow, calm footfalls on the sand could only belong to one wolf. Swordfish, as casual as ever, had deigned her worthy of his time, and had strolled up to greet her. Often, she saw him relaxing, sunbathing when it was warmer- but perhaps the chilly air gave him a bit more energy. As a beloved fellow packmate, he was greeted with a loud thumping of her tail on the ground and a flickering of her ears as a show of deference. 

"Oh," She said, looking out to the water. "I want to see how far de water comes in when de tide is at its highest, compared to its lowest," She said. "I put de stick in to mark low tide, just a few minutes ago, but you see de tide 'as already come up past it, eh?" She said. While it was just a few inches, the waves brushed past the stick every time they came in. "De tide line be dere, where de seaweed is. I just wanted to see 'ow fast it moves for myself." She admitted. "Wanna piece of crab?"

It took nothing for her to explain to him why she had stuck the stick in the sands. She told him that she was watching the tides change, that she wished to see their distance for herself. The young boy flicked a single ear sideways. He looked out to the stick to see that the waves already lapped past where it had been stuck. Her experiment was working well, it seemed.

Swordfish wondered if Suzu had always been bright. Anytime he saw her, she seemed to radiate an energy and light from her being. The boy didn’t understand it, but he didn’t think it was awful. She intrigued him – never enough to really investigate, but just enough that she caught his eye whenever they might pass.

Will ya lose the stick? he asked her quietly, eyes squinting on the pole that stood strong and defiant against the touch of water.

Suzu offered a piece of her crab. The boy looked to her curiously, lips curving just at their edges into a soft smile.

If yer sure? Yeah…

The young boy stepped beside her and plopped down on his belly.

"Lose de stick? Well...." She gazed out to where it was, still standing upright, resilient against the waves. Of course, it was a relatively calm day. On a windier day, the waves might have been too much. She'd made sure to pick a long stick, and stick it well into the ground- but he had a good point. She shrugged one of her shoulders, smiling as he decided to relax alongside her and take a piece of crab. She'd already pulled the legs off to disarm it, so she nudged them toward him and cradled the body of the crab between her paws. 

"Maybe." She continued. "I t'ink de water will only come up as high as de stick- I can tell by de barnacles on de rocks over dere, de water only goes up so high, so I assume dat is how deep de water gets. It might get pulled out by a big wave, but if it does, den what odds. De tide will go out again tomorrow an' I can try again." She said. Failure wouldn't discourage her, only change her tactics. "I t'ink it would be helpful to know, right?" She asked. To her, it was of great interest to study the movement of the water. But was it useful at all?

Swordfish took the piece she offered and drew his tongue across it. It tasted of ocean salt and brine. He liked the flavors. The smile he wore was more relaxed, easy to wear. He tried biting into the piece to lick at the meat within. It was almost too much work… but the taste was enough to keep him working at it.

It was interesting to hear that she had learned so much from the ocean. The young wolf followed her gaze to where the barnacles were. Even the chance that she might lose her stick to the sea was not a deterrent. There was a confident gleam in her eye. Something about it reminded him of his brother. He wondered if Suzu and Ray would get on well.

Pretty smart, he complimented in a dry voice. What d’ya think yer gonna use the info for?

Sucking the last edible piece of his crab, Swordfish shifted so that he could listen to her easier.

Could we trap food y’think?

Was he being sarcastic? By his voice, it was hard to tell, but his expression was demure enough, so she offered him a smile so appreciative, it made her squint her eyes a bit. It was quite flattering, having her intelligence complimented. The doubts she'd had about the validity of her efforts melted away as he showed some interest in the matter. 

"I don't know yet. But maybe if dere be storms coming, we can anticipate how high de waves will get, compared to normal...So we know which parts of de beach to avoid, say if big waves were to come." She said. His suggestion made her nod eagerly. "Yes!" Out of habit, she channeled her enthusiasm into an excited, but hushed expression. Her brother did not like it when she squealed. "De tide pools do dat. But I imagine if de tide is higher, it might bring in bigger t'ings." She said. "Do you t'ink we could make...like a barricade wid driftwood, if dere be a little cove...Maybe it could catch fish for us when de tide goes out!" She said, tail beginning to wave.

Equipped with a naturally sarcastic deadpan tone, it would have been natural if she thought he was ribbing her. Swordfish had meant the compliment earnestly enough. He didn’t think about the sea or marking the tides. He had grown to believe that his major motivation was food. The young wolf would never run for the spirit of beating someone in a race, but if he could guarantee that he would get the best piece of prey for dinner…

Suzu thought it was a good idea. She expanded on it, saying that they might be able to place wood there to block the fish from swimming back. Swordfish’s red tail waved a couple of times. He nodded his slender snout in agreement.

Yeah, sounds like ya got a good idea. What’d we gotta do to make it happen?

