Ice Cold Competition

[Ricky]

Cylus 4th 718, Early

Location: Scal-town Harbors

"Treid's icy balls it's c-c-cold!" One of the fellow fisherman Enrick had walked with blatantly pointed out as they reached the harbor of Scal-town, the other two men plus Enrick himself couldn't help but laugh a little when the jokes started to arise.

"Yeah, y' would know if Treid's balls are actually ice." The mixed blood remarked as the other two gang snickered to one another.

"Bollocks!" He called out with something that fell short of a punch on Enrick's shoulder, the man hardly felt it though since he'd dressed himself in layers of clothing. "Never met the man in me life, but I'd like t' give him a great slap across the face fer makin' it so bloody cold!"

"Yeah yeah, we've all heard 'bout that." Another remarked as walked their way down the harbor, although the amount of snow piled before them made the trip a little time consuming.

"One Trill boys, Oi just gotta get m' things." Enrick remarked with a wave as he headed to his sloop where his gear waited, the other fisherman of course did the same from their own fishing boats. Since Zi'da hit and froze the waters of Scalvoris, Enrick had found himself sort of... well frozen here. Plain and simple. The ice and snow were too thick to really attempt sailing out, thus Enrick himself remained grounded in Scal-town until it all melted. Once he jumped abroad his snow covered sloop Enrick adjusted the black cloak wrapped around his neck, his exhaled breath seen as a puff of smoke as he knelt down to scoop snow aside.

"Enrick hurry up!" One of the other fisherman called out as he finally uncovered the hatch to the cargo hold, rather urgently he pulled it open to pull out the essential fishing gear he had stored within. With a look over the bow he saw that the other two were done getting their things.

"On it!" He called out as he pulled out the ice pick and shut the hatch, his things placed on the dock as he climbed off the frozen boat. Turquoise colored eyes focused on his fellow fishermen as he walked along, determined to catch up to them so that he didn't fall behind.

"We're gonna have a fishin' tourney! Just the three o' us!"

"Oh yeah?" He called out as he still had a few yards to go.

"Yeah, think y' can out fish us mate?!"

"What? As in teams?" The mixed breed checked as he finally reach them. "Kind'a hard when there's two o' ya and one o' me." He mused with a soft chuckle, while they both dropped from the harbor onto the ice.

"What, don't think y' can keep up?" One of them taunted with a short laugh.

"Pff." He scoffed with a look over his shoulder down the docks, his eyes fallen on another that looked to be a little ways down. "Oi could pro'lly manage, Oi just like t' play on evened odds." He mused with a kneel to place his gear down on the docks. "Get ahead boys, Oi might just have someone t' work with." They both looked from him to the person he'd noticed, a short laugh came from both their lips afterwards.

"Whatever man, good luck catchin' up!"

"Yeah, good luck on stayin' ahead." He remarked right back as he moved down to see just who this person was. "Oy! Got a fishin' game goin' wit' me pals, wanna join in and help me put 'em in their place?" Enrick called as his silvery eyes fell on what appeared to be a womanly figure.

[Freya DuCarinos]

