Private Tales Upriver

[Eislyn Gray]

She couldn't help the natural instinct to shy back when he came closer. But her pride wouldn't let her retreat completely for modesty sake. At least, not now or here or with him. She couldn't help glancing around as if she'd suddenly see her father's disapproving gaze. Her underthings didn't leave much to the imagination, especially if wet.

The adventurous side she'd shared with Hannah and it would appear, with Rayth, didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to get to that waterfall. How much more would her pride be hurt if she refused only to need to call Rayth back later to help her?

"On one condition. You have to promise not to look anywhere below my neck. And keep your hands in appropriate placed. Understood?"

So maybe it was two conditions.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

Rayth gulped. The second condition was easy, assuming she did not flounder wildly. Technically being the son of a Prince, even a third son given a small border principality, made Rayth a Prince as well.

Some lessons on decorum were well ingrained. If she had met him at a grand ball she would have never sussed the scoundrel. Not unless eating. The lessons in table manners and cutlery were probably less well kept than those about dancing with girls.

"That first one is perhaps an even greater challenge than when we faced the minotaur of Eris, but I accept," he declared, enjoying this touch of courage and defiance he saw in her.

"And I would never let my hands wander where they had not been invited," he added. This time his tone was deadly serious.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

A second splash of water went in his direction.

"That was for the minotaur comment," she jovially called out. There was something in his gaze - maybe his tone, that made her believe him on the other part. It was sad that not all men were like him. She'd never quite be able to shake off what had happened with another man not so long ago. Such dark thoughts were not catching in this moment.

One finger came up and she made the spinny-gesture. Time for him to look away. "I'll tell you when it's safe to look. Besides, maybe I'm actually medusa. Wouldn't want you turning to stone, now would we?" He'd hear the smile in her tone. Standing on the ledge, she dipped her shoulder and let the dress fall to her ankles.

Next, her fingers fell to the lacing of the corset. That took a smudge longer. Really, who designed these confounded things?! The princess was left in nothing but a plain, white shift, dropping to her calves. She still had that hidden dagger strapped to her thigh.

Couldn't really remove that now, could she?

Rayth would hear small interruptions of water as her bare-feet padded carefully down the stone steps and into the pool of water. Water rose just above her chest until she stopped, one hand still gripping that stone ledge she'd perched on earlier. She couldn't touch anymore and she was hard-pressed to let go of her lifeline.

"It's safe," she called out wondering if it really was.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

Rayth's eyes went to the discard corset. He gulped. Then he smiled with thag easy, disarming smile. One powerful stroke brought him within reach and he started to tread water. Eislyn did not look so certain of herself now the water was clearly deeper than she was tall.

"Well, still not a medusa," he mused. His willpower kept his gaze perfectly, unnaturally level.

"Do you want to try and swim out or just put your hands on my shoulders now?" Rayth offered quite seriously. He had conditions to follow and didn't want to go grabbing to draw her back to the surface.

Behind him the soft shards of light continued to dance through the spray of the waterfall. It remained eerily quiet. Barely a sound above the water and their quiet breathing.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

Golden hair fanned out in the water over her shoulders. Jaw set in a determined line. “Wait. I’m going to try swimming to you,” breath rippled across the water. “And if I disappear beneath the surface for too long, you have my permission to bring me up.”

It was a funny thing to say but she was being quite serious.

Clinging to the wall a moment longer, she pushed off. Limbs flailed wildly and the nice, calm moment was interrupted by the splashing of a not-so-graceful swimmer. She wasn’t drowning but ooooooooo boy. It wasn’t pretty.

“I doing think I like swimming,” she sputtered with a brief flash of a good natured smile. She’d wear herself out like this well before she could swim across the pool to the falls. “Your shoulders...are they.....still free?” Head bobbed beneath the surface for a moment, then back up.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

"Yes they are," he replied, quiet seriously. He didn't like his chances of trying to dive and pull her up from below without breaking one of the two rules. He had been doing well so far.

Deciding that the arms were no inappropriate he swam closer and guided her hands to his bare shoulders.

