[FIN] No Fear of Drowning [Private]

[Lucca]

Eldy, unlike Felix, had a much longer recovery time ahead of her. All that pushing at her wounded leg hadn't done her any favors, and she found she could barely move it the next day. She was, therefore, forced to limp towards slightly better shelter (a hotel that charged her an arm and a leg for an accessible room where she -couldn't- hear the damn lake water lapping against the shore) and wait out the injury with a sort of inborn stubbornness.

After over a week of bed rest and staring at way too many blue-painted walls, Eldy finally felt her leg was well enough to walk again. And because she was feeling so bitter towards Selkie Lake right then, you'd think the first thing she'd do would be to walk right out of the region and never look back.

Perhaps she was a little touched in the head from cabin fever or something, but instead, she decided to show the freakin' Lakes that they weren't the boss of her and she wasn't scared of a little water. (Even though she still rather was and it was silly to pick a fight with a lake). So she looked up one of those tourist sail boat rides. Right about when the boat left the dock, and Eldy was clutching the bright orange life vest and knowing it would do nothing to keep her afloat with the heavy iron ball attached to her leg, and the sailor in charge was laughing about how the black clouds brewing on the edge of the horizon were still too far away to worry about their safety, Eldy began to regret her decision.

[Lucca]

"I know it's lookin' a bit bad out there, but there's absolutely nothin' at all to worry about. I've sailed in much blacker skies than this, so there's no need to look so down there, any of you," the man working the sail said breezily to his four passengers. He was a bipedal Seagull, half Josiggy, with a tangled mane and an unlit cigar clamped in his beak.

Eldy said nothing, staring into the water over the edge of the boat and trying not to look at the clouds that had been steadily taking over the sky in the last half hour. She wasn't sure if the sailor was trying to reassure his passengers or himself. He may have been all bluster and confidence, but she could see the way his legs shook, the glances he kept giving the water off to their right, under those clouds.

She was sure she didn't look worried, but just in case, the Feline mostly kept her eyes down, away from the faces of those assembled. The boat felt cramped; too small and private to be shared among Cards that had never even met before today. Her stomach felt queasy from all the rocking, her eyes were stinging from the spray and the wind, and she was wondering who in their right mind had ever decided this was 'fun'.

Eldy had managed to tune out the constant prattling of the Seagull, who had started repeating himself at any rate, and was deeply and moodily involved in her own thoughts of how she couldn't wait until she felt dry land under her paws again when she realized someone had just said something to her.

She glanced up to see the face of one of the other passengers, a dotty-looking Corvie whose name she had the vague feeling might have started with 'M'. "Yes?" she asked, ear lifting up just slightly.

"I was just asking if you were all right. You're being so quiet and just staring at your paws!" M-something said in a voice that made Eldy want to roll her eyes. She refrained, and was just opening her mouth to reply that she as just fine, thank you, when there was a loud rumble.

Thunder.

Eldy's ear went back, fur beginning to stand on end as she glanced up to see that the sky above them was completely dark now, and the wind was picking up. A flash of lightning blinded her no more than a moment later, and she crouched down in the boat, as if she could hide from the storm that was suddenly on them.

And somehow, she found herself grateful that the Corvie was now ignoring her in favor of yelling at the Seagull about the storm he'd claimed wasn't anything of concern. She would have laughed if the situation didn't involve so much water.

[Lucca]

"Still nothing to worry about!" the Seagull was yelling over the sound of the wind and the near constant rumble of thunder. He was still grinning, or seemed to be in the brief flashes of sight afforded by the lightning. "I've sailed in far worse conditions before. Why, I remember the great hurricane that wiped out half of Midori. My ship was one of the few to come back safely into port!"

All eyes were on him as he turned the sail in a vain attempt to catch the wind. The other passengers were shouting (one, to Eldy's amusement, even saying he wanted his money back), but it was drowned out by the storm. Eldy was silent, but couldn't help noticing the Seagull hadn't really said that the ship he'd supposedly sailed through a hurricane had been a sailboat. Even with her small knowledge of the subject, she doubted a small little pleasure craft like this was made to get through something like...well, -this-.

A particularly vengeful gust of wind swept their way, forcing Eldy to shut her eyes and hunker further down in the boat as it rocked and swayed beneath her. At hearing an alarming ripping noise, though, her purple eyes widened and she looked up to see that their sail had practically been torn in half. Well that wan't good.

"Still think you can sail us out of here, Mr. Hurricane?" she mumbled bitterly, but her voice was lost in the wind and the sudden, driving rain that came out of nowhere, drenching everyone in the boat in seconds. She shivered, and reflected on how this had to be the most miserable situation she'd ever been in in her life.