○ Common ○ Rakahi ○ Pailtic ○ Hussian ○

She didn’t know what she was expecting, only that maybe she wasn’t going to be stranded on an island so far north as she was. Freya had been traveling with her lover, Wendell, until one night of heated arguments and thrown items saw her storm off the safety of the ship and onto a row boat. They’d been anchored in the harbor for some time now, but only two days passed before she could not longer see the vessel upon the horizon and for that, she was wrathful.
Wendell left her behind with nothing but the clothes on her back and the money in her pouch. Freya should have known he’d do something like this. She supposed loved only went so far with the man…
Weeks passed while she tried to gain a position aboard another ship bound for Strosdyn, the next place on their list to collect drug shipments.She’d thought it was a blessing to have finally found one, only to later realize that she’d misinterpreted the language he spoke.
“Scaaaalvaaris!” The captain yelled to her as he directed his crew on the old galleon vessel, The Blue Sun. When translated, the name sounded odd, but the way it rolled off the tongue in Pailtic really made the ship.
Nevertheless, after a perilous, and exhausting journey, Freya finally made it to the docks of Scalvoris just a few days before Cylus. It was cold, and the days leading up to the period of total blackout grew ice upon the water as they entered the harbor to set anchor.
“How odd.” Freya mutter, her accent faded by how much time she’d spent around Wendell and his brutish Common tongue. Curious Pink eyes watched as twilight settled around the world, enveloping it in a kind of enchanting glow, at least how she saw it.
So she took off then to gear up for the cold weather and settle in until Ashan came and she could, hopefully, track down Wendell before he made off with her money yet again. Having been shopping for clothes, weapons, food, and housing, now Freya needed money…
Common knowledge saw her to the docks where she could hopefully bribe an old man or two for a spot on their fishing vessel and fair pay when the breathing of a man saw her turn to face him with bright, golden eyes. She was shivering just as he was, the layers of fur and fabric doing nothing to alleviate Cylus’ cold embrace.
“Sorry?” She asked, wrapping her cloak tighter to her. The fur lined hood sat atop her head and concealed much of her face except her eyes, nose, and mouth. Something that looked like a scarf hung loosely outside the cloak, having been placed there to keep her face warm but yet, failing utterly.
When the stranger finished his explanation, Freya looked past him to the two figures in the distance, finding it hard to see theme at all. “A competition? Outside? In this weather?” Her disbelief was evident and her curiosity, piqued. “Is there money involved?”
If there was, she would join the man eagerly. If there wasn’t, her brow would furrow, “A competition isn’t rightly such without a wager.”

[Ricky]

Honestly a woman had been the last type of person Enrick would've considered asking for help, but since he was literally one person short of a team he had little choice. Besides even if she did seem a bit on the short side, the girl appeared to have a sturdy frame beneath her clothes. That much told Enrick that she wasn't some mere woman, always fraternizing with peers over men and their gold. Well... least not the men part anyways. When he indicated there to be a competition, as well as asked if she'd like to team up with him then she saw opportunity. It had even caught Enrick by surprise, once he noticed her eyes alight with different coloration.

What seemed to be avid gold eyes turned a pink color when she looked past to see the other two fisherman, and Enrick's own brows furrowed a little when he noticed them. She too was Biqaj? That could be the only explanation he knew of, a note he mentally saved for later as he provided a hearty grin. "Lass with these assholes, there's always money involved." He remarked as he readjusted his cloak to fold over his arms, even in this weather a shirt and a coat didn't seem to be enough, not when the cold wind had a habit of biting through the fabric.

"Hear that lads?" Enrick called out as his eyes changed from their turquoise hues to a brighter aquatic color. "Lass here will join in, so long as we get t' make bets along the way." He hollered to his peers with a look over his shoulder, one of the guys had been hammering his ice pick into the water, while the other cupped his hands around his mouth to respond.

"So long as she's game t' lose! She might as well stick with the winnin' team over here!"

"Yeah roi." Enrick muttered as he looked back down to her, a nod made for her to follow along with him. "C'mon, we get first catch an' they'll owe us already." As he said this the colors changed once more to a more brighter green hue, and somehow even within the cold he still found energy to run. With a quick kneel to grab his gear Enrick jumped off the docks and into the snow covered ice, a hand held up for the girl to catch when she'd drop down next to him. Whether or not she did use him to break her fall some, Enrick would push himself through the snow to make a trail for her to follow. Once they reached a spot several feet from the other two, he would then proceed to present the fishing gear to the girl with a warm grin.

