'Master, it's time to get up, master. Master, please open your eyes.'
Cass groaned and then rolled over, turning away from the source of the noise. '5 more minutes.'
'No master, today is a fishing day, you need to get out of bed'
Cass rolled back over and opened his eyes, where he was greeted with the splendid morning view he was accustomed to. Luna, now 2 years older than when he first bought her, was smiling at him with her warm pink eyes full of affection.
She was wearing a typical Victorian-style maid dress, having chosen to wear her pink and black version, which she knew was her master's favourite. The black top half was laced up from midriff to chest with pink cord, and underneath was a white half apron tied around her waist.(picture)
The ensemble also had separate white cuffs with black cufflinks and a frilly pink headband. There was an opening at the base of the spine, where her silver tail protruted, and was swishing from left to right. Adeline had insisted that Luna have a custom and stylish uniform, saying that other nobles would look down on them if she wore an off-the-shelf model.
Cass smiled at her and greeted her, 'Good morning, Luna. I know I tell you every time I see it, but your pink and black uniform is my favourite.'
'Thank you, master, but now isn't the time for you to practise your flirting skills, now is the time to get changed' With slightly rosier cheeks than before, she placed his clothes for the day at the foot of his bed and headed towards the bedroom door. 'Food will be waiting for you in 10 minutes, master, please don't take too long'
After changing, heading downstairs and eating his breakfast, Cass sat on the stool near the entrance and pulled on his leather boots. After tying his laces and turning to leave, Luna called out to him while carrying a straw basket. 'I hope you have a good catch today, your master. Please fill this basket with fish, and when you return later, I will make salt-grilled fish for you to enjoy.
Cass took the basket, winked at Luna, softly placed his hand on her cheek and said, 'You are the best, Luna, I'll make sure to catch a few for you too'. He then walked out the front door and started making his way along the path towards the docks.
Upon arrival, he saw that Nimri was waiting for him and was also carrying a fish basket herself. 'Nimri, why do you have a basket too? You live next to the docks'
The catkin woman smiled and moved closer to him. 'We aren't going out on the boat today. Today we are going to the mouth of the river near the mountain.'
'What for?'
Spear fishing. Some of the fish that live in the ocean are returning upstream so they can lay their eggs. During this time of the year, they actually jump out of the water in some places so they can avoid the strong currents. Not only will their flesh be tasty, but they will also be full of eggs, so 2 meals in one fish, right? Get in the shed and get your spear, we will walk over when you are ready.'
After 20 minutes of walking, they arrived at the mouth of the river, and Cass noticed around 10 other people also standing near the water's edge. Many of them were standing spears ready, in an attempt to catch the migrating fish that Nimri had told him about. Cass remembered that, back on Earth,migrating fish were quite a common occurrence. He remembered watching a documentary once about how Salmon would do exactly this in order to lay eggs.
'Let's set up in the open area there, and let's try and fill our baskets today. Anything you catch today you can take home, we won't be smoking or selling these fish, they are a privilege only residents of our village can enjoy.'
They walked over to a vacant part of the riverbank and set down their baskets. Cass took his spear by the middle of the shaft and began checking it to make sure it was usable.
The shaft of the spear was nothing more than a simple wooden stick, which he had shaved down using a carving knife and then treated with seed oil. The head of the spear was a rounded iron eyelet attached to 3 sharp prongs, each with a hooked barb near the tip. The base of the spear had an iron end cap with a half ring on the bottom, around which was tied a thin braided rope. The rope extended about 2 metres and finished with a knot tied into a loop.
Happy with the spear, Cass pushed part of the rope back through the end loop, creating a slipknot, and wiggled his wrist inside. He then stood at the water's edge, where he observed several fish under the surface of the water.
'The rules here are really simple, Cass. One, you can only catch the fish when they jump; you can't spear the underwater ones. Two, only take what fits in your basket. And finally, to guarantee we don't fish too man, we are only allowed to come here every other day. These rules come directly from your father.'
Cass nodded his head in understanding and watched as Nimri raised her spear to head height, ready to throw. She took the form she had taught him for spear fishing, spear hand drawn back, off hand extended, and waited. A fish leapt out of the water with a splash, and almost immediately, the catkin woman's hands became a blur. The spear shot out and returned to her hands in the space of a single second, and a fish was wriggling on the end of it as she turned to show Cass.
The wriggling fish had shiny silver scales with brown spots, pink fleshy gills and transparent fins. Cass could immediately tell it was far plumper than the fish he had caught in the past, and guessed it must be because of the eggs inside. Nimri grabbed the fish, pulled it off her spear, and dropped it into he basket, It stopped wriggling soon after.
'You can clean the fish you catch at home, but be careful not to pierce any of the eggs if you intend to eat them. Have that wolfgirl maid of yours show you how to do it, she was here 2 days ago to learn about it from me. '
Cass was delighted to learn that Luna had come to learn how to clean these specific fish from Nimri. Firstly, because it showed she had built good relationships with some of the residents of the village, being able to ask them to teach her skills. Secondly, because she had learnt how to do it so that she could clean the fish that he was going to bring home, so that they could enjoy it together. Cass became even more determined to fill his basket after thinking about this.
'Stand a few metres more downstream, and get started. If you have any difficulties, you can ask me questions.'
'Ok great, thanks Nimri'
Cass stood at the water's edge, took his stance and waited. It did not take long for a fish to jump out of the water, and in his haste, Cass immediately launched his spear in the direction of the splash. Unfortunately, he hit nothing but air, and when the spear returned to his hand, he immediately readied himself again.
After he had missed about 3 more fish, he decided to adjust his tactics. When spear fishing underwater fish, he normally calculated the lead he gave them based on how shallow the water was and how fast they were moving; however, when they were out of the water, he needed to change the lead he gave to the airborne fish.
3 more failed attempts later, he finally managed to spear one. For the rest of the morning, he continued to miss fewer and fewer of them. Close to midday, around 80% of his throws were successful, and he soon had a basket full of fish.
On his way home, Cass stopped at the roadside and picked 3 small pink flowers that were growing and placed them in the basket on top of the fish. Upon entering the family manor ,he was greeted with 'welcome home, master' from a smiling Luna, who took the basket from him. She ran off towards the kitchen, blushing slightly.