"Keep kicking slowly," he told her. "It wasn't a bad attempt," Rayth added. His demeanour had shifted very suddenly from concerned to his more casual air.

"You need to learn to tread water at least. See how I sweep my arms and kick?" Rayth had to move more quickly to buoy some of her weight too. His arms made wide sweeping motions that made the water swirl around them. His feet keep treading the water to keep them both above the surface.

" Now don't let go," he whispered. Rayth had to lean backwards to start them on their short journey to the waterfall.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

Slender digits remained firmly gripping his shoulders, dark-hair ticking them as he moved. Always the student, she studied the movements he made closely. Maybe if she was at a place she could stand, she would try mimicking them. Legs kicked behind her, feet sending up a splash as they hit up and down against the surface.

The water made her feel more comfortable, safer that there was so little clothing between them. If only her father could see her now. Ha. He’d have her never leave the fortress again. Or ship her off as a bride to a foreign land.

It took her a few tries to match Rayth’s rhythm, so she wasn’t kicking against him but rather with him. She fought between warring emotions of wanting to cling closer to him out of fear and wanting to release a hand out of boldness. She settled for a happy medium of staying where she was, though, at the angle he was swimming she found that her arms and her chest brushed against him with varying strokes.

The roaring of the falls became louder the nearer they got until she couldn't really hear her own kicks anymore.

“You make this look easy,” she had to speak close to him in order to be heard.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

She had made him promise to follow her rules but none had said that he couldn't enjoy their closeness quite this much. His eyes sparkled more than the surface of the water. His lips always formed a grin when his mouth was above the water.

He did not know that when he mused that those who set her rules would have a heart attack to see them so that she was thinking similar thoughts. He doubted she mirrored his other thoughts. That he would have seen in her eyes.

"You have to be able to swim on stormy seas in full clothing if you're going to survive a battle at sea," he told her. "I could swim to the bottom and hold my breath for a good long time," he added.

He had to lean closer to reply over the rushing waterfall. Into the halo where her long, golden hair had fanned out across the surface.

Another few kicks and he vanished into the waterfall, pulling her through after him. They were enshrined between the rushing water and the rocks now. Hidden from all the world.

Rayth laughed, turning to nod at the rocks. "You can grab the rocks, pull yourself up and put your feet on the shelf behind you. Then you can stand up in the waterfall."

Rayth span them around as if they took part in their own little slow dance. The setting was different, more intimate. The situation more comical than the formality of a ballroom. Yet the posture and turn was quite close to the place where their blood usually courted.

"You can do it," he whispered.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

His smile was infectious and she couldn't help it catching. Who knew that being a prisoner would turn into a moment where she’d feel the most free? She found her hands cupping the back of his neck, beneath the curtain of his hair and pulling herself closer for the spin.

Head tipped lazily back, staring up at the rocks and tumbling water. Quiet laughter bubbled from her throat, the sound swallowed by the falls before it could echo across the pool. “I’ve never danced to music like this before,” she mused as she lifted her head. And for a moment, it was hard to look away from his face. Where drops of water carved paths down his skin and into his beard. The way his eyes glittered. His lips.

She blinked and turned, releasing her hold on him. An arm reached out, fingers curling around a hold in the rock. She looked back at him.

“You’re going to stay here right? In case I slip?”

Part of her was worried he’d leave. The other part of her wanted him to in case she made a fool of herself. She had to wonder why it was beginning to matter so much.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

"Of course I will," he replied. Rayth felt slightly breathless. It wasn't from the exertion of swimming across the small pool. He knew his mind well enough to know where it came from. He wished she had held his gaze just a little longer. She had been searching for something as she had studied his face. Whether she had been looking for something in him or answering her own question he did not know.

"If you slip out into the pool just kick as much as you can and I'll come to you. Better I stay this side so you can't fall to the rocks. Don't worry, it's a pretty big bit of rock to stand on. The most difficult part of the bargain came next which was trying to keep his eyes above the neck whilst also watching for her slipping. Rayth had made a promise and he intended to keep those.