"Here, hold this if ya don't mind. Know how t' set up a fishin' rod? All that y' need is there in the tackle box, I'mma see if I can't crack a spot open fer us t' fish from." He instructed as he moved a few steps from the lady, while he scooped yet more snow out of their little area. "Brrrr. Seven asses this shit is cold!" Enrick admitted as he finally reached the surface of the ice beneath, already the two boys seemed to have made their first fishing hole. "Hey!" He called out to them with a few heavy pants. "Let the lass here borrow one o' yer rods! Oi've only got de one."

"What?!" One of the fisherman looked a little offended by the demand.

"C'mon man, y' got an extra so just let 'er use it." He remarked with a brief wink shot to her as well. Enrick then bent into a lean with the ice pick raised, with a hard swing down made to try and break into the ice. The fisherman Enrick had spoke to earlier seemed to mutter incoherently within his scarf, likely in relation to the fact that it was his favorite rod and he intended to use it. Enrick had to almost hammer the tooth of the pick a few times before he got the damned thing to sink, and with a much satisfying crunch he managed to crack and pull apart a good chunk of ice.

"Go ahead and start fishin' here lass," He encouraged as he took another few steps away from the hole, "I'll git another made here in just a few ticks." After he said this he raised the ice pick up once more, only to stop and let it fall back to his side when he looked to the girl. "By te way, names Enrick. You?" When he said this Enrick held out a hand to compliment the greeting, and whether or not she shook his hand he'd return to the task of hacking away another opening right after.

[Freya DuCarinos]

○ Common ○ Rakahi ○ Pailtic ○ Hussian ○

It didn’t take long for Freya to recognize one of her own kind as she very openly watched his eyes shift in color while speaking with her. Though, there was no Rakahi accent in his voice, or very little of it if she listened well enough. So, to test, she gave a quick, fluent response in her native tongue.
“You’re of the Sea Tribes?” She asked the man, gauging his reaction.
He seemed excited by the encounter and his focus, completely invested in that of winning whatever competition lay before them. So it was understandable if the man didn’t comprehend her words.
Chuckling at the insults directed to his two other rivals, Freya’s features shifted to shock when he jumped off the dock without a care, only to stop short upon the surface of the frozen water. Oh, right, she thought, the lake is frozen… She could have covered her face in embarrassment as the realization struck her. Instead, she took the hand offered to her and leaped off the deck in a graceless fashion. The trafficker was no noble. Her mannerisms were absolute crud compared to the aristocracy Andraska lived within.
Rynmere… A place she’d happily go to if not for Wendell.
“Are they any good?” She asked in common this time, “I don’t like taking candy from a baby… Unless it’s mean.” One could expect the comment to be completely humorous, but Freya was entirely serious. Children were not her forte.
With things now in her grasp, the woman held onto the items and shivered while her comrade worked at clearing a path and getting down to the ice beneath them. Truth be told, this was the first time Freya ice fished…
“I know how to set a rod, but this is my first time. I’m not sure I’ll be any good at this.” When he winked at her, she smiled, then watched as he swung down and began to break away a piece of thick ice. The hue of her eyes tinged red before her focus tunneled in on setting the knot to the hook.
“What are we fishing for?”
Rummaging through his tackle box, Freya produced a hook the size that would be needed for whatever they were to catch. Then, digging her hands from the confines of her cloak, she set about weaving the line in such a way as to perform what she knew to be a Clinch Knot. Once the hook was set to the line, she didn’t hesitate to remove her glove and rummage even further for live bait.
Next to the tackle box was another smaller box of fish guts and other foul smelling things. Sticking her hand in, she pulled what she thought was enough and pierced it onto the hook before holding the rod out with a shiver, “This one’s ready.”
She noticed another approached her with intention of giving her an extra rod, something she thanked the man for with a pleasant smile before fixing that rod up too. The common man might think it odd that a woman dressed as she was had no issue handling foul things like she had. It was all in the days work and truthfully, Freya wanted to rob them all blind of their gold.
When her comrade offered her the broken hole to fish in, Freya thanked him, cleared a spot away to sit comfortably, then sat down and threw her hook into the water. Letting it sink, sink, sink… She paused the line and waited, her eyes glancing up at the stranger.
He seemed fit, hacking into the ice, and with Wendell having left her behind, she could only think what their relationship might be now: nothing. Revenge gripped her heart like the cold ice reaching for her flesh through her clothes. It had a will of its own; infectious and devoured what it wanted, whatever it was. There were ways she could hurt Wendell and right now, that’s all she wanted to do…
“Huh?” Freya questioned, looking up. “Oh… um.” Should she give her name? “Aphina.” The woman greeted, holding her own hand out and shaking it with a firm grasp.
“So, Enrick. How did you come to be in the middle of nowhere?” Freya joked, referencing Scalvoris. “I’m surprised there’s people here, to be honest. I thought this place was going to be a boneyard full of scabby infested inbreds.”

