rosiphelee | Waterfall

Hmm, only two I haven't finished now - flare is turning into a major piece and music box is on my work machine (more Arcady!)

Title: Waterfall
Words: 671
Prompt: falling
Summary: The crew of the Ardent Tamarisk find a waterfall. Silly sweet.

“Dhara!” Zenrael gasped. “Slow down!”

She shook her head, concentrating on running along the narrow track. It was animal made, and wide leaves and vines pressed at her sides. The mud was slick and slippery underfoot, and each breath tasted of greenery and flowers and heat.

“He didn’t fall,” Zenrael snapped at her back. “He dived! I saw his wings tip.”

Dhara slowed a little. “Dived at what, though? And Anjali’s gone running straight into it.”

“Good point,” Zenrael muttered, and sped up, crashing into her back. She grabbed his wrist, ignoring his squeak, and dragged him down the path. She could hear a roar ahead of her, like the sound of the stormy sea in her dreams.

The path began to slope downwards, and she had to let go of Zenrael and grab at branches to slow her descent, hoping desperately that she wasn’t reaching for anything that might want to eat her. This wasn’t Bane-jungle, but it still had its own perils.

She came out on a low bulge of rock, skidding to a halt. Ahead of her a waterfall crashed out of the cliff side, filling the air with glowing spray. A few metres below a deep, blue pool was gathered between the rocks, its surface dancing with the ripples from the falls. Vines tumbled down the cliffs around the falls, bedecked with gaudy flowers and glittering with spray.

Istellon was floating at the far side of the pool, his pink wings spread against the water, grinning up at Anjali, who had thrown her hands into the air and was berating him furiously.

“Oh, wind over the water,” Dhara muttered, and took a breath to call to them.

“Dhara!” Zenrael wailed behind her. “Move!”

She turned in time to see him crashing down the slope towards her, arms flailing.

Then he hit her, flinging his arms round her neck in a last grab for steadiness, and they went shooting over the edge. Dhara managed to close her eyes and straighten her legs before they hit water, but it still knocked the breath out of her as they went down.

She opened her eyes to blue, and surged upwards, dragging Zenrael with her. They broke out of the water into sunlight, spluttering.

“Are you hurt?” Anjali called.

“We’re fine,” Dhara shouted back, treading water, though Zenrael was still coughing. “Does anything live in here?”

“I admit, good maid, that I neglected to investigate,” Istellon called. “Nonetheless, no beast has yet attempted to feast upon me.”

“They’d choke on the feathers,” Zenrael said breathlessly. “I’m fine – you can let go.”

Dhara pushed him off into the middle of the pool, and he swayed back, floating happily. She tipped her own head back so it wasn’t only the ends of her hair that were wet. With it all drenched she raked it back against her head and swam after Zenrael.

He grinned at the sky. “So, is anything living here?”

“No,” Dhara said automatically, fanning her hands through the water, then, “How should I know?”

“You always do,” Zenrael said blithely and kicked water at her.

She dodged, diving under him and grabbing his ankle. He submerged kicking, but she was already arching away, the water carrying her. She could feel it whisper against her skin like silk, and was smiling when she surfaced.

“Do that to himself and he will think something’s trying to eat him.”

Dhara bit back a grin. “That’s not nice.”

“I’m not nice. People just assume I am.”

“Right,” she said, and glanced across to where Istellon was drifting, eyes half-closed against the glare of the sun. “What’s it worth?”

“I’ll do your cooking duty next week.”

“You just don’t like my cooking.”

“Neither do you,” he pointed out. “Go on.”

Dhara stuck her tongue out at him but dived. It would serve the silly flamingo right. He’d have been in trouble if there were piranhas.

The fact that he screeched like a parakeet when she grabbed his wings from below was merely an extra treat.