Swordfish wasn’t a fan of physical labor. He thought that he could overcome some of that laziness if it meant that they would reap the benefits of having full bellies.

Wood yeah? Gonna have to get some we can wedge in there good.

The boy blinked thoughtfully.

We. Being included by the older boy was so. Fricking. Exciting! Stingray and Swordfish had been so much more capable and mobile than her for so long, but it felt like she was finally able to keep up a bit, and appeal to them more as she was no longer a fumbling little puppy. She didn't realize that his main motivation was being fed, but would take his interest at its face value. 

"Uhm," She mused thoughtfully. "Yes. I t'ink just maybe a few different sizes of driftwood. We could even use branches, though we would 'ave to drag them further...Dere be lots of driftwood along de shore. We'll maybe 'ave to drag some bigger stuff, but it need only be as high as de tideline...No, lower. We want de tide to come up over it...bring de fish wid it...An' den as de tide goes out, de fish be trapped inland. So maybe half as high as de barnacle line on de rocks?" She hypothesized, bouncing her logic off him to make sure her estimations were sensible.

The girl was quick to expand on a basic idea. She said that they could use different sizes of driftwood, even branches. She said that they would need to make their marks lower than the tide. When the waters brought their prey in and then receded, they should have been left with a bonnie feast. Swordfish was sold. He didn’t mind the work – the reward would make their struggles worth it.

Alright, let’s do it.

The young man nodded his snout to Suzu and grunted as he rose to his paws. Immediately, he searched the nearby areas for wood that would make their start. Swordfish wondered if it would take more than one try. He was easily diminished by things that didn’t give him instant success. Still, his mouth watered at the thought of fish.

How many should we look fer?

Swordfish offered to help, and she made a little happy sound before she bounded toward the beach toward the rocks. First, she thought, they would need to find a gap between two piles of rocks where the water came up between them, that would form the sides of their trap. Then, all they would need to build would be the barrier to keep the fish from going out with the tides when it went out. 

She heard his voice. Before she had the time to process what he was asking, she hollered "What? Oh!" In response. She leapt to the top of a rock and smiled down the beach toward him. "Any kind! Big stuff, small stuff- we need to make a pile about....Dis high," She said, lifting her paw up to the level of her temple. Of course, she was a fairly short wolf, so it wasn't so high after all. "I found a -ouf- spot where we can build it," She said. Leaping off the rock mid-sentence caused the small expulsion of air. She trotted along, and found a log of driftwood that still had the stubs from a few branches on it. It had been worn soft by the waves. It was about as big around the middle as Suzu was, so she looked at Swordfish with hopeful eyes. "Help me wid dis one?"

The young seafarer squinted curiously at her answer to his question – an answer that wasn’t what he had hoped for, but he accepted all the same. She said they needed all sorts of things. Swordfish wasn’t keen on that. He figured he could drag a couple of logs across the beach if it meant they’d be one step closer to being done.

Suzu already had a spot where they could make the trap. The young wolf nodded his head at her. She asked him for help, next. Swordfish trotted casually after the pale-faced girl. The piece she wanted assistance with was of good size. They could probably make it work in their plan. The boy glanced toward her, head slouched beneath his shoulders.

Aye, yer gonna lead it.

Swordfish gripped the wood in his teeth, immediately regretting the decision when his mouth was filled with tree flavor. He hoped Suzu’s spot wasn’t far.

She wiggled her midsection as she grabbed a hold of what used to be a branch. Now, it was just the right length for her to get a grab on it, and lift the piece of driftwood up from the front. She gave it a small tug, to cue to Swordfish that she was ready to start, and began moving forward, feeling the smoothe wood rub against her shoulder with each stride she took. She could feel the muscles in her neck warm up, so she tucked her chin a bit to keep the log closer to her body, take the strain off her neck. 

She led him along the sand and down the beach to the place she'd chosen. Two long, tall heaps of black rocks reached out toward the ocean like arms, about a wolf's length and a half apart. At low tide, the water just reached the ends of them, where they sank into the wet sand. There, the barnacles covered the majority of the rocks, indicating the rough depth that the water reached at high tide. She thought they ought to make their fish corral about a half length down from the end of the rocks- so that they wouldn't have to build it quite so high. She could see how far inland the waves would reach at high tide by the barnacles. 

Their log would almost close the distance between one cluster of rocks and the other. She set her end down, and looked to Swordfish. That wasn't too bad- a few more like that and they would be set! 

"Dis be good, yeah?" She asked, looking around. "De water will come in, an' over dis barrier, an' will come in to about here," She said, padding up the beach to where the sand was higher, and the barnacles faded off the rocks completely. "When it goes back out, it will go over an' t'rough de wood, but not de fish," She said. She bounded back toward Swordfish playfully, aiming to badger him with her nose, so that he'd be herded between the rocks and the log they'd brought. "Dey get trapped in 'ere," She said, before she bounded up onto the rocks, and then off to where the sand was dry. "Come on! We get more yeah!" She called.