"Sometimes you just have to make the jump," he said so softly that she would probably not hear it above the rushing water. There was always a path carved out for you. Like as riverbed down a hill. If you let it carry you then you might not end up where you wanted to be. Trying to leave that path was hard. The sides of the riverbed were always steepest the further you went from the middle. But from up there you could see so much more than the path laid out for you.

This moment would have been beyond him if he had gone to his quaint little cottage and conducted his small little sermons.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

She believed him and felt a strong sense that she could count on him. He wouldn’t let her drown whereas if she’d come with Geelyn, she might’ve. She thought she heard him say something else by it was hard to make out with the thundering around them. Or maybe that was because her own heart thudded in her ears.

Her other hand left the safety of his body and went to the rock. Toes curled around footholds. The princess began pulling herself up. Streams of water dripped away from her form as the white shift clung to her figure. It made climbing a little harder but she managed until she was able to climb onto the slick ledge. One knee and then another.

There was a moment as she stood that she teetered but was able to quickly right herself. Golden ribbons of hair fell in front, over her shoulders. Eislyn couldn't help the beaming smile cast down toward the swashbuckler. And closing her eyes and mouth, she stepped into the trickle of the falls, feeling like she could easily get lost in the beating of the water. No one could touch her here. Tell her how to behave or what to do. The steady drum of water began to chip away the years of tension built up in her muscles. The young woman practically glowed and it was hard to tell if it was purely from the shaft of sunlight hitting the falls or a part of her magic.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

Rayth basked on her little victory. He beamed up at her. One hand had found a small shape to grip in the old wall behind him so that he barely bobbed in the water. He hoped that if she was returned safely that she would remember this. Perhaps the way their paths had diverged would remain with her and change a few of her decisions down the years. He would likely never know.

There was only a little strain in his expression. It took great determination to stick to rule one. Or was it rule two? It hardly seemed to matter now. Besides he could not quite tunnel his vision down that narrow. The elation he felt being swept up in her smiles made his concerns seem small.

At least until he started to become unsure if she was about to draw on her magic. He kept his silence, but a glimmer of fear reached his eye. This was her moment to enjoy.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

When her lungs burned and she couldn't hold her breath anymore, Eislyn stepped out of the pounding falls. The young woman looked down at Rayth and then to the slick hold of rocks. Any part of her that had been glowing before was gone now.

"I think it's better if I jump," she called out. Rather than to try climbing back down. She pictured a few scraped up knees if she did that. She was still fighting a clinging and thin layer of clothing to manage. And unlike Rayth, she wasn't used to climbing slippery rocks.

Hands curled into small fists at her sides as she mentally counted down. She could do this. Down was the easy part, right? Hopefully Rayth had heard her. Taking a breath, she launched off the ledge and into the pool below.

A whoop of half-terror and joy left her throat before the pool swallowed her up.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

Rayth laughed as she hit the water but he realised she was out of reach. He took a breath and dove beneath the surface after her.

He presented an ethereal visage as he swam towards her through the dancing shards of light. There was nothing otherworldly about the small, tight smile as he drew himself upright and grasped her under the arm.

He drew Eislyn tight against him and used his other arm and both legs to help her drive back to the surface. They emerged together somewhere near the centre of the pool. He was laughing, but he kept her in an assured grip.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

She was laughing too. One arm was casually draped across the backs of his shoulders. Her other hand pushed the excess moisture across her face and away from her eyes. She blinked.

And for once, she wasn’t embarrassed by their physical proximity. Maybe it was due to the adrenaline running through her veins. Or maybe it was because she found herself actually enjoying it. How his eyes crinkled in the corners as he laughed. The different smiles he showed, many of which she hadn’t seen until they’d made it to the pool.

Her feet moved in little circles beneath her. She was actually learning how to tread water with him.

“Rayth Keirn, are you laughing at me?” Lips twitched.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

"I think it counts as laughing with you," he countered. "That wasn't a bad jump."