[Ricky]

Initially Enrick hadn't fully comprehended the words that were spoken, although he knew of their origin quite well actually. His father had taught him a little in the ways of Biqaj and their language, admittedly Enrick never really caught on very well as he grew older. Still he had heard Rakahi enough to recognize it and, to an extent, understood a portion of the language to get by nonetheless. Therefore when she asked him something of the sea, his eyes brightened to a silvery hue with intrigue. Briefly he looked to her with an eyebrow raised, and his attitude towards her became more receptive of how she interacted with the group in general.

She had hopped down as though she were any other person, almost as if she'd been just another one of the guys. Somehow Enrick liked that about her, even if they were total strangers that'd just met. A woman who didn't worry about etiquette and appearances, and would rather be herself freely without care, was the type of woman that Enrick tended to respect above all. "They're decent fishermen, nothin' we can't handle t'ough." He mused when they arrived at their little fishing spot.

"He's shit lass, y' better off fishin' with us!" One of the boys teased as they exhaled a white cloud with a grin.

"Piss off ya croons!" He hollered back with a laugh while Freya started to set up Enrick's fishing rod. "Trust me, t'ey're arseholes." He murmured with another glance cast her way, then came the time to break open the first hole for them to fish out of. When she admitted that she knew how to set up a rod, yet hadn't ever really done it before, Enrick chuckled during his hacking away for the first hole between them. Before too long when he had chipped away the sides and made a decent sized gap, he looked to her with aquatic eyes and a somewhat hidden smile. "Oi trust ya." He assured her as she seemed to be handling the process well anyhow.

"Generally sea bass 're de likeliest t' catch, whatever ya snag y' get t' keep as y' earned it." He told her as he puffed a few deep breathes before he started on the next hole, the first one left for her to utilize when she had finished priming the other rod handed over. "Good work lass." He commended her for her work, as she seemed rather capable of handling things other women wouldn't dare touch. Somehow Enrick felt this woman and he alike in a few ways, more than just their passed down heritage from the people of the sea quite honestly. "Aphina," He repeated when they finally greeted each other as people, "A name Oi'll not forget easily."

He tried to hide it but the change of his eyes would reveal it all too well, small flecks the color of magenta surfaced in the aquatic hues in their greeting. Rather quickly he'd focused more on the hacking with his ice pick, the second fishing hole now wide enough for him to fish out of. With his rod already baited thanks to Aphina, Enrick quickly released the reel to let the lure sink within his man-made hole. "His father brought 'em here, left 'em fer good no less!" One of the boys answered when she'd asked Enrick how he wound up here. "Us inbreds gotta stick together!"

"That's roi!" Enrick called out in response with another glance sent to Aphina. "Father was a sailor overseas, fell in love wit' me mum fer a time. She died later after givin' birth, so he raised me alone until Oi could take care o' myself."

"It's cause y' had that big head when ya were born," Another tease echoed from the others, "came out so big y' poor mumma couldn't handle all that weight."