Over to her special trap location, the redtail boy trudged along with his end of the log gripped firmly between his teeth. They stepped along the beach. His jaw had started to ache, burning the muscles along his neck and into his shoulder. He hoped that Suzu’s plan worked. It would be a lot of body aching for nothing if they didn’t land at least a dozen fish in their trap. Though, if they could set up more of them…

Placing their specimen in the spot that Suzu suggested, Swordfish huffed a sigh of relief to be rid of the thing in his mouth. It looked like it fit well into the space she suggested. He looked to the barnacle line when she mentioned how high they’d need to make the trap. They would need a few more. Possibly one that they could wedge between the rocks to keep firmly in place.

It’s a lotta work, he said to her, moving languidly to follow her back to search for more wood. The young seafarer hoped that they would be able to make it work. He tried to maintain an ounce of skepticism so that if they failed, he would not feel the disappointment – a coping mechanism he’d picked up during his father’s absence.

Think we can find one a bit longer, aye? Wanna wedge it between the rocks a bit, so it sticks tight. Could be the last one we use. Then if we stick one on top the one we already got in there, we got ourselves a nice trap. Whatcha think, Suzu?

She hoped he wasn't going to back out, when he mentioned how much work it was. "Yes, but I t'ink it be wort' it," She encouraged, as she trotted along the shores, looking for something that might fit well with what they already had. She looked over her shoulder, down toward the stick she'd put in the sand earlier. The tide had come up past it, and now even when the waves went out, the stick was still in the water. 

He suggested finding another big one, and even made suggestions to the overall structure of the trap. She thought for a moment, trying to imagine how the three might fit together, and she hummed, and then nodded. "Yeah! De water will be able to slip out between de branches an' knots, I t'ink. If we could fin'......Do you t'ink dis one be too big?" She asked. She hopped atop a large stump, which still had a tangle of roots from its base, but it had all been washed soft and clean, bleached in the sun. The stump itself was so thick through the middle that it was roughly the length of the wolf that stood upon it, grinning coyly. She cackled at her joke, before she jumped off it, and began searching again.

Even if she didn’t think it would work, she humored his idea. Swordfish watched as she leapt atop a stump with tangling roots. The beast of curling branches was horrifying to look at. If he had seen its shadow in the dark, he might have turned tail and raced back home. That realization left a strange sense of self-loathing in his belly.

For Suzu, the boy would appear visibly shocked. His hooded eyes would blink slowly while his jaw fell open to gape. When she laughed and his mind caught up to the fact that she had been joking, Swordfish shook his head and clapped his mouth shut again. He’d almost believed her. He had almost thought she wanted to try lugging that great big thing across the beach. What a nightmare…

Thought ya might lift that thing on yer back and trot it right over, he said in reference to the behemoth stump she’d stood on a moment before. What about that over there? he perked his ears and stared across the beach at a round chunk of driftwood with a few thick poking branches.

She wriggled her shoulders with glee when she saw how blank Swordfish's features went. That was an absolute no. It made her feel quite funny, to have surprised him with that- and she liked that for a moment, he'd believed that she'd wanted to move the massive stump. At his remark, she crow-hopped backwards, and stuck her tongue out at him impishly. As if she could carry that on her back! 

For a moment, she thought he'd perhaps found another impossible stump until she caught sight of the log he'd indicated. "Ou!" She peeped, and bounded over to it. It was dry, smoothe to the touch like the other piece, and had short branches sticking out at all angles. None of them were terribly long, having been broken off by the waves and shoreline, but it would fit well with the other log. "Dis be perfect! It will be heavy though....But we can give it a try. Do you want to lead dis time?" She asked.

The girl with the ashen coat bounded over toward the log he had indicated. Swordfish followed her, moving at his own pace. She could admire the hunk of wood while he made his way.

It seemed that she was pleased with it. When Suzu spoke, it was to say that it might be heavy for them to lift. The young redtail glanced at it and wondered if they’d be able to do it, or if they might need to call for help. He wanted to give it his best effort. Swordfish had already committed himself to the cause. Besides, he didn’t want to disappoint the girl with the lilac eyes.

Let’s try. Yer the lead, Su… I got no intent to drag ya like a slug ‘cross the beach. He snickered. The young man moved himself around until he had found a good place where he believed he could hold the log, then sunk his teeth into it with a loud exhale through his nose.

