Chapter 34

 

Gloria wore as much clothing as she could without being weighed down. It wasn’t easy, most of her clothes were made intended to be easy to move in. Flowing, breathable. It got very hot on the Islands, and you didn’t want to keep heavy layers on your body when you were outside working.

The dresses she had seen her family had brought over had large skirts made out of wool and cotton that would pull her under instantly if they got wet, they wouldn’t work. But if she wore her skirt that wrapped around her, maybe she would be able to still swim…

She packed extra clothes to change into after they were done when she zapped herself with some pent up energy. Her magic made little crackles of energy between her finger tips and she remembered that it was a full moon tomorrow night, and her power was brimming. It would be for the next few days, and while she knew that to expel some of it would do wonders for her attention and her nerves, she didn’t have time to. Only the spellcasters of the Islands and her family knew. The other students didn’t know, and Blake surely didn’t. She didn’t know what the mainland thought about spellcasters. What if they despised them? For all Gloria knew it could be one of their largest crimes.

Her parents didn’t talk about their time on the mainland much. She suspected that they didn’t want to think about it, that they were running from something. Whenever she asked about it, they deflected. Most people did. They were refugees. If they wanted to dwell on it they would have stayed.

“I’m going to the big island, I’m teaching Blake to swim. I should be home for dinner.” she told her parents who were working in the garden.

“Did you pack food? I can scramble something together if you wait for a minute!” her mom called.

“Nah, we’ll get something somewhere. See yah!” Gloria turned and boarded the little boat and sailed towards the hills on the horizon. It didn’t take very long to reach the big island, and she found a dock to park it in.

She was supposed to meet him in about half an hour, and that gave her a bit of time to spend enjoying the sun. She always enjoyed the sun and wind with the smell of flowers. The seaweed on the shore was particularly fragrant today, so she didn’t take any deep breaths.

She met Blake down by the pool where they could easily touch the bottom if they needed to. He was waiting, somehow not looking bored by also not doing anything. He was just sitting and looking up at the clouds, a basket with towels beside him. Ugh! Towels! Gloria had forgotten towels. Were her nerves really that bad? To forget the second ingredient of swimming?

He saw her and waved, welcoming her over. She waved back, and walked a little faster.

“Hey, you’re early!” she commented.

“So are you.” he paused and looked down at his outfit. “I was told by my housemates that this is appropriate attire for swimming?”

“It is, you’ll do fine. Now, the water is warm so we should be all good to go, we don’t have to worry about waiting to get used to it.”

“You can get used to the water?” he asked. “Even if it’s freezing?”

“Yeah. You really haven’t been swimming before, have you?”

“No, no I haven’t. But I’m hoping to. That’s why I’m here.” he smiled.

“And here I thought I was just good company.” she smiled back, dropping her bag and walking into the water to about knee depth.

“Now, I want you to tell me when you feel nervous. Come out and walk with me.” Gloria instructed.

He walked out, following Gloria up to his waist, then his elbows, then to his shoulders. “Gloria, this feels about as brave as I’m feeling… I don’t think I can do much better.” He looked more than a bit nervous.

“That’s a good depth! You’re doing marvelously! Just relax.” she watched him try and take a few breaths to steady himself.

“Ok, now bounce on your toes. You feel that? How you kinda bob around? That’s close to floating. You need to float. For obvious reasons.” Gloria assured. “See how I’m moving my arms? I’m pushing myself upwards in the water, it keeps me floating. Otherwise I would start to sink. Try and mimic what I’m doing.”

He watched her for a moment and started replicating her movements nearly perfectly.

“That’s great! You’re doing really well!” she encouraged.

“I can almost pick my feet up off of the sand, My arms are getting tired, this is more work than I thought it would be. Sword fighting is hard, but these are different muscles.” He was excited; Gloria could see it. She smiled.

“Ok, let’s try something else. Watch this.” She leaned back and floated on her back, toes sticking up out of the water. Blake blushed at the sight of Gloria’s legs. “This is pretty easy, and if you ever get stuck out in the water somewhere it’s a good resting position.”

She resumed her position of floating with just her head sticking out of the water. “Here, this one can be a bit tricky, let me help you do it.”

She took up a position beside him. “I need to touch you, ok? The sooner you learn, the sooner it’ll be over.” She waited for his approval, and he nodded.

She placed one arm across his shoulders, and the other went under the base of his back. “Ok, now I’m not going to let you drown, your face won’t even get wet. Kick your feet up and try to bring your hips up towards the surface.”

“Wha-? That doesn’t sound so easy… How am I supposed to bring my hips up to the surface?” he asked, bewildered.

“It’s kinda like pulling your feet into bed, just bring them up. I’ll grab your legs and cradle you and we’ll go from there.” Gloria said plainly.

“That’s rather unfeminine of you.” he murmured. He tried to lift his feet but sank into the water and Gloria had to catch him.

