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Amalirahc pouted. "Aw." But he didn't push the matter.

He looked down at the water around him. "Look, fish," he beamed.

"Try to catch some," Haldia called out to him, grinning. "We will need quite a few for dinner."

Haldia looked around for a moment, then hopped over a log and rummaged around in a patch of ferns until she found what she was looking for: a long, thin stick that had been whittled down into a spear.

"Use this," she told Miyuki, handing it to her. She stood behind her and showed her how to hold it. "Just stand still and let the fish get used to you ... then when they start to come near ..."

She waited a moment until a fish did come near, then, gripping the spear along with Miyuki, thrust it into the water at the fish. They missed, but Haldia trusted that at least the child knew now what she meant.

Amalirahc didn't have a stick, but he was used to trying to fish with his hands - something his parents had taught him on their travels, and quite possibly the only time he had any sort of patience at all.

"It seems that we came at just the right time," Kelirahc commented as they sat down to rest while Haldia and the children fished. "If I am not mistaken, it is early in the dry season. We will not be rained out for quite a while."

"Good," Leyenda grinned. "Then we will have plenty of time to explore. Do you think we could get someone to watch Amalirahc for a few days?" She winked at Kelirahc, and he chuckled softly.

"I'm sure we could," he agreed.

Earendil chuckled and sat down, leaning against a tree. "We're going to have to show Miyuki around," he grinned at Lin. "The volcano, the beaches, the flets .... everything."

Earendil nodded. "I think that would be a good idea," he murmured. "It would give her someone closer to her own age to relate to, and it would give Kelirahc and Leyenda a bit of time alone."

He smiled at her warmly. "Perhaps they would even return the favour."

Earendil was amazed that Miyuki had caught a fish. They were quick and flexible creatures, and very difficult to catch, even by those who had experience.

"Good job, Miyuki," he called out to her, grinning proudly. Then he turned back to Lin. "Wasn't that when you came to see us at the palace, fuming about some stupid boy?" he asked her.

Haldia smiled as she headed over to Miyuki to inspect the fish. "You have to use your thumbs to paralyze it," she instructed her. "Push on its eyes. Then it cannot move, and we can put it safely on the ground without worrying about it flopping back into the river."

Amalirahc pouted. "I wanted to catch the first fish!" he mumbled to himself. He looked down in the water around him. "I'll get one ..."

Earendil smiled at Lin and put one arm around her shoulders, holding her close to him. "And no wonder, he treated you so badly," he murmured. His finger traced small loops on her arm lightly. "But there is no longer a need to think about him, yes?"

Haldia kept an eye on Miyuki. If the child couldn't handle it, she would step in, but she would give Miyuki a chance to do it herself. She was a great believer in learning from experience.

Earendil smiled and kept tracing his finger along Lin's arm. It was comfortable, sitting there like this. The children were occupied, Kelirahc and Leyenda were occupied, and Celeb was watching Haldia and the children with amusement.

"We should ask Haldia if she wants to come to the beach with us tonight," he murmured softly to Lin. "I know Arwen and Roydon would be happy to see her again, and she them."

Haldia smiled at Miyuki. "You are doing just fine," she said encouragingly. "Look, it is not struggling anymore."

Indeed, once Miyuki had pushed the fish's eyes in, it has stopped as surely as if she had cut its head off. But it would keep the fish fresher this way.

"You should put it up by your parents," she added. "That way we will know where to put it."

Earendil chuckled softly down at Lin. "It's a good thing we are on land now," he grinned. "There would really be no room for Haldia on the ship now."

Not with the way things were, with so many extra people.