"Least Oi developed more attractively, unlike yer ugly arse." Enrick retorted with a smirk shot to his teammate, though admittedly the bright aquatic hues had deepened to a darker shade of blue now. "How 'bout y' lass? How did one such as ye come t' find yer self on this frozen, scabby, inbred-filled island?" He teased her next with a soft grin as he looked more closely on his fishing line, determined to get the first bite before the other guys did.

[Freya DuCarinos]

○ Common ○ Rakahi ○ Pailtic ○ Hussian ○

Maybe calling them scabby, inbreds wasn’t the best thing to say around natives, Freya realized, and while they all teased her mildly, she couldn’t help but feel a ping of self consciousness as her thoughts strung this through her mind.
“I’m sorry,” She’s told with a small smile. “It’s been some time since I’ve had a conversation with someone rather than bickering or screaming at lazy sailors. I’ve been rude.” Though she was a wanted criminal, and a murderer, she was thus so because of the wrongdoings done against her and not because she was immoral or dishonorable. She was as respectable as she could be in her line of work.
Freya adjusted where she sat on the ground and stared at where the line was in her hole, listening to Enrick. So he’d lost his mother too? Her expression changed as her mind took hold and soon enough, she blurted, “I never knew my parents.” Pausing, she blinked then continued, “I mean, it’s nice to at least have one of your parents, after such an unfortunate thing.”
“I came in on The Rochester. It was a trading vessel from Rynmere that I thought was heading to Strosdyn. The accents here are unique from what I’ve typically heard so I didn’t realize my mistake until days into the voyage. Now that Cylus is upon us, I must remain until the ice clears and a ship departs west.” Freya’s sentenced died on the start of a roar of glee as their competition pulled from their hole a rather large pike.
Biting her lip, she looked back to Enrick and then her line, wondering if she’d used the right bait until Enrick’s line gave a firm tug.
“Oh! I think you have one!” Excitement caught her as she pointed. “Pull up, quickly!”
After he’d struggled with the fish, Freya would move to get more bait, all the while asking, “What would you consider some good sights in Scalvoris? I suppose I should know the place if I’m going to be here a while.”

[Ricky]

Aphina seemed to note that her late comment probably came off overly offensive, and thus rectified the notion with a short apology to follow it. However Enrick merely shook his head towards her with a soft grin on his face, a shrug to follow as he plainly watched her silver in his eyes now. "No harm done 'ere lass, ain't nothin' easily said d'at can offend us. Particularly t'em arse-holes over t'ere." He remarked with a short nod towards his fellow fisherman. "B'sides Oi can understand; bein' at sea wit' a bunch o' sailors couldn't be easy fer a lass like yer self." Enrick added while his smile eased just a little, still he seemed fairly content with the whole situation entirely.

"Yeah yeah, y'll be callin' us that when we' git the first bite!" One of them teased while they feigned getting snags, Enrick of course merely chuckled as he looked to his own line at that moment.

It sounded as though she were sort of like Enrick in regards to her parents, though admittedly Enrick had one in his life while Aphina didn't seem to have either. That itself had to be a difficult life to lead as Enrick, himself, found the concept hard to imagine on his own. Even if his own father left some time ago as per what sailors did, Enrick still had that figure in his life to look up to before he came of age. Aphina likely had nobody and struggled with that throughout her life, something he didn't like to think to be the case for someone as young and vibrant as she was. She explained that she'd boarded with the intent for safe passage to Strosdyn, but however wound up here in Scalvoris thanks to a misunderstanding on the accent island folk had. A bit of irony there as she had the misfortune of being frozen here now, yet provided Enrick the fortune of meeting her at the same time.

"Well... hopefully te company isn't so bad? Granted bein' frozen 'ere sucks, trust me Oi know it all too well." He tried to make a tough situation on her part seem less difficult, since she was after all out here fishing with them now instead of... Well whatever the little lady had planned to do in her time here. Part of him hoped she were having fun at least, and when he'd seemed too distracted by her he neglected something. His rod. He felt the tugs on the line a few times, but initially he didn't pay full attention until she seemed to point it out. He did have something nibbling on the end! "Oh shyte!!" He called out with a hefty tug up to snag whatever had bit, sure enough the rod sharply bent into a curve as he started to reel in the line. "First bite mates!!" The fisherman taunted with his eyes now a vividly bright coloration of green.