"You callin' me a slug?" Suzu challenged, lowering herself into a play bow and growling the word, though her smile stretched from eye to eye. "You watch your mout', Swordfish Sveijarn-Corten!" She retorted, waving her tail in an arc above her back with something akin to indignance, though she was clearly amused by his sense of humour. She pranced to her end of the log on light feet, where she paused, and shot him a look. "You make sure you carry your 'alf dis time. Last time you be draggin' behin' like a bloated sealion." She took a second to puff out her cheeks at him, before she giggled and reached for a knob on the log where a branch used to be. Eager to get on the move and prove that she wasn't sluggish at all, she grabbed the knob, and picked it up, tugging before she even looked to see if he was ready to go.

Oh, she’d misunderstood. Swordfish had been calling himself a slug, giving recognition to the fact that he liked to go at his own pace. He might have corrected her, but she gave him a reaction that brought a smile to his snout. Suzu was something else, he’d concluded. If the world wasn’t careful, she’d take it by storm. Even though he possessed none of it, the young redtail admired her spirit and the light that shone from within her.

At being called a bloated sealion, the boy groaned into his mouthful of tree. The log was heavy. The feeling of it strained down both sides of his neck and into his legs. He thought he might drop it. Fearful that he wouldn’t be able to help her tote it across the beach, Swordfish breathed heavily while remaining perfectly focused on their task.

Perhaps the log was still a bit wet on the inside, but for whatever reason, it seemed much heavier than the last. Suzu braced her shoulder against it, trying to relieve some of the strain on her jaws and the muscles along the back of her neck. She huffed and puffed through her mouth around the knob, which darkened with her drool. She tried to keep her breath quiet, not wanting Swordfish to see just how hard this was- and she didn't want to give up. Each step was progress, and as long as she could just convince herself to keep taking steps, she felt she could manage the distance. 

Her jaw quivered, though, she she felt herself losing her grip. She uttered a muffled squawk, before she dropped the log. She hopped aside as she did so, to make sure she didn't drop it on one of her feet. "Sorry!' She blurted suddenly. "I need a break, it be too 'eavy on my jaws," She said, painting.

All his faith was in her because he couldn’t let himself think about dropping that log. That’s why when she relinquished her hold on it and the front half sunk into the sand, Swordfish ended up deep throating the entire gnarled branch he had been holding onto. Right into his mouth and down the back of his throat until he gagged violently.

Suzu said something about needing a break, being sorry. Swordfish heaved and retched, his back arcing funnily as he sucked air into the back of his throat. His eyes watered at the pain of the log having scraped against the inside of his mouth. After sputtering and heaving for several long seconds, the boy blinked with watered eyes at her and wheezed a breath of air.

S’fine… all good. He coughed again.

If she'd known he'd had the end of the branch in his mouth, she might have tried to warn him a bit more before she let her branch slip. He coughed and gagged, and she wilted, drawing a bit closer as she wanted to help, but not stifle him. She watched him with a frown, concerned even though he said he was fine. "We'll take a break," She assured him, and moved to his side where she sat down, as she would whenever she was with her brothers. She reached out to nose the bottom of his jaw in an apology. 

But she still couldn't help herself. 

"You feeling OK?" She asked after a moment, looking up at him with her ears turned back. "I am sorry, Swordfish, I lost my grip but ouffff, I did not t'ink you would 'ave it down your t'roat like dat!" She exclaimed. "Ouf, if I 'ad to go an' tell your parents you die by driftwood, dey would kill me!"

Something stirred in him when he saw the expression of concern on her pale face. It reminded him of the faces his mom had made when their father had gone away. Worry was not something that he could handle well when he was faced with it in others. Though, Suzu’s concern was warranted after the coughing fit he’d endured in the sand.

When he finally had caught his breath and could pull air into his lungs without wincing, Swordfish looked at his logging companion and smacked his lips. She wanted to know that he was alright, saying that his parents would kill her if she choked him to death on driftwood. The young man thought it was a grim way to meet one’s fate, but that made it funnier.

Naw… they might thank ya. Could try again fer a better one, he joked with a snicker.

Don’tcha worry yer pretty little head ‘bout it. Let’s try again?

He was joking- therefore, he was fine. She sniffed lightly and got back to her feet, glad that he didn't need a whole pity party to make him feel better. She rolled her eyes and smiled faintly, also easy to recover from the scare. "Just imagine it, though. Especially if my Maman decide to put it in one of 'er songs about de history of Sapphique." She grinned as she moved to the front of the log. She placed one foot on it, and pinned the other to her chest dramatically. 

"Cup your ear for de tale of Swordfish, what a tragedy it be," She sung, adding a bit of vibrato to her voice to add to the effect. Swordfish wanted to get the log moving, but she wasn't done doing her impression of her mother, yet. "When he choked on stick, 'is death be not quick, an' de tide took 'im out to de sea," She wiggled her ears comedically, She put her other foot down. "'Ow about dat? I bet Maman would do it better, but it is not bad for a first draft methinks. Come come! Let's get dis moved, now, ehn? Don't deept'roat de stick dis time, ehn?" She teased lightly, glancing at him over her shoulder.