If they could have spent the rest of the time playing games around the pool and investigating the ancient ruins then he would never complain again about being given the babysitting duty over the shore leave.

Unfortunately Geelyn and Brin would report back to the captain if they spent too much time. The captain could be particularly stern if he felt Rayth wasn't taking his duties seriously. It was a problem because even when he was taking them seriously it could be difficult to tell.

"I guess you've never tried diving into water then?" he asked. He tilted his head back to look up at the highest part of the masonry above the pool. He started to feel like showing off.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

She pulled back slightly, suddenly self-conscious. What was she doing? She and Rayth were still in roles of opposite sides. Even if she was enjoying this time with him.

The smile she held faltered and wobbled.

But her head tilted to look the same direction he was. And she didn't loosen her grip on him. "No. The Iron Fortress seems to be in a perpetual winter. Doesn't leave much time for water activities. I doubt most of the people there even bother learning how to swim."

Or had the luxury of doing so.

"I'm assuming you've dived from the plank before?" A single honey-wheat brow lofted in challenge.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

Rayth did not want this moment to end. It had stood apart from everything: their respective roles, their duties and the whole situation. It couldn't last. The change in her expression made that clear. Rayth could see her starting to remember that she wasn't supposed to allow herself to enjoy her time with this man.

Rather than draw any attention to it, he decided to keep it going as long as possible. He grinned in response to the challenge in her eyes. Rayth kept them where they were for now, enjoying the closeness. None of her rules said he couldn't.

"All the time, when the waters are safe. It can get very boring. How...many rolls do you think I can do in the air before I hit the water?" he asked. This was pure showmanship now, but he enjoyed the light banter.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

Damn him.

He was making it hard to not get lost in the moment. To forget. His warmth felt good in the cool, pool waters. His arms were strong and steady. The men she’d met who could make her feel safe, let alone doing something she didn’t do often, were few and far between.

Eyes squinted in thought, feigning deep pondering.

They were moving in lazy circles. Much like a slow dance. Her arm shifted around his shoulders, fingers tapping against his skin thoughtfully. Drops of water gathered along her eyelashes.

“I’d say two. Should I have gone with a dozen?” A flash of white teeth.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

He laughed, looking up at the stones above.

"I can do two," he declared confidently. "Not a dozen unless you happen to have some levitation magic in those fingers of yours," he laughed. He gently manoeuvred them to the bottom of the stairs. He set his feet down and stood up, with the water coming to just below his neck. Rayth found that he did not want to let go. He had to suppress the thought of how easy it would be to pull her closer and hitch her up on to his waist. Rayth swallowed and stepped away, keeping his eye-line suitably high.

He turned and climbed the stairs up out of the water, stepping carefully past his clothes. Water dripped from his body to splash noisily onto stone. He grinned in private where she could not see. Likely the princess was already shielding her eyes once more. He wondered if she would peek.

He stepped up to the edge, the height of a man above the water. Rayth curled his toes around the cool stone. Despite his arrogance he realised that he would have to be cautious. If it went wrong she could not fish him out from the bottom of the pool.

He swung his arms back and then leapt forwards, tucking himself into a roll. As soon as it started he knew he had failed. One roll and he unfurled gracefully, extended his hands to break the surface with barely a splash. He levelled out right at the smooth stone base of the pool. Rayth swam across to Eislyn's side, very readily breaking the first rule.

He emerged right in front of her, immediately laughing and taking a breath.

"You win," he declared.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

If Rayth didn't think she noticed how hard he tried to follow her rules, he’d be wrong. It was either comical or very endearing how stiff he managed to keep his neck and straight his gaze. And it was a good thing she didn't know he cheated when he swam by her.

And yes, as he dove and generally showed off, it was hard for her to keep her eyes looking in appropriate places. Still made her warm. She’d always be a more private person. It was just who she was. How she’d been brought up.

As she stood on that step, the water came just below her chin. Arms moved beneath the waters, enjoying the feeling on her skin and the feeling of becoming more comfortable with it.