"Horse Bogs! Ye're fibbin'!!" One of his mates called out as they both looked to their little spot.

"She's a big 'un too!!" He continued to muse as he eased his rod forward to loosen the tension a little, he then proceeded to reel vigorously some more as he leaned a little backwards next. "Seven asses..." He muttered as he had to yet again relax the line for just a Trill, and then once more proceed to reel in the haul as a shadow stirred beneath the icy water. So close! By now he bit his lower lip and started to hold his breath, the cold in his body suddenly gone after having to eagerly wind up the coil for his reel. Splashes rose to the surface as he fished out a somewhat large sea bass, somewhere around the length of nine to eleven inches as he used his hands to pull up the rest of the line. "Roi 'ere boys!"

"Maaaan, fek off!"

"Tat's first catch mates, time t' pay up!" He called out to them with the fish brought further away from the hole, the two men seemed to grumble to one another then while he worked to remove the hook. It took them about a Bit's worth before they finally tossed a small sack over, the sound of coins clinked within as it slid the rest of the way between him and Aphina. "Go ahead and take yer share lass." He told her with a hearty grin on his face, while his eyes were once more a vivid aqua color when he spoke to her. "Same team remember? Ye get 'alf de booty." He remarked with a wink as the hook finally came out of the bass's mouth, the large scaly creature flailed and squirmed a little but soon became still on the ice. That was probably the only good thing about freezing cold, fish didn't spoil so quickly due to the nature of the weather at least.

[Freya DuCarinos]

○ Common ○ Rakahi ○ Pailtic ○ Hussian ○

To say the men were displeased with Enrick’s catch was an understatement. They were pissed and scowled the whole way over, only to toss the bag of coin on the ice, which nearly slid into Freya’s hole she’d abandoned to watch the catch. Quickly, the woman waddled in front of the hole, staying flat footed as not to fall on the ice herself. Then, positioning her feet, she caught the bag just in time with the arc of her foot before swooping down to grab the gold. It wasn’t much, but gold was gold and who in their right mind would pass that up.
When Enrick spoke of splitting it, Freya paused and turned towards him, holding the bag in her hand as if it was meant to be there. All of it. For a moment, it would look like she’d run off with the money, but then she turned towards the fellas who’d just catch something on their line as well and hollered over, “Hey!”
The two turned towards her with bewildered looks, having not expected Freya to call for them so loudly. “Whot?!” One hollered back, “Ain’t tha eno'ph gold fur yah?”
“Double the stakes!” She retorted. “First to three catches gets double the first wager!” She turned to look at Enrick with bright, golden eyes that sparkled with excitement as he took care of his catch. The look she made seemed to ask him with expression only if that was an acceptable move to make before an accented voice grabbed her attention.
“Oi!” He called, “Ya’r on!”
Freya could have laughed at how easily these men suckered themselves into wagering out more money for her to win. Instead, she put her own expertise to the test and pulled her rod out of the water, determined to earn the winnings.
From her previous experience on the open ocean of the Orm’del Sea, Freya realized that the more blood she put in the water, the bigger the fish were that would come. More often than not, it was the deadlier kind that would sell for more, and most of the time they were a bitch to catch, but this fishing event was a tad different.
So she tested her theory and poured some fish blood into the water from the bait container, watching and waiting for any movement below the surface. Her hopes were nearly crushed when she tossed pieces of gut into the water, only to watch them sink into the shadows. Frowning, Freya waited a few bits until the quiver of water made her throw more bait in to test. It disappeared quickly beneath the surface, leading Freya to bait her line quickly.
Once the guts were wrapped around the large hook and it was triple knotted for extra measure, the woman tossed the bait in and waited… waited…
“What the sard?” She cursed when several bits passed with no bits. “They were just biting..?” She frowned and slouched, hearing another holler from the men across them as they caught yet another fish.
“Sard!” Then, all at once, the line tugged as Freya nearly lost the handle of the rod. She was pulled forward, only to lean back with her body weight, repeating the action again and again until the line was reeled up nearly to the surface.
“Hah! Got one!” She expressed excitedly, dropping the fish into the snow only to kick its head in as to kill it, a habit taken from sailing and catching her meals.
“How are you doing? Getting anything?” She called over to Enrick while she wiggled the hook from the mouth of the bass she’d caught and looked over at him when attempting to rebait it. “I put blood in the water. I don’t know if it helps here but it did on the sea. So maybe Lady Luck will show to grant us double the coin, eh?” Grinning, she tossed the baited line back into the water. Now it was down to one more catch… who would win so much gold?

