It was the fourth time she found herself slamming face-first into someone's back or side, and yet Rala kept pulling her along, moving quickly amongst the people as if swimming in the waves. One thing was for sure: her friend may have been good at navigating a crowd, but she was not as good at guiding someone else through it, much to the annoyance of many of the adults gathering in the market street.
"Will you slow down?!"
No response, just laughter as the girl rushed forward, not even turning to look at her, only her mane of silvery hair visible as she kept an iron grip around Falanu's wrist: all she could do was following her clumsily, eyes fixed upon her in order to block out the other people… until, of course, she bumped into someone else, and had to apologize briskly, mercilessly dragged along towards only the gods knew what.
They turned a corner, at which piles of pottery were stacked orderly around a man sitting cross-legged on the ground, waiting for customers, and Falanu's efforts to keep herself away from the delicate wares did not pay off, for she almost crashed into a tall urn. She barely managed to catch it and pull it up before she was carried away, followed by curses and insults, too embarrassed to dare to look behind and make sure no damage had been done.
"Rala! I swear, I'm going to… at least tell me where we're going!"
"Secret!"
Falanu gritted her teeth; her shoulder was starting to get a little numb, and they'd been running for quite a while. She'd even had to end her lessons early, that day, in order to see this wondrous secret Rala kept hinting about, a mysterious smile on her lips, and yet she still refused to tell her what it would be. The streets were starting to grow different, though, buildings in the style of the ancient Redoran ones taking the place of the newer ones: solid shells and curved lines, making the streets a little less narrow, and easier to walk through, especially as the crowd thinned. They were heading towards the docks, where rows after rows of houses and warehouses cluttered the sloping streets, and the little staircases formed a maze… one that would easily bring them to a steep fall and scraped knees and elbows, if Rala didn't slow down at least a little bit.
Only then, she paused, looking around and below, as if searching for something: the break did not last, however, not for long, for soon she cheerfully pulled on Falanu's arm as she resumed her chase, a little slower now that she had spotted their destination. The red haired girl, still with her eyes glued to her friend, hadn't even tried to guess which that might be, and simply allowed the pungent scent of the docks to fill her nostrils. Unpleasant at first, it was unmistakably familiar: salt, wet wood, fish, algae, and the briny, earthy smell that the sun-roasted shells encasing most buildings gave off. The mixture was a strong enough balm to forget about the sweaty dock workers, or her aching shoulder, or the fact that she'd once lived there.
Luck was on their side, for, even with Rala pulling briskly at her, they did not fall: and soon enough they had reached the sea. There, by a little black boat, stood Daldryn, looking unusually cheerful as he glanced at the streets in search for them, and, a couple steps further, Arundiel, facing away from them, to observe the little isles, and, beyond them, the open sea. Rala finally released her from her firm grip, but only to start running and jumping around her, in a little dance.
"We're going on a boat trip! A boat trip!"
With a grin and a shake of his head, Daldryn stepped inside the boat, its shape and dimensions reminiscent of an ancient gondola, already taking the oar in his hands as they all made their way towards him.
"Really? That's what you couldn't tell me? A boat trip!" Falanu said, feigning disappointment. She hadn't stepped on a boat in a very long time, but she could still remember the pleasant swaying of the wood under her feet. That one, though, looked so tiny she had to wonder whether they would all fit inside.
"You didn't tell her?", chimed in Arundiel, puzzled, but vaguely amused by Rala's enthusiasm. The girl, laughing, just shook her head, and started pulling onto his sleeve the way she had done a short while before with her friend's wrist. He didn't fight back much, allowing her to slowly drag him onto the boat, while the red haired girl lagged behind them, her eyes drawn to the ships in the distance, slowly heading towards the nearby docks.
The wooden little thing was cramped, scattered with pooled salt water, which Falanu gingerly brushed away before sitting down. The Altmer boy barely managed to fit in by her side, while Rala kneeled between them, and Daldryn, in front of them, stood with the oar in his hands.
"Where's your big hat, gondolier?" Rala said from below him, making a silly face at the older boy, who smiled to himself, getting the boat out in the water. Immediately, the sensation of floating above the dark water started threatening to lull Falanu into a state of utter relaxation, but she kept alert, making it a point to look elsewhere as Arundiel slipped his arm around her, at least in part in order to be more comfortable, but in a hurried manner, and eyeing the water suspiciously. As Daldryn was far too focused on rowing to come up with a clever reply, they allowed the joking remark to sink comfortably into silence, at least for a while. Then Falanu shook herself, resuming the conversation as if it had never truly stopped.