“What do I win?” She grinned, head shaking once, a smile half hidden by the water as she dipped her chin. “You still made it look good.” Taking a breath, her knees bent, letting herself sink beneath the surface. With that step beneath her bare toes, she was willing to take more risks. Plus, she realized how her comment may have sounded. The water hid her expression.

Just as quickly, she resurfaced.

“I think it’s my turn for the soap and some privacy.” A shooing gesture with her fingers motioned for him to go up the steps. The smile she’d had on earlier never quite left.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

The scoundrel let the comment go. In the current situation following a route to try and embarrass the princess further did not seem as if it would endear him to her. He looked thoughtful as he stepped out of the water to retrieve his towel. He gave himself enough of a dry down to pick up his effects.

"I'll be just out of sight up there," he said, pointing above himself. "I'll stay in earshot. And for your win you get...three questions. Which I will answer comprehensively and truthfully. Unless it's something I cannot say about the Paragon," he said. Rayth flashed another grin and padded up the stairs. He turned away from the pool and walked just far enough that the top of Eislyn's head disappeared below the lip of rock.

"I'm only here, so shout if you slip," he called. He was close enough that he barely had to raise his voice over the falling water. The water coming down had to flow somewhere from the pool. Perhaps there was a crack that sent water through the level of houses below the and then down to the river.

 

[Eislyn Gray]

"Okay," she watched the space he disappeared in a moment longer. Satisfied he was sticking to his word, she went up a few steps until the water level pooled around her calves. Dipping a shoulder and then another, the princess eased out of the wet, cotton shift, Wadding up the fabric, she pitched it to the platform where she'd sat with her legs in the water, earlier. And where the rest of her dry clothes were.

Air and water hit bare skin. She couldn't help the worried pan of her eyes around the pool as if someone might see her. But there was no one there.

Taking the bar of soap in her hand, she eased back down into the water, gliding the slick lavender across skin and hair. She tried not to let her mind wander to where the soap had been before.

"I've thought of the first question." Soap slid down one arm and then across her shoulders. "Would you ever leave the Paragon and if so, what would you do if you could do anything?" She hoped he'd count that as one instead of two questions.

 

[Rayth Keirn]

"Ooo alright I'll let you have that as one," Rayth called back. Clearly he had taken a moment to decide if he was going to take a question away. He had decided he was more intrigued to see what she would use them for.

"Yes, I would leave the Paragon. I don't know what it would take. Maybe the chance of having my own ship. Some other adventure. Someone to settle down with. Just...nothing tedious," Rayth replied. Sometimes he did think about whether he could return to the kind of life his parents had wanted for him. He knew he did not want to end up like one of the grey sea dogs.

"If I could do anything...you know they gave my brother a commission in the cavalry regiment and I used to wish for nothing but that. Shiny uniform, giggling girls when you returned for a dance. Now I realise it's a cavalry block of privileged children who make sport of running down the peasants who barely get equipped with a sword. They sit in 'reserve' when they actually touch a battlefield and wait for an opportunity for 'glory' when the real men have done the fighting." There was a brief pause.

"Well, that was a bit of a rant, my apologies. Have you ever heard of the Elven Eagle riders of Knarr? Could you imagine riding a giant Eagle? I wonder if they are anything like the paintings..."

 

[Eislyn Gray]

“Hmm,” with eyes closed and lips pressed, she soaped up her face. “I’m trying to imagine you settling down with someone.” Geelyn made jibes and jabs about it earlier, her first day on the Paragon. Something about Rayth chasing women?

Eislyn had to wonder how much truth behind it there was.

“And no, I’ve never heard of them but I’ll add it to my list of things I’d very much like to see one day.“ Her list seemed to be getting longer the longer she stuck around Rayth. “I have seen the sultan’s sand Mages of the forbidden desert. Their sword work might even rival yours.”

Taking a breath, she dunked under, scrubbing the soap off before resurfacing. There would be a long moment where Rayth didn’t hear anything. Surfacing, fingers pushed the curtain of hair back from her face.

She took a breath.

“Have you ever fallen in love?” The settling down comment made her curious.