[Ricky]

Enrick watched as the coin pouch slid and nearly went into the water hole, his eyes widened as he clenched his jaw for a Bit. Aphina seemed to manage in catching it well enough though, and for that he found himself able to relax as he finished making sure his fish was set. Since he knew it wouldn't be going anywhere now, he went ahead and took another chunk of guts and wrapped it all around the hook. It was then Aphina pitched another idea to raise the stakes a little higher, to double the earnings if they were the first team to snag three fish.

At first Enrick looked from his hook to her with turquoise colored eyes, unsure as to whether or not the first bit of earnings were actually enough. Was she that dissatisfied with the coin they just got? When you thought about it they'd be walking away with a good profit, once they had caught a decent amount of fish that is. Maybe she just liked the competition? Or she just wanted to squeeze a little bit more out of the other fisherman. Sure enough the others seemed eager to accept, now that one of them seemed to have a line being reeled in on their side also. So they had one fish just as Enrick and Aphina had one, which meant they'd better get a move on if they were to win the second bet. "Seven asses lass, yer a wily one." He complimented with a slight shake of his head, however he couldn't help but smile at how the competition just heated up.

"She's a keeper Enrick!" One of the other men added in with a holler as Freya seemed to do something. She appeared occupied with the bloodied guts in the container, a little bit poured down into her water hole as she tried to avoid dumping guts inside as well. A vain effort at best. Enrick merely shook his head with a slight grin, unsure what that would accomplish other than feed the fish their bait. Was that the goal? She seemed eager to try it and see, her rod taken in hand once more as she sunk the baited hook down into the water below. Aaaaand.... nothing. She seemed to believe what she did would do something apparently, and the whole time this occurred all eyes were on her now. "Hey, lassie. I think ya just gave de fish a free meal." The others laughed to one another after the tease, while Enrick himself couldn't help but chuckle.

That's when it happened. Her line snapped hard as something tugged at her rod rather hard, a result that made all three men pause when they watched her. Did she just snag a fish?? You bet Chrien's ass she did! The second fish for their team soon found it's way into Freya's grasp, and the other two looked at one another in total surprise at what she just accomplished. "Niiice work lass!" He commented as he rose to a stand with the container of guts in his grasp, determined to try and see if her little trick actually worked the same on his end as well. The other two sure were eager to try it, since they were desperate not to lose anymore nel.

"Nothin' yet lass," He murmured as he tilted the container just a little, until a bit of the blood started to stream over the edge. Enrick tried his best to make sure the guts remained inside, since he didn't want to risk losing anymore bait then necessary. When he felt enough had been drizzled into the hole below, he retreated back a few steps with the container rested between him and Aphina once more. "Aye, we'll find out soon enough fer sure." He promised her with a grin as his eyes brightened once more to the aquatic color. It took a few Bits but the other guys seemed to snag something, their second fish which put up a decent amount of resistance before it surfaced. Right around that time Enrick felt tugs on his line once more, a sure tell sign that the bloodied waters attracted the hungry creatures below.