"Better question. Where does the boat come from? Is it yours?"
"I borrowed it", he answered, his tone made brisk by concentration as he pushed back water. "I'll bring it back after we're done. Why, you don't like it?"
"Don't mind her, Daldryn", Arundiel preceded her, fixing his gaze on him, away from the seemingly endless body of water. "She's just peeved because we kept her out of the loop."
"And you're afraid of the water", was her blunt reply, as she rested her head upon his shoulder. "Why? You can't swim?"
"I can swim, I'm just scared I might have to jump into the water to save you. You're so skinny the wind might swoop you into the sea."
"And then you'd get your fancy clothes and pretty hair wet… Oh, I see now why you're scared."
"Says the one who had to dry up the bench before sitting down on it."
"We've barely even left, and I'm already starting to regret this", grumbled Daldryn, though from below an entertained grin. Rala, still sitting between the bickering couple, silently mouthed something to the Dunmer boy, who burst out laughing, then she spoke, bending her head backwards to look at them.
"He's right, though. You've been putting so much energy in your banter, lately, if I didn't know any better I'd say you two suddenly started hating each other", said Rala, winking knowingly at Falanu, who just raised an eyebrow and tilted her head towards the sea, looking away in an attempt to hide the flush on her cheeks. "Anyway, we're not really going anywhere, we're just enjoying a little time on the water. So if your plan is to keep bickering until we reach the ground again, don't. Or else I'll start singing!"
"Which is a good way to make sure I'm going to end up kicking the three of you out of this boat and go back on my own", said their improvised gondolier, half whispering, although it was hard for him to conceal his good mood. The smile that twisted his lips upwards was oddly out of place on such a gloomy face, but the sight was rare enough that even Falanu, underneath her detached demeanor, couldn't help but feel content. And maybe the soothing, almost unnoticeable waves below her helped, too.
"Fine", smiled Arundiel, still somewhat stiff. "We'll be quiet… for now."
As they kept floating aimlessly, the sun gleaming up at them from a thousand blinding spots in the water, it occurred to Falanu that some of their happiest hours had been accompanied by long minutes of silence. Perhaps it was an odd thing, or perhaps it was far more normal that she thought – this, she truly wouldn't know, unaccustomed as she was to the company of anyone who wasn't those three. It was rather pleasant, though, peaceful, in a way only books and warm water could be.
"It's almost sunset…" muttered to himself Arundiel. On most days, he saw sunsets from the inside of his teacher's shop, an orange light seeping through the window, warning them that they'd soon have to light up their lanterns. Compared to that, this nightfall was completely different: the sky was lit up with fire, and the sun, a glowing circle in the middle of it, had already started its long, slow descent. Soon it would sink into the sea, below a curtain of lilac and blue, and it would start growing dark, but by then they'd probably already be back. The weather was still warm, but the days were growing shorter, and it wouldn't be good to stay out at night, not around the docks.
For now, though, Daldryn stopped rowing, and turned around as he sat on the bench he'd been occupying, to face the setting sun, looking pleased despite his frown, his strong, wiry arms bright with the sheen of sweat and droplets of salt water. Slowly, they started talking amongst themselves, but in a hushed tone, as if their words could reach the sun and distract it from its lazy bedtime routine, their eyes still fixed on it, motionless except for the light swaying of the wooden boat.
It was as if their words had no substance, for a while. They spoke of their days, and of the days to come, of what to eat afterwards, until Daldryn's voice chimed in, dark and heavy with smoke. They realized only then that he hadn't been speaking, only listening.
"I haven't done this in a while… I used to come on boat trips with my brother every few weeks. I had almost forgotten how nice the sunset looks from here."
The other three shifted, suddenly unbalanced. He didn't mention his brother often, and that alone, coupled with his absence, had forced them to assumed something bad had happened to him, and probably something rather final. It was Arundiel who broke the silence, this time, shifting his gaze to their friend just as the sun peeked out from below a thick cloud, lifting its shadow.
"I think I could handle leaving the shop early once a month. If we can find a boat."
"Yes, we should do this more often", said Rala, unable to conceal the trace of concern in her voice. "If you'd like that, of course. You would, right?"
He smiled, a subtle movement on his face, and turned back to watch the sky, as Falanu shifted against Arundiel's shoulder, almost soothed into sleep by the waves, showing the others her agreement simply by not speaking. This felt like a good ritual to have, a good thing to do together. For a moment, she asked herself whether they'd still be doing that in twenty years, but didn't stick around to hear the answer. It didn't matter. They were doing it now.