Of course, she should have guessed that a thought like that would only lead to it getting worse. As the bolt of lightning arched down, almost gracefully, right towards the tattered remains of their sail and hit the mast with a fantastic crash of splintering wood, Eldy calmly thought, with detached interest, that even though she'd thought many times of her own death, she had never visualized it quite like this.

[Lucca]

Numb, cold, shivering, and feeling a sudden surety that she was about to die, Eldy watched the mast fall, ripping through the wood of the main part of the boat as well and making the water come rushing in. By now, everyone else was panicking, some trying desperately to row the boat to shore using the oars that had been stowed in it (as if they had any prayer of being successful with the whole damn thing falling apart around them) and some just throwing themselves into the water and swimming for shore.

The man who'd asked for his money back was just plain panicking and not being at all useful. Eldy sat there quietly, waiting for the inevitable...sure enough, when one particularly vigorous wave crashed against their boat, it finally splintered in half, and the waves made short work of it. The Feline tried to hold onto the timber, claws scraping at the wood as her heavy binding tried to pull her beneath the water, but she didn't get a very good hold, and another patch of choppy water flung her into the air.

She closed her eyes as she felt water all around her, and was surprised that she felt no fear. This was a fate she'd always dreaded, but now that it was upon her, she felt almost peaceful. I'm sorry, Mom...looks like I won't be there to help you with your new kids after all, she thought, as spots appeared in her vision and her lungs screamed for air.

She was barely conscious of strong arms grabbing her around the middle, and being pulled upwards. Death, she thought, had come for her.

[Lucca]

It was sheer chance that Felix had been there that day. He'd been delivering something for his mother, and instead of walking all the way home to take his afternoon nap, he stretched out in the sun on a public dock overlooking a large, popular lake, and fell promptly asleep.

The Porcupine didn't wake with the first crash of thunder. It was the cold rain, sudden and soaking, that finally started him back to wakefullness. Blurrily, he looked around, trying to remember where he was and discern what was going on. His eyes were drawn out to the lake.

He let out a low whistle. "Hoo, that's quite the storm." He hummed as he pushed himself up, stretching stiff muscles. That was when he thought he heard shouting, over the wind. Was someone actually out on the water in this mess? He moved to the end of the dock, squinting out past the driving rain. It was a sailboat. Or, more correctly, it had been a sailboat. The boat had been struck by lightning, and it was in the process of becoming splinters. It was one of the boats the tourists all liked to sail on. He even recognized the captain.

Felix frowned, wondering if they'd all make it to shore. They were fairly close, after all. No more than ten feet out. Something caught his eyes, clinging to one of the pieces of boat that was suddenly thrown up in the air, and his heart skipped a beat as he caught a better look.

No. Way. It couldn't be. But it was.

Eldryia. The Feline who'd yelled that she'd never set foot on a boat. Who had just gone under, and the life vest wasn't keeping her afloat, not with that heavy metal ball. Apparently, he thought, it wasn't enchanted to float like Horatio's had been. There was no time to think, only act, and Felix moved with surprising speed, diving into the water.

He knew he could get to her...he had to. She was even closer to shore than she knew, in fact. The water near her was probably not all that deep. Just deep enough to drown in.

She was heavy, but Felix had Selkie bulk, undeveloped as it was, on his side, and though he couldn't swim with her, he was able to reach the bottom and pull her along toward shore. When his head broke the surface he took a huge breath, coughing and sputtering and holding her up above him. He set her down on the shore, panting.

"Eldryia?" She was still, but when his paw fumbled at her neck, he found her pulse. She must have swallowed water, he realized suddenly, and did his best imitation of CPR.

[Lucca]

Pain. Mostly in her chest. She couldn't breathe...she pitched forward, coughing violently, nearly gagging on the water that she'd taken in. Her heart was pounding, a dull thud that made her numb limbs throb. Wait, that wasn't right. Wasn't she supposed to be...dead? Hadn't she drowned? She coughed more, harder, and finally her lungs felt clear and she took in a gulp of air.

She couldn't be dead...if she were dead there should't be any more pain, right? If she were dead she shouldn't be able to be having these thoughts right now. Purple eyes blinked open, and she looked around blearily. The world was blurry and bright and she shut her eyes again with a hiss.

That was when she heard a voice...an oddly familiar voice, but she couldn't place it. It was saying her name...the tone was worried and hopeful all at once. Eldy squinted her eyes open again, just a sliver of the way...and saw something furry. Blue and white. Odd, long fur on his back, too. Wait...not fur...spikes.