"I t'ink..." Enrick murmured as he readied his hands for another potential snag, sure enough he felt the tug become a pull and at that point, Enrick jerked his rod up to seal the deal on their third catch. "Got it!!" He called out with a cheer as he started to reel once more, after working to ease the line and reel it in he soon had his second catch of the Trial.

"Sarding hell mate!" One of the others swore loudly as Enrick laughed. "Quite the fisher she is, wonder what other tricks she's got up 'er sleeve."

"That's fer her t' know and us t' find out apparently." Enrick vouched as he pulled his fish up from the hole, this time though it looked as though his hook had been swallowed whole. An awkward situation. Regardless they won the second bet and the amount was to be double, a payment that Enrick could easily accept come the time for their competitors to pay up.

[Freya DuCarinos]

○ Common ○ Rakahi ○ Pailtic ○ Hussian ○

Freya would never be satisfied with what she had until she could physically swim in a bathhouse full of nothing but her gold. She’d often dreamt of material things, most of which were made completely out of gold to which her amber eyes would reflect with a kind of lust over. Her materialistic nature was one sprung from the destitution that was her life so many arc ago. Now, now things were different and she would hustle money from them until their pockets were cleaned dry.
It seemed Enrick knew better of her plans than the two she was aiming to rip money from, and while he’d complimented her, it appeared he wasn’t all too thrilled with the stakes now. Did he have no confidence in her knowledge of the sea? Of the profession? Did he have no confidence in his skill to win? Regardless of what he thought, she continued to move about with her own confidence that had all eyes on her.
"Hey, lassie. I think ya just gave de fish a free meal." The competition laughed her way, not understand that what she was doing was attempting to bait the water to pull in more fish. Even her own partner seemed to find humor in this which Freya quickly corrected with a pointed look towards him from narrowed eyes. While she waited for her line to tug, the biqaj pondered whether the waters here were different than in Ne’haer. She didn’t understand how different, but surely not so much as to prevent her from catching anything.
That was, until her line tugged hard and she pulled up with her strength, silencing the rest of the men and hollering a cry of excitement as she spun around to show Enrick her catch. It was a decent sized pike yanked from the hole and dragged onto the snow for her to kick.
"Niiice work lass!"
“Fishing is what I do on the sea. It’s how I’ve learned to live.” Freya responded with a bright smile, one that hadn’t been seen in several trials. “What of you? Do you fish for sport or is this your living too?”
The woman didn’t need to guide him when his line tugged, signaling the fish biting on the other end, as he pulled with an expertises that showed his experience with such a task. Instead, she watched as the splashing water spilled out over the ice, grasping at the snow around it until Enrick pulled forth a large fish that earn him a grin from Freya. Her golden eyes beamed at the other Biqaj, knowing soon enough that the wager had been won and they’d be leaving with a bit of money.
“Alright boys,” Her accent called, “Time to pay up.”
“Sarding hell,” One of them groaned, “You’ve got a handle der on that rod, ey?” The other joked lightheartedly as he caught the coin pouch Freya tossed his way and added in his share. Once the wager was collected, the pouch was tossed back as Freya then collected her half then passed it along to Enrick.
As she dropped the money in her pouch, she grinned to the men across from them, “Should we go for round three?”
“Oh, no, no!” The both responded in tandem, making the woman laugh outright.
“Alright then, heheh.”
It had been sometime since Freya felt this carefree and, given the past few seasons, it was nice to feel such a way for once. Homely… At that thought, her smile faded as as the two went back to their spot, Freya collected her things.
“You can have the fish I caught. I’m sorry, but I have to go.” She told, wrapping her cloak tighter. The look on Enrick’s face upon realizing she was leaving made the woman pause. “I… I’m at the Knight’s Rest should you care to meet again.” With a nod, she wandered off in the snow, heading for the icy shores.