Dawnwish was standing near the edge of a lake, peering into the water. You see, earlier that day he had seen a fish leap up out of the water and catch an insect hovering above the lake's surface. It was near dusk now, but all day he had been standing there, eying the water intently, waiting for another fish to do the same. He wanted very badly to speak to a fish and ask them about their habits. Until today he had never put much thought into the subject of fish, since he preferred not to eat them. But now he had a hundred questions to ask the first fish willing to answer - how can they jump without legs? Why do they live in water? Is it cold or warm underwater? How well can they see underwater? What's it like to have fins? Are insects the only thing fish eat?
He'd even tried calling out, imploring a fish to come to the edge and speak with him. It didn't even occur to him that fish might not understand usida-speak, or that if he were to find a bigger body of water he might run into a water-dwelling soquili who could better answer his questions.