Ignoring the pain, her eyes flew all the way open in surprise. She pointed a paw at him, but for a moment the words wouldn't come. "Y-you!" Her voice sounded hoarse, and she had to fight down the sudden urge to cough again. "You saved me..." She didn't know how she knew it had been him, but she knew. The coincidence would have been too great otherwise. He'd saved her despite all the things she'd said to him earlier, despite that she'd attacked him...it didn't make sense, like a puzzle piece that wouldn't fit.

[Lucca]

Felix had no idea the amount of time that passed...how long he bent over her still body, trying to get her to cough up the water that was in her lungs. It felt like an eternity, and when she finally took a breath, the Porcupine felt tears of relief on his face. "Eldryia?" he said, sitting up slightly, golden eyes wide and hopeful. "Can you hear me?" There was no answer but a hiss, but that somehow made him feel better. Something in him lightened. Something he hadn't realized was heavy before now.

Felix finally felt...better. Anything he had done the other night, anything he'd done to annoy her during their first meeting...he'd made up for it. He backed up slightly as he heard the almost accusing tone, paws raised in supplication, but at the follow up, he relaxed. "Hey, uh, don't mention it. Least I could do, after the other night. I'm sorry for that, by the way..." He rubbed the back of his neck, meeting her eyes hopefully. At this point, he'd be at peace about the situation even if she told him to leave and never come near her again...but there was still a part of him that hoped he hadn't completely lost the chance to make a new friend.

[Lucca]

Eldy frowned up at Felix. He really -was- stupid. Why was he apologizing? She'd been the one in a pissy mood...she'd been the one who scratched him. What a moron. And yet...and yet, he'd saved her. Her ear flattened, and she gathered what little dignity she had to push herself to her wobbly limbs, refusing the offered paw from the Selkie.

She was quiet for a moment. She should just walk away. But...she was wet, and cold, and part of her would feel really bad for just giving her savior a cold shoulder after all that. "Hey, Felix..." she asked hesitantly, not quite meeting his eyes. "I...thank you. I...I was wondering if...the offer of a place to stay the night still stood..." She felt her cheeks heat up. She really was socially retarded. After the way she'd treated him, the last thing she should be doing was inviting herself back to his house...

[Lucca]

Felix's smile slowly fell as the only response to his heartfelt apology was a frown. Seeing her struggle to get up, he offered her his paw, but she didn't accept it. He...wasn't surprised. Her hostility was now becoming a constant in their relationship, if he could even really label their interactions as such. Still, he sat, paws together, dripping wet and patient.

He fully expected her to walk away, to turn her back and walk out again. But she didn't. Surprise. Joy. Felix's eyes lit up and he stood. "Of course it does! The house is always open for those who need it. We can go there now if you want, it's dry and I know we have plenty of towels and blankets. My Mom'll cook us a nice, hot meal..." He stopped just short of offering to take her somewhere instead if she'd prefer that; something told him he should tread carefully. It may have seemed like Eldryia had a change of heart, but if he said the wrong thing she might go back to hissing at him.

"Come on, Dryia," he said happily, and turned to lead her back to his house, looking back to wait until he knew she was following.

[Lucca]

Felix, Eldy decided, was dumb as a brick, and with all the subtlty of one, as well. He was a low, black Suit, and he said the stupidest things imaginable. Not to even mention his funky...spike...things. But somehow...somehow all the mattered less, now. Funny how a near-death experience could suddenly put things in perspective. Besides, Felix was also nice. And maybe being truly, honestly nice in this world took a healthy dose of dumb. The world needed more dumb-nice people, if that were truly the case.

"All right, sounds good," Eldy said, unable to really put any feeling behind the words. She was tired, so tired, and she hoped a hot meal and a dry place to lie down would help with that. She shivered, soaked to the bone, and it was -still- raining, though not as heavily as before. She spared a brief thought for the others that had been on the boat, hoping they all made it to shore...except perhaps for the obnoxious jerk who seemed to think money was more important than his life. He could maybe do with some near death experiences, or actual death experiences, because the world did not need any more Cards like -that-.

Eldy trudged along behind the Porcupine, her binding dragging heavily as she simply didn't have the energy to compensate for it. She didn't even have the energy to be very amused at the fact Felix still lived with his parents. After all, who was she to judge something like that? She'd never not lived with her Mom.

Finally, after what seemed like hours of endless wet and cold and rain, they reached the house. It looked homey and comfortable, two floors and a balcony, but Eldy wouldn't have cared what it looked like, because as soon as Felix opened the door and she smelt fresh bread and felt a near explosion of dry warmth, she couldn't be sure she hadn't actually died, because this was heaven.