He came up and sputtered. “You said my face wouldn't’ get wet!” he wiped his face.

“And I said to kick up, not just lift your feet. You need more momentum. And swing them forward, not just under you. You goof, what did you expect?” Gloria laughed.

“I expected to do what you did! Can you show me again?” he asked. “I’ll pay better attention this time.”

“It’s like this,” Gloria kicked back and floated on her back, turning a bit. “It’s simple and second nature as soon as you figure it out.”

She lowered her legs again. “Ok, now you try it.” she put her arm across his shoulders and the other ready to catch his legs. He looked at her with skeptical eyes, then yanked his feet up towards the surface as if he were kicking a giant ball.

Gloria caught his legs and held him while he floundered around and flailed with the arm furthest from her. “Now what do I do?!” he yelped.

“You relax! Take deep breaths, your lungs will help you float.”

She watched as his lungs moved like bellows. “You’re not going to fall, I’m supporting your weight. You’re lighter in the water. Relax.” she formed a better stance to better balance with him. He was lighter, but all that muscle had weight to it.

“Keep moving your arm for now, act like you’re treading water. Now I want you to try to lift your hips towards the surface. Yep, almost there, ok, keep that just like that.” Gloria looked proudly at his form. He was doing really well for a first timer.

She still had him by the waist, holding him up. “I’m going to let go of you, but i’m only about an inch away. You’ve got this, you’re doing great.” She lowered her hand and let him bob.

“Gloria, Gloria I don’t want to drift out to sea!” he panicked.

“You’re not going to drift out to sea, there’s barely any tide here and you can just lower your feet and touch the sand. Go ahead and try it. You’re in full control.”

~*~

They laid out on a few spare towels to dry off and let their muscles rest.

“I had no idea that swimming could be so much effort.” he said. “My arms feel like they’re noodles. And I have good arms!” he chuckled.

“You have a lot of muscle mass, that makes floating harder. Softer bodies float easier.” Gloria commented.

“Well, thanks for the compliment.” he turned back to look at the sky. He waited a few moments. “I’m starving.” he claimed bluntly, “Having to spend so much energy has made me famished.”

“There’s some good food stalls around here. Let’s go and find one.” Gloria mentioned, standing up easily. Blake stood a bit longer to get up as his muscles were more tired

(Very medieval apron, mister...)

They ordered some food and sat at a table. “It feels weird that a child can do something better than me,” he said. “I mean, a child can’t hold a sword like I can, I should be able to swim better than a kid.”

“You didn’t spend much time with children back on the mainland, did you? Kids have way more energy than adults do. They have the will to jump off of edges, to swim deeper than anyone else, and they will outrun you too. It’s amazing.” Gloria rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, I’m a single child. My father died sometime after I was born, and my mother and stepfather never had any children. Not that my parents had much to do with my upbringing.” Blake stirred the food on his plate.

“Speaking of the mainland, what’s it like there? No one ever talks about it here.” she covered her mouth. “Not that you have to talk about it if you don’t want to. I don’t want you to feel pressured.”

“It’s, it’s so different from here. It’s politically in turmoil, the Church is fighting the king, and there’s no heir to the throne. The only heir was captured before it was born when some treasonous terrorists captured the queen. An inside job, they say, planned right under the king’s nose. He was distraught for a long time.” Blake said it all as if it were a shopping list, distanced.

“But from the little that I’ve heard he was a bad king. My parents and family are only ever happy that they were able to get away.” Gloria looked at him in wonderment.

Blake chose his words carefully, not that Gloria noticed. “I think the king tried his best, just like any king would hope to. But when the queen was taken and reported killed, he went wild. A few of the terrorists had been captured and interrogated for information, but they wouldn't budge. It was hopeless, and the king was left without a queen or heir.

“He tried to remarry, telling the Church that an heir had to be procured, but the Church refused to allow it. So those loyal to the king and those loyal to the Church were suddenly on two different sides, and raids and fights would break out in the cities. Thankfully my parents were far enough away from any large city to encounter any battles, but it wasn’t safe. They were sympathizers to the king’s cause, and they didn’t want the kingdom to be left without an heir. Soon the distant village heard that we were in favor of the king and the knights of the church came to arrest us. I got away with a few other refugees, but my parents stayed behind to face the Church.” He said it distantly, as if he were reciting it. Gloria’s eyes were wide.

“Wow, I had no idea. That’s… that’s insane. I’m so sorry that you had to go through that.” she said.

He blinked and was in the present again. “Well, I’m sure that any first generation refugee has a similar story. It’s hardly original.”

“But every story is original to every survivor. Your story is no less damaging to you as someone else’s story is to them. Don’t compare yourself to another person.” Gloria assured. “You don’t have to face that ever again.”

Does anyone have any guesses as to the nature of Blake? I'm curious what